Search

The article offers information on design and construction of kitchen, houses and bathrooms and offers suggestions on getting inspirations from the same. Topics discussed include bathroom in Portland, Oregon which brightened up with combination of palette and tiles, garage storage space transformed by homeowner Sherry and John Petersik and handling plumbing and electrical issues.

The state of Texas is well known for its pioneering spirit, geographical variety and wide open spaces. But the state's overall business climate of conservative pragmatism requires a different kind [...]

ABSTRACTThe anchored fibroblast-populated collagen matrix (aFPCM) is an appropriate model to study fibrocontractive disease mechanisms. Our goal was to determine if aFPCM height reduction (compaction) during development is sufficient to predict tension generation. Compaction was quantified daily by both traditional light microscopy and an optical coherence tomography (OCT) system. Contraction in aFPCM was revealed by releasing them from anchorage. We found that aFPCM contraction increase was correlated to the compaction increase. Cytochalasin D treatment reversibly inhibited compaction. Therefore, we demonstrated that aFPCM height reduction efficiently measures compaction, contraction, and relative maturity of the collagen matrix during development or treatment. In addition, we showed that OCT is suitable for effectively imaging the cross-sectional morphology of the aFPCM in culture. This study will pave the way for more efficient studies on the mechanisms of (and treatments that target) migration and contraction in wound healing and Dupuytren’s contracture in a tissue environment.

The objective of this study was to improve the biomechanical performance of titanium (Ti) using a biocompatible electrospun nanofiber matrix. The study is based on the hypothesis that coating a Ti surface with a nanofiber matrix (NFM) made of collagen (CG) and polycaprolactone (PCL) electrospun nanofibers could increase the mechanical fixation of Ti/bone by improving the surface and cytocompatibility properties of Ti. This study prepared Ti samples with and without CG-PCL NFM coatings. This study determined the in vitro effects of each group of Ti samples on the surface topography and cytocompatibility (osteoblast cell adhesion, proliferation, mineralization and protein adsorption) properties. This study also determined in vivo interface shear strength and bone volume fraction of each group of Ti samples with bone using a rabbit model. This study found that the CG-PCL NFM coating on Ti improved the surface roughness, osteoblast cell adhesion, proliferation, mineralization and protein adsorption properties of Ti. In vivo studies found that interface shear strength of CG-PCL NFM-coated Ti/bone samples was significantly higher compared to those values of control Ti/bone samples (pvalue < 0.05) due to an increase in the amount of growth of the connective tissue joining the Ti implant. Therefore, the developed CG-PCL NFM coating technique should further be investigated for its potential in clinical applications.

A lesson plan is presented for teaching students about film adaptations and the influence on literature's reception using the example of the film version of the novel "The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe" written by C.S. Lewis.

Tight glycemic control and timely treatment can improve outcomes in patients with diabetes yet many remain sub-optimally controlled. The objective of the current study was to evaluate the effect of switching patients with sub-optimally controlled diabetes to the V-Go®(Valeritas Inc., Bridgewater, NJ, USA) Disposable Insulin Delivery device. A retrospective analysis of electronic medical records was conducted to assess patients with sub-optimal glycemic control defined as a glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) >7%, switched to V-Go. Blood glucose control defined as change from baseline in HbA1c, prescribed insulin doses, body weight, concomitant anti-hyperglycemic agents, and reported hypoglycemia were collected prior to switching to V-Go and during V-Go use. Two-hundred and four patients were evaluated during the study period. Overall, there was a significant decrease in HbA1c after switching to V-Go at the 14- and 27-week follow-up visits. The least-squares mean (LSM) change in HbA1c (95% confidence interval) from baseline to 14 weeks was −1.53% (−1.69% to −1.37%; P< 0.001), and from baseline to 27 weeks was −1.79% (−1.97% to −1.61%; P< 0.001). Significant reductions in mean HbA1c were achieved at both visits in all patient subsets: Patients with type 2 and type 1/latent autoimmune diabetes in adults (LADA); patients using insulin at baseline and patients naïve to insulin at baseline. Patients administering insulin at baseline required significantly less insulin on V-Go (86–99 LSM units/day at baseline to 58 LSM units/day at 27 weeks; P< 0.001). Across all patients, reported hypoglycemic events were no more frequent on V-Go than on previous therapy. V-Go is safe and effective in patients with sub-optimally controlled diabetes requiring insulin therapy. Glycemic control improved significantly, less insulin was required, and hypoglycemic events were similar after patients switched to insulin delivery by V-Go. Valeritas, Inc.

This study examined associations among perceived and actual father behavior and child social anxiety. Forty-eight children (22 high socially anxious, 26 low socially anxious) completed self-report measures of social anxiety, general anxiety, and depression. Children also completed a measure of perceived parental style and subsequently collaborated with their fathers on a challenging task (origami). After controlling for general anxiety and depression, fathers of high socially anxious children exhibited more controlling behavior during the origami task; high and low socially anxious children, however, did not differ behaviorally from one another. Perceptions of father child-rearing style did not differ as a function of child social anxiety, nor were significant relations found between perceived parenting and specific father behaviors. Findings underscore the importance of assessing various types of internalizing symptoms (i.e., controlling for shared construct variance), obtaining children's perceptions of parental style in conjunction with conducting behavioral observations, and including fathers in psychopathology research.

Although the treatment‐efficacy literature for adults with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has advanced considerably with the publication of several methodologically rigorous contributions during the past decade, the child‐focused PTSD literature has yet to extend beyond case illustrations and open trials. Central to this article is a review of the treatment‐outcome literature for children with PTSD. Because few treatment studies have targeted trauma‐exposed children relative to their adult counterparts, results of some methodologically rigorous investigations with adults are also cited in this review. From these investigations and from the available treatment‐outcome data with children, we derive suggestions for future research.

In the present study, we investigated the relation of childhood anxiety and depression with 240 children (56% clinical referrals, 44% nonclinical referrals) ages 8 to 14 years. Participants were administered the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory for Children (STAIC) and the Children's Depression Inventory (CDI), two commonly used self-report measures of childhood anxiety and depression. The principal focus of this study was to examine the discriminant validity of these measures at the level of individual items through factor analysis. Although high correlations were found between overall scores on the CDI and STAIC, factor analysis yielded distinct factors of anxiety and depression. Thus, with the inclusion of clinic-referred and ethnically diverse groups, the present study provided support for the generalizability of findings of similar research with non-clinic-referred, primarily-Caucasian samples.

Avoidant disorder of childhood and adolescence and social phobia are common but understudied anxiety disorders. This article presents the available empiric literature on the clinical disorders, draws on related populations such as behavioral inhibited and socially withdrawn children, and highlights diagnostic and treatment issues with respect to these DSM-III-R disorders.

The quality of social relationships is a strong predictor of later adjustment. Thus, it is crucial to identify those environmental factors that lead to appropriate versus deficient childhood social relations. Parent‐child interaction is one important context to examine due to the crucial role that the family environment plays in children's social development. This article reviews the parental factors associated with social anxiety, integrating the literature from various fields within psychology. Methodological limitations of this research are discussed, pointing to ambiguous constructs, limited assessment procedures, lack of research integration, and reliance on cognitive interpretations. Finally, suggestions are made for future investigations to clarify the definition of constructs and allow for more precise specification of the parental behaviors associated with social anxiety.

Spontaneous and X-ray-induced mutants of theHPRT gene were isolated from two primary human fibroblast lines. The limited life-span of the mutants restricted the use of methods requiring large quantities of DNA, and the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was used in particular to check for the presence of multiple genomic sites in mutant analysis. Robust PCR primers were designed to amplify sites of up to 1 kb, mostly with 1-kb spacings between sites, over the entire 56-kbHPRT gene region. Using PCR, large deletions were found in 43% of independent X-ray-induced mutants, and their breakpoints were localized where these fell within the gene. Anonymous DNA sites in the Xq26 chromosomal region containingHPRT (covering =1.5 Mb) were also amplified by PCR to assess codeletion withHPRT; sites up to 1 Mb distal to the gene (DXS86, DXS10) were codeleted in some mutants, but no mutant was found with loss of a proximal site (DXS79).

Abstract: As persons with mental retardation become increasingly integrated into community settings, their right to sexual expression is an ever more important focus of education and habilitation. The perceptions of service providers of the sexual behavior of persons with mental retardation can have a significant impact on access to these services. Thus, the Perceptions of Sexuality Scale (POS) was developed as a measure of the attitudes of service providers. Data are presented regarding a factor analysis of the POS; ratings of acceptability of the sexual behavior of college students and persons with mental retardation; and the relation of those ratings to certain demographics, general attitudes, and interpersonal contact variables. Suggestions for the use of the POS are made.