Factors Influencing the Knowledge Level of Farmers about Solar Pumps in Jodhpur District of Rajasthan, India

The research investigation was carried out in Rajasthan's Jodhpur district. In the Jodhpur district of Rajasthan, there are a total of seven tehsils. Osian and Balesar were chosen as the two tehsils with the most solar pumps installed. On the basis of who would benefit from solar pumps the most, ten villages from each chosen tehsil were selected. Twenty villages were chosen because they had the most solar pumps, and one hundred twenty-five (125) respondents were chosen from them. Age, caste, education level, size of land holding, family type, social participation, annual family income, occupation, extension contact, and mass utilization were identified as the significant variables that may have influenced the level of knowledge of farmers about solar pumps in the research that examined the social economic status of the respondents. This study revealed that although farmers' awareness of solar pumps was positively and strongly correlated with age, educational attainment, social engagement, occupation, extension contact, and media use. Family type, annual income, and size of land holding show positive and significant relationships with farmers' solar pumps knowledge levels, while caste indicates a negative and non-significant association.

A study on social contact rates relevant for the spread of infectious diseases in a Brazilian slum / Um estudo sobre as taxas de contatos sociais relevantes para a difusão de doenças infecciosas em um aglomerado brasileiro / Un estudio sobre las tasas de contactos sociales relevantes para la propagación de enfermedades infecciosas en un barrio popular del Brasil

Abstract Inspired by the POLYMOD study, an epidemiological survey was conducted in June 2021 in one of the most densely populated and socially vulnerable sectors of Belo Horizonte (Brazil). A sample of 1000 individuals allowed us to identify, within a 24-hour period, the rates of social contacts by age groups, the size and frequency of clique in which respondents participated, as well as other associated sociodemographic factors (number of household residents, location of contact, use of public transportation, among others). Data were analyzed in two phases. In the first one, results between two SIR models that simulated an eight-day pandemic process were compared. One included parameters adjusted from observed contact rates, the other operated with parameters adjusted from projected rates for Brazil. In the second phase, by means of a log-lin regression, we modeled the main social determinants of contact rates, using clique density as a proxy variable. The data analysis showed that family size, age, and social circles are the main covariates influencing the formation of cliques. It also demonstrated that compartmentalized epidemiological models, combined with social contact rates, have a better capacity to describe the epidemiological dynamics, providing a better basis for mitigation and control measures for diseases that cause acute respiratory syndromes.

Resumo Inspirado no estudo POLYMOD, foi realizado, em junho de 2021, um survey epidemiológico num dos setores de maior densidade populacional e vulnerabilidade social de Belo Horizonte (Brasil). Uma amostra de 1.000 domicílios permitiu identificar, num período de 24 horas, as taxas de contatos sociais por faixas etárias, o tamanho e a frequência de cliques do qual participou o respondente, assim como outros fatores sociodemográficos associados (número de moradores do domicílio, local do contato, uso do transporte público, entre outros). Os dados foram analisados em duas fases. Na primeira, foram comparados os resultados entre dois modelos SIR que simularam um processo pandêmico de oito dias. Um incluiu parâmetros ajustados a partir das taxas de contatos observadas. O outro operou com parâmetros ajustados a partir de taxas projetadas para o Brasil. Na segunda fase, mediante uma regressão log-lin, modelamos os principais determinantes sociais das taxas de contato, utilizando o adensamento de cliques como uma variável proxy. A análise dos dados mostrou que o tamanho da família, a idade e os círculos sociais são as principais covariáveis que influenciam a formação dos cliques. Também demonstrou que modelos epidemiológicos compartimentais, combinados com taxas de contato social, têm melhor capacidade de descrever a dinâmica epidemiológica, fornecendo uma melhor base para medidas de mitigação e controle de doenças que causam síndromes respiratórias agudas.

Resumen Con inspiración en el estudio POLYMOD, se hizo una encuesta epidemiológica, en junio de 2021, en uno de los sectores más densamente poblados y socialmente vulnerables de Belo Horizonte (Brasil). Una muestra de mil hogares permitió identificar, en un período de 24 horas, el tamaño y la frecuencia de los cliques en los que participó el encuestado, las tasas de contactos sociales por grupos de edad, así como otros factores sociodemográficos asociados (número de residentes en el hogar, lugar de contacto, uso del transporte público, entre otros). Los datos se analizaron en dos fases. En la primera, se compararon los resultados entre dos modelos SIR que simularon un proceso pandémico de ocho días. Uno incluyó parámetros ajustados a partir de tasas de contacto observadas; el otro operó con parámetros ajustados a partir de tasas proyectadas para Brasil. En la segunda, mediante una regresión log-lin, se modelaron los principales determinantes sociales de las tasas de contacto, utilizando la densificación de cliques como una variable proxy. El análisis de los datos mostró que el tamaño de la familia, la edad y los círculos sociales son las principales covariables que influyen en la formación de camarillas. También demostró que los modelos epidemiológicos compartimentados, combinados con tasas de contacto social, son más capaces de describir la dinámica epidemiológica, proporcionando una mejor base para las medidas de mitigación y control de las enfermedades causantes de síndromes respiratorios agudos.

Progress on the research of social contact pattern and infectious diseases transmission / 中华预防医学杂志

The pattern of social contact that the connection exists between people in social life tends to have certain rules. Hence, studying the laws of social contact of the population can improve the accuracy of modeling infectious diseases and provide scientific evidences for the spreading and intervention of infectious diseases transmitted by droplets or contact. This paper is a review that summarizes the current research methods of social contact pattern, the law of social contact and its significance to the spreading and prevention of infectious diseases. It finds that the survey methods of social contact mainly include direct observation, contact diaries and proximity sensors and the social contact patterns show regularities in multiple dimensions such as contact time, contact location and contact objects. Moreover, these regularities relevant to social contact patterns can apply to the mathematical model of infectious diseases and the evaluation of the effect of interventions, which provide the effective basis for the prevention and control of infectious diseases.

The Association between Frequency of Social Contact and Frailty in Older People: Korean Frailty and Aging Cohort Study (KFACS)

BACKGROUND: The trend of aging society is occurring globally, and with it, one of the health problems that is emerging is frailty. Efforts are being made to account for the increasing prevalence of frailty, and various modifiable factors are being considered in regards to frailty. Because social contact has shown beneficial effects in terms of health in previous studies, it is increasingly being considered in relation to frailty. The purpose of this study was to assess the association of different types of social contact with frailty status. METHODS: A total of 1,200 Korean elders aged 70–84 years old were included in the study. Using Fried's Cardiovascular Health Study index to categorize the frailty status, the relationship between frailty status and frequency of contact (i.e., with family members, friends, or neighbors) was analyzed using multinomial logistic regression accounting for confounders. RESULTS: Adjusting for all covariates, frequency of contact with friends was the most statistically significant. Less frequent contact was associated with a significantly higher odds of pre-frailty: monthly (odds ratio [OR], 2.02; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.27–3.20), and rarely (OR, 1.87; 95% CI, 1.17–2.99), with daily contact group as reference. Also, those contacting friends monthly (OR, 5.04; 95% CI, 2.29–11.08) or rarely (OR, 3.23; 95% CI, 1.58–6.61) were more likely to be frail compared to the daily group. CONCLUSION: Frequency of social contact, especially with friends, is strongly associated with frailty.

A framework for computational epidemiology / 军事医学

Computational epidemiology is a fast-developing and interdisciplinary research area .Through comprehensive computation-analysis of multi-uncertain factors affecting the epidemic process , this method may add to our knowledge about epidemic patterns and help design reasonable response plans and emergency strategies .This article briefly summarizes the idea and theory of computational epidemiology based on related researches in the recent years , introduces the application of this method in case of smallpox bioterrorism and influenza pandemic , and predicts the development of this area .

A Qualitative Exploration of Social Contact Patterns Relevant to Airborne Infectious Diseases in Northwest Bangladesh.

In South Asia, the burden of infectious diseases is high. Socioeconomically and culturally-defined social interaction patterns are considered to be an important determinant in the spread of diseases that are transmitted through person-to-person contact. Understanding of the contact patterns in this region can be helpful to develop more effective control measures. Focus group discussions were used in exploring social contact patterns in northwest Bangladesh. The patterns were assessed for perceived relevance to the spread of airborne infectious diseases, with special focus on diseases, like leprosy and tuberculosis, in which the role of social determinants is well-recognized. Highly-relevant social contact patterns inside the home and the neighbourhood, across age and sex groups, were reported in all group discussions. Outside the home, women and girls reported relevant contacts limited to the close neighbourhood while men mentioned high relevant contacts beyond. This implies that, in theory, infectious diseases can easily be transmitted across age and sex groups in and around the home. Adult men might play a role in the transmission of airborne infectious diseases from outside this confined area since only this group reported highly-relevant social contacts beyond the home. This concept needs further exploration but control programmes in the South Asian region could benefit from considering differences in social contact patterns by gender for risk assessments and planning of preventive interventions.

Sex-dependent behavioral effects and morphological changes in the hippocampus after prenatal invasive interventions in rats: implications for animal models of schizophrenia

OBJECTIVES: Although schizophrenia affects both human genders, there are gender-dependent differences with respect to age of onset, clinical characteristics, course and prognosis of the disease. METHODS: To investigate sex-dependent differences in motor coordination and activity as well as in cognitive and social behavior, we repeatedly tested female (n = 14) and male (n = 12) Fisher rats (postnatal days, PD 56-174) that had received intracerebroventricular injections of kainic acid as well as female (n = 15) and male (n = 16) control animals. The hippocampus was examined histologically. RESULTS: Compared to male controls, in the alcove test both female controls and female animals with prenatal intervention spent less time in a dark box before entering an unknown illuminated area. Again, animals that received prenatal injection (particularly females) made more perseveration errors in the T-maze alternation task compared to controls. Female rats exhibited a higher degree of activity than males, suggesting these effects to be sex-dependent. Finally, animals that received prenatal intervention maintained longer lasting social contacts. Histological analyses showed pyramidal cells in the hippocampal area CA3 (in both hemispheres) of control animals to be longer than those found in treated animals. Sex-dependent differences were found in the left hippocampi of control animals and animals after prenatal intervention. CONCLUSION: These results demonstrate important differences between males and females in terms of weight gain, response to fear, working memory and social behavior. We also found sex-dependent differences in the lengths of hippocampal neurons. Further studies on larger sample sets with more detailed analyses of morphological changes are required to confirm our data.

Preconceito e intenção em manter contato social: evidências acerca dos valores humanos / Prejudice and intention to maintain social contact: Evidences concerning human values

Este trabalho objetivou conhecer como os valores humanos estão relacionados às atitudes preconceituosas e à intenção em manter o contato social com pessoas negras. Para tanto, contou-se com uma amostra de 303 pessoas da população geral da cidade de João Pessoa (PB), a maioria mulheres com idades compreendidas entre 12 e 74 anos (M = 30,5; DP = 14,2). Seguindo-se um procedimento padrão, foi pedido que respondessem aos seguintes instrumentos: Escala de Atitudes Preconceituosas, Escala de Intenção de Contato Social, Questionário dos Valores Humanos Básicos e um questionário de Caracterização da Amostra. Os resultados foram consistentes em relação a achados anteriores. As atitudes preconceituosas correlacionaram-se principalmente com os valores suprapessoais. Encontrou-se, ademais, que os valores suprapessoais e de realização atuaram como bons preditores para as atitudes preconceituosas, e que estas foram boas explicadoras da intenção em manter contato social com negros.

The current research aimed to know how the human values is related to the prejudiced attitudes and to the intention to maintain social contact with Blacks. 303 subjects from the general population of João Pessoa (PB) were considered. The respondents were mainly women, and the ages varying from 12 to 74 years (M = 30,5; DP = 14,2). The Prejudiced Attitudes Scale, Intention to Maintain Social Contact Scale, Basic Human Values Questionnaire and demographics questions were applied. Results showed that the prejudiced attitudes were primarily correlated with the suprapersonal values. Furthermore, the suprapersonals and of achievement values were good predictors, and satisfactory to explain the intention in maintaining social contact with Blacks.