What fraction of young adults are at risk for future smoking, and who are they?

Recent evidence indicates that higher smoking rates among young adults in the United States may be related in part to increased initiation during young adulthood. The tobacco industry, restricted from overtly targeting adolescents, appears to be focusing on young adults. Thus it is important to estimate the percentage and identify the characteristics of the young adult population (aged 18-29 years) at risk for future smoking. This group would include all current established smokers (smoked at least 100 cigarettes in their lifetime), current experimenters, former established smokers, and former experimenters at risk for smoking again, as well as never-smokers who do not rule out future smoking. Using data from the population-based 2002 California Tobacco Survey (N = 9,364 young adults aged 18-29 years), we designated groups of young adults at risk and identified factors associated with risk. Altogether, 86.7+/-1.5% of current and former established smokers were at risk for future smoking, and 59.6+/-4.3% of former established smokers were at risk. Over half (52.2+/-2.0%) of all experimenters but only 9.0+/-1.2% of never-smokers were at risk. Overall, 43.0+/-1.2% of the young adult population was at risk. Although different demographic and other factors were associated with risk among former established smokers, experimenters, and never-smokers, three factors were consistently associated in each group: Younger age, not having a smoke-free home, and going to bars and clubs. We conclude that the group of young adults at risk for future smoking is sizable and presents a fertile target for tobacco industry efforts to promote smoking. Counter-efforts might include promotion of smoke-free environments.     

Stress facilitates consolidation of verbal memory for a film but does not affect retrieval.

The effect of psychosocial stress on distinct memory processes was investigated in 157 college students using a brief film, which enabled comparison of verbal and visual memory by using a single complex stimulus. Participants were stressed either following stimuli presentation (consolidation) or before testing 48 hr later (retrieval) and were compared with no-stress controls. Salivary cortisol was measured before and 20 min after stress. The consolidation group significantly outperformed controls on total and verbal film scores. Stress did not impair retrieval relative to controls. Exploratory analyses revealed a significant correlation between cortisol and verbal scores across all groups (r = .18). Results provide the first evidence of a facilitative effect of a stressor on verbal memory, but failed to replicate retrieval findings. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The utility of open-ended measures to assess intergroup ambivalence.

Demonstrated the utility of open-ended measures for assessing intergroup ambivalence. 42 Canadian undergraduates completed open-ended measures of stereotypes (beliefs about characteristics of group members), symbolic beliefs (beliefs that group members promote or threaten cherished values), and emotions, in order to determine their degree of ambivalence toward Native Peoples, French Canadians, Oriental Immigrants, and Canadians. Ss also completed an attitude measure assessing their overall evaluations of the groups. Examination and comparison of these measures revealed findings consistent with the following theoretical expectations: (1) the positive and negative dimensions were not highly negatively correlated, (2) ambivalence toward the groups differed, and (3) ambivalence toward the groups was not highly correlated. Results support the open-ended measure of ambivalence. (French abstract) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Hydrocarbon dynamics within and between nestmates inCataglyphis niger (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)

The objective of the present study was to evaluate the interrelationship between the cuticular and postpharyngeal glands' hydrocarbons, both in the individual ant and during its interaction with nestmates. In vivo radiochemical assays were employed to monitor the de novo hydrocarbon biosynthesis from acetate in the ant's body. The newly synthesized hydrocarbons appeared first internally and after 24 hr they accumulated in the postpharyngeal gland and on the cuticular surface. Blocking the possibility of external transfer of hydrocarbons between cuticle and postpharyngeal gland led to a significant decrease of labeled hydrocarbons in the postpharyngeal gland. In addition, during encounters between labeled and unlabeled ants, newly synthesized hydrocarbons were transferred, mainly via trophallaxis, but also by allo-grooming and physical contact. In view of these results, we propose as a model for their dynamics that hydrocarbons are synthesized in tissues associated with the integument. Through self-grooming, there is a constant exchange of hydrocarbons between the cuticular surface and the postpharyngeal gland. Furthermore, in encounters between nestmates, hydrocarbons are exchanged among them mostly by trophallaxis, with the mediation of the postpharyngeal gland. Thus, this gland acts as a pool for mixing colonial hydrocarbons and may serve to attain a unified colony odor.     

Scientific evidences beyond the application of inactive dry yeast preparations in winemaking

In recent years the use of inactive dry yeast (IDY) preparations such as inactive yeast, yeast autolysates, yeast extracts and yeast hulls or walls have been widely used within the oenological industry to improve either technological processes or the sensory characteristics of wines. Some of these preparations have very specific applications and there are currently many of these products in the market under different brands that promise different ways of improving wine characteristics. Nevertheless, scientific information about the chemistry beyond their use and their action mode is still scarce.The objective of this review is to revise the different applications of specific IDY preparations in winemaking, on the basis of their action mechanisms taking into consideration the scientific information available, underlining the necessity of more scientific work in order to better characterize their chemical composition, their action mechanisms, and the establishment of better criteria for their oenological use.     

Surface application of calcium‐containing gels to improve quality of late maturing peach cultivars

BACKGROUND: A strategy to supply Ca directly to fruits as a tool for improving peach quality has been devised and tested under field conditions. Since peaches in the area of study (Calanda, Spain) are routinely bagged shortly after thinning, a method based on the application of Ca gels to the fruit surface was introduced. The effect of surface treatments was assessed in terms of quality, nutrient balance and surface deposition. RESULTS: Application of Ca‐containing formulations increased mesocarp and exocarp Ca concentrations, providing evidence for the penetration of Ca through the peach skin. Surface Ca treatments had a particular mode of deposition and in some instances improved the shelf life of fruits without affecting their quality. CONCLUSION: Surface treatment with Ca‐containing gels appears to be a viable approach to increase fruit Ca, quality and storability of bagged peach cultivars and should be optimised in future studies. Copyright © 2009 Society of Chemical Industry     

Anisotropy of some physical parameters in As-prepared As2S3 bulk glass

When cooling a melt the cooling rate in different layers varies due to differences in heat transfer. These changes in cooling rate were determined experimentally for the As₂S₃ melt in a quartz ampoule with diameter of 17 mm. The cooling rate at air quenching varies from 1.36 K/s in the bulk middle to 2.11 K/s in the border layers, and from 3.54 to 38.80 K/s for water quenching, respectively. Further, the corresponding changes in the density, microhardness, glass-transition temperature and electrical conductivity in dependence on the choice of the measured sample from various parts of the bulk were found. The anomalous behaviour of these parameters in dependence on the cooling rate corresponds to the polymeric structure of the glass.     

How coping mediates the effect of optimism on distress: A study of women with early stage breast cancer.

At diagnosis, 59 breast cancer patients reported on their overall optimism about life; 1 day presurgery, 10 days postsurgery, and at 3-, 6-, and 12-mo follow-ups, they reported their recent coping responses and distress levels. Optimism related inversely to distress at each point, even controlling for prior distress. Acceptance, positive reframing, and use of religion were the most common coping reactions; denial and behavioral disengagement were the least common reactions. Acceptance and the use of humor prospectively predicted lower distress; denial and disengagement predicted more distress. Path analyses suggested that several coping reactions played mediating roles in the effect of optimism on distress. Discussion centers on the role of various coping reactions in the process of adjustment, the mechanisms by which dispositional optimism vs pessimism appears to operate, third variable issues, and applied implications. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Comparative analysis of some anthropometric measurements

The main objective of this work is to determine what anthropometric method to use under field conditions, given the kind of mainutrition to be detected. In the first part of the work some criteria and procedures are given by which to compare the field perfomance characteristics (i.e. transportability, facility of use, etc.), of the most commonly used instruments. Then we extrapolate these characteristics to the respective methods like weight for age, weight for height, height for age, etc. In the second part we present a correlation matrix among the various methods and analyze it in order to associate with each method a specific typology of malnutrition.