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In this third and final report on quantitative methods, I focus on academic community: what we do, what we call ourselves, and why this is a matter of importance for the entire discipline of geography, but especially quantitative human geographers. I first highlight the increasingly diverse ways in which quantitative methods community is produced and manifested, before turning to the shifting, ever-expanding, and overlapping names and labels used to define this group. I argue that, although there is ample evidence that the quantitative methods community is thriving, there is also a growing disconnect from the sub-discipline of quantitative human geography. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this commentary we reflect on the potential and power of geographical analysis, as a set of methods, theoretical approaches, and perspectives, to increase our understanding of how space and place matter for all. We emphasize key aspects of the field, including accessibility, urban change, and spatial interaction and behavior, providing a high‐level research agenda that indicates a variety of gaps and routes for future research that will not only lead to more equitable and aware solutions to local and global challenges, but also innovative and novel research methods, concepts, and data. We close with a set of representation and inclusion challenges to our discipline, researchers, and publication outlets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this second report on quantitative methods, I consider the foundational triumvirate that underpins the sub-discipline: data, methods, and theory. I argue that, although 'big data' and, more recently, 'big code' may have captured the limelight, theory is invaluable and should not be disregarded. Showcasing the integral role of theory in quantitative human geography, I identify three kinds of useful theory (old school, enduring and conceptual) and, along the way, highlight beneficial ways in which they contribute to our thinking about data and methods. Throughout, I emphasize that theory is a crucial component of contemporary and future quantitative methods development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Decisions about sensor placement in cities are inherently complex, balancing social-technical, digital, and structural inequalities with the differential needs of populations, local stakeholder priorities, and the technical specificities of the sensors themselves. Rapid developments in urban data collection and geographic data science have the potential to support these decision-making processes. Focusing on a case study of air-quality sensors in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, UK, we employ spatial optimization algorithms as a descriptive tool to illustrate the complex trade-offs that produce sensor networks that miss important groups—even when the explicit coverage goal is one of equity. We show that the problem is not technical; rather, it is demographic, structural, and financial. Despite the considerable constraints that emerge from our analysis, we argue the data collected via sensor networks are of continued importance when evidencing core urban injustices (e.g., air pollution or climate-related heat). We therefore make the case for a clearer distinction to be made between sensors for monitoring and sensors for surveillance, arguing that a wider presumption of bad intent for all sensors potentially limits the visibility of positive types of sensing. For the purpose of monitoring, we also propose that basic spatial optimization tools can help to elucidate and remediate spatial injustices in sensor networks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this report, I address the timeless topic of uncertainty. Quantitative methods are in flux and uncertainty provides a useful vantage point for assessing these changes. I draw particular attention to two forces at odds with each other: on the one hand, innovative methods and data that allow researchers to embrace uncertainty, and on the other, recent trends towards deliberate amplification of uncertainty, in the form of differential privacy methods which potentially limit our capacity for measuring and understanding the world around us. I close by highlighting some implications for users and producers of quantitative methods and data in geography. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a central component of the smart city, sensor infrastructures locate and measure a wide range of variables in order to characterise the urban environment. Perhaps the most visible expression of the smart city, sensor deployment is a key equity concern. As new sensor technologies and Big Data interact with social processes, they have the potential to reproduce well‐documented spatial injustices. Contrary to promises of providing new knowledge and data for cities, they can also create new gaps in understanding about specific urban populations that fall into the interstices of data collection – sensor deserts. Building on emerging data justice debates, specifically considering distributional, recognition, and procedural forms of injustice, we conceptualise and analyse sensor deserts through two case studies, Newcastle's Urban Observatory (UK) and Chicago's Array of Things (USA). Open sensor locations are integrated with small‐area, socio‐economic data to evidence the demographic configuration and spatialities of sensor deserts across each city. We illustrate how the structural processes via which inequality is reinforced by smart agendas manifest as uneven social and spatial outcomes. In doing so, the paper opens up a new conceptual space in which to consider what it means (not) to count in the smart city, bringing a demographic perspective to critical debates about smart urbanisms. Contrary to promises of providing new knowledge for cities, smart city sensor technologies can create new gaps in understanding about urban populations that fall into the interstices of data collection – sensor deserts. Building on data justice debates, we conceptualise and analyse sensor deserts in two case studies, Newcastle's Urban Observatory (UK) and Chicago's Array of Things (USA), using small‐area socio‐economic data. We illustrate how the structural processes via which inequality is reinforced by smart agendas manifest as uneven social and spatial outcomes, bringing a demographic perspective to critical debates about smart urbanisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The term ‘left behind’ has come to connote political disaffection, alongside social and spatial inequalities in wealth and opportunity. Yet the term is also widely contested, often prioritising a regional and economic perspective at the expense of a more local and nuanced approach. In response, we argue that neighbourhood context is integral to understanding and identifying ‘left behind’ places. Building a neighbourhood classification of ‘left behindness’ for England, we evaluate the extent to which the neighbourhood trajectory contributes to our understanding of a range of multidimensional individual‐level outcomes. Our findings reveal a geography of neighbourhoods that are systematically disadvantaged over time, concentrated in major urban conurbations, and post‐industrial and coastal towns. The magnitude and impact is highlighted through poorer economic, health, social and political outcomes for those living in ‘left behind’ areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although the effects of urban shrinkage on quality of life and the built environment have received a great deal of attention, the characteristics of those experiencing these impacts have been much less studied. This is ironic, as urban shrinkage or depopulation is by nature a demographic phenomenon: city sizes evolve precisely because people move in and out, are born, and die. Moreover, the demographic processes that contribute to shrinking cities—out-migration and death—are selective and so they also govern who remains behind in cities as they shrink. It is this latter group that is the focus of this research. The analysis contributes to the literature on shrinking cities through its novel consideration of community-level exposure to depopulation. In particular, it investigates who is impacted by loss; the extent to which population loss is experienced disproportionately across urban space and demographic subgroups; and whether decline occurring at multiple spatial scales magnifies exposure for some groups more than others. Findings show that, at both city and census tract levels, demographic characteristics of growth and loss areas are different and, at all levels, some groups are more likely than others to be living in a loss-impacted area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

How academic disciplines are represented and reproduced is a charged issue. In geography in particular, the challenge is not only who counts, especially with regard to gender and other factors, but also how the boundaries of the discipline are drawn and which subfields are acknowledged. This article contributes to both aspects of the discussion by extending recent research on gender, internationalization, and academic gatekeeping to additional subfields of human geography. In particular, we focus on the demographic structure and international diversity of the editorial teams of flagship quantitative geography journals. We find that women are underrepresented in our sample, with shares ranging from 23.1 to 43.5 percent—numbers unfortunately comparable to many other geography journals. We also find that career stage is an important factor and that our sample is more international and less Anglophone than the disciplinary norm. We conclude by emphasizing the importance of attending to issues of inclusive gatekeeping in geography and elsewhere. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Editing a journal is a privilege. It is beyond the scope of this special issue, but it would be interesting to compare these perspectives to those included here, at the 50-year mark (i.e., Franklin 2020; Griffith 2020; Murray 2020; Rey 2020). As of 2020, I GA i has the highest share of women in editorial positions of any peer journal (Franklin et al. 2020), but as Table 2 makes clear, this is an ongoing process, commenced long ago by previous editors. The main event: the 50th anniversary special issue Stemming from the sessions in New Orleans, I issued an open invitation to participants to formalize and submit their thoughts as contributions to a 50 SP th sp anniversary special issue, either as traditional papers or shorter commentaries. [Extracted from the article]

In this commentary, I reflect on geographical analysis as it enters middle age, focusing on what I perceive to be central elements—for both field and journal—of past growth and development, as well as future robustness and potential. My particular interest lies in evaluating "geographical analysis" as it stands today, taking the journal as one proxy for the larger field, and placing this within a wider context of quantitative human geography. As with any set of perspectives, mine are idiosyncratic and the product of a particular experience at a particular time. To make my case, I draw on manuscript citation histories from Geographical Analysis, my interpretation of recent developments in the discipline, and of course the insights of others who have plowed these pastures before me. I close by offering some thoughts about the future directions of our field and our journal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During the last 15 years, there has been growing interest in the field of spatial demography (e.g., Raymer et al. [7]). Ever since, sessions on population and migration have been a stalwart component of virtually all regional science conferences - providing many innovations and insights into the study of spatial population dynamics. The rapidly evolving big data environments and new techniques to study space-time processes offer much scope, although there are pitfalls (see Cesare et al. [2]). [Extracted from the article]

In his presidential address to the Regional Science Association over thirty years ago, William Alonso presented the case for “Five Bell Shapes in Development” and argued that “the developed countries will enter fully in to the realm of the right-hand tail of these curves” (p. 16) and that this transition might result in several surprises. He proposed, therefore, that we should study the right tail of these “curves” as well as interactions among them. Much of what Alonso suggested has come to pass, although his prognostications were not always exact. And although he touched on several issues of relevance to regional scientists, the discipline has been slow to move away from a growth-centered paradigm. The strength of regional science—the capacity to consider economic, demographic, and geographical aspects of an issue simultaneously—has yet to be focused on some of the “right-hand” challenges that have arisen, population loss, for example. In this article, we provide a review of regional science research within the context of Alonso’s five bells and hypothesize how Alonso’s propositions might differ in today’s world. We then focus more specifically on one particular area: population loss. Using these examples allows us to highlight how regional science might contribute to the conceptualization of “right-hand tail” development challenges, especially where theory, issues of spatial scale, and interregional dependencies are concerned. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bipolar disorder (BD) is a debilitating and difficult-to-treat psychiatric disease that presents a serious burden to patients' lives as well as health care systems around the world. The essential diagnostic criterion for BD is episodes of mania or hypomania; however, the patients report that the majority of their time is spent in a depressive phase. Current treatment options for this component of BD have yet to achieve satisfactory remission rates. Lurasidone is a drug in the benzisothiazole class approved by the US Food and Drug Administration in June 2013 for the acute treatment of bipolar depression. Its pharmacological profile features high-affinity antagonism at D2, 5-HT2A, and 5-HT7 receptors; moderate-affinity antagonism at α2A-adrenergic receptors; low- to very low-affinity antagonism at α1A-adrenergic, α2A-adrenergic, H1, M1, and 5-HT2C receptors; and high-affinity partial agonism at 5-HT1A. Preliminary findings from two recent double-blinded clinical trials suggest that lurasidone is efficacious in treating bipolar I depression, with clinical effects manifesting as early as the first 2-3 weeks of treatment (as measured by the Montgomery-Åsberg Depression Rating Scale and Clinical Global Impressions Scale for use in bipolar illness). Its therapeutic benefit appears to be comparable to the current US Food and Drug Administration-indicated treatments: quetiapine and olanzapine-fluoxetine, according to a measure of effect size known as number needed to treat. These studies reported relatively limited extrapyramidal and metabolic side effects as a result of treatment with lurasidone, with the most common side effect being nausea. Safety data drawn from these studies, as well as a more extensive body of schizophrenia research, indicate that in comparison with other atypical antipsychotics, treatment with lurasidone is less likely to result in metabolic side effects such as weight gain or disturbances of serum glucose or lipid levels. Lurasidone holds clinical potential as a novel, efficacious pharmacological treatment for bipolar depression. However, current data on its use for the treatment of BD are limited, and more extensive research, both longer in duration as well as independently conducted, is needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Continuous glucose monitoring ( CGM) is used in people with type 1 diabetes to help with insulin treatment regimens. Its value in whole-organ pancreas transplantation ( PT) is largely unknown. This study aimed to use CGM to assess the metabolic profile of pancreas transplant recipients in the early post-transplant period. We studied CGM data in 30 PT recipients and related findings to an early oral glucose tolerance test ( OGTT). Complete data were available for 26 recipients. Seven days after a PT, normoglycaemia was present 77.9% of the time. Hypoglycaemic events (glucose <3.9 mmol/l) occurred in 10 of 26 (38.5%) of the cohort, but were infrequent (present 1.4% of the time). Hyperglycaemia (glucose >7.8 mmol/l) was present for 20.7% of the study period and correlated with a diagnosis of abnormal glucose tolerance. Whilst normoglycaemia is successfully achieved for the majority of the time after PT, hypoglycaemia can occur. Hyperglycaemia is more common and correlates well with the early postoperative OGTT, which is associated with graft failure. CGM is easier to perform and provides 24-h data that could inform clinical decision-making in patients in the postoperative period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Livability has risen, alongside sustainability, as a guiding principle for planning and policy. Promoted as the more tangible of the two concepts, livability shapes public perception and infrastructure investments in cities, as well as competition among cities for the attention of the public, investment communities, and potentially fickle and mobile human capital. This paper takes stock of the current discourse on livability, identifies two central elements that have yet to shape the assessments of livability and policies to promote it, and explores strategies for research and practice to transform the livability concept, and with it the places in which the lives and livelihoods of people unfold. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Population geography has a long, rich tradition of research in migration, the only demographic component of change that is, by its nature, spatial. In the United States, in particular, migration research has often emphasized the importance of flows: the size and directionality of movement of individuals from place to place, often with an emphasis on the characteristics of place or individual or both. This paper is situated within that literature but focuses on a relatively small geographic area--New England--and studies the migration behavior of a particular demographic: new college students. Using 2008 data from the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), this research evaluates the migration of first-year students within the New England states, but also investigates patterns of movement in and out of the region. In addition, total migration flows are disaggregated by type of destination school. By pairing the migration data with institution rankings, the analysis shows how flows to highly-selective colleges and universities differ from flows to other types of institutions. This captures the extent to which in-migration to and within New England states is related to the quality or selectivity of the higher education institution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Student racial and ethnic diversity in higher education is an important and timely topic, as institutions, policy makers, and economists increasingly recognize the value that accrues at many levels of having a skilled and diverse student body and workforce. Students benefit from learning in a diverse environment; firms may benefit from a diverse workforce; and more demographically diverse regions may experience higher rates of economic growth. However, the forces governing institution-level student diversity are poorly understood, as little prior research on the topic exists. This paper uses school enrollment data to parse out the contribution of institutional characteristics, geographical setting, and local demographic characteristics to student body diversity at each level of study. Results indicate that geographical location and local demographic composition play a role in student body diversity, as do the type and orientation of the institution. Institutional characteristics explain a lot of the variation in student body diversity and actual location of schools matters less than the demographic composition of young people around that location. Two broad conclusions emerge with regard to schools seeking to increase their student diversity. First, some may find their efforts hampered by circumstances outside their control (e.g., location). Second, the influence of public/private status and even school size suggests further research on the ways in which these factors influence student diversity so that eventual policy action can be more effective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT This paper investigates the interplay between nativity and both homeownership and foreclosure in Miami-Dade County, Florida at both the individual and community levels. We estimate the likelihood of individual-level home ownership based on place of birth and year of entry to the U.S., and separately estimate community-level foreclosures based on the demographic composition of neighborhoods. Results confirm previous work: all subgroups, except Cubans, are less likely to be homeowners than white, non-Hispanics and only Cuban neighborhoods had foreclosure rates significantly lower than rates in white, non-Hispanic neighborhoods. Nativity has a stronger effect on homeownership than on foreclosure levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Borrowing from the Kuznets curve literature, researchers have coined the term “environmental Kuznets curve” or EKC to characterize the relationship between pollution levels and income: pollution levels will increase with income but some threshold of income will eventually be reached, beyond which pollution levels will decrease. The link between the original Kuznets curve, which posited a similar relationship between income and inequality, and its pollution-concerned offspring lies primarily with the shape of both curves (an upside-down U) and the central role played by income change. Although the EKC literature has burgeoned over the past several years, few concrete conclusions have been drawn, the main themes of the literature have remained constant, and no consensus has been reached regarding the existence of an environmental Kuznets curve. EKC research has used a variety of types of data and a range of geographical units to examine the effects of income levels on pollution. Changes in pollution levels might also be at least partly explained by countries’ position in the demographic transition and their general population structure, however little research has included this important aspect in the analysis. In addition, few analyses confine themselves to an evaluation for one country of the long-term relationship between income and pollution. Using United States CO2 emissions as well as demographic, employment, trade and energy price data, this paper seeks to highlight the potential impact of population and economic structure in explaining the relationship between income and pollution levels. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The collection, dissemination, and availability of migration data for the United States are poised for an enormous change: the full-scale launch of the American Community Survey (ACS). The ACS is set to replace the long-form sample data previously collected as part of the decennial census. For migration researchers, the new survey offers the possibility of more frequently gathered migration data at a variety of spatial scales, along with annual information about the characteristics of migrants themselves. As with any shift in a data-collection process, however, the ACS could, in some aspects, fall short of what we already have. In this article, the authors first suggest elements of the ideal migration data set. They then examine the real potential, and the possible perils, of the ACS as compared to migration data researchers are already accustomed to working with. In addition to highlighting what the new ACS will (and will not) offer the authors suggest that now is the time for regional scientists to address their basic migration data needs and to take action to ensure those needs are met. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper applies shift-share analysis, a tool often used in economic geography and regional science, to regional fertility change in Italy, 1952-1991. During this post-World War II period, Italian fertility declined by over 33 percent, but the decline varied widely from region to region. Moreover, the demographic originations of the decline in births are not fully understood. Using birth data for nineteen Italian regions, this analysis is able to break regional change in births into three main components: a national effect, a cohort effect, and a regional differential effect, which in turn provide insight into the roots of fertility change at the regional level. These three components of change are then further disaggregated to account for the differences between changes due to population change and those related to actual changes in birth rates (the number of children produced by each woman). Strong regional differences between the north and south of Italy are demonstrated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Air pollution has been recognised as a potential risk factor for dementia. Yet recent epidemiological research shows mixed evidence. The aim of this study is to investigate the longitudinal associations between ambient air pollution exposure and dementia in older people across five urban and rural areas in the UK. Methods: This study was based on two population-based cohort studies of 11329 people aged ≥ 65 in the Cognitive Function and Ageing Study II (2008–2011) and Wales (2011–2013). An algorithmic diagnosis method was used to identify dementia cases. Annual concentrations of four air pollutants (NO2, O3, PM10, PM2.5) were modelled for the year 2012 and linked via the participants' postcodes. Multistate modelling was used to examine the effects of exposure to air pollutants on incident dementia incorporating death and adjusting for sociodemographic factors and area deprivation. A random-effect meta-analysis was carried out to summarise results from the current and nine existing cohort studies. Results: Higher exposure levels of NO2 (HR: 1.04; 95% CI: 0.94, 1.14), O3 (HR: 0.90; 95% CI: 0.70, 1.15), PM10 (HR: 1.17; 95% CI: 0.86, 1.58), PM2.5 (HR: 1.41; 95% CI: 0.71, 2.79) were not strongly associated with dementia in the two UK-based cohorts. Inconsistent directions and strengths of the associations were observed across the two cohorts, five areas, and nine existing studies. Conclusions: In contrast to the literature, this study did not find clear associations between air pollution and dementia. Future research needs to investigate how methodological and contextual factors can affect evidence in this field and clarity the influence of air pollution exposure on cognitive health over the lifecourse. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Proteomic genotyping uses genetically variant peptides that contain single amino acid polymorphisms to infer the genotype of corresponding non-synonymous SNP alleles. We have focused on hair proteins as a source of protein-based genetic information in a forensic context. An optimized sample processing protocol for hair shafts has been developed for use on a single hair that allows us to conduct validation protocols on real world samples. This includes whether the inferred SNP genotypes are robust and not systematically affected by biological or chemical variation in hair proteomes that might be obtained from a crime scene. To this end we analyzed the hair of 4 mature individuals with a mixture of pigmented and non-pigmented hair. We demonstrate significant changes in the proteomes of grey versus pigmented hair. Vesicle specific proteins and lipid catabolism proteins were enriched in pigmented hair, and housekeeping proteins and lipid anabolic enzymes were enriched in grey, non-pigmented hair. The resulting profiles of genetically variant peptides, however, were more correlated with profiles from the same individuals regardless of pigmentation status. Together with other published evidence, this finding indicates that profiles of genetically variant peptides are robust and more correlated with other genetically variant peptide profiles from the same individual irrespective of changes occurring in the hair protein profile. Based on this small sample, investigators using profiles of genetically variant peptides to infer random match probabilities should not expect to observe differences based on the pigmentation of the hair shaft. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Urban inequality and demography are inextricably linked. Inequality measures capture differences in access, outcomes, and characteristics for urban populations, and changes to these metrics are the result of underlying demographic change, which is in itself an unequal process. In this paper, we address the demographic transformation occurring across US metropolitan areas in recent years and evaluate the extent to which population change—a key index of economic opportunity and well-being—has been underpinned by the foreign born. In particular, our interest lies with shrinking and at-risk-of-shrinking metropolitan and micropolitan areas and the degree to which immigrants have impacted population change. We decompose foreign-born population contributions by place of origin, linking origin and destination geographies and also focus more specifically on the connections between city-suburb growth patterns and the role of the foreign born by place of birth. We find evidence that urban population loss is accompanied by increases in the foreign born, resulting in substantial transformation of the population composition of both central cities and outlying, suburban areas. Furthermore, we find that a number of areas avoided population loss during our study period, solely through net increases in the foreign born. Our findings are important from an urban inequality standpoint, suggesting an important role for the foreign born in mediating inter-city inequality, but also highlighting the need for strong policy responses that focus on the long-term integration and provision of services for these groups in order to mitigate the potential for increased inequality within and across these areas. • Foreign-born contribution to US population growth applies also to shrinking areas and is often a factor preventing or mediating the extent of loss. • Urban population loss doesn't mean that places are simply the same but smaller: depopulation is accompanied by demographic transformation. • The positive effects of immigration generally ascribed to growing metro areas may also hold for shrinking areas. This merits further study. • The central role of the foreign born in shrinking areas indicates their importance for these areas in coming years. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Older people are increasingly being referred for consideration for pancreas transplantation (PT). We investigated the outcomes after PT in our older recipient cohort. A prospectively maintained database was interrogated. The cohort was analysed for associations between outcome and older recipient age. A total of 444 transplants were performed in patients aged 23–54 years and 83 transplants in patients aged 55–67 years. There was no difference in death‐censored pancreas or kidney graft survival between the groups. Patient death was associated with older recipient age (HR 1.63 per 10‐year increase). In multivariate Cox regression, risk of mortality was also associated with post‐transplant myocardial infarction (HR 7.25, P = 0.006), pancreas failure (HR 1.91, P = 0.003) and kidney failure (HR 3.55, P < 0.001). About 40% of recipients who died in the first year post‐transplant suffered early graft loss. Those alive at a year post‐transplant had inferior survival if they had lost their kidney graft (P < 0.001). Mortality is higher in older patients and is strongly associated with pancreas and kidney graft failure. This suggests that pancreas transplantation is feasible in older recipients, and careful selection of donor organs is important to optimize survival. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While population growth has been consistently tied to decreasing racial segregation at the metropolitan level in the United States, little work has been done to relate small-scale changes in population size to integration. We address this question through a novel technique that tracks population changes by race and ethnicity for comparable geographies in both 2000 and 2010. Using the Theil index, we analyze the fifty most populous metropolitan statistical areas in 2010 for changes in multigroup segregation. We classify local areas by their net population change between 2000 and 2010 using a unique unit of analysis based on aggregating census blocks. We find strong evidence that growing parts of rapidly growing metropolitan areas of the United States are crucial to understanding regional differences in segregation that have emerged in past decades. Multigroup segregation declined the most in growing parts of growing metropolitan areas. Comparatively, growing parts of shrinking or stagnant metropolitan areas were less diverse and had smaller declines in segregation. We also find that local areas with shrinking populations had disproportionately high minority representation in 2000 before population loss took place. We conclude that the regional context of population growth or decline has important consequences for the residential mixing of racial groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: There is a continuing risk for COVID-19 transmission in school settings while transmission is ongoing in the community, particularly among unvaccinated populations. To ensure that schools continue to operate safely and to inform implementation of prevention strategies, it is imperative to gain better understanding of the risk behaviors of staff and students. This secondary analysis describes the prevalence of COVID-19 risk behaviors in an exposed population of students and school staff in the pre-vaccine era and identifies associations between these behaviors and testing positive for SARS-CoV-2.Methods: From December 2020-January 2021, school staff and students exposed to confirmed COVID-19 cases in a Georgia school district were tested for SARS-CoV-2 and surveyed regarding risk behaviors in and out of school. Prevalence of risk behaviors was described by age group and school level, and associations with SARS-CoV-2 positivity were identified using chi squared tests.Results: Overall, 717 students and 79 school staff participated in the investigation; SARS-CoV-2 positivity was 9.2%. In the 2 weeks prior to COVID-19 exposure, 24% of participants reported unmasked indoor time at school, 40% attended social gatherings with non-household members, and 71% visited out-of-school indoor locations, including 19% who ate indoors in restaurants. Frequencies of risk behaviors increased by age. Among students, 17% participated in school sports, of whom 86% participated without a mask. SARS-CoV-2 positivity was significantly associated with school sports and unmasked time in sports. Among K-5 students, positivity was associated with exposure to a teacher index case.Conclusions: This analysis highlights the high prevalence of risk behaviors in an unvaccinated population exposed to COVID-19 in school and identifies an association between student sports participation and SARS-CoV-2 positivity. These findings illustrate the importance of school-level prevention measures to reduce SARS-CoV-2 transmission, including limiting close-contact indoor sports and promoting consistent mask use in unvaccinated individuals. Future research could explore the role of community vaccination programs as a strategy to reduce COVID-19 transmission and introductions into school settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses that the Clusters of SARS-CoV-2 Infection among Elementary School Educators and Students in one School District in Georgia, December 2020–January 2021. Topics discussed include Cobb and Douglas Public Health (CDPH), the Georgia Department of Public Health (GDPH), and CDC investigated SARS-CoV-2 transmission in eight public elementary schools in a single school district; and COVID-19 cases among educators and students were either self-reported.

Housing affordability is an issue of increasing importance and interest, particularly in the United States. Much of this interest is due to skyrocketing rents in coastal cities with tight housing markets. Shrinking cities, in contrast, are often characterized as rich in low-cost housing, providing an affordable alternative to superstar cities. This paper compares income and rent dynamics in cities with growing versus shrinking populations. While costs may be lower in shrinking cities, falling incomes have likely rendered housing unaffordable for many residents. We employ multiple lines of evidence to test for different dynamics between growing and shrinking cities. Matching is used to explore changes in income and rent between 1980 and 2017 in shrinking and the most similar non-shrinking cities. After controlling for baseline conditions, shrinking cities exhibit faster falling incomes and growing cities exhibit faster rising rents, while rent burden increases at a very similar rate in both groups. We also use a fixed effects regression model to test for differences between growing and shrinking cities in sensitivity of rent burden to changes in income and rent. Rent burden has considerably increased across US cities since 1980, yet growing and shrinking cities exhibit clearly different pathways toward that end. Shrinking cities are more sensitive to identical changes in income and rent, likely because a greater share of their residents live near the edge of affordability. • Housing affordability is a problem of global dimensions, impacting cities throughout the developed world. • Rent burden has increased across U.S. cities since 1980, yet growing and shrinking cities exhibit different rent and income dynamics. • Shrinking cities exhibit faster falling incomes while growing cities exhibit faster rising rents. • Shrinking cities are also more sensitive to identical changes in income and rent, as a greater share of residents likely live near the edge of affordability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the last two centuries, the impact of the Human System has grown dramatically, becoming strongly dominant within the Earth System in many different ways. Consumption, inequality, and population have increased extremely fast, especially since about 1950, threatening to overwhelm the many critical functions and ecosystems of the Earth System. Changes in the Earth System, in turn, have important feedback effects on the Human System, with costly and potentially serious consequences. However, current models do not incorporate these critical feedbacks. We argue that in order to understand the dynamics of either system, Earth SystemModels must be coupled with Human SystemModels through bidirectional couplings representing the positive, negative, and delayed feedbacks that exist in the real systems. In particular, key Human System variables, such as demographics, inequality, economic growth, and migration, are not coupled with the Earth System but are instead driven by exogenous estimates, such as United Nations population projections.This makes current models likely to miss important feedbacks in the real Earth-Human system, especially those that may result in unexpected or counterintuitive outcomes, and thus requiring different policy interventions from current models.The importance and imminence of sustainability challenges, the dominant role of the Human System in the Earth System, and the essential roles the Earth System plays for the Human System, all call for collaboration of natural scientists, social scientists, and engineers in multidisciplinary research and modeling to develop coupled Earth-Human system models for devising effective science-based policies and measures to benefit current and future generations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose Tibialis anterior tendon transfers (TATT) are commonly performed in young children following Ponseti casting for clubfeet. The classic TATT involves advancing the tendon through a hole drilled in the ossified cuneiform. The aim of this study was to determine if tendons transferred through unossified bones have untoward effects on subsequent bone development. Method Twenty-five piglets underwent one of five surgical procedures. An 18-gauge needle was then used to place a tunnel through the bony or cartilaginous portion of the calcaneus (through direct visualization) and isolated slips of the flexor digitorum superficialis (FDS) were placed through the tunnels, as determined by surgical procedure. Radiographic and/or histologic evaluations of the calcaneal apophyses were then performed. A discrete (1-4) and dichotomous "Normal" or "Abnormal" scoring system was developed and its reliability assessed to grade the appearance of the calcanei. Calcaneal appearances following the surgical procedures were then compared with controls. The average load to failure of a subset of transferred tendons was then compared using an MTS machine. Results The proposed apophyseal grading system (1-4) demonstrated an intraclass correlational coefficient (ICC) for consistency of 0.92 [95% confidence interval (CI) 0.88

Patients who have undergone deep brain stimulation (DBS) for emerging indications have unique perspectives on ethical challenges that may shape trial design and identify key design features for BCI-driven DBS systems. DBS research in cognitive and emotional disorders has generated significant ethical interest. Much of this work has focused on developing ethical guidelines and recommendations for open-loop DBS systems. While early trials of open-loop DBS for depression gave disappointing results, research is moving toward clinical trials with closed-loop or patient-controllable DBS systems that may modulate aspects of personality and emotion. Though user-centered design is an increasingly important principle in neurotechnology, the perspectives of implanted individuals on ethical issues raised by DBS are poorly understood. We solicited those perspectives through a focus group and set of qualitative interviews of participants in trials of DBS for depression and obsessive-compulsive disorder. We identified four major themes: control over device function, authentic self, relationship effects, and meaningful consent. Each has implications for the design of closed-loop systems for non-motor disorders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• This study highlights the complicated interactions between multimorbidity, functional ability and the environment. • For the very old living with multimorbidity, proximity to local grocery shops supports their ability to do grocery shopping. • Proximity to local grocery shops is less important for the healthy very old living with none or one chronic condition. • Future research should investigate how to support older people with poor health to overcome barriers to access local shops. The very old, people aged ≥85, is a fast-growing age group with high risk of disability and dependence. To identify environmental factors that support maintenance of functional ability, the aim of this study is to investigate the longitudinal associations between proximity to local grocery shops and the ability to shop for groceries in the very old and to examine the potential variation between those living with and without multimorbidity. This study was based on the Newcastle 85+ study, a population-based cohort of people aged 85 in North-East England. The numbers of grocery shops were identified within a 500 m road distance to participants' residence. Multilevel Poisson regression modelling was used to investigate whether proximity to local grocery shops was associated with the ability to do grocery shopping over five years in those with and without multimorbidity adjusting for sociodemographic factors and area deprivation. The very old who lived in more deprived areas were more likely to have a grocery shop within 500 m than those in less deprived areas. Proximity to local grocery shops was not associated with the ability to do grocery shopping in the participants who had none or one chronic condition (IRR: 1.00; 95% CI: 0.89, 1.12) but moderated loss of the ability in those living with multimorbidity (IRR: 0.82; 95% CI: 0.70, 0.96). For the very old living with multimorbidity, proximity to local grocery shops may support their functional ability. Future research should investigate how to support older people with poor health to access local grocery shops. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study’s goal was to characterize the utility of symptom screening in staff and students for COVID-19 identification and control of transmission in a school setting. We conducted a secondary analysis of cross-sectional data for staff, students and associated household members in a Georgia school district exposed to COVID-19 cases who received RT-PCR testing and symptom monitoring. Among positive contacts, 30/49 (61%) of students and 1/6 (17%) of staff reported no symptoms consistent with COVID-19. Symptom sensitivity was 30% in elementary students and 42% in middle/high students. Fifty-three percent (10/19) of symptomatic positive contacts had at least one household member test positive for SARS-CoV-2 compared with 50% (10/20) of asymptomatic positive contacts. The absence of symptoms in children is not indicative of a lack of SARS-CoV-2 infection or reduced risk of infection for associated household members. Testing all close contacts of people with COVID-19 in schools is needed to interrupt transmission networks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]