Methods for Characterizing Fine Particulate Matter Using Satellite Remote-Sensing Data and Ground Observations: Potential Use for Environmental Public Health Surveillance

This study describes and demonstrates different techniques for surfacing daily environmental / hazards data of particulate matter with aerodynamic diameter less than or equal to 2.5 micrometers (PM2.5) for the purpose of integrating respiratory health and environmental data for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC s) pilot study of Health and Environment Linked for Information Exchange (HELIX)-Atlanta. It described a methodology for estimating ground-level continuous PM2.5 concentrations using B-Spline and inverse distance weighting (IDW) surfacing techniques and leveraging National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (MODIS) data to complement The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ground observation data. The study used measurements of ambient PM2.5 from the EPA database for the year 2003 as well as PM2.5 estimates derived from NASA s satellite data. Hazard data have been processed to derive the surrogate exposure PM2.5 estimates. The paper has shown that merging MODIS remote sensing data with surface observations of PM2.5 not only provides a more complete daily representation of PM2.5 than either data set alone would allow, but it also reduces the errors in the PM2.5 estimated surfaces. The results of this paper have shown that the daily IDW PM2.5 surfaces had smaller errors, with respect to observations, than those of the B-Spline surfaces in the year studied. However the IDW mean annual composite surface had more numerical artifacts, which could be due to the interpolating nature of the IDW that assumes that the maxima and minima can occur only at the observation points. Finally, the methods discussed in this paper improve temporal and spatial resolutions and establish a foundation for environmental public health linkage and association studies for which determining the concentrations of an environmental hazard such as PM2.5 with good accuracy levels is critical

Prevalence of homeopathy use by the general population worldwide: a systematic review

Aim: To systematically review surveys of 12-month prevalence of homeopathy use by the general population worldwide Methods: Studies were identified via database searches to October 2015. Study quality was assessed using a six-item tool. All estimates were in the context of a survey which also reported prevalence of any complementary and alternative medicine use. Results: A total of 36 surveys were included. Of these, 67% met four of six quality criteria. Twelve-month prevalence of treatment by a homeopath was reported in 24 surveys of adults (median 1.5%, range 0.2% to 8.2%). Estimates for children were similar to those for adults. Rates in the US, UK, Australia and Canada all ranged from 0.2% to 2.9% and remained stable over the years surveyed (1986-2012). Twelve-month prevalence of all use of homeopathy (purchase of over-the-counter homeopathic medicines and treatment by a homeopath) was reported in 10 surveys of adults (median 3.9%, range 0.7% to 9.8%) while a further 11 surveys which did not define the type of homeopathy use reported similar data. Rates in the US and Australia ranged from 1.7% to 4.4% and remained stable over the years surveyed. The highest use was reported by a survey in Switzerland where homeopathy is covered by mandatory health insurance. Conclusions: This review summarises 12-month prevalence of homeopathy use from surveys conducted in eleven countries (USA, UK, Australia, Israel, Canada, Switzerland, Norway, Germany, South Korea, Japan and Singapore). Each year a small but significant percentage of these general populations use homeopathy. This includes visits to homeopaths as well as purchase of over-the-counter homeopathic medicines

Enfoque intercultural y administración de recursos humanos en las direcciones desconcentradas de cultura en Huancavelica y Junín, 2022

En nuestro país con aproximadamente 55 poblaciones originarias o indígenas, en desventaja por la incompleta atención de sus derechos fundamentales, por parte del estado, hay riesgo de perder expresiones culturales y conocimientos valiosos. Es así que, el estudio buscó determinar en qué forma influye el enfoque intercultural en la gestión del servicio civil en unidades desconcentradas del Ministerio de Cultura en los departamentos de Huancavelica y Junín en el año 2022, como parte del ente regulador de las políticas de enfoque intercultural. La investigación es básica, de enfoque cuantitativo y diseño no experimental transeccional. No se requirió de muestra. La técnica es la encuesta y el instrumento de medición, un cuestionario que se aplicó en 51 servidores de las entidades seleccionadas. El principal resultado fue que el 72.5% de servidores de ambas direcciones, afirmaron tener un óptimo enfoque intercultural y buena gestión del servicio civil. Al realizar la contrastación de hipótesis, mediante la regresión logística, se encontró que el enfoque intercultural y sus dimensiones; adaptación, pertinencia sociocultural y relevancia de las lenguas originarias; no tienen influencia en la gestión del servicio civil. Con ello se ha determinado que el enfoque intercultural no influye en la gestión del servicio civil en ambas direcciones desconcentradas de Huancavelica y Junín. Lo que hace cuestionar la eficiencia en la implementación de políticas con enfoque intercultural

An Analysis of Teachers’ Questioning Strategies during the Classroom Interaction at the VIII Grade of SMP Negeri 1 Gunungsitoli Utara

This study aims to reveal the application of questioning strategies by English teachers in class VIII of SMP Negeri 1 Gunungsitoli Utara and students' responses to these strategies. The research method used a descriptive qualitative approach with a case study method. The research took place from November to February 2024 in class VIII of SMP Negeri 1 Gunungsitoli Utara. The research informants consisted of two English teachers and five grade VIII students. Data were collected through observation, interview, and documentation. The data were analyzed using qualitative analysis technique which includes data collection, data reduction, data presentation, and conclusion drawing/verification. The results showed that English teachers had implemented various questioning strategies, such as Display Questions, Referential Questions, and Procedural Questions. However, the Simplification and Inquiry strategies still need to be improved. Students' responses showed enthusiasm and interest in the lessons, but also confusion and fear when answering in English, caused by limited vocabulary and fear of being wrong. Although the questioning strategy aimed to improve students' English and critical thinking skills, these barriers reduced students' courage to actively participate. Further support is needed for teachers in developing more effective and comprehensive questioning strategies

Uso problemático de la pornografía y violencia de pareja en adultos de San Juan de Lurigancho, 2024

La presente investigación tuvo por objetivo principal determinar la relación entre el uso problemático de la pornografía y violencia de pareja en adultos de San Juan de Lurigancho. La metodología que se utilizó fue de tipo básica, diseño no experimental correlacional, corte transversal y enfoque cuantitativo. Respecto a la muestra, estuvo conformada por 384 participantes con edades entre 18 a 54 años. En base a los instrumentos utilizados: La escala de uso problemático de la pornografía (Serpa- Barrientos et al., 2023) y el cuestionario de violencia de pareja (Arroyo et al., 2020). En el resultado principal, se obtuvo un p valor de 0.001, lo que indica que existe correlación, precisando que es de tipo positiva y moderada (Rho: 0.603). Por lo cual, se aceptó la hipótesis de investigación confirmando que, a mayor incremento del uso problemático de la pornografía, mayor será la presencia de violencia de pareja. Finalmente, este trabajo contribuye en la ODS en la parte de la salud y bienestar al entender la interacción entre las variables. Proporcionando información clave para desarrollar estrategias de intervención y prevención, mejorando la salud mental y emocional de los afectados, reduciendo la violencia de pareja y promoviendo relaciones más saludables, fortaleciendo el bienestar comunitario

Hearing Loss in Perinatally Human Immunodeficiency Virus- Infected and Human Immunodeficiency Virus -Exposed but Uninfected Children and Adolescents

This is not the published version.Background Little is known about hearing loss in children with HIV infection (HIV+). We examined the prevalence of hearing loss in perinatally HIV+ and HIV-exposed but uninfected (HEU) children, compared these to the percentage with hearing loss in the general population, and evaluated possible risk factors for hearing loss in HIV+ and HEU children. Methods Audiometric examinations were completed in children who met any pre-specified criteria for possible hearing loss. The hearing examination consisted of a tympanogram in each ear and pure-tone air-conduction threshold testing from 500 through 4000 Hz. Hearing loss was defined as the pure-tone average over these frequencies ≥20 dB hearing level (HL). The associations of demographic, parent/caregiver, HIV disease, and HIV treatment with hearing loss were evaluated with univariate and multivarible logistic regression models. Results Hearing testing was completed in 231 children (145 HIV+ and 86 HEU). Hearing loss occurred in 20.0% of HIV+ children and 10.5% of HEU children. After adjusting for caregiver education level, HIV infection was associated with increased odds of hearing loss [adjusted odds ratio (aOR)=2.13, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.95–4.76, p=0.07]. Among HIV+ children, those with a CDC Class C diagnosis had over twice the odds of hearing loss (aOR=2.47, 95% CI: 1.04–5.87, p=0.04). The prevalence of hearing loss was higher in both HIV+ and HEU children compared with NHANES III children. Conclusions Hearing loss was more common in both HIV+ and HEU children than in healthy children. More advanced HIV illness increased the risk of hearing loss in HIV+ children

Pemanfaatan Penggunaan Microsoft Excel Secara Efektif Terhadap Pembelajaran Siswa-Siswi SMP Muhammadiyah 44 Pamulang

Teknologi dapat membantu manusia dalam menyelesaikan dan memenuhi kebutuhan dalam kehidupannya (Purwanto, Taufik, & Jatnika, 2017). Salah satu teknologi yang dapat membantu menyelesaikan dan memenuhi kebutuhan yaitu aplikasi Microsoft Excel. Kita dapat menggunakan Microsoft Excel untuk melacak data, membangun model untuk menganalisis data, menulis rumus untuk melakukan perhitungan pada data itu, memproses data dalam berbagai cara, dan menyajikan data dalam berbagai grafik. Pemanfaatan penggunaan Microsoft Excel ini sangat berguna terhadap semua orang tidak terkecuali terhadap siswa-siswi SMP Muhammadiyah 44 Pamulang. Walaupun segala aktifitas siswa-siswi masih sedikit yang menggunakan Microsoft Excel, tetapi diperlukan pengenalan melalui kegiatan pelatihan mengenai seluk beluk software Excel ini. Pada pelatihan ini, Microsoft Ecel akan mulai dikenalkan kepada siswa-siswi SMP Muhammadiyah 44 Pamulang. Pelatihan ini dilakukan disertai praktek langsung setelah pemberian teori agar para peserta pelatihan lebih mudah mengerti dan mengingatnya. Kegiatan pengabdian pada masyarakat ini berlangsung lancar, tepat waktu dan sesuai dengan yang diharapkan. Terbukti dengan keaktifan peserta mengikuti seluruh proses acara dan proses sesi tanya jawab seputar materi yang diberikan. Kata Kunci: Microsoft Excel; Pemanfaatan; Siswa-siswi; Pelatiha