Alcohol treatment changes in coping skills, self-efficacy, and levels of alcohol use and related problems 1 year following treatment initiation.

The relationships among alcohol treatment, coping skills, and self-efficacy in predicting alcohol use and related consequences following treatment initiation were investigated. The participants were 77 men and 65 women who were entering either inpatient or outpatient alcohol treatment. The analyses confirmed predictions that treatment, coping skills, and self-efficacy each contributed significantly to the prediction of 12-month alcohol consumption beyond the variance accounted for by participant control variables. Only self-efficacy explained significant additional variance in the consequences outcome. Mediation analyses of the alcohol consumption variables suggested that treatment effects were not mediated by either coping skills or self-efficacy and that the effects of coping skills were not mediated by self-efficacy. The findings are interpreted as providing partial support for social learning theory approaches. Suggestions for future research are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Dynamic-Compiler-Driven Control for Microprocessor Energy and Performance

A general dynamic-compilation environment offers power and performance control opportunities for microprocessors. The authors propose a dynamic-compiler-driven runtime voltage and frequency optimizer. A prototype of their design, implemented and deployed in a real system, achieves energy savings of up to 70 percent.     

Modeling and simulation of broadband satellite networks .I. mediumaccess control for QoS provisioning

Broadband satellite networks will play an important role in future integrated services networks. Satellite networks also present unique challenges in system design related to quality of service (QoS) provisioning. In certain system scenarios, medium access control plays a crucial role in the network's ability to deliver a QoS contract. This article focuses on the applications that we envision will utilize future broadband satellite networks, and detail the various system environments which may exist as well as the means by which medium access control protocols can be used to provide QoS. We focus on one system scenario in particular and provide some simulation results on the performance of demand assigned multiple access techniques     

Symptom-focused dynamic psychotherapy.

Early psychoanalytic perspectives were characterized by an emphasis on purported unconscious processes that contraindicated direct interventions with symptoms. However, the modern relational psychoanalytic approach offers a sophisticated base for the assimilation of action-oriented techniques. I provide a rationale for including a direct focus on symptoms in some treatments and argue that symptom intervention alone will be insufficient in many cases. My integrative model permits direct work with symptoms as well as an appreciation of their biopsychosocial etiology within a particular context. Symptom-focused dynamic psychotherapy is informed by current relational perspectives including attachment theory and self psychology. Action-oriented techniques from the cognitive–behavioral tradition may be incorporated on the basis of the patient’s needs and the intervention’s usability within a particular therapeutic relationship. Integrative treatment fosters the development of a consolidated and integrated self and promotes secure and balanced relationships with others. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Characterization of transthyretin variants in familial transthyretin amyloidosis by mass spectrometric peptide mapping and DNA sequence analysis

Transthyretin (TTR) is a 127-amino acid residue transport protein. In plasma, TTR exists as a tetramer and binds the hormone thyroxine and the retinol-binding protein-vitamin A complex. Amino acid substitutions in TTR are hypothesized to destabilize the tetramer and cause the protein to form intermediates that self-associate into amyloid fibrils. Familial transthyretin amyloidosis (ATTR) is associated with extracellular deposition of wild-type TTR, its variants or fragments as amyloid fibrils in various tissues and organs. A definitive diagnosis of ATTR depends on the detection and identification of TTR variants. Electrospray ionization (ESI) and matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization (MALDI) time-of-flight (TOF) mass spectrometry (MS), in combination with trypsin digestion, have been shown to be powerful tools in characterizing TTR variants. Typically, TTR or its tryptic digest is analyzed by MALDI-TOF MS, liquid chromatography ESI MS, or both. Analysis of tryptic digests by MALDI-TOF MS does not provide enough sequence coverage in TTR to identify all possible modifications. To improve sequence coverage, aliquots of immunoprecipitated TTR samples were digested with trypsin, lysyl endopeptidase Lys-C, or endoproteinase Asp-N. Identification of the peptides from each digest by MALDI-TOF MS provided preliminary information about the sites and mass shifts due to amino acid substitutions from genetic mutations and to posttranslational modifications. The location and identity of the modifications in the variant proteins were then confirmed by tandem mass spectrometry, accurate mass measurements, and direct DNA sequence analysis. Using these methodologies, we achieved 100% sequence coverage. The detection of two nonpathologic variants (Thr119Met and Gly6Ser) and four pathologic variants (Phe64Leu, Asp38Ala, Phe44Ser, and previously unreported Trp41Leu) are described as illustrations of this approach.     

Measure of religious background and behavior for use in behavior change research.

Consideration of religiosity as a factor in behavior change research requires a reliable measure of religious behavior. Such a measure may be particularly helpful in research on substance misuse given the negative association between religiosity and substance use and the role of religiosity and spirituality often reported in the process of recovery from substance use disorders. In this regard, this article describes the development and evaluation of the Religious Background and Behavior (RBB) questionnaire as a brief measure of religious practices. The results suggest the RBB is made up of two factors, labeled God Consciousness and Formal Practices , and that the RBB possesses excellent test-retest reliability and satisfactory internal consistency. It is concluded that the RBB can serve as a reliable instrument for assessing religious behaviors. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Pumping Applications in the Petroleum and Chemical Industries

There has been a great deal of discussion and literature on saving electrical energy used by centrifugal pumps. Most of the attention, however, has been given to one general type of centrifugal pump application?variable-flow variable-pressure?and the role of the control loops of the system has generally not been dealt with. In actual practice, centrifugal pump applications can be classified into three general types: 1) variable-flow variable-pressure; 2) constant-flow variable-pressure; and 3) variable-flow constant-pressure. The actual type is determined by the control loops of the system. A user who is interested in implementing an energy savings program by using electrical adjustable speed control must select and analyze specific applications, which may fall into any of the above three categories. Each of these applications must be analyzed with a different approach?they cannot all be analyzed as variable-flow variable-pressure systems. This paper will review the three general types of applications which are seen for centrifugal pumps and suggest a method of implementing an energy savings program and analyzing each type of system.     

Biodegradable positively charged ion exchange beads: a novel biomaterial for enhancing soft tissue repair

This article presents a simple and efficient articulator to help with the registration of maxillomandibular relationships, mounting casts, and subsequent perfection of the occlusal scheme for various types of prosthodontic restorations. The system (Individual Anatomo-Physiological system), which is composed of the articulator and recommended procedures, allows for registration of positions and trajectories of the mandible at the level of the patient's occlusal plane. It is used to accurately transfer the records to the articulator. A luminous signal shows the correct centric occlusal relationship and vertical dimension, in both clinical and laboratory procedures. Interocclusal records are used for semiadjustment of the articulator for provisional restorations and stereographic records are used for full adjustment of the articulator for definitive treatment.