A multistate outbreak of Salmonella enterica serotype typhimurium infection linked to raw milk consumption--Ohio, 2003

In December 2002, the Ohio Department of Health was notified of two children with Salmonella infection. Both had a history of drinking raw milk from a combination dairy-restaurant-petting zoo (dairy). The dairy was the only establishment in Ohio licensed to sell raw milk and reported 1.35 million visitors annually. We investigated to determine the extent of the outbreak and identify illness risk factors. A case patient was any person with pulsed-field gel electrophoresis-matched Salmonella enterica serotype Typhimurium from 30 November 2002 to 18 February 2003. Sixty-two met the confirmed case definition. Forty dairy case patient patrons were included in a case-control study; 56 controls were their well meal companions. Consumption of raw milk was found to be associated with illness (odds ratio, 45.1; 95% confidence interval, 8.8 to 311.9). The dairy discontinued selling raw milk. Because 27 other states still allow the sale of raw milk, awareness of the hazards of its consumption should be raised and relevant regulations carefully reviewed.     

The effect of solution annealing on the microstructural behavior of alloy 22 welds

Multipass gas tungsten arc welds of alloy 22 were subjected to solution annealing durations of 20 minutes, 24 hours, 72 hours, and 1 week at temperatures of 1075 °C, 1121 °C, 1200 °C, and 1300 °C. The specimens were studied in cross section by secondary electron microscopy to determine the effect of solution annealing on tetrahedrally close-packed (TCP) precipitate stability. Electron backscatter diffraction mapping was also performed on all of the specimens to determine the recrystallization behavior of the welds. It was found that complete TCP precipitate dissolution occurs after solution annealing at 1075 °C and 1121 °C for 24 hours, and at 1200 °C and 1300 °C for durations of 20 minutes. Regions of most rapid recrystallization were correlated to the regions of lowest solute content, highest plastic strain, and highest residual stresses. Texture analysis indicated that while the columnar dendrites originally present in the weld grew with a 〈001〉 orientation in the transverse direction (approximately opposite the heat flow direction), the recrystallized grains adopt a 〈101〉 orientation in the transverse direction when recrystallization and TCP phase dissolution occur simultaneously.     

The effect of solution annealing on the microstructural behavior of alloy 22 welds

Multipass gas tungsten are welds of alloy 22 were subjected to solution annealing durations of 20 minutes, 24 hours, 72 hours, and 1 week at temperatures of 1075°C, 1121°C, 1200°C, and 1300°C. The specimens were studied in cross section by secondary electron microscopy to determine the effect of solution annealing on tetrahedrally close-packed (TCP) precipitate stability. Electron backscatter diffraction mapping was also performed on all of the specimens to determine the recrystallization behavior of the welds. It was found that complete TCP precipitate dissolution occurs after solution annealing at 1075°C and 1121°C for 24 hours, and at 1200°C and 1300°C for durations of 20 minutes. Regions of most rapid recrystallization were correlated to the regions of lowest solute content, highest plastic strain, and highest residual stresses. Texture analysis indicated that while the columnar dendrites originally present in the weld grew with a <001> orientation in the transverse direction (approximately opposite the heat flow direction), the recrystallized grains adopt a <101> orientation in the transverse direction when recrystallization and TCP phase dissolution occur simultaneously.     

The effect of solution annealing on the microstructural behavior of alloy 22 welds

Multipass gas tungsten are welds of alloy 22 were subjected to solution annealing durations of 20 minutes, 24 hours, 72 hours, and 1 week at temperatures of 1075°C, 1121°C, 1200°C, and 1300°C. The specimens were studied in cross section by secondary electron microscopy to determine the effect of solution annealing on tetrahedrally close-packed (TCP) precipitate stability. Electron backscatter diffraction mapping was also performed on all of the specimens to determine the recrystallization behavior of the welds. It was found that complete TCP precipitate dissolution occurs after solution annealing at 1075°C and 1121°C for 24 hours, and at 1200°C and 1300°C for durations of 20 minutes. Regions of most rapid recrystallization were correlated to the regions of lowest solute content, highest plastic strain, and highest residual stresses. Texture analysis indicated that while the columnar dendrites originally present in the weld grew with a <001> orientation in the transverse direction (approximately opposite the heat flow direction), the recrystallized grains adopt a <101> orientation in the transverse direction when recrystallization and TCP phase dissolution occur simultaneously.     

Fenton digestion of milk for iodinalysis

Iodine is an essential micronutrient especially important in the neurodevelopment of infants. Spot samples of urinary iodine (UI) are used as an epidemiologic index of adult iodine nutrition. Individual infant iodine nutrition is of vital importance, but infant urine is difficult to collect, much less a 24 h sample. Monitoring the intake provides a pragmatic solution for determining infant iodine nutrition. Because of the high solids content of milk and the possible existence of iodine in an organically bound form, sample digestion is obligatory. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration, for example, uses wet ashing by HClO(4); special precautions and fume hoods are required. We present a method of Fenton digestion of human and bovine milk samples and infant formula. No specialized equipment or hazardous reagents are used; measurement is made by isotope dilution inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. In Fenton digestion, Fe(II) and H(2)O(2) oxidizes the sample. In an interlaboratory study, excellent agreement (r(2) = 0.9934) was observed with results obtained by HClO(4) digestion and Sandel-Kolthoff kinetic colorimetry. Average recoveries of iodide, triiodothyronine, and thyroxine ranged between 100% and 101%. Following digestion, iodine was found to exist entirely as iodide. Control of pH is imperative if loss cannot be corrected for by isotope dilution. Loss was below 20% for all samples when the pH was between 2.25 and 2.5.     

Digital image analysis of cigarette filter staining to estimate smoke exposure.

Sufficient variation exists in how people smoke each cigarette that the number of cigarettes smoked daily and the years of smoking represent only crude measures of exposure to the toxins in tobacco smoke. Previous research has shown that spent cigarette filters can provide information about how individuals smoke cigarettes. Digital image analysis has been used to identify filter vent blocking and may also provide an inexpensive, unobtrusive index of overall smoke exposure. A total of 1,124 cigarette butts smoked by 53 participants in a smoking topography study were imaged and analyzed. Imaging showed test-retest reliability of more than 95% among those smoking their own brand. Mean color scores (CIELAB system) showed acceptable stability (>.60) across days, paralleling the basic stability of smoking topography measures across waves. A principal components scoring showed that center tar staining, edge tar staining, and their interaction were significantly related to total smoke volume, accounting for 73% of the variation. Estimated smoke volume was a significant predictor of salivary cotinine when accounting for cigarettes smoked per day. These data suggest that digital image analysis of spent cigarette butts can serve as a reliable proxy measure of total smoke volume.     

The maximin gradual cover location problem

In this paper, we consider the multiple facility location problem with gradual cover. Gradual cover means that up to a certain distance from the facility a demand point is fully covered. Beyond another distance the demand point is not covered at all. Between these two distances the demand point is partially covered. When there are \(p\) facilities, the cover of each demand point can be calculated by a given formula. One objective in this setting is to find locations for \(p\) facilities that maximize the total cover. In this paper we consider another objective of maximizing the minimum cover of every demand point. This guarantees that every demand point is covered as much as possible and there are no demand points with low cover. The model is formulated and heuristic algorithms are proposed for its solution. We solved a real-life problem of locating cell phone towers in northern Orange County, California and demonstrated the solution approach on a set of 40 test problems.     

Effect of session length on treatment outcome for college students in brief therapy.

Ninety-four college students were examined to investigate the effects of session length (30- and 50-min "hours") on therapy success. A prescreening assessment consisting of the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory—2 and the College Adjustment Scale was conducted. Therapy was provided by either a licensed psychologist, social worker, or marriage and family counselor trained in brief therapy. On completion of a minimum of 8 therapy sessions, client adjustment and satisfaction were assessed. No difference was found in treatment effect or client satisfaction between the two treatment groups. Students reported greater adjustment after therapy independent of session length. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)