Ringing the Existential Alarm: Exploring BirthStrike for Climate

Climate change is altering the horizon of a liveable future and as a result giving rise to a host of anxieties: ecological, demographic, reproductive, and existential. The BirthStrike for Climate collective was a group of people who were reconsidering reproduction as a result of the climate crisis. In exploring the case of BirthStrike we consider how these decisions were used as a tool for "existential" activism and how the campaign was encountered and discredited in the public realm. We argue the campaign ignited numerous anxieties, resulting in an inability to "hear" the existential threat BirthStrikers aimed to call into focus.

Bloody Marvels: In Situ Seed Saving and Intergenerational Malleability

This article presents ethnographic research with in situ seed savers and seed activists in London. Unpicking the knotty relations between kinship, place, and generation among seed savers and their seeds, this article focuses on how the intrinsic and extrinsic get woven through generations and how the situ or environment of an entity is (and is not) recognized in its identity and multispecies kin relations. I argue that thinking about seeds and the worlds in which they grow suggests that they are not only embedded in their environments, but also embody their environments. If seeds bring with them their worlds, then they are inherently malleable, so seed savers are concerned about how commercial seed breeding and ex situ conservation denatures seeds’ embodied relationships with their environments and, with that, their inherent intergenerational malleability. [seed saving, multispecies kinship, generation, environment]

Seeds are a gift of nature, of past generations and diverse cultures. Thus, it is our inherent duty and responsibility to protect them and to pass them on to future generations. Seeds are the first link in the food chain, and the embodiment of biological and cultural diversity, and the repository of life’s future evolution.

——The International Commission on the Future of Food and Agriculture, Manifesto on the Future of Seeds

Adjusting the analytical aperture: propositions for an integrated approach to the social study of reproductive technologies

The ever-expanding availability of reproductive technologies, the continued roll-out of 'family planning' and maternity services across low- and middle-income settings and the rapid development of the fertility industry mean that it is more likely than ever that individuals, especially women and gender non-conforming people, will engage with more than one RT at some point in their life. These multiple engagements with RTs will affect users' expectations and uptake, as well as the technologies' availability, commercial success, ethical status and social meanings. We argue that an integrated approach to the study of RTs and their users not only makes for better research, but also more politically conscious research, which questions some of the ideological precepts that have led to reproduction being parcelled out into biomedical specialisations and a disproportionate focus on particular forms of reproduction in particular disciplines within public health and social science research. We offer this article as part of a wider movement in the study of reproduction and reproductive technologies, which takes inspiration from the reproductive justice framework to address forms of exclusion, discrimination and stratification that are perpetuated in the development and application of reproductive technologies and the ways in which they are studied and theorised.

Measurement of the Charge-Averaged Elastic Lepton-Proton Scattering Cross Section by the OLYMPUS Experiment

We report the first measurement of the average of the electron-proton and positron-proton elastic scattering cross sections. This lepton charge-averaged cross section is insensitive to the leading effects of hard two-photon exchange, giving more robust access to the proton's electromagnetic form factors. The cross section was extracted from data taken by the OLYMPUS experiment at DESY, in which alternating stored electron and positron beams were scattered from a windowless gaseous hydrogen target. Elastic scattering events were identified from the coincident detection of the scattered lepton and recoil proton in a large-acceptance toroidal spectrometer. The luminosity was determined from the rates of Møller, Bhabha, and elastic scattering in forward electromagnetic calorimeters. The data provide some selectivity between existing form factor global fits and will provide valuable constraints to future fits.

Moral laboratories

n/a

The neutron electric dipole moment experiment at the Spallation Neutron Source

Novel experimental techniques are required to make the next big leap in neutron electric dipole moment experimental sensitivity, both in terms of statistics and systematic error control. The nEDM experiment at the Spallation Neutron Source (nEDM@SNS) will implement the scheme of Golub & Lamoreaux [Phys. Rep., 237, 1 (1994)]. The unique properties of combining polarized ultracold neutrons, polarized 3He, and superfluid 4He will be exploited to provide a sensitivity to ∼ 10−28 e · cm. Our cryogenic apparatus will deploy two small (3 L) measurement cells with a high density of ultracold neutrons produced and spin analyzed in situ. The electric field strength, precession time, magnetic shielding, and detected UCN number will all be enhanced compared to previous room temperature Ramsey measurements. Our 3He co-magnetometer offers unique control of systematic effects, in particular the Bloch-Siegert induced false EDM. Furthermore, there will be two distinct measurement modes: free precession and dressed spin. This will provide an important self-check of our results. Following five years of “critical component demonstration,” our collaboration transitioned to a “large scale integration” phase in 2018. An overview of our measurement techniques, experimental design, and brief updates are described in these proceedings.

'Now She's Just an Ordinary Baby': The Birth of IVF in the British Press

The birth of Louise Brown, the first baby born through in vitro fertilisation (IVF), in England in 1978 attracted worldwide media attention. This article examines how the contemporary British news media framed this momentous event. Drawing on the example of the Daily Mail's coverage, it focuses on the way in which the British press depicted Louise's parents' emotions, marital relationship and social class in a context of political and economic crisis and resurgent social conservatism. The British press framed the Browns as ordinary and respectable, noting their work ethic, family orientation and moral values. The article argues that the human-interest angle that the press used to represent this story created a dominant narrative in which IVF was simply a means of helping married heterosexual couples have babies and that this established a frame for subsequent depictions of IVF, as well as contributing to its rapid normalisation.

Looking into the Test Tube: The Birth of IVF on British Television

The birth of Louise Brown, the world's first 'test-tube baby', has come to signify the moment at which technologically assisted human reproduction became a re ality. This was a highly mediated and visible reality, as this article explores through the example of a British television documentary about Louise Brown broadcast when she was just six weeks old, 'To Mrs Brown… A Daughter' (Thames Television, 1978). In the article, I discuss the programme alongside data from an interview with its producer, Peter Williams. Williams sought to convince the public that IVF was morally acceptable and to cultivate sympathy for the infertile through this film. I will consider how he went about this by focusing on the programme's visual presentation of Louise Brown, Peter Williams' aims in making the film and his sympathetic relationship with the 'pioneers' of IVF, gynaecologist Patrick Steptoe and physiologist Robert Edwards. I will conclude with a discussion of the political implications of this film and how it contributed to the normalisation of IVF at a pivotal moment in its history.

Measurement of the Vector and Tensor Asymmetries at Large Missing Momentum in Quasielastic (e[over →],e^{'}p) Electron Scattering from Deuterium

We report the measurement of the beam-vector and tensor asymmetries A_{ed}^{V} and A_{d}^{T} in quasielastic (e[over →],e^{'}p) electrodisintegration of the deuteron at the MIT-Bates Linear Accelerator Center up to missing momentum of 500  MeV/c. Data were collected simultaneously over a momentum transfer range 0.1<Q^{2}<0.5  (GeV/c)^{2} with the Bates Large Acceptance Spectrometer Toroid using an internal deuterium gas target polarized sequentially in both vector and tensor states. The data are compared with calculations. The beam-vector asymmetry A_{ed}^{V} is found to be directly sensitive to the D-wave component of the deuteron and has a zero crossing at a missing momentum of about 320  MeV/c, as predicted. The tensor asymmetry A_{d}^{T} at large missing momentum is found to be dominated by the influence of the tensor force in the neutron-proton final-state interaction. The new data provide a strong constraint on theoretical models.

'The men who made the breakthrough': How the British press represented Patrick Steptoe and Robert Edwards in 1978

This article examines how the British press represented Patrick Steptoe and Robert Edwards in the story of the birth of the first 'test-tube baby', Louise Brown. In 1978, the British press represented the birth of Louise Brown as both a success and a source of hope. The main pairs of protagonists in this story were Steptoe and Edwards and Lesley and John Brown, who metonymically represented British science and infertile couples, respectively. In the dominant 'success' narrative of the birth of Louise Brown as depicted in the British press in 1978, Edwards and Steptoe seemed to embody 'British' values of industriousness, perseverance, altruism, ingenuity and teamwork. Thus, their success was simultaneously a British success. With Louise Brown's birth, in-vitro fertilization came to stand for the potential happiness of infertile people and a bright future for British science and industry.

Hard Two-Photon Contribution to Elastic Lepton-Proton Scattering Determined by the OLYMPUS Experiment

The OLYMPUS Collaboration reports on a precision measurement of the positron-proton to electron-proton elastic cross section ratio, R_{2γ}, a direct measure of the contribution of hard two-photon exchange to the elastic cross section. In the OLYMPUS measurement, 2.01 GeV electron and positron beams were directed through a hydrogen gas target internal to the DORIS storage ring at DESY. A toroidal magnetic spectrometer instrumented with drift chambers and time-of-flight scintillators detected elastically scattered leptons in coincidence with recoiling protons over a scattering angle range of ≈20° to 80°. The relative luminosity between the two beam species was monitored using tracking telescopes of interleaved gas electron multiplier and multiwire proportional chamber detectors at 12°, as well as symmetric Møller or Bhabha calorimeters at 1.29°. A total integrated luminosity of 4.5  fb^{-1} was collected. In the extraction of R_{2γ}, radiative effects were taken into account using a Monte Carlo generator to simulate the convolutions of internal bremsstrahlung with experiment-specific conditions such as detector acceptance and reconstruction efficiency. The resulting values of R_{2γ}, presented here for a wide range of virtual photon polarization 0.456<ε<0.978, are smaller than some hadronic two-photon exchange calculations predict, but are in reasonable agreement with a subtracted dispersion model and a phenomenological fit to the form factor data.

Investigating the Need for Routine Hip Ultrasound to Detect Developmental Dysplasia of the Hips In Babies Born with Breech Presentation

BACKGROUND: Breech presentation at birth increases the risk for developmental dysplasia of the hips (DDH). However, international consensus with regards to screening guidelines for infants at increased risk of DDH is lacking. Kingston General Hospital (KGH), a Canadian tertiary care center, currently employs a DDH ultrasound screening protocol at 6 weeks of age for all infants born with breech presentation.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the utility of routine ultrasound scanning in detecting DDH in patients born breech with a negative physical exam of the hips.

DESIGN/METHODS: A retrospective chart review was conducted in which electronic medical records at KGH were reviewed to identify infants born breech who received routine hip ultrasound screening for DDH between 2010 and 2015. Physical exam findings of the hips, ultrasound reports, and subsequent treatment modalities were extracted as well as gestational age, birth weight, and gender.

RESULTS: 319 infants born with breech presentation who underwent routine hip ultrasound regardless of physical exam status were identified (192 (60.2%) female; 127 (39.8%) male). 27 (8.5%) had a negative physical exam but a positive finding on ultrasound. The gender distribution of this subset was significantly different than that of the total group (p CONCLUSION: For infants born with breech presentation with a negative physical exam of the hips, consideration could be given to direct routine ultrasound screening for DDH at females only.

Severe Alcohol Intoxication in Canadian Adolescents: 2 Year Surveillance Data

BACKGROUND: Alcohol is the most commonly used drug by Canadian adolescents, and can lead to a host of negative short and long-term outcomes. Understanding more about youth drinking can help develop more effective strategies for treatment and prevention. This study, gathering data through the Canadian Pediatric Surveillance Program (CPSP), was completed to fill in knowledge gaps and provide epidemiologic data about severe alcohol intoxication among Canadian adolescents.

OBJECTIVES: The objectives of the surveillance study included: 1) To obtain national epidemiological data outlining the incidence of severe alcohol intoxication among adolescents. 2) To describe the demographics, presentation to hospital, co-ingestions, co-morbidities, management and short-term outcomes. 3) To use the data to increase awareness and education. 4) To facilitate harm reduction strategies.

DESIGN/METHODS: Through the established methodology of the CPSP, paediatric physicians have been actively surveyed on a monthly basis for identified cases of severe alcohol intoxication. A detailed questionnaire was then completed for each new case. The case definition includes any adolescent meeting the following criteria: 1) Between 11-15 years of age 2) Blood alcohol level &gt; 0 g/L (if drawn) 3) Presenting with severe intoxication with impaired consciousness requiring prolonged ER observation (≥ 6 hours) or hospital admission.

RESULTS: In the two years of surveillance, 40 cases were confirmed, including 21 male and 19 female adolescents, with a median age of 14. The youngest case reported was 11 years old. There were no significant differences between sex and blood alcohol level or age at presentation and blood alcohol level. Additional descriptive data of the confirmed cases will be reported and discussed.

CONCLUSION: After two years of surveillance, 40 cases of severe intoxication in adolescents have been identified. This is likely only the ‘tip of the iceberg’ and represents the more severe cases that required prolonged ER observation or hospital admission. The young age of presentation (youngest 11 years of age) and severity of intoxication requiring observation/admission are concerning. These data regarding Canadian adolescents presenting to the ED with severe intoxication will help inform strategies for education, prevention and harm reduction. It is noteworthy that the majority of adolescents with severe intoxication consumed spirits, suggesting that more education for adolescents around the higher potency of spirits relative to other alcoholic beverages and the dangers of consumption even in small amounts could reduce the incidence of severe alcohol intoxication in children and adolescents. Consideration of more stringent controls on spirits to help decrease adolescents’ access would assist with harm reduction.

Changes to Antibiotic Use After the Introduction of an Antimicrobial Stewardship Program in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit

BACKGROUND: Inappropriate or prolonged antibiotic use in neonatal intensive care units can lead to the emergence of antibiotic resistant bacteria as well as complications such as invasive candidiasis and necrotizing enterocolitis. An antimicrobial stewardship program (ASP) was introduced in our level II/III neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) with the goal of optimizing patient safety and outcomes with respect to antimicrobial use as well as to reduce the risk of infection or colonization by antimicrobial resistant organisms (AROs). The ASP included a pediatric infectious diseases physician, a neonatologist or delegate, a microbiologist and a pharmacist who met twice weekly to review all admitted neonates who had been receiving antibiotics for more than 24 hours.

OBJECTIVES: In order to evaluate the effectiveness of ASP interventions, we conducted a retrospective review of antibiotic use in the NICU comparing the two years before the ASP and the first year of the ASP operation.

DESIGN/METHODS: Antimicrobial use from the two years prior and one year following the ASP start date of December 1st, 2014 was compared. All neonates who received antimicrobials between the dates of December 1st, 2012 and November 30th, 2015 were included in the review. Antifungal and antiviral use were excluded. Antibiotic start and stop dates were collected from the patient charts. After the start of the ASP, antibiotic start and stop dates were obtained from the computerized pharmacy database. Overall days of therapy (DOTs) and antibiotic-specific DOTs, were calculated per 1000 patient-days.

RESULTS: In the first year, 109 reviews were performed on 70 neonates. The pediatric ID service was already following 25 babies leaving 84 reviews. Changes were recommended in 43 (51%) instances. Discontinuation of antibiotics was recommended in 26 (60%), reduced length of therapy or decreased spectrum of antibiotic in 10 (24%), and ID consultation in 9 (21%). Overall and selected antibiotic exposure in the NICU is presented in Table 1 (See page e79).

CONCLUSION: Introduction of an ASP reduced the overall exposure to antimicrobials in the NICU. Marked reductions in third-generation cepha-losporin and vancomycin use were observed in the first year of the ASP.

Collapse

Focal seizures after instillation of cyclomydril to a neonate with congenital CMV infection

We present the case of a term neonate who underwent a diagnostic eye examination on day one for possible genetic disorders. Five minutes after Cyclomydril (0.2% clyclopentolate and 1% phenylephrine) eye drops were instilled, a focal seizure lasting for approximately one hour occurred. The electroencephalograph (EEG) was normal but the magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) revealed calcifications in the bilateral periventricular regions. Urine CMV-DNA and maternal serum CMV-IgM were both positive. Auditory brainstem testing suggested severe sensoneural hearing loss. The baby was treated for congenital CMV infection and did not have further seizures. In this case the congenital CMV infection may have been the predisposing factor to central nervous system (CNS) toxicity induced by cyclopentolate. The exact mechanism is unknown but severe neurological impairment may be considered a contraindication for cyclopentolate eye drops in the neonate. To our knowledge, this is the first report of seizures occurring within the first week of life secondary to cyclomydril eye drops in a term neonate.

Precise measurement of deuteron tensor analyzing powers with BLAST

We report a precision measurement of the deuteron tensor analyzing powers T(20) and T(21) at the MIT-Bates Linear Accelerator Center. Data were collected simultaneously over a momentum transfer range Q=2.15-4.50 fm(-1) with the Bates Large Acceptance Spectrometer Toroid using a highly polarized deuterium internal gas target. The data are in excellent agreement with calculations in a framework of effective field theory. The deuteron charge monopole and quadrupole form factors G(C) and G(Q) were separated with improved precision, and the location of the first node of G(C) was confirmed at Q=4.19±0.05 fm(-1). The new data provide a strong constraint on theoretical models in a momentum transfer range covering the minimum of T(20) and the first node of G(C).

Charge form factor of the neutron at low momentum transfer from the 2H-->(e-->,e'n)1H reaction

We report new measurements of the neutron charge form factor at low momentum transfer using quasielastic electrodisintegration of the deuteron. Longitudinally polarized electrons at an energy of 850 MeV were scattered from an isotopically pure, highly polarized deuterium gas target. The scattered electrons and coincident neutrons were measured by the Bates Large Acceptance Spectrometer Toroid (BLAST) detector. The neutron form factor ratio GEn/GMn was extracted from the beam-target vector asymmetry AedV at four-momentum transfers Q2=0.14, 0.20, 0.29, and 0.42 (GeV/c)2.

-Measurement of the proton's electric to magnetic form factor ratio from 1H(over -->)(e(over -->),e'p)

We report the first precision measurement of the proton electric to magnetic form factor ratio from spin-dependent elastic scattering of longitudinally polarized electrons from a polarized hydrogen internal gas target. The measurement was performed at the MIT-Bates South Hall Ring over a range of four-momentum transfer squared Q2 from 0.15 to 0.65 (GeV/c)(2). Significantly improved results on the proton electric and magnetic form factors are obtained in combination with existing cross-section data on elastic electron-proton scattering in the same Q2 region.

Measurements of the generalized electric and magnetic polarizabilities of the proton at low Q2 using the virtual-compton-scattering reaction

The mean square polarizability radii of the proton have been measured for the first time in a virtual-Compton-scattering experiment performed at the MIT-Bates out-of-plane scattering facility. Response functions and polarizabilities obtained from a dispersion analysis of the data at Q2 = 0.057 GeV2/c2 are in agreement with O(p3) heavy baryon chiral perturbation theory. The data support the dominance of mesonic effects in the polarizabilities.

Results of allergen-specific immunotherapy in 117 dogs with atopic dermatitis

The success of the treatment of 117 dogs with atopic dermatitis with allergen-specific immunotherapy for up to 48 months was assessed. An excellent response (remission with exclusive immunotherapy) was recorded in 18 of the dogs, a good response (more than 50 per cent reduction in medication and improvement of clinical signs) was recorded in 57, a moderate response was recorded in 24 and a poor response in 18. The mould antigens in the allergen extract were stored in a separate vial before administration and the success rate of the immunotherapy including mould antigens was much higher than in an earlier study in which mould and pollen antigens had been stored in one vial. The success rate was not affected significantly by the age of the dogs when the disease developed, or by their age or the period for which they had shown clinical signs when the treatment began; it was also unaffected by whether pollens, moulds or dust mites were used as antigens, or by whether the offending allergens had been identified by intradermal testing or by serum testing for allergen-specific immunoglobulin E.

Investigation of the conjectured nucleon deformation at low momentum transfer

We report new precise H(e,e(')p)pi(0) measurements at the Delta(1232) resonance at Q(2)=0.127 (GeV/c)(2) obtained at the MIT-Bates out-of-plane scattering facility which are particularly sensitive to the transverse electric amplitude (E2) of the gamma(*)N-->Delta transition. The new data have been analyzed together with those of earlier measurements to yield precise quadrupole to dipole amplitude ratios: Re(E(3/2)(1+)/M(3/2)(1+))=(-2.3+/-0.3(stat+syst)+/-0.6(model))% and Re(S(3/2)(1+)/M(3/2)(1+))=(-6.1+/-0.2(stat+syst)+/-0.5(model))% for M(3/2)(1+)=(41.4+/-0.3(stat+syst)+/-0.4(model))(10(-3)/m(pi(+))). The derived amplitudes give credence to the conjecture of deformation in hadrons favoring, at low Q2, the dominance of mesonic effects.

Parity-violating electron deuteron scattering and the proton's neutral weak axial vector form factor

We report on a new measurement of the parity-violating asymmetry in quasielastic electron scattering from the deuteron at backward angles at Q2=0.038 (GeV/c)2. This quantity provides a determination of the neutral weak axial vector form factor of the nucleon, which can potentially receive large electroweak corrections. The measured asymmetry A=-3.51+/-0.57 (stat)+/-0.58 (syst) ppm is consistent with theoretical predictions. We also report on updated results of the previous experiment at Q2=0.091 (GeV/c)2, which are also consistent with theoretical predictions.

Relativistic effects and two-body currents in (H)((-->)e(')p)n using out-of-plane detection

Measurements of the (2)H((-->)e,e(')p)n reaction were performed with the out-of-plane magnetic spectrometers (OOPS) at the MIT-Bates Linear Accelerator. The longitudinal-transverse, f(LT) and f(')(LT), and the transverse-transverse, f(TT), interference responses at a missing momentum of 210 MeV/c were simultaneously extracted in the dip region at Q2 = 0.15 (GeV/c)(2). In comparison to models of deuteron electrodisintegration, the data clearly reveal strong effects of relativity and final-state interactions and the importance of two-body meson-exchange currents and isobar configurations. We demonstrate that such effects can be disentangled by extracting these responses using the novel out-of-plane technique.

Search for quadrupole strength in the electroexcitation of the delta+(1232)

High-precision 1H(e,e'p)pi(0) measurements at Q2 = 0.126 (GeV/c)2 are reported, which allow the determination of quadrupole amplitudes in the gamma*N-->Delta transition; they simultaneously test the reliability of electroproduction models. The derived quadrupole-to-dipole ( I = 3/2) amplitude ratios, R(SM) = (-6.5+/-0.2(stat+sys)+/-2.5(mod))% and R(EM) = (-2.1+/-0.2(stat+sys)+/-2.0(mod))%, are dominated by model error. Previous R(SM) and R(EM) results should be reconsidered after the model uncertainties associated with the method of their extraction are taken into account.

Strange magnetism and the anapole structure of the proton

The violation of mirror symmetry in the weak force provides a powerful tool to study the internal structure of the proton. Experimental results have been obtained that address the role of strange quarks in generating nuclear magnetism. The measurement reported here provides an unambiguous constraint on strange quark contributions to the proton's magnetic moment through the electron-proton weak interaction. We also report evidence for the existence of a parity-violating electromagnetic effect known as the anapole moment of the proton. The proton's anapole moment is not yet well understood theoretically, but it could have important implications for precision weak interaction studies in atomic systems such as cesium.