"One of the Grand Works of the World": Walt Whitman's Advocacy for the Brooklyn Waterworks, 1856-59.

When the Brooklyn Waterworks opened in 1859, it was one of America's most advanced water and sewer systems. Yet after Brooklyn was annexed by New York City, the waterworks' history slipped into obscurity, despite having a now-famous champion: the "poet of America," Walt Whitman, whose brother worked on the project. This article shows the Brooklyn poet's fierce, multiyear lobbying effort for the waterworks in various newspapers and introduces a wealth of newly recovered Whitman writings on the issue. As a journalist, Whitman exemplifies the nineteenth-century press as an intermediary between expert engineers and popular readers. The poet brought precise expertise, translated engineers' technical arguments into everyday language for his readers, and fought the resulting day-to-day political battles over construction in print. Whitman, then, is an underappreciated case study of the confluence of technology, public health, and local journalism.

Utilization of Locum Tenens in Neurosurgery.

INTRODUCTION: Despite its rising popularity, little has been described about locum tenens employment (locums) in neurosurgery. This study provides the first nationwide overview of the locums neurosurgery experience. METHODS: An anonymous online survey examined practice characteristics of respondents, extent of and satisfaction with locums, motivations for pursuing locums, case volumes, agencies used, compensation, and positive/negative aspects of experiences. Responses were collected between November 2020 and February 2021. RESULTS: Response rate for the 1852 neurosurgeons who opened the survey request was 4.9%; 36 of 91 respondents had previously worked locums and were commonly motivated by compensation or transitioning to new jobs or retirement. In our response group, 92% of locums respondents had taken more than one position and 47% had taken more than 10. Neurosurgeons performing <200 cases/year were significantly more likely to have also worked locums than those performing >200 cases/year (41.6% locums, 12.7% non-locums, P = 0.001). Responses showed that 69% of locums respondents earned $2000-$2999/day and 16% earned >$3500/day. Nearly 78% of locums respondents were satisfied with their experience(s) and 86% would take another future locums position. Being in practice for >15 years was significantly associated with satisfaction with locums (P = 0.03). Reported flaws included unfamiliarity with hospitals, limited continuity of care, credentialing burdens, and inadequate travel compensation. CONCLUSIONS: Locums is utilized by neurosurgeons across multiple practice types and may serve to complement workloads or "fill in gaps" between longer-term employment. Overall, locums neurosurgeons are well compensated, and the majority are satisfied with their experience(s). Inevitably, flaws still exist with locums employment, which may be the focus of organized efforts aiming to improve the experience.

Identification of Large Adenovirus Infection Outbreak at University by Multipathogen Testing, South Carolina, USA, 2022.

Using multipathogen PCR testing, we identified 195 students with adenovirus type 4 infections on a university campus in South Carolina, USA, during January-May 2022. We co-detected other respiratory viruses in 43 (22%) students. Continued surveillance of circulating viruses is needed to prevent virus infection outbreaks in congregate communities.