Affective economies in crowdfunding for cancer.

Cancer patients and survivors in the United States are increasingly likely to use online crowdfunding as a means of offsetting the expenses associated with their medical care. This practice of making an online appeal for support to a broad public audience constitutes an inadvertent form of informal emotional labor for its practitioners-labor in which striking the right affective notes in one's appeal is believed to be critical to fundraising outcomes. Drawing on ethnographic interviews, we suggest that crowdfunding produces an array of complex, often contradictory sentiments and narrative incentives for cancer patients and survivors-ultimately transforming the experience of serious illness.

Seasonal mixed layer depth shapes phytoplankton physiology, viral production, and accumulation in the North Atlantic.

Seasonal shifts in phytoplankton accumulation and loss largely follow changes in mixed layer depth, but the impact of mixed layer depth on cell physiology remains unexplored. Here, we investigate the physiological state of phytoplankton populations associated with distinct bloom phases and mixing regimes in the North Atlantic. Stratification and deep mixing alter community physiology and viral production, effectively shaping accumulation rates.

Evaluation of diagnostic pigments to estimate phytoplankton size classes.

Phytoplankton accessory pigments are commonly used to estimate phytoplankton size classes, particularly during development and validation of biogeochemical models and satellite ocean color-based algorithms. The diagnostic pigment analysis (DPA) is based on bulk measurements of pigment concentrations and relies on assumptions regarding the presence of specific pigments in different phytoplankton taxonomic groups. Three size classes are defined by the DPA: picoplankton, nanoplankton, and microplankton.

How Can Phytoplankton Pigments Be Best Used to Characterize Surface Ocean Phytoplankton Groups for Ocean Color Remote Sensing Algorithms?

High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) remains one of the most widely applied methods for estimation of phytoplankton community structure from ocean samples, which are used to create and validate satellite retrievals of phytoplankton community structure. HPLC measures the concentrations of phytoplankton pigments, some of which are useful chemotaxonomic markers for phytoplankton groups. Here, consistent suites of HPLC phytoplankton pigments measured on global surface water samples are compiled across spatial scales.

Bacterial community structure transformed after thermophilically composting human waste in Haiti.

Recycling human waste for beneficial use has been practiced for millennia. Aerobic (thermophilic) composting of sewage sludge has been shown to reduce populations of opportunistically pathogenic bacteria and to inactivate both Ascaris eggs and culturable Escherichia coli in raw waste, but there is still a question about the fate of most fecal bacteria when raw material is composted directly. This study undertook a comprehensive microbial community analysis of composting material at various stages collected over 6 months at two composting facilities in Haiti.

User perceptions of and willingness to pay for household container-based sanitation services: experience from Cap Haitien, Haiti.

Household-level container-based sanitation (CBS) services may help address the persistent challenge of providing effective, affordable sanitation services for which low-income urban households are willing to pay. Little is known, however, about user perceptions of and demand for household CBS services. This study presents the results of a pilot CBS service programme in Cap Haitien, Haiti.

Container-based sanitation: assessing costs and effectiveness of excreta management in Cap Haitien, Haiti.

Container-based sanitation (CBS) - in which wastes are captured in sealable containers that are then transported to treatment facilities - is an alternative sanitation option in urban areas where on-site sanitation and sewerage are infeasible. This paper presents the results of a pilot household CBS service in Cap Haitien, Haiti. We quantify the excreta generated weekly in a dense urban slum, the proportion safely removed via container-based public and household toilets, and the costs associated with these systems.

Polysomnographic diagnoses among former world trade center rescue workers and volunteers.

An increased risk for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) has been suggested for World Trade Center (WTC)-exposed workers. The authors reviewed the results from nocturnal polysomnograms (PSGs), to investigate diagnostic differences between WTC-exposed and -unexposed subjects. Six hundred fifty-six nocturnal PSGs performed at our sleep center were reviewed, 272 of them in former WTC workers.

Fontana-positive grains in mycetoma caused by Microsporum canis.

We describe mycetoma caused by Microsporum canis occurring in a 9-year-old African-American girl. Pathologic evaluation showed a granulomatous dermatitis with numerous large fungal grains containing septate hyphae that were Fontana-Masson positive. Two cultures of pure grains grew M.

Reduced nitrate leaching and enhanced denitrifier activity and efficiency in organically fertilized soils.

Conventional agriculture has improved in crop yield but at large costs to the environment, particularly off-site pollution from mineral N fertilizers. In response to environmental concerns, organic agriculture has become an increasingly popular option. One component of organic agriculture that remains in question is whether it can reduce agricultural N losses to groundwater and the atmosphere relative to conventional agriculture.

Endophytic nitrogen fixation in dune grasses (Ammophila arenaria and Elymus mollis) from Oregon.

Several tropical grasses harbor symbiotic nitrogen-fixing bacteria within their stem and rhizome tissue that may contribute to the nitrogen nutrition of the host plant. We present evidence here that sand dune grasses (Ammophila arenaria and Elymus mollis) from Oregon also contain nitrogen-fixing bacteria. Surface-sterilized stem and rhizome tissue from these species possess acetylene reduction (nitrogen fixation) activity and large populations (10(5) to 10(6) cfu/g fresh weight) of bacteria.

Kaposi's varicelliform eruption: a case report and review of the literature.

Disseminated herpes or vaccinia in the setting of underlying skin diseases is known as Kaposi's varicelliform eruption (KVE). Patients typically present with disseminated vesicopustules in the areas of the most severe involvement of their underlying skin disease. We report a case of eczema herpeticum in a woman with a long-standing history of atopic dermatitis (AD).