A QSAR-like analysis of the adsorption of endocrine disrupting compounds, pharmaceuticals, and personal care products on modified activated carbons

Rapid small-scale column tests (RSSCTs) examined the removal of 29 endocrine disrupting compounds (EDCs) and pharmaceutical/personal care products (PPCPs). The RSSCTs employed three lignite variants: HYDRODARCO 4000 (HD4000), steam-modified HD4000, and methane/steam-modified HD4000. RSSCTs used native Lake Mead, NV water spiked with 100–200 ppt each of 29 EDCs/PPCPs. For the steam and methane/steam variants, breakthrough occurred at 14,000–92,000 bed volumes (BV); and this was 3–4 times more bed volumes than for HD4000. Most EDC/PPCP bed life data were describable by a normalized quantitative structure–activity relationship (i.e. QSAR-like model) of the form:

where TPV is the pore volume, ρ_mc is the apparent density, CV is the molecular volume, C_o is the concentration, ⁸χ_p depicts the molecule's compactness, and FOSA is the molecule's hydrophobic surface area.     

Multiple Risk Expert Systems Interventions: Impact of Simultaneous Stage-Matched Expert System Interventions for Smoking, High-Fat Diet, and Sun Exposure in a Population of Parents.

Three stage-based expert system interventions for smoking, high-fat diet, and unsafe sun exposure were evaluated in a sample of 2,460 parents of teenagers. Eighty-four percent of the eligible parents were enrolled in a 2-arm randomized control trial, with the treatment group receiving individualized feedback reports for each of their relevant behaviors at 0, 6, and 12 months as well as a multiple behavior manual. At 24 months, the expert system outperformed the comparison condition across all 3 risk behaviors, resulting in 22% of the participants in action or maintenance for smoking (vs. 16% for the comparison condition), 34% for diet (vs. 26%), and 30% for sun exposure (vs. 22%). Proactive, home-based, and stage-matched expert systems can produce significant multiple behavior changes in at-risk populations where the majority of participants are not prepared to change. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Adaptive spatial alignment and strategic perceptual-motor control

When starting limb and target locations were simultaneously visible in a visuomotor task, performance during prism exposure was nearly perfect, but aftereffects were absent. When starting limb location was not visible, accurate exposure performance was slow to develop, but aftereffects were substantial. Adaptive spatial alignment of sensorimotor spaces and strategic perceptual-motor control to coordinate sensorimotor systems are distinct processes. However, realignment is dependent on whether the exposure task evokes control strategies that enable detection of misalignment. If the task can be performed solely by coding the visible difference between limb and target locations, misalignment detection is disabled. If movement is initiated by target location and then the limb is controlled by the visible difference between target and limb, the discordance between initialized and terminal locations enables misalignment detection and realignment.     

Fluconazole disk diffusion susceptibility testing of Candida species

We describe a simple procedure for detecting fluconazole-resistant yeasts by a disk diffusion method. Forty clinical Candida sp. isolates were tested on RPMI-glucose agar with either 25- or 50-microgram fluconazole disks. With 25-microgram disks, zones of inhibition of >/=20 mm at 24 h accurately identified 29 of 29 isolates for which MICs were /=27 mm identified 28 of 29 such isolates. All 11 isolates for which MICs were >8 microgram/ml were identified by using either disk. Disk diffusion may be a useful screening method for clinical microbiology laboratories.     

Sociopolitical diversity in psychology: The case for pluralism.

Psychology celebrates diversity, recognizes the value and legitimacy of diverse beliefs, and strives to be inclusive. Yet, the profession lacks sociopolitical diversity. Most psychologists are politically liberal, and conservatives are vastly underrepresented in the profession. Moreover, when sociopolitical views guide the research, advocacy, or professional practice of psychologists, those views most often are liberal. The lack of political diversity in psychology has unintended negative consequences for research, policy advocacy, clinical practice, the design and implementation of social interventions, and professional education. It excludes or marginalizes conservatives and conservative views, having detrimental effects on the profession in each of these areas. This article examines the importance of political diversity and the negative consequences of its absence and provides strategies for increasing sociopolitical pluralism in psychology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Implicit polynomials, orthogonal distance regression, and the closest point on a curve

Implicit polynomials (i.e., multinomials) have a number of properties that make them attractive for modeling curves and surfaces in computer vision. The paper considers the problem of finding the best fitting implicit polynomial (or algebraic curve) to a collection of points in the plane using an orthogonal distance metric. Approximate methods for orthogonal distance regression have been shown by others to be prone to the problem of cusps in the solution and this is confirmed here. Consequently, this work focuses on exact methods for orthogonal distance regression. The most difficult and costly part of exact methods is computing the closest point on the algebraic curve to an arbitrary point in the plane. The paper considers three methods for achieving this in detail. The first is the standard Newton's method, the second is based on resultants which are making a resurgence in computer graphics, and the third is a novel technique based on successive circular approximations to the curve. It is shown that Newton's method is the quickest, but that it can fail sometimes even with a good initial guess. The successive circular approximation algorithm is not as fast, but is robust. The resultant method is the slowest of the three, but does not require an initial guess. The driving application of this work was the fitting of implicit quartics in two variables to thinned oblique ionogram traces.     

Distributed Bragg reflector enhancement of electroluminescence from a silicon nanocrystal light emitting device

We demonstrate distributed Bragg reflector (DBR) enhanced electroluminescence from a silicon nanocrystal-based light emitting device. An a-Si/SiO₂ superlattice containing silicon nanocrystals serves as the intrinsic layer in an n-i-n device that is embedded in a DBR cavity consisting of alternating layers of silicon and silicon dioxide. The entire structure, including DBR, superlattice and contact layers, is deposited by plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition. The photoluminescence, electroluminescence (EL) and optical output power are measured and compared to a reference device. The DBR is found to enhance the peak EL intensity by a factor of 25 and the external quantum and power conversion efficiencies by a factor of 2.     

Microwave-evoked brainstem potentials in cats.

Rectangular pulse-modulated microwave radiation has been shown to produce auditory responses in mammals. It is therefore reasonable to explore the possibility of using microwave pulses to achieve an estimate of sensori-neural involvement in the objective evaluation of human hearing and to assess the presence of tumors or brainstem lesions in patients with neurological disorders. In this paper we shall show that microwave-evoked auditory response of cats closely resembles that evoked by acoustic pulse. We shall also give preliminary results obtained from electrodes fastened to the vertex of the skull after successive coagulative production of lesions in the inferior colliculus, lateral lemniscus, and superior olivary nucleus.     

Estimating sludge loadings to land based on trace metal sorption in soil: effect of dissolved organo-metallic complexes

This paper describes the results of research examining the effect of dissolved organo-metallic complexes of copper (Cu) and zinc (Zn) from sewage sludge leachate on sorption by a humic-gley soil A-horizon, and the influence of such complexes on resultant sludge loading estimates. Sorption was described with Linear, Freundlich or Langmuir equations, and compared between a sample of sludge leachate (containing 97.4% of Cu and 63.2% of Zn as dissolved organo-metallic complexes) and a reference solution (which mimicked the leachate, except for a lack of dissolved organic material). This comparison revealed that dissolved organo-metallic complexes significantly depressed Cu and Zn sorption in the study soil. The isotherm equations were then used to estimate sludge-derived Cu and Zn loadings to soil in order to result in an "allowable" output concentration from the soil solution to the surrounding environment. These loadings, together with soil bulk density and "availability" of sludge Cu and Zn, were incorporated in a preliminary model to estimate sludge application rates which are acceptable in terms of off-site movement of these metals through leaching losses. In the absence of dissolved organo-metallic complexes (sorption from the reference solution), levels of Cu and Zn sorption in the study soil indicated a sludge application rate of approximately 3500 kg/ha. However, when Cu and Zn sorption from the sludge leachate with dissolved organo-metallic complexes was considered, calculated loading rates were reduced to approximately 690 kg-sludge/ha. This suggests that for sludge loading estimates based on soil sorption characteristics to be relevant to environmental protection, the sorption depressing effect of dissolved organo-metallic complexes should be quantitatively considered.