Socioeconomic disadvantage in childhood as a predictor of excessive gestational weight gain and obesity in midlife adulthood.

BackgroundLower childhood socioeconomic position is associated with greater risk of adult obesity among women, but not men. Pregnancy-related weight changes may contribute to this gender difference. The objectives of this study were to determine the associations between: 1. childhood socioeconomic disadvantage and midlife obesity; 2. excessive gestational weight gain (GWG) and midlife obesity; and 3. childhood socioeconomic disadvantage and excessive GWG, among a representative sample of childbearing women.MethodsWe constructed marginal structural models for seven measures of childhood socioeconomic position for 4780 parous women in the United States, using National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (1979-2010) data. Institute of Medicine definitions were used for excessive GWG; body mass index ≥30 at age 40 defined midlife obesity. Analyses were separated by race/ethnicity. Additionally, we estimated controlled direct effects of childhood socioeconomic disadvantage on midlife obesity under a condition of never gaining excessively in pregnancy.ResultsLow parental education, but not other measures of childhood disadvantage, was associated with greater midlife obesity among non-black non-Hispanic women. Among black and Hispanic mothers, childhood socioeconomic disadvantage was not consistently associated with midlife obesity. Excessive GWG was associated with greater midlife obesity in all racial/ethnic groups. Childhood socioeconomic disadvantage was not statistically significantly associated with excessive GWG in any group. Controlled direct effects were not consistently weaker than total effects.ConclusionsChildhood socioeconomic disadvantage was associated with adult obesity, but not with excessive gestational weight gain, and only for certain disadvantage measures among non-black non-Hispanic mothers. Prevention of excessive GWG may benefit all groups through reducing obesity, but excessive GWG does not appear to serve as a mediator between childhood socioeconomic position and adult obesity in women

A Revolution in Revolutionary Theory?

Recently, the field of revolutionary theory has seen a flourishing of novel scholarly efforts that constitute a genuine regeneration of how we conceive of, investigate, and interpret revolutions. The first elements of this regeneration of revolutionary theory have now found their way to print, and the scene is set for a prospective revolution in our field. This article surveys the history of revolutionary theory since 1883, establishes the scope and contribution of the field’s present rejuvenation, and charts the place of these developments in the field’s broader path, before closing by exploring what may be in store for students of revolution in the future. In doing so, the article draws attention to three areas of current rejuvenation: latent patterns of revolution; long revolutionary outcomes; and revolutionary ideas. Moreover, it proposes three areas for fruitful new research: revolutionary programs, revolutions as political systems, and the dynamics occurring within “the fog of revolution.

McKee Hurwitz, Heather. 2020. Are We the 99%? The Occupy Movement, Feminism and Intersectionality [Philadelphia, PA: Temple University Press. 208 pp, index. EAN: 978-1-4399-2021-3]

The Occupy Movement is ten years old this year, and yet there is still so much that we do not understand about the movement. For those unfamiliar with the topic, Occupy first came to prominence in September 2011, when New York City activists occupied a public square in the city's financial district. Despite attracting relatively little attention at first, Occupy soon grew in the public imagination until it spawned a movement that spread across not only the United States but the globe. The movement made use of urban occupations as its primary tactic and tended to adopt “horizontal” organizing styles, which eschewed formal leaders in favor of mass assemblies “facilitated” by activists. Its most prominent frame was that of the “99%”—the notion that 99 percent of a country's population have common interests that diverge from their elite “1%” foes

What hope is there for societies undergoing democratic downgrades?

Since the 2008 financial crisis, European democracies have lurched decisively in a damaging direction. Democratic citizens have found themselves with less and less of a say in how their societies are being run, all while more and more severe measures have been enacted in their name, writes Benjamin Abrams

Placing a Price on Medical Device Innovation: The Example of Total Knee Arthroplasty

Background: Total knee arthroplasty (TKA) is common, effective, and cost-effective. Innovative implants promising reduced long-term failure at increased cost are under continual development. We sought to define the implant cost and performance thresholds under which innovative TKA implants are cost-effective. Methods: We performed a cost-effectiveness analysis using a validated, published computer simulation model of knee osteoarthritis. Model inputs were derived using published literature, Medicare claims, and National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey data. We compared projected TKA implant survival, quality-adjusted life expectancy (QALE), lifetime costs, and cost-effectiveness (incremental cost-effectiveness ratios or ICERs) of standard versus innovative TKA implants. We assumed innovative implants offered 5–70% decreased long-term TKA failure rates at costs 20–400% increased above standard implants. We examined the impact of patient age, comorbidity, and potential increases in short-term failure on innovative implant cost-effectiveness. Results: Implants offering ≥50% decrease in long-term TKA failure at ≤50% increased cost offered ICERs <$100,000 regardless of age or baseline comorbidity. An implant offering a 20$150,000 per QALY gained only among healthy 50–59-year-olds. Increasing short-term failure, consistent with recent device failures, reduced cost-effectiveness across all groups. Increasing the baseline likelihood of long-term TKA failure among younger, healthier and more active individuals further enhanced innovative implant cost-effectiveness among younger patients. Conclusions: Innovative implants must decrease actual TKA failure, not just radiographic wear, by 50–55% or more over standard implants to be broadly cost-effective. Comorbidity and remaining life span significantly affect innovative implant cost-effectiveness and should be considered in the development, approval and implementation of novel technologies, particularly in orthopedics. Model-based evaluations such as this offer valuable, unique insights for evaluating technological innovation in medical devices

Introduction to Quantum Algorithms for Physics and Chemistry

In this introductory review, we focus on applications of quantum computation to problems of interest in physics and chemistry. We describe quantum simulation algorithms that have been developed for electronic-structure problems, thermal-state preparation, simulation of time dynamics, adiabatic quantum simulation, and density functional theory.Comment: 44 pages, 5 figures; comments or suggestions for improvement are welcom

Editorial in Contention

Contention is everywhere nowadays, permeating the fabric of society and constituting an important element of many different social relationships. It is also a central topic across a wide range of social scientific disciplines. Following the most contentious decade in over a century, scholarship on the topic of “contention” is booming. Nonetheless, we still lack a conceptual approach to “contention” as a general academic term beyond the bounds of the study of “contentious politics.” What is the meaning of contention? Drawing on a decade of editorial and research work on contention, this article surveys the profound breadth and variety of academic research on the topic, ranging from politics, psychology, and sociology to material culture, criminology, and beyond. We outline the common conceptual thread across these various areas, where “contention” generally indicates conflictual collective contests concerning competing claims