Census Tree

[Census Tree]

"What is the Census Tree?

The Census Tree is the largest-ever database of record links among the historical U.S. censuses, with over 700 million links for people living in the United States btween 1850 and 1940.

Why was it created?

These links will allow academic researchers to follow men and women throughout their lives, and to connect people to their family members and others. These links are essential for research on important topics like intergenerational mobility, the effects of early life experiences, and the impacts of public policy.

Who is included?

In a breakthrough for social sciences research, nearly half of the Census Tree links are for women. And because the Census Tree contains an unprecedented number of links, it includes large samples of people from underrepresented groups, including 41.5 million Black Americans.

How is this possible?

Many of the links in the Census Tree were created by people doing research on their own family histories, using the genealogy platform FamilySearch.org. We then build on these links using both traditional matching strategies and machine learning. Learn more here."

Census Tree 

Findings on the Worst Forms of Child Labor

"The Department of Labor's annual Findings on the Worst Forms of Child Labor focuses on the efforts of certain U.S. trade beneficiary countries and territories to eliminate the worst forms of child labor through legislation, enforcement mechanisms, policies and social programs. Read More ››

Download the 2022 Magazine 
Download the full 2022 Report

The Report presents:

• Findings on the prevalence and sectoral distribution of the worst forms of child labor in each country.
• Country-specific suggestions for government action (since 2009).
• Individual country assessments that identify where Significant, Moderate, Minimal, or No Advancement has been made (since 2011).

The Report serves as a resource to foreign governments, NGOs, academics and policymakers working on labor and human rights issues. It helps inform Congress and Executive Branch agencies that formulate labor and trade policy and is an important resource for the Department in assessing future technical assistance and research priorities as it seeks to combat child labor around the world.

The Department's Bureau of International Labor Affairs (ILAB) has published the Findings each year since 2002, as mandated by the Trade and Development Act of 2000 (TDA). The TDA requires that countries fulfill commitments to eliminate the worst forms of child labor to be eligible for certain U.S. trade preference programs. It also requires the U.S. Secretary of Labor to issue annual findings on beneficiary country initiatives to implement these commitments..."
Child Labor 

Census Bureau Releases 2020 Census Data for Nearly 1,500 Detailed Race and Ethnicity Groups, Tribes and Villages

"SEPTEMBER 21, 2023 — The U.S. Census Bureau today released 2020 Census population counts and sex-by-age statistics for 300 detailed race and ethnic groups, as well as 1,187 detailed American Indian and Alaska Native (AIAN) tribes and villages.

These data come from the 2020 Census Detailed Demographic and Housing Characteristics File A (Detailed DHC-A). Previously, the Census Bureau released 2020 Census data on the Hispanic or Latino population and major race groups such as White, Black or African American, Asian, etc.

Today’s release adds information on detailed groups within those major categories such as German, Lebanese, Jamaican, Chinese, Native Hawaiian and Mexican — and on AIAN tribes and villages like the Navajo Nation. The release includes information about more than 200 detailed race and ethnic groups not tabulated from previous censuses.

“These 2020 Census data illuminate the rich diversity across our nation,” said Rachel Marks, chief of the Census Bureau’s Racial Statistics Branch. “We have this comprehensive picture thanks to the millions of people who responded to the census and provided their detailed racial, ethnic or tribal identity, and thanks to the stakeholders, researchers and tribal leaders who helped us improve how we collect these detailed data.”

Data Highlights

Among the highlights, the Detailed DHC-A reveals the largest detailed groups within the major race groups and the Hispanic population. For the race groups, data are available for both the race alone population and the race alone or in any combination population. The race alone population represents the minimum number of people who identified as that group. It includes those who reported only one response, such as only Fijian. The race alone or in any combination population represents the maximum number of people who identified as that group. It includes those who reported only one response, such as Fijian, and those who reported multiple responses, such as Fijian and Japanese or Fijian and Black or African American.>>"
2020 Census Detailed Race and Ethnicity Groups 

State of the Climate

[American Meteorological Society] 

"State of the Climate

An international, peer-reviewed publication released each summer, the State of the Climate is the authoritative annual summary of the global climate published as a supplement to the Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society.

The report, compiled by NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information, is based on contributions from scientists from around the world. It provides a detailed update on global climate indicators, notable weather events, and other data collected by environmental monitoring stations and instruments located on land, water, ice, and in space.

State of the Climate in 2022

This is the 33rd issuance of the annual assessment now known as State of the Climate, published in the Bulletin since 1996. As a supplement to the Bulletin, its foremost function is to document the status and trajectory of many components of the climate system. However, as a series, the report also documents the status and trajectory of our capacity and commitment to observe the climate system.

DOWNLOAD STATE OF THE CLIMATE IN 2022"..
Climate 

Updated COVID-19 Vaccine Recommendations are Now Available

"CDC is posting updates on respiratory viruses every week; for the latest information, please visit CDC Respiratory Virus Updates.

Key Takeaways:

• Updated COVID-19 vaccines are recommended for everyone 6 months and older and will be available by the end of this week at most places you would normally go to get your vaccines.
• Older adults and persons with weakened immune systems are at greatest risk for hospitalization and death. In addition, healthy children and adults can still experience severe disease.
• The updated vaccines should work well against currently circulating variants of COVID-19, including BA.2.86, and continue to be the best way to protect yourself against severe disease.
• The benefits of COVID-19 vaccination continue to outweigh any potential risks. Serious reactions after COVID-19 vaccination are rare.
• In one study, the risk of cardiac complications, including myocarditis, in males 12-17 years old was 1.8 – 5.6 times higher after COVID-19 infection than after COVID-19 vaccination.
• The vaccines are covered by insurance, including private insurance, Medicare plans, and Medicaid plans. Uninsured children and uninsured adults also have access through the Vaccine for Children Program and Bridge Access Program, respectively.

Background

COVID-19 burden is currently lower than at previous points in the pandemic; however, the absolute number of hospitalizations and deaths remains high. Older adults and persons with weakened immune systems are at highest for severe illness. Additionally, children and adults with no underlying medical conditions can still experience severe illness due to COVID-19.

Last fall and winter virus season, people who received the 2022-2023 COVID-19 vaccine had greater protection against severe illness and hospitalization than those who did not receive that vaccine. We are still at risk of COVID-19 since the virus continues to change and new variants emerge. Additionally, protection from COVID-19 vaccines and infection decline over time. An updated COVID-19 vaccine provides enhanced protection against the variants currently responsible for most hospitalizations in the United States.

Actions for the Public

On September 12, 2023, CDC recommended a COVID-19 vaccine updated for 2023-2024 for everyone aged 6 months and older to protect against serious illness.

The main reason to get vaccinated against COVID-19 is to protect yourself against severe illness, hospitalization, and even death. COVID-19 vaccines also reduce the chance of having Long COVID. This vaccine is expected to provide better protection against variants that are currently making people sick.

The updated COVID-19 vaccines are similar to earlier COVID-19 vaccines that were safely administered to hundreds of millions of Americans during the pandemic..."
COVID-19 Vaccine 

Modeling the Demand for Electric Vehicles and the Supply of Charging Stations in the United States: Working Paper 2023-06

"This paper presents a simulation model of the markets for light-duty electric vehicles (EVs) and the associated public charging infrastructure, as well as the network interactions between them. It illustrates the model’s attributes by simulating the effects of federal subsidies for public electric vehicle chargers and of an extension of tax credits for electric vehicles. I project that by the early 2030s the charger subsidies, which were signed into law in 2021 as part of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, will have increased the size of the charger network enough to meet the demand for charging through the middle of that decade. That includes the additional demand that the expansion itself will induce: I project that through 2030, sales of EVs will rise more than 20 percent more rapidly with the expanded charger network than they would have otherwise. Including the additional effect of the EV tax credits that were signed into law as part of the 2022 reconciliation act, as well as past growth in EV sales, I project that EVs will constitute between 27 percent and 60 percent of new light-duty vehicle sales by 2032, compared with about 6.5 percent in 2022. After the subsidy funding from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act has been spent and the available EV tax credits claimed, EV charger networks and the EV fleet will remain somewhat larger than they would have been in the absence of those policies.."
Electirc Vehicles 

New BLS Employment Projections: 3 Charts

"When you’re thinking about making a career change, what information do you look for? Most people want to know if that career is growing – is the demand for that type of work increasing or decreasing? Will there be more jobs of that type in the future or fewer?

That’s just one use among many for the employment projections data produced every year by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, or BLS. The employment projections give students, job seekers, workers, employers, researchers, policymakers and others a good idea of how the labor force will change, which industries are likely to see growth, how fast specific occupations will grow and more.

The 2022-2032 employment projections data were released on Sept. 6, showing that the economy is projected to add almost 4.7 million jobs from 2022 to 2032. Here are some of the highlights: 

1. Fastest growing occupational groups 

Healthcare growth is being driven by an aging population and a higher prevalence of chronic conditions. Combined with the healthcare practitioners and technical occupational group, healthcare occupations are projected to account for approximately 2 out of every 5 new jobs added to the economy from 2022 to 2032. Demand for information technology products and services are fueling the increase in the computer and mathematical occupational group. Community and social service occupations – including counselors, social workers, and religious workers – are often adjacent to healthcare, so some of this group’s growth will be associated with the robust growth that is expected among healthcare occupations.

Employment Projections 

Respiratory Protection Week 2023

"Join us for Respiratory Protection Week 2023! Each year, during this week-long observance, we highlight the importance of respiratory protection in the workplace and provide resources to help you make educated decisions when selecting and wearing a respirator. If you are exposed to respiratory hazards at work, it’s best to apply the hierarchy of controls. The use of respiratory protection is an important “last line of defense” in the hierarchy of controls approach. 

Millions of workers across the United States rely on respiratory protection to keep them safe on the job. This includes workers in occupations such as healthcare, construction, public safety, emergency response, and mining.  

Below are links to our more recent resources that will help you find NIOSH Approved^® respirators and understand how to use them effectively. 

What's New for 2023

How to Tell if Your N95^® Respirator is NIOSH Approved
NIOSH Approved N95 respiratory protective devices are the most common type of filtering facepiece respirator (FFR) used in U.S. workplaces. This video explains how to determine if an N95 FFR is NIOSH approved, including required labeling and where to look to confirm an approval number. It also provides tips for recognizing counterfeit and misrepresented respirators.

Verifying Shelf Life for NIOSH Approved^® Filtering Facepiece Respirators (FFRs)
DHHS (NIOSH) Publication No. 2023-128
This report details respirator shelf life issues identified by NIOSH, what to do when shelf life information isn’t readily available, and actions that can be taken to support NIOSH’s shelf life recommendations for FFRs.

Know Before You Apply: Summarized Quality Requirements Needed to Achieve NIOSH Approval
DHHS (NIOSH) Publication No. 2023-132
This booklet provides an overview of the NIOSH approval process and the application package requirements to address the most frequently asked questions, deter inappropriate applications, and better prepare potential NIOSH approval holders for the application process..."
Respiratory Protection