Prognostic Impact of Monocyte Count at Presentation in Mantle Cell Lymphoma

Increased number of circulating monocytes at presentation has been recently associated with shorter survival in Hodgkin lymphoma, follicular lymphoma and diffuse large B cell lymphoma. This study aimed to assess the prognostic impact of the absolute monocyte count (AMC) at diagnosis in mantle cell lymphoma (MCL). From the series of MCL cases recorded on the databases of the Oncology Institute of Southern Switzerland in Bellinzona (Switzerland) and the Division of Haematology of the Amedeo Avogadro University of Eastern Piedmont in Novara (Italy), the AMC at diagnosis was available in 97 cases. Cox regression was used for both univariate and multivariate analysis. With a median follow up of 7 years, the 5-year overall survival (OS) was 29% for patients with AMC >500/ul and 62% for patients with AMC

The Use of a Pressure-Indicating Sensor Film to Provide Feedback upon Hydrogel-Forming Microneedle Array Self-Application In Vivo

PURPOSE:
To evaluate the combination of a pressure-indicating sensor film with hydrogel-forming microneedle arrays, as a method of feedback to confirm MN insertion in vivo.
METHODS:
Pilot in vitro insertion studies were conducted using a Texture Analyser to insert MN arrays, coupled with a pressure-indicating sensor film, at varying forces into excised neonatal porcine skin. In vivo studies involved twenty human volunteers, who self-applied two hydrogel-forming MN arrays, one with a pressure-indicating sensor film incorporated and one without. Optical coherence tomography was employed to measure the resulting penetration depth and colorimetric analysis to investigate the associated colour change of the pressure-indicating sensor film.
RESULTS:
Microneedle insertion was achieved in vitro at three different forces, demonstrating the colour change of the pressure-indicating sensor film upon application of increasing pressure. When self-applied in vivo, there was no significant difference in the microneedle penetration depth resulting from each type of array, with a mean depth of 237 μm recorded. When the pressure-indicating sensor film was present, a colour change occurred upon each application, providing evidence of insertion.
CONCLUSIONS:
For the first time, this study shows how the incorporation of a simple, low-cost pressure-indicating sensor film can indicate microneedle insertion in vitro and in vivo, providing visual feedback to assure the user of correct application. Such a strategy may enhance usability of a microneedle device and, hence, assist in the future translation of the technology to widespread clinical use.

Is shyness context specific? Relation between shyness and online self-disclosure with and without a live webcam in young adults

The Internet provides a new tool to investigate old questions in experimental social psychology regarding Person x Context interaction. We examined the interaction of self-reported shyness and context on computer-mediated communication measures. Sixty female undergraduates unfamiliar were paired in dyads and engaged in a 10 min free chat conversation on the Internet with and without a live webcam. Free chat conversations were archived, transcripts were objectively coded for communication variables, and a linear mixed model used for data analysis of dyadic interaction was performed on each communication measure. As predicted, increases in self-reported shyness were significantly related to decreases in the number of prompted self-disclosures (after controlling for the number of opportunities to self-disclose) only in the webcam condition. Self-reported shyness was not related to the number of prompted self-disclosures in the no webcam condition, suggesting that shyness was context dependent. The present study appears to be the first to objectively code measures of Internet behaviour in relation to the study of personality in general and shyness in particular. Theoretical and clinical implications for understanding the contextual nature of shyness are discussed. (C) 2006 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Organisational Self-Evaluation and Teacher Education for Community Relations in a Transforming Society?

During 2004, the School of Education at the University of Ulster embarked on an innovative three-year project designed to embed community relations objectives within initial teacher education. With the advent of more peaceful times in Northern Ireland, this was a precipitous time for initial teacher educators to review the preparation given to beginner teachers for teaching in an increasingly pluralist society emerging from conflict. The present paper reports on one very specific and time-limited element of the broader project. That is, development work designed to investigate the possibilities of using processes of self-review and evaluation as a lever for improvements in initial teacher education for community relations. Following a brief contextualisation, the background to, and the development of, a set of materials designed to support rigorous and systematic self-review of all aspects of provision in a university-based initial teacher education department is described. The Community Relations Index for Initial Teacher Education (Cr-ITE) was envisaged as being of use to initial teacher education establishments in order to help teacher educators take responsibility for rigorous learning from their practice, whilst placing inclusive values at the centre of organisational development. The final section includes further critical reflection on the role of organisational self-review in transforming teacher education for inclusion in a society emerging from longstanding communal conflict.

Quantum ground state of self-organized atomic crystals in optical resonators

Cold atoms, driven by a laser and simultaneously coupled to the quantum field of an optical resonator, may self-organize in periodic structures. These structures are supported by the optical lattice, which emerges from the laser light they scatter into the cavity mode and form when the laser intensity exceeds a threshold value. We study theoretically the quantum ground state of these structures above the pump threshold of self-organization by mapping the atomic dynamics of the self-organized crystal to a Bose-Hubbard model. We find that the quantum ground state of the self-organized structure can be the one of a Mott insulator, depending on the pump strength of the driving laser. For very large pump strengths, where the intracavity-field intensity is maximum and one would expect a Mott-insulator state, we find intervals of parameters where the phase is compressible. These states could be realized in existing experimental setups.

Peer tutoring in reading: The effects of role and organization on two dimensions of self-esteem

Background. Paired reading (PR) is an application of peer tutoring. It has been extensively researched, and its efficacy across a range of outcomes has been established. Benefits include improvements in key reading skills, and also in affective aspects of learning. Several studies have shown gains in self-esteem, although measurement methods have varied, and the model of self-esteem has rarely been clearly articulated.
Aims. To investigate the changes in self-esteem of children participating in a randomized trial of PR over a 15-week treatment period. To investigate the relative contribution of self-worth and self-competence to any gains in self-esteem. To investigate whether the pattern of change differs in children who take on different roles in the PR process.
Participants. The participants comprised a subset of a large-scale randomized trial of peer learning (The Fife Peer Learning Project). Four schools were randomly selected from schools allocated to the same-age PR condition, and four schools from those allocated to the cross-age PR condition. The same-age group consisted of 87 primary 6 children (10–11 years old). The cross-age group consisted of 81 primary 6 children. The controls, from schools randomly selected from a neighbouring authority, consisted of 92 primary 6 children.
Method. A pre–post design employing self-report measures of self-esteem. Rosenberg’s Self-Esteem Scale was used, with scores analysed for worth and competence. The treatment period was 15 weeks, with the participants following a prescribed PR process.
Results. Significant pre–post gains were noted in self-esteem, driven predominantly by improved beliefs about competence, in both same-age and cross-age conditions, but not for controls. Gains were also seen in self-worth in the cross-age condition. Further analyses of the influence of organizational condition (same-age or cross-age) and role played (tutor vs. tutee) showed significant differences between same-age tutors and cross-age tutors in relation to self-worth. Effect sizes were generally small or moderate.
Conclusions. The findings provide further support for the belief that PR can enhance self-esteem. Importantly, the use of a two-dimensional model provides extra information about self-perceptions in PR contexts: first, the central role of self- competence; and second, the gains in self-worth which are associated with tutoring younger children (but not same-age peers). This new information has educational significance for schools considering the potential of peer tutoring and the benefits of different organizational conditions.

They’re not racist…’ Prejudice denial, mitigation and suppression in dialogue

Social scientific work on the suppression, mitigation or denial of prejudiced attitudes has tended to focus on the strategic self-presentation and self-monitoring undertaken by individual social actors on their own behalf. In this paper, we argue that existing perspectives might usefully be extended to incorporate three additional considerations. First, that social actors may, on some occasions, act to defend not only themselves, but also others from charges of prejudice. Second, that over the course of any social encounter, interactants may take joint responsibility for policing conversation and for correcting and suppressing the articulation of prejudiced talk. Third, that a focus on the dialogic character of conversation affords an appreciation of the ways in which the status of any particular utterance, action or event as 'racist' or 'prejudiced' may constitute a social accomplishment. Finally, we note the logical corollary of these observations - that in everyday life, the occurrence of 'racist discourse' is likely to represent a collaborative accomplishment, the responsibility for which is shared jointly between the person of the speaker and those other co-present individuals who occasion, reinforce or simply fail to suppress it.