Of the more than 2,000 high-production volume chemicals that are manufactured in or imported into the United States in amounts of one million pounds or more per year (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 2004), many are widely used in consumer products. Among these chemicals are bisphenol A [BPA; 2,2-bis(4-hydroxyphenyl)propane; CAS no. 80-05-7] and 4-tertiary-octylphenol [tOP; 4-(1,1,3,3-tetramethylbutyl)phenol; CAS no. 140-66-9]. BPA is used in the manufacture of polycarbonate plastic and epoxy resins, which can be used in impact-resistant safety equipment and baby bottles, as protective coatings inside metal food containers, and as composites and sealants in dentistry [Center for the Evaluation of Risks to Human Reproduction (CERHR) 2007; European Union 2003]. Exposure to BPA is thought to result primarily from ingestion of food containing BPA (Kang et al. 2006; Vandenberg et al. 2007). tOP is both a degradation product of and an intermediate in the manufacture of octylphenol ethoxylates, which are nonionic surfactants used in detergents, pesticide formulations, and other applications (Ying et al. 2002). Exposure to tOP may occur from contact with personal care products, detergents, water, and food containing tOP.

Exposures to tOP can result in developmental and reproductive alterations in aquatic species (Segner et al. 2003) and in laboratory animals (Aydogan and Barlas 2006; Bian et al. 2006; Blake et al. 2004; Nagao et al. 2001; Willoughby et al. 2005). At high doses, BPA demonstrates estrogen-like effects on uterine and prostate organ weights in experimental animals. At doses below the putative lowest observed adverse effect level, exposure to BPA has reportedly resulted in decreased sperm production, increased prostate gland volume, altered development and tissue organization of the mammary gland, altered vaginal morphology and estrous cycles, disruption of sexual differentiation in the brain, and accelerated growth and puberty (Durando et al. 2007; Howdeshell et al. 1999; Kubo et al. 2003; Richter et al. 2007; Rubin et al. 2006; Schonfelder et al. 2002; Timms et al. 2005; vom Saal et al. 1998). At present, the interpretation of the evidence related to the low-dose effects of BPA is a subject of scientific debate (European Union 2003; Goodman et al. 2006; Gray et al. 2004; National Toxicology Program 2001; vom Saal and Hughes 2005).

BPA and tOP are of concern to environmental public health because of the high potential for exposure of humans to these phenols and their demonstrated animal toxicity. Information about the concentrations of these compounds in the general population is important for understanding human exposure to BPA and tOP. The National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), conducted continuously since 1999 by the National Center for Health Statistics of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), is designed to measure the health and nutritional status of the civilian noninstitutionalized U.S. population ≥ 2 months of age (CDC 2003). The surveys include household interviews; collection of medical histories; standardized physical examinations; and collection of biologic specimens (e.g., blood and urine from participants ≥ 1 and ≥ 6 years of age, respectively) for clinical chemistry testing, nutritional indicators assessments, and assessment of exposure to environmental chemicals (CDC 2005, 2006).

Previously, we analyzed 394 urine samples collected from adult participants of NHANES III, conducted during 1988–1994, to estimate urinary concentrations of total BPA (free plus conjugated species) in selected demographic groups (Calafat et al. 2005). We now report the first estimate of urinary concentrations of total BPA and tOP in NHANES 2003–2004 participants, a representative sample of the noninstitutionalized U.S. population ≥ 6 years of age.

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Exposure of the U.S. population to bisphenol A and 4-tertiary-octylphenol: 2003-2004

Poverty and Famines: An Essay on Entitlement and Deprivation

Recently, artificial intelligence and machine learning in general have demonstrated remarkable performances in many tasks, from image processing to natural language processing, especially with the advent of deep learning (DL). Along with research progress, they have encroached upon many different fields and disciplines. Some of them require high level of accountability and thus transparency, for example, the medical sector. Explanations for machine decisions and predictions are thus needed to justify their reliability. This requires greater interpretability, which often means we need to understand the mechanism underlying the algorithms. Unfortunately, the blackbox nature of the DL is still unresolved, and many machine decisions are still poorly understood. We provide a review on interpretabilities suggested by different research works and categorize them. The different categories show different dimensions in interpretability research, from approaches that provide “obviously” interpretable information to the studies of complex patterns. By applying the same categorization to interpretability in medical research, it is hoped that: 1) clinicians and practitioners can subsequently approach these methods with caution; 2) insight into interpretability will be born with more considerations for medical practices; and 3) initiatives to push forward data-based, mathematically grounded, and technically grounded medical education are encouraged.

A Survey on Explainable Artificial Intelligence (XAI): Toward Medical XAI

In their book ‘Corporate Social Opportunity’, Grayson and Hodges maintain that ‘the driver for business success is entrepreneurialism, a competitive instinct and a willingness to look for innovation from non-traditional areas such as those increasingly found within the corporate social responsibility (CSR) agenda’. Such opportunities are described as ‘commercially viable activities which also advance environmental and social sustainability’. There are three dimensions to corporate social opportunity (CSO) – innovation in products and services, serving unserved markets and building new business models. While small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have traditionally been presented as non-entrepreneurial in this area, this paper demonstrates how SMEs can take advantage of the opportunities presented by CSR. Using data from 24 detailed case studies of UK SMEs from a range of sectors, the paper explores the numerous CSR opportunities that present themselves to SMEs, such as developing innovative products and services and exploiting niche markets. There are inevitable challenges for SMEs undertaking CSR, but by their very nature they have many characteristics that can aid the adoption of CSR; the paper explores these characteristics and how the utilisation of positive qualities will help SMEs make the most of CSOs. Integrating CSR into the core of a company is crucial to its success. Using the case studies to illustrate key points, the paper suggests how CSR can be built into a company's systems and become ‘just the way we do things’. There are a number of factors that characterise the CSO ‘mentality’ in an organisation, and Grayson and Hodges's book describes seven steps that will move a company in the direction of a ‘want to do’ CSO mentality. This paper adapts these steps for SMEs, and by transferring and building on knowledge from the 24 detailed case studies, it develops a ‘business opportunity’ model of CSR for SMEs.

https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/Delivery.cfm/beer_1546.pdf?abstractid=1319526&mirid=5

A 'business opportunity' model of corporate social responsibility for small- and medium-sized enterprises

This monitor aims to present the first comprehensive assessment of e-waste volumes, their corresponding impacts and management status on a global scale. This is measured using an internationally-adopted measuring framework that has been developed by the Partnership on Measuring ICT for Development (Balde et al., 2015). The methodology calculates the amount of e-waste generated from harmonised modelling steps and data sources. The outcomes Show an unprecedented level of accuracy and harmonisation across countries and are very useful for international benchmarking. It is estimated that the total amount e-waste generated in 2014 was 41.8 million metric tonnes (Mt). It is forecasted to increase to 50 Mt of e-waste in 2018.

The Global E-waste Monitor 2014: Quantities, flows and resources

The extent to which member states transpose EU directives in a timely fashion is often argued to be strongly associated with the general effectiveness of national bureaucracies. But what kind of institutional solutions ensure better performance? This paper examines the patterns and effects of departmental oversight across 28 ministries in Estonia, Hungary, Poland and Slovenia. In mapping the strength of oversight, it relies on around 90 structured interviews regarding the rules-in-use on transposition planning, legal review and monitoring of deadlines. The analysis of the impact of departmental oversight is based on an original dataset of over 300 directives with transposition deadlines between January 2005 and December 2008.

Vienna Lecture

Papers

On the european union