There is, I think, something ethereal about i —the square root of minus one. I remember first hearing about it at school. It seemed an odd beast at that time—an intruder hovering on the edge of reality.

Usually familiarity dulls this sense of the bizarre, but in the case of i it was the reverse: over the years the sense of its surreal nature intensified. It seemed that it was impossible to write mathematics that described the real world in …

I and i

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) remains a major public health problem. It is the fourth leading cause of chronic morbidity and mortality in the United States, and is projected to rank fifth in 2020 in burden of disease worldwide, according to a study published by the World Bank/World Health Organization. Yet, COPD remains relatively unknown or ignored by the public as well as public health and government officials. In 1998, in an effort to bring more attention to COPD, its management, and its prevention, a committed group of scientists encouraged the U.S. National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute and the World Health Organization to form the Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD). Among the important objectives of GOLD are to increase awareness of COPD and to help the millions of people who suffer from this disease and die prematurely of it or its complications. The first step in the GOLD program was to prepare a consensus report, Global Strategy for the Diagnosis, Management, and Prevention of COPD, published in 2001. The present, newly revised document follows the same format as the original consensus report, but has been updated to reflect the many publications on COPD that have appeared. GOLD national leaders, a network of international experts, have initiated investigations of the causes and prevalence of COPD in their countries, and developed innovative approaches for the dissemination and implementation of COPD management guidelines. We appreciate the enormous amount of work the GOLD national leaders have done on behalf of their patients with COPD. Despite the achievements in the 5 years since the GOLD report was originally published, considerable additional work is ahead of us if we are to control this major public health problem. The GOLD initiative will continue to bring COPD to the attention of governments, public health officials, health care workers, and the general public, but a concerted effort by all involved in health care will be necessary.

https://www.who.int/respiratory/copd/GOLD_WR_06.pdf

Global strategy for the diagnosis, management, and prevention of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: GOLD executive summary.

Basics of qualitative research: Grounded theory procedures and techniques

https://www.thelancet.com/pdfs/journals/lancet/PIIS0140-6736(12)61728-0.pdf

Global and regional mortality from 235 causes of death for 20 age groups in 1990 and 2010: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2010

https://www.thelancet.com/pdfs/journals/lancet/PIIS0140-6736(12)61766-8.pdf

A comparative risk assessment of burden of disease and injury attributable to 67 risk factors and risk factor clusters in 21 regions, 1990-2010: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2010

It is currently unclear whether roadside drug testing reduces cannabis impaired driving

https://www.bmj.com/content/bmj/344/bmj.e595.full.pdf

Driving while under the influence of cannabis.

concentration reported in human plasma after a bite by a brown snake is 35 ng/mL, approximately one three thousandth the experimental concentration used.\" In view of this I wonder if some other explanation for thrombocytopenia after snakebite should be considered. Julian White, MD Poisons Information Centre The Adelaide Children's Hospital North Adelaide, SA 5006 I. Marling AC, Marshall LR, Herrmann RP. Thrombocytopenia after brown snake envenomation. Med J Aust 1989; 151: 627-628. 2. White J, Fassett R. Acute renal failure and coagulopathy after snakebite. Med J Aus, 1983; 2: 142-143. 3. White J. Ophidian envenomation: a South Australian perspective; Records Adelaide Children's Hospiral 1981; 2: 311-421. 4. White J. Elapid snakes: aspects .01' envenomation. In: Covacevich J, Davie P. Pcarn J, eds. Toxic plants and animals: a guide for Australia. Brisbane: Queensland Museum, 1987: 391-429. 5. White J. Williams V. Severe envenomation with convulsion following multiple bites by a common brown snake. Pseudonaja textilis. Aus, Paediatr J 1989; 25: 109-111. 6. Marshall LR, Herrmann RP. Australian snake venoms and their in vitro effect on human platelets. Thromb Res 1989; 54: 21>9-275. 7. White J. Elapid snakes: venom production and bite mechanism. In: Covacevich J, Davie P, Pearn J, eds, Toxic plants and animals: a guide for Australia. Brisbane: Queensland Museum, 1987; 357-367. 8. Sutherland SK. Australian animal toxins. Melbourne: Oxford University Press, 1983.

The injecting and sexual behaviour of intravenous drug users in Sydney.

Introduction and Aims: Increasingly more Australians are in favor of legalizing medical and recreational cannabis use. This paper explored the personal characteristics of those who supported each of these policies in Australia. Design: Cross-sectional national survey. Methods: This study included 21,729 participants aged 18 years and above who responded to the 2016 National Drug Strategy Household Survey. Participants were provided the assurance of confidentiality for their participations. Logistic regression models were used to examine the relationships between personal characteristics and support for the legalization of medical and recreational cannabis. Results: Overall, 77 and 40% of participants supported the legalization of medical and recreational cannabis respectively. People of older age were more likely to support medical cannabis legalization while those who supported legalization of recreational cannabis use were more likely to be younger. Medical cannabis supporters were more likely to report chronic pain (OR = 1.44, 95% CI: 1.04, 2.00) while recreational cannabis supporters were more likely to suffer high level of psychological distress (OR = 1.28, 95% CI: 1.14, 1.43). Experience with cannabis use was strongly associated with supportive attitudes, with recent cannabis users almost 14 times (OR = 14.13, 95% CI: 5.37, 37.20) and 34 times (OR = 33.74, 95% CI: 24.22, 47.01) more likely to support the legalization of medical and recreational cannabis use, respectively. Discussion and Conclusions: The majority of Australians approve the legalization of cannabis for medicinal purposes but most remain cautious about legalizing recreational cannabis use. The sociodemographic and clinical profile of supporters of medical and recreational legalization suggests a potential interaction of self-interests and beliefs about the harms of cannabis use.

/pdf/personal-correlates-of-support-for-medical-and-recreational-4903ygdgoe.pdf

Personal Correlates of Support for Medical and Recreational Cannabis Legalization in Australia.

https://www.thelancet.com/pdfs/journals/lancet/PIIS0140-6736(07)61656-0.pdf

UK classification of cannabis: is a change needed and why?

Citing this paper Please note that where the full-text provided on King's Research Portal is the Author Accepted Manuscript or Post-Print version this may differ from the final Published version. If citing, it is advised that you check and use the publisher's definitive version for pagination, volume/issue, and date of publication details. And where the final published version is provided on the Research Portal, if citing you are again advised to check the publisher's website for any subsequent corrections.

Wayne Hall

Papers

Driving while under the influence of cannabis.

The injecting and sexual behaviour of intravenous drug users in Sydney.

Personal Correlates of Support for Medical and Recreational Cannabis Legalization in Australia.

UK classification of cannabis: is a change needed and why?

Value for money in reducing opioid-related deaths.