Effects of counselor touch on counseling outcome.

Examined the effect(s) of counselor touch on client evaluation of counseling and level of self-exploration. 25 counselors and 100 undergraduates participated. Nonverbal condition (touch, no touch), sex of counselor, and sex of client were the factors. Each S participated in a single individualized vocational counseling session to discuss their performance on the Strong-Campbell Interest Inventory. All 50-min counseling sessions included 6 clusters of verbal and nonverbal procedures that were administered by counselors at predetermined periods of time. Data were collected by means of questionnaires (Counseling Evaluation Inventory and Depth of Self-Exploration Scale) and audiotapes that were submitted to independent raters for analysis. Contrary to previous studies, counseling touch did not have a significant effect. (16 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Group psychotherapy with older adults: The value of an expressive approach.

Examines the value of a nonstructured, expressive approach (NEA) to group therapy with older adults, which stemmed from the authors' work with outpatients (aged 62–89 yrs). Experience during 10 mo with the NEA group revealed expected as well as unexpected group dynamics and issues. Therapists should recognize older individuals' abilities to define their own perspective on the phase of life through which they are passing, even when these definitions are contrary to technique- or theory-based expectations. The NEA stresses the importance of maintaining flexibility to identify normal and desirable coping mechanisms, defenses, and age-related personality changes. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Trends in counselor attitude about women's roles.

Measured counselor attitudes regarding women 3 times over a span of 6 yrs in Minnesota to chart attitude changes that have accompanied increasing career development interests on the part of women. An 18-item survey was constructed to tap 3 dimensions of attitude, including attitudes regarding the dual role of mother and worker, perceptions of sex role definition, and expectations regarding the societal impact of women. Changes from 1968 through 1971 to 1974 (139, 143, and 179 responses in 1968, 1971, and 1974, respectively) suggest more acceptance of the dual role and broader sex role definitions. Differential attitude changes based on sex and age of counselor are examined. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

On the Role of Dynamic Models in Quantitative Posturography

Conventional approaches to posturography typically make use of force-plate instrumentation to measure the movement of the center of pressure of ground reaction forces during quiet standing. This paper shows that such information can be obtained indirectly by using a four-mass inverted pendulum dynamic model for the body as the basis for processing motion data transmitted directly from television cameras to an on-line computer. Preliminary experimental results suggest that this approach may eventually yield improved clinical procedures.     

Determining an upper bound for a class of rectangular packing problems

Solutions to the two-dimensional, rectangular orthogonal packing problem rarely guarantee optimality, as exact algorithms require a prohibitive amount of computing time. A means of calculating the maximum number of boxes which can be fitted would be useful, both as a measure of optimality, and as an aspiration level. Existing estimates are accurate for approximately 15% of problems typically encountered in pallet loading applications. This paper discusses a technique for reducing the loading area before applying these estimates and shows that their effectiveness can be increased to provide an exact solution for over 70% of a random data sample.     

Impact of academic performance pattern on assigned grade and predicted performance.

Investigated how individuals use information about a target student's past academic performance to evaluate that performance and to predict future performance. 12 linear and nonlinear performance sequences, each ostensibly representing the performance of a different 1st-, 6th-, or 12th-grade student, were judged by 70 undergraduates. Results indicate that although the target's final performance was an important determinant of Ss' responses, a simple recency model did not adequately account for the data. In addition, differences emerged between Ss' evaluations of the target's past performance and predictions of the target's future performance. Contrary to expectations, the target's grade level did not significantly influence evaluations or predictions. The importance of observers' reactions to nonlinear as well as linear performance patterns is discussed in the context of clarifying teacher expectancy effects. (13 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Improvement of immunodetection of bacterial spore antigen by ultrasonic cavitation

Ultrasonic cavitation was employed to enhance sensitivity of bacterial spore immunoassay detection, specifically, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and resonant mirror (RM) sensing. Bacillus spore suspensions were exposed to high-power ultrasound in a tubular sonicator operated at 267 kHz in both batch and flow modes. The sonicator was designed to deliver high output power and is in a form that can be cooled efficiently to avoid thermal denaturation of antigen. The 30-s batch and cooled flow (0.3 mL/min) sonication achieved an approximately 20-fold increase in ELISA sensitivity compared to unsonicated spores by ELISA. RM sensing of sonicated spores achieved detection sensitivity of approximately 10(6) spores/mL, whereas unsonicated spores were undetectable at the highest concentration tested. Improvements in detection were associated with antigen released from the spores. Equilibrium temperature increase in the tubular sonicator was limited to 14 K after 30 min and was maintained for 6 h with cooling and flow (0.3 mL/min). The work described here demonstrates the utility of the tubular sonicator for the improvement in the sensitivity of the detection of spores and its suitability as an in-line component of a rapid detection system.     

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and relaxation spectrum analysis as methods to investigate swelling in whey protein gels

Effective means for controlled delivery of nutrients and nutraceuticals are needed. Whey protein-based gels, as a model system and as a potential delivery system, exhibit pH-dependent swelling when placed in aqueous solutions. Understanding the physics that govern gel swelling is thus important when designing gel-based delivery platforms. The extent of swelling over time was monitored gravimetrically. In addition to gravimetric measurements, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) a real-time noninvasive imaging technique that quantified changes in geometry and water content of these gels was utilized. Heat-set whey protein gels were prepared at pH 7 and swelling was monitored in aqueous solutions with pH values of 2.5, 7, and 10. Changes in dimension over time, as characterized by the number of voxels in an image, were correlated to gravimetric measurements. Excellent correlations between mass uptake and volume change (R(2)= 0.99) were obtained for the gels in aqueous solutions at pH 7 and 10, but not for gels in the aqueous solution at pH 2.5. To provide insight into the mechanisms for water uptake, nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) relaxation times were measured in independent experiments. The relaxation spectrum for the spin-spin relaxation time (T(2)) showed the presence of 3 proton pools for pH 7 and 10 trials and 4 proton pools for pH 2.5 trials. Results demonstrate that MRI and NMR relaxation measurements provided information about swelling in whey protein gels that can constitute a new means for investigating and developing effective delivery systems for foods.     

Human milk fatty acid composition from nine countries varies most in DHA

Many published studies of breast milk FA composition are limited to populations from one or two countries. We aimed to examine the degree to which FA compositions vary across a number of diverse populations. Because diet and maternal adipose stores influence breast milk FA composition, differences in FA composition between groups most likely reflect habitual dietary differences. Approximately 50 breast milk samples (full breast expression) were collected from women in Australia, Canada, Chile, China, Japan, Mexico, Philippines, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The proportion of saturated FA was relatively constant among countries, with the exception of the Philippines, where levels of lauric and myristic acids were elevated (means greater than two times the mean of most other countries). Monounsaturated FA also varied little, with the exception of low levels of oleic acid in the Philippines and high levels of erucic acid in China. Although arachidonic acid (C20∶4n−6) levels were similar among all countries (means ranging from 0.36 wt% to 0.49 wt%), mean DHA (C22∶6n−3) levels ranged from 0.17 to 0.99 wt%, with the highest levels in Japanese milk and the lowest levels in Canadian and U.S. samples. The results of this study demonstrate that the proportion of saturated and monounsaturated FA are relatively constant across a large number of countries, whereas the level of some of the PUFA, especially DHA, are highly variable.