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At least 181 records · Page 10Linked to original sources
PubMed1991

[Genealogical files and the analysis of the genetic structure of non-isolated populations. An application to an agricultural population of the Limousin region].

"This article shows the methodological problems appearing in the production of genealogical files for non-endogamous or 'open' populations. [The authors conclude that] the study area must be extended to a geographic space larger than the one where the [designated] population resides." The authors reconstitute family structures using data from the eighteenth, nineteenth, and twentieth centuries for an agricultural community in Limousin, France. (SUMMARY IN ENG AND SPA)

Biology↗
PubMed2003

The epidemiology and iatrogenic transmission of hepatitis C virus in Egypt: a Bayesian coalescent approach.

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is a leading cause of liver cancer and cirrhosis, and Egypt has possibly the highest HCV prevalence worldwide. In this article we use a newly developed Bayesian inference framework to estimate the transmission dynamics of HCV in Egypt from sampled viral gene sequences, and to predict the public health impact of the virus. Our results indicate that the effective number of HCV infections in Egypt underwent rapid exponential growth between 1930 and 1955. The timing and speed of this spread provides quantitative genetic evidence that the Egyptian HCV epidemic was initiated and propagated by extensive antischistosomiasis injection campaigns. Although our results show that HCV transmission has since decreased, we conclude that HCV is likely to remain prevalent in Egypt for several decades. Our combined population genetic and epidemiological analysis provides detailed estimates of historical changes in Egyptian HCV prevalence. Because our results are consistent with a demographic scenario specified a priori, they also provide an objective test of inference methods based on the coalescent process.

Bayes Theorem↗
PubMed1989

Evidence of fertility regulation among rural French villagers, 1749-1789: a sequential econometric model of birth-spacing behavior (Part 2).

This is the second part of a two-part paper in which the authors examine statistical models of marital fertility regulation in rural France from 1749 to 1789. They create a case against the "natural fertility" characterization of the period by presenting "clear indications that marital fertility was being regulated in congruence with the differential valuations placed upon children, according to their gender and age. A complex pattern is found in the non-biological responses of couples' fertility to both non-familial and familial experience of infant deaths, which take the form of 'hoarding' and 'replacement effects', respectively. Evidence is present bearing upon the suspected endogeneity of infant deaths, and its relationship to the adoption of preventive methods of limiting family size." (SUMMARY IN FRE)

Birth Intervals↗
PubMed1993

The shape of mortality curves: an analysis of counties in England and Wales, 1911.

"Previous analysis has shown that life tables may be distinguished by two orthogonal pieces of information, the level of mortality in the population and the relative shape of the mortality curve. We show that both the regions of England and Wales in 1911, and locality types (county boroughs, other urban, and rural) differ in the shape of their mortality curves. Using data for the administrative counties, we examine the underlying correlates of this differentiation, paying particular attention to the socio-economic structure of the counties as reflected in their wealth, opportunity levels, and degree of urbanisation." (SUMMARY IN FRE)

Demography↗
PubMed2003

Primatology comes of age: 2002 AAPA Luncheon Address.

The growth of primate field studies has occurred along multiple dimensions representing expansion in the number of species studied, comparative studies of different populations of the same species, and populations and groups studied over time. The accumulation of data on a broader taxonomic diversity of primates has contributed to advances in the use of comparative methods for gaining insights into interspecific variation in behavior patterns, but the incorporation of intraspecific variation into comparative models of behavior has lagged behind. This delay can be attributed, in part, to the slow rate at which the interacting effects of life history and demography on behavior emerge in slow-growing, long-lived primates. It may also reflect the anthropocentric foundation of field primatology, which historically focused on interspecific comparisons with humans instead of interpopulation variation among primates. Conservation concerns have stimulated new thinking about the importance of populations and the range of behavioral variation that populations maintain. The integration of intra- and interspecific behavioral variation will distinguish the next generation of comparative models in primatology, and set a new agenda as field primatology comes of age.

Animals↗
PubMed2007

An elusive paleodemography? A comparison of two methods for estimating the adult age distribution of deaths at late Classic Copan, Honduras.

Comparison of different adult age estimation methods on the same skeletal sample with unknown ages could forward paleodemographic inference, while researchers sort out various controversies. The original aging method for the auricular surface (Lovejoy et al., 1985a) assigned an age estimation based on several separate characteristics. Researchers have found this original method hard to apply. It is usually forgotten that before assigning an age, there was a seriation, an ordering of all available individuals from youngest to oldest. Thus, age estimation reflected the place of an individual within its sample. A recent article (Buckberry and Chamberlain, 2002) proposed a revised method that scores theses various characteristics into age stages, which can then be used with a Bayesian method to estimate an adult age distribution for the sample. Both methods were applied to the adult auricular surfaces of a Pre-Columbian Maya skeletal population from Copan, Honduras and resulted in age distributions with significant numbers of older adults. However, contrary to the usual paleodemographic distribution, one Bayesian estimation based on uniform prior probabilities yielded a population with 57% of the ages at death over 65, while another based on a high mortality life table still had 12% of the individuals aged over 75 years. The seriation method yielded an age distribution more similar to that known from preindustrial historical situations, without excessive longevity of adults. Paleodemography must still wrestle with its elusive goal of accurate adult age estimation from skeletons, a necessary base for demographic study of past populations.

Age Determination by Skeleton↗
PubMed2006

An evaluation of the performance of the self-rating of the effects of alcohol questionnaire in 12- and 35-year-old subjects.

OBJECTIVE: A low level of response (LR) to alcohol was originally established through evidence of less alcohol-related change in several parameters at a given blood alcohol level. This is a genetically influenced phenotype associated with an increased risk for alcoholism. When measured by a retrospective questionnaire (the Self-Rating of the Effects of Alcohol [SRE] scale), a lower LR (here indicated by a report that more drinks were historically needed for various effects) correlates with a family history of alcoholism and numerous alcohol use-related variables. The current analyses address the questions of how higher SRE scores (as indicators of a low LR) relate to alcohol use and problems across different age groups and when considered in the context of demography (e.g., age, gender, and weight), as well as the number of items endorsed on the questionnaire. METHOD: SRE data (scores and numbers of items endorsed), demography, and alcohol-related variables (quantity, frequency, and problems) were evaluated in two populations. The first population included 334 12-year-old children from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children, and the second included more than 400 35-year-old men from the San Diego Prospective Study. In each group, Pearson correlations were established among all variables, and items that were significantly linked to alcohol-related outcomes were entered into regression analyses as predictors of these outcomes. RESULTS: In both samples, SRE scores correlated with all alcohol-related outcomes, with the highest values for the maximum quantity of alcohol consumed. Relationships between the SRE score and alcohol-related variables remained robust in both populations when entered into regression analyses incorporating demography and the number of SRE items answered by subjects. CONCLUSIONS: The SRE score appears to perform relatively similarly across the two populations regarding relationships with alcohol quantity, frequency, and problems. The most consistent results were observed for the maximum quantity of alcohol consumed.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1987

Past and recent attempts to model mortality at all ages.

"Most laws of mortality are partial in the sense that they apply only to a broad age group and not to all ages. This paper focuses on three laws of mortality that apply to all ages. Two of them were developed by the actuaries Thiele and Wittstein in the late 19th century. The third, developed by Heligman and Pollard, is of recent origin. The three laws are discussed with references to Scandinavian mortality data. The results suggest that the most recently proposed law can be used for generation of model life tables, for making population projections, simulations, and other statistical work where there is a need for a realistic model of human mortality."

Age Factors↗