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The article discusses how libraries can provide information and support to entrepreneurs in the cannabis industry. Topics include impact of the legalization of marijuana in many states and municipalities on the legal industry and budding entrepreneurs, the role of libraries in helping entrepreneurs parse the complicated regulations of the cannabis industry, and challenges brought by the fraught history of cannabis sales in the U.S. for libraries providing services in this area.

The article explores A fter being illegal in the United States for many years, cannabis has recently been legalized in many states. In fact, using marijuana for medical reasons is now legal in more than 25 states. For that reason, many patients now have ready access to cannabis, and they often have questions about whether it's harmful or helpful for various medical conditions.

Cannabis products have been recently legalized in many countries for recreational or medicinal use. Therefore, rigorous analytical methods to test the potency of samples is required prior to commercialization. In addition, growing interest in the properties of minor cannabinoids has increased the demand for high-throughput methods that can separate the largest number of compounds in the shortest amount of time. High performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) is emerging as the preferred analytical method for potency testing of cannabinoids, but more fundamental work is needed to solve critical issues and contribute to advancing knowledge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) method with a dual electrospray ionization (ESI) and atmospheric-pressure chemical ionization (APCI) source was developed for analysis of 66 pesticides and 5 mycotoxins regulated by the State of California in medium-chain triglyceride (MCT) oil cannabis tinctures. The limits of quantitation (LOQs) of all of the pesticides and mycotoxins were well below California state action limits of these analytes in cannabis-based non-inhalable or edible products. A total of 62 (out of 66) pesticides and 5 mycotoxins were analyzed using LC-MS/MS with an ESI source, and the remaining 4 pesticides were determined using LC-MS/MS with an APCI source. A simple, fast, and cheap acetonitrile solvent extraction method was used for sample preparation to get good recovery and achieve high throughput for this analysis. For late-eluted analytes, a number of internal standards were used to compensate for ion suppression effects from the hydrophobic matrix. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on Dreka Gates, a business owner and entrepreneur from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, who has successfully ventured into various fields, including music, cannabis, wellness products, and farming. Topics include her journey as a cannabis business owner, her passion for cannabis as a healing plant, her role as a co-owner and partner at BE Provisions, and her daily life, which involves a combination of work, gardening, and family.

The article focuses on the significance of extraction and processing technologies in the cannabis sector, highlighting their expected growth and the opportunities they present. It discusses the development of a consistent nomenclature for cannabis, the evolution of processing technologies, the increasing adoption of extraction/concentrate technologies, and how improved technologies are expected to result in better cannabis products.

El artículo informa sobre las medidas adoptadas en América Latina para la legalización del cannabis. Se afirma que el país ha dado el primer paso hacia la legalización de la cannabis, permitiendo el uso de la cannabis en diversos alimentos para plantas medicinales y fines científicos. Se menciona también que los países de América Latina han comenzado a legalizar ciertos alimentos que contienen cannabis.

The article offers information on the farm-to-table movement and increased legalization of cannabis that have led to a rapid escalation in the quantity and size of grow room facilities throughout the U.S. It discusses that the desire for locally sourced, efficiently grown food sources and the heightened demand for cannabis products are driving the demand for energy-efficient, indoor grow spaces.

The article discusses the evolution of cannabis retail models in Europe. Topics include Malta as the first European nation to pass a national adult-use cannabis measure, the only way for consumers to source their legal cannabis in Europe, and changes being considered by domestic lawmakers in Germany to the cannabis legalization measure.

Problem: Health-risk behaviors contribute to the leading causes of morbidity and mortality among youth and adults in the United States. In addition, significant health disparities exist among demographic subgroups of youth defined by sex, race/ethnicity, and grade in school and between sexual minority and nonsexual minority youth. Population-based data on the most important health-related behaviors at the national, state, and local levels can be used to help monitor the effectiveness of public health interventions designed to protect and promote the health of youth at the national, state, and local levels. Reporting Period Covered: September 2016--December 2017. Description of the System: The Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS) monitors six categories of priority healthrelated behaviors among youth and young adults: 1) behaviors that contribute to unintentional injuries and violence; 2) tobacco use; 3) alcohol and other drug use; 4) sexual behaviors related to unintended pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections (STIs), including human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection; 5) unhealthy dietary behaviors; and 6) physical inactivity. In addition, YRBSS monitors the prevalence of other health-related behaviors, obesity, and asthma. YRBSS includes a national school-based Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) conducted by CDC and state and large urban school district school-based YRBSs conducted by state and local education and health agencies. Starting with the 2015 YRBSS cycle, a question to ascertain sexual identity and a question to ascertain sex of sexual contacts were added to the national YRBS questionnaire and to the standard YRBS questionnaire used by the states and large urban school districts as a starting point for their questionnaires. This report summarizes results from the 2017 national YRBS for 121 health-related behaviors and for obesity, overweight, and asthma by demographic subgroups defined by sex, race/ethnicity, and grade in school and by sexual minority status; updates the numbers of sexual minority students nationwide; and describes overall trends in health-related behaviors during 1991--2017. This reports also summarizes results from 39 state and 21 large urban school district surveys with weighted data for the 2017 YRBSS cycle by sex and sexual minority status (where available). Results: Results from the 2017 national YRBS indicated that many high school students are engaged in health-risk behaviors associated with the leading causes of death among persons aged 10--24 years in the United States. During the 30 days before the survey, 39.2% of high school students nationwide (among the 62.8% who drove a car or other vehicle during the 30 days before the survey) had texted or e-mailed while driving, 29.8% reported current alcohol use, and 19.8% reported current marijuana use. In addition, 14.0% of students had taken prescription pain medicine without a doctor's prescription or differently than how a doctor told them to use it one or more times during their life. During the 12 months before the survey, 19.0% had been bullied on school property and 7.4% had attempted suicide. Many high school students are engaged in sexual risk behaviors that relate to unintended pregnancies and STIs, including HIV infection. Nationwide, 39.5% of students had ever had sexual intercourse and 9.7% had had sexual intercourse with four or more persons during their life. Among currently sexually active students, 53.8% reported that either they or their partner had used a condom during their last sexual intercourse. Results from the 2017 national YRBS also indicated many high school students are engaged in behaviors associated with chronic diseases, such as cardiovascular disease, cancer, and diabetes. Nationwide, 8.8% of high school students had smoked cigarettes and 13.2% had used an electronic vapor product on at least 1 day during the 30 days before the survey. Forty-three percent played video or computer games or used a computer for 3 or more hours per day on an average school day for something that was not school work and 15.4% had not been physically active for a total of at least 60 minutes on at least 1 day during the 7 days before the survey. Further, 14.8% had obesity and 15.6% were overweight. The prevalence of most health-related behaviors varies by sex, race/ethnicity, and, particularly, sexual identity and sex of sexual contacts. Specifically, the prevalence of many health-risk behaviors is significantly higher among sexual minority students compared with nonsexual minority students. Nonetheless, analysis of long-term temporal trends indicates that the overall prevalence of most health-risk behaviors has moved in the desired direction. Interpretation: Most high school students cope with the transition from childhood through adolescence to adulthood successfully and become healthy and productive adults. However, this report documents that some subgroups of students defined by sex, race/ethnicity, grade in school, and especially sexual minority status have a higher prevalence of many health-risk behaviors that might place them at risk for unnecessary or premature mortality, morbidity, and social problems (e.g., academic failure, poverty, and crime). Public Health Action: YRBSS data are used widely to compare the prevalence of health-related behaviors among subpopulations of students; assess trends in health-related behaviors over time; monitor progress toward achieving 21 national health objectives; provide comparable state and large urban school district data; and take public health actions to decrease health-risk behaviors and improve health outcomes among youth. Using this and other reports based on scientifically sound data is important for raising awareness about the prevalence of health-related behaviors among students in grades 9--12, especially sexual minority students, among decision makers, the public, and a wide variety of agencies and organizations that work with youth. These agencies and organizations, including schools and youth-friendly health care providers, can help facilitate access to critically important education, health care, and high-impact, evidence-based interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses how farmers in the U.S. need to protect airstreams and surfaces from unwanted microbes that can send a substantial investment up in smoke. It notes that the legal cannabis market is likely to grow at a compound annual rate of 17%, with medical cannabis sales expected to be at $13.3 billion by 2020. It adds that there are a various naturally occurring airborne microorganisms that can cause plants to develop mold or a powdery mildew, rendering them worthless.

The article reports that despite cannabis being a high-value plant that can legally be grown, growers in the U.S. are still facing challenges due to the plants status as an illegal drug according to the government. Topics discussed include states including Oregon, Colorado and Maine having legalized marijuana for recreational use, and there being large gaps in scientific knowledge on how cannabis is to be safely grown. INSETS: Delving into the cannabis genome;The dirty half dozen.

The article evaluates several home appliances for growing cannabis including the Nova decarboxylator from Ardent, the Leaf grow box from Corsica Innovations, and the Wisp single-use vaporizing system from CannaKorp.

The article focuses on the evolving cannabis industry, particularly the pre-roll segment, which has seen rapid growth and innovation, with infused pre-rolls becoming the largest subsegment generating significant monthly sales. It mentions consumers are favoring fast-acting and high-potency products, driving the expansion of infused pre-rolls, and automated machinery is making production efficient and affordable.

The article discusses trends in library security concerns and solutions as libraries flourish with new programs, facilities, and patrons. Topics include patrons' use of tobacco vape pipes to smoke legal marijuana in libraries, panhandlers dressed in religious clothing inside and outside of libraries, and ransomware attacks on servers, payroll systems, or network computers of libraries.

As the legalization of medicinal cannabis continues to sweep across the United States, an urgent need has developed for fast, accurate, and efficient analytical testing. In addition to testing for contaminants and potency, there is also interest in the determination of terpene identity and concentration levels present in different strains of cannabis. Terpenes have been shown to have therapeutic uses for treatment of different medical conditions ranging from cancer and inflammation to anxiety and sleeplessness. It is believed that the combination of terpenes and cannabinoids in cannabis produce a synergistic effect with regards to medical benefits. The traditional testing method for terpenes in plant materials involves a solvent-based extraction followed by gas chromatography (GC) analysis. In this work, headspace solid-phase microextraction (HS-SPME) was used to identify and quantify terpene content in cannabis. The HS-SPME method offered several advantages compared to solvent extraction in that it provided a cleaner analysis, free of interferences from coextracted matrix, and was nondestructive to the sample. A cannabis sample of unknown origin was first analyzed qualitatively by HS-SPME and GC–mass spectrometry (MS). Spectral library matching and retention indices were used to identify 42 terpenes. Quantitative analysis was then performed for several selected terpenes using spiked samples. Method accuracy was >90%, with reproducibility of <5% relative standard deviation (RSD) for analysis of spiked replicates. The HS-SPME results were then compared to an analysis using a conventional solvent extraction method, and the two approaches were found to produce comparable results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As the legalization of medicinal cannabis continues to sweep across the United States, an urgent need has developed for fast, accurate, and efficient analytical testing. In addition to testing for contaminants and potency, there is also interest in the determination of terpene identity and concentration levels present in different strains of cannabis. Terpenes have been shown to have therapeutic uses for treatment of different medical conditions ranging from cancer and inflammation to anxiety and sleeplessness. It is believed that the combination of terpenes and cannabinoids in cannabis produce a synergistic effect with regards to medical benefits. The traditional testing method for terpenes in plant materials involves a solvent-based extraction followed by gas chromatography (GC) analysis. In this work, headspace solid- phase microextraction (HS-SPME) was used to identify and quantify terpene content in cannabis. The HS-SPME method offered several advantages compared to solvent extraction in that it provided a cleaner analysis, free of interferences from coextracted matrix, and was nondestructive to the sample. A cannabis sample of unknown origin was first analyzed qualitatively by HS-SPME and GC-mass spectrometry (MS). Spectral library matching and retention indices were used to identify 42 terpenes. Quantitative analysis was then performed for several selected terpenes using spiked samples. Method accuracy was >90%, with reproducibility of <5% relative standard deviation (RSD) for analysis of spiked replicates. The HS-SPME results were then compared to an analysis using a conventional solvent extraction method, and the two approaches were found to produce comparable results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study focuses on an inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) sample preparation procedure and analytical methodology optimized for both toxic and nutritional elements in dried hops, a surrogate for the cannabis family of flowering plants. It shows that the wide dynamic range of the technique allows it to be used for the simultaneous determination of parts-per-billion levels of heavy metals including Pb, As, Cd, and Hg, together with high parts-per-million levels of nutritional elements, such as P, Ca, K, and Mg. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research scientists in the cannabis field are tasked with validating robust methods that can be seamlessly transitioned into production laboratories. Unlike typical disciplines where controls are easily (and legally) obtained through known manufacturers, analytical chemists working for both consumable vendors as well as cannabis laboratories must do their best to develop methods often without such resources at their disposal. As the industry matures and additional regulations are adopted, the evolution of the pesticide testing subsection continues to be vastly different depending on the jurisdiction one does business in. This creates an interesting challenge for commercial scientists tasked with developing methods that will appeal to a majority of their consumers, while also generating unexpected hurdles to said laboratories once the methods are placed into production. This article provides an overview of best practices and method development techniques for pesticide testing in cannabis from a technical perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although systems for growing, production, and sale of cannabis and cannabis related products are well established, regulation and enforcement of quality and safety testing have lagged behind. However, state governments and private laboratories are focusing on product safety testing with special emphasis on pesticide analysis. This focus is partially the result of various product recalls, media attention, and concern from patient advocacy groups. We evaluated a modified quick, easy, cheap, effective, rugged, and safe (QuEChERS) sample preparation method followed by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) for the analysis of multiresidue pesticides. The Association of Analytical Communities International (AOAC) QuEChERS method was used for a reduced 1.5-g amount of plant material and processed with a universal dispersive solid-phase extraction (dSPE) formulation. LC-MS/MS analysis used constant polarity switching electrospray ionization (ESI) and monitored at least two transitions per analyte. Matrix-matched calibration was used for quantitation and both method and instrument internal standards were used. Analyte recovery validation was performed according to the United States Food and Drug Administration (US FDA) guidelines by testing three matrices at three fortification levels in triplicate for more than 200 pesticides. For the large majority of pesticides, in all three matrices and at all three fortification levels, recovery was 70-120%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study focuses on an inductively coupled plasma–mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) sample preparation procedure and analytical methodology optimized for both toxic and nutritional elements in dried hops, a surrogate for the cannabis family of flowering plants. It shows that the wide dynamic range of the technique allows it to be used for the simultaneous determination of parts-per-billion levels of heavy metals including Pb, As, Cd, and Hg, together with high parts-per-million levels of nutritional elements, such as P, Ca, K, and Mg. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research scientists in the cannabis field are tasked with validating robust methods that can be seamlessly transitioned into production laboratories. Unlike typical disciplines where controls are easily (and legally) obtained through known manufacturers, analytical chemists working for both consumable vendors as well as cannabis laboratories must do their best to develop methods often without such resources at their disposal. As the industry matures and additional regulations are adopted, the evolution of the pesticide testing subsection continues to be vastly different depending on the jurisdiction one does business in. This creates an interesting challenge for commercial scientists tasked with developing methods that will appeal to a majority of their consumers, while also generating unexpected hurdles to said laboratories once the methods are placed into production. This article provides an overview of best practices and method development techniques for pesticide testing in cannabis from a technical perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As the legalization of medicinal cannabis continues to sweep across the United States, an urgent need has developed for fast, accurate, and efficient analytical testing. In addition to testing for contaminants and potency, there is also interest in the determination of terpene identity and concentration levels present in different strains of cannabis. Terpenes have been shown to have therapeutic uses for treatment of different medical conditions ranging from cancer and inflammation to anxiety and sleeplessness. It is believed that the combination of terpenes and cannabinoids in cannabis produce a synergistic effect with regards to medical benefits. The traditional testing method for terpenes in plant materials involves a solvent-based extraction followed by gas chromatography (GC) analysis. In this work, headspace solid-phase microextraction (HS-SPME) was used to identify and quantify terpene content in cannabis. The HS-SPME method offered several advantages compared to solvent extraction in that it provided a cleaner analysis, free of interferences from coextracted matrix, and was nondestructive to the sample. A cannabis sample of unknown origin was first analyzed qualitatively by HS-SPME and GC–mass spectrometry (MS). Spectral library matching and retention indices were used to identify 42 terpenes. Quantitative analysis was then performed for several selected terpenes using spiked samples. Method accuracy was >90%, with reproducibility of <5% relative standard deviation (RSD) for analysis of spiked replicates. The HS-SPME results were then compared to an analysis using a conventional solvent extraction method, and the two approaches were found to produce comparable results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article offers information on the national meeting of 253rd American Chemical Society (ACS) to be held in San Francisco, California from April 2-6, 2017 which features session on cannabis extraction, effective chemical hygiene officer and communication strategies.

This section offers information on the Glaucoma 360 Annual Meeting to be held in San Francisco, California from February 2 to 4, 2023.

As a result of the rapid growth of the cannabis industry, many testing laboratories are looking for efficient, reliable, and costeffective analytical methods to analyze chemical residues, such as pesticides, mycotoxins, solvent residues, terpenes, and heavy metals, as well as cannabinoid concentration in cannabis-infused edibles and beverages. In this article, QuEChERS (quick, easy, cheap, effective, rugged, and safe), a sample preparation technique widely adopted in the food testing industry, is introduced to the discipline of forensic testing as a viable method for the extraction of pesticides and cannabinoids in various complex sample matrices. The claimed amounts of cannabinoids versus the actual amounts are compared, as well as the pesticide residue levels in edible and beverage samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents an interview with Kelly Cheshire, Global Product Manager at LGC Standards. Topics include need for testing heavy metals in cannabis having a negative impact on human health from headache and nausea to organ failure or cancer; and asking about the routine testing of heavy metals.

Problem/Condition: In the United States, marijuana is the most commonly used illicit drug. In 2013, 7.5% (19.8 million) of the U.S. population aged ≥12 years reported using marijuana during the preceding month. Because of certain state-level policies that have legalized marijuana for medical or recreational use, population-based data on marijuana use and other related indicators are needed to help monitor behavioral health changes in the United States. Period Covered: 2002-2014. Description of System: The National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) is a national- and state-level survey of a representative sample of the civilian, non institutionalized U.S. population aged ≥12 years. NSDUH collects information about the use of illicit drugs, alcohol, and tobacco; initiation of substance use; frequency of substance use; substance dependence and abuse; perception of substance harm risk or no risk; and other related behavioral health indicators. This report describes national trends for selected marijuana use and related indicators, including prevalence of marijuana use; initiation; perception of harm risk, approval, and attitudes; perception of availability and mode of acquisition; dependence and abuse; and perception of legal penalty for marijuana possession. Results: In 2014, a total of 2.5 million persons aged ≥12 years had used marijuana for the first time during the preceding 12 months, an average of approximately 7,000 new users each day. During 2002-2014, the prevalence of marijuana use during the past month, past year, and daily or almost daily increased among persons aged ≥18 years, but not among those aged 12-17 years. Among persons aged ≥12 years, the prevalence of perceived great risk from smoking marijuana once or twice a week and once a month decreased and the prevalence of perceived no risk increased. The prevalence of past year marijuana dependence and abuse decreased, except among persons aged ≥26 years. Among persons aged ≥12 years, the percentage reporting that marijuana was fairly easy or very easy to obtain increased. The percentage of persons aged ≥12 reporting the mode of acquisition of marijuana was buying it and growing it increased versus getting it for free and sharing it. The percentage of persons aged ≥12 years reporting that the perceived maximum legal penalty for the possession of an ounce or less of marijuana in their state is a fine and no penalty increased versus probation, community service, possible prison sentence, and mandatory prison sentence. Interpretation: Since 2002, marijuana use in the United States has increased among persons aged ≥ 18 years, but not among those aged 12-17 years. A decrease in the perception of great risk from smoking marijuana combined with increases in the perception of availability (i.e., fairly easy or very easy to obtain marijuana) and fewer punitive legal penalties (e.g., no penalty) for the possession of marijuana for personal use might play a role in increased use among adults. Public Health Action: National- and state-level data can help federal, state, and local public health officials develop targeted prevention activities to reduce youth initiation of marijuana use, prevent marijuana dependence and abuse, and prevent adverse health effects. As state-level laws on medical and recreational marijuana use change, modifications might be needed to national- and state-level surveys and more timely and comprehensive surveillance systems might be necessary to provide these data. Marijuana use in younger age groups is a particular public health concern, and changing the perception of harm risk from smoking marijuana is needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Problem: Sexual identity and sex of sexual contacts can both be used to identify sexual minority youth. Significant health disparities exist between sexual minority and nonsexual minority youth. However, not enough is known about health-related behaviors that contribute to negative health outcomes among sexual minority youth and how the prevalence of these health-related behaviors compare with the prevalence of health-related behaviors among nonsexual minorities. Reporting Period: September 2014-December 2015. Description of the System: The Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS) monitors six categories of priority health-related behaviors among youth and young adults: 1) behaviors that contribute to unintentional injuries and violence; 2) tobacco use; 3) alcohol and other drug use; 4) sexual behaviors related to unintended pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections, including human immunodeficiency virus infection; 5) unhealthy dietary behaviors; and 6) physical inactivity. In addition, YRBSS monitors the prevalence of obesity and asthma and other priority health-related behaviors. YRBSS includes a national school-based Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) conducted by CDC and state and large urban school district school-based YRBSs conducted by state and local education and health agencies. For the 2015 YRBSS cycle, a question to ascertain sexual identity and a question to ascertain sex of sexual contacts was added for the first time to the national YRBS questionnaire and to the standard YRBS questionnaire used by the states and large urban school districts as a starting point for their YRBS questionnaires. This report summarizes results for 118 health-related behaviors plus obesity, overweight, and asthma by sexual identity and sex of sexual contacts from the 2015 national survey, 25 state surveys, and 19 large urban school district surveys conducted among students in grades 9-12. Results: Across the 18 violence-related risk behaviors nationwide, the prevalence of 16 was higher among gay, lesbian, and bisexual students than heterosexual students and the prevalence of 15 was higher among students who had sexual contact with only the same sex or with both sexes than students who had sexual contact with only the opposite sex. Across the 13 tobacco use-related risk behaviors, the prevalence of 11 was higher among gay, lesbian, and bisexual students than heterosexual students and the prevalence of 10 was higher among students who had sexual contact with only the same sex or with both sexes than students who had sexual contact with only the opposite sex. Similarly, across the 19 alcohol or other drug use-related risk behaviors, the prevalence of 18 was higher among gay, lesbian, and bisexual students than heterosexual students and the prevalence of 17 was higher among students who had sexual contact with only the same sex or with both sexes than students who had sexual contact with only the opposite sex. This pattern also was evident across the six sexual risk behaviors. The prevalence of five of these behaviors was higher among gay, lesbian, and bisexual students than heterosexual students and the prevalence of four was higher among students who had sexual contact with only the same sex or with both sexes than students who had sexual contact with only the opposite sex. No clear pattern of differences emerged for birth control use, dietary behaviors, and physical activity. Interpretation: The majority of sexual minority students cope with the transition from childhood through adolescence to adulthood successfully and become healthy and productive adults. However, this report documents that sexual minority students have a higher prevalence of many health-risk behaviors compared with nonsexual minority students. Public Health Action: To reduce the disparities in health-risk behaviors among sexual minority students, it is important to raise awareness of the problem; facilitate access to education, health care, and evidence-based interventions designed to address priority health-risk behaviors among sexual minority youth; and continue to implement YRBSS at the national, state, and large urban school district levels to document and monitor the effect of broad policy and programmatic interventions on the health-related behaviors of sexual minority youth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Problem: Priority health-risk behaviors contribute to the leading causes of morbidity and mortality among youth and adults. Population-based data on these behaviors at the national, state, and local levels can help monitor the effectiveness of public health interventions designed to protect and promote the health of youth nationwide. Reporting Period Covered: September 2014--December 2015. Description of the System: The Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS) monitors six categories of priority health behaviors among youth and young adults: 1) behaviors that contribute to unintentional injuries and violence; 2) tobacco use; 3) alcohol and other drug use; 4) sexual behaviors related to unintended pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections (STIs), including human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection; 5) unhealthy dietary behaviors; and 6) physical inactivity. In addition, YRBSS monitors the prevalence of obesity and asthma and other priority health behaviors. YRBSS includes a national school-based Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) conducted by CDC and state and large urban school district school-based YRBSs conducted by state and local education and health agencies. This report summarizes results for 118 health behaviors plus obesity, overweight, and asthma from the 2015 national survey, 37 state surveys, and 19 large urban school district surveys conducted among students in grades 9--12. Results: Results from the 2015 national YRBS indicated that many high school students are engaged in priority health-risk behaviors associated with the leading causes of death among persons aged 10--24 years in the United States. During the 30 days before the survey, 41.5% of high school students nationwide among the 61.3% who drove a car or other vehicle during the 30 days before the survey had texted or e-mailed while driving, 32.8% had drunk alcohol, and 21.7% had used marijuana. During the 12 months before the survey, 15.5% had been electronically bullied, 20.2% had been bullied on school property, and 8.6% had attempted suicide. Many high school students are engaged in sexual risk behaviors related to unintended pregnancies and STIs, including HIV infection. Nationwide, 41.2% of students had ever had sexual intercourse, 30.1% had had sexual intercourse during the 3 months before the survey (i.e., currently sexually active), and 11.5% had had sexual intercourse with four or more persons during their life. Among currently sexually active students, 56.9% had used a condom during their last sexual intercourse. Results from the 2015 national YRBS also indicated many high school students are engaged in behaviors associated with chronic diseases, such as cardiovascular disease, cancer, and diabetes. During the 30 days before the survey, 10.8% of high school students had smoked cigarettes and 7.3% had used smokeless tobacco. During the 7 days before the survey, 5.2% of high school students had not eaten fruit or drunk 100% fruit juices and 6.7% had not eaten vegetables. More than one third (41.7%) had played video or computer games or used a computer for something that was not school work for 3 or more hours per day on an average school day and 14.3% had not participated in at least 60 minutes of any kind of physical activity that increased their heart rate and made them breathe hard on at least 1 day during the 7 days before the survey. Further, 13.9% had obesity and 16.0% were overweight. Interpretation: Many high school students engage in behaviors that place them at risk for the leading causes of morbidity and mortality. The prevalence of most health behaviors varies by sex, race/ethnicity, and grade and across states and large urban school districts. Long-term temporal changes also have occurred. Since the earliest year of data collection, the prevalence of most health-risk behaviors has decreased (e.g., riding with a driver who had been drinking alcohol, physical fighting, current cigarette use, current alcohol use, and current sexual activity), but the prevalence of other behaviors and health outcomes has not changed (e.g., suicide attempts treated by a doctor or nurse, smokeless tobacco use, having ever used marijuana, and attending physical education classes) or has increased (e.g., having not gone to school because of safety concerns, obesity, overweight, not eating vegetables, and not drinking milk). Monitoring emerging risk behaviors (e.g., texting and driving, bullying, and electronic vapor product use) is important to understand how they might vary over time. Public Health Action: YRBSS data are used widely to compare the prevalence of health behaviors among subpopulations of students; assess trends in health behaviors over time; monitor progress toward achieving 21 national health objectives for Healthy People 2020 and one of the 26 leading health indicators; provide comparable state and large urban school district data; and help develop and evaluate school and community policies, programs, and practices designed to decrease health-risk behaviors and improve health outcomes among youth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article reports on the Great Britain government's move to legalize the use of cannabis-derived medicinal products to treat those with exceptional clinical needs and discusses how the legalization would affect nurses' role and patient care. Topics mentioned include the restrictions on prescription, the scope of cannabis nursing in the U.S., and the challenges facing British nurses including the need to end the stigma of cannabis.

The article discusses the increase in number of women executives in the U.S. cannabis industry. Topics include challenges faced by marketing manager Melissa Wilcox of Regis Technologies, Heather Despres's advocacy for legalization of cannabis in Virginia, and views of Lezli Engelking, founder of Foundation of Cannabis Unified Standards, on the possible medicinal impact of cannabis and risk to public safety.

The article offers information on cannabis for librarians being legalized by many states for possession, use, and sale for medical and/or recreational purposes. Topics discussed include adoption of legalization in countries such as California, Massachusetts and Washington State as per the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML), ordinances regulating the sale and use of cannabis, and need of increasing patrons' information in this area due to opioid crisis.

The transition of cannabis from an illegal drug to a drug for medical and even recreational use raises challenging questions for regulatory agencies and analytical chemists alike. Here, we show a selection of analytical techniques based on compact mass spectrometry (MS) in combination with three different sample inlets (atmospheric solids analysis probe, thin-layer chromatography [TLC], and classical liquid chromatography [LC]) for the detection and quantification of cannabinoids and pesticides in cannabis-related material and contraband. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Marijuana, the common or slang term for cannabis in its herbal form, is one of the most widely used illicit drugs in the world. Synthetic cannabinoids have similar psychotropic effects to the natural ones and are rapidly being integrated by the illicit market. To deal with their expanding number and diversity, a targeted and untargeted liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LCMS-MS) screening method was developed, allowing for the simultaneous analysis of 24 synthetic and natural cannabinoids in 8 min for a wide variety of samples such as herbal smoking mixtures, incense sticks, serums, and cannabis plant material. The particular advantage of this LC-MS-MS method is that the full scan event in the MS acquisition provides accurate masses for all detected species and thus allows postanalysis identification of initially untargeted compounds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Problem/Condition: At the end of 2010, an estimated 872,990 persons in the United States were living with a diagnosis of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection. Approximately one in four of the estimated HIV infections diagnosed in 2011 were attributed to heterosexual contact. Heterosexuals with a low socioeconomic status (SES) are disproportionately likely to be infected with HIV. Reporting Period: June–December 2010. Description of System: The National HIV Behavioral Surveillance System (NHBS) collects HIV prevalence and risk behavior data in selected metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) from three populations at high risk for HIV infection: men who have sex with men, injecting drug users, and heterosexuals at increased risk for HIV infection. Data for NHBS are collected in rotating cycles in these three different populations. For the 2010 NHBS cycle among heterosexuals, men and women were eligible to participate if they were aged 18-60 years, lived in a participating MSA, were able to complete a behavioral survey in English or Spanish, and reported engaging in vaginal or anal sex with one or more opposite-sex partners in the 12 months before the interview. Persons who consented to participate completed an interviewer-administered, standardized questionnaire about HIV- associated behaviors and were offered anonymous HIV testing. Participants were sampled using respondent-driven sampling, a type of chain-referral sampling. Sampling focused on persons of low SES (i.e., income at the poverty level or no more than a high school education) because results of a pilot study indicated that heterosexual adults of low SES were more likely than those of high SES to be infected with HIV. To assess risk and testing experiences among persons at risk for acquiring HIV infection through heterosexual sex, analyses excluded participants who were not low SES, those who reported ever having tested positive for HIV, and those who reported recent (i.e., in the 12 months before the interview) male-male sex or injection drug use. This report summarizes unweighted data regarding HIV-associated risk, prevention, and testing behaviors from 9,278 heterosexual men and women interviewed in 2010 (the second cycle of NHBS data collection among heterosexuals). Results: The median age of participants was 35 years; 47% were men. The majority of participants were black or African American (hereafter referred to as black) (72%) or Hispanic/Latino (21%). Most participants (men: 88%; women: 90%) reported having vaginal sex without a condom with one or more opposite-sex partners in the past 12 months; approximately one third (men: 30%; women: 29%) reported anal sex without a condom with one or more opposite-sex partners. The majority of participants (59%) reported using noninjection drugs in the 12 months before the interview; nearly one in seven (15%) had used crack cocaine. Although most participants (men: 71%; women: 77%) had ever been tested for HIV, this percentage was lower among Hispanic/ Latino participants (men: 52%; women: 62%). Approximately one third (34%) of participants reported receiving free condoms in the 12 months before the interview; 11% reported participating in a behavioral HIV prevention program. Interpretation: A substantial proportion of heterosexuals interviewed for the 2010 NHBS heterosexual cycle reported engaging in behaviors that increase the risk for HIV infection. However, HIV testing was suboptimal among the overall sample, including among groups disproportionately affected by HIV infection (i.e., blacks and Hispanics/Latinos). Public Health Action: Increasing coverage of HIV testing and other HIV prevention services among heterosexuals at increased risk is important, especially among groups disproportionately affected by HIV infection, such as blacks and Hispanics/Latinos. The National HIV/AIDS Strategy for the United States delineates a coordinated national response to reduce infections and HIV- related health disparities among disproportionately affected groups. NHBS data can guide national and local planning efforts to maximize the impact of HIV prevention programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the regulatory requirements for the composting of cannabis residuals in the U.S. Topics include the approval of cannabis for medical and recreational purposes by several U.S. states, the main types of cannabis residuals like grow residuals, process residuals and product residuals, and the use of aerobic thermophilic composting and anaerobic digestion.

The article offers information on authorized Venstar dealer Chaffin Air Conditioning based in Cathedral City, California, Chaffin Air is a family-operated heating and air conditioning company, has helped the grower double crop production and increase profits. It discusses that Chaffin recommended Venstar's Color Touch Wi-Fi thermostats (model T8900) and Remote Temperature Sensors (model ACC-TSENWI Fl PRO), which are remotely monitored by Venstar's free Skyport Mobile App.

The article focusses on analyzing Trends of the Cannabis Testing Market. Topics discussed include the buzz at the 2021 Cannabis Science Conference in Baltimore was palpable: People of widely disparate backgrounds were excited to address the ever-growing challenges and opportunities afforded by this burgeoning marketplace; and the phenomenon known as the "green rush" outpaces all significant analytical market areas.

The article focuses on determination of pesticide residues in Cannabis sativa using a QuEChERS method for most effective sample clean-up and interfering substances that were also extracted with the organic layer are almost completely has removed with clean-up salt mixes with high amounts of GCB adsorbents. Topics include the organic extracts are finally analyzed by HPLC–MS/MS, and the huge demand for marijuana has led to professional cultivation of hemp to improve growth yields.

The article discusses how the Douglas County Libraries (DCL) in Colorado are getting involved in the community. The DCL have begun embedding staff members and librarians in schools, city councils, and other community centers such as the Parker Downtown Development Council (DDC), a group of local business owners. The author also suggests that building relationships and staying in touch with the community's needs can increase library connections with the community.

The article discusses feedstocks generated by cannabis growers and processors and examines how they can be effectively composted. It mentions types of cannabis waste feedstocks generated, and analyzes the C:N ratios and other characteristics; and also mentions outlines the nitrogen, carbon, moisture and porosity characteristics of each grow residual.

The article discusses impact of trademark challenges in marijuana industry. Topics discussed include information on challenges for protecting trademarks and other intellectual property (IP) rights for those in the legal marijuana industry; importance of Federal registration which provides a legal presumption of ownership, ensures nationwide protection; and information on Common law trademarks which protect the association of a particular product with its specific supplier or manufacturer.