The 2004 Queensland State Election

This chapter is a detailed analysis of the most recent state election and places it in the context of the preceding (2001) election. The state is divided into regions for analytic reasons with each being dissected to demonstrate that, in a decentralised state such as Queensland, the aggregate result conceals certain key variations as among the state's identifiable regional components.

The Drop Technique: a Method to Control the Amount of Fluoride Dentifrice Used by Young Children

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the amount of dentifrice applied to the toothbrush by school children using a liquid dentifrice (drop technique), when compared to toothpaste. Materials and Methods: A total of 178 school children (4-8 years old) from two cities in Brazil (Bauru and Bariri) participated in the present two-part crossover study. Children from Bauru received training regarding tooth-brushing techniques and use of dentifrice before data collection. In each phase, the amount of toothpaste or liquid dentifrice applied by the children to the toothbrush was measured, using a portable analytical balance (+/- 0.01 g). Data were tested by analysis of covariance (Ancova) and linear regression (p < 0.05). Results: The mean (+/- standard deviation) amounts of toothpaste and liquid dentifrice applied to the toothbrushes for children from Bauru were 0.41 +/- 0.20 g and 0.15 +/- 0.06 g, respectively. For children from Bariri, the amounts applied were and 0.48 +/- 0.24 g and 0.14 +/- 0.05 g, respectively. The amount of toothpaste applied was significantly larger than the amount of liquid dentifrice for both cities. Children from Bariri applied a significantly larger amount of toothpaste, when compared to those from Bauru. However, for the liquid dentifrice, there was no statistically significant difference between the cities. A significant correlation between the amount of toothpaste applied and the age of the children was verified, but the same was not found for the liquid dentifrice. Conclusion: The use of the drop technique reduced and standardised the amount of dentifrice applied to the toothbrush, which could reduce the risk of dental fluorosis for young children.

Power of the joint segregation analysis method for testing mixed major-gene and polygene inheritance models of quantitative traits

Understanding the genetic architecture of quantitative traits can greatly assist the design of strategies for their manipulation in plant-breeding programs. For a number of traits, genetic variation can be the result of segregation of a few major genes and many polygenes (minor genes). The joint segregation analysis (JSA) is a maximum-likelihood approach for fitting segregation models through the simultaneous use of phenotypic information from multiple generations. Our objective in this paper was to use computer simulation to quantify the power of the JSA method for testing the mixed-inheritance model for quantitative traits when it was applied to the six basic generations: both parents (P-1 and P-2), F-1, F-2, and both backcross generations (B-1 and B-2) derived from crossing the F-1 to each parent. A total of 1968 genetic model-experiment scenarios were considered in the simulation study to quantify the power of the method. Factors that interacted to influence the power of the JSA method to correctly detect genetic models were: (1) whether there were one or two major genes in combination with polygenes, (2) the heritability of the major genes and polygenes, (3) the level of dispersion of the major genes and polygenes between the two parents, and (4) the number of individuals examined in each generation (population size). The greatest levels of power were observed for the genetic models defined with simple inheritance; e.g., the power was greater than 90% for the one major gene model, regardless of the population size and major-gene heritability. Lower levels of power were observed for the genetic models with complex inheritance (major genes and polygenes), low heritability, small population sizes and a large dispersion of favourable genes among the two parents; e.g., the power was less than 5% for the two major-gene model with a heritability value of 0.3 and population sizes of 100 individuals. The JSA methodology was then applied to a previously studied sorghum data-set to investigate the genetic control of the putative drought resistance-trait osmotic adjustment in three crosses. The previous study concluded that there were two major genes segregating for osmotic adjustment in the three crosses. Application of the JSA method resulted in a change in the proposed genetic model. The presence of the two major genes was confirmed with the addition of an unspecified number of polygenes.

R-matrices and the tensor product graph method

A systematic method for constructing trigonometric R-matrices corresponding to the (multiplicity-free) tensor product of any two affinizable representations of a quantum algebra or superalgebra has been developed by the Brisbane group and its collaborators. This method has been referred to as the Tensor Product Graph Method. Here we describe applications of this method to untwisted and twisted quantum affine superalgebras.

Adsorption in slit-like pores of activated carbons: Improvement of the Horvath and Kawazoe method

Anew thermodynamic approach has been developed in this paper to analyze adsorption in slitlike pores. The equilibrium is described by two thermodynamic conditions: the Helmholtz free energy must be minimal, and the grand potential functional at that minimum must be negative. This approach has led to local isotherms that describe adsorption in the form of a single layer or two layers near the pore walls. In narrow pores local isotherms have one step that could be either very sharp but continuous or discontinuous benchlike for a definite range of pore width. The latter reflects a so-called 0 --> 1 monolayer transition. In relatively wide pores, local isotherms have two steps, of which the first step corresponds to the appearance of two layers near the pore walls, while the second step corresponds to the filling of the space between these layers. All features of local isotherms are in agreement with the results obtained from the density functional theory and Monte Carlo simulations. The approach is used for determining pore size distributions of carbon materials. We illustrate this with the benzene adsorption data on activated carbon at 20, 50, and 80 degreesC, argon adsorption on activated carbon Norit ROX at 87.3 K, and nitrogen adsorption on activated carbon Norit R1 at 77.3 K.

Effects of additional sequences directly downstream from the AUG on the expression of GFP gene

We have studied the expression of the green fluorescent protein (GFP) gene to gain more understanding of the effects of additional nucleotide triplets (codons) downstream from the initiation codon on the translation of the GFP mRNA in CHO and Cos1 cells. A leader sequence of six consecutive identical codons (GUG, CUC, AGU or UCA) was introduced into a humanized GFP (hm gfp) gene downstream from the AUG to produce four GFP gene variants. Northern blot and RT-PCR analysis indicated that mRNA transcription from the GFP gene was not significantly affected by any of the additional sequences. However, immunoblotting and FACS analysis revealed that AGU and UCA GFP variants produced GFP at a mean level per cell 3.5-fold higher than the other two GFP variants and the hm gfp gene. [35S]-Methionine labeling and immunoprecipitation demonstrate that GFP synthesis was very active in UCA variant transfected-cells, but not in GUG variant and hm gfp transfected-cells. Moreover, proteasome inhibitor MG-132 treatment indicated that the GFPs encoded by each of the GFP variants and the hm gfp were equally stable, and this together with the comparable mRNA levels observed for each construct suggested that the different steady-state GFP concentrations observed reflected different translation efficiencies of the various GFP genes. In addition, the CUC GFP variant, when transiently transfected into CHO or COS-1 cells, did not produce any GFP expressing cells (fully green cells), and the GUG variant produced GFP expressing cells less than 10%, while AGU and UCA GFP variants up to 30–35% in a time course study from 8 to 36 h posttransfection. Analysis of the potential secondary structure of the GFP variant mRNAs especially in the translation initiation region suggested that the secondary structure of the GFP mRNAs was unlikely to explain the different translation efficiencies of the GFP variants. The present findings indicate that a change of the initiation context of the GFP gene by addition of extra coding sequence can alter the translation efficiency of GFP mRNA, providing a means of more efficient expression of GFP in eukaryotic cells.

Ecological aspects of American cutaneous leishmaniasis: 4. Observations on the endophilic behavior of the sandfly and the vectorial role of Psychodopygus intermedius in the Ribeira Valley region of the S.Paulo State, Brazil

The invasive tendency of Psychodopygus intermedius in the home environment, observed initially by Forattini et al. (1976), has now been confirmed by the demonstration of its high endophilic ability and by the use of human residences for shelter. Populations such as Lutzomyia migonei and Pintomyia fischeri were also present in that environment, though their low densities registered during this investigation could be an indication of their poor ability to overcome the barriers raised by the artificial environment. An objective epidemiological analysis based on the variables here given showed that human infection takes place in the extraforest environment, and the principal vectorial function falls, without doubt, on P. intermedius.

Tensile behaviour of a structural adhesive at high temperatures by the extended finite element method

Component joining is typically performed by welding, fastening, or adhesive-bonding. For bonded aerospace applications, adhesives must withstand high-temperatures (200°C or above, depending on the application), which implies their mechanical characterization under identical conditions. The extended finite element method (XFEM) is an enhancement of the finite element method (FEM) that can be used for the strength prediction of bonded structures. This work proposes and validates damage laws for a thin layer of an epoxy adhesive at room temperature (RT), 100, 150, and 200°C using the XFEM. The fracture toughness (G Ic ) and maximum load ( ); in pure tensile loading were defined by testing double-cantilever beam (DCB) and bulk tensile specimens, respectively, which permitted building the damage laws for each temperature. The bulk test results revealed that decreased gradually with the temperature. On the other hand, the value of G Ic of the adhesive, extracted from the DCB data, was shown to be relatively insensitive to temperature up to the glass transition temperature (T g ), while above T g (at 200°C) a great reduction took place. The output of the DCB numerical simulations for the various temperatures showed a good agreement with the experimental results, which validated the obtained data for strength prediction of bonded joints in tension. By the obtained results, the XFEM proved to be an alternative for the accurate strength prediction of bonded structures.

Feasibility of the extended finite element method for the simulation of composite bonded joints

Adhesive-bonding for the unions in multi-component structures is gaining momentum over welding, riveting and fastening. It is vital for the design of bonded structures the availability of accurate damage models, to minimize design costs and time to market. Cohesive Zone Models (CZM’s) have been used for fracture prediction in structures. The eXtended Finite Element Method (XFEM) is a recent improvement of the Finite Element Method (FEM) that relies on traction-separation laws similar to those of CZM’s but it allows the growth of discontinuities within bulk solids along an arbitrary path, by enriching degrees of freedom. This work proposes and validates a damage law to model crack propagation in a thin layer of a structural epoxy adhesive using the XFEM. The fracture toughness in pure mode I (GIc) and tensile cohesive strength (sn0) were defined by Double-Cantilever Beam (DCB) and bulk tensile tests, respectively, which permitted to build the damage law. The XFEM simulations of the DCB tests accurately matched the experimental load-displacement (P-d) curves, which validated the analysis procedure.

Shear modulus and strength of an acrylic adhesive by the notched plate shear method (Arcan) and the thick adherend shear test (TAST)

In this work, the shear modulus and strength of the acrylic adhesive 3M® DP 8005 was evaluated by two different methods: the Thick Adherend Shear Test (TAST) and the Notched Plate Shear Method (Arcan). However, TAST standards advise the use of a special extensometer attached to the specimen, which requires a very experienced technician. In the present study, the adhesive shear displacement for the TAST was measured using an optical technique, and also with a conventional inductive extensometer of 25 mm used for tensile tests. This allowed for an assessment of suitability of using a conventional extensometer to measure this parameter. Since the results obtained by the two techniques are identical, it can be concluded that using a conventional extensometer is a valid option to obtain the shear modulus for the particular adhesive used. In the Arcan tests, the adhesive shear displacement was only measured using the optical technique. This work also aimed the comparison of shear modulus and strength obtained by the TAST and Arcan test methods.

Insights into the mechanims underlyng the antiproliferative potential of a Co(II) coordination compound bearing 1,10-Phenanthroline-5,6-Dione: DNA and protein interaction studies

The very high antiproliferative activity of [Co(Cl)(H2O)(phendione)(2)][BF4] (phendione is 1,10-phenanthroline-5,6-dione) against three human tumor cell lines (half-maximal inhibitory concentration below 1 mu M) and its slight selectivity for the colorectal tumor cell line compared with healthy human fibroblasts led us to explore the mechanisms of action underlying this promising antitumor potential. As previously shown by our group, this complex induces cell cycle arrest in S phase and subsequent cell death by apoptosis and it also reduces the expression of proteins typically upregulated in tumors. In the present work, we demonstrate that [Co(Cl)(phendione)(2)(H2O)][BF4] (1) does not reduce the viability of nontumorigenic breast epithelial cells by more than 85 % at 1 mu M, (2) promotes the upregulation of proapoptotic Bax and cell-cycle-related p21, and (3) induces release of lactate dehydrogenase, which is partially reversed by ursodeoxycholic acid. DNA interaction studies were performed to uncover the genotoxicity of the complex and demonstrate that even though it displays K (b) (+/- A standard error of the mean) of (3.48 +/- A 0.03) x 10(5) M-1 and is able to produce double-strand breaks in a concentration-dependent manner, it does not exert any clastogenic effect ex vivo, ruling out DNA as a major cellular target for the complex. Steady-state and time-resolved fluorescence spectroscopy studies are indicative of a strong and specific interaction of the complex with human serum albumin, involving one binding site, at a distance of approximately 1.5 nm for the Trp214 indole side chain with log K (b) similar to 4.7, thus suggesting that this complex can be efficiently transported by albumin in the blood plasma.

Ecological aspects of American cutaneous leishmaniasis: 6. Man-biting sandfly fauna of a patch of residual forest in the middle and north-eastern region of the São Paulo State, Brazil

This report shows the phlebotomine vectorial role in the endemic cutaneous leishmaniasis situated in the middle and north-eastern region of the São Paulo, Brazil. Analysis of information encloses a sandfly man-biting fauna of four different patches of residual forest. So, using the human-bait and Shannon trap for a period of one year we have caught 16,869 sandflies. The predominance of Lutzomyia intermedia (85,6%) was clear. Moreover, the low density of Lutzomyia whitmani and Lutzomyia pessoai and their epidemiological implications at present and in the past are discussed. Information about the daily activity of some species is given and we emphasize for the first time, the diurnal activity of Lutzomyia firmatoi in the São Paulo State.

A New Approach in the Design of Air Stripping Columns for the Treatment of Groundwater Contaminated With Volatile Organic Compounds

Volatile organic compounds are a common source of groundwater contamination that can be easily removed by air stripping in columns with random packing and using a counter-current flow between the phases. This work proposes a new methodology for column design for any type of packing and contaminant which avoids the necessity of an arbitrary chosen diameter. It also avoids the employment of the usual graphical Eckert correlations for pressure drop. The hydraulic features are previously chosen as a project criterion. The design procedure was translated into a convenient algorithm in C++ language. A column was built in order to test the design, the theoretical steady-state and dynamic behaviour. The experiments were conducted using a solution of chloroform in distilled water. The results allowed for a correction in the theoretical global mass transfer coefficient previously estimated by the Onda correlations, which depend on several parameters that are not easy to control in experiments. For best describe the column behaviour in stationary and dynamic conditions, an original mathematical model was developed. It consists in a system of two partial non linear differential equations (distributed parameters). Nevertheless, when flows are steady, the system became linear, although there is not an evident solution in analytical terms. In steady state the resulting ODE can be solved by analytical methods, and in dynamic state the discretization of the PDE by finite differences allows for the overcoming of this difficulty. To estimate the contaminant concentrations in both phases in the column, a numerical algorithm was used. The high number of resulting algebraic equations and the impossibility of generating a recursive procedure did not allow the construction of a generalized programme. But an iterative procedure developed in an electronic worksheet allowed for the simulation. The solution is stable only for similar discretizations values. If different values for time/space discretization parameters are used, the solution easily becomes unstable. The system dynamic behaviour was simulated for the common liquid phase perturbations: step, impulse, rectangular pulse and sinusoidal. The final results do not configure strange or non-predictable behaviours.