Mainstream monsters : the otherness of humans in Twilight, the Vampire Diaries and True Blood

The representation of vampires in horror movies and television programmes has changed considerably over the last two decades. No longer is the vampire portrayed simply as a monster or representation of death. Now, the vampire on our screen such as True Blood’s Bill Compton, or Twilight’s Edward Cullen, passes as human, chooses to make morally sound decisions, becomes an upstanding assimilated citizen, works in the community, and aspires to be a husband to mortal women. The success of recent series such as The Twilight Saga (2009, 2010, 2011, 2012), The Vampire Diaries (2009 - ) and True Blood (2008 - ) has popularised the idea of vampires who cling to remnants of their humanity (or memories of what it means to be human) and attempt to live as human, which builds upon similar – albeit embryonic – themes which emerged from the vampire sub-genre in the 1990s. Within these narratives, representations of the other have shifted from the traditional idea of the monster, to alternative and surprising loci. As this chapter argues, humans themselves, and the concept of the human body, now represent, in many instances, both abject and other. The chapter begins by considering the nature of the abject and otherness in relation to representations of classical vampires and how they have traditionally embodied the other. This provides a backdrop against which to examine the characteristics of the contemporary mainstreaming vampire ‘monster’. An examination of the broad thematic and representational shifts from other to mainstream vampire demonstrates how mainstream monsters are increasingly assimilating into mortal lifestyles with trappings that many viewers may find appealing. The same shifts in theme and representation also reveal that humans are frequently cast as mundane and unappealing in contemporary vampire narratives.

Effect of exercise training on skeletal muscle cytokine expression in the elderly

Aging is associated with increased circulating pro-inflammatory and lower anti-inflammatory cytokines. Exercise training, in addition to improving muscle function, reduces these circulating pro-inflammatory cytokines. Yet, few studies have evaluated changes in the expression of cytokines within skeletal muscle after exercise training. The aim of the current study was to examine the expression of cytokines both at rest and following a bout of isokinetic exercise performed before and after 12 weeks of resistance exercise training in young (n = 8, 20.3 ± 0.8 yr) and elderly men (n = 8, 66.9 ± 1.6 yr). Protein expression of various cytokines was determined in muscle homogenates. The expression of MCP-1, IL-8 and IL-6 (which are traditionally classified as ‘pro-inflammatory’) increased substantially after acute exercise. By contrast, the expression of the anti-inflammatory cytokines IL-4, IL-10 and IL-13 increased only slightly (or not at all) after acute exercise. These responses were not significantly different between young and elderly men, either before or after 12 weeks of exercise training. However, compared with the young men, the expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines 2 h post exercise tended to be greater in the elderly men prior to training. Training attenuated this difference. These data suggest that the inflammatory response to unaccustomed exercise increases with age. Furthermore, regular exercise training may help to normalize this inflammatory response, which could have important implications for muscle regeneration and adaptation in the elderly.

Is age a factor in the success or failure of remote monitoring in heart failure? Telemonitoring and structured telephone support in elderly heart failure patients

Background There are few data regarding the effectiveness of remote monitoring for older people with heart failure. We conducted a post-hoc sub-analysis of a previously published large Cochrane systematic review and meta-analysis of relevant randomized controlled trials to determine whether structured telephone support and telemonitoring were effective in this population. Methods A post hoc sub-analysis of a systematic review and meta-analysis that applied the Cochrane methodology was conducted. Meta-analyses of all-cause mortality, all-cause hospitalizations and heart failure-related hospitalizations were performed for studies where the mean or median age of participants was 70 or more years. Results The mean or median age of participants was 70 or more years in eight of the 16 (n=2,659/5,613; 47%) structured telephone support studies and four of the 11 (n=894/2,710; 33%) telemonitoring studies. Structured telephone support (RR 0.80; 95% CI=0.63-1.00) and telemonitoring (RR 0.56; 95% CI=0.41-0.76) interventions reduced mortality. Structured telephone support interventions reduced heart failure-related hospitalizations (RR 0.81; 95% CI=0.67-0.99). Conclusion Despite a systematic bias towards recruitment of individuals younger than the epidemiological average into the randomized controlled trials, older people with heart failure did benefit from structured telephone support and telemonitoring. These post-hoc sub-analysis results were similar to overall effects observed in the main meta-analysis. While further research is required to confirm these observational findings, the evidence at hand indicates that discrimination by age alone may be not be appropriate when inviting participation in a remote monitoring service for heart failure.

Geographic co-distribution of influenza virus subtypes H7N9 and H5N1 in humans, China

Human infection with a novel low pathogenicity influenza A(H7N9) virus in eastern China has recently raised global public health concerns (1). The geographic sources of infection have yet to be fully clarified, and confirmed human cases from 1 province have not been linked to those from other provinces. While some studies have identified epidemiologic characteristics of subtype H7N9 cases and clinical differences between these cases and cases of highly pathogenic influenza A(H5N1), another avian influenza affecting parts of China (2–4), the spatial epidemiology of human infection with influenza subtypes H7N9 and H5N1 in China has yet to be elucidated. To test the hypothesis of co-distribution of high-risk clusters of both types of infection, we used all available data on human cases in mainland China and investigated the geospatial epidemiologic features...

Health promotion for dogs and humans : the 10,000 steps Rockhampton dog walking intervention

Purpose This paper describes the implementation and evaluation of an intervention aimed at increasing the dog-walking behaviour of residents from a community of approximately 60,000. This intervention was a sub strategy of the 10 000 Steps Rockhampton project – a community intervention aimed at decreasing sedentary behaviour in the adult population. Methods Brochures and posters were developed that promoted dog walking as a means to improve both human and canine health. The brochures were distributed by the local council to over 8 000 homes with the annual dog-renewal registrations. Results Evaluation of the intervention included a telephone survey of a randomly selected sample of Rockhampton residents (n=420) four-months post intervention. Although 63.6% of participants reported that owning a dog increased their physical activity levels, 40% of dog-owners did not walk their dog at all in the last week. The outcome evaluation of the intervention showed that 20.2% of dog-owners recalled receiving the brochure. Overall 15.3% of respondents with a dog in their household reported an increase in their physical activity levels since the intervention, 8.4% reported a decrease. Conclusions The intervention was an innovative and cost-effective way to tap into a section of the population that can benefit from engaging in regular walking behaviour. It was also a unique and useful way to engage local council in physical activity health promotion as part of a larger ongoing community-wide intervention.

Root caries patterns and risk factors of middle-aged and elderly people in China

The objectives of this study were to describe root caries patterns of Chinese adults and to analyze the effect of selected demographic and socioeconomic factors on these patterns. A total sample of 1080 residents aged 35-44-years-old and 1080 residents aged 65-74-years-old from three urban and three rural survey sites in Hubei Province participated in both an oral health interview and a clinical oral health examination. Root surface caries prevalence rates were 13.1% in the middle-aged group and 43.9% in the elderly group. The mean number of teeth affected by caries in the middle-aged group was reported at 0.21 and 1.0 in the elderly group. Mean Root Caries Index (RCI) scores of the middle-aged were reported at 6.29 and elderly subjects were reported at 11.95. Elderly people living in rural areas reported a higher RCI score (13.24) than those living in urban areas (10.70). A significantly higher frequency of root surface caries was observed in elderly participants (P < 0.001, OR = 3.80) and ethnic minorities (P < 0.001, OR = 1.93). In addition, smokers, nontea drinkers, and those with an annual household income of 10,000 yuan or less tended to have higher caries prevalence. RCI figures for the different tooth types ranged from 1% to 16%, indicating a wide variation in attack rates. In conclusion, our study suggests that root surface caries occurrence is high among the Chinese adult population, especially older adults. With an increasing number of retained teeth in both middle-aged and elderly people, root caries is a growing disease in the People's Republic of China which deserves more attention in future research.

A disaggregate discrete choice model of transportation demand by elderly and disabled people in rural Virginia

This paper uses a correlated multinomial logit model and a Poisson regression model to measure the factors affecting demand for different types of transportation by elderly and disabled people in rural Virginia. The major results are: (a) A paratransit system providing door-to-door service is highly valued by transportation-handicapped people; (b) Taxis are probably a potential but inferior alternative even when subsidized; (c) Buses are a poor alternative, especially in rural areas where distances to bus stops may be long; (d) Making buses handicap-accessible would have a statistically significant but small effect on mode choice; (e) Demand is price inelastic; and (f) The total number of trips taken is insensitive to mode availability and characteristics. These results suggest that transportation-handicapped people take a limited number of trips. Those they do take are in some sense necessary (given the low elasticity with respect to mode price or availability). People will substitute away from relying upon others when appropriate transportation is available, at least to some degree. But such transportation needs to be flexible enough to meet the needs of the people involved.

Shared caregiving responsibilities of adult siblings with elderly parents

This paper uses a nonstructural, ordered discrete choice model to measure the effects of various parent and child characteristics upon the independent caregiving decisions of the adult children of elderly parents sampled in the 1982 and 1984 National Long Term Care Survey (NLTCS). While significant effects are noted, emphasis is placed on test statistics constructed to measure the independence of caregiving decisions. The test statistic results are conclusive: The caregiving decisions of adult children are dependent across time and family members. Structural models taking dependencies among family members into account note effects similar to those in the nonstructural model.

CHURNs : freshness assurance for humans

We present CHURNs, a method for providing freshness and authentication assurances to human users. In computer-to-computer protocols, it has long been accepted that assurances of freshness such as random nonces are required to prevent replay attacks. Typically, no such assurance of freshness is presented to a human in a human-and-computer protocol. A Computer–HUman Recognisable Nonce (CHURN) is a computer-aided random sequence that the human has a measure of control over and input into. Our approach overcomes limitations such as ‘humans cannot do random’ and that humans will follow the easiest path. Our findings show that CHURNs are significantly more random than values produced by unaided humans; that humans may be used as a second source of randomness, and we give measurements as to how much randomness can be gained from humans using our approach; and that our CHURN-generator makes the user feel more in control, thus removing the need for complete trust in devices and underlying protocols. We give an example of how a CHURN may be used to provide assurances of freshness and authentication for humans in a widely used protocol.

Species differences in acrylonitrile metabolism and toxicity between experimental animals and humans based on observations in human accidental poisonings

The high acute toxicity of acrylonitrile may be a result of its intrinsic biological reactivity or of its metabolite cyanide. Intravenous N-acetylcysteine has been recommended for treatment of accidental intoxications in acrylonitrile workers, but such recommendations vary internationally. Acrylonitrile is metabolized in humans and experimental animals via two competing pathways; the glutathione-dependent pathway is considered to represent an avenue of detoxication whilst the oxidative pathway leads to a genotoxic epoxide, cyanoethylene oxide, and to elimination of cyanide. Cases of acute acrylonitrile overexposure or intoxication have occurred within persons having industrial contact with acrylonitrile; the route of exposure was by inhalation and/or by skin contact. The combined observations lead to the conclusion of a much higher impact of the oxidative metabolism of acrylonitrile in humans than in rodents. This is confirmed by differences in the clinical picture of acute life-threatening intoxications in both species, as well as by differential efficacies of antidotes. A combination of N-acetylcysteine with sodium thiosulfate seems an appropriate measure for antidote therapy of acute acrylonitrile intoxications. Clinical observations also highlight the practical importance of human individual susceptibility differences. Furthermore, differential adduct monitoring, assessing protein adducts with different rates of decay, enables the development of more elaborated biological monitoring strategies for the surveillance of workers with potential acrylonitrile contact.

A comparison of treatment options for management of end stage kidney disease in elderly patients : a systematic review

Background Chronic kidney disease is a global public health problem of increasing prevalence. There are five stages of kidney disease, with Stage 5 indicating end stage kidney disease (ESKD) requiring dialysis or death will eventually occur. Over the last two decades there have been increasing numbers of people commencing dialysis. A majority of this increase has occurred in the population of people who are 65 years and over. With the older population it is difficult to determine at times whether dialysis will provide any benefit over non-dialysis management. The poor prognosis for the population over 65 years raises issues around management of ESKD in this population. It is therefore important to review any research that has been undertaken in this area which compares outcomes of the older ESKD population who have commenced dialysis with those who have received non-dialysis management. Objective The primary objective was to assess the effect of dialysis compared with non-dialysis management for the population of 65 years and over with ESKD. Inclusion criteria Types of participants This review considered studies that included participants who were 65 years and older. These participants needed to have been diagnosed with ESKD for greater than three months and also be either receiving renal replacement therapy (RRT) (hemodialysis [HD] or peritoneal dialysis [PD]) or non-dialysis management. The settings for the studies included the home, self-care centre, satellite centre, hospital, hospice or nursing home. Types of intervention(s)/phenomena of interest This review considered studies where the intervention was RRT (HD or PD) for the participants with ESKD. There was no restriction on frequency of RRT or length of time the participant received RRT. The comparator was participants who were not undergoing RRT. Types of studies This review considered both experimental and epidemiological study designs including randomized controlled trials, non-randomized controlled trials, quasi-experimental, before and after studies, prospective and retrospective cohort studies, case control studies and analytical cross sectional studies. This review also considered descriptive epidemiological study designs including case series, individual case reports and descriptive cross sectional studies for inclusion. This review included any of the following primary and secondary outcome measures: •Primary outcome – survival measures •Secondary outcomes – functional performance score (e.g. Karnofsky Performance score) •Symptoms and severity of end stage kidney disease •Hospital admissions •Health related quality of life (e.g. KDQOL, SF36 and HRQOL) •Comorbidities (e.g. Charlson Comorbidity index).

Reliability in the Parameterization of the Functional Reach Test in Elderly Stroke Patients: A Pilot Study

BACKGROUND: Postural instability is one of the major complications found in stroke survivors. Parameterising the functional reach test (FRT) could be useful in clinical practice and basic research. OBJECTIVES: To analyse the reliability, sensitivity, and specificity in the FRT parameterisation using inertial sensors for recording kinematic variables in patients who have suffered a stroke. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. While performing FRT, two inertial sensors were placed on the patient's back (lumbar and trunk). PARTICIPANTS: Five subjects over 65 who suffer from a stroke. MEASUREMENTS: FRT measures, lumbosacral/thoracic maximum angular displacement, maximum time of lumbosacral/thoracic angular displacement, time return initial position, and total time. Speed and acceleration of the movements were calculated indirectly. RESULTS: FRT measure is  12.75±2.06 cm. Intrasubject reliability values range from 0.829 (time to return initial position (lumbar sensor)) to 0.891 (lumbosacral maximum angular displacement). Intersubject reliability values range from 0.821 (time to return initial position (lumbar sensor)) to 0.883 (lumbosacral maximum angular displacement). FRT's reliability was 0.987 (0.983-0.992) and 0.983 (0.979-0.989) intersubject and intrasubject, respectively. CONCLUSION: The main conclusion could be that the inertial sensors are a tool with excellent reliability and validity in the parameterization of the FRT in people who have had a stroke.