Personality and the incidence of hypertension among older men: Longitudinal findings from the Normative Aging Study.

Personality predictors of hypertension incidence were studied in 838 community-residing men from the Normative Aging Study. They were followed over a mean of 17 years during which time 38% developed hypertension. Stepwise proportional hazards regression was used to identify scales from the Cattell 16 Personality Factor Questionnaire that predicted hypertension incidence, controlling for biomedical, social, and behavioral risk factors. There was a significant negative relation between the personality trait of emotional stability and the incidence of hypertension, controlling for baseline blood pressure, education, and alcohol consumption. These results support those who argue that personality characteristics predict the development of hypertension. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Hypersequents,logical consequence and intermediate logics for concurrency

The existence of simple semantics and appropriate cut-free Gentzen-type formulations are fundamental intrinsic criteria for the usefulness of logics. In this paper we show that by using hypersequents (which are multisets of ordinary sequents) we can provide such Gentzen-type systems to many logics. In particular, by using a hypersequential generalization of intuitionistic sequents we can construct cut-free systems for some intermediate logics (including Dummett's LC) which have simple algebraic semantics that suffice, e.g., for decidability. We discuss the possible interpretations of these logics in terms of parallel computation and the role that the usual connectives play in them (which is sometimes different than in the sequential case).     

Emotionality and mental health: Longitudinal findings from the normative aging study.

The present longitudinal study examined the relation between the temperament types of emotionality and extraversion, as assessed by the Eysenck Personality Inventory-Q (Floderus, 1974), and self-reported psychological symptoms 10 years later, as assessed by the revised version of the Hopkins Symptom Checklist (SCL-90-R; Derogatis, 1983). The sample consisted of 1,324 older men, participants in the Normative Aging Study. Those high in emotionality were expected to report higher levels of symptoms than those low in emotionality. Symptoms of depression and anxiety, however, were hypothesized to be higher among emotional introverts, whereas hostility and psychoticism were expected to be higher among emotional extraverts. Canonical correlation analysis showed that emotionality and extraversion accounted for 25% of the variance in mental health 10 years later. However, emotionality accounted for most of the variance, with extraversion accounting for only 2%. The results are interpreted as support for the construct of negative affectivity. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Reasoning with logical bilattices

The notion of bilattice was introduced by Ginsberg, and further examined by Fitting, as a general framework for many applications. In the present paper we develop proof systems, which correspond to bilattices in an essential way. For this goal we introduce the notion of logical bilattices. We also show how they can be used for efficient inferences from possibly inconsistent data. For this we incorporate certain ideas of Kifer and Lozinskii, which happen to suit well the context of our work. The outcome are paraconsistent logics with a lot of desirable properties. A preliminary version of this paper appears in Arieli and Avron (1994).      

Movement of heavy metals into a shallow aquifer by leakage from sewage oxidation ponds

The concentrations of Mn, Ni, Cu, Cd and Cr were measured in a shallow perched groundwater aquifer which underlies the Dan Region Sewage Reclamation Project (Israel). The contribution of effluents to the groundwaters has been evaluated on the basis of chloride concentration. Groundwater which are estimated to contain more than 60% effluents showed a hundred-fold decrease in Cu and Mn at a distance of 650 m away from the ponds, as compared with the near ponds samples. Ni and Cd showed only a small decrease in concentration over a distance of 150 m, and then stayed constant. The concentrations of Cu and particularly of Mn in the groundwaters near the oxidation ponds is equivalent to or greater than in the ponds themselves. It is suggested that Cu and Mn are mobilized from the precipitated sludge into the interstitial waters. They percolate into the groundwater near the ponds and then are precipitated by increasing aeration during the movement of the water away from the pond area. Cd and Ni form stable soluble organic chelates which are only slightly removed by interaction with the sandy soil of the aquifer.     

Constructibility and decidability versus domain independence and absoluteness

We develop a unified framework for dealing with constructibility and absoluteness in set theory, decidability of relations in effective structures (like the natural numbers) and domain independence of queries in database theory. Our framework and results suggest that domain-independence and absoluteness might be the key notions in a general theory of constructibility, predicativity and computability.     

Vulnerability and resilience to combat exposure: Can stress have lifelong effects?

Examined whether appraisals of desirable and undesirable effects of military service mediated the effect of combat stress on posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms in later life in 1,287 male veterans (aged 44–91 yrs), 40% of whom had been in combat. The men reported more desirable effects of military service (e.g., mastery, self-esteem, and coping skills) than undesirable ones; both increased linearly with combat exposure. Path analysis revealed that the appraisals were independent and opposite mediators, with undesirable effects increasing and desirable effects decreasing the relationship between combat exposure and PTSD, even controlling for depression and response style. Although lifelong negative consequences of combat exposure were observed, perceiving positive benefits from this stressful experience mitigated the effect. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Construct validation of optimism and pessimism in older men: Findings from the normative aging study.

Validation of M. F. Scheier and C. S. Carver's (1985) Life Orientation Test has identified associations between bipolar optimism and several external constructs. However, optimism and pessimism may not be bipolar, but rather separate constructs. Furthermore, these constructs may be indistinguishable from personality traits, such as neuroticism and extraversion. This study examined the associations of separate optimism and pessimism measures with self-reports of hassles, psychological symptoms, and illness severity, controlling for personality. Ss were 1,192 men from the Normative Aging Study. Findings suggest that optimism and pessimism are separate and that their relations to external criteria remain, although attenuated, when neuroticism and extraversion are controlled. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)