Project Alpha: A culturally appropriate approach to adolescent male sex education

In the United States today, adolescents face unacceptably high rates of mortality and morbidity due to the contraction of HIV/AIDS, sexually transmitted diseases and teenage pregnancy. In view of these rates, there is a need for applied preventive interventions to delay adolescent sexual behavior until adulthood. Project Alpha was a school-adopted, quasi-experimental program for adolescent male students attending Sharpstown High School in Houston, Texas. This intervention used student newsletters to provide specific role-model stories on community and student role models who have changed attitudes or improved efficacy to abstain from sexual behavior until adulthood. It was hypothesized that teenagers exposed to the intervention would show improvements in knowledge, beliefs, avoidance skills, perceived norms, intentions and self-efficacy to delay sexual behavior compared to no-treatment reference teenagers in the same school.^ In total, the Project Alpha program had a significant effect on student knowledge, beliefs (towards abstinence and having sex with multiple partners), perceived risk (HIV/STD testing), self-efficacy (could avoid sex with attractive girl who wants to have sex), perceived social norms (friends believing in sexual abstinence) and sexual intentions. However, no significant intervention effects were found in student's beliefs (that it was OK to have sex with girlfriend), perceived risk of HIV/STD, self-efficacy (to avoid sex with girlfriend) and social norms (friends believe it is OK to have sex with a girlfriend and multiple partners in the same month). ^

The Yanque prospect (Peru): from polymetallic Zn-Pb mineralization to a nonsulfide deposit

The Yanque nonsulfide Pb-Zn deposit (inferred resources 12.5 Mt @ 3.7% Pb and @ 3.5% Zn) is located in the Andahuaylas-Yauri ore province (Cuzco, southern Peru). The deposit occurs within a base metal mineralized district, centered on the medium-sized Dolores porphyry copper. A thorough geological, mineralogical and geochemical study has carried out in order to define: the relationships between the Dolores Cu-porphyry ore and the Yanque Zn-Pb polymetallic mineralization, and the characteristics of the economic nonsulfide concentrations. Both sedimentary and igneous rocks constitute the backbone of the Yanque-Dolores area. The sedimentary lithologies belong to the Soraya, Mara and Ferrobamba Fms. (upper Jurassic-middle Cretaceous). The Yanque orebody is hosted by the Mara Fm., which prevailingly consists of a siliciclastic sedimentary breccia. The original sulfide mineralization consisted of galena, pyrite and sphalerite. The host rock has been affected by a strong hydrothermal alteration, characterized by prevailing sericite/illite, as in the typical porphyry-related phyllic-argillic alteration stage, and by minor kaolinite, dolomite and quartz. Minor element geochemistry, characterized by Sb, As, Mn, Ag and locally also by Cu, points to magmatic-hydrothermal related mineralizing fluids. The Pb isotopic compositions from Dolores and Yanque sulfides are similar, and are typical of the Tertiary magmatically-derived ores in this part of Peru. The hydrothermally altered rocks at Yanque have the same Pb isotopic compositions as the sulfides, thus confirming the hypothesis that the Yanque primary Zn-Pb mineralization may have been produced by hydrothermal circulation related to the emplacement of the Dolores Cu-porphyry, as it is the case of other porphyry Cu systems associated with polymetallic mineralization elsewhere. However, no simple genetic model for the mineralization involving just one fluid circulation episode is able to explain the data. The Yanque economic nonsulfide ore association consists of sauconite, hemimorphite, smithsonite and cerussite, which result from the weathering and alteration of the original sulfide mineralization. Zinc is allocated mainly in sauconite (Zn-smectite), rather than in carbonates: a factor strictly related to the prevailing siliciclastic character of the host rock. Distinctive features of the Yanque orebody are the comparable ore grades for both Pb and Zn (3.5% Zn and 3.7% Pb), and the inverse supergene chemical zoning. In fact, contrary to other supergene ores of this type, zinc prevails in the top zone of the Yanque deposit, whereas lead content increases with depth. Considering the different mobility of the two metals in solution, it may be assumed that most of the primary zinc that was the source for the Yanque nonsulfides was originally located far from the position occupied by the galena mineralization, whose remnants have been observed on site. Zinc sulfides may have been originally contained in the eroded rock volumes that surrounded the actual deposit: the zinc-rich solutions have possibly migrated through the siliciclastic Mara Fm. and precipitated the nonsulfide minerals by porosity filling and replacement processes. In this sense, the Yanque secondary Zn-Pb deposit could be considered as a special type of “Exotic” mineralization.

[Judenreglement]

Digitalisat der Ausg. Berlin, 1801

Insulin activates Na(+)/H(+) exchanger 3: biphasic response and glucocorticoid dependence.

Insulin is an important regulator of renal salt and water excretion, and hyperinsulinemia has been implicated to play a role in hypertension. One of the target proteins of insulin action in the kidney is Na(+)/H(+) exchanger 3 (NHE3), a principal Na(+) transporter responsible for salt absorption in the mammalian proximal tubule. The molecular mechanisms involved in activation of NHE3 by insulin have not been studied so far. In opossum kidney (OK) cells, insulin increased Na(+)/H(+) exchange activity in a time- and concentration-dependent manner. This effect is due to activation of NHE3 as it persisted after pharmacological inhibition of NHE1 and NHE2. In the early phase of stimulation (2-12 h), NHE3 activity was increased without changes in NHE3 protein and mRNA. At 24 h, enhanced NHE3 activity was accompanied by an increase in total and cell surface NHE3 protein and NHE3 mRNA abundance. All the effects of insulin on NHE3 activity, protein, and mRNA were amplified in the presence of hydrocortisone. These results suggest that insulin stimulates renal tubular NHE3 activity via a biphasic mechanism involving posttranslational factors and an increase in NHE3 gene expression and the effects are dependent on the permissive action of hydrocortisone.

Role of organic cation transporters in the renal secretion of nucleoside analogs

The mammalian kidney maintains homeostasis of the extracellular environment and eliminates toxic substances from the body, in part via secretion by the organic cation transporters (OCT). Some nucleosides are also secreted by the kidney. Previous work indicated that the deoxyadenosine analog, 2′ -deoxytubercidin (dTub), is secreted by mouse kidney through the OCTs. This study examines the role of OCTs in the renal secretion of dTub and other nucleoside analogs. ^ Using the Xenopus laevis oocyte expression system, the basolateral type rat organic cation transporter rOCT1 was shown to transport dTub and other nucleosides. The positive charged form of dTub (dTub +) appears to be the substrate for rOCT1. Tetraethylammonium (TEA) and dTub competitively inhibit the other's uptake by rOCT1 in a manner consistent with their interaction at a common site. Although 67% homologous with rOCT1, rOCT2 does not mediate the uptake of these nucleosides. Kinetic studies demonstrated the difference in substrate specificity between rOCT1 and rOCT2 to be largely due to a poor affinity of rOCT2 for dTub+. This difference in affinity is located within transmembrane domains 2–7 as determined by chimeric constructs. ^ OCT1 knockout mice were used to evaluate the role of OCT1 in the renal secretion of dTub. No significant difference in tissue distribution and urinary excretion of dTub was observed between the knockout and wild-type mice, indicating that OCT1 is not necessary for the renal secretion of dTub. Apical transporters are postulated to participate in its active secretion. To characterize a possible apical transporter, we screened several renal cell lines for a nucleoside-sensitive OCT. American opossum kidney proximal tubule cells (OK) express a TEA efflux transporter that is inhibited by dTub and other nucleoside analogs. This carrier is metabolic-dependent and distinct from the cloned OCTs to date, i.e. it is sodium- and proton-independent. In conclusion, dTub is a good substrate for OCT1; however, this OCT is not necessary for its renal secretion in mice. The novel TEA efflux transporter identified in OK cells is likely to participate in the renal secretion of dTub and perhaps other nucleoside analogs. ^

Follow-up care after a health fair screening in three Houston neighborhoods in 2008

Background. Each year thousands of people participate in mass health screenings for diabetes and hypertension, but little is known about whether or not those who receive higher than normal screening results obtain the recommended follow-up medical care, or what barriers they perceive to doing so. ^ Methods. Study participants were recruited from attendees at three health fairs in low-income neighborhoods in Houston, Texas Potential participants had higher than normal blood pressure (> 90/140 mgHg) or blood glucose readings (100 mm/dL fasting or 140 mm/dL random). Study participants were called at one, two, and three months and asked if they had obtained follow-up medical care; those who had not yet obtained follow-up care were asked to identify barriers. Using a modified Aday-Andersen model of health service access, the independent variables were individual and community characteristics and self-perceived need. The dependent variable was obtaining follow-up care, with barriers to care a secondary outcome. ^ Results. Eighty-two study participants completed the initial questionnaire and 59 participants completed the study protocol. Forty-eight participants (59% under an intent to treat analysis, 81% of those completing the study protocol) obtained follow-up care. Those who completed the initial questionnaire and who reported a regular source of care were significantly more likely to obtain follow-up care. For those who completed the study protocol the relationship between having a regular source of care and obtaining follow-up care approached but did not reach significance. For those who completed the initial questionnaire, self-described health status, when examined as a binary variable (good, very good, excellent, or poor, fair, not sure) was associated with obtaining follow-up care for those who rated their health as poor, fair, or not sure. While the group who completed the study protocol did not reach statistical significance, the same relationship between self-described health status of poor, fair, or not sure and obtaining follow-up care was present. The participants who completed the study protocol and described their blood pressure as OK or a little high were statistically more likely to get follow-up care than those who described it as high or very high. All those on oral medications for hypertension (12/12) and diabetes (4/4) who were told to obtain follow-up care did so; however, the small sample size allows this correlation to be of statistical significance only for those treating hypertension. ^ The variables significantly associated with obtaining follow-up care were having a regular source of care, self-described health status of poor, fair, or not sure, self-described blood pressure of OK or a little high, and taking medication for blood pressure. ^ At the follow-up telephone calls, 34 participants identified barriers to care; cost was a significant barrier reported by 16 participants, and 10 reported that they didn’t have time because they were working long hours after Hurricane Ike. ^ The study included the offer of access assistance: information about nearby safety-net providers, a visit to or information from the Health Information Center at their Neighborhood Center location, or information from Project Safety Net (a searchable web site for safety net providers). Access assistance was offered at the health fairs and then again at follow-up telephone calls to those who had not yet obtained follow-up care. Of the 48 participants who reported obtaining follow-up care, 26 said they had made use of the access assistance to do so. The use of access assistance was associated with being Hispanic, not having health insurance or a regular source of care, and speaking Spanish. It was also associated with being worried about blood glucose. ^ Conclusion. Access assistance, as a community enabling characteristic, may be useful in aiding low-income people in obtaining medical care. ^

Turbulent flux and meteorological measurements during ARCTEX-2006 campaign

This dataset present result from the DFG- funded Arctic-Turbulence-Experiment (ARCTEX-2006) performed by the University of Bayreuth on the island of Svalbard, Norway, during the winter/spring transition 2006. From May 5 to May 19, 2006 turbulent flux and meteorological measurements were performed on the monitoring field near Ny-Ålesund, at 78°55'24'' N, 11°55'15'' E Kongsfjord, Svalbard (Spitsbergen), Norway. The ARCTEX-2006 campaign site was located about 200 m southeast of the settlement on flat snow covered tundra, 11 m to 14 m above sea level. The permanent sites used for this study consisted of the 10 m meteorological tower of the Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar- and Marine Research (AWI), the international standardized radiation measurement site of the Baseline Surface Radiation Network (BSRN), the radiosonde launch site and the AWI tethered balloon launch sites. The temporary sites - set up by the University of Bayreuth - were a 6 m meteorological gradient tower, an eddy-flux measurement complex (EF), and a laser-scintillometer section (SLS). A quality assessment and data correction was applied to detect and eliminate specific measurement errors common at a high arctic landscape. In addition, the quality checked sensible heat flux measurements are compared with bulk aerodynamic formulas that are widely used in atmosphere-ocean/land-ice models for polar regions as described in Ebert and Curry (1993, doi:10.1029/93JC00656) and Launiainen and Cheng (1995). These parameterization approaches easily allow estimation of the turbulent surface fluxes from routine meteorological measurements. The data show: - the role of the intermittency of the turbulent atmospheric fluctuation of momentum and scalars, - the existence of a disturbed vertical temperature profile (sharp inversion layer) close to the surface, - the relevance of possible free convection events for the snow or ice melt in the Arctic spring at Svalbard, and - the relevance of meso-scale atmospheric circulation pattern and air-mass advection for the near-surface turbulent heat exchange in the Arctic spring at Svalbard. Recommendations and improvements regarding the interpretation of eddy-flux and laser-scintillometer data as well as the arrangement of the instrumentation under polar distinct exchange conditions and (extreme) weather situations could be derived.

Católicos y feministas : Conflictos en torno al aborto y "resignificaciones" del pasado reciente

Este ensayo tiene como propósito abordar cómo los significantes discursivos de la memoria de la última dictadura militar en la Argentina revisten en el presente de una dimensión social moralizante que torna propicio sus intentos de reapropiación y uso político. En particular, nos interesa la forma en que el legado político y cultural del Nunca Más, así como la activación simbólica de la figura del desaparecido, se hacen presentes en el modo en que católicos y feministas inscriben sus argumentos de disputa en torno al aborto

Las políticas penitenciarias al servicio de la lucha antisubversiva : La cárcel de Bahía Blanca y los presos políticos entre 1973 y 1976

El tema central de esta tesis son los cambios y continuidades en las políticas represivas durante el período pre dictatorial (1973-1976) a partir del estudio de la Unidad Penitenciaria 4 del Servicio Correccional de la Provincia de Buenos Aires. El objetivo es historizar el proceso de reconfiguración de las prácticas penitenciarias que la articularon al circuito represivo sistematizado durante la última dictadura cívico militar en Argentina. A lo largo de este trabajo, proponemos una forma de historizar el proceso de articulación de la cárcel de Villa Floresta con la nueva modalidad represiva sistematizada tras el golpe, a fin de acceder a la trama local de las relaciones intra y extra muros e identificar el rol especifico que le correspondió a la cárcel situada en Bahía Blanca dentro del plan represivo. Para ello se partirá de dos presupuesto: en primer lugar, que dicha articulación debe ser situada dentro un proceso de transformaciones de las políticas represivas del Estado que comienza hacia mediados de 1960, pero que se consolida durante el gobierno peronista 1973-1976; y en segundo, que para acceder a la tramas locales de la institución de castigo, se debe comprender la doble dimensión del poder que rompe con el par de opuestos dominación/resistencia, recuperando la agencia de los sujetos encerrados, en el caso de esta investigación la de los presos y presas políticas del período pre dictatorial

Revisitaciones del objeto discursivo revolución : Entre filiaciones y oposiciones en y por las novelas La revolución es un sueño eterno de Andrés Rivera, La astucia de la razón de José Pablo Feinmann y La campaña de Carlos Fuentes

El fracaso de los proyectos revolucionarios, la instauración de gobiernos militares a lo largo del continente y las discusiones sobre la validez de las grandes narrativas del siglo XIX, que introducen la denominada condición posmoderna, suscitan en América Latina a finales del siglo XX una reelectura desmitificadora del pasado (Pons, 2000). En esta dinámica participan novelas como La muerte de Artemio Cruz (1962) de Carlos Fuentes, El siglo de las luces (1962) de Alejo Carpentier y Yo, el supremo (1974) de Augusto Roa Bastos. Tales novelas inauguran una serie signada por la revisión crítica del pasado en la que podemos inscribir las novelas La revolución es un sueño eterno (1987) de Andrés Rivera, La astucia de la razón (1990) de José Pablo Feinmann y La campaña (1990) de Carlos Fuentes. En el presente artículo observaremos filiaciones y oposiciones en el modo en que estas tres últimas novelas representan el objeto discursivo revolución

Memoria política y justicia transicional en Argentina después de treinta años de democracia. Notas para un debate

El presente artículo busca discutir, a partir de una breve reconstrucción histórica de los dos ciclos de justicia transicional en la Argentina, algunos posicionamientos sobre la actualidad del debate sobre memoria política. El primer ciclo, luego después de terminada la dictadura (1976-1983), se refiere a la elaboración del informe Nunca Más (1984) y al juicio público a la junta militar (1985). El segundo ciclo tiene inicio en 1997 con los ?juicios por la verdad?, con la anulación de las leyes de indulto en 2003 y con la retomada de los juicios que se extienden hasta la actualidad con las llamadas ?megacausas?. Sin embargo, no faltaron opiniones contrarias a la retomada de la justicia penal a represores: entre ellas, Beatriz Sarlo acusa al gobierno de forjar un metarrelato histórico-político, y Claudia Hilb advierte que el exceso de justicia inhibe la verdad y la reconciliación. Buscaré defender que la justicia no sólo contribuye a la verdad, sino también a la ejemplaridad (Todorov)

Mujeres traumatizadas trabajando con mujeres traumatizadas : Reflexiones sobre la vida y el trabajo en una zona de guerra

En este artículo, la autora comparte su experiencia tanto personal como profesional en el trabajo con mujeres y niños que han sufrido violencia destructora de almas en la ex Yugoslavia durante los últimos años

Memorias sumergidas, memorias emergentes

En este trabajo se indaga sobre las diferentes memorias de la inundación en la ciudad de Santa Fe. Para ello se parte de reconocer la existencia de dos tipos de memorias diferentes: las tradicionales, vinculadas a la costa del río Paraná, y las más recientes de la inundación del río Salado en 2003. Esta última fue un evento altamente significativo para la ciudad ya que afectó un tercio del área urbana, dejó un saldo de 23 muertos oficiales y más de 130.000 personas evacuadas de sus hogares. En este trabajo se plantea que los principales factores que diferencian ambas memorias de la inundación son el espacio y los sectores sociales afectados: la ciudad por un lado, y las áreas rurales y suburbanas por el otro. Por otra parte se reconoce que las memorias son fenómenos diferenciados en el tiempo y que se desarrollan en relación al contexto histórico, lo cual ayuda a comprender la actual preocupación por la memoria en contraste con el "olvido" en que permanecen las experiencias de las inundaciones anteriores