Progressive gross changes in renal medullary composition in pregnant rats

The biochemical composition of the renal medulla and the blood pressures of pregnant rats and nonpregnant controls were compared on days 15, 18, 20, and 22 of pregnancy. Deoxyribonucleic acid and protein content of the renal medulla changed together with the tissue weight (wet weight) during gestation except on day 20 when a slight increase in protein was observed. However, the glycerophospholipids (phosphatidyl ethanolamine, phosphatidyl choline, and phosphatidyl serine) and sphingomyelin showed significant increases throughout the latter stages of pregnancy with the maxima in most cases occurring on day 20 of the gestation period. Medullary hypertrophy and increased lipid content per cell coexist with the decrease in blood pressure and may indicate peak activity in production of antihypertensive renal lipids. Authorized for publication on 3/17/76 as paper No. 5040 in journal series of Pa. Ag. Exp. Station. Submitted to the Graduate School of The Pennsylvania State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Ph.D.     

Thin alloy zone crystallisation

The basic principles of a family of crystal-growing techniques in which crystallisation of a substance is achieved via diffusion through a thin alloy zone (TAZ) from a third phase (solid, liquid, or vapour) are described. Crystallisation is achieved by the application of a gradient of a thermodynamic potential across the zone and various methods of establishing such a gradient are considered.A theory predicting the velocity of a TAZ along a solid charge, published previously (D. T. J. Hurle, J. B. Mullin, and E. R. Pike, Phil. Mag. 9 (1964) 423), is extended to include the case where one of the solid phases is metastable. Expressions for the gradient of constitutional supercooling in the zone are derived for conventional and thin alloy zone crystallisation (TAZC) processes. It is shown that the important advantage in the use of a TAZ is the dramatic reduction in the supercooling at a given velocity compared to conventional processes.A rationalisation of various published techniques of crystal growth within the concepts of TAZC is presented and some existing and potential applications of TAZC processes are reviewed.     

Supply and demand for road aggregates

Estimates have been made of the production and use of the various materials used as road aggregates for 1966–67, and the regional distribution was also calculated. Future demand for road aggregates is considered, and it is estimated that the total demand by 1977 will be ～ 85 × 106 tonnes per annum, the overall growth rate until then being ～ 6% compound per annum.     

A cytokine cascade including prostaglandin E2, IL-4, and IL-10 is responsible for UV-induced systemic immune suppression

Even though all of the energy contained with the UV wavelengths of solar radiation is absorbed within the epidermis and upper layers of the dermis, UV irradiation can suppress immune responses to Ag introduced at distant nonirradiated sites. In addition, data from a number of laboratories have suggested that one consequence of UV exposure is suppressed Th1 cell activation with normal or enhanced Th2 cell activation, resulting in a shift to a Th2-like phenotype. Cytokines secreted by UV-irradiated keratinoctyes, particularly IL-10, have been shown to play a major role in the induction of systemic immune suppression and differential activation of T helper cell subsets. Although IL-10 can influence Th1 cell activation by altering Ag presentation and suppressing IFN-gamma secretion, the major signal for the development of a Th2 response is IL-4. Here we tested the hypothesis that UV irradiation induces IL-4 secretion. UV irradiation induced serum IL-4 in a dose-dependent fashion. Injecting UV-irradiated mice with anti-IL-4 blocked immune suppression. We could find no evidence, however, supporting secretion of IL-4 by UV-irradiated keratinocytes. Rather, we suggest that prostaglandins released by irradiated keratinocytes induce serum IL-4 since treating UV-irradiated mice with a cyclooxygenase-2 inhibitor blocked its production. Moreover, we found that treating UV-irradiated mice with anti-IL-4 suppressed serum IL-10 levels. In addition, injecting normal mice with PGE2 induced serum IL-4 and IL-10. We suggest that UV exposure activates a cytokine cascade (PGE2 --> IL-4 --> IL-10) that ultimately results in systemic immune suppression.     

A mechanism of T cell regulation of Epstein-Barr virus latency

The tumorigenic potential of B lymphocytes latently infected with EBV is effectively controlled by T cell immunity. The mechanisms of this T cell regulation, however, are incompletely understood. In this study, T lymphocytes were found to proliferate in response to serum-free supernatants of EBV-immortalized cells and to deplete them of growth factors required by the immortalized B cells for autocrine growth. Lactic acid was reported to account for approximately 90% of the autocrine growth factor activity in serum-free supernatants of EBV-immortalized cell lines. Synthetic lactic acid was now found to promote growth in activated T cells. In addition, B cell suppression resulting from coculture of EBV-infected B cells with autologous T cells was reversed by the addition of supernatants from EBV-immortalized cell lines. Thus, T cell competition for growth factors produced and utilized by EBV-immortalized B cells for continuous proliferation may represent an important and novel regulatory mechanism for the maintenance of EBV latency in B lymphocytes.     

Two-dimensional cancellation neglect a review and suggested method of analysis

Directional bias on cancellation has thus far not been standardized. While cancellation tasks are primarily used to assess lateral performance asymmetries, they may also reveal two-dimensional (i.e., combined lateral and radial) neglect patterns. We propose a method to evaluate and report cancellation neglect regardless of whether the neglect pattern is strictly unilateral or two-dimensional. Our method establishes the location of the geographic center of all neglected stimuli relative to the page center by averaging their Cartesian coordinates. This "neglect center" is reported in polar coordinates to indicate its distance and direction from the page center. We apply our method to published examples of two-dimensional neglect. We find that neglect centers from different cancellation performances may not be statistically distinct even though they may occupy different quadrants. In addition, the net direction of neglect found by the coordinate method may differ from that inferred from measuring differences in quadrant omission totals. The suitability of the coordinate vs. the quadrant method will depend on the mechanism hypothesized for visuospatial exploration under particular test conditions. Using both approaches may detect different attentional biases operating during the same task. The coordinate method is appropriate for conventional cancellation testing. By incorporating the precise locations of all neglected stimuli and determining the net neglect direction in two dimensions, the technique may stimulate more comprehensive explanations for directional bias.     

Information from social networking sites: Context collapse and ambiguity in the hiring process

Forming impressions of job candidates is a challenging process, one characterized by ambiguity brought about by the uncertainty associated with making decisions and judgments. To reduce ambiguity, hiring professionals have established policies and procedures to facilitate the sourcing and use of information about a candidate. However, recently, a public source of information is increasingly being used—information from social networking sites (SNSs). While conventional wisdom says more information is better and can help make decisions less ambiguous, this relationship may not be as straightforward as expected when facing assessments of candidates. This paper examines two such aspects, information‐task quality and context collapse, and their collective impact on ambiguity when making an assessment of a job candidate. Using data from an online survey‐based experiment, the findings suggest information from SNSs can be useful, yet can create ambiguity for decision makers because of context collapse made possible by SNS technologies.     

THE INSULATION OF ROOFS OF GLASS FURNACES

It is unjustifiable to assume that a furnace roof cannot be safely insulated. The principal variables controlling the possibility of safe insulation are: (1) temperature of bath below melting point of silica brick roof; (2) transparency of the atmosphere within the furnace, i.e., no possibility of impingement of dense hot flames. The data of this paper are taken from observations on a glass tank furnace in which the combustion rate (B.t.u. per cu. ft. per hr.) is very low. A testing method is described which will show whether or not insulation is safe for any given furnace, considering only the temperature of the inside face of the brick as affected by the application of insulation. The possibility that if the roof is insulated the progress of fluxing of the silica brick by dust and fumes within the furnace may be accelerated because the higher mean temperature of the brick is considered. In the furnace observed, corrosive dust and fumes were in the gases to a considerable extent, yet no unusual deterioration of the roof brick was noted after three years of insulation under continuous operation.     

What do women want? Facialmetric assessment of multiple motives in the perception of male facial physical attractiveness.

The multiple motive hypothesis of physical attractiveness suggests that women are attracted to men whose appearances elicit their nurturant feelings, who appear to possess sexual maturity and dominance characteristics, who seem sociable, approachable, and of high social status. Those multiple motives may cause people to be attracted to individuals who display an optimal combination of neotenous, mature, and expressive facial features, plus desirable grooming attributes. Three quasi-experiments demonstrated that men who possessed the neotenous features of large eyes, the mature features of prominent cheekbones and a large chin, the expressive feature of a big smile, and high-status clothing were seen as more attractive than other men. Further supporting the multiple motive hypothesis, the 2nd and 3rd studies indicated that impressions of attractiveness had strong relations with selections of men to date and to marry but had a curvilinear relation with perceptions of a baby face vs a mature face. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)