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Australia's Copyright Act 1968 (Cth) (‘the Act’) makes several exceptions to the exclusive rights of copyright owners. The effect of these exceptions is to confer an immunity from legal liability for acts which would otherwise constitute an infringement of copyright. Some of the statutory exceptions relate specifically to the use of copyright material by agents of government. Other exceptions are of more general application, though they may be relied upon by agents of government in circumstances not covered by the more specific exceptions.
This article examines not merely the statutory exceptions which relate to and bear upon the acts of agents and organs of government. It examines also the protections against liability for infringement of copyright which are afforded by the laws of parliamentary privilege, legislation concerning printing and publication of parliamentary papers, and freedom of information legislation. Some constitutional issues are also considered.
Persistent discrimination and identity threats contribute to adverse health outcomes in minoritized groups, mediated by both structural racism and physiological stress responses.
Objective:
This study aims to evaluate the feasibility of recruiting African American volunteers for a pilot study of race-based stress, the acceptability of a mindfulness intervention designed to reduce racism-induced stress, and to evaluate preliminary associations between race-based stress and clinical, psychosocial, and biological measures.
Methods:
A convenience sample of African Americans aged 18–50 from New York City’s Tri-state area underwent assessments for racial discrimination using the Everyday Discrimination Scale (EDS) and Race-Based Traumatic Stress Symptom Scale. Mental health was evaluated using validated clinical scales measuring depression, anxiety, stress, resilience, mindfulness, resilience, sleep, interpersonal connection, and coping. Biomarkers were assessed through clinical laboratory tests, allostatic load assessment, and blood gene expression analysis.
Results:
Twenty participants (12 females, 8 males) completed assessments after consent. Elevated EDS scores were associated with adverse lipid profiles, including higher cholesterol/high-density lipoprotein (HDL) ratios and lower HDL levels, as well as elevated inflammatory markers (NF-kB activity) and reduced antiviral response (interferon response factor). Those with high EDS reported poorer sleep, increased substance use, and lower resilience. Mindfulness was positively associated with coping and resilience but inversely to sleep disturbance. 90% showed interest in a mindfulness intervention targeting racism-induced stress.
Conclusions:
This study demonstrated an association between discrimination and adverse health effects among African Americans. These findings lay the groundwork for further research to explore the efficacy of mindfulness and other interventions on populations experiencing discrimination.
OBJECTIVES/GOALS: Patients with multiple myeloma (MM) experience significant disease- and treatment-related symptom burden, especially with higher lines of therapy (LOT). We used a remote symptom monitoring app to characterize overall symptom profile, symptom bother, and quality of life (QOL) among patients with MM across LOT and longitudinally. METHODS/STUDY POPULATION: We used Carevive PROmpt, a symptom monitoring app for cancer patients. From 11/10/22 to 9/27/23, we enrolled 84 adult patients with MM of any stage and anywhere in the treatment continuum from Duke Health MM clinics. Participants received weekly symptom surveys while on active treatment. Per prior studies, we defined heavily pretreated patients as those on current LOT ≥4. Our sample had a mean (SD) age of 63.7 (10.8) years and was 56.0% male; 73.8% had a prior bone marrow transplant, 40.5% were on LOT ≥4 (53.6% on LOT <4, 6.0% missing), 58.3% were on triplet therapy or higher. For 14 symptoms, we described the prevalence of moderate to very severe (MOD-VS) symptoms based on LOT overall and over time. We also described responses to “How bothersome are treatment side effects?” and “Overall QOL over the past week” based on LOT. RESULTS/ANTICIPATED RESULTS: Surveys continued for a mean (SD) of 14.9 (9.6) weeks (range: 44). The top 5 MOD-VS symptoms ever experienced were fatigue (66.7% of patients), neuropathy (48.8%), muscle pain (44.0%), insomnia (39.3%), and general pain (38.1%). Patients on LOT ≥4 had most of these symptoms more often than LOT <4 (fatigue: 70.6% of patients vs. 60.0%, neuropathy: 71.8% vs. 40.0%, muscle pain: 47.1% vs. 42.2%, insomnia: 35.3% vs. 40.0%, general pain: 47.1% vs. 33.3%). For those on LOT ≥4, 42.9% of survey responses endorsed “somewhat”, “quite a bit”, or “very much” symptom bother compared to 32.7% for LOT <4. QOL was similar between groups. Over many months, patients on LOT ≥4 had several persistent symptoms (neuropathy, sadness, insomnia), but even those on LOT <4 had unmet symptom needs (fatigue, general pain, constipation). DISCUSSION/SIGNIFICANCE: Evidence shows that treatment selection at higher LOT in MM often underrates the impact of cumulative symptom burden. Our study reveals significant longitudinal unmet needs regarding symptom and distress management in MM; understanding this can help guide treatment decisions and palliative care for MM patients with escalating treatment demands.
OBJECTIVES/GOALS: Racial discrimination and its associated stress are well-documented contributors to health disparities among African Americans (AA).This feasibility study aimed to acquire methodological insights and build the infrastructure for a subsequent mindfulness interventional study to reduce the effects of racism-based stress. METHODS/STUDY POPULATION: 20 AA participants ( female 12, male 8 )ages 18-50 were enrolled, and clinical data (blood pressure, waist/hip, BMI, lipids, HbA1c, creatinine) for Allostatic Index were collected. Racism-based stress was measured using RBTSSS and the Everyday Discrimination Scale (EDS). Psychometric measures (Coping, resilience, mindfulness, social connection) and sleep (PSQI) were included. Bivariate analysis explored associations between psychological measures and stress biomarkers, supported by Spearman’s correlation analysis. RESULTS/ANTICIPATED RESULTS: Low discrimination (EDS) was associated with a lower Total cholesterol/HDL ratio (2.99 vs. 4.20, p=0.009) and higher HDL (62 vs. 52, p=0.001). Low EDS participants also had better sleep (mean=3, SD=1.33, vs. mean=5.8, SD=3.99, p=0.05*) but reported less coping through drugs and alcohol (p=0.022*) and higher resilience (p=0.047*). Mindfulness negatively correlated to sleep disturbance (r=-0.477 to r=-0.62), coping and resilience. . EDS correlated with overall life stress and drug and alcohol use. Sleep disturbance was negatively associated with social connection (r=-0.569**) and mindfulness. Sleep disturbance and discrimination correlated positively with drug and alcohol use and overall life stress (r=0.52 and r=0.0.59, respectively), while resilience was negatively correlated with sleep (r=-0.45). DISCUSSION/SIGNIFICANCE: Discrimination was associated with increased stress and unfavorable coping, while mindfulness may offer potential benefits for sleep, coping, and resilience. These preliminary findings provide a foundation for further exploring the potential of mindfulness interventions to address the biopsychological impacts of racism-induced stress.
Children and youth have tended to be under-reported in the historical scholarship. This collection of essays recasts the historical narrative by populating premodern Scottish communities from the thirteenth to the late eighteenth centuries with their lively experiences and voices. By examining medieval and early modern Scottish communities through the lens of age, the collection counters traditional assumptions that young people are peripheral to our understanding of the political, economic, and social contexts of the premodern era. The topics addressed fall into three main sections: theexperience of being a child/adolescent; representations of the young; and the construction of the next generation. The individual essays examine the experience of the young at all levels of society, including princes and princesses, aristocratic and gentry youth, urban young people, rural children, and those who came to Scotland as slaves; they draw on evidence from art, personal correspondence, material culture, song, legal and government records, work and marriage contracts, and literature.
Janay Nugent is an Associate Professor of History and a founding member of the Institute for Child and Youth Studies at the University of Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada; Elizabeth Ewan is University Research Chair and Professor of History and Scottish Studies at the Centre for Scottish Studies, University of Guelph, Ontario, Canada.
Contributors: Katie Barclay, Stuart Campbell, Mairi Cowan, Sarah Dunnigan, Elizabeth Ewan, Anne Frater, Dolly MacKinnon, Cynthia J. Neville, Janay Nugent, Heather Parker, Jamie Reid Baxter, Cathryn R. Spence, Laura E. Walkling, Nel Whiting.
A cursory glance at human behavior suggests that men are considerably less careful with their lives than women. They are up to four times more likely to die from external causes (Kruger & Nesse, 2006). Many of these deaths are the result of car accidents, and men commit 97 percent of drink-driving offenses in Britain (Social Issues Research Centre, 2004). Men also die at a higher rate from nonvehicle accidents, such as drowning, falling, and electrocution (Pampel, 2001). They are the victims in 77 percent of homicides and the perpetrators in 88 percent of them (Federal Bureau of Investigation, 2012). They participate more often in extreme sports such as skydiving and mountain climbing (Robinson, 2008). The evolutionary explanation for men’s seemingly careless attitude to survival is that such behaviors are men’s way of conspicuously showing off their appetite for risk, the better to elicit respect from other men and sexual interest from women.
Providing support to families has long been a feature of social policy systems globally. Recent years have increasingly seen family support shift to recognise the growing trend and policy ambition of maternal employment, particularly in a European context. UK and Ireland represent two examples of countries that have sought to respond to changing labour market and work–life balance dynamics through promoting a choice agenda for working mothers. Whilst both countries are characterised as neo-liberal economies they have promoted the choice agenda via different welfare benefit packages. The recent economic crisis has seen both countries cutting the level of support provided for families, raising questions about the extent that mothers are still being provided with choice in how to combine work and family life. Whilst the cuts look to refocus welfare provision on vulnerable children and their families, they also reflect the push towards individualised responsibility for managing new social risks.
Frascati international research criteria for HIV-associated neurocognitive disorders (HAND) are controversial; some investigators have argued that Frascati criteria are too liberal, resulting in a high false positive rate. Meyer et al. recommended more conservative revisions to HAND criteria, including exploring other commonly used methodologies for neurocognitive impairment (NCI) in HIV including the global deficit score (GDS). This study compares NCI classifications by Frascati, Meyer, and GDS methods, in relation to neuroimaging markers of brain integrity in HIV.
Method:
Two hundred forty-one people living with HIV (PLWH) without current substance use disorder or severe (confounding) comorbid conditions underwent comprehensive neurocognitive testing and brain structural magnetic resonance imaging and magnetic resonance spectroscopy. Participants were classified using Frascati criteria versus Meyer criteria: concordant unimpaired [Frascati(Un)/Meyer(Un)], concordant impaired [Frascati(Imp)/Meyer(Imp)], or discordant [Frascati(Imp)/Meyer(Un)] which were impaired via Frascati criteria but unimpaired via Meyer criteria. To investigate the GDS versus Meyer criteria, the same groupings were utilized using GDS criteria instead of Frascati criteria.
Results:
When examining Frascati versus Meyer criteria, discordant Frascati(Imp)/Meyer(Un) individuals had less cortical gray matter, greater sulcal cerebrospinal fluid volume, and greater evidence of neuroinflammation (i.e., choline) than concordant Frascati(Un)/Meyer(Un) individuals. GDS versus Meyer comparisons indicated that discordant GDS(Imp)/Meyer(Un) individuals had less cortical gray matter and lower levels of energy metabolism (i.e., creatine) than concordant GDS(Un)/Meyer(Un) individuals. In both sets of analyses, the discordant group did not differ from the concordant impaired group on any neuroimaging measure.
Conclusions:
The Meyer criteria failed to capture a substantial portion of PLWH with brain abnormalities. These findings support continued use of Frascati or GDS criteria to detect HIV-associated CNS dysfunction.
The strategic pluralism model depends upon pathogen prevalence and environmental hardship being independent. Evidence is presented that they are positively correlated. The rise in short-term mating strategy in the United States is better explained by changes in the operational sex ratio than by increases in pathogen prevalence. Nonetheless, in highlighting the advantages of a high-investment strategy to less attractive males, Gangestad & Simpson's model helps to clarify the dynamics offrequency-dependent selection.
Objectives: Studies of neurocognitively elite older adults, termed SuperAgers, have identified clinical predictors and neurobiological indicators of resilience against age-related neurocognitive decline. Despite rising rates of older persons living with HIV (PLWH), SuperAging (SA) in PLWH remains undefined. We aimed to establish neuropsychological criteria for SA in PLWH and examined clinically relevant correlates of SA. Methods: 734 PLWH and 123 HIV-uninfected participants between 50 and 64 years of age underwent neuropsychological and neuromedical evaluations. SA was defined as demographically corrected (i.e., sex, race/ethnicity, education) global neurocognitive performance within normal range for 25-year-olds. Remaining participants were labeled cognitively normal (CN) or impaired (CI) based on actual age. Chi-square and analysis of variance tests examined HIV group differences on neurocognitive status and demographics. Within PLWH, neurocognitive status differences were tested on HIV disease characteristics, medical comorbidities, and everyday functioning. Multinomial logistic regression explored independent predictors of neurocognitive status. Results: Neurocognitive status rates and demographic characteristics differed between PLWH (SA=17%; CN=38%; CI=45%) and HIV-uninfected participants (SA=35%; CN=55%; CI=11%). In PLWH, neurocognitive groups were comparable on demographic and HIV disease characteristics. Younger age, higher verbal IQ, absence of diabetes, fewer depressive symptoms, and lifetime cannabis use disorder increased likelihood of SA. SA reported increased independence in everyday functioning, employment, and health-related quality of life than non-SA. Conclusions: Despite combined neurological risk of aging and HIV, youthful neurocognitive performance is possible for older PLWH. SA relates to improved real-world functioning and may be better explained by cognitive reserve and maintenance of cardiometabolic and mental health than HIV disease severity. Future research investigating biomarker and lifestyle (e.g., physical activity) correlates of SA may help identify modifiable neuroprotective factors against HIV-related neurobiological aging. (JINS, 2019, 25, 507–519)
Background: Glioblastoma is the most common adult malignant glioma, with poor prognosis and adverse neurological sequelae. Physical activity improves outcomes in patients with other cancers, but has not been evaluated in GBM. This prospective, single-arm intervention trial examines feasibility and preliminary efficacy of exercise on PFS, cognition and QOL in newly diagnosed GBM patients. Method: Participants are English-speaking GBM patients scheduled for concurrent chemoradiation at PMH, 18-65 years old, ECOG ≤ 2. The 3-month home-based exercise program includes aerobic and resistance training, tailored to prior fitness level, current physical status, and individual interests. Assessments of physical and neurocognitive functions, mood, fatigue, sleep, and QOL, occur within 2 weeks of starting chemoradiation, and approximately 3, 6, 12, and 18 months later, or until tumor progression. Feasibility will be assessed by accrual, retention, and adherence rates. Outcomes include PFS (RANO criteria), change in cognition (reliable change index method), physical activity and sleep (actigraphy, self-report questionnaires). Time-to-event outcomes will be estimated (Kaplan-Meier), and mixed modelling will explore individual and disease variables that contribute to outcomes. Results: During the first five months of recruitment, 13 of 19 eligible patients consented. Nine completed the exercise program. One patient died after the intervention and none of the others progressed. No exercise-related serious adverse events occurred. Preliminary results will be presented at the meeting. Discussion: Exercise appears feasible for GBM patients. Effects on survival, performance status, cognition, sleep, mood, and QOL are ongoing. Results may guide physical activity recommendations in GBM and generate avenues for translational research.
To meet some of the UN’s seventeen Sustainable Development Goals by 2030, there is a need for more effective policy to reduce food insecurity in low-income and lower-middle-income countries (LMIC). Measuring progress towards these goals requires reliable indicators of food security in these countries. Routinely conducted household consumption and expenditure surveys (HCES) provide potentially valuable and nationally representative data sets for this purpose. The present study aimed to assess methods used to determine national food security status using proxy measures from HCES data in LMIC globally.
Design
A scoping literature review was conducted using electronic databases. Of the 929 abstracts identified, a total of twenty articles were reviewed against strict inclusion and exclusion criteria and included for further analysis.
Results
Fourteen LMIC globally were represented in the twenty articles. The simplest metric used to indicate food insecurity compared household food expenditure against a level of expenditure considered to be below the poverty line. Data on acquisition of food was commonly converted to available energy for the household using local food composition tables and expressed as a proportion of household total energy requirements. Dietary diversity was also assessed in some studies as well as experience of food insecurity.
Conclusions
The review demonstrated that routinely collected HCES data sets provide a useful resource for the measurement of household food security in often resource-limited LMIC. Standardisation of methods used to assess food security is needed to allow for more useful comparisons between countries, as well as to assess temporal trends.
This collection of essays pays tribute to Nancy Freeman Regalado, a ground-breaking scholar in the field of medieval French literature whose research has always pushed beyond disciplinary boundaries. The articles in the volume reflect the depth and diversity of her scholarship, as well as her collaborations with literary critics, philologists, historians, art historians, musicologists, and vocalists - in France, England, and the United States. Inspired by her most recent work, these twenty-four essays are tied together by a single question, rich in ramifications: how does performance shape our understanding of medieval and pre-modern literature and culture, whether the nature of that performance is visual, linguistic, theatrical, musical, religious, didactic, socio-political, or editorial? The studies presented here invite us to look afresh at the interrelationship of audience, author, text, and artifact, to imagine new ways of conceptualizing the creation, transmission, and reception of medieval literature, music, and art.
EGLAL DOSS-QUINBY is Professor of French at Smith College; ROBERTA L. KRUEGER is Professor of French at Hamilton College; E. JANE BURNS is Professor of Women's Studies and Adjunct Professor of Comparative Literature at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.
Contributors: ANNE AZÉMA, RENATE BLUMENFELD-KOSINSKI, CYNTHIA J. BROWN, ELIZABETH A. R. BROWN, MATILDA TOMARYN BRUCKNER, E. JANE BURNS, ARDIS BUTTERFIELD, KIMBERLEE CAMPBELL, ROBERT L. A. CLARK, MARK CRUSE, KATHRYN A. DUYS, ELIZABETH EMERY, SYLVIA HUOT, MARILYN LAWRENCE, KATHLEEN A. LOYSEN, LAURIE POSTLEWATE, EDWARD H. ROESNER, SAMUEL N. ROSENBERG, LUCY FREEMAN SANDLER, PAMELA SHEINGORN, HELEN SOLTERER, JANE H. M. TAYLOR, EVELYN BIRGE VITZ, LORI J. WALTERS, AND MICHEL ZINK.
I identify two confusions and omissions in the target article. Confusion arises from failure to distinguish between a genetically transmitted adaptation and a conditional response to the environment, and from the elision of individual and societal adaptations. Despite points of similarity, there is no mention of Rushton's controversial theory of the climatic basis of race differences in violent crime. Sex differences are also ignored.
