Regeneration studies on nickel molybdate catalysts used for the upgrading of coal-derived liquids

Nickel molybdate catalysts used in several different upgrading reactions of coal-derived materials from low-rank Australian coals have been regenerated and their activity assessed using a number of physical and chemical techniques. Regeneration of spent coked catalysts for 20 hours in air at 450°C was sufficient to restore chemical hydrogenation activity to catalyst used for pre-asphaltene, asphaltene and oil upgrading, provided poisoning of the catalyst surface by other impurities, principally chlorine-containing molecules, had not occurred.     

Preliminary Assessment of Contaminants in Soft Sediments of the Detroit River

Soft sediments from the Detroit River were analyzed for the USEPA priority pollutants to generally characterize contaminant distribution. Forty-three were detected. Highest heavy metal concentrations were found in the Trenton Channel and immediately downstream of Grosse Ile. They ranged from an area mean (N = 2) of 0.19 mg/kg mercury to 338.7 mg/kg zinc (dry weight). Polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons ranged from 0.1 mg/kg to 38.8 mg/kg (mean, N = 2) with the highest levels near Grosse Ile. PCBs ranged from 0.015 mg/kg to 1.7 mg/kg (mean, N = 2). Organochlorine pesticides were not detected except for a trace of heptachlor in one sample. Sediment contamination in the Detroit River is widespread with higher concentrations on the U.S. side downstream of the Rouge River and in the Trenton Channel. The significance of these in-place pollutants to biota and as a source to Lake Erie is still unknown.     

Estimation of sampling error variance in the meta-analysis of correlations: Use of average correlation in the homogeneous case.

The estimate of the population correlation used in the formula for sampling error variance of a correlation is typically the observed correlation, but in meta-analysis the average of the observed correlations can be used. For the case in which there is no variation in the study population correlations or sample sizes and the number of studies is very large, the authors found that use of the average correlation estimator is more accurate than use of the traditional, individual correlation estimator, except in those rare cases in which the uncorrected population correlation is greater than .60. For typical sample sizes, when the uncorrected population correlation is between -.40 and .40, there is virtually no error in the meta-analysis credibility interval based on the average correlation estimator. On the other hand, the amount of the error in the individual correlation estimator is qualitatively important if the sample is 25 or less and the population correlation is less than .40. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of four maintenance programs on the long-term management of obesity.

This study evaluated the effectiveness of four posttreatment programs designed to enhance the long-term maintenance of weight loss. Mildly and moderately obese adults (N?=?123) were randomly assigned to one of the following five conditions: (a) behavior therapy only; (b) behavior therapy plus a posttreatment therapist-contact maintenance program; (c) behavior therapy plus posttreatment therapist contact plus a social influence maintenance program; (d) behavior therapy plus posttreatment therapist contact plus an aerobic exercise maintenance program; or (e) behavior therapy plus posttreatment therapist contact plus both the aerobic exercise and social influence maintenance programs. All posttreatment programs were conducted in 26 biweekly sessions during the year following behavioral treatment for obesity. At an 18-month follow-up evaluation, all four conditions that combined behavior therapy with a posttreatment maintenance program yielded significantly greater long-term weight losses than behavior therapy alone. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Does marital conflict cause child maladjustment? Directions and challenges for longitudinal research.

Although the association between marital conflict and child adjustment problems has been well documented, there is no empirical evidence that conflict actually causes maladjustment. The investigation of causation requires theoretically and empirically informed longitudinal research. Two topics are addressed to facilitate such research. First, how marital conflict may lead to adjustment problems is outlined, with a focus on constructs that are likely to be critical to any theory on this topic. Second, several issues are identified that need to be addressed in longitudinal research on the mechanisms underlying the link between marital and child problems. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Ritualistic evocation of antiquated paradigms.

Comments on J. J. Magnavita's (see record 1993-42219-001) assertion that Freud's purported discovery of unconscious processes and psychic structures "laid the groundwork for the scientific investigation of emotional disorders and techniques for their amelioration." Freud fabricated an architectonic structure from hypothetical constructs that were developed over 150 yrs of psychophilosophical and clinical investigations of psychotherapy. The concepts popularized by Freud are often seen as increasingly antiquated or as impediments to a contemporary science of the mind. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Two studies of the long-term follow-up of minimal therapist contact treatments of vascular and tension headache.

Tension and vascular headache patients, initially treated with biofeedback and/or relaxation training in either a minimal therapist contact protocol (3 visits) or an intensive individual protocol (10 or 16 visits) were followed-up prospectively for 2 years. In the first study, for the first 6 months of follow-up, half of all patients continued to keep headache diaries and were seen monthly and the other half had only minimal contact. The results at 1-year follow-up, based on 4 weeks of daily headache diaries, revealed equally good maintenance from both treatment protocols and from both follow-up conditions. In Study 2, we found that patients remained improved over pretreatment baseline levels at the 2-year follow-up regardless of initial treatment intensity. Approximately three quarters of vascular patients who were initially improved at posttreatment remained improved at 2 years. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)