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Young adult (YA) cancer survivors often experience social isolation. Mobile apps facilitate peer-to-peer connections, yet little is known about their use. YA survivors (N = 181) were surveyed about a peer-to-peer cancer support app. Among those with it downloaded, 36% reported daily/weekly use. One-to-one messaging and group chat features were easy-to-use and useful, but facilitation of social presence was variable. Within group chats, 55% participated in discussions; 45% observed conversations without contributing. The app was helpful for convenient access to peer support (84%), particularly when offline social networks were inadequate (83%); some (16–25%) reported nervousness initiating connections. Qualitative feedback identified facilitators and barriers to adoption and sustained engagement. Recommendations centered on improving design and logistical factors and facilitating in-app connections. App-based peer support is promising for addressing social isolation among YA survivors. Future research should examine theory-based communication and design features to encourage meaningful engagement and longitudinal effects on psychosocial outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Protein conformational changes are often induced when bound to surfaces and can modulate colloidal stability of protein coated particles in dispersion. We evaluated bovine serum albumin (BSA) adsorbed onto polystyrene particles at room temperature. A z-axis translating laser light scattering device (ZATLLS) measured the sedimentation velocity of protein-coated particles tracking aggregation characteristics compared with non-coated ones. Sedimentation velocities of particles moving in the dispersion, and the resulting viscosity and density of the residual solution following sedimentation determined aggregate size in the dispersion using Stoke's law. Our experiments objectively show that albumin-coated polystyrene forms aggregates. Interestingly, coating particles with protein slows the sedimentation velocity which should correspond to a more dispersed system, but it leads to higher aggregate sizes due to the larger influence of proteins in solution raising solution viscosity. Protein-bound particles were observed to fall out of solution in a more controlled and steady manner compared with uncoated particles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Health providers are challenged to find efficacious ways to provide health education to a population with diverse levels of health literacy. This project sought to test the effectiveness of a website (Diabetes and You) about Type II diabetes designed for non-diabetics with low health literacy. Research participants were observed as they viewed the Diabetes and You website, tested for diabetes knowledge before and after viewing the website, checked for functional health literacy, and interviewed to discover their perceptions of the website. Results indicate that users were engaged and interested in the website and particularly preferred the interactive risk assessment page. Users demonstrated an increase in knowledge about diabetes and its risks after viewing the website. Further research into the most effective ways of delivering health information online to this key target population is necessary to minimize the role of health literacy in limiting these individuals' acquisition and understanding of health information. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We analyze the initiation and propagation of adiabatic shear bands in a tungsten heavy alloy by modeling each constituent as a heat-conducting, microporous, isotropic, elastothermoviscoplastic material. The two constituents are assumed to be perfectly bonded to each other so that the temperature, heat flux, displacements, and surface tractions are continuous across an interface between a tungsten particulate and the nickel-iron matrix. Three different modes of deformation, namely plane strain tension/compression, plane strain shear, and axisymmetric tension/compression are analyzed. No other defects are introduced. It is found that contours of the rate of temperature rise and/or velocity and/or the specific energy dissipation rate rather than those of effective plastic strain delineate the shear banded regions. For the same volume fraction of particulates smaller diameter particulates enhance the formation of adiabatic shear bands. The time of initiation of an adiabatic shear band also depends upon the particulate arrangement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The preparation of ground low-density poly(ethylene) (LDPE), high-density poly(ethylene) (HDPE), and poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) materials suitable for use by inverse gas chromatography (IGC) experiments is described. Materials prepared showed a smaller and more uniform particle size, 83–86 µm (200 mesh), than commercially available Chromosorb® W solid chromatography support. In addition, the BET surface area of polymeric materials, 0.367–0.559 m2/cm3, was much greater than the surface area of 150- to 212-µm-diameter glass beads. The use of polymeric materials with uniform particle sizes and defined surface areas have several advantages over polymer coated Chromosorb® W and glass beads in IGC experiments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sedimentation is a limiting factor for the shelf life of filled paints and adhesive resins, and requires consideration when optimizing a resin's formulation for an end application. Static settling experiments have been performed using a bis-GMA-based photocurable resin system by varying some characteristics of the filler particles (size and composition) and of the resin (viscosity and composition). The recorded batch settling curves, mudline height vs. time, displayed the standard sedimentation shape. In particular, the mudline movement rate was constant in the initial period of sedimentation. The variations of this constant mudline velocity as a function of the settling conditions has been compared to sedimentation model predictions. A close correspondence has been obtained between the data and a model describing the sedimentation behavior of non-aggregated rigid spheres at high concentration in the Stokes regime. In particular, the constant mudline velocity is proportional to the square of the particle diameter. This result can be used as a way to limit the settling phenomenon in filled resin systems, by choosing a particle diameter as small as possible. As a validation of this result, no visually observable settling was seen in 50%-filled resin systems for a period more than 4 months at room temperature using 5.1-μm poly(methyl methacrylate-co-ethylene glycol dimethacrylate) particles as filler. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]