No abstract available

[en] We express the position of the Sun in the sky as a function of time and the observer’s geographic coordinates. Our method is based on applying rotation matrices to vectors describing points on the celestial sphere. We also derive direct expressions, as functions of date of the year and geographic latitude, for the duration of daylight, the maximum and minimum altitudes of the Sun, and the cardinal directions to sunrise and sunset. We discuss how to account for the eccentricity of the Earth’s orbit, the precessions of the equinoxes and the perihelion, the size of the solar disc and atmospheric refraction. We illustrate these results by computing the dates of ‘Manhattanhenge’ (when sunset aligns with the east–west streets on the main traffic grid for Manhattan, in New York City), by plotting the altitude of the Sun over representative cities as a function of time, and by showing plots (‘analemmas’) for the position of the Sun in the sky at a given hour of the day. (paper)

[en] Highlights: • Adult lead exposure in New York City (NYC) has declined over a ten-year period overall and across all subgroups. • The 95th percentiles of adult blood lead levels were less than 5 µg/dL in all NYC population subgroups examined. • Disparity in NYC adult lead exposure by income and race/ethnicity has lessened. • Asian adults had higher geometric mean and 95th percentile blood lead levels than other racial/ethnic groups in NYC. To assess changes in lead exposure in the New York City (NYC) adult population over a 10-year period and to contrast changes with national estimates, overall, and by socio-demographics and smoking status.

[en] The mayor of the City of New York received an anonymous letter on April 1st 1985 threatening to contaminate the water supply with plutonium unless all criminal charges against Mr Bernhard Goetz, the suspect in a dramatic subway shooting incident, were dismissed by April 11th 1985. The Environmental Measurements Laboratory, EML, was requested to analyse a composite, large volume (∼ 175 litres) drinking water sample collected on April 16th 1985. The concentration measured was 21 fCi/l which was a factor of 100 greater than previously observed results in the EML data base, and the mass isotopic content of the plutonium was very unusual. Additional samples were collected one to three months later at various distribution points in the water supply system. The plutonium concentrations were much lower and comparable to EML's earlier data. Mass isotopic analysis of these samples provided more reasonable compositions but with high uncertainties due to very low plutonium concentration. Due to the inability to confirm the elevated plutonium concentration value for the composite sample, it is impossible to conclude whether the threat to contaminate the New York City water supply was actually carried out or whether the sample was contaminated prior to receipt at EML. 5 refs.; 1 figure; 5 tabs

[en] Highlights: • Synthesized green and gray infrastructure investments documented in long-term control plans from 25 U.S. cities. • Five “green leader” cities are investing more than 20% of the control plan budget in green infrastructure. • “Green leader” cities varied in management scale and complexity, but all set goals based on impervious cover or volume. • Regulatory factors were identified as a potential driver of greater proportions of green infrastructure investment. • Case studies suggest past investment in gray infrastructure may have provided flexibility to experiment with green. - Abstract: Communities are faced with the challenge of meeting regulatory requirements mandating reductions in water pollution from stormwater and combined sewer overflows (CSO). Green stormwater infrastructure and gray stormwater infrastructure are two types of water management strategies communities can use to address water pollution. In this study, we used long-term control plans from 25 U.S. cities to synthesize: the types of gray and green infrastructure being used by communities to address combined sewer overflows; the types of goals set; biophysical characteristics of each city; and factors associated with the governance of stormwater management. These city characteristics were then used to identify common characteristics of “green leader” cities—those that dedicated >20% of the control plan budget in green infrastructure. Five “green leader” cities were identified: Milwaukee, WI, Philadelphia, PA, Syracuse, NY, New York City, NY, and Buffalo, NY. These five cities had explicit green infrastructure goals targeting the volume of stormwater or percentage of impervious cover managed by green infrastructure. Results suggested that the management scale and complexity of the management system are less important factors than the ability to harness a “policy window” to integrate green infrastructure into control plans. Two case studies—Philadelphia, PA, and Milwaukee, WI—indicated that green leader cities have a long history of building momentum for green infrastructure through a series of phases from experimentation, demonstration, and finally—in the case of Philadelphia—a full transition in the approach used to manage CSOs.

[en] Waiting lists for radiotherapy are a recent phenomenon in highly populated areas and, coupled with the public's awareness of the nature of cancer and the need for immediate treatment, a psychological dilemma has emerged. Since virtually all patients are now assigned to the radiotherapy waiting list, a random sample of patients who would begin radiotherapy immediately following their initial consultation was created. Quality of life, in terms of self-reported mood indices, was assessed at five points in time for each patient using the Profile of Mood States. Approximately 25% of the delayed patients chose to leave the waiting list and seek treatment elsewhere. The most striking finding was that patients who began radiotherapy immediately experienced improved quality of life during the course of treatment as per Forester, et al., (1985). In contrast, the patients who spent time (1-8 weeks) on a treatment waiting list experienced a decrease in quality of life over their course of radiotherapy and even more so at a month following the end of treatment

[en] Using blood samples collected since 1978, the authors investigated the epidemiology of human T-cell lymphotropic virus type III (HTLV-III), the etiologic agent of the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome, in a group of 378 homosexually active men who have resided in New York City since the acquire immunodeficiency syndrome epidemic began. The anti-HTLV-III prevalence was 6.6% in sera from 1978 or 1979, and the subsequent annual incidence of seroconversion among susceptible men ranged between 5.5% and 10.6%. The highest incidences were in recent years, even though these men reported a decrease in their sexual activity during this time. These data demonstrate the continuing risk of HTLV-III infections in the homosexual population studied and emphasize the need for more effective prevention of transmission. The year during which antibody was first present was the only factor identified that was associated with altered cell-mediated immunity in antibody-positive men

[en] The study asks how well are cities doing in reducing their greenhouse gas emissions. Data from six cities with repeat GHG emission inventories for the period 2004–2009 is examined: Berlin, Boston, Greater Toronto, London, New York City and Seattle. All of the cities are reducing their per capita GHG emissions, primarily through changes to stationary combustion. On average the cities are reducing per capita emissions by 0.27 t CO₂e/capita per year; this is about the same average rate as the cities nation states, although the cities are reducing emissions faster in percentage terms.

[en] The p53 tumor suppressor gene is commonly mutated in colorectal cancer. While the effect of p53 mutations on colorectal cancer prognosis has been heavily studied, less is known about how epidemiologic risk factors relate to p53 status, particularly in early colorectal neoplasia prior to clinically invasive colorectal cancer (including adenomas, carcinoma in situ (CIS), and intramucosal carcinoma). We examined p53 status, as measured by protein overexpression, in 157 cases with early colorectal neoplasia selected from three New York City colonoscopy clinics. After collecting paraffin-embedded tissue blocks, immunohistochemistry was performed using an anti-p53 monoclonal mouse IgG₂a [BP53-12-1] antibody. We analyzed whether p53 status was different for risk factors for colorectal neoplasia relative to a polyp-free control group (n = 508). p53 overexpression was found in 10.3%, 21.7%, and 34.9%, of adenomatous polyps, CIS, and intramucosal cases, respectively. Over 90% of the tumors with p53 overexpression were located in the distal colon and rectum. Heavy cigarette smoking (30+ years) was associated with cases not overexpressing p53 (OR = 1.8, 95% CI = 1.1–2.9) but not with those cases overexpressing p53 (OR = 1.0, 95% CI = 0.4–2.6). Heavy beer consumption (8+ bottles per week) was associated with cases overexpressing p53 (OR = 4.0, 95% CI = 1.3–12.0) but not with cases without p53 overexpression (OR = 1.6, 95% CI = 0.7–3.7). Our findings that p53 overexpression in early colorectal neoplasia may be positively associated with alcohol intake and inversely associated with cigarette smoking are consistent with those of several studies of p53 expression and invasive cancer, and suggest that there may be relationships of smoking and alcohol with p53 early in the adenoma to carcinoma sequence

[en] 

Background

Breast reconstruction can help restore the shape and appearance of breasts after surgery. Studies have shown that minority and uninsured patients are less likely to receive breast reconstruction after mastectomy.

Objective

We sought to determine if post-mastectomy reconstruction varied by patient ethnicity and insurance status in a medically underserved population.

Methods

This was a retrospective study of mastectomy patients seen at Bellevue Hospital Center, a safety-net hospital in New York City, between January 2010 and December 2015. The Chi square test was used to compare patient characteristics versus type of reconstruction chosen and likelihood of reconstruction. Logistic regression was used to examine likelihood of reconstruction, controlling for patient insurance status, race, age, stage at presentation, and contralateral prophylactic mastectomy.

Results

Of the 750 patients included in the database, 220 underwent mastectomy. Overall, 73.6% of our patient population received breast reconstruction. Patients with Medicare insurance were less likely to get reconstruction compared with patients with other types of insurance (37.5%, p = 0.04). Hispanic patients were most likely to receive reconstruction (89.1%), followed by Black patients (80%) and Asian patients (66.7%) [p = 0.03]. There were no significant associations between patient race or stage at presentation and type of reconstruction. In a multivariate logistic regression, advancing age was associated with a decreased likelihood of reconstruction (adjusted odds ratio 0.91, p < 0.001).

Conclusions

In our underserved patient population, patients received breast reconstruction at rates higher than the national average. Institutional availability of patient navigators and preoperative counseling may contribute to more equal access to breast reconstruction.