Occupational airway diseases in the metalworking industry Part 1: Respiratory infections, pneumonia, chronic bronchitis and emphysema

Occupational airway diseases are now receiving attention in industry, although study is hampered by a lack of readily-available data. The interpretation of the data that is available, and also of the root problems themselves, is itself a difficult problem. This paper has been written as a literature review which it is hoped that other researchers can take either as a starting point or as a refresher.     

THE DILEMMAS OF BUILDING A PROGRESSIVE URBAN COALITION: The Linked Development Debate in Chicago

ABSTRACT: In 1983 Chicago elected its first black mayor, Harold Washington. During Washington's first term of office, his administration not only reordered municipal priorities in such a fashion as to benefit his core, minority voting constituency, but also defined a municipal agenda emphasizing greater attention to neighborhood needs and more open government. In 1984 an important neighborhood coalition, the Save Our Neighborhoods/Save Our City Coalition (SON/SOC), proposed a linked development policy to tap downtown investment for neighborhood projects. Although SON/SOC's proposal was compatible with the Washington neighborhood agenda, this mainly white organization and the Washington administration experienced considerable difficulty in forging a mutually acceptable proposal The linked development debate in Chicago demonstrates the salience of race, class-cultural factors, and alternative approaches to neighborhood mobilization as barriers to the development of progressive coalitions in city politics.     

Gain control in reflex pathways

Summary form only given. A series of experiments was undertaken to determine the gain of the stretch reflex in decerebrate cats. Stretches are applied through a servo-controlled motor that receives length and velocity feedback which are adjusted so that it behaves like a spring of a particular stiffness. As the stiffness decreases the gain of the reflex increases until the stiffness is made much less than the intrinsic muscle stiffness. Under these conditions small brief pulses can elicit shortening of 1 mm or more and reflex forces that are larger than the force produced by the stretch itself. This suggests that the gain in the reflex is 1 or more at low frequencies. It is concluded that muscle control systems are adaptive and time-varying to accomplish the various tasks required by the organism. Although under some conditions the reflex gain is on the order of one, measurement of gain is compounded by a number of nonlinearities, and the value of these nonlinearities in various tasks remains to be determined     

Activation analysis of environmental pollutants

Activation analysis is a highly sensitive and specific technique for the detection of trace heavy metal pollutants in environmental materials. Comparison of natural “baseline” levels with elevated levels provides direct evidence of contamination. Neutron activation analysis (NAA) is used in this study to determine arsenic, zinc, cadmium, and mercury. Photo-nuclear activation analysis (PNAA) is used to determine lead in soils. Holland Marsh, a market-gardening area north of Toronto, has been studied as various herbicides and fungicides have been used there. The analyses of soil and vegetation samples, and of human head hair collected from residents are reported.     

Outlook on fertilizer use efficiency in the tropics

In this paper efficiency of applied fertilizers under tropical conditions is examined. Understanding of the fertilizer efficiency is particularly important for the developing countries mainly because there is need for enhancement of crop yields at a reduced cost. Many of the soil, plant and climatic factors of the tropical regions that contribute to the efficiency of the applied fertilizers have been discussed. Many of the tropical soils are acidic in nature and in these soils efficiency of applied fertilizer is relatively poor, mainly because plant roots are unable to grow and function to their fullest extent in utilizing the soils available nutrients. To enhance yield potentials there is need for understanding of interaction between crop species and soil and climatic variables. Incorporation and adoptation of a suitable application time can greatly enhance efficiency of urea form of nitrogen. Research findings in tropical soils have shown that an initial broadcast application of P and subsequent band treatment is more effective than either method of application alone. Current crop yields in tropical countries are far below the known yield potentials. Such low production potentials are attributed to the lack of suitable crop germplasms and understanding of improved agronomic practices. Intensification of research activities in fertilizer use efficiency in tropical countries is suggested.Senior author formerly was a Research Advisor to EMBRAPA/IICA/World Bank Program in Brazil.