ISSN:0272-4332    

DOI:10.1111/j.1539-6924.1992.tb00682.x

出版商:Blackwell Publishing Ltd    

年代:1992

数据来源: WILEY

ISSN:0272-4332    

DOI:10.1111/j.1539-6924.1992.tb00683.x

出版商:Blackwell Publishing Ltd    

年代:1992

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

To examine the relationship between economic well being and health status, two economic concepts were explored: the permanent‐income hypothesis and the transitory‐income hypothesis. A regression analysis of time‐series mortality data for the period of 1950‐1988 was conducted. The regression results indicated that the total mortality rate is negatively associated with permanent income and positively associated with the transitory income. Results are also reported for the 8 major causes of death in the United States. The implications for risk analysis are di

ISSN:0272-4332    

DOI:10.1111/j.1539-6924.1992.tb00684.x

出版商:Blackwell Publishing Ltd    

年代:1992

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

During the period 1975‐85 in the United States the 70 year lifetime risk of dying from being hit by an airplane when the individual is on the ground was 4.2 per million people. In contrast to many other risks used for comparison purposes, risk to those on the ground from an airplane crash is not a function of our own skills; is not optional; provides no benefit to anyone involved; and is not an act of nature. As a risk comparison tool it also has the useful characteristics of being something about which we can agree that regulatory action, such as control of airplane use and traffic, is warranted; but that no significant change in personal behavior, such as living in the basement to protect against dying from a plane hitting the home, is commensurate with the extent of ris

ISSN:0272-4332    

DOI:10.1111/j.1539-6924.1992.tb00685.x

出版商:Blackwell Publishing Ltd    

年代:1992

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

Toxic torts are product liability cases dealing with alleged injuries due to chemical or biological hazards such as radiation, thalidomide, or Agent Orange. Toxic tort cases typically rely more heavily than other product liability cases on indirect or statistical proof of injury. There have been numerous theoretical analyses of statistical proof of injury in toxic tort cases. However, there have been only a handful of actual legal decisions regarding the use of such statistical evidence, and most of those decisions have been inconclusive. Recently, a major case from the Fifth Circuit, involving allegations that Benedectin (a morning sickness drug) caused birth defects, was decided entirely on the basis of statistical inference. This paper examines both the conceptual basis of that decision, and also the relationships among statistical inference, scientific evidence, and the rules of product liability in general.

ISSN:0272-4332    

DOI:10.1111/j.1539-6924.1992.tb00686.x

出版商:Blackwell Publishing Ltd    

年代:1992

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

An approach, using biomarkers (biological responses) for assessing the biological and ecological significance of contaminants present in the environment is described. Living organisms integrate exposure to contaminants in their environment and respond in some measurable and predictable way. Responses are observed at several levels of biological organization from the biomolecular level, where pollutants can cause damage to critical cellular macromolecules and elicit defensive strategies such as detoxication and repair mechanisms, to the organismal level, where severe disturbances are manifested as impairment in growth, reproduction, developmental abnormalities, or decreased survival. Biomarkers can provide not only evidence of exposure to a broad spectrum of anthropogenic chemicals, but also a temporally integrated measure of bioavailable contaminant levels. A suite of biomarkers are evaluated over time to determine the magnitude of the problem and possible consequences. Relationships between biomarker response and adverse ecological effects are determined from estimates of animal health and population structure.

ISSN:0272-4332    

DOI:10.1111/j.1539-6924.1992.tb00687.x

出版商:Blackwell Publishing Ltd    

年代:1992

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

Increased contamination of the environment by toxic chemicals has resulted in the need for sensitive assays to be used in risk assessment of polluted sites. Traditional tests are useful to detect and measure concentrations of chemicals in the environment and in tissues. However, physicochemical assays possess deficiencies that impair their use in evaluating complex environmental contamination. We have developed cytogenetic procedures, including chromosomal, micronucleus, and flow cytometric assays, to assess the mutagenic damage of petrochemicals and low‐level radioactivity on indigenous terrestrial and aquatic wildlife populations. These procedures are sensitive to the perturbation of DNA that results from exposure to mutagenic contaminants in both field and laboratory studies. The use of natural populations of animals in biomonitoring, combined with traditional chemical assays, will ultimately provide sufficient information to estimate the risk to human health and environmental quality from anthropogenic pollutio

ISSN:0272-4332    

DOI:10.1111/j.1539-6924.1992.tb00688.x

出版商:Blackwell Publishing Ltd    

年代:1992

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

This paper presents a method of estimating long‐term exposures to point source emissions. The method consists of a Monte Carlo exposure model (PSEM or Point Source Exposure Model) that combines data on population mobility and mortality with information on daily activity patterns. The approach behind the model can be applied to a wide variety of exposure scenarios. In this paper, PSEM is used to characterize the range and distribution of lifetime equivalent doses received by inhalation of air contaminated by the emissions of a point source. The output of the model provides quantitative information on the dose, age, and gender of highly exposed individuals. The model is then used in an example risk assessment. Finally, future uses of the model's approach are discusse

ISSN:0272-4332    

DOI:10.1111/j.1539-6924.1992.tb00689.x

出版商:Blackwell Publishing Ltd    

年代:1992

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

A combination of directive and nondirective techniques was used to study the mental models of 30 lay activists regarding the risks of nuclear energy sources in space. Respondents’perceptions were compared with an “expert model” of the processes generating and controlling these risks, in terms of both the substance of their beliefs and several statistical measures of their performance. These analyses revealed a complex pattern of strengths and weaknesses. Their details are used to derive recommendations for formulating messages about these

ISSN:0272-4332    

DOI:10.1111/j.1539-6924.1992.tb00690.x

出版商:Blackwell Publishing Ltd    

年代:1992

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

A model of public perception and response to communication about natural hazards risk was constructed. It was estimated on data from samples of households in three communities at risk in the Parkfield earthquake prediction experiment. Estimated model parameters revealed consistent conclusions. Communicated risk information that was reinforced through additional communications and/or social cues precipitated an interactive personal search for more information; personal definitions of risk and what to do emerged; and these social constructions directed how the public responded. Perceived risk only indirectly impacted public action through information searching. This suggests that searching behavior should intervene between perception of risk and response in the theory of public risk communication.

ISSN:0272-4332    

DOI:10.1111/j.1539-6924.1992.tb00691.x

出版商:Blackwell Publishing Ltd    

年代:1992

数据来源: WILEY