The interactive effects of alcohol and temazepam on P300 and reaction time

The present research investigated the separate and interactive effects of the minor tranquilliser, temazepam, and a low dose of alcohol on the amplitude and latency of P300 and on reaction time. Twenty-four participants completed four drug treatments in a repeated measures design. The four drug treatments, organised as a fully repeated 2 x 2 design, included a placebo condition, an alcohol only condition, a temazepam only condition, and an alcohol and temazepam combined condition. Event-related potentials were recorded from midline sites Fz, Cz, and Pz within an oddball paradigm. The results indicated that temazepam, with or without the presence of alcohol, reduced P300 amplitude. Alcohol, on the other hand, with or without the presence of temazepam, affected processing speed and stimulus evaluation as indexed by reaction time and P300 latency. At the low dose levels used in this experiment alcohol and temazepam appear not to interact, which suggests that they affect different aspects of processing in the central nervous system. (C) 2003 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Birth-death processes with disaster and instantaneous resurrection

A new structure with the special property that instantaneous resurrection and mass disaster are imposed on an ordinary birth-death process is considered. Under the condition that the underlying birth-death process is exit or bilateral, we are able to give easily checked existence criteria for such Markov processes. A very simple uniqueness criterion is also established. All honest processes are explicitly constructed. Ergodicity properties for these processes are investigated. Surprisingly, it can be proved that all the honest processes are not only recurrent but also ergodic without imposing any extra conditions. Equilibrium distributions are then established. Symmetry and reversibility of such processes are also investigated. Several examples are provided to illustrate our results.

Rainfall variability at decadal and longer time scales: signal or noise?

Rainfall variability occurs over a wide range of temporal scales. Knowledge and understanding of such variability can lead to improved risk management practices in agricultural and other industries. Analyses of temporal patterns in 100 yr of observed monthly global sea surface temperature and sea level pressure data show that the single most important cause of explainable, terrestrial rainfall variability resides within the El Nino-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) frequency domain (2.5-8.0 yr), followed by a slightly weaker but highly significant decadal signal (9-13 yr), with some evidence of lesser but significant rainfall variability at interclecadal time scales (15-18 yr). Most of the rainfall variability significantly linked to frequencies tower than ENSO occurs in the Australasian region, with smaller effects in North and South America, central and southern Africa, and western Europe. While low-frequency (LF) signals at a decadal frequency are dominant, the variability evident was ENSO-like in all the frequency domains considered. The extent to which such LF variability is (i) predictable and (ii) either part of the overall ENSO variability or caused by independent processes remains an as yet unanswered question. Further progress can only be made through mechanistic studies using a variety of models.

Benefit finding in multiple sclerosis, and associations with positive and negative outcomes

This study examined the direct and stress-buffering effects of benefit finding on positive and negative outcomes. A total of 502 people with multiple sclerosis completed a questionnaire at Time 1 and, 3 months later, at Time 2 (n = 404). Measures of illness were collected at Time 1, and number of problems, stress appraisal, benefit finding, subjective health, and negative (global distress, negative affect) and positive (life satisfaction, positive affect, dyadic adjustment) outcomes were measured at Time 2. Factor analyses showed the Benefit Finding scale to have 2 dimensions: Personal Growth and Family Relations Growth. Hierarchical regressions showed that after controlling for the effects of demographics, illness, problems, and appraisal, benefit finding showed strong direct effects on the positive outcomes. Benefit finding did not have a direct effect on distress, or subjective health but had a weak association with negative affect. Family Relations Growth had a stress-buffering effect on distress.

Non-response to antiviral therapy is associated with obesity and increased hepatic expression of suppressor of cytokine signalling 3 (SOCS-3) in patients with chronic hepatitis C, viral genotype 1

Background: Interferon alpha (IFN-alpha) activated cellular signalling is negatively regulated by inhibitory factors, including the suppressor of cytokine signalling (SOCS) family. The effects of host factors such as obesity on hepatic expression of these inhibitory factors in subjects with chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) are unknown. Objectives: To assess the independent effects of obesity, insulin resistance, and steatosis on response to IFN-alpha therapy and to determine hepatic expression of factors inhibiting IFN-alpha signalling in obese and nonobese subjects with chronic HCV. Methods: A total of 145 subjects were analysed to determine host factors associated with non-response to antiviral therapy. Treatment comprised IFN-alpha or peginterferon alpha, either alone or in combination with ribavirin. In a separate cohort of 73 patients, real time-polymerase chain reaction was performed to analyse hepatic mRNA expression. Immunohistochemistry for SOCS-3 was performed on liver biopsy samples from 38 patients with viral genotype 1 who had received antiviral treatment. Results: Non-response (NR) to treatment occurred in 55% of patients with HCV genotypes 1 or 4 and 22% with genotypes 2 or 3. Factors independently associated with NR were viral genotype 1/4 (p < 0.001), cirrhosis on pretreatment biopsy (p = 0.025), and body mass index >= 30 kg/m(2) (p = 0.010). Obese subjects with viral genotype 1 had increased hepatic mRNA expression of phosphoenolpyruvate carboxy kinase (p = 0.01) and SOCS-3 (p = 0.047), in comparison with lean subjects. Following multivariate analysis, SOCS-3 mRNA expression remained independently associated with obesity (p = 0.023). SOCS-3 immunoreactivity was significantly increased in obesity (p = 0.013) and in non-responders compared with responders (p = 0.014). Conclusions: In patients with chronic HCV viral genotype 1, increased expression of factors that inhibit interferon signalling may be one mechanism by which obesity reduces the biological response to IFN-alpha.

Locating whiteness in the academic production of "I Philosophy" in and of time and place

This review will critically evaluate two recent texts by white academics working across disciplines of cultural studies, history and anthropology and published by UNSW Press, which share a focus on the relationship between Aboriginality, Philosophy, Place and Time in Australia. I write from the position of a queer white academic committed to engaging politically and intellectually with the challenge of Indigenous sovereignties in this place while also aware that my position as a middle class white woman and intellectual imposes limits on what it is possible for me to know about Indigenous epistemologies (see Moreton-Robinson, 2000). In the course of this review I will demonstrate how anthropology's tendency to fix its objects of study within a circumscribed space of 'difference' limits the capacity of texts produced within this discipline to account for racialized struggles over sovereignty. While these struggles are equally embedded in the ethnographic context and the nation's constitution and political institutions, we will see that Muecke and Bird Rose confront problems in analysing the relationship between the intimate space of the 'field', in which one's research subjects quickly become one's 'friends' and/or 'classificatory kin'—on one hand—and the public space of the nation within which statements about Aboriginality by white academics circulate and are vested with an authority that escapes individual intentions and control—on the other.

Prevalence of patient with low intensity pain symptom severity states during treatment with Rofecoxib and Ibuprofen for osteoarthritis

Aim of study: To examine the prevalence of low intensity symptom severity states in patients taking placebo, rofecoxib 12.5 mg once daily, rofecoxib 25 mg once daily, or ibuprofen 800 mg three times daily using a post-hoc definition of low pain intensity states (BLISS Index) based on the WOMAC Index. Methods: Two 6-week, double-blind, parallel-group, placebocontrolled, ibuprofen-comparator studies were conducted to measure the efficacy of rofecoxib in patients with knee or hip osteoarthritis. These studies employed a flare design requiring a minimum level of symptoms at entry following discontinuation of prior analgesics. The WOMAC Pain subscale (100 mm visual analog scale) was used as the pain measure. In separate analyses, WOMAC pain subscale scores from each patient were compared to five thresholds of pain:%5 mm, %10 mm, %15 mm, %20 mm, and %25 mm. The percent of patients with BLISS states (1) on average over 6 weeks, (2) at any time during the study, and (3) at week 6 was computed for each treatment group and threshold. The treatment group percentages were compared using Fisher’s exact test. Results: During the study, patients received placebo (N Z 143), rofecoxib 12.5 mg (N Z 461), rofecoxib 25 mg (N Z 459), or ibuprofen (N Z 465). For each pain threshold and treatment group, the percent of patients with BLISS states at any time (e.g., 50% for rofecoxib 25 mg) exceeded the percentage at week 6 (e.g., 40% for rofecoxib 25 mg) which, in turn, exceeded the percentage with BLISS states on average (e.g., 32% for rofecoxib 25 mg). The percentages of patients in the active treatment groups with BLISS states on average were significantly different than observed in the placebo group at the%15 mm threshold (8–11% points vs placebo, P ! 0.01), %20 mm level (10–15% points, P ! 0.01), and %25 mm level (14–17% points, P ! 0.001). Significant differences between the active treatments and placebo were also observed at the %10 mm threshold (8–9% points, P ! 0.05) for measurements at week 6 and at the%10 (12–14% points, P !0.001) and%5 mm thresholds (5–7% points, P ! 0.05) for patients with BLISS states at any time. Conclusion: These measures of BLISS states differentiate all three active treatment groups from placebo and further confirm, at an individual patient level, the clinical benefit of rofecoxib in the treatment of osteoarthritis. Furthermore, they provide information on the prevalence of patients achieving low (%15 mm, %20 mm, %25 mm), and very low (%5 mm, %10 mm) pain severity states.

Inventory parameter management and focused continuous improvement for repetitive batch manufacturers

What this thesis proposes is a methodology to assist repetitive batch manufacturers in the adoption of certain aspects of the Lean Production principles. The methodology concentrates on the reduction of inventory through the setting of appropriate batch sizes, taking account of the effect of sequence dependent set-ups and the identification and elimination of bottlenecks. It uses a simple Pareto and modified EBQ based analysis technique to allocate items to period order day classes based on a combination of each item's annual usage value and set-up cost. The period order day classes the items are allocated to are determined by the constraints limits in the three measured dimensions, capacity, administration and finance. The methodology overcomes the limitations associated with MRP in the area of sequence dependent set-ups, and provides a simple way of setting planning parameters taking this effect into account by concentrating on the reduction of inventory through the systematic identification and elimination of bottlenecks through set-up reduction processes, so allowing batch sizes to reduce. It aims to help traditional repetitive batch manufacturers in a route to continual improvement by: Highlighting those areas where change would bring the greatest benefits. Modelling the effect of proposed changes. Quantifying the benefits that could be gained through implementing the proposed changes. Simplifying the effort required to perform the modelling process. It concentrates on increasing flexibility through managed inventory reduction through rationally decreasing batch sizes, taking account of sequence dependent set-ups and the identification and elimination of bottlenecks. This was achieved through the development of a software modelling tool, and validated through a case study approach.

Forecasting exchange rates with linear and nonlinear models

In this paper, the exchange rate forecasting performance of neural network models are evaluated against the random walk, autoregressive moving average and generalised autoregressive conditional heteroskedasticity models. There are no guidelines available that can be used to choose the parameters of neural network models and therefore, the parameters are chosen according to what the researcher considers to be the best. Such an approach, however,implies that the risk of making bad decisions is extremely high, which could explain why in many studies, neural network models do not consistently perform better than their time series counterparts. In this paper, through extensive experimentation, the level of subjectivity in building neural network models is considerably reduced and therefore giving them a better chance of Forecasting exchange rates with linear and nonlinear models 415 performing well. The results show that in general, neural network models perform better than the traditionally used time series models in forecasting exchange rates.

Forecasting exchange rates with linear and nonlinear models

In this paper the exchange rate forecasting performance of neural network models are evaluated against random walk and a range of time series models. There are no guidelines available that can be used to choose the parameters of neural network models and therefore the parameters are chosen according to what the researcher considers to be the best. Such an approach, however, implies that the risk of making bad decisions is extremely high which could explain why in many studies neural network models do not consistently perform better than their time series counterparts. In this paper through extensive experimentation the level of subjectivity in building neural network models is considerably reduced and therefore giving them a better chance of performing well. Our results show that in general neural network models perform better than traditionally used time series models in forecasting exchange rates.

Telomere length attrition, a marker of biological senescence, is inversely correlated with triglycerides and cholesterol in South Asian males with type 2 diabetes mellitus

South Asians have a higher risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and cardiovascular disease (CVD) than white Caucasians, for a given BMI. Premature biological ageing, assessed by reduction in telomere length (TL), may be mediated by factors resulting from altered metabolic profiles associated with obesity. We hypothesise that ethnicity and metabolic status represent detrimental factors contributing to premature biological ageing. Therefore we assessed TL in two South Asian, age and BMI-matched cohorts [T2DM (n = 142) versus non-T2DM (n = 76)] to determine the effects of BMI, gender, lipid and CVD profile on biological ageing. Genomic DNA was obtained from the UKADS cohort; biochemical and anthropometric data was collected and TL was measured by quantitative real-time PCR. Our findings indicated a gender-specific effect with reduced TL in T2DM men compared with non-T2DM men (P = 0.006). Additionally, in T2DM men, TL was inversely correlated with triglycerides and total cholesterol (r = -0.419, P <0.01; r = -0.443, P <0.01). In summary, TL was reduced amongst South Asian T2DM men and correlated with triglycerides and total cholesterol. This study highlights enhanced biological ageing among South Asian, T2DM men, which appears to be tracked by changes in lipids and BMI, suggesting that raised lipids and BMI may directly contribute to premature ageing.

Demonstration of 10 Gbit/s transmission over 900 km SMF with <400 ns adaptation time using full-field EDC

This reported work significantly extends the reach of 10Gbit/s on-off keying singlemode fibre (SMF) transmission using full-field based electronic dispersion compensation (EDC) to 900 km. In addition, the EDC balances the complexity and the adaptation capability by employing a simple dispersive transmission line with static parameters for coarse dispersion compensation and 16-state maximum likelihood sequence estimation with Gaussian approximation based channel training for adaptive impairment trimming. Improved adaptation times of less than 400 ns for a bit error rate target of 10-3 over distances ranging from 0 to 900 km are reported.

Gravity spun polycaprolactone fibres for soft tissue engineering:interaction with fibroblasts and myoblasts in cell culture

Poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL) fibres were produced by wet spinning from solutions in acetone under low shear (gravity flow) conditions. As-spun PCL fibres exhibited a mean strength and stiffness of 7.9 MPa and 0.1 GPa, respectively and a rough, porous surface morphology. Cold drawing to an extension of 500% resulted in increases in fibre strength (43 MPa) and stiffness (0.3 GPa) and development of an oriented, fibrillar surface texture. The proliferation rate of Swiss 3T3 mouse fibroblasts and C2C12 mouse myoblasts on as-spun, 500% cold-drawn and gelatin-modified PCL fibres was determined in cell culture to provide a basic measure of the biocompatibility of the fibres. Proliferation of both cell types was consistently higher on gelatin-coated fibres relative to as-spun fibres at time points below 7 days. Fibroblast growth rates on cold-drawn PCL fibres exceeded those on as-spun fibres but myoblast proliferation was similar on both substrates. After 1 day in culture, both cell types had spread and coalesced on the fibres to form a cell layer, which conformed closely to the underlying topography. The high fibre compliance combined with a potential for modifying the fibre surface chemistry with cell adhesion molecules and the surface architecture by cold drawing to enhance proliferation of fibroblasts and myoblasts, recommends further investigation of gravity-spun PCL fibres for 3-D scaffold production in soft tissue engineering. © 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Demonstration of 10 Gbit/s transmission over 900 km SMF with <400 ns adaptation time using full-field EDC

This reported work significantly extends the reach of 10Gbit/s on-off keying singlemode fibre (SMF) transmission using full-field based electronic dispersion compensation (EDC) to 900 km. In addition, the EDC balances the complexity and the adaptation capability by employing a simple dispersive transmission line with static parameters for coarse dispersion compensation and 16-state maximum likelihood sequence estimation with Gaussian approximation based channel training for adaptive impairment trimming. Improved adaptation times of less than 400 ns for a bit error rate target of 10-3 over distances ranging from 0 to 900 km are reported.

Discrete Generalization of Gronwall-Bellman Inequality with Maxima and Application

Снежана Христова, Кремена Стефанова, Лиляна Ванкова - В работата са решени няколко нови видове линейни дискретни неравенства, които съдържат максимума на неизвестната функция в отминал интервал от време. Някои от тези неравенства са приложени за изучаване непрекъснатата зависимост от смущения при дискретни уравнения с максимуми.