We examine the effect of rainfall shocks on dowry deaths using data from 583 Indian districts for 2002-2007. We find that a one standard deviation decline in annual rainfall from the local mean increases reported dowry deaths by 7.8 percent. Wet shocks have no apparent effect. We examine patterns of other crimes to investigate whether an increase in general unrest during economic downturns expl...

Farmers face enormous production risks due to unpredictable rainfall, yet most do not have any formal insurance. One explanation for this is the existence of informal network-based risk sharing. Using a randomized controlled experiment, we study the demand for, and effects of, offering formal index-based rainfall insurance in an environment of tightly knit informal risk sharing networks: sub-ca...

Atelectasis as a complication of bronchial asthma occurs more commonly than is diagnosed or suspected. It is usually of the lobular type and patchy in distribution. This type was first described by Huber and Koesler in 1920.’ Many authors have suggested that status asthmaticus and even death occurring during an attack of asthma are related to lobular atelectasis.2’ Massive atelectasis, on the o...

Plasma antidiuretic hormone concentrations were measured in a group of children with acute asthma and in a control group. Very high levels of antidiuretic hormone were found in the asthmatic group. There were no changes in other biochemical indices. If overproduction of antidiuretic hormone is sustained then fluid administration to children with severe acute asthma is potentially dangerous.

Aerosol therapy with a variety of drugs is superior to oral and, except perhaps in status asthmaticus, parenteral therapy. An understanding of aerosol physics and the physiologic characteristics relating to ventilation allows optimum aerosol delivery for maximum benefit in the majority of patients. In those patients who are unable to use metered-dose inhalers effectively, simple inhalation devi...

Over the course of U.S. history there have been a number of occasions in which aggregate nominal spending has declined, the most recent of which occurred during the recession that began in December 2007. Coincident with these observed declines in nominal spending is a corresponding decline in the quantity of transaction assets and real output, where the former are defined as financial assets th...