In the spring 2022 issue of the Elon Journal, 6 student scientists delve into a range of media-similar matters, together with the media framing of mass shooters and whether the portrayal of these perpetrators changed immediately after the 2020 Black Life Make any difference protests.
The Faculty of Communications has posted the spring 2022 issue of the Elon Journal of Undergraduate Study in Communications, featuring university student study on subjects ranging from Instagram’s part enabling poisonous, parasocial associations among athletes and lovers to the illustration of marginalized identities in predominately white Television set displays.
The spring 2022 situation of the Elon Journal includes six university student-manufactured content articles delving into media-connected subjects.
The problem consists of six investigate papers authored by School of Communications college students, such as a topical assessment of online news protection of Black and white mass shooters, and regardless of whether the portrayal of these perpetrators changed soon after the 2020 Black Life Make a difference protests.
Michaela VanDerVelden executed the aforementioned investigation, completing a qualitative information evaluation of 36 content regarding mass shootings. Her results suggest that posts about Black perpetrators have been much less possible to include mental overall health conversations. Additionally, VanDerVelden discovered that the posts have been much more very likely to involve behavioral facts about the shooter that were being irrelevant to the criminal offense.
In his From the Editor letter, Professor Harlen Makemson famous that for decades bloggers and citizen journalists have been shaping general public discourse and upending the previous media purchase. “In the period of social media, the phenomenon of consumers developing indicating has only mushroomed, as the spring 2022 edition of the Elon Journal demonstrates,” he wrote.
For instance, Olivia Archer’s posted investigation examines how Instagram facilitates parasocial relationships in between admirers and specialist athletes, with often distressing results. Archer performed a quantitative assessment to master how supporters of professional tennis gamers Naomi Osaka and Eugenie Bouchard engaged with on-line written content. Furthermore, Madeline Distenfeld investigated how TikTok consumers have shaped debates all over fast vogue and sustainable manner.
While focused on audience perceptions and not social media, Jeremy Palladino investigated how fictional figures with symptoms of aphasia, a psychological ailment producing issue with speech generation or language comprehension, are portrayed in scripted movie and tv. As part of a semi-structured concentration team, a college or university-aged audience assessed 3 characters (Hodor from “Game of Thrones,” Timmy from “South Park,” and Michael Armstrong from “Hot Fuzz”) and talked about their first reactions of people displaying aphasia.
Legacy media’s portrayals of constituent teams in culture was also tackled in the most-current journal difficulty. Matisse Gilmore used quantitative methodology to examine the appearance of marginalized identities in primetime television sitcoms, and her findings reveal there has been advancement in illustration. Also, Emily Holland done a written content analysis of women’s appearances in Tremendous Bowl commercials, a mostly unexamined space in the latest yrs.
For this spring 2022 situation, Makemson assembled an editorial board of much more than 20 communications school users who participated in the many blind-evaluation course of action to pick out the very best pupil perform.
The Elon Journal commenced in spring 2010, with spring and fall editions every single calendar year. The spring 2022 journal marks the 25th edition.
The Council on Undergraduate Study catalogs much more than 200 scholar exploration journals in the country, and the Elon Journal is a person of the couple that focuses on undergraduate university student analysis in journalism, media and communications.
AUTO CENTRAL CHICAGO – June 5, 2022; Every Sunday Larry Nutson, The Chicago Car Guy and Auto Channel Executive Producer, with able assistance from senior editor Thom Cannell from The Auto Channel Michigan Bureau, compile The Auto Channel’s “take” on this past week’s automotive news, condensed into easy to digest news Nuggets.
LEARN MORE: Complete versions of today’s news nuggets, along with thousands of pages of relevant news and opinions, information stored in a million-page library published and indexed on The Auto Channel during the past 25 years. Complete information can be found by copying a bold headline and then inserting into any Site Search Box.
Nutson’s Automotive Weekly Auto News Wrap-up – Week Ending June 4, 2022 Below are the past week’s important, relevant, semi-secret, or snappy automotive news, opinions and insider back stories presented as
expertly crafted easy-to-understand automotive universe news nuggets.
* U.S. DoE factoid of the week: Fuel economy for a light-duty vehicle going 80 miles per hour (mph) is about 27{cfdf3f5372635aeb15fd3e2aecc7cb5d7150695e02bd72e0a44f1581164ad809} lower than when traveling at 60 mph. Between 40 and 50 mph is the optimum cruising speed for the best fuel economy in cars and light trucks, according to an Oak Ridge National Laboratory study of 74 different vehicles. The best fuel economy is typically obtained when the vehicle is traveling at the lowest speed in the vehicle’s highest gear.
* According to a joint forecast from J.D. Power and LMC Automotive, new-vehicle prices continue to set records, with the average transaction price expected to reach a May record of $44,832—a 15.7{cfdf3f5372635aeb15fd3e2aecc7cb5d7150695e02bd72e0a44f1581164ad809} increase from a year ago and the third-highest level on record despite rising interest rates. Average interest rates for new vehicle loans have risen. The average interest rate for loans in May is expected to increase 62 basis points from a year ago to 4.92{cfdf3f5372635aeb15fd3e2aecc7cb5d7150695e02bd72e0a44f1581164ad809}. However, elevated used-vehicle values continue to help affordability for new-vehicle buyers who have a vehicle to trade in. The average trade-in equity for May is trending towards a record of $9,922, a 59.4{cfdf3f5372635aeb15fd3e2aecc7cb5d7150695e02bd72e0a44f1581164ad809} increase from a year ago.
* May new vehicles sales were not so good even with the long Memorial Day weekend shopping opportunity. Toyota, Honda, Hyundai, Kia, Subaru sales slumped again. Overall the industry was down 11{cfdf3f5372635aeb15fd3e2aecc7cb5d7150695e02bd72e0a44f1581164ad809} compared to April. With retail inventories still stuck below 1 million cars, the U.S. light-vehicle market lost more momentum in May, with the seasonally adjusted, annualized rate of sales falling to 12.8 million according to Bloomberg News. Of note, Genesis sales are up 39{cfdf3f5372635aeb15fd3e2aecc7cb5d7150695e02bd72e0a44f1581164ad809} for the year.
* The national average for a gallon of regular gasoline topped $4.70 for the first time ever this week. California has the highest average price at $6.25 per gallon. Since last Thursday, AAA said these 10 states have seen the largest increases in their averages: Indiana (+33 cents), Ohio (+31 cents), Illinois (+30 cents), Kentucky (+26 cents), Wisconsin (+26 cents), Michigan (+24 cents), Colorado (+21 cents), New Mexico (+19 cents), Nebraska (+18 cents) and Minnesota (+18 cents).
* Michael Sivak of Sivak Applied Research has noted the large differences among the recent increases in the cost of powering gasoline, diesel, and electric vehicles. The expectation was that the cost of electricity had recently increased much less than the costs of gasoline and diesel. The reason is that, in the United States, oil is used to generate less than 1{cfdf3f5372635aeb15fd3e2aecc7cb5d7150695e02bd72e0a44f1581164ad809} of electricity. Therefore, the recent jump in oil prices (because of the war in Ukraine), should have only a relatively small indirect effect on the cost of electricity. Calculations show that the prices for March (the latest month with available electricity prices) increased greatly for gasoline (+27.4{cfdf3f5372635aeb15fd3e2aecc7cb5d7150695e02bd72e0a44f1581164ad809}) and diesel (+37.1{cfdf3f5372635aeb15fd3e2aecc7cb5d7150695e02bd72e0a44f1581164ad809}), while the price for electricity increased only modestly (+5.5{cfdf3f5372635aeb15fd3e2aecc7cb5d7150695e02bd72e0a44f1581164ad809}). See more details here: https://www.greencarcongress.com/2022/06/20220602-sivak.html
* The Detroit Free Press reports Ford CEO Jim Farley said consumers should plan to see dramatic change in the near term as companies compete amid the shift to battery-operated vehicles. “We’ve got to go to nonnegotiated price. We’ve got to go to 100{cfdf3f5372635aeb15fd3e2aecc7cb5d7150695e02bd72e0a44f1581164ad809} online. There’s no inventory (at dealerships), it goes directly to the customer. And 100{cfdf3f5372635aeb15fd3e2aecc7cb5d7150695e02bd72e0a44f1581164ad809} remote pickup and delivery,” he said in New York during Bernstein’s 38th Annual Strategic Decisions Conference streamed live.
* Are you thinking about visiting San Francisco. You can now go to dinner in a ride-share car with no driver. Cruise Automation, General Motors majority-owned autonomous vehicle unit, has received final approvals to operate a commercial, robotaxi service in San Francisco, the company announced. The California Public Utilities Commission granted Cruise its permit after the California DMV allowed autonomous vehicle deployments by Cruise, and Alphabet’s Waymo.
* DeLorean Motor Company, Inc. has given the public its first complete look at the highly anticipated Alpha5, their all-new EV. The images are available on the company’s redesigned website, where early access subscribers had the opportunity to see the vehicle a full day before the site went globally public. Gallery photos explore the coupe’s exterior and interior, revealing sleek lines, classic louvers, and DeLorean’s iconic gull-wing doors. Images and accompanying details of the vehicle shed light on the dimensions of the car, two of its exterior paint colors, including a launch edition debuting at the Pebble Beach Concours d’ Elegance in August, and the long-awaited specs. Estimated specifications include a range of 300+ miles, a battery of 100+kWh, and electronically limited top speeds of 155 mph.
* General Motors said its Buick brand will go all electric in North America by 2030. Buick showed a concept for a sleek, sporty EV car (yes, a car), called the Wildcat. The concept revives a muscle car era name. Buick also will bring back the venerable “Electra” badge, Automotive News reports. China is Buick’s largest market, representing about five times its U.S. sales. Nearly all of those vehicles in both markets still feature gasoline-fueled engines. Buick said its Chinese lineup won’t be fully electrified until after 2030.
* Jaguar Land Rover is joining Her Majesty the Queen’s Jubilee celebrations, with 26 of its cars in the Platinum Jubilee Pageant, today, Sunday June 5. To further commemorate the Queen’s 70 years of dedicated service, Land Rover is giving the British Red Cross a new Defender 130 to support its operations in the UK. Iconic vehicles from the two British brands will include two of Her Majesty’s beloved Land Rover Defenders and several historically important Jaguar E-type. A Jaguar XKR from Die Another Day is joined by Land Rovers from Skyfall and No Time To Die. A specially commissioned, bespoke 1965 Series 1 Jaguar E-type Roadster will make its public debut in the parade.
* The Hagerty Drivers Foundation announced the 31st and 32nd vehicles to be inducted into the National Historic Vehicle Register, the only federally recognized program to document the historical and cultural significance of the automobile. In order to preserve America’s automotive heritage for future generations, the Foundation, a 501 (c)(3) nonprofit organization, manages the National Historic Vehicle Register with the U.S. Dept. of the Interior’s Historic American Engineering Record (HAER). Selected vehicles are permanently enshrined in the Library of Congress. This year’s inductees are the 1952 Hudson Hornet (7B-185596) “Fabulous Hudson Hornet,” Raced by Herb Thomas and Chrysler Corporation Turbine Car (Serial No. 9912-31).
* Memorial Day weekend brought us a triple-header motorsports show. The Indy 500 Is Better than ever This edition saw former Formula 1 driver Marcus Ericsson win the 106th Indianapolis 500 under a yellow flag after Sage Karam crashed in Turn 2 of the last lap. Before the caution flag Ericsson and Pato O’Ward dueled for the race victory at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. By the way, Scott Dixon set a record for Indy 500 qualifying speed, averaging 234.046 mph over four laps. Denny Hamlin qualified on the pole for Sunday night’s Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway and ended up winning the longest race in the history of NASCAR, 619.5 miles with two overtimes. It was Hamlin’s second Cup Series win this season and 48th of his career. The 2022 Monaco Grand Prix had a rain delay by the first lap and after a hard-fought afternoon Red Bull’s Sergio Perez earned his first win of the season while also becoming a legitimate title contender. Carlos Sainz finished 1.154 seconds behind Perez and Max Verstappen got to the podium with a third-place finish. After seven races Verstappen holds a nine-point lead over Charles Leclerc in the driver standings and Perez is in third, 15-points off the lead.
* From the Hagerty Community we learned this nugget of automotive trivia. The “1939 Packard was the first production car to offer air conditioning. They built 300 cars with A/C, and Cadillac built 300 A/C cars in 1940. After WWII, A/C didn’t return until 1953 or 54 when Pontiac introduced the first in-dash unit. Earlier cars had the evaporator in the trunk. In 1955 Nash had “Weather-Eye”, the first combined heater-A/C unit, and the 1961 Corvair had the first factory installed A/C in the compact car range.”
Bear spotted in Arlington Monday (photograph courtesy Animal Welfare League of Arlington)
A bear was spotted strolling all-around an Arlington community this morning, prompting a warning from animal manage.
The Animal Welfare League of Arlington stated it confirmed a resident’s report of a young black bear roaming all over, “likely… in his search for a new household habitat.”
“While bear sightings are unusual in Arlington County, they are not unheard of,” AWLA stated. “Unfortunately in past bear sightings, we have experienced issues with associates of the public likely out in look for of the bear to consider their possess images or see it for by themselves. This is Quite dangerous.”
Citizens who see the bear are requested to “call AWLA immediately” at 703-931-9241 and encouraged to maintain a safe and sound distance or get within.
Patch reported before that the bear “was noticed in Arlington’s Maywood community Monday morning, walking as a result of people’s yards and on to porches as it headed to a park on the east side of the community near the Custis Path.”
Just in excess of two several years ago a black bear was witnessed going for walks all-around around Bishop O’Connell Substantial University in Arlington. Animal handle officers ended up not able to find the bear just after the initial sighting.
Additional from AWLA, down below, on the latest bear incident.
On June 5th, 2022, a young black bear was noticed by a member of the community in Arlington County. Our Animal Management Officers verified the sighting and promptly contacted the Virginia Division of Wildlife Assets (DWR) and Virginia Point out biologist. The bear looks healthy and is most likely a male yearling going via Arlington Co in his look for for a new home habitat. We are continuing to update these agencies as the site of the bear improvements.
While bear sightings are scarce in Arlington County, they are not unheard of. Regretably in previous bear sightings, we have experienced troubles with users of the public going out in search of the bear to consider their have pics or see it for on their own. This is Incredibly risky, and can bring about hurt to you, many others, and the bear. Alternatively, we ask that inhabitants get in touch with AWLA promptly at (703) 931-9241 if they location the bear, and hold to a safe and sound length or indoors.
We also urge people follow these recommendations from DWR:
Safe garbage: Retain in a locked drop or inside until eventually collected or use a bear resistant container.
Safe any compost piles
Get down bird feeders.
Protected pet food in bear-resistant containers or inside of locked sheds.
Cleanse up porches/decks: Clean up grills together with drip pans, remove any probable foods resources, and recall a screened in porch is not a “secure” storage location from a bear’s level of look at.
Under no circumstances leave foodstuff, trash, or pet food stuff inside of your car.
Retain dogs on a leash at all moments
Thank you for supporting us retain individuals and wildlife protected in Arlington!
Behind a huge fourth-quarter rally, the Celtics came back to defeat the Golden State Warriors 120-108 on Thursday on the road. After the Warriors, who are playing in their sixth Finals in an eight-year span, used a third-quarter surge to take a double-digit lead, Boston stormed back in the fourth to win and steal homecourt advantage.
The Warriors responded with a 107-88 blowout win over the Celtics at home to even the series 1-1. The series now shifts to Boston for Game 3 on Wednesday.
There was no blowing a big third quarter lead in Game 2.
The Golden State Warriors vowed to play a more complete game after blowing a big lead in Game 1. Mission accomplished. They had another big third quarter in Game 2, then came on strong in the fourth quarter en route to a decisive 107-88 win to even the NBA Finals at 1-1.
The Warriors made seven 3s and outscored Boston 35-14 in the third quarter to break the game open. Stephen Curry had 14 of his 29 points in the third quarter, helping the Warriors to an 87-64.
Unlike in Game 1, the Celtics were never able to gain much traction for a comeback. Midway through the third quarter, the Celtics starters were on the bench.
Game 3 is Wednesday at 9 p.m. ET.
Jayson Tatum paced the Celtics with 28 points, but he didn’t get much help. Jaylen Brown scored nine points in the first two minutes of the game but went just 2-for-14 the rest of the night.
The Boston Celtics are throwing in the towel early. Ime Udoka pulled his starters (Jayson Tatum, Marcus Smart, Al Horford and Jaylen Brown) with 10:45 seconds left in the fourth quarter, as the Celtics trailed the Warriors, 93-64. Steve Kerr quickly followed suit.
It wasn’t quite the 21-point first quarter that Steph Curry had in Game 1, but the Warriors star had 14 in the third quarter of Game 2, helping the Warriors to an 87-64. Curry made three 3-pointers in the quarter, including two 40 seconds apart late in the quarter. Then, Jordan Poole made two 3s to close the quarter – part of a 19-2 Warriors run in the final 4:17 of the third. The Warriors made seven 3s and outscored Boston 35-14 in the quarter. Curry has 29 points headed into the fourth quarter.
The Warriors heated up in the third quarter in Thursday’s Game 1, outscoring Boston 38-24 in the third quarter to grab a 92-80 lead.
Of course, the Celtics had a big fourth quarter to stun the Warriors and take Game 1, 120-108.
The Warriors were at it again in the third quarter of Game 2. They are having another big third quarter, turning a 52-50 halftime lead into a 68-56 lead midway through the third quarter. The big question will be if they can hold on.
The Warriors have a history of relaxing after gaining a big advantage. In this case, if they fail to hold the lead they will go back to Game 2 in Boston in an 0-2 hole.
The Warriors head into halftime with a 52-50 lead over the Celtics. Steph Curry leads Golden State with 15 points on 5-for-12 shooting from the field and 2-for-6 from 3-point range. Andrew Wiggins added 10 points and Draymond Green had seven points, but he was close to receiving his second technical foul of the night following a dust-up with Jaylen Brown. Green fouled Brown while attempting a 3-point shot with 54.3 seconds left in the second quarter. Some pushing ensued after their legs got tangled up, but the refs didn’t asses any technicals.
Jayson Tatum exploded for 21 first-half points on 7-for-16 shooting from the field and 5-for-7 on 3s. It’s night and day from Game 1, where Tatum only scored 12 points. Brown finished the half with 15 points.
The Celtics got out to a 13-5 lead in the first quarter before the Warriors stormed back to take the lead. They are up one point after 12 minutes of play, 31-30.
Jayson Tatum got off to a better start in Game 2, scoring 13 points in the first quarter. Jaylen Brown added 13 points for the Celtics. In fact, Tatum and Brown scored or assisted on 28 of the 30 Boston points.
Fifteen minutes later, Boston coach Ime Udoka entered the interview room wearing the same T-shirt.
“We feel very strongly as a league that it’s time for people to take notice and to take part in what should be a nationwide effort to limit the gun violence that’s out there,” Kerr said. “And there are ways to limit it. There are proven laws that are waiting to be passed, whether it’s background checks or what have you. There are things we can do that would not violate people’s Second Amendment rights but would save lives.
“The idea behind wearing the shirts for both teams is to make people aware that they can contribute to different gun safety, gun violence prevention groups.”
SAN FRANCISCO — Draymond Green doesn’t think the Boston Celtics will make 21 3-pointers in Game 2.
“They hit 21 3s, and Marcus Smart and Al Horford and Derrick White combined for 15 of them,” Green said, perusing the box score. “Yeah, 15-for-23 from those guys, you know, so, we’ll be fine.”
Having two days to review video of Boston’s 120-108 victory in Game 1 of the NBA Finals, the Golden State Warriors came back with a more clear picture of what went wrong in the series opener and what they need to do in Game 2 on Sunday (8 p.m. ET, ABC).
“We have to play with more force on the defensive end,” Green said. “I think there were times in the game when they didn’t feel us.”
Jordan Poole struggled in Game 1, his first NBA Finals game of his three-year career. He scored nine points on 2-for-7 shooting from the field and 1-for-5 from three, down from his 18.4-point average this postseason. He also committed a team-high four turnovers in 25 minutes off the bench. Whether it was “a lot of adrenaline” or “a lot of nerves,” as Steph Curry guessed after their Game 1 loss, the Warriors need Poole to settle in and score as he’s done to get to this point.
Boston’s Derrick White
Derrick White’s shooting has been inconsistent at times during the 2022 playoffs, but he knocked down a postseason career-high five 3-pointers in Game 1, which helped spur the Celtics’ fourth-quarter rally to win. He finished with 21 points off the bench on 6-for-11 shooting and 5-for-8 from three. White not only contributed on offense with his playmaking and shotmaking abilities, but his defense shined so much so that Boston’s Defensive Player the Year, Marcus Smart, didn’t have to enter the fourth quarter until the 3:47 mark.
Golden State will not have its full rotation for Game 2. Reserve forward Andre Iguodala has been ruled out for Sunday’s game due to right knee inflammation. Additionally, Otto Porter Jr. (left foot soreness) and Gary Payton II (left elbow fracture) are listed as questionable ahead of tip-off.
Iguodala played 12 minutes in Game 1, scoring seven points on 3-of-4 shooting with three assists. Prior to Game 1, Iguodala had not played since Game 4 of the Warriors’ first-round series against the Nuggets. Iguodala has only appeared in four games this postseason.
Porter also returned from injury in Game 1 after missing the last two games of the Western Conference finals against Dallas. He had 12 points on 4-of-5 shooting in 24 minutes. Payton was cleared to return in Game 1 but did not appear Thursday. He has not played since suffering a fractured elbow in Game 2 of the second round against the Grizzlies on a flagrant foul by Dillon Brooks.
Jeff Van Gundy will rejoin the ABC broadcast team Sunday for Game 2 of the NBA Finals after testing positive for COVID and missing Game 1, an ESPN spokesperson said. However, play-by-play announcer Mike Breen remains sidelined after testing positive and missing Game 7 between Boston and Miami in the Eastern Conference finals and Game 1 of the Finals between Boston and Golden State.
Mark Jones will again handle play-by-play duties alongside analysts Mark Jackson and Van Gundy with Lisa Salters returning to sideline reporting in Game 2. Breen is expected back for Game 3 Wednesday in Boston, according to ESPN.
The Golden State Warriors are not necessarily doomed to defeat in the NBA Finals because they lost Game 1 at home Thursday to the Boston Celtics. Though Draymond Green’s suggestion that the Warriors “dominated the game for the first 41, 42 minutes” is certainly overstated, they were the better team for a long enough stretch to suggest that they can win games in this series.
But the way Boston exploded in the fourth quarter of Game 1 puts the Warriors in danger of enduring a summer where the conversation revolves around a player who isn’t even on their roster: Kevin Durant.
For as much as the Warriors have restocked and reinvented since the 2019 Finals — what they’ve done this season to return to prominence is a very big deal — hindsight and history will not be as kind as it should be if they lose this series.
Derrick White was one of the Boston Celtics’ key acquisitions during the season and has been credited with helping their stunning surge up the Eastern Conference standings.
The Celtics acquired White from the San Antonio Spurs in a multiplayer deal at the Feb. 10 trade deadline. At the time, the move didn’t garner much fanfare. But he has been an important role player for the Celtics — and he was crucial to their fourth-quarter surge that buried the Warriors in Game 1.
White scored 21 crucial points off the bench in Boston’s stunning 120-108 win. He was especially lethal from the 3-point line, going 5-for-8.
White has been a key player for the Celtics in their run to the Finals. He’s filled in as a starter for Marcus Smart when Smart missed games in the second and third rounds. He’s been dared to shoot by the Heat and then the Celtics and accepted the challenge. In White’s last three games, he has shot 11-for-18 from 3-point range.
“I mean, I kind of figured they would guard me like that going into the series,” White said. “I missed my first two, but they felt great so I just stayed confident. Teammates and coaches have always told me to stay confident. It’s good to see that one go down, and (I) just got on a roll from there.”
Share on PinterestHigh levels of air pollution could worsen the symptoms of some health conditions. Getty Images
Researchers decided to explore the connection between heart health and air pollution after seeing that more heart patients made emergency room visits on days of bad air quality.
They found that the risk of abnormal heartbeats (ventricular arrhythmias) was raised even on days when the average air quality was slightly degraded.
The study’s authors recommend that people with implanted defibrillation devices keep an eye on daily pollution levels and plan their exposure accordingly.
An implanted cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) does more than reset a heart’s rhythm to a healthy beat. It also provides researchers with a way of monitoring the occurrence of arrhythmias, or abnormal heartbeats, in hopes of identifying what factors are likely to trigger one.
New research, presented at the European Society of Cardiology’s (ESC) Heart Failure 2022 congress, compared days on which patients experienced higher numbers of ventricular arrhythmias with days scientists recorded higher levels of air pollution.
The researchers found a correlation: The days with high levels of air pollution were when most arrhythmias occurred.
Dr. Franco Folino, of the Department of Cardiac, Thoracic and Vascular Sciences at the University of Padova, Italy, told Medical News Today about the value of ICDs for research.
“These devices, as well as many pacemakers, are formidable devices not only for the treatment of arrhythmias but also for their ability to monitor heart rhythm 24 hours a day. Therefore, they represent an ideal tool for comparing arrhythmic profiles with data from the monitoring station for air quality,” he said.
However, Dr. Folino, who was not involved in the study, noted that the patients observed may be at a higher risk of pollution-related health problems.
“The research conducted on patients with ICDs, who are implanted in patients with major heart diseases, explore a population at high cardiovascular risk, highlighting that in these subjects the effects of pollution are even more pronounced,” he pointed out.
The study took place in the city of Piacenza in the Emilia Romagna region of northern Italy. In 2021, in a ranking by the European Environment Agency of European cities with the greatest levels of air pollution, Piacenza ranked near the bottom—just 16 cities were comparatively worse. The average annual concentration of particulate matter (PM) 2.5 in Piacenza was listed as 20.8 μg/m3.
The World Health Organization considers a level of 10 μg/m3 of PM 2.5 or less to be good air quality.
Piacenza landed squarely in the WHO’s “poor” air quality category.
“We had observed that emergency room visits for arrhythmias in patients with ICDs tended to cluster on days with particularly high air pollution. We, therefore, decided to compare the concentration of air pollutants on days when patients had an arrhythmia versus pollution levels on days without an arrhythmia.”
Dr. Zanni explained to MNT that implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) therapy is currently the only prevention tool for potentially fatal arrhythmias such as ventricular tachycardia (VT) and ventricular fibrillation (VF).
“The difference [between the two conditions] is that during VT, the heart can still pump some blood and the patient could still be conscious, while during VF the heart is almost still, causing a cardiac arrest,” she said.
She then went on to explain the pacing-or-shock mechanism behind ICDs.
“An ICD is capable of terminating ventricular arrhythmias by anti-tachycardia pacing (ATP), shock, or both. ATP is used for VT and tries to pace the heart faster than the arrhythmia in order to block the pathological circuit, take the lead of the heart rhythm, and then slow down the pacing until a normal heart rate is obtained,” she said.
Dr. Zanni said ICDs managed to stop ventricular tachycardia in approximately 90{cfdf3f5372635aeb15fd3e2aecc7cb5d7150695e02bd72e0a44f1581164ad809} of patients. Where it fails, the shock system kicks in:
“If the ATP fails, or a VF occurs, the ICD delivers a high-voltage shock that immediately stop the arrhythmia. Usually, ATP is not perceived by the patient, while the shock can be felt, even violently.”
The study tracked the ICD activity in 146 individuals who had received an implant between January 2013 and December 2017. Of this group, 67 people had experienced a previous ventricular arrhythmia, and 79 had not.
The Regional Environmental Agency provided the researchers with daily figures for PM 2.5, PM 10, carbon monoxide (CO), nitrogen oxide (NO2), and ozone (O3).
During the study, the researchers recorded 440 ventricular arrhythmias. ATP sufficed for 322 of these, while ICDs delivered a shock in 118 cases.
The study found that every 1 μg/m3 increase in PM2.5 levels corresponded with a 1.5{cfdf3f5372635aeb15fd3e2aecc7cb5d7150695e02bd72e0a44f1581164ad809} increased risk of arrhythmias requiring a shock.
When PM 2.5 concentrations remained elevated by 1 μg/m3 over the course of a week, ventricular arrhythmias were 2.4{cfdf3f5372635aeb15fd3e2aecc7cb5d7150695e02bd72e0a44f1581164ad809} more frequent. For PM 10 concentrations, a weekly increase by the same amount corresponded to 2.1{cfdf3f5372635aeb15fd3e2aecc7cb5d7150695e02bd72e0a44f1581164ad809} more ventricular arrhythmias.
Dr. Folino said that the study highlights the need to categorize air pollution as a risk factor for cardiovascular health.
“Air pollution must be considered in the same way as any other cardiovascular risk factor, such as smoking, hypertension, or hypercholesterolemia,” he said.
“As we fight these risk factors, in the same way, we must act to prevent people in general, but particularly those at high cardiovascular risk, from being exposed to high levels of air pollution,” he added.
Dr. Zanni also shared with the ESC some precautions heart patients can take in their everyday lives.
“When particulate matter (PM) 2.5 and PM 10 concentrations are high (above 35 μg/m3 and 50 μg/m3, respectively), it would be sensible to stay indoors as much as possible and wear an N95 mask outside, particularly in areas of heavy traffic. An air purifier can be used at home.” — Dr. Alessia Zanni
Minjee Lee became just the third Australian woman to own multiple major wins with her victory at Pine Needles — and she did so in record-breaking fashion.
Darren Riehl
SOUTHERN PINES, N.C. — Karrie Webb and Jan Stephenson have long been the standard for Australian women’s golfers. With 10 major titles between them, any discussion of greatest golfers from Down Under started — and ended — with the names Webb and Stephenson.
On Sunday afternoon at Pine Needles, that duo became a trio.
Minjee Lee, daughter of Western Australia, won the 77th U.S. Women’s Open in dominant fashion, defeating a field of the best players in the world by four strokes. In doing so, she becomes just the third Aussie woman to own multiple major titles.
“It’s such a great honor just to be amongst those two names,” Lee said. “It’s just really, really special.”
Minjee Lee’s smile beamed after she claimed her second major title.
Getty Images
The driving range is a lonely place on Sunday afternoons, and this Sunday in the Carolina Sandhills was no different.
As the pretenders filtered out, and the true contenders arrived, real estate on the back of the Pine Needles range was plentiful. With nearly every competitor already on the course (or on a plane to their next destination), and few fans making the trek to the far end of the range, players in the last few groups had the place largely to themselves.
Lydia Ko occupied the spot on the far right, striping high draws with the breeze as her caddie and mother watched on. Several paces to her left, Bronte Law prepped for perhaps the most consequential round of her life. With a $10 million purse up for grabs, the Englishwoman was in line for the biggest paycheck of her career.
Further down the range, with a row of empty placards in between, Mina Harigae went through her own warmup. Such as been the case all week, her matte PXG irons made repeated — and satisfying — thuds as she worked her way through the bag. Her caddie, outfitted in red high-top Jordans 1s (perhaps in a nod to Harigae’s self-proclaimed obsession with the brand), watched and encouraged his pro, knowing full well this could be a life-changing day.
Mina Harigae’s caddie sported Jordan 1s for the final round.
Darren Riehl
Finally, there was Lee, donning a neon green polo with a simple phrase on the back: “Win at all costs.” It was an appropriate reminder considering the stakes. The 54-hole leader arrived to the range last, and left plenty of space between herself and her competition.
It was an appropriate scene — Lee arriving on her own terms and with a huge gap between herself and the competition — because the scoreboard reflected a similar dynamic. There was Lee, and then there was everyone else.
Through 54 holes, Lee had dictated the tempo at Pine Needles. She’d played fearlessly — and, at times, flawlessly — and rewrote the U.S. Women’s Open record book in the process.
Lee needed just 200 strokes to play the first three rounds, the fewest of any competitor in the history of the championship, and just one player was within three shots of her 54-hole lead.
There was Lee, and then there was everyone else.
The theme continued during the final round, and by day’s end, the 26-year-old was hoisting the U.S. Women’s Open trophy.
Minjee Lee was confident in front of the media all week long.
Darren Riehl
On Saturday evening, as Lee addressed the media following her third-round 67, she offered a confident, and prescient, answer when asked about her final-round game plan.
“I’m just going to try and make as many birdies as I can,” she said.
She made good on her promise.
After surviving the pre-round jitters, Lee teed up her Srixon on the first tee and ripped driver down the left side of the fairway. Her second swing of the day sent the ball piercing through the eastern breeze, and finished within 30 feet of the flag. Two putts later, her first circle of the day was on the card.
Her second hole was equally fruitful. Fairway, green, jarred putt (a long one this time). Lee’s lead was suddenly up to five as she walked to the 3rd tee box at 15 under.
In Minjee Lee’s Sunday triumph, the U.S. Women’s Open found its teeth
By:
James Colgan
But on a day when Pine Needles (finally) played like a true U.S. Women’s Open test, the middle portion of Lee’s round was a battle.
Lee, who didn’t have her usual ball-striking moxie Sunday, dropped a shot at the 5th, and another at the 7th. The course played nearly two-and-a-half shots harder on Sunday than it did the day prior, so the miscues were understandable.
But even when the ship was unsteadied, there was nothing that could sink the Aussie. Not a missed green, or a wonky lie in a sandy native area, or a three-putt on the tricky Bermuda greens. More often than not, when Lee found trouble, she escaped unscathed.
“I didn’t hit it that well,” she said. “I had really good saves, up-and-downs from a lot of places … That was enough to get it done today.”
When she stepped onto the 18th tee, her lead was five over her playing partner. The only drama that remained was the question of if Lee could break the U.S. Women’s Open scoring record.
Minjee Lee needed just a bogey at the 72nd hole to break the U.S. Women’s Open scoring record.
Darren Riehl
The current record has stood for 26 years. Annika Sorenstam set the mark of 272 in 1996 — at this very course — and no one has bested the mark since. It has twice been tied, by Juli Inkster in 1999 and In Gee Chun in 2015, but no one has been able to go lower than Sorenstam did at Pine Needles in 1996.
Much has changed about Pine Needles since Sorenstam brought it to its knees. Kyle Franz led a major restoration project in 2017, and this week the course looked a lot like what Donald Ross envisioned when he built the place in the 1920s. Sandy native areas line the fairways, and the bunkers are jagged and scraggly around the edges.
The greens have changed, too. The surface at 18 was a particular focus for Franz and his team. As a part of the project, he extended the back-right portion, connecting two mounds to create one of the most devilish pin locations you’ll ever see.
As fate would have it, that location was in play for the final 18 holes of this Open. To break the scoring record, Lee would have to navigate it — and card no worse than bogey.
Her tee shot could not have been placed in a better spot to access the pin location — left side of the fairway — and her approach landed in the middle of the green. At last, she could take a deep breathe and enjoy the walk.
“I just said to myself, ‘This is pretty amazing,’” Lee said. “This is pretty cool, just looking at the whole crowd and just everybody down the fairways.”
The crowd showered her in praise as she made the final stroll — there were even a few “Aussie Aussie Aussie!” chants — and the sun dipped below the towering pines.
After Harigae tapped in for her par, the stage was set for the coronation. Lee, perhaps as a result of the adrenaline and emotion pumping through her, needed three putts to finish the job, but the result was all the same.
She was a major champion once again, and the U.S. Women’s Open scoring record was hers alone.
“I can’t believe it right now,” Lee said. “It’s been my dream since I was a little girl. It’s the one that I always wanted to win on; now I’ve done it, and just feels amazing.”
Minjee Lee cruised to a dominant four-shot win.
Darren Riehl
With the trophy ceremony complete, and her neon shirt sufficiently soaked in champagne, Lee walked into the interview area, trophy in hand. Her smile beamed as she scrolled through her phone and prepped to be peppered with questions.
“I just can’t believe it,” she said.
Karrie Webb had already texted a message congratulating Lee on the win.
Lee’s game had answered many questions over 72 holes in the Sandhills, but at least one question still remained: Had she yet reflected on her special place in her country’s golf history?
“I haven’t been able to even think properly at the moment,” she said.
Here’s one way to think about it: From this day forward, when the subject of greatest Australian women’s golfers is broached, three names will come to mind.
Karrie Webb, Jan Stephenson and Minjee Lee.
Golf.com Editor
Zephyr Melton is an assistant editor for GOLF.com where he spends his days blogging, producing and editing. Prior to joining the team at GOLF.com, he attended the University of Texas followed by stops with Team USA, the Green Bay Packers and the PGA Tour. He assists on all things instruction and covers amateur and women’s golf.
