Measuring Up 2006: The National Report Card on Higher Education

Measures the performance of the U.S. and of each state in providing education and training beyond high school. Compares national and state higher education performance with other nations

Hotter, Denser, Faster, Smaller...and Nearly-Perfect: What's the matter at RHIC?

The experimental and theoretical status of the ``near perfect fluid'' at RHIC is discussed. While the hydrodynamic paradigm for understanding collisions at RHIC is well-established, there remain many important open questions to address in order to understand its relevance and scope. It is also a crucial issue to understand how the early equilibration is achieved, requiring insight into the active degrees of freedom at early times.Comment: 10 Pages, 13 Figures, submitted to the proceedings of the Second Meeting of the APS Topical Group on Hadronic Physics, Nashville, TN, October 22-24, 200

Bulk Dynamics in Heavy Ion Collisions

The features of heavy ion collisions that suggest the relevance of collective dynamics, as opposed to mere superpositions of nucleon-nucleon or even parton-parton collisions, are reviewed. The surprise of these studies is that bulk observables are far simpler than typical dynamical models of nucleus-nucleus collisions would imply. These features are shown to have a natural interpretation in terms of statistical-hydrodynamical models. The relevance of hydrodynamics to heavy ion collisions, coupled with the various similarities of the heavy ion data with that of more elementary collisions, raises very basic questions about its relevance to smaller systems.Comment: 10 Pages, 13 Figures, invited parallel talk at the International Nuclear Physics Conference (INPC 2004), Goteborg, Sweden, June 27 - July 2, 200

Field evaluation of a novel trap baited with carbon dioxide produced by yeast for the collection of female aedes aegypti mosquitoes in Mexico

Abstract. A trap made from low-cost materials and using an attractant of a yeast mixture producing carbon dioxide was designed and evaluated to collect adult Aedes aegypti (L.) mosquitoes. The Trap Mosquito Box prototype was tested against the “standards” BG-Sentinel traps and CDC backpack aspirator in the field. The mean numbers of mosquitoes (± standard deviation) caught by the three different collection methods were: Trap Mosquito Box 2.42 (± 3.08), BG-Sentinel trap 2.86 (± 3.71), and backpack aspirator 0.59 (± 0.90). Statistical tests showed the Trap Mosquito Box and BG-Sentinel trap were equally effective in collecting A. aegypti and both methods were significantly different than the backpack aspirator. Emission of carbon dioxide produced by the yeast mixture was greatest during the first hours after incubation in a laboratory and captured the most mosquitoes in the Trap Mosquito Box. Production of carbon dioxide [Y = -631.24 + 941.26 (log x)] and the rate of mosquitoes captured per time period [Y = 20.29 + 23.50 (log x)] were best explained by logarithmic regressions. Advantages and disadvantages of the Trap Mosquito Box for mosquito surveillance are discussed

Factors affecting hepatitis C treatment intentions among Aboriginal people in Western Australia: A mixed-methods study

Objective: The aim of this study was to identify the hepatitis C treatment intentions of Aboriginal people living with hepatitis C virus (HCV) in Western Australia. Methods: This study used a mixed-methods design. In the cross-sectional survey, 123 Aboriginal people who inject drugs and self-report as living with hepatitis C completed a purpose-designed questionnaire. In the qualitative phase, 10 participants were interviewed about the factors influencing their future intentions to undertake hepatitis C treatment. Results: Analysis of the survey data revealed significant associations between an intention to undertake hepatitis C treatment and support, community attachment, stable housing and stigma. In addition, there was a high overall level of expressed intention to undertake HCV treatment, with 54% of participants responding positively. Analysis of the qualitative data supported quantitative findings, revealing concerns about stigma, lack of social support and unstable housing as factors affecting the intention to undertake hepatitis C treatment. Conclusion: This mixed methods study with Aboriginal people living with self-reported HCV indicates interventions focused on reducing stigma and unstable housing could positively affect hepatitis C treatment intentions. These findings have implications for developing holistic programs to promote and support people on hepatitis C treatment. What is known about the topic? Substantial knowledge gaps need to be resolved if HCV elimination among Aboriginal Australians is to be achieved. Current research has prioritised non-Aboriginal communities. What does this paper add? This study found that stigma and unstable housing require attention if Aboriginal Australians are to obtain the full benefits of direct acting antiviral (DAA) hepatitis C treatment. What are the implications for practitioners? Reducing stigma (in the primary healthcare setting) and providing access to stable housing are vital components of supportive, non-judgemental and culturally appropriate care for Aboriginal people. This study highlights the importance of education for nurses and other primary care providers to increase engagement in the hepatitis cascade of care. To achieve this, scaling-up of HCV treatment engagement, trained Aboriginal community healthcare workers and HCV treatment advocates must mobilise and support Aboriginal people to avoid the negative effects of stigma, build positive and enabling relationships and reinforce positive attitudes towards DAA hepatitis C treatment

Aboriginal people with chronic HCV: The role of community health nurses for improving health-related quality of life

Introduction: There is a lack of knowledge about Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQL) of Aboriginal Australians with self-reported hepatitis C infection in Western Australia. This marginalised group of people is disproportionally affected by the hepatitis C virus (HCV) for which there is no preventative vaccine. This study provides data that help understand the long-term consequences of living with HCV infection within the Aboriginal community. It outlines opportunities for nursing interventions for hepatitis care that focus on supporting mental health and drug and alcohol issues within this population. Methods: We surveyed 123 Aboriginal people living with HCV in a community setting. Survey data included demographics, drug use history, length of time since diagnosis, changes in lifestyle since diagnosis, fatigue, social support, alcohol consumption, and physical and mental health measures. Results: Most participants reported amphetamine injecting frequently in the last six months and their duration of injecting drug ranged from 8 to more than 11 years. Additionally, half of the participants were classified as high-risk alcohol users. Overall 52% of participants were in poor physical and 60% of participants were in poor mental health. Discussion: This survey of Aboriginal people with self-reported hepatitis C infection indicates substantial problems of mental and physical comorbidities among this population. Conclusion: There is a need for the development of HCV community clinics in Aboriginal health care settings with trained Aboriginal community health nurses to reduce problematic alcohol consumption, assess liver health and subsequently provide HCV treatment in a culturally appropriate way

About Entropy and Thermalization - a Miniworkshop Perspective

We present a summary and perspective view of the Miniworkshop on ``{\it Entropy and Thermalization}'' in strong interactions (convener J. Rafelski), which was part of the NATO Advanced Research Workshop on ``{\it Hot Hadronic Matter}'' that took place in Divonne, 27 June to 1 July 1994. To appear in the Proceedings (Plenum Press).Comment: 16 pages, CERN-TH.7431/9

On Being Simple Minded

How simple minded can you be? Many philosophers would answer: no more simple than a language-using human being. Many other philosophers, and most cognitive scientists, would allow that mammals, and perhaps birds, possess minds. But few have gone to the extreme of believing that very simple organisms, such as insects, can be genuinely minded. This is the ground that the present paper proposes to occupy and defend. It will argue that ants and bees, in particular, possess minds. So it will be claiming that minds can be very simple indeed