Menopausal transition of Korean immigrant women: a literature review

The menopausal transition needs to be understood in terms of the multiple mediating factors within the context in which women experience it. For immigrant women especially, the menopausal experience is complicated by multiple transitions and social marginality, so it cannot be adequately explained without considering this complexity. In this paper we review the literature on the menopausal transition of a group of vulnerable immigrant women in two ways: describing the transitions themselves (menopause, immigration, and housewife to employee), and describing factors that mediate the menopausal transition experience (family norms, meaning of menopause and women's work, and health practices). We emphasize the context and suggest areas of needed research.     

Remediation of groundwater contaminated with MTBE and benzene: the potential of vertical-flow soil filter systems

Field investigations on the treatment of MTBE and benzene from contaminated groundwater in pilot or full-scale constructed wetlands are lacking hugely. The aim of this study was to develop a biological treatment technology that can be operated in an economic, reliable and robust mode over a long period of time. Two pilot-scale vertical-flow soil filter eco-technologies, a roughing filter (RF) and a polishing filter (PF) with plants (willows), were operated independently in a single-stage configuration and coupled together in a multi-stage (RF + PF) configuration to investigate the MTBE and benzene removal performances. Both filters were loaded with groundwater from a refinery site contaminated with MTBE and benzene as the main contaminants, with a mean concentration of 2970 ± 816 and 13,966 ± 1998 μg L⁻¹, respectively. Four different hydraulic loading rates (HLRs) with a stepwise increment of 60, 120, 240 and 480 L m⁻² d⁻¹ were applied over a period of 388 days in the single-stage operation. At the highest HLR of 480 L m⁻² d⁻¹, the mean concentrations of MTBE and benzene were found to be 550 ± 133 and 65 ± 123 μg L⁻¹ in the effluent of the RF. In the effluent of the PF system, respective mean MTBE and benzene concentrations of 49 ± 77 and 0.5 ± 0.2 μg L⁻¹ were obtained, which were well below the relevant MTBE and benzene limit values of 200 and 1 μg L⁻¹ for drinking water quality. But a dynamic fluctuation in the effluent MTBE concentration showed a lack of stability in regards to the increase in the measured values by nearly 10%, which were higher than the limit value. Therefore, both (RF + PF) filters were combined in a multi-stage configuration and the combined system proved to be more stable and effective with a highly efficient reduction of the MTBE and benzene concentrations in the effluent. Nearly 70% of MTBE and 98% of benzene were eliminated from the influent groundwater by the first vertical filter (RF) and the remaining amount was almost completely diminished (∼100% reduction) after passing through the second filter (PF), with a mean MTBE and benzene concentration of 5 ± 10 and 0.6 ± 0.2 μg L⁻¹ in the final effluent. The emission rate of volatile organic compounds mass into the air from the systems was less than 1% of the inflow mass loading rate. The results obtained in this study not only demonstrate the feasibility of vertical-flow soil filter systems for treating groundwater contaminated with MTBE and benzene, but can also be considered a major step forward towards their application under full-scale conditions for commercial purposes in the oil and gas industries.     

Impact of Elaboration on Socially Desirable Responding and the Validity of Biodata Measures.

The current study investigated the impact of requiring respondents to elaborate on their answers to a biodata measure on mean scores, the validity of the biodata item composites, subgroup mean differences, and correlations with social desirability. Results of this study indicate that elaborated responses result in scores that are much lower than nonelaborated responses to the same items by an independent sample. Despite the lower mean score on elaborated items, it does not appear that elaboration affects the size of the correlation between social desirability and responses to biodata items or that it affects criterion-related validity or subgroup mean differences in a practically significant way. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Estimates of N2O and CH4 fluxes from agricultural lands in various regions in Europe

According to the revised 1996 IPCC guidelines, several emission factors are needed to calculate national inventories of N₂O emissions from agriculture. To estimate the direct N₂O emissions from mineral soils, an emission factor of 0.0125 kg N₂O-N per kg N applied is currently being used. From recent literature data it was clearly shown that real N₂O emissions could differ substantially from this value. Based on the IPCC methodology an inventory of N₂O emission from agriculture in Europe (EU-15) has been made. In 1996, the N₂O emission was estimated at 672 Gg N₂O-N. The N₂O emission per country varied between 10 and 177 Gg N₂O-N. The N₂O emission per ha agricultural land in the various countries varied between 1.7 and 14.2 kg N₂O-N ha⁻¹. Highest N₂O emissions per ha were found in countries with a high agricultural intensity, such as the Netherlands, Belgium-Luxembourg, Denmark and Germany. Agricultural soils are a sink for atmospheric methane. An oxidation capacity of 2.5 and 1.5 kg CH₄ ha⁻¹ yr⁻¹ was put forward for grasslands and arable land, respectively. Based on land use data of 1993, the CH₄ sink of agricultural lands in EU-15 was estimated at 303.5 Gg CH₄. In general, it could be concluded that N₂O emissions from soils (327 Tg CO₂ equivalents) are far more important than its sink function for CH₄ (6.3 Tg CO₂ equivalents). This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Seitenkanalanalyse kontaktloser SmartCards

Berührungslose RFID-Technologie wird weltweit für verschiedenste sicherheitsrelevante Anwendungen wie den Identit?tsnachweis oder Bezahlvorg?nge eingesetzt. Nach der Aufdeckung von Schwachstellen im kryptografischen Schutz der „ersten Generation“ kontaktloser SmartCards hoffte man auf die mit sicheren Chiffren versehenen Nachfolger. Der Beitrag zeigt die Anf?lligkeit kontaktloser SmartCards für Seitenkanalangriffe am Beispiel der Mifare DESFire MF3ICD40.     

Complement C6 and C2 biosynthesis in syngeneic PVG/c- and PVG/c+ rat strains

A PVG rat with total deficiency of C6 and partial deficiency of C2 (PVG/c-), and a syngeneic control strain (PVG/c+), were used to study the production of extrahepatically synthesized complement. Livers of complement deficient rats were transplanted in sufficient rats (Tx-L). The C6 and C2 levels in Tx-L rats declined within 2 days to 25% and 30%, respectively, and remained stable for more than 6 weeks. To investigate the contribution of C6 synthesis by the liver, C6 sufficient livers were grafted in deficient rats (Tx + 1). After an initial increase, with maximum C6 levels of 119% at 10 days following transplantation, the C6 levels decreased gradually and C6 was no longer detectable 28 days after transplantation. This decline in C6 levels was dependent on antibody production against C6. No significant change in the C3, C4, factor H and factor B levels was observed. Expression of C6 mRNA in the grafted PVG/c+ sufficient liver was comparable to the expression of C6 mRNA in control PVG/c+ livers while C6 mRNA expression in the transplanted PVG/ c- liver and the control PVG/c- liver was lower. In conclusion, it was demonstrated in vivo that not only C6 but also C2 is synthesized extrahepatically in PVG/c rats.