Monday, April 27, 2020


Perception of US democracy tanks after Trump impeachment


UNIVERSITY OF ROCHESTER


RATINGS OF THE HEALTH OF US DEMOCRACY BY EXPERTS AND THE PUBLIC ON A 0-100 SCALE. THE FIGURE SHOWS AVERAGE VALUES ACROSS SURVEY WAVES. view more  CREDIT: BRIGHT LINE WATCH AND UNIVERSITY OF ROCHESTER GRAPHIC / MIKE OSADCIW

While President Donald Trump's impeachment gripped the country in late 2019 and early 2020, the long-term consequences of his trial and acquittal for American democracy remain yet unclear. What's clear already, however, is that both the public's and political experts' perceptions of the health of US democracy clearly declined during this period.

Those are the findings of an academic watchdog group that conducted its latest survey between March 12 and April 15.

Since February 2017, Bright Line Watch, a nonpartisan group of political scientists, has been surveying the American public as well as colleagues in academia in an effort to gauge the relative well-being of the nation's democracy. The group, which includes University of Rochester political science professor Gretchen Helmke, has been monitoring US democratic practices and potential threats.

The Bright Line Watch surveys consist of a two-part list of more than 25 statements of democratic principles that contribute to the overall stability and performance of American democracy. The first part asks citizens and experts to rate these democratic principles on how vital they are for democracy. The second part asks both citizens and experts how the US is performing on each of these principles.

Among the experts, the latest survey recorded 63.4 on a 0-100 scale of US democratic performance-- the worst overall rating since Bright Line Watch started asking these questions in 2017.

During the last year, the experts' ratings dropped on 15 of the 27 surveyed democratic principles, while none showed improvement. The biggest declines in performance relate to accountability, institutional checks and balances, and the rights and protections of individuals.

Ratings among the public show a similar decline, dropping from 54.3 in March 2019 to 49.3 a year later. Both expert and public evaluations mark substantial declines from a peak after the 2018 elections, which the team attributes to "an apparent increase in legal and political checks on President Trump following the 2018 midterm election, including investigations into the administration and the President's associates by law enforcement officials and Congress."

Meanwhile, the recent declines continue the trend already observed in the group's October 2019 survey. That drop came after the whistleblower report on Trump's Ukraine phone call.

Worth noting is that the decrease in public ratings is driven by Americans who disapprove of the president. For this group, assessments of democracy declined between March and October 2019 and remained low in the most recent survey. By contrast, ratings were stable among Trump approvers, the team writes in its latest survey.

Key findings of Bright Line Watch's March/April 2020 survey

The survey found that experts:


rated American democracy as performing sharply worse in March 2020 than in March 2019, the group's last survey before the impeachment process began
gave a lower rating to performance on democratic principles mainly related to impeachment
compared to a year ago, were more skeptical that investigations of public officials were free of political interference
do not regard the impeachment as having constrained President Trump. On the contrary, they identify many actions he and his allies took during the impeachment process as abnormal, and indicate that the process as a whole will embolden Trump substantially, an effect that may also extend to future presidents.

The survey of the general public showed that:
Americans remain divided in their evaluation of the performance of US democracythe views of those who approve of President Trump have remained stable over the past year
those who disapprove of the president perceive a decline in democratic performancethe gap between the two groups is widest on principles of citizen equality and on checks on executive authority.

"We cannot establish any firm causal connections between real-world events and expert responses," says Helmke. "But the fact that the biggest declines correspond to measures related to accountability and checks and balances means our latest results are certainly consistent with the concern that the impeachment and acquittal of President Trump has had negative consequences for the experts' perceptions of the health of American democracy."

The scientists found strong consensus among the expert sample that the results of the impeachment and subsequent acquittal would embolden President Trump (79 percent) and that the effect would similarly embolden future presidents (59 percent).

"In our system, checks and balances function mainly as deterrents," Helmke says. "If politicians no longer believe that they will be sanctioned for pushing--let alone breaking--the law, then future transgressions become that much more likely."

However, the Bright Line Watch team cautions that the survey was conducted under the long shadow of the novel coronavirus. While the results are largely consistent with past surveys, it is too early to tell how the pandemic might have influenced survey responses.

What is Bright Line Watch?

One of the greatest threats to democracy is the idea that it is unassailable. That's the tagline of the nonpartisan Bright Line Watch initiative originally founded by University of Rochester's Gretchen Helmke and three other political scientists--Brendan Nyhan and John Carey of Dartmouth College, and Susan Stokes of the University of Chicago--that gauges the health of US democracy at regular intervals.

Call to action:
 Traditional, complementary and integrative health COVID-19 support registry


MARY ANN LIEBERT, INC./GENETIC ENGINEERING NEWS

DEDICATED TO RESEARCH ON PARADIGM, PRACTICE, AND POLICY ADVANCING INTEGRATIVE HEALTH. view more CREDIT: MARY ANN LIEBERT, INC., PUBLISHERS
New Rochelle, NY, April 9, 2020--The new, global Traditional, Complementary and Integrative Health and Medicine (TCIHM) COVID-19 Support Registry aims to capture key information on the case, treatment/supportive care, and outcome variables related to the use of integrative health products and practices in patients in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. A Call to Action describing the need for, purpose of, and intended use of the Registry is published in JACM, The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, a peer-reviewed publication from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers, dedicated to paradigm, practice, and policy advancing integrative health. Click here to read the Call to Action on the JACM website.

JACM Editor-in-Chief John Weeks issued the "Call to Action: Announcing the Traditional, Complementary and Integrative Health and Medicine COVID-19 Support Registry" to help launch the resource that was created by a global network of researchers. The registry is already backed by over a dozen practitioner organizations. While there remains no high-quality evidence to support integrative practices and natural agents against the virus, practitioners and consumers are experimenting with multiple natural health products and practices that existing evidence suggests might have preventive, supportive, complementary, or rehabilitative value.

The Registry is housed at the Portland, OR-based Helfgott Research Institute. Led by multiple NIH grant awardee Ryan Bradley, ND, MPH, Helfgott's Director and an Associate Professor in the University of Washington College of Pharmacy, the Registry is anticipated to help characterize such care, report indications of potential value or harm, and serve as the basis of hypotheses for potentially promising treatments and protocols for COVID-19 management.

JACM Editor-in-Chief John Weeks states: "Non-biomedical strategies are widely in use relative to COVID-19. Governments in India, China, and elsewhere are promoting traditional methods for COVID-19. Governments in the West are silent or antagonistic, yet millions of their citizens and their practitioners are experimenting. In the midst of this, the Chinese government is crediting the apparently relatively quick turn-around in that country to the integration of traditional Chinese medicine with conventional biomedicine in 90% of their patients. If widely utilized, the Registry will cast needed light on strategies for COVID-19 and may prove useful for managing future health issues. We urge all traditional and integrative practitioners to participate. Why leave this stone unturned?"

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About the Journal

JACM, The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine is a monthly peer-reviewed journal published online with open access options and in print that is dedicated to research on paradigm, practice, and policy advancing integrative health. Led by John Weeks (johnweeks-integrator.com), the co-founder and past Executive Director of the Academic Collaborative for Integrative Health, JACM publishes human clinical trials, observational studies, systematic reviews and commentary intended to help healthcare professionals, delivery organization leaders, policy-makers and scientists evaluate and integrate therapies into patient care protocols, payment strategies and appropriate protocols. Complete tables of content and a sample issue may be viewed on the JACM website.

About the Publisher

Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers is a privately held, fully integrated media company known for establishing authoritative peer-reviewed journals in many promising areas of science and biomedical research, including Alternative and Complementary Therapies, Medical Acupuncture, and Journal of Medicinal Food. Its biotechnology trade magazine, GEN (Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News), was the first in its field and is today the industry's most widely read publication worldwide. A complete list of the firm's 80 journals, books, and newsmagazines is available on the Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers website.

Mind-body medicine experts urge full integration of stress reduction into care and research

The need is especially important now, when COVID-19 fears are high
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA - DAVIS HEALTH

In a perspective published in the New England Journal of Medicine, researchers from the Benson-Henry Institute (BHI) for Mind Body Medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) and from UC Davis Health call for broader use of mind-body practices.
In a time when meditation, yoga and mindfulness increase in popularity for general well-being, the piece emphasizes the necessity of fully integrating these stress-reduction practices into patient treatment plans and medical research.
Stress exacerbates anxiety and depression and plays a role in conditions such as cardiovascular disease, autoimmune disorders, irritable bowel syndrome, headaches and chronic pain, according to lead author Michelle Dossett of UC Davis Health.
"By reducing the body's stress response, mind-body practices can be a powerful adjunct in medicine by helping to decrease patients' symptoms and improving their quality of life," said Dossett, who was a physician and researcher with BHI when the perspective was written.
Dossett also noted that mind-body practices can be helpful in reducing stress related to the COVID-19 epidemic.
Despite its recent rise in popularity among the general public, mind-body medicine isn't new. Researchers at BHI have been integrating the field of mind-body medicine into MGH's clinical care, research and training programs since 2006. Early research on the advantages of such techniques dates back 40+ years, when the institute's founder and perspective senior author, Herbert Benson, became one of the first Western physicians to bring spirituality and healing into medicine and is most famously known for his work with the Relaxation Response.
"The Relaxation Response," Benson has stated, "is an inborn, anti-stress capacity that transcends the differences that separate mind from body, science from spirituality and one culture from another."
At BHI, mind-body medicine is widely recognized as the third leg of a three-legged stool: the first leg is surgery, the second is pharmaceuticals and the third is self-care, in which patients learn techniques to improve their own health through mind-body medicine, nutrition and exercise.
"Western medicine has produced revolutionary health benefits through advances in pharmacotherapies and procedures," the researchers wrote in the perspective. "It now faces enormous challenges in battling stress-related noncommunicable diseases. ...Chronic pain, often perpetuated by psychosocial stress, has become an epidemic that our pharmaceutical arsenal is poorly equipped to handle and medical costs continue to soar. Mind-body therapies can be a helpful adjunct in managing chronic pain and other stress-related noncommunicable diseases by fostering resilience through self-care."
The article also addresses skeptical patients' preconceived notions of mind-body medicine as well as the anticipated barriers of service coverage and clinician education on the appropriate use of these tools. These challenges further reinforce the need for continued research and investment into the development and implementation of personalized practices to maximize their public health potential.
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Benson and perspective co-author Gregory Fricchione, who is BHI's current director, lead the field of mind-body medicine and research on counteracting the harmful effects of stress, thereby promoting health and reducing the vulnerability to stress-related illnesses. Dossett, who was mentored by Fricchione and Benson, is moving the research of mind-body medicine beyond the walls of the BHI at UC Davis Health as a lead researcher in integrative medicine and assistant professor of internal medicine.
More information about UC Davis Health and Massachusetts General Hospital are online: health.ucdavis.edu
http://www.massgeneral.org

THE OTHER AMA 

Special issue explores consumer access and power

News from the Journal of Public Policy & Marketing
AMERICAN MARKETING ASSOCIATION

Journal of Public Policy & Marketing has dedicated the second issue of its 2020 volume to better understanding and defining the uniquely related concepts of consumer power and consumer access. The guest editors and articles authors show how both concepts are in a constant state of change. They are influenced by technology, wealth, industry organization, and public policy.
Questions of access and power are particularly relevant in the context of today's United States with consumers simultaneously isolated and connected in ways never before imagined. Many of the articles in this issue offer prophetic insights though they were written well before and accepted only in the very early stages of the COVID-19 world health crisis.

"Denial Without Determination: The Impact of Systemic Market Access Denial on Consumer Power and Market Engagement"
Consumers may have access to a product or service, but that does not mean the consumer has the power to make ownership and usage a reality. Even when intervention levels the playing field, it still may take multiple purchase cycles before some consumers may attempt to take advantage of the new opportunities.

"Access Granted? An Examination of Financial Capability, Trait Hope, Perceived Access, and Food Insecurity in Distressed Census Tracts"
Interestingly increasing a belief in hope is an effective way to improve the perception of access to adequate food sources among residents of food deserts. The authors suggest communication strategies that encourage this trait and improve the effectiveness of food and nutrition assistance programs.

"The Effect of Consumers' Perceived Power and Risk in Digital Information Privacy: The Example of Cookie Notices"
Despite recent regulation (i.e., the GDPR), the design of cookie notices varies strongly in practice, with many websites providing cookie notices with low visibility and no or very limited choice. These most common designs are likely to increase consumers' risk perception, which reduces their purchase intent; website providers might, in contrast, benefit from offering consumers more choice over their private data.

"Service Captivity: No Choice, No Voice, No Power"
This examination of "service captivity" offers insights into how consumers may feel trapped in a scenario where they can't exit a service relationship. The authors offer examples of how these consumers may gain access to new service providers.

"Sound and Fury: Digital Vigilantism as a Form of Consumer Voice"
Via a pool of over 70,000 tweets associated with the 2017 Charlottesville Unite the Right rally, the authors categorize tweets into five categories and offer a perspective on how digital vigilantism was represented.

"Sense of Power: Policy Insights for Encouraging Consumers' Healthy Food Choice"
Incorporating simple messages such as, "you are powerful" or "we all feel powerful sometimes" is enough to increase a consumer's sense of power and subsequently nudge them to make healthier food choices, particularly for consumers lower in socioeconomic status.

"Children and Online Privacy Protection: Empowerment from Cognitive Defense Strategies"
Children and teens were already spending a growing amount of time online, but in the last several weeks, this seems to have increased even more. The authors investigate methods for improving safety beliefs and decisions to share personal videos on YouTube suggesting a combination of education and parental intervention empowers children and teens to protect their personal information online.

"When Does the Social Service Ecosystem Meet Consumption Needs? A Power-Justice-Access Model of Holistic Well-Being from Recipients' Perspectives"
Research suggestions that respect is another dimension of consumer access and power. They show the fallacy of scorning low-income individuals' access to "luxuries," such as Starbucks coffee, and the importance of going beyond simple access and power and include the level of perceived justice (e.g., respect).

"Consumer-Level Perceived Access to Health Services and Its Effects on Vulnerability and Health Outcomes"
Policymakers, health care organizations, and insurance providers can use perceived access to healthcare measure to better identify communities or populations that lack access, design programs and systems that reduce perceptions of health vulnerability in target populations, and ultimately improve consumers' health outcomes.

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This special issue was organized by a team that included M. Paula Fitzgerald, West Virginia University; Sterling A. Bone, Utah State University; and Janis K. Pappalardo, Federal Trade Commission. The views of Janis K. Pappalardo are her own and do not necessarily represent the views of the Federal Trade Commission or any individual Commissioner.
Full issue and individual author contact information is available at https://journals.sagepub.com/toc/ppoa/39/2
About the Journal of Public Policy & Marketing
The Journal of Public Policy & Marketing is a forum for understanding the nexus of marketing and public policy, with each issue featuring a wide-range of topics, including, but not limited to, ecology, ethics and social responsibility, nutrition and health, regulation and deregulation, security and privacy.
About the American Marketing Association (AMA)
As the largest chapter-based marketing association in the world, the AMA is trusted by marketing and sales professionals to help them discover what's coming next in the industry. The AMA has a community of local chapters in more than 70 cities and 350 college campuses throughout North America. The AMA is home to award-winning content, PCM® professional certification, premiere academic journals, and industry-leading training events and conferences.

Study finds rise in between-workplace inequalities in the US, high-income countries

Study of 20 years of data led by UMass Amherst sociologist Donald Tomaskovic-Devey finds inequality rising in 12 of the 14 countries examined, including the US, 
Canada and Hungary were the only exceptions


UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS AMHERST

THE PROPORTION OF TOTAL INEQUALITY THAT IS BETWEEN FIRMS FOR THE TOTAL (LEFT), PRIVATE (MIDDLE) AND PUBLIC SECTORS (RIGHT). THE PROPORTION OF TOTAL INEQUALITY ATTRIBUTABLE TO THE BETWEEN-WORKPLACE COMPONENT HAS... view more  CREDIT: UMASS AMHERST/TOMASKOVIC-DEVEY


AMHERST, Mass. - A new analysis of earnings inequalities by an international team of 27 researchers has found that the between-workplace share of wage inequality is growing in 12 of 14 high-income countries studied, and that the countries vary a great deal in their levels and trends in overall earnings inequality.
In a new report in the Proceedings of the National Academies of Science (PNAS), lead author Donald Tomaskovic-Devey of the University of Massachusetts Amherst and his colleagues detail their examination of roughly 25 years of administrative records covering more than 2 billion job-years nested within more than 50 million workplace-years for 14 high-income countries: Canada, Czechia, Denmark, France, Germany, Hungary, Israel, Japan, the Netherlands, Norway, Slovenia, South Korea, Sweden and the United States. In 12 of the countries they found that the share of inequality between workplaces is growing; Canada and Hungary were the only exceptions. 
Rising between-workplace inequality occurs when firms with powerful market positions simultaneously outsource production and services to temporary labor firms, subcontractors, global supply chains, franchisees, independent contractors and other low-wage firms. Firms such as Apple, Amazon, Marriott, McDonalds, Uber and Nike are prominent examples of this combination of market power and externalized labor.
"The extreme vulnerability of low-wage workers to the COVID-19 pandemic in the U.S. is linked to this trend of larger firms outsourcing risk and low-wage labor to weaker firms," Tomaskovic-Devey points out.

"Most strikingly, we find in 12 of the 14 countries examined that the organizational structure of production is shifting toward increasing between-workplace wage dispersion," the report states. "In all of those 12 countries this process is more pronounced in the private sector, but we also find rising between-workplace inequality in the public sector in eight countries."
The study also shows that in countries with weak or declining labor market protections, inequality - particularly between-workplace inequalities - rises the fastest. In contrast, widespread collective bargaining coverage and high minimum wages reduce inequalities both between and within firms.


"We show that trends in rising between-workplace wage dispersion are closely aligned with declining national labor market institutions, institutions that in some countries once protected the bargaining power of employees relative to employers," the authors write.

"We knew from past research that earnings inequalities in the U.S. were being driven by wage polarization between high-wage and low-wage firms, but I was shocked to see how widespread this trend is," says Tomaskovic-Devey, professor of sociology and founding director of the Center for Employment Equity at UMass Amherst. "Although rising between-firm inequalities are widespread, it is crucial to recognize that both the levels of inequality and the speed of firm wage polarization are strongly tied to national labor market institutions. The U.S. has the weakest labor market protections of all fourteen countries we studied and has the highest levels of inequality."

The authors write that results of their analyses suggest that policies aimed at reducing rising inequalities in national production systems might focus on between-firm and workplace inequalities via mechanisms that strengthen the bargaining power of employees and curtail the ability of powerful firms to outsource risk while absorbing revenue.

"Strengthening institutional protections for lower-skilled workers," it concludes, "will not only improve their wages and job security, but also reduce the ability of more powerful firms to outsource production to lower wage firms. Policies to limit the market power of dominant firms may moderate both the earnings going to the top of those firms and their ability to externalize labor costs."


Funding for the research and creation of the paper was provided by numerous institutions, including the U.S. National Science Foundation, the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, the European Research Council, the Independent Research Fund Denmark, Swedish Forte, the European Social Fund and state budget of the Czech Republic and the Research Council of Norway.

The full report "Rising between workplace inequalities in high-income countries," can be found on the PNAS website.

Paleomagnetism indicates that primary magnetite in zircon records a strong Hadean geodynamo

John A. TardunoRory D. CottrellRichard K. BonoHirokuni OdaWilliam J. DavisMostafa FayekOlaf van ’t ErveFrancis NimmoWentao HuangEric R. ThernSebastian FearnGautam MitraAleksey V. Smirnov, and Eric G. Blackman
  1. Edited by Lisa Tauxe, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, and approved December 12, 2019 (received for review September 24, 2019)

Significance

The age and early history of Earth’s geomagnetic field can provide insight into the evolution of the core and atmosphere. But measurement of Hadean zircons—the oldest known terrestrial materials—and the determination of the antiquity of their magnetizations are amongst the most challenging endeavors in paleomagnetism. New paleomagnetic, electron microscope, geochemical, and paleointensity data indicate the presence of primary magnetite inclusions in select zircons. These data support the presence of the geomagnetic field, and associated shielding of the atmosphere from the solar wind, ∼4.2 billion years ago. A relatively strong field recorded by these zircons at ∼4 billion years ago may be a signal that chemical precipitation in the core was powering the geodynamo.

Abstract

Determining the age of the geomagnetic field is of paramount importance for understanding the evolution of the planet because the field shields the atmosphere from erosion by the solar wind. The absence or presence of the geomagnetic field also provides a unique gauge of early core conditions. Evidence for a geomagnetic field 4.2 billion-year (Gy) old, just a few hundred million years after the lunar-forming giant impact, has come from paleomagnetic analyses of zircons of the Jack Hills (Western Australia). Herein, we provide new paleomagnetic and electron microscope analyses that attest to the presence of a primary magnetic remanence carried by magnetite in these zircons and new geochemical data indicating that select Hadean zircons have escaped magnetic resetting since their formation. New paleointensity and Pb-Pb radiometric age data from additional zircons meeting robust selection criteria provide further evidence for the fidelity of the magnetic record and suggest a period of high geomagnetic field strength at 4.1 to 4.0 billion years ago (Ga) that may represent efficient convection related to chemical precipitation in Earth’s Hadean liquid iron core.
IRONIC
New model finds countries should work together to control coronavirus, harmful species

ASU researcher explores pests, parasites, diseases on a global scale

ARIZONA STATE UNIVERSITY
PHOTO BY HANS BRAXMEIER VIA PIXABAY

Countries looking to contain the spread of harmful species and diseases like COVID-19 should work together in multiple hotspots, according to a new model developed by an Arizona State University researcher.

Because it would be difficult to completely eliminate the novel coronavirus, mathematical modeling suggests countries should focus on keeping the rate of infection low by collaborating in multiple areas. In some circumstances, however, a clear division of labor may be called for.

The findings by Adam Lampert, an assistant professor with the School of Human Evolution and Social Change at ASU, will be published next week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The model is intended to guide policymakers responding to the outbreak of harmful species, including pests, parasites and even infectious diseases like COVID-19. It indicates that sometimes a "divide and conquer" approach is better, while in other situations it is more effective to work together in several locations.

A key question is whether to focus on eliminating the harmful species entirely or controlling its spread to prevent the next outbreak.

"If you want to eradicate the harmful species, or reduce its abundance rapidly, then you may want to split the duties of the agents," Lampert said. "If you want to control it, and keep it at a low level for prolonged periods, then working together becomes important."

Lampert identified three factors to determine if the species should be controlled or eradicated: the annual cost of maintaining the population, the natural growth rate of the harmful species, and its response to the treatment.

For example, when treating an invasive insect outbreak, managers spray pesticide over a large area as a general, blanket treatment method. A more targeted approach can be applied if the species can easily be seen. For example, complete eradication of a harmful plant species is plausible, because managers can physically remove each plant.

Given the ongoing spread of novel coronavirus, Lampert shared that we're seeing a mix of blanketed and targeted control efforts.

"With diseases, you can put a lockdown on the entire country, or a region, and say 'ok nobody goes out', and this way you reduce the infection level over time," he said. "Or you can do some more targeted actions by identifying the people who are sick - and keep them at home."

Lampert's research indicates that effective long-term control methods to reduce the spread of harmful species, including the novel coronavirus, require international cooperation. He says it is unlikely that we will be able to completely eradicate the virus, but controlling the spread is necessary for our social welfare and can be accomplished most effectively if countries work together.

Lampert is already working on additional research applying these findings to COVID-19, specifically. In the future, we can expect to see more intensive findings about the spread and control of harmful species, as the issue is not likely to disappear anytime soon.

"The impact of invasive species is a major problem in ecological systems," Lampert said. "And it's only becoming more and more prevalent because of globalization."


The paper "Multiple agents managing a harmful species population should either work together to control it or split their duties to eradicate it" will be available at http://www.pnas.org/cgi/doi/10.1073/pnas.1917028117 after publication during the week of April 13, 2020.

About Adam Lampert

Adam Lampert is an assistant professor in the Simon A. Levin Mathematical, Computational and Modeling Sciences Center, an affiliated research center of the School of Human Evolution and Social Change. His research uses mathematical modeling to explore how multiple agents can manage ecosystems.

About ASU's School of Human Evolution and Social Change

ASU's School of Human Evolution and Social Change unites anthropology, applied math, global health and environmental social science around a common goal: to explore the untold chapters of the human story and share that knowledge with those who want to change our world for the better. As one of the school's diverse affiliated research units, the Simon A. Levin Mathematical, Computational and Modeling Sciences Center identifies cultural opportunities and risks through math modeling and simulations.

Exploring the link between education and climate change

INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR APPLIED SYSTEMS ANALYSIS 
What are the most effective ways to achieve desired sustainable development outcomes across all aspects of wellbeing, and how might the pursuit of some of these goals affect progress toward others? A new study by an international team of researchers aims to address these questions to help understand possible synergies and tradeoffs among these goals.
The importance of pursuing sustainable development poses a challenge to scientists in terms of determining the most effective ways to achieve desired outcomes across health, education, poverty, energy, the environment, and many other aspects of wellbeing, as well as how the pursuit of some of these goals might affect the achievement of others. A study published in the journal Nature Sustainability brings together several different connections between particularly education and climate change and evaluates them together.
"We examined how changes in educational attainment simultaneously affect population growth, economic growth, greenhouse gas emissions, and vulnerability to climate change impacts. Previous studies have looked at the role of education in vulnerability to climate change impacts and its relationship to population increase, and also separately to economic growth. Our study however brings these multiple effects together in a single analysis," explains Shonali Pachauri, a study coauthor and Acting IIASA Transitions to New Technologies Program Director.
The team wanted to address two main questions through their research: Firstly, they wanted to determine the net effect of increased educational attainment on the emissions that drive climate change, as there is reason to believe that it could lead either to higher or to lower emissions. Second, they asked how much less vulnerable people in less developed countries might be if educational attainment is improved.
The findings indicate that increasing the level of educational attainment in a population leads to a large improvement in vulnerability - in other words, populations are significantly less vulnerable to climate change if efforts are made to improve their level of education. Conversely, populations are quite a bit more vulnerable if educational improvements slow substantially.
According to the researchers, one of the more surprising results of the study is that increasing educational attainment tends to lead to a small increase in emissions that drive climate change. Many other studies have found that slower population growth leads to lower emissions. In this case however, the authors found that if increased educational attainment is taken into account, the reductions in emissions from a smaller population can be more than offset by the boost to economic growth that education also provides.
A second unexpected finding was the size of the positive effect of education on vulnerability. If optimistic increases in educational attainment can be achieved in developing countries in the future, the reduction in vulnerability, as measured by the Human Development Index, can be quite large.
The authors point out that the study's results are preliminary, especially because education can affect people and society in many ways that matter to climate change, and they only examined a few of them. Improved education may, for instance, speed up the development of new technologies to lower greenhouse gas emissions, or it may change consumption patterns or political behavior. These possible effects were not included in the analysis.
The study's results will help to inform discussions around policies aimed at fostering sustainable development and improve human wellbeing, while also preserving the environment. Not all policies will off course achieve these multiple aims equally well.
"The world is complicated, so we shouldn't expect policy solutions to be simple. Improving education has overwhelmingly positive consequences for people and society in many different ways, and we find that is true for reducing vulnerability to climate change impacts as well. At the same time, we shouldn't expect it to also reduce the emissions driving climate change. We will still need other approaches to accomplish that goal. Reducing emissions requires shifting the global energy system to be largely free of fossil fuels. Improved education may even help with that task in ways that we did not examine as part of our study," concludes study lead author Brian O'Neill, a researcher at the Josef Korbel School of International Studies and Pardee Center for International Futures at the University of Denver.
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Reference
O'Neill B, Jiang L, KC S, Fuchs R, Pachauri S, Laidlaw E, Zhang T, Zhou W, & Ren X (2020). The effect of education on determinants of climate change risks. Nature Sustainability DOI: 10.1038/s41893-020-0512-y
Contacts:
Researcher contacts
Shonali Pachauri
Acting Transitions to New Technologies Program Director
Senior researcher - Energy Program
Tel: +43 2236 807 475
pachauri@iiasa.ac.at
Samir K.C.
Project Leader
World Population Program
Tel: +43 2236 807 424
kc@iiasa.ac.at
Press Officer
Ansa Heyl
IIASA Press Office
Tel: +43 2236 807 574
Mob: +43 676 83 807 574
heyl@iiasa.ac.at
About IIASA:
The International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA) is an international scientific institute that conducts research into the critical issues of global environmental, economic, technological, and social change that we face in the twenty-first century. Our findings provide valuable options to policymakers to shape the future of our changing world. IIASA is independent and funded by prestigious research funding agencies in Africa, the Americas, Asia, and Europe. http://www.iiasa.ac.at
USA
Medicare coverage varies for transgender hormone therapies


MARY ANN LIEBERT, INC./GENETIC ENGINEERING NEWS

FACILITATES AND SUPPORTS THE WORK OF RESEARCHERS, CLINICIANS, ACADEMICS, AND POLICYMAKERS TO ADDRESS BARRIERS TO CARE AND ADVANCE EFFORTS TO IMPROVE THE HEALTH, WELL-BEING, AND CLINICAL OUTCOMES OF ALL LGBT... view more
CREDIT: MARY ANN LIEBERT, INC., PUBLISHERS
New Rochelle, NY, April 13, 2020--A new study has shown substantial variability in access to guideline-recommended hormone therapies for older transgender individuals insured through Medicare. The variability in Medicare coverage and out-of-pocket costs for feminizing and masculinizing therapies are detailed in an article published in LGBT Health<.i>, a peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers. Click here to read the full-text article free on the LGBT Health<.i> website through May 12, 2020.

The article entitled "Medicare Prescription Drug Plan Coverage of Hormone Therapies Used by Transgender Individuals" was coauthored by Michael Solotke, Yale University (New Haven, CT) and colleagues from San Francisco Veterans Affairs Medical Center (CA), University of California, San Francisco School of Medicine, Veterans Affairs Connecticut Healthcare System (West Haven, CT), Yale School of Medicine, Mayo Clinic (Rochester, MN), Yale School of Public Health, and Yale-New Haven Hospital.

Medicare coverage and out-of-pocket costs can vary widely depending on the medication regimen. Access to care and to certain medications may be limited to those with adequate means. The study showed that in 2018, the proportion of Medicare plans offering unrestricted coverage ranged from 5%-75% for masculinizing therapies and from 13%-100% for feminizing therapies. Out-of-pocket costs ranged from $180-$2,176 for masculinizing therapies and from $72-$3,792 for feminizing therapies in that same year.
"It is unfortunate when drug costs stand in the way of optimal treatment," says LGBT Health Editor-in-Chief William Byne, MD, PhD, Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York, NY. "To minimize this problem, prescribers should be prepared to direct low income and inadequately insured patients to assistance programs, when available, to defray costs, particularly for the gonadotropin releasing hormone agonists for which generic preparations are not yet available."



About the Journal

LGBT Health published 8 times a year online with open access options and in print, facilitates and supports the work of researchers, clinicians, academics, and policymakers to address barriers to care and advance efforts to improve the health, well-being, and clinical outcomes of all LGBT and other sexual and gender minority persons. Led by Editor-in-Chief William Byne, MD, PhD, Columbia University, New York, NY, the Journal spans a broad array of disciplines and publishes original research, review articles, clinical reports, case studies, and legal and policy perspectives. Complete tables of content and a sample issue may be viewed on the LGBT Health website

About the Publisher

Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers is a privately held, fully integrated media company known for establishing authoritative peer-reviewed journals in many promising areas of science and biomedical research, including Transgender Health, AIDS Patient Care and STDs, AIDS Research and Human Retroviruses, Journal of Women's Health, and Population Health Management. Its biotechnology trade magazine, GEN (Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News), was the first in its field and is today the industry's most widely read publication worldwide. A complete list of the firm's more than 90 journals, books, and newsmagazines is available on the Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers website.

Mindful yoga reduces testosterone by 29% in women with polycystic ovary syndrome

Anxiety and depression levels also significantly improved, according to The Journal of the American Osteopathic Association
AMERICAN OSTEOPATHIC ASSOCIATION
CHICAGO--April 14, 2020--Women with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) should consider adopting a mindful yoga practice to help ease symptoms and improve androgen levels. Researchers found a one-hour mindful yoga class, done three times a week, reduced testosterone levels by 29% over a three-month period.
Other androgen levels, like DHEA, were also reduced, and depression and anxiety levels improved by 55% and 21%, respectively, according to the study in The Journal of the American Osteopathic Association.
"There are effective pharmacologic options for managing PCOS. However, they come with the potential for some significant side effects," says Diana Speelman, PhD, Associate Professor of Biochemistry at Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine and lead author on this study.
"Mindful yoga appears to be a promising option for treating PCOS in a way that can improve several aspects of the disorder."
PCOS is a common hormonal disorder that affects reproductive, metabolic and psychological health. It is estimated PCOS affects between 5 and 15% of reproductive-age women, and it is the most common cause of anovulatory infertility.
Women with PCOS may experience irregular menstrual cycles, hirsutism, acne, male-pattern hair loss, subfertility and higher incidence of miscarriage. Reducing androgen levels, including testosterone and DHEA, is key to managing these symptoms. Weight loss, where appropriate, can also help in the management of symptoms.
Researchers recruited women with PCOS aged 22-43 and randomly assigned them into a group, either with no intervention or one in which they would participate in mindful yoga practice for three months. The latter group was given a course in practicing mindfulness one week before beginning the 3-month mindful yoga practice.
Mindful yoga sessions were an hour long and took place three times a week, over three months. The benefits of improved androgen levels, as well as reduced depression and anxiety, occurred in the absence of weight loss.
Some participants also reported fewer acne breakouts and improved menstrual regularity, following the mindful yoga intervention.
"Yoga has so many benefits," says Speelman. "One of its best qualities is that it is accessible to such a wide array of ages and fitness levels."
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About The Journal of the American Osteopathic Association
The JAOA's mission is to serve as an international forum for the dissemination of scientific literature that incorporates an integrative, comprehensive, patient-centered approach to clinical care and improving health. To that end, the JAOA is designed to support and amplify the scholarly voice of osteopathic medicine, publishing research that is meaningful to osteopathic physicians in whatever field they practice. The Journal is indexed by the National Library of Medicine, the Web of Science, and ReadCube. In the Web of Science, the JAOA is part of the Core Collection in the Emerging Sources Citation Index, which allows JAOA content to reach a much wider audience than previously possible. For more information, visit http://www.jaoa.org.