The Pain Coping Questionnaire: preliminary validation

Breda virus (BRV), a member of the genus torovirus, is an established etiological agent of diarrhea of cattle, which is found as two separate serotypes, BRV-1 and BRV-2. In this study, a 7.5 kb fragment of the BRV-1 genome that bracketed the genes for the structural proteins of BRV was amplified by long RT-PCR and the amplicon purified and sequenced directly. Sequence analysis revealed the presence of four open reading frames (ORF) corresponding to the peplomer (S), envelope (M), and nucleocapsid (N) genes, and an ORF for a novel 1.2 kb gene located between the M and N genes. This new gene was identical in nucleotide sequence to the hemagglutinin-esterase (HE) gene of BRV-2. With the exception of this new ORF, BRV-1 manifests 80% nucleotide sequence identity with the torovirus prototype, Berne virus (BEV) in the 7.5 kb region from the 3' end of the genome that contains the genes for the structural proteins. A 504 base segment containing the ORF for the BRV-1 N gene was amplified by RT-PCR, and cloned into an Escherichia coli expression system. The resulting protein was purified by SDS-PAGE and used to immunize guinea pigs. Hyperimmune serum was reactive with bovine torovirus (BTV) and human torovirus (HTV) antigens. By immunoelectron microscopy, it was shown to aggregate broken but not intact torovirus particles from BTV-positive fecal specimens. By immunoblot, the hyperimmune serum reacted specifically with the 20 kD N proteins of both BTV and HTV, as well as with the expressed N protein. BRV-1 and BRV-2 immune sera from gnotobiotic calves, but not human convalescent sera from HTV-infected patients, reacted with the expressed N protein by immunoblot. These findings were applied to the design of a dot blot assay that could specifically detect BTV and HTV from fecal specimens.     

Autonomy, discourse, and power: a postmodern reflection on principlism and bioethics

In recent years there has been an increasing critique of the philosophically based reasoning in bioethics which is known as principlism. This article seeks to make a postmodern contribution to this emerging debate by using notions of power and discourse to highlight the limits and superficiality of this abstract, rationalistic mode of reflection. The focus of the discussion will be on the principle of autonomy. Recent doctoral research on a hospice organization (Karuna Hospice Service) will be used to contextualize the debate to end-of life ethical dilemmas. The conclusion will be reached that the discursive richness of this organization's notion of autonomy or choice, which incorporates a holistic respect for the individual and the active creation of alternatives, can provide important insights to our understanding of autonomy in bioethics. The concern is raised that if autonomy is reified as a principle outside of the context of discourse, it may only complement the hegemonic power of biomedicine.     

Optical anisotropy of polyisobutene

The distribution of chemical bonds in polyisobutene results in a theoretically zero optical and electrical anisotropy of the polymer according to bond polarizability additivity principles as conventionally applied, irrespective of polymer chain conformation. Non-zero values of the segmental anisotropy (～4.4 × 10^?40 C²m²/J) derived from strain-optical birefringence on the polymer in the rubbery state have been recently reported by Liberman et al. who suggest qualitatively that severe crowding of the chemical groups in the polymer affects the anisotropies of the group polarizabilities and gives the observed non-zero segmental anisotropy. We have measured optical, electrical and magnetic anisotropies for the pure liquid polymer using techniques of flow birefringence, depolarized light scattering, electro-optic birefringence and magneto-optic birefringence. Segmental optical anisotropies so derived agree with those measured by Liberman et al. and results of the above measurements taken as a whole lead to an origin for the observed anisotropy which requires locality dependent values of optical and electrical bond polarizability anisotropies to be used in the calculation of the polyisobutene polarizability anisotropy. Our explanation of the polarizability locality dependence differs from the steric overlap suggestion of Liberman et al. and depends upon the electric field interaction between dipoles induced in polarizable bonds.     

A review of the groupware literature: Theories, methodologies, and a research agenda.

This paper brings the groupware literature to the attention of researchers and practitioners in order to validate it in terms of delivering computer technologies that actively facilitate groups of collaborating users. It reviews the theoretical perspectives and assumptions of group performance that are driving the present research. Also, the extant literature and outcome measures will be reviewed with an emphasis on the type of research conducted. The authors found that the theoretical frameworks used in the groupware research do not reflect recent developments in Industrial-Organizational Psychology (e.g., groupware research does not generally include critical contextual variables). Based on this review, the authors propose a comprehensive and integrated research agenda for future work in this area. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Outcome of parent-mediated treatment of preschoolers with attention deficit disorder with hyperactivity.

Despite the early onset of attention deficit disorder with hyperactivity (ADDH), there is a dearth of treatment studies with preschoolers with this disorder. Forty-six families with ADDH preschoolers were randomly assigned to either an immediate or a delayed group parent training program aimed at improving child compliance. Groups were balanced on demographic variables. Treatment outcome was evaluated by comparing the groups at pre- and posttreatment and 3-month follow-up on measures of parent–child interactions during free play, a compliance task, and parent-supervised activities, as well as on parent-completed Conners Hyperkinesis Index (C. H. Goyette et al; see record 1980-22450-001) scores. Positive treatment effect was obtained on measures of compliance, parental style of interaction, and management skills. These improvements were maintained at 3-month follow-up. Evaluation of treatment effects on nontargeted child behaviors indicated no generalization. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Handbook of pain assessment, second edition.

Reviews the book, Handbook of pain assessment, second edition edited by Dennis C. Turk and Ronald Melzack (see record 2001-05101-000). This book is a comprehensive review of the state of the art of pain assessment. The book consists of 36 chapters organized in six major sections, an introduction and a conclusion. The sections are: measurement of pain, assessment of behavioural expressions of pain, medical and physical evaluations, psychological evaluation, specified pain states, and methodological issues. The Handbook of pain assessment should be in every university and health centre library. All health professionals and students who see patients who have pain (and that is probably all of them) should have this text readily available. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A longitudinal study of children's depressive symptoms, self-perceptions, and cognitive distortions about the self.

This longitudinal study examined how depressive symptoms relate to children's self-perceptions and to estimates of children's cognitive distortions about the self in a nonclinical sample of children who were followed from 4th grade (n=248) through 6th grade (n=227). Report card grades measured children's academic competence, and teachers' ratings of children's level of peer acceptance at school indicated social acceptance. Self-reported depressive symptoms predicted a change in children's negative views of the self. Moreover, the self-perceptions of children who exhibited more symptoms of depression appeared to reflect an underestimation of their actual competence. Children's negative self-perceptions and underestimations about the self were not associated with a subsequent change in depressive symptoms. The implications of the findings for cognitive theories of depression and future research with this population are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Methylation of somatic and sperm DNA in the homosporous fern Ceratopteris richardii

Plants, in general, have a high proportion of their CpG and CpNpG nucleotide motifs modified with 5-methylcytosine (5mC). Developmental changes in the proportion of 5mC are evident in mammals, particularly during gametogenesis and embryogenesis, but little information is available from flowering plants due to the intimate association of gametes with sporophytic tissues. In ferns, sperm are uninucleate and free-swimming and thus are easily isolated. We have examined 5mC in DNA isolated from fern sperm and other tissues with methylation-sensitive and -insensitive restriction enzyme isoschizomers, Southern blots probed with chloroplast and nuclear ribosomal RNA genes and end-labeled restriction fragments. We conclude that fern sperm DNA is methylated to a similar or greater degree than DNA isolated from either sporophytes or gametophytes.     

High-fidelity lightwave transmission of multiple AM-VSB NTSCsignals

The progress towards developing AM lightwave links for the transmission of multiple TV signals is reported. While the signal-quality objectives and transmission distances are appropriate for CATV trunking, the technology is expected to have applicability to the distribution of video signals in the subscriber loop. Highly linear 1.3-μm distributed feedback (DFB) lasers designed expressly for analog requirements are used to transmit 42 continuous wave carriers according to the standard US CATV frequency plan. For the best lasers, when evaluated over 12 km of fiber, carrier to noise was >52 dB, composite second-order distortion was >70 dBc, and composite triple beat was >70 dBc. The relationship between measurements with continuous wave carriers and actual video signals is discussed. System design rules are offered. Properties that lead to superior analog performance are discussed. Data from 700 links indicate that composite third-order distortion generally scales with product count but that composite second-order distortion has a significant frequency-dependent component     

Predictor combination in binary decision-making situations.

Professional psychologists are often confronted with the task of making binary decisions about individuals, such as predictions about future behavior or employee selection. Test users familiar with linear models and Bayes's theorem are likely to assume that the accuracy of decisions is consistently improved by combination of outcomes across valid predictors. However, neither statistical method accurately estimates the increment in accuracy that results from use of additional predictors in the typical applied setting. It was demonstrated that the best single predictor often can perform better than do multiple predictors when the predictors are combined using methods common in applied settings. This conclusion is consistent with previous findings concerning G. Gigerenzer and D. Goldstein's (1996) "take the best" heuristic. Furthermore, the information needed to ensure an increment in fit over the best single predictor is rarely available. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)