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1. THE BOUNDARY OF THE p -RANK STRATUM OF THE MODULI SPACE OF CYCLIC COVERS OF THE PROJECTIVE LINE

   https://doi.org/10.1017/nmj.2022.12  

   OZMAN, EKIN; PRIES, RACHEL; WEIR, COLIN (December 2022, Nagoya Mathematical Journal)

   Abstract. We study the p-rank stratification of the moduli space of cyclic degree ! covers of the projective line in characteristic p for distinct primes p and !. The main result is about the intersection of the p-rank 0 stratum with the boundary of the moduli space of curves. When ! = 3 and p ≡ 2 mod 3 is an odd prime, we prove that there exists a smooth trielliptic curve in characteristic p, for every genus g, signature type (r,s), and p-rank f satisfying the clear necessary conditions. 

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2. Investigating the associations of age of initiation and other psychosocial factors of singular alcohol, tobacco and marijuana usage on polysubstance use: analysis of a population-based survey in Jamaica

   https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2023-076111  

   Lalwani, Kunal; Whitehorne-Smith, Patrice; McLeary, Joni-Gaye; Albarus, Neena; Abel, Wendel (November 2023, BMJ Open)

   ObjectivesThis study aimed to examine concurrent polysubstance use of alcohol, tobacco and marijuana and determine correlations with access to marijuana, friend and familial drug use habits, risk perception and the age of initiation associated with the singular use of these substances. DesignA secondary data analysis. SettingUsed the Jamaica National Drug Prevalence Survey 2016 dataset. ParticipantsInvolved the entire dataset comprising 4623 randomly selected respondents between 12 and 65 years old. Outcome measuresPrimary outcome: concurrent polysubstance use recorded as using two or more of alcohol, tobacco and marijuana. Predictor variables include risk perception and age of initiation of singular alcohol, tobacco and marijuana use, ease of marijuana access and family and friend alcohol and illegal drug use. ResultsApproximately 58%–66% of respondents commenced singular alcohol, tobacco or marijuana use under 17. Participants commencing marijuana use at 11 years and under and between 12 and 17 were 3.346 and 4.560 times more likely to report past month concurrent polysubstance use (p=0.030 and p<0.001). Respondents who did not believe that smoking tobacco sometimes (p=0.049), and smoking marijuana sometimes and often was harmful, had increased odds of concurrent polysubstance use (p=0.047 and p<0.001, respectively). Respondents who indicated access to marijuana as easy were significantly more likely to report past month concurrent polysubstance use compared with those who reported access as difficult (p=0.002). Participants who indicated that friends or family members get drunk and take illegal drugs were associated with 1.722 and 1.864 increased odds of reporting past month concurrent polysubstance use (p=0.004 and p=0.017, respectively). ConclusionsDecreased perceived risk, childhood and adolescent age of initiation and easy access to marijuana were significantly associated with polysubstance use among Jamaicans. The influence of friends and family members’ drug and alcohol use behaviours on individuals developing polysubstance use habits further endorses the need for interventions. 

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3. Impact of salt and fillers on the rheological properties of polymer composites

   https://doi.org/10.1002/pc.29409  

   Teymoory, Parya; Driscoll, Stephen Burke; Zhao, Jingzhou; Shen, Caiwei (June 2025, Polymer Composites)

   Abstract Polymer composites with salts or conductive fillers are promising for various solid‐state energy storage applications, where processability is often determined by their rheological properties. This study investigates the effect of lithium salts and conductive fillers on the rheological behavior of polylactic acid (PLA)‐based composites. We specifically examine how these additives influence complex viscosity and the interactions between the salt, fillers, and polymer. Our findings reveal that adding salt to the polymer reduces its viscosity, whereas adding conductive fillers imparts a shear‐thinning property, which is advantageous for thermal processing methods like thermal drawing, injection molding, or 3D printing. The combination of salt and conductive fillers results in multifunctional electrode‐electrolyte composites with enhanced shear‐thinning behavior and improved storage modulus. Characterizations through x‐ray diffraction, electrical measurements, and transmission electron microscopy link the electrical properties and morphology with rheological behavior. The formation of a robust filler network in these composites ensures stable viscoelastic behavior across a range of temperatures and frequencies, indicating their suitability for efficient manufacturing of polymer‐based solid‐state electrode‐electrolyte composites via thermal processing. HighlightsShear‐thinning behavior enhanced by conductive fillers.Viscosity increased with CB and CNT fillers, forming robust networks.Salt reduced viscosity but filler networks dominated flow behavior.Filler combinations led to stable viscoelastic properties across temperatures.Polymer electrolyte–electrode composites improved processability and storage modulus. 

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4. Impact of Obesity on Timing of Tracheotomy: A Multi‐institutional Retrospective Study

   https://doi.org/10.1002/lary.31586  

   Yousef, Andrew; Soliman, Shady I; Solomon, Isaac; Panuganti, Bharat A; Francis, David O; Pang, John; Klebaner, Dasha; Asturias, Alicia; Alattar, Ali; Wood, Samuel; et al (November 2024, The Laryngoscope)

   ObjectiveTo examine the impact of increased body mass index (BMI) on (1) tracheotomy timing and (2) short‐term surgical complications requiring a return to the operating room and 30‐day mortality utilizing data from the Multi‐Institutional Study on Tracheotomy (MIST). MethodsA retrospective analysis of patients from the MIST database who underwent surgical or percutaneous tracheotomy between 2013 and 2016 at eight institutions was completed. Unadjusted and adjusted logistic regression analyses were used to assess the impact of obesity on tracheotomy timing and complications. ResultsAmong the 3369 patients who underwent tracheotomy, 41.0% were obese and 21.6% were morbidly obese. BMI was associated with higher rates of prolonged intubation prior to tracheotomy accounting for comorbidities, indication for tracheotomy, institution, and type of tracheostomy (p = 0.001). Morbidly obese patients (BMI ≥35 kg/m²) experienced a longer duration of intubation compared with patients with a normal BMI (median days intubated [IQR 25%–75%]: 11.0 days [7–17 days] versus 9.0 days [5–14 days];p < 0.001) but did not have statistically higher rates of return to the operating room within 30 days (p = 0.12) or mortality (p = 0.90) on multivariable analysis. This same finding of prolonged intubation was not seen in overweight, nonobese patients when compared with normal BMI patients (median days intubated [IQR 25%–75%]: 10.0 days [6–15 days] versus 10.0 days [6–15 days];p = 0.36). ConclusionBMI was associated with increased duration of intubation prior to tracheotomy. Although morbidly obese patients had a longer duration of intubation, there were no differences in return to the operating room or mortality within 30 days. Level of Evidence3Laryngoscope, 134:4674–4681, 2024 

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5. The Genome of Plasmodium gonderi: Insights into the Evolution of Human Malaria Parasites

   https://doi.org/10.1093/gbe/evae027  

   Cepeda, Axl S; Mello, Beatriz; Pacheco, M Andreína; Luo, Zunping; Sullivan, Steven A; Carlton, Jane M; Escalante, Ananias A (February 2024, Genome Biology and Evolution)

   dos Reis, Mario (Ed.)

   Plasmodium species causing malaria in humans are not monophyletic, sharing common ancestors with nonhuman primate parasites. Plasmodium gonderi is one of the few known Plasmodium species infecting African old-world monkeys that are not found in apes. This study reports a de novo assembled P. gonderi genome with complete chromosomes. The P. gonderi genome shares codon usage, syntenic blocks, and other characteristics with the human parasites Plasmodium ovale s.l. and Plasmodium malariae, also of African origin, and the human parasite Plasmodium vivax and species found in nonhuman primates from Southeast Asia. Using phylogenetically aware methods, newly identified syntenic blocks were found enriched with conserved metabolic genes. Regions outside those blocks harbored genes encoding proteins involved in the vertebrate host-Plasmodium relationship undergoing faster evolution. Such genome architecture may have facilitated colonizing vertebrate hosts. Phylogenomic analyses estimated the common ancestor between P. vivax and an African ape parasite P. vivax-like, within the Asian nonhuman primates parasites clade. Time estimates incorporating P. gonderi placed the P. vivax and P. vivax-like common ancestor in the late Pleistocene, a time of active migration of hominids between Africa and Asia. Thus, phylogenomic and time-tree analyses are consistent with an Asian origin for P. vivax and an introduction of P. vivax-like into Africa. Unlike other studies, time estimates for the clade with Plasmodium falciparum, the most lethal human malaria parasite, coincide with their host species radiation, African hominids. Overall, the newly assembled genome presented here has the quality to support comparative genomic investigations in Plasmodium. 

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