It takes two to mimic: Behavioral consequences of self-construals.

The present studies demonstrated the moderation of self-construal orientation on mimicry. Recent research has indicated that an interdependent self-construal is associated with assimilation of the other to the self whereas an independent self-construal is associated with minimizing the influence of others on the self (H. R. Markus & S. Kitayama, 1991; D. Stapel & W. Koomen, 2001). Therefore, the authors hypothesized that an interdependent self-construal would be associated with more mimicry than an independent self-construal. When self-construal orientations were experimentally primed. as in Studies 1 and 2, independent self-construals produced less nonconscious mimicry than interdependent self-construals. When self-construals were examined as cultural differences with either a chronically dominant independent (Americans) or interdependent (Japanese) construal of the self, these results were replicated. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Critical Shear Stress of Bimodal Sediment in Sand-Gravel Rivers

A new model for the critical shear stress and the transport of graded sediment is presented. The model is based on the size distribution of the bed surface and can be used to compute sediment transport rates in numerical simulations with an active layer model. This model makes a distinction between unimodal and bimodal sediments. It is assumed that all size fractions of unimodal sediments have the same critical shear stress while there is selective transport for the gravel fractions of bimodal sediments. A recently published laboratory transport data set is used to calibrate our model.     

Development of New Sulphonyl Resin from Modification of Commercial Resin

Summary This article deals with the handy synthesis of sulfonyl resins, which were produced by the treatment of a commercial sulfonic resin (Lewatit VPOC1812^® based at divinylbenzene (DVB) and styrene (STY). The preliminary chemical modification was based on the reaction of the Lewatit VPOC1812^® with thionyl chloride aiming to produce the sulfonyl chloride groups. The best conditions to obtain the sulfonyl chloride groups were: SOCl₂/SO₃H (molar ratio) =13 at 79 °C during 72 h. The resin chlorinated was afterward treated with urea, thiourea or guanidine. The functionalized resins with urea, thiourea or guanidine were produced with 56, 68 and 93% yield, respectively. The commercial and modified resins were characterized by apparent density, swelling degree, elemental analysis (CHNS), FTIR, optical microscopy (OM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM).     

Is electrogastrography a substitute for manometric studies in children with functional gastrointestinal disorders?

We performed simultaneous fasting and fed antroduodenal manometry and EGG in 25 children with functional bowel disorders. Three patients (12%) had an uninterpretable EGG. The manometric studies showed severe neuropathy in six patients; milder neuropathic changes in five patients; postprandial hypomotility in one patient; myopathy in four patients, and normal motility in the remaining six patients. The percentage of tachygastria time (frequency > 3.5 cycles/min) was higher in the patiens with mild (44.1 +/- 15.8%) and severe (48 +/- 19.1%) neuropathy than in the patients with myopathy (20 +/- 16.2%, P < 0.05) or with normal motility (23 +/- 13.3%, P < 0.05). There was a considerable overlap in the percentage of tachygastria and total arrhythmia time among the different study groups. The ratio of post- to preprandial power was significantly higher (2.5 +/- 0.07) in children with normal motility than in the other patients groups. Every child with total arrhythmia time < 35% and a ratio of post- to preprandial power > 2.4 had normal manometry. In summary, EGG differentiated groups of children with normal manometry from others with neuropathic or myopathic changes, but in a minority of patients the study was not interpretable and there was overlap in EGG results between children with normal and abnormal manometry.     

Missed opportunities for immunisation at hospitals in the western Cape--a reappraisal

Immunisation practices were examined at 6 hospitals in the western Cape during the latter half of 1992 to determine whether these practices had improved subsequent to the February 1991 resolution of the Health Matters Committee (HMC) on immunisation in hospitals, and since a similar study was undertaken in 1990. Exit interviews were conducted with the escorts of all children aged 3-59 months who attended the study hospitals on the days designated for the study. In the second study, 88 of the 311 children studied (28.3%) were in need of immunisation on arrival, but only 12 of the 88 (13.6%) were immunised during the hospital visit. There was no evidence of an increase in requests to see children's Road-to-Health cards (37.1% compared with 35.2% previously). The incidence of missed opportunities for measles immunisation in children aged 6-59 months remained unacceptably high (51.4% compared with 63.7% previously, when a strict definition was used; and 15.7% compared with 18.1% previously, when a lenient definition was used). Health authorities at all levels need to take urgent action to address the problem of missed opportunities for immunisation at hospitals.     

Treatment of essential arterial hypertension with hypercholesterolemia. Effects of an alpha-adrenergic blocker and an inhibitor of the angiotensin converting enzyme

BACKGROUND: Hypertension and hypercholesterolemia are frequently associated with this leading to considerable cardiovascular risk. METHODS: An open parallel randomized study was performed in which the effects of doxazosin, an alpha-adrenergic blocker and enalapril, an inhibitor of the angiotensin converting enzyme were compared in 70 patients with essential high blood pressure and plasma cholesterol levels greater than 240 mg/dl. Following 2-4 weeks of placebo administration the patients were randomly treated with one of the two drugs. When required doses were increased and hydrochlorothiazide added until blood pressure lower than 160/95 mmHg was achieved. After this period the patients were observed for a minimum of 8 weeks. The mean length of the study was of 22 weeks. RESULTS: Both drugs significantly reduced blood pressure without modifying cardiac frequency. Doxazosin tended to favorably modify the lipid profile of the plasma while enalapril significantly reduced the levels of cholesterol, lipids and high density lipoproteins (HDL). Upon termination of the study the total HDL/cholesterol index increased 8.6% in those treated with doxazosin and decreased 5.5% in those receiving enalapril (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Although doxazosin and enalapril are potent antihypertensive drugs, the effects on plasma lipid obtained with doxazosin indicate that a reduction in cardiovascular risk was achieved with this drug in the patients included in this study.     

Four state binary QAM trellis code better than known codes

Presents a new one-memory quaternary four-state trellis code, and its four-state binary equivalent code based on a QAM constellation which is 0.52 dB better than the four-state Ungerboeck code.<>