Cognitive-behavioral therapy with and without medication in the treatment of obsessive-compulsive disorder.

Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) and pharmacotherapy with serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SRIs) are established monotherapies for obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), yet research on their combined efficacy is lacking. Practicing psychologists who treat OCD are thus unable to say definitively whether exposure and ritual prevention would be more successful with concomitant SRI pharmacotherapy. The authors explored this issue in a clinical sample of 56 outpatients who received fee-for-service CBT; 31 (55%) received CBT alone, and 25 (45%) received CBT plus SRI. Both groups made clinically significant and comparable posttreatment gains, suggesting that CBT is effective with or without concomitant pharmacotherapy. Clinical implications are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Balanced HDLC Procedures: A Performance Analysis

The prime objective of the present paper is to analyze the performance of HDLC Balanced Class of Procedures, i.e., to quantitatively study the interaction among a multiplicity of parameters which are procedure specific, characterize the properties of the transmission medium, and identify the operational characteristics and requirements. The approach taken is to consider two kinds of operation: a saturated case characterized by maximum throughput as the most suitable measure of performance, and a nonsaturated situation for which waiting and transfer times are the appropriate measures. The analysis is performed by means of both simulation and analytic techniques. Within the simulation model, the information transfer phase of the HDLC procedure was implemented in full detail. The key idea of the analytic approach is to use a so-called virtual transmission time, a quantity comprising both the real constant transmission time of a message and the duration of recovery actions in case of transmission errors. It allows the performance measures to be represented by explicit and easily-computable expressions. The results provide a fundamental insight into how the most relevant parameters interact and determine performance.     

Local-Area Subnetworks: A Performance Comparison

This paper provides a comparative evaluation of the performance of ring and bus systems constituting subnetworks of local-area networks. Performance is measured in terms of the delaythroughput characteristics. Systems investigated include token-controlled and slotted rings as well as random-access buses (CSMA with collision detection) and ordered-access buses. The investigation is based on analytic models which describe the various topologies and access mechanisms to a sufficient level of detail. The paper includes a comprehensive discussion of how the performance of the different networks is affected by system parameters like transmission rate, cable length, packet lengths, and control overhead.     

Integrated sequential fuzzy logic search models for simulating wastewater treatment plants missing influent parameters

Aiming at achieving optimum operations of wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) processes, it is essential to develop accurate predictive models for expected influent pollutant loads. To overcome limited timespan data and model complexity, this study is devoted to propose an integration of inputs' sequential search with the adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system (ANFIS) for reducing the modelling complexity. The input data included nine influent parameters measured bi-weekly for 12 years at a WWTP, South Africa (SA). The sequential search process was used for input optimization to select the most representative inputs in modelling four parameters. The obtained results indicated a strong correlation with R² and NSE above 0.85 for the four targeted influent parameters. After validating the developed models using different criteria, the missing records were predicted throughout the study period. The integration of sequential search input optimization and ANFIS modelling was able to provide a high performance in modelling WWTP datasets.     

Quantum chemical computational studies on bis-thiourea zinc acetate

In this study, quantum chemical calculations of vibrational spectra, Raman spectra, electronic properties (total energy, dipole moment, electronegativity, chemical hardness and softness), Mulliken atomic charges and thermodynamic parameters of bis-thiourea zinc acetate (BTZA) have been performed using Gaussian 09 program. Additionally, nonlinear optical (NLO), conformational, natural bond orbital (NBO) analyses of BTZA have been carried out using the same program. The structural and spectroscopic data of the molecule in the ground state have been calculated using Hartree-Fock (HF) and density functional method (DFT/B3LYP) with the 6-311++G(d,p) basis set. In addition, the molecular frontier orbital energies (HOMO, HOMO-1, LUMO and LUMO+1) of the title compound have been calculated at the HF and B3LYP levels. The calculated HOMO and LUMO energies show that charge transfer occurs within the molecule. Finally, the calculated results were applied to simulate infrared and Raman spectra of the title compound which showed good agreement with the experimental ones.     

Decline in self-reported dysphoria after treatment entry in inner-city cocaine addicts.

This study examined self-reported dysphoria in 82 consecutive admissions to intensive outpatient treatment for cocaine abuse on whom data for the Beck scales for depression, anxiety, and hopelessness were available for intake and 4 subsequent weeks with no more than 1 missing data point. Mean scores on the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) and the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI) decreased significantly between intake and Week 1, with no further significant changes from Weeks 1–4. Similar drops in the rate of clinically significant BDI and BAI scores also were observed. Scores on the Beck Hopelessness Scale (BHS) showed no significant changes. By Week 4, rates of clinically significant depression, anxiety, and hopelessness were similar (17%, 13%, and 16%, respectively) . These findings suggest that assessing depression and anxiety using the BDI and BAI in this population should be postponed for at least 1 week after intake and that intake levels of self-reported mood may be inappropriate baseline measures for evaluating treatment effects. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Throughput Considerations in a Multi-Processor Packet-Switching Node

The prime objective of the present paper is to analyze the throughput characteristics of a multi-processor configuration for packet switching-suggested in the context of an integrated network for circuit and packet switching-and to identify the major parameters on which it depends. The results provide a fundamental insight into how the most relevant system and traffic parameters determine throughput as a function of the number of packet-handling modules. In particular, it is shown that the proposed partitioning of the packet-handling function does indeed permit high throughput before saturation is encountered.     

Flow Control in Local-Area Networks of Interconnected Token Rings

We investigate flow-control issues in local-area networks consisting of multiple token rings interconnected through bridges. To achieve high throughput, bridges perform only a very simple routing and store-and-forward function, but are not involved in error- or flowcontrol. In case of congestion, bridges discard arriving frames, which will be recovered through an appropriate end-to-end protocol between the communicating stations. The end-to-end protocol considered is the IEEE 802.2 type-2 logical-link-control (LLC) protocol. Extensive simulations show that performance can be severely degraded if, in such a network, the LLC protocol is employed as defined today. Therefore, we suggest an enhancement to this protocol in the form of a dynamic flow-control algorithm. As our results demonstrate, this enhancement guarantees close-to-optimal network performance under both normal traffic load and overload conditions.     

Upgrading continuous H2 gas recovery from rice straw hydrolysate via fermentation process amended with magnetite nanoparticles

Continuous H₂ production from alkali‐hydrolyzed rice straw in two mesophillic anaerobic baffled reactors (ABRs) was investigated in parallel. ABR₁ was inoculated with thermally pretreated sludge while the sludge in ABR₂ was amended with magnetite nanoparticles (MNPs). Both reactors were operated at organic loading rates (OLRs) ranged from 0.8 to 4.8 g_COD/L/day. The addition of MNPs significantly improved the H₂ production and yield, ie, maximum H₂ yield was 21.4 ± 3.2 and 60.6 ± 5.7 mL/g COD_removed for both ABR₁ and ABR₂, respectively, at OLR of 1.6 g_COD/L/day. Likewise, substrate degradation efficiency (SDE) was augmented from 48.4 ± 3.9% (ABR₁) to 55.8 ± 4.2% (ABR₂). The enhancement effect of MNPs can be emphasized by hydrogenase enzyme activity increase from 0.097 ± 0.013 to 0.205 ± 0.019 mg MB_reduced/min at ABR₁ and ABR₂, respectively. Besides, ABR₂ witnessed higher concentrations of acetate (HAc) and butyrate (HBu) coupled with lower values of propionate (HPr). Additionally, HAc/HBu ratio for ABR₂ (3.03 ± 0.31) was higher than that for ABR₁ (1.95 ± 0.29). Microbial analysis indicated that Bacillus and Clostridium species became dominant in mixed culture bacteria supplemented with MNPs. Furthermore, economic analysis revealed that the minimum payback period of 10.5 years at OLR of 3.2 g_COD/L/day was recorded for ABR₂ compared with 14.6 years at OLR of 4.8 g_COD/L/day for ABR₁.