Stress dependence of water diffusion in epoxy resin

The effect of stress on the diffusion of water in glassy polymers is analytically treated. Utilizing the free volume concept the effect of stress on the free volume fraction is established and in turn is related to the diffusion coefficient yielding the following formula: D_σ = D_oe^{(6 to 10)σ/G} where D_σ and D_o are the diffusion coefficients in the presence and absence of stress respectively, G is the shear modulus, and σ is the stress. Experiments are described which demonstrate that in a bent epoxy bar, more water is picked up at the tension side than at the compression side. Theory and experiment are discussed and compared.     

Prototypic typology and the Borderline Personality Disorder.

Based on interview data from 76 18–45 yr old outpatients, the implications of a prototypic rather than a classical model of personality-disorder classification were demonstrated for DSM-III Axis II Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD). Heterogeneity of membership is described, and conditional probabilities are used to demonstrate the relative efficiency of single diagnostic criteria and combinations of criteria and the degree of overlap among BPD and other personality disorders. The conditional probability approach can be used to determine empirically the covariation of symptoms and to link the study of prototypicality to the individual patient rather than to the group. (17 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Predictors of smoking cessation among elderly smokers treated for nicotine dependence

OBJECTIVE: To examine outcomes and predictors of smoking cessation among elderly patients treated for nicotine dependence. DESIGN: Retrospective analysis of patients aged 65-82 who received a nicotine dependence consultation at the Mayo Medical Center between 1 April 1988 and 30 May 1992. Patients were contacted by telephone by a trained interviewer six months after the consultation and were sent a follow-up survey in August 1993. SETTING: Mayo Medical Center, Rochester, Minnesota, United States. SUBJECTS: A total of 613 patients (310 men, 303 women) with a mean age of 69.0 (SD 3.5) years were seen during the study period. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Point prevalence self-reported smoking status. Patients were considered abstinent if they self- reported not smoking (not even a puff) during the seven days before contact. RESULTS: At six-month follow up, 24.8% of the 613 patients reported abstinence from smoking. On multivariate analysis, smoking abstinence was more likely if patients were hospitalised at the time of the consultation, married to a non-smoking spouse, very motivated to stop smoking, and reported their longest time of previous abstinence to be less than a day or more than a month. The response rate to the mailed follow-up survey was 69.9% (429 of 613). The mean duration of follow up was 40.0 +/- 13.2 months following the consultation. Of the 429 patients, 103 (24.0%) reported abstinence from smoking and 326 (76.0%) were smoking at six-month follow up. Patients who reported abstinence at six months had a higher cessation rate at the last follow up (76.0%) compared with patients who were smoking at six-month follow up (33.0%, P < 0.001). For patients who were not smoking at six months, no factors were found to significantly predict abstinence at last follow up. For patients who were smoking at six months, factors associated with smoking cessation at last follow up were: more than a year as the longest time off cigarettes before the consultation; counsellor rating of less severe nicotine dependence; and older age at first regular smoking. CONCLUSIONS: Several predictors of smoking cessation were identified in this study which may be useful for tailoring smoking interventions for the elderly.


     

Nicotine dependence versus smoking prevalence: comparisons among countries and categories of smokers

OBJECTIVES: To collect available international data on nicotine dependence as defined by the Fagerstrom Test of Nicotine Dependence, and to compare levels of dependence among countries and categories of smokers. DATA SOURCES: Published and unpublished studies known to the authors and a search of EMBASE from 1985-1995. STUDY SELECTION: Studies included were those based on a nationally representative sample of a country's population, or a sample of smokers seeking cessation assistance. DATA SYNTHESIS: Smokers who seek help in stopping smoking are much more dependent than the average smoker. Men consistently score higher on dependence than women. Ex-smokers appear to have lower dependence than current smokers. A country with low smoking prevalence, the United States, seems to have smokers with higher dependence scores than countries where smoking is more prevalent (such as Austria and Poland). CONCLUSIONS: Successful tobacco control may result in a higher dependence among the remaining smokers (due to selective quitting by low-dependent smokers). The remaining highly dependent smokers may need more intensive treatment.


     

Enhancing marital enrichment through spirituality: Efficacy data for prayer focused relationship enhancement.

We examined 393 African American married couples assigned to (a) a culturally sensitive version of a widely disseminated relationship enhancement program (CS-PREP); (b) a similar version of the same program that also included a focus on prayer (PFP condition); or (c) an information-only control condition in which couples received a self-help version of the same program. Husbands averaged 40.5 years of age and wives averaged 38.9 years. We found a significant interaction between intervention and time of assessment, reflecting group differences in linear trends for the three conditions, with the two intervention conditions performing better than the control condition, and PFP producing superior outcomes to CS-PREP only for wives at post and marginally better results at 12-month follow-up. Results support continued exploration of the adjunctive use of prayer in the context of relationship enhancement programs where appropriate to make them more culturally sensitive. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Prospective study of high grade anal squamous intraepithelial neoplasia in a cohort of homosexual men: influence of HIV infection, immunosuppression and human papillomavirus infection

OBJECTIVE: To determine the risk of developing high grade anal squamous intraepithelial neoplasia (HG-AIN) in relation to HIV infection and immunosuppression, after controlling for the effects of human papillomavirus (HPV) infection. DESIGN: Prospective cohort study of 158 HIV-seropositive and 147 HIV-seronegative homosexual men presenting to a community-based clinic with initially negative anal cytologic and colposcopic findings. METHODS: Subjects completed self-administered questionnaires, underwent cytologic screening, and standardized unaided and colposcopic examination of the proximal anal canal for presence of abnormalities suggestive of AIN. Anal specimens were screened for HPV DNA. RESULTS: HG-AIN developed in eight (5.4%) and 24 (15.2%) HIV-seronegative and -seropositive men, respectively. Risk of HG-AIN among HIV-seronegative men was associated with detection of anal HPV types 16 or 18 by Southern transfer hybridization (STH), detection of HPV 16 or 18 at the lower levels by polymerase chain reaction but not by STH, and with number of positive HPV tests; HG-AIN risk among HIV-seropositive men was associated with detection of HPV 16 or 18 only by STH, detection of HPV types other than 16 or 18, CD4 count < or = 500 x 10(6)/l, and number of positive HPV tests. HIV-induced immunosuppression remained an independent predictor of HG-AIN after adjusting for type and level of detection of HPV; HIV infection predicted HG-AIN risk after adjustment for number of positive HPV tests. CONCLUSIONS: The association of HG-AIN with HIV, independent of HPV type, level of HPV detection and number of positive HPV tests, suggests that this increased risk cannot be entirely explained by an effect of HIV on HPV detection. Future studies focusing on factors more specific to the local microenvironment in the anal canal should help clarify these issues.     

Guided Jury Discretion in Capital Murder Cases: The Role of Declarative and Procedural Knowledge.

This article analyzes whether state-approved jury instructions adequately guide jury discretion in the penalty phase of first-degree murder trials. It examines Eighth Amendment jurisprudence regarding guided jury discretion, emphasizing the use of "empirical factors" to examine the quality of state-approved instructions. Psychological research and testimony on the topic of the comprehensibility of jury logical instructions are reviewed. Data from a recently completed simulation with 80 deliberating juries showed that current instructions do not adequately convey the concepts and processes essential to guiding penalty phase judgments. An additional simulation with 20 deliberating juries demonstrated that deliberation alone does not correct for jurors' errors in comprehension. The article concludes with recommendations for policy and future research. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Chromosomal instability is correlated with telomere erosion and inactivation of G2 checkpoint function in human fibroblasts expressing human papillomavirus type 16 E6 oncoprotein

Cell cycle checkpoints and tumor suppressor gene functions appear to be required for the maintenance of a stable genome in proliferating cells. In this study chromosomal destabilization was monitored in relation to telomere structure, lifespan control and G2 checkpoint function. Replicative senescence was inactivated in secondary cultures of human skin fibroblasts by expressing the human papillomavirus type 16 (HPV-16) E6 oncoprotein to inactivate p53. Chromosome aberrations were enumerated during in vitro aging of isogenic control (F5neo) and HPV-16E6-expressing (F5E6) fibroblasts. We found that structural and numerical aberrations in chromosomes were significantly increased in F5E6 cells during aging in vitro and fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) analysis using chromosome-specific probes demonstrated the occurrence of rearrangements involving chromosome 4 and 6 in genetically unstable F5E6 cells. Flow cytometry and karyotypic analyses revealed increased polyploidy and aneuploidy in F5E6 cells only at passages > 16, although these cells displayed defective mitotic spindle checkpoint function associated with inactivation of p53 at passages 5 and 16. G2 checkpoint function was confirmed to be gradually but progressively inactivated during in vitro aging of E6-expressing cells. Aging of F5neo fibroblasts was documented during in vitro passaging by induction of a senescence-associated marker, pH 6.0 lysosomal beta-galactosidase. F5E6 cells displayed extension of in vitro lifespan and did not induce beta-galactosidase at high passage. Erosion of telomeres during in vitro aging of telomerase-negative F5neo cells was demonstrated by Southern hybridization and by quantitative FISH analysis on an individual cell level. Telomeric signals diminished continuously as F5neo cells aged in vitro being reduced by 80% near the time of replicative senescence. Telomeric signals detected by FISH also decreased continuously during aging of telomerase-negative F5E6 cells, but telomeres appeared to be stabilized at passage 34 when telomerase was expressed. Chromosomal instability in E6-expressing cells was correlated (P < 0.05) with both loss of telomeric signals and inactivation of G2 checkpoint function. The results suggest that chromosomal stability depends upon a complex interaction among the systems of telomere length maintenance and cell cycle checkpoints.     

A test of differences in the literature history of four historical accounts of the quantum mechanics problem

This paper examines four historical accounts of the quantum mechanics problem in physics. The purpose is to describe the litrature used by the histories quantitatively using frequency of date of publication. Additionally, one of the histories was tested against the other three to determine differences. A Moments Test and a t Test were employed. The results indicated the literature history of quantum mechanics, when plotted as a function of frequency of publication date is non-normal, negatively skewed, and is platykurtic. The test for difference between the one history and the cumulative histories was non-significant. Interpretations of the results are discussed.