Sorption of a diverse set of organic vapors to diesel soot and road tunnel aerosols

In a traffic-dominated environment sorption of organic pollutants to exhaust aerosols can strongly determine their further fate. The sorption properties of two aerosol samples representing different exhaust sources have been determined for a large set of diverse organic vapors. For pure diesel soot we could identify adsorption to elemental carbon (EC) as the dominant sorption process. We used our experimental equilibrium adsorption coefficients to derive a predictive model for adsorption on soot in line with adsorption models for other surfaces published earlier. On road tunnel aerosols, both adsorption to EC and absorption in organic matter (OM) governed the observed sorption and the data could not be further evaluated in terms of a specific sorption mechanism.     

The politics of clinical judgment: Early empirical returns.

Reviews research pertinent to charges that clinicians' judgments are biased against minority and counternormative persons. Evaluative prejudice is found to be a more circumscribed phenomenon than critics of the mental health establishment have forecast. Clinical analogues in which patient race, sex, and value attributions were systematically varied have generally yielded null or marginally supportive results. Social-class designation has been more consistently found to affect psychological appraisals, but even here the drawing of a bias inference is precluded by the rival interpretation of effective environmental-cue utilization by clinicians. Evidence that practitioner political values or experience moderate patient labeling effects has likewise proved unconvincing. Methodological strategies are suggested for strengthening empirical tests of political bias formulations per se by reducing the logical compellingness of the expectancy-cue utilization explanation for any patient attribution effects obtained. (2? p ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Mercury emission estimates from fires: an initial inventory for the United States

Recent studies have shown that emissions of mercury (Hg), a hazardous air pollutant, from fires can be significant. However, to date, these emissions have not been well-quantified for the entire United States. Daily emissions of Hg from fires in the lower 48 states of the United States (LOWER48) and in Alaska were estimated for 2002-2006 using a simple fire emissions model. Emission factors of Hg from fires in different ecosystems were compiled from published plume studies and from soil-based assessments. Annual averaged emissions of Hg from fires in the LOWER48 and Alaska were 44 (20-65) metric tons yr(-1), equivalent to approximately 30% of the U.S. EPA 2002 National Emissions Inventory for Hg. Alaska had the highest averaged monthly emissions of all states; however, the emissions have a high temporal variability. Emissions from forests dominate the inventory, suggesting that Hg emissions from agricultural fires are not significant on an annual basis. The uncertainty in the Hg emission factors due to limited data leads to an uncertainty in the emission estimates on the order of +/-50%. Research is still needed to better constrain Hg emission factors from fires, particularly in the eastern U.S. and for ecosystems other than forests.     

Finding home after homelessness: older men’s experiences in single-site permanent supportive housing

Abstract

Although research on supportive housing models for older homeless adults is gaining momentum, few studies have considered the unique experiences of formerly homeless older adults residing in single-site permanent supportive housing (PSH). Drawing on the concepts of home and social exclusion, this qualitative case study explored the everyday experiences of 10 formerly homeless older men residing in single-site PSH. A constructivist grounded theory methodology and in-depth interviews revealed that participants felt largely at home in PSH because the congregate design and surveillance fostered a sense of safety. However, certain design features coupled with housing rules triggered processes of territorial exclusion. Further, members of minority groups experienced identity and institutional exclusion because of discrimination linked to their ethnicity, language, and sexual orientation. Recommendations are provided to promote more inclusive, home-like models of supportive housing for older homeless adults.