Age at start of using tobacco and drinking alcohol and the risk of head and neck cancer - a pooled analysis in the International Head and Neck Cancer Consortium (INHANCE)

論文發表人: 張慎之(加州大學洛杉磯分校流行病學研究所博士班)

 

MailScanner has detected a possible fraud attempt from "inhance.uarc.fr" claiming to be http://inhance.iarc.fr

 

吸煙與飲酒是頭頸癌的兩大主要危險因子, 而頭頸癌的危險性會隨著吸煙的頻率和長度以及喝酒的頻率而增加。但是開始吸煙與喝酒的年齡是否與頭頸癌的危險性有關還有待研究調查。之前的文獻一方面樣本量少,另一方面沒有考慮到相關的干擾因子, 為了進一步了解吸煙與喝酒的年齡對頭頸癌的影響, 我們利用國際頭頸癌協會(INHANCE)的資料做大型的匯整分析(pooled analysis)。

研究方法: 關於吸煙年齡的分析我們一共收集了17個病例對照研究(11,897個頭頸癌病例以及 16,852個對照)。關於飲酒年齡的分析我們一共收集了13個病例對照研究(9,167個頭頸癌病例以及12,593個對照)。我們運用非條件性邏輯迴歸分析估計勝算比(odds ratio)以及95%信賴區間, 並且對頭頸癌不同部位進行分層分析。結果: 在控制了吸煙的包裝年(pack-year)之後, 開始吸煙的年齡被發現與咽癌的危險性呈負相關(p<0.01)。十歲之前就開始抽煙的人的咽癌發生率是三十歲之後才開始抽煙的人的兩倍。吸煙年齡與口腔癌以及喉癌的危險性並沒有顯著相關。開始喝酒的年齡對頭頸癌的發生率也沒有被發現有顯著的影響。

 

BACKGROUND: Tobacco and alcohol use are two well-established major risk factors for head and neck cancer.  Whether early age of exposure to tobacco and alcohol is associated with head and neck carcinogenesis is of special interest.  Previous studies either had small sample sizes or did not properly control for possible confounding factors.  We analyzed the pooled data in the International Head and Neck Cancer Epidemiology Consortium (INHANCE) to investigate the association between age at start of using tobacco and alcohol products and the risk of head and neck cancer.  METHODS: Individual-level data from 17 case-control studies were pooled, included 11,897 head and neck cancer case subjects and 16,852 control subjects for the analysis on age at start of using tobacco products.  The analysis for age at start of drinking alcoholic beverages included 13 studies with 9,167 head and neck cancer case subjects and 12,593 control subjects.  Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were estimated using unconditional logistic regression models.  All statistical tests were two-sided.  RESULTS: Age at start of smoking tobacco was observed to be inversely associated with the risk of laryngeal cancer (p for trend < 0.01 for cigarettes/cigars/pipes smokers and p for trend = 0.02 for cigarette smokers), after adjustment for tobacco-year.  Similar trends were not found with the risk of oral cavity and pharyngeal cancer.  We did not observe dose response relations for head and neck cancer and younger age at start of using tobacco among cigar-only smokers, pipe-only smokers, or oral snuff-only tobacco users.  For chewing tobacco, we observed a higher head and neck cancer risk for subjects who began to chew at age younger than eighteen (OR = 96.07, 95% CI, 28.99, 318.40, p for trend = 0.07), after adjustment for the years of chewing tobacco.  We did not detect any dose-response relations for the risk of head and neck cancer subsites and age at start of drinking overall or drinking specific types of alcoholic beverages.  CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that young age at starting smoking may be more harmful for the risk of laryngeal cancer than starting at a later age.  Besides the carcinogenicity with increased intensity and duration of tobacco smoking, young individuals should be fully aware of their additional increased risk of developing laryngeal cancer.

Gender Identity in Action: Chinese Female Activists’ Gender Repertoires in a Globalizing Context

論文發表人：韓鈴（加州大學聖地牙哥分校社會學研究所博士班）

 

http://www.csw.ucla.edu/thinkinggender.html

 

改革開放以來，中國出版不少關於中國婦女研究和性別的書籍，這些書籍的內容關注的婦女議題包羅萬象，如婦女學學科建設推動的論文集、西方女性主義經典的翻譯文集、婦女口述歷史、改革開放後的婦女地位調查等。這些文獻探討範圍廣泛，在女性主義概念的使用上，不同作者在不同的情境脈絡中使用「性別」和「社會性別」這些蓋碾闡述性別，這些論述和詮釋出現在不同時期，代表著不同的意涵，其中也隱含運動者對西方gender這個概念的詮釋和運用。中國政府在一九九五年世婦會上確定了男女平等的基本國策，雖然沒有直接提及性別，但國際接軌的道路上對「性別」的認同是必要條件，而「性別」(gender)在中國仍舊是一個浮動的概念，運動者在不同的情境脈絡中可以隨時挪用或混用。中國婦女運動者的生命經驗影響其性別意識認同，對「性別」有不同的詮釋和認識，但她們都學習到如何使用「性別」的話語，這是尋求國際資源的必要條件。中國新興婦女組織發展的狀況非常多元，性別論述上雖然有些歧異也有合作融合的過程，自我詮釋空間廣大，而這個空間是新興中國婦女組織運動者創造出來的論述空間。

 

        Chinese feminism has undergone a complex and intriguing development.  Chinese women were first acculturated with Marxist women's liberation ideology during the Mao era, and during the 1995 United Nations Fourth Conference on Women in Beijing, Chinese female activists were open to new possibilities of gender consciousness.  The shift in Chinese gender ideologies denotes a change in the emphasis on gender sameness to difference.  Given this background, this paper examines the gender consciousness adopted by the Chinese female activists in Beijing and argues that "gender"(xinbei) is still a floating concept in China.  The cultural frame of gender consciousness adopted by the female activists depends on their social and cultural location, and the activists personal repertoires of gender consciousness serve as a tool kit to draw from during times of organizing.  The patchworks of gender consciousness allow activists to maneuver with the authoritarian government and also work with international funding agencies.  The paper first explores the different usages adopted by female activists to convey the idea of "gender" and is analyzed according to activists' social and cultural upbringings. "Gender" is an umbrella concept in China, which is sometimes equated with "women/female," sometimes alluding to socialist ideals of female emancipation, or connoting the social construction aspect of "gender" in a Western context.  The paper then discusses the prevailing gender repertoires that existed in China and how the concept of "gender"(xinbei) and "social gender"(shehui xinbei) is conceptualized and allowed spaces for practical action.

Multiplexing volume holographic gratings for a spectral-spatial imaging system

論文發表人：駱遠 (亞利桑那大學光學學院博士班)

 

http://spie.org/

 

在影像系統中，多工光柵(Multiplexed Gratings)能將立體測試物不同深度的二維截面影像，個別地投射到照相機不同的對應面。多工光柵本身扮演著全像Bragg濾波器的角色，配合傳統光學影像元件，將可結合成"體積全像影像系統(Volume Holographic Imaging System) "。基於多工光柵，在系統中具有角度以及波長的高效能感應度特性，體積全像影像系統可將立體測試物的波長特性及空間資訊，在完全不需要對物體進行三維掃描情況下，便可同時萃取顯示出來。為達到上述特性，在設計多工光柵濾波器時，運用了所謂"角度式多工全像技術"，製作過程中則採用2毫米的PQ-PMMA全像紀錄元件。此外，理論模擬方面，結合精準偶合波(Rigorous Coupled Wave)方法來預測光柵濾波器表現度並得到最佳的實驗結果。

 

Multiplexed gratings can be used in an imaging system to project depth sections of a tested object onto different surface locations of a camera.  This technique is based on volume holographic Bragg filters used in conjunction with conventional optical imaging components to form a volume holographic imaging system (VHIS).  Due to the high angular selectivity and high wavelength selectivity of the system, the VHIS can be used to provide spectral-spatial information of the object that is being observed, and eliminate the need for mechanical scanning.  Multiple sections of the object can be viewed by using angle multiplexed holographic elements formed in a volume holographic material.  To achieve the highly selective characteristic of a holographic filter, 2mm thick samples of phenanthrenequinone-doped methyl methacrylate (PQ-PMMA) is used as the holographic recording materials.  Rigorous coupled wave models are used to theoretically predict the performance of the gratings.  Results from both modeling and experiments are presented.

 

From endemic to epidemic — colonialism, modernity, and the emergence of epidemic hepatitis B and C in the indigenous peoples in Taiwan

 

論文發表人：日宏煜 (夏威夷大學馬諾亞分校人類學系博士班)

 

http://dev.aaanet.org/meetings/

 

病毒性肝炎是過去幾十年來影響台灣原住民健康的主要傳染病之一，目前大約有百分之十五的原住民為B型肝炎的帶原者或被C型肝炎所感染。透過對東台灣二個太魯閣族社區的民族誌研究發現，二十世紀初日本在台灣的殖民統治與其所引進的現代化之醫療行為與B、C型肝炎開始在太魯閣族社區大規模的流行有很密切的關係。1910年代中期，日本殖民帝國在征服整個太魯閣族後，大規模地將原本散居在中央山脈各部落的太魯閣族人遷移至東海岸少數的社區中，改變了部落原有生態系統中物理、生物與文化環境的平衡，使得這些新社區成為了虐疾、流行性感冒、肺結核與鼠疫等傳染病的溫床，為了防止傳染病的擴散，殖民政府引進了西方醫學的技術，然而，消毒不完全的針頭、針筒與醫療器具等成為了病毒性肝炎在原住民社區中傳播的主要途徑。因此，日本殖民主義與伴隨其而來的現代化過程成為感染並破壞原住民社會生態平衡的巨型病原菌，而這個巨型病原菌降低了原住民對疾病的抵抗能力，相對地造成原住民個體對肝炎病毒的易感病性。由於主流社會缺乏對過去殖民主義與現代化的歷史情境之認知，肝炎的流行已被當代國家原住民化與被視為原住民特有的健康問題。

 

The epidemics of hepatitis B and C are serious public health problems in the indigenous peoples (Austronesian speakers) of Taiwan over the past several decades. Currently, approximately fifteen percent of the indigenous peoples are infected by hepatitis B or C virus (HBV and HCV). The ethnographic research conducted at two Truku villages in eastern Taiwan explores that colonialism and modernity took place in the first two decades of the twentieth century initiated the large-scale transmissions of HBV and HCV in the Truku communities. Under the colonial regime, the physical, biological, and cultural components of the total ecosystem were greatly altered while the Japanese empire conquered the Truku nation and relocated the Truku to few communities in the eastern coast of Taiwan in the 1910s. These new communities shaped the harbors of various infectious diseases such as malaria, influenza, tuberculosis, and bubonic plague. To prevent the outbreaks of infectious diseases in the Truku communities, Western medicine was introduced by the colonial government. However, reusing needles, syringes, and surgical instruments that might not be completely sterilized permitted the infections of HBV and HCV through iatrogenic routes within the local communities. As such, colonialism and modernity as well as marcoparasites infected an indigenous society and unbalanced its total ecosystem resulting in the indigenous bodies were vulnerable to microparasits (virus). Without considering the historical contexts of colonialism and modernity, the state racialized the epidemic hepatitis B and C as indigenous problems in later decades.

Recent Higher Education Reforms and Challenges in Taiwan: Policy and Quantitative Data Analysis

論文發表人：楊正誠（加州大學洛杉磯分校教育所博士班）

 

http://www.tc.edu/academic/ITS/CIES/

 

近年來世界在全球化的影響之下，高等教育的競爭日趨激烈，特別是在世界主要教育刊物與機構的全球性高等教育評鑑與排名之下，世界各國無不進行高等教育改革以面對未來的革新與挑戰。台灣在過去十年也經歷了許多重要的高等教育發展歷程與革新。本研究首先將使用歷史研究法與文件分析法，針對台灣過去十年的高等教育發展與重要政策進行整理與回顧，主要的議題包含了高等教育擴張、高等教育階層化、高等教育整併以及高等教育品質保證與評鑑。在本研究的第二部分，則將針對過去十年台灣高等教育改革與政策進行反省與評析，主要的議題包含了入學機會與均等性、高等教育學門的資源分配與評鑑問題，學生發展與就業。在本研究的第三部分，研究者將使用國立台灣師範大學的台灣高等教育整合資料庫進行當前台灣高等教育入學機會與均等、高等教育畢業與就業均等問題之實證性分析，並且透過實證性分析的結果與前述的近十年台灣高等教育發展與政策變遷進行對話與討論。在本研究的最後部分，將針對台灣未來的高等教育政策與未來研究方法進行討論與提出建議。

 

Facing the global competition of higher education, several important higher education reforms happened in Taiwan during the last decade. This paper begins with examining the development of recent higher education reforms in Taiwan which include higher education expansion, higher education classification, higher education merge, quality assurance and evaluation. In the second part of this paper, several reflections on the recent higher education reform will be raised which includes access and equity, resource allocation among disciplines and student development. In the third part of this paper, the author will use the empirical data from Taiwan Higher Education Dataset to analyze the possible problems of the contemporary higher education system in Taiwan which include access and equity, employment and wage distributions after the higher education expansion. The author will also discuss the relations between empirical analysis results and higher education development and transitions in Taiwan. In the final part of this paper, higher education policy and future research suggestions will be discussed.

 

A novel evaluation of piezoelectric coefficient of PZT thin film

論文發表人： 鍾添淦 (加州大學洛杉磯分校機械工程研究所博士班)

 

http://spie.org/smart-structures-nde.xml

 

在此篇論文中, 我們提出了一個新的估算壓電薄膜的壓電係數(d₃₁)的方法.  藉由修改傳統的標準製程, 我們可以製造出大面積無裂痕的溶膠凝膠系的鋯鈦酸鉛薄膜.  鋯鈦酸鉛薄膜是以旋轉鍍膜的方式鍍於鉑/鈦/氧化矽/矽晶圓基材上, 而此多結晶型的薄膜具有傾向(111)的結晶方向.  估算此薄膜的壓電係數(d₃₁)的方法乃是基於薄膜應力量測法.  當外加電場於晶圓上的鋯鈦酸鉛薄膜時, 會使該薄膜產生變形.  藉由薄膜應力量測設備(Tencor FLX-2320), 便可量測出整個薄膜/晶圓的曲率變化,  再藉由該曲率變化可計算出薄膜中的應力.  最後, 已知薄膜應力與外加電場, 透過壓電材料的基本行為方程式, 便可估算出壓電薄膜的壓電係數(d₃₁).

　　

In this paper, we demonstrate a new method to evaluate the piezoelectric coefficient (d₃₁) of piezoelectric thin film. The sol-gel driven lead zirconate titanate (PZT) thin film with large crack-free area is obtained by using a modified fabrication process. The polycrystalline film is spin-coated on Pt/Ti/SiO₂/Si substrate and has a preferential (111) orientation. The method to evaluate the piezoelectric coefficient (d₃₁) of the PZT thin film is based on thin film stress measurement technique. Tencor FLX-2320 film stress measurement system which is a very sample and cheap equipment is used to obtain the wafer curvature information when voltage is applied to PZT thin film on wafer. The stress in thin film is calculated by the obtained wafer curvature. By using the constitutive equation of polarized piezoelectric material, the d₃₁ coefficient can be determined from calculated thin film stress and applied voltage input.

An Ethnography of Speaking on What Counts as Self-disclosure and How Self-disclosure Functions in the Context of International Advising

論文發表人: 陳雅雯（新墨西哥大學傳播新聞系）

 

http://www.westcomm.org/conventions/past_conventions.asp

此研究用人類學的方式觀察加上訪談去了解自我揭露在輔導國際學生上的作用。研究的主要場合是美國西南部某一四年大學的國際辦公室。依據和國際辦公室裡八名輔導員的訪談，此研究分析出兩個規範輔導員如何用自我揭露來輔導國際學生：同情（the code of empathy）和專業（the code of professionalism）。在這份報告裡我依據社會滲透理論（social penetration theory）來創建一個初步的跨文化友情發展的理論。在此報告裡我聲稱社會滲透理論無法適當地解釋或詮釋跨文化友情發展的過程。於是，我建議將兩個概念融合到社會滲透理論裡來創件一個初步的跨文化友情發展的理論：(a)主客合一（intersubjectivity）和 (b)人際關係循環週期。此研究從創新構想被採用（diffusion of innovations）的觀點來分析英語教學所用的部落格（blogs）之優缺點。本報告主要談討英語教學所用的部落格的五大層面：(a) 相對好處，(b)融合性，(c)複雜程度，(d)可嘗試性，以及(e)可觀察性。最後，本研究探討為何英語教學所用的部落格仍未被大量採用的原因。

 

In response to Wright's (1983) call to investigate fully the self-disclosure process accompanying academic advising relationships, two research questions are proposed to investigate the very process of self-disclosure in international advising relationships in its own context. Methodologically, Hymes' (1962) ethnography of speaking is most appropriate to answer the proposed research questions, because it enables the examination of how international advisors view, understand, and use self-disclosure in their day-to-day interactions with international students. Theoretically, this pilot study is guided by two frameworks that concern culturally situated rules about communication: (a) speech codes theory (e.g. Philipsen, 1992; Philipsen, Coutu & Covarrubias, 2005); and (b) Hymes' (1972) SPEAKING framework. The data for this study come from two primary sources and one supplemental source. The two primary sources are: (a) ethnographic observation at one international student advising office (ISAO) in a large-size university campus in the Southwestern US; and (b) in-depth respondent interviews with available advisors and staff in the focused ISAO. The supplemental source is any available documents that said ISAO present to their international students. Grounded in a speech code perspective and guided by Strauss and Corbin's (1998) constant comparative method, two codes emerged from the data analysis that interacted to govern the process of revealing personal information or self-disclosure. The primary code was labeled "the code of empathy" and the secondary code was labeled "the code of professionalism." Specifically, the forms of self-disclosure governed by the code of empathy are: (a) revealing similar personal experiences; (b) revealing experiences of seeing/advising other students; and (c) revealing personal opinions. On the other hand, the forms of self-disclosure enabled by the code of professionalism are: (a) disclosing "I don't know."; (b) disclosing information about others responsibly; and (c) disclosing information when asked or invited. Finally, implications for speech codes theory, theorizing about self-disclosure across cultures, and international student advising offices (ISAO) are discussed.

Implantable Parylene-Based Wireless Intraocular Pressure Sensor

論文發表人:Po-Jui Chen (陳柏瑞), 加州理工學院電機工程學系

 

http://www.mems2008.org/

 

這篇論文提出了一新穎之可植入式無線被動壓力感測器以作為眼科醫學用途. 藉由運用面微加工出之可變電容與可變電感, 我們能夠設計出兩種不同的感測器來達到壓力感測的效果. 此感測器的單晶圓製程中使用了一高分子(parylene)作為具有生物相容性的結構材料, 且其製成的尺寸控制在一定範圍內, 故可降低相對應的眼內植入手術的困難度. 測試結果顯示了此微感測器能夠在壓力反應中達到高於7000 ppm/mmHg的靈敏度以及mmHg等級的解析度. 而在超過150天的活體動物實驗中, 我們也成功驗證了此植入元件能夠在眼內環境中保持穩定而未觸發任何的排斥反應. 此感測器最終將會被植入在玻璃體膜上或虹膜上, 以實現為青光眼患者不間斷地(24/7)監測眼內壓的可能性.

This paper presents a novel implantable, wireless, passive pressure sensor for ophthalmic applications. Two sensor designs incorporating surface-micromachined variable capacitor and variable capacitor/inductor are implemented to realize the pressure sensitive components. The sensor is monolithically microfabricated using parylene as a biocompatible structural material in a suitable form factor for increased ease of intraocular implantation. Pressure responses of the microsensor are characterized on-chip to demonstrate its high pressure sensitivity (>7000 ppm/mmHg) with mmHg level resolution. An in vivo animal study verifies the biostability of the sensor implant in the intraocular environment after more than 150 days. This sensor will ultimately be implanted at the pars plana or iris of the eye to fulfill continuous intraocular pressure (IOP) monitoring in glaucoma patients.

Freight Transportation Derivatives Contracts: State of the Art and Future Developments

論文發表人: 蔡玫亭 (加州大學爾灣分校土木所博士班)

 

http://www.trb.org/meeting/

當今貨物運輸紛紛實行「瘦身」(lean) 與需求回應(demand-responsive)物流系統，即使在運輸需求不確定的情況，仍然高度要求貨物運輸的速度、正確性及可靠性。因此，貨物運輸產業極需新的方法管理運輸合約。實質選擇權(real option)理論之應用就是規避運輸容量及運輸成本不確定性的有效方法之一。海洋運輸是目前唯一使用此類衍生性合約的運輸產業。本研究目的是針對衍生性合約進行整體性探討，我們從海運業衍生性合約市場之發展情形開始，探究海運業市場經營之成敗，根據其經營經驗，就目前美國貨物運輸龍頭產業—卡車業，提出卡車運輸衍生性合約之建議，並深入分析引進卡車選擇權合約市場之並要條件及潛在利益。

In lean and demand-responsive logistics systems, orders need to be delivered rapidly, accurately and reliably, even under demand uncertainty. Increasing demands on the industry motivate the introduction of new methods to manage transportation service contracts. One way to hedge transportation capacity and cost volatility is to use real options. To date, ocean transportation is the only area of transportation where this type of contract, also known as a derivatives contract, has been applied. The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of freight transportation derivatives. We start by reviewing the development of derivatives markets in the maritime industry. Based on our findings and on the experience accumulated in that industry, we investigate the adoption of derivatives contracts in trucking, which is the dominant freight transportation mode. This paper provides an understanding of the necessary conditions and potential benefits for the emergence of a market for truckload options.

Minimizing Departure Time for Outgoing Trucks in a Crossdock

 論文發表人: 王建富 (加州大學爾灣分校運輸科學博士班)

 

http://www.trb.org/meeting/

 

越庫碼頭(Crossdock)在供應鍊營運中扮演著重要的角色。由於在供應鍊環節中某些活動對於減少運輸前置時間的要求提高,例如及時物料供給、客製化生產以及中途併貨等策略,使得縮短貨品在越庫碼頭的處理時間顯得亦形重要。在本研究中,我們針對等待入庫卸貨的貨車加以排程,以使得貨品在等待出庫的貨車之等候時間最少,亦即使其停留在越庫碼頭的時間最短。我們採用了動態模擬的模式來比較三種排程策略:先到先服務(first-come-first-served) 、look-ahead 以及 leave-early。我們發現當採用leave-early策略及在配備有四個卸貨碼頭與四個出貨碼頭的越庫碼頭時,相較於其他兩種策略,我們的策略能為貨物節省最高達百分之十二等候時間或者最高達百分之四的整體轉運時間。

 

Crossdocks play important roles in supply chain operations. Due to the need to decrease transportation leadtime to coordinate with other supply chain activities such as just-in-time, make-to-order or merge-in-transit strategies, the importance of shortening total processing time at crossdocks has increased. In this research, we schedule waiting inbound trucks in such a way to allow for the early departure of outgoing trucks.  This minimizes the time freight spends in a crossdock. We use a dynamic simulation model to compare the performance of first-come-first-served, look-ahead and leave-early policies under different truck inter-arrival times and crossdock layouts. From our simulation results, we find that our leave-early algorithm can save up to 12% on freight wait time in outgoing trucks and 4% on total time relative to the other policies under a 4 receiving doors and 4 shipping doors layout. In addition we suggest guidelines for choosing scheduling algorithms in different situations.