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With any polymeric material, chemical exposure may have one or more different effects. Some chemicals act as plasticizers, changing the polymer from one that is hard, stiff, and brittle to one which is softer, more flexible, and sometimes tougher. Often these chemicals can dissolve the polymer if they are present in large enough quantity and if the polymer is not crosslinked. Other chemicals can induce environmental stress cracking (ESC), an effect in which brittle fracture of a polymer will occur at a level of stress well below that required to cause failure in the absence of the ESC reagent. Finally, there are some chemicals that cause actual degradation of the polymer, breaking the macromolecular chains, reducing molecular weight, and diminishing polymer properties as a result. This article examines each of these effects. The discussion also covers the effects of surface embrittlement and temperature on polymer performance.

Engineering plastics, as a general class of materials, are prone to the development of internal stresses which arise during processing or during servicing when parts are exposed to environments that impose deformation and/or temperature extremes. Thermal stresses are largely a consequence of high coefficients of thermal expansion and low thermal diffusivities. Although time-consuming techniques can be used to analyze thermal stresses, several useful qualitative tests are described in this article. The classification of internal stresses in plastic parts is covered. The article describes the effects of low thermal diffusivity and high thermal expansion properties, and the variation of mechanical properties with temperature. It discusses the combined effects of thermal stresses and orientation that result from processing conditions. The article also describes the effect of aging on properties of plastics. It explains the use of high-modulus graphite fibers in amorphous polymers.

Four buffered preenrichment media (BAX® System MP Media (BAX)), Universal Preenrichment Broth (UPB), modified Buffered Peptone Water (mBPW), and Buffered Peptone Water (BPW)) were compared with lactose broth (LB) in the Bacteriological Analytical Manual’s (BAM) Salmonella culture method for the analysis of 9 leafy green produce and herb types. Artificially contaminated test portions were pre-enriched in each medium and the results were analyzed statistically using Fisher’s Exact 2-tailed F test (p 0.05). UPB was consistently among the most effective media for recovery of Salmonella from the nine produce types; however, S. Typhimurium and S. Newport were isolated from cabbage more frequently with mBPW than with UPB (p 0.05).

Polyolefin pipe is known to be susceptible to oxidative degradation when used in potable water applications. Flowing water inside of such pipe will extract antioxidants from the inside surface of the pipe, causing diffusion-driven migration of more antioxidant from the pipe mid-wall to that surface. Disinfectants in potable water (e.g., hypochlorites, chlorine dioxide, chloramines, etc.) react with antioxidants in the pipe material, decreasing the amount of effective antioxidant until none remains and the polymer is unprotected against oxidation. Also, the response of polyolefin materials to oxidative degradation and the effect of such degradation on pipe performance varies with the different polyolefin polymers. This study presents the results of testing of the resistance of random copolymer polypropylene pipe to chlorinated water and the failure mechanisms observed in the tests.

Lithium treatment was present in the first half of the twentieth century, but little to no attention was given to lithium in psychiatric literature at that time. This noticeable decline in the popularity of lithium could be attributed to the inquiries into lithia water and lithium tablets, which were frequently used in the late 1800s and early 1900s as lithium treatment delivery options. Lithium’s noticeable reappearance began in 1949 when John Cade used lithium to treat maniac patients, hypothesizing their sporadic excitement to be a result of a uric acid condition, which was also preventing normal discharge functioning. Lithium is a versatile drug that can be used in a variety of ways to reduce and prevent symptoms of various disorders. There are some areas of lithium research, however, that seem more promising in terms of yield ground-breaking treatment options for serious and currently incurable illnesses. Though ample research has been conducted to understand lithium’s abilities and effects, more is required to comprehensively assess how lithium works to counteract abnormalities contributing to disorders and diseases. Hematology, as well as many other fields of science, benefit from lithium use and need to continue to observe its capabilities.

Over the past thirty years, the disappearance, if not the death, of the intellectual in France has been the focus of significant conversation and debate. Yet a good bit earlier, two writers who epitomized that very figure of the intellectual, Jean-Paul Sartre and Albert Camus, in works written after their bitter break, seemed to have already sensed this decline. The present essay explores what Camus's novel La Chute [The fall] and Sartre's autobiography Les Mots [The words] share thematically and, in particular, how both works anticipate the fall of the French intellectual.

Objective: To determine how the ‘borderline’ category was used by cytopathologists in the UK when reporting cervical smears. Methods: A questionnaire was sent by email to members of the British Society for Clinical Cytology. Results: There is wide variation in the use of the ‘borderline’ category in the UK but the majority of respondents (77.6%) used it when reporting smears that were either on the borderline between negative and low grade squamous dyskaryosis (‘borderline ?low grade’), or on the borderline between negative and high grade squamous dyskaryosis (‘borderline ?high grade’), or on the borderline between negative and glandular dyskaryosis ‘borderline ?glandular dyskaryosis’). A significant minority (15.7%), however, did not use ‘borderline’ when reporting smears that showed an abnormality that was possibly high grade squamous dyskaryosis. A majority (79.1%) of respondents thought that it would be useful to have separate reporting categories for ‘borderline ?low grade’ and ‘borderline ?high grade’. Conclusions: There is diversity in the use of the category ‘borderline’ in the UK. The proposed revised BSCC terminology with separate categories for borderline ?low grade, borderline ?high grades and borderline ? glandular dyskaryosis reflects the opinion of the majority of respondents to the questionnaire.

Many household appliances utilize plastic materials in their construction. For example, many clothes dryers include plastics in the air blower and venting systems. The air blower in a dryer is used to move air past the burner or heating element, through the dryer drum and out through the exhaust duct. It has been alleged that friction between moving and stationary components in a clothes dryer, where one or both components are plastic, could generate sufficient heat to ignite the plastic component(s). The purpose of this study is to critically examine this allegation and determine whether frictional heating could ignite a plastic component in a clothes dryer.

Working on the International Space Station (ISS) has uncovered several challenges in the prevention of human error and desensitization to hazard advisories. Although human-centered design strives to eliminate accidents, there are still many unknowns in long term space habitation. Specifically, during the last fourteen ISS Expeditions, the crew has indicated that cautions and warnings (C&Ws) were used inappropriately within procedures. Human factors and safety personnel reviewed all comments made during ISS debriefs and a sample set of procedures. Findings included: no human factors input in procedure development, inconsistencies in procedure development, unclear C&W standards, and overuse and misuse of C&Ws throughout procedures. A usability evaluation was conducted to assess C&W intuitiveness for a specific set of C&Ws: Touch Temperature, Shock, Electrostatic Discharge, Rack Rotation, and Foreign Object Debris. This work focuses on the review findings, usability evaluation results, recommendations to NASA, final implementation and application to industry.

Quantifying foodborne pathogens at concentrations of 0.1 to 1,000 CFU/g of food generally involves most-probable-number (MPN) enumeration, which takes at least 4 days. A real-time PCR assay (RTi-PCR) was developed to accelerate MPN enumeration of foodborne Listeria monocytogenes. Foods were spiked from 70 to 110 CFU/g, and triplicate subportions from 0.0001 to 1 g were selectively enriched for 48 h at 30 degrees C. For standard MPN enumeration, the enrichments were subcultured on Oxford agar (48 h at 35 degrees C) to isolate Listeria. For RTi-PCR MPN, the L. monocytogenes cells from the same enrichments were washed and resuspended in 2 ml of sterile water. DNA was extracted by boiling for 10 min. The DNA in the extract's supernatant was targeted with published oligonucleotide primers for amplifying an Lmo-specific sequence of 16S rRNA genes. Amplification was continuously monitored with SYBR Green. The resulting amplicon was characterized by its melting temperature. The L. monocytogenes specificity of the primers was confirmed by testing L. monocytogenes (15 strains), Listeria innocua (11 strains), and Listeria welshimeri, Listeria seeligeri, Listeria ivanovii, and Listeria grayi (1 strain each). Quantitatively spiked milk, lettuce, smoked salmon, Brie cheese, ice cream, pork pâté, salami, ready-to-eat shrimp, raw ground beef, and fresh soft cheese were enumerated by both the standard and the PCR MPN method. The paired results from the two MPN methods agreed well, except for the fresh cheese. For some foods, l-g samples required a decimal dilution for a positive test result, suggesting concentration-dependent food ingredient interference with the RTi-PCR. This RTi-PCR method reduced the time necessary for the MPN enumeration of foodborne L. monocytogenes from 4 to 2 days.

As the demand for human papillomavirus (HPV)-related cervical screening increases, emerging HPV tests must be evaluated robustly using well-annotated samples, such as those generated in the Validation of HPV Genotyping Tests (VALGENT) framework. Through VALGENT, we assessed the performance of the BD Onclarity HPV assay, which detects 14 high-risk (HR) types and resolves six individual types and three groups of types. Consecutive samples from a screening population ( n = 1,000), enriched with cytologically abnormal samples ( n = 300), that had been tested previously with the GP5+/6+ PCR enzyme immunoassay (EIA) and the GP5+/6+ PCR LMNX assay (Diassay) were tested with the Onclarity assay. Type-specific HPV prevalences were analyzed according to age and cytological result. The accuracy of the Onclarity assay for the detection of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia grade 2+ (CIN2+) and CIN3+ was assessed relative to the GP5+/6+ EIA results by using noninferiority criteria. Overall agreement and type-specific agreement between the Onclarity assay and the GP5+/6+ LMNX assay were assessed. The prevalence of HPV types 16, 18, 31, and 45 increased with the severity of cytological results ( P for trend, P < 0.001 for noninferiority) and a relative specificity of 0.99 (95% CI, 0.97 to 1.00; P = 0.186 for noninferiority). The kappa for agreement between the Onclarity assay and the GP5+/6+ LMNX assay for HR-HPV was 0.92 (95% CI, 0.89 to 0.94), and values for the six individual types ranged from 0.78 (95% CI, 0.68 to 0.87) for HPV-52 to 0.96 (95% CI, 0.93 to 0.99) for HPV-16. These data suggest that the Onclarity assay offers applications for clinical workstreams while providing genotyping information that may be useful for risk stratification beyond types 16 and 18.

Bacterial detection in foods by nucleic acid probes is limited by microflora competition during selective enrichment. Probe target concentration by extraction and fractionation of enrichments may diminish this limitation. The 1-h AccuProbe chemiluminescent culture identification test for Listeria monocytogenes was used as a model. Its high detection threshold provides a stringent challenge for evaluating enrichmentwork-up protocols. Detection of L. monocytogenes, at 14 colony-forming units/g food,was not consistently possible in 48 h enrichment cultures usingAccuProbe. Concentration by cell sedimentationwas occasionally helpful but the volume of co-sedimented food limited concentration to about 10-fold. To improve concentration, enrichment sedimentswere sonicated or enzymatically lysed to release the probe's target, r-RNA. The RNAwas separated from non-RNA material by extraction with phenol and precipitation with ethanol. Enrichments (250 mL) were concentrated 2500-fold, and the limitation was food RNA volume. A strongly competitive Enterococcus faecium food isolate was used to demonstrate the effect of artificial competition on the kit's ability to detect L. monocytogenes in enrichments. High competitor concentrations repressed the level of the target below the detection threshold, but concentration of r-RNA enabled detection of L. monocytogenes. The effectiveness of this enrichment sample work-up was demonstrated with naturally contaminated hummus.

Over the last 40 years NASA has made great strides in creating habitable environments that support long-term space exploration. Most recently, the Skylab, Mir, and International Space Station exploration endeavors have provided NASA with a wealth of lessons learned to be carried forth to the new national vision for space exploration: “to the moon, Mars and beyond.” This paper will focus on the challenges and successes associated with creating a safe, functional, and productive environment for the human being living in space for an extended length of time. Specifically, the authors will be focusing on the issues surrounding habitation in space including: crew sleeping quarters, food preparation and dining facilities, exercise countermeasures, personal hygiene and waste collection, crew leisure time, and internal vehicle configuration. The lessons learned will be used to make recommendations for future long term space exploration.

Students use three approaches to learning and studying: deep, surface and strategic. These are influenced by the learning environment. In response to the General Medical Council's report 'Tomorrow's Doctors', the second year of the medical course at the University of Edinburgh was changed to promote deep learning, with learning objectives constructed according to the SOLO taxonomy, learning methods such as problem-based learning and constructively aligned written assignments and examinations. The Approaches to Study Skills Inventory for Students (ASSIST) was used to evaluate the effect of these changes. Scores were highest for deep approaches and lowest for surface approaches and showed almost no change during the course. There are various possible explanations. The students already scored highly on deep approaches at the beginning of Year 2 and it may be difficult to increase the deep scores further, particularly over the relatively short period of the study. Alternatively, the effect of the changes in learning environment may not be strong enough to change entrenched approaches which have hitherto been successful.

Albert Camus's primary Other was not the Arab, as his critics have argued, but rather the German philosophical tradition of Hegel and Marx that, in his view, offered History as a logical, inexorabl...

Robert Zaretsky has recently written two very good, concise and thoughtful books on Albert Camus. The first, Albert Camus: Elements of a Life (Cornell University Press, 2010), centered on four mome...

Identification of bona fide Listeria isolates into the six species of the genus normally requires only a few tests. Aberrant isolates do occur, but even then only one or two extra confirmatory tests are generally needed for identification to species level. We have discovered a hemolytic-positive, rhamnose and xylose fermentation-negative Listeria strain with surprising recalcitrance to identification to the species level due to contradictory results in standard confirmatory tests. The issue had to be resolved by using total DNA-DNA hybridization testing and then confirmed by further specific PCR-based tests including a Listeria microarray assay. The results show that this isolate is indeed a novel one. Its discovery provides the first fully documented instance of a hemolytic Listeria innocua strain. This species, by definition, is typically nonhemolytic. The L. innocua isolate contains all the members of the PrfA-regulated virulence gene cluster ( Listeria pathogenicity island 1) of L. monocytogenes . It is avirulent in the mouse pathogenicity test. Avirulence is likely at least partly due to the absence of the L. monocytogenes -specific allele of iap , as well as the absence of inlA , inlB , inlC , and daaA . At least two of the virulence cluster genes, hly and plcA , which encode the L. monocytogenes hemolysin (listeriolysin O) and inositol-specific phospholipase C, respectively, are phenotypically expressed in this L. innocua strain. The detection by PCR assays of specific L. innocua genes ( lin0198 , lin0372 , lin0419 , lin0558 , lin1068 , lin1073 , lin1074 , lin2454 , and lin2693 ) and noncoding intergenic regions ( lin0454-lin0455 and nadA-lin2134 ) in the strain is consistent with its L. innocua DNA-DNA hybridization identity. Additional distinctly different hemolytic L. innocua strains were also studied.

Florida panthers are an endangered species inhabiting south Florida. Hg has been suggested as a causative factor for low populations and some reported panther deaths, but a quantitative assessment of risks has never been performed. This study quantitatively evaluated retrospective (pre-1992) and current (2002) risks of chronic dietary Hg exposures to panthers in the Florida Everglades. A probabilistic assessment of Hg risks was performed using a dietary exposure model and Latin Hypercube sampling that incorporated the variability and uncertainty in ingestion rate, diet, body weight, and mercury exposure of panthers. Hazard quotients (HQs) for retrospective risks ranged from less than 0.1–20, with a 46% probability of exceeding chronic dietary thresholds for methylmercury. Retrospective risks of developing clinical symptoms, including ataxia and convulsions, had an HQ range of

Previous studies have demonstrated that cortical spreading depression (CSD) increases the expression of putative neuroprotective proteins. The objective of the present study was to elucidate the relationship between the number of episodes of CSD and steady-state levels of mRNAs encoding brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), heat-shock protein-72 (hsp72) and c-fos. Wistar rats were administered one, five, or twenty-five episodes of CSD evoked by application of 2 M KCl to the frontal cortex of one hemisphere. Animals were permitted to recover for 30 min, 2 h or 24 h prior to sacrifice. Total RNA was isolated from the parietal cortex of each hemisphere and analyzed using Northern blots. At 30 min recovery, levels of BDNF mRNA were not significantly elevated after 1 episode of CSD, but were increased 4-fold after five episodes of CSD and 11-fold after twenty-five episodes of CSD, relative to levels in the contralateral hemisphere. At 2 h recovery, BDNF mRNA levels increased 2-, 3- and 9-fold, respectively. At 24 h, BDNF mRNA had returned to control levels in all groups. Thus, CSD increased levels of BDNF mRNA in a dose-dependent fashion at the early recovery times. Hsp72 mRNA was below the level of detection after 1 and 5 episodes of CSD. However, after twenty-five episodes of CSD, hsp72 mRNA levels were increased in the ipsilateral hemisphere at 30 min and 2 h recovery. Unlike levels of BDNF and hsp72 mRNA, levels of c-fos mRNA were increased nearly to the same extent at 30 min and 2 h after one, five or twenty-five episodes of CSD before returning to control by 24 h recovery. These results demonstrate that CSD triggers a dose-dependent increase in the expression of genes encoding neuroprotective proteins, which may mediate tolerance to ischemia induced by CSD.

A thermodynamically consistent equation of state (EOS) was developed for unreacted liquid nitromethane (NM). The specific heat cv, the coefficient of thermal pressure (∂P/∂T)v, and the isothermal bulk modulus BT, were modeled as functions of temperature and volume using existing experimental data. To test our EOS predictions, temperature measurements using time-resolved Raman spectroscopy were obtained from NM subjected to stepwise loading. In contrast to previous EOS developments, calculations using our EOS show good agreement with the measured temperatures. Comparison with previous EOS models shows that simplifying assumptions, such as holding (∂P/∂T)v or Γ/v constant, lead to significant inaccuracies in temperature predictions for shocked NM. The assumption that the Gruneisen parameter Γ is a function of volume only is not consistent with our EOS.

A screening level probabilistic assessment of risks was performed on three species of piscivorous wildlife at the top of Everglades aquatic food webs: the American alligator ( Alligator mississippiensis ), the great egret ( Egretta alba ), and the raccoon ( Procyon lotor varius ). Ranges of dietary exposure concentrations (and probability distribution functions) were derived for two general areas of the Everglades: Shark Slough and the south-central Everglades (highly contaminated with Hg), and the northern Everglades (a lower Hg contaminated area in and near Water Conservation Area 1). Ranges of toxicity reference values and probability distribution functions were derived from literature on the toxicity of dietary methyl Hg to birds and mammals. Probability distributions of risk estimates for each receptor were generated using Monte Carlo simulations and indicated that piscivorous wildlife feeding in the south-central region of the Everglades are at high risk from consumption of Hg-contaminated prey. Alligators had 100% exceedences of chronic risk thresholds, and great egrets had 99% exceedences. In the northern Everglades, exceedences of chronic risk thresholds were substantially lower but were still present (6–34% exceedences). Results support previous studies suggesting that top predators of the Everglades may be at risk from Hg contamination and indicate that Hg risks are location-dependent.

Comparison of isolation methods for microbial pathogens is complicated by the variable interference caused by the competitive microflora present in test samples such as foods. In principle, using measured amounts of a standard competitor in a defined surrogate food matrix might control the effect of variable interference. This possibility was investigated using Listeria monocytogenes and enrichment broths belonging to the acriflavine-nalidixate selective agent class. Triplicate test sample sets were prepared. Each set consisted of suspensions of variable levels of the standard competitor, Enterococcus faecium strain 111 (approximately 10 to 10(9) CFU/25 g), mixed with a low constant level (10 to 100 CFU/25 g) of L. monocytogenes. These test samples were enriched at 30 degrees C for 48 h in different selective media and streaked onto selective isolation agars. The input CFU ratio (E. faecium/L. monocytogenes) that permitted a 50% end point L. monocytogenes recovery was 2.2 x 10(6) or higher for the Food and Drug Administration one-step enrichments and 0.8 x 10(6) for the International Standards Organization (ISO) two-step enrichment. These and other results show that this evaluation method is feasible with this class of enrichments. Interestingly, L. monocytogenes could be detected in enrichment cultures at high-input E. faecium/L. monocytogenes ratios even when the enriched samples were plated onto nonselective media. The pinpoint colonies of L. monocytogenes embedded in a confluent lawn of E. faecium 111 were detectable by their contrasting coloration in Henry obliquely transmitted illumination.

The activity of carboxylesterase (CaE), a class of nonspecific serine hydrolases, was evaluated in vitro in tissues and microsomes of rainbow trout and compared to esterase activity in rats, other fish species, and embryo to adult life stages of trout. Trout gill and liver microsomes exhibited substantial CaE activity and limited variation over the range of 2 to 40 C, with a temperature optimum of approximately 22 C. Trout sera and rat liver microsomes exhibited a temperature optimum of approximately 35 to 40 C. The CaE of trout liver (maximum reaction rate [V{sub max}] = 672 nmol/min/mg microsomal protein) was four times less than in rats. Apparent Michaelis constant (K{sub m}) values ranged from 28 (trout liver) to 214 (trout sera) {micro}M. Values of V{sub max}/K{sub m} suggested that in vivo CaE activity of trout liver would be about three times higher than serum, 135 times higher than gill, and three times lower than rat liver. The CaE activity in whole rainbow trout homogenates significantly increased 300% per gram of tissue to 1,200% per milligram of protein between the yolk-sac and juvenile stages. The CaE activity of whole fish homogenates was not significantly different in juvenile rainbow trout, channel catfish,more » fathead minnows, and bluegill. The results demonstrate that rainbow trout had high esterase activity over a broad range of temperatures, the CaE activity significantly increased between the yolk-sac and juvenile life stages, and that variation between the CaE activity in trout and three other families of freshwater fish was limited. The CaE activity in fish is expected to substantially influence the accumulation and toxicity of pesticides and other esters entering the aquatic environment.« less

Etude de la presence de Nietzsche dans «L'homme revolte» de Camus, a travers les themes de la revolte, la memoire, l'art et l'histoire. Retracant la genealogie du nihilisme dans le cadre de sa logique de l'absurde, Camus oppose cependant a la revolte solitaire de Nietzsche une forme saine de la revolution au benefice de la communaute des hommes. Developpant une conception esthetique de la revolte comme art et creativite, Camus situe la memoire entre nostalgie et histoire, formalisme et realisme, comme seule possibilite d'unite, de coherence et de valeur.

Previous studies have demonstrated that cortical spreading depression (CSD) induces neuronal tolerance to a subsequent episode of ischemia, The objective of the present investigation was to determine whether CSD alters levels of mRNA coding for putative neuroprotective proteins. Unilateral CSD was evoked in male Wistar rats by applying 2 mol/L KCl over the frontal cortex for 2 hours. After recovery for 0, 2, or 24 hours, levels of several mRNA coding for neuroprotective proteins were measured bilaterally in parietal cortex using Northern blot analysis. Levels of c-fos mRNA and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) mRNA were markedly elevated at 0 and 2 hours, but not 24 hours after CSD. Tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) mRNA levels were also significantly increased at 0 and 2 hours, but not 24 hours after CSD. Levels of the 72-kDa heat-shock protein (hsp72) mRNA were not significantly increased by CSD, except for a small elevation (20%) at 2 hours recovery. Levels of the 73-kDa heat-shock cognate (hsc73) mRNA were slightly, but significantly, increased at 2 and 24 hours of recovery. Finally, levels of mRNA for protease nexin-1 and glutamine synthetase were not significantly altered by CSD at any time studied. The current results support the hypothesis that neuronal tolerance to ischemia after CSD may be mediated by increased expression of FOS, BDNF, or tPA, but not by increased expression of hsp72, hsc73, nexin-1, or glutamine synthetase.

Poly(ethy1ene terephthalate), PET, is a semicrystalline thermoplastic polymer which has proven to be extremely valuable as a raw material for the production of fibers and oriented film products. Yarns and fabrics manufactured from PET polyester fibers are used in everything from clothing to heavy-duty industrial fabrics and load-bearing reinforcements. PET films are widely used for food packaging, and PET bottles for carbonated beverages have become commonplace.

Objective Cytology laboratories routinely treat cervical liquid-based cytology (LBC) specimens that are heavily contaminated with blood with glacial acetic acid (GAA) in order to lyse red blood cells and facilitate assessment. However, the impact on downstream human papillomavirus (HPV) detection is not well understood. This study examines the effect of GAA pre-treatment of ThinPrep® Preservcyt® specimens on the molecular detection of HPV. Methods A panel of 150 routinely collected cervical LBC specimens was tested with two commercial HPV tests, the Abbott RealTime High Risk HPV test (rtHPV) and the Qiagen Hybrid Capture 2 High Risk HPV DNA test (HC2), as aliquots before and after GAA treatment. Statistical analysis was performed using McNemars test and Bland and Altman plots. Results Agreement between the results of the rtHPV test on GAA-untreated and GAA-treated specimens was 95.7%, with no evidence of a significant difference in the distribution of the discrepant results (P = 0.414). HC2 test agreement on GAA-untreated and GAA-treated specimens was 91% at a cut-off of 1 relative light unit index (RLUI) and 92% at a cut-off of 2 RLUI. There was no evidence of a difference in the distribution of discordant results at a cut-off of 1 (P = 0.405) and 2 RLUI (P = 0.564). Conclusions GAA pre-treatment of cervical ThinPrep Preservcyt LBC specimens had little effect on the two commercial HPV tests used in this study. The impact of GAA treatment on HPV testing should, however, be validated for all HPV tests and all LBC collection media used in each particular diagnostic setting.

Studies were conducted to determine the relative effectiveness of whole soak [current Bacteriological Analytical Manual-(BAM) Salmonella method], quarter, stomach, and blend methods for the recovery of Salmonella organisms from internally and externally contaminated tomatoes. Tomatoes were subjected to three inoculation methods: surface inoculation, internal inoculation by injection, and immersion with single Salmonella serovars. The inoculation levels ranged from 1 to 100 CFU/tomato for surface and injection inoculation or 1 to 100 CFU/mL for immersion inoculation. Tomatoes were held for 3 days after inoculation at 2–6°C prior to initiation of analysis. Contaminated tomatoes were soaked, quartered, stomached, and blended in appropriate portions of Universal Pre-enrichment broth, and incubated for 24 h at 35 ± 2°C. The BAM Salmonella culture method was followed thereafter, and tomatoes were treated as a low-microbial-load food. The stomaching procedure was significantly (P< 0.05) more effective than the whole soak procedure for recovery of internalized Salmonella from tomatoes (by injection). The blending procedure was arithmetically superior to the stomaching procedure for detection of internalized Salmonella from tomatoes (by immersion). The blending procedure showed the same effectiveness as the whole soak procedure for the detection of Salmonella on tomato surfaces. Comparisons between test portion-to-broth ratios (weight to volume) showed that a 1:3 test portion-to-broth ratio had a better buffering capacity for blended tomatoes than a 1:1 test portion-to-broth ratio. It is recommended that the current whole soak BAM tomato sample preparation procedure be replaced with a blending procedure and a 1:3 test portion-to-broth ratio.

Coated polyester geogrids have been widely used in soil stabilization and geotechnical reinforcement applications. Four commercially available, coated poly (ethylene terephthalate) geogrids have been studied in order to assess characteristics such as polymer coating type, coating thickness and uniformity, fiber diameter, and fiber distribution within the coated bundles. Some inhomogeneities were observed, such as thin spots in the coating thickness. Also, voids were observed within some of the fiber bundles. The potential impact of these anomalies on geogrid durability is discussed.

Mechanisms for energetic ion generation that could explain the observed ion energies in the anode plasma of a magnetically insulated ion diode [Phys. Rev. A 39, 5842 (1989)], are discussed. It is suggested that strong electric fields that result from large density gradients on few tens of micrometers near the anode cause the ion acceleration. Steady state as well as time‐dependent accelerations are examined.

An apparent difference between two calculations of drift‐orbit modifications to the spatial diffusion rate of particles in stochastic magnetic fields is addressed [H. E. Mynick and J. A. Krommes, Phys. Rev. Lett. 43, 1506 (1979); J. R. Myra and P. J. Catto, Phys. Fluids B 4, 176 (1992)]. The calculations are reconciled by noting the relevance of an inequality which was not discussed in these studies. It is shown, both analytically and by Monte Carlo simulation, that the diffusion coefficient can be sensitive to the spectral width of the magnetic turbulence relative to a finite Larmor radius parameter.

Since 2006, a number of peer reviewed studies have linked earlier observed polyethylene oxidation research to field failures of HDPE pipes in water transport environments. Of particular interest have been reports of premature polyethylene pipe failure in the presence of common water disinfectants such as chlorine (hypochlorite), chlorine dioxide and chloramines. Studies in France by major water utilities (i.e. Suez Environnement and Veolia Environnement) have linked factors such as type of disinfectant, average service temperature, disinfectant concentration and pressure to HDPE pipe oxidation and failure. With a growing number of European studies documenting oxidative aging of HDPE of all types, this study undertook to 1) review published work on the subject including laboratory testing and evaluation of exhumed HDPE pipe studies both in Europe and the United States and 2) conduct a forensic analysis of HDPE pipe from U.S. water utilities. This paper will summarize the results of both parts of the study.

This brief study presents strategic and operational principles with case examples to strengthen ties with neighbors in the hope of reducing conflict or preventing the escalation of tensions. The United States military chaplaincy provides the greatest capability for an interagency and coalition government effort engaging religious leaders to achieve strategic peaceful outcomes. It argues for strengthening three programmatic endeavors to introduce and deepen informational diplomatic ties. This research paper contends for using chaplains as part of a Policy Projection Platform. The Policy Projection Platform does not formulate foreign policy per se. It projects forward the means by which information is observed, gathered, utilized, and formulized to design policy as needed. The proposed Policy Projection Platform consists of religious leader liaison (RLL) working together but separately at: operational and strategic unified combatant commands, as religious subject matter experts (SME) in the State Department, and as RLL in the State Partnership for Peace Program (SPPP). The policy projection platform discusses the chaplain role in each of the three strategic ways to resolve conflict and promote peace.

We describe the investigations of the plasma behavior in three pulsed‐power systems: a magnetically insulated ion diode, and plasma opening switch, and a gas‐puffed Z pinch. Recently developed spectroscopic diagnostic techniques allow for measurements with relatively high spectral, temporal, and spatial resolutions. The particle velocity and density distributions within a few tens of microns from the dielectric‐anode surface are observed using laser spectroscopy. Fluctuating electric fields in the plasma are inferred from anisotropic Stark broadening. For the plasma opening switch experiment, a novel gaseous plasma source was developed which is mounted inside the high‐voltage inner conductor. The properties of this source, together with spectroscopic observations of the electron density and particle velocities of the injected plasma, are described. Emission line intensities during the switch operation are discussed. In the Z‐pinch experiment, spectral emission‐line profiles of various charge‐state ions ar...

Failure of plastic piping due to freezing occasionally occurs in fire sprinkler systems and water supply lines. The cost of these pipe breaks can be significant, particularly for those that occur in high-rise buildings. The costs may include repair, loss of service, and water damage. In a previous paper, the theory and testing of the freezing failures in metal pipes was investigated, demonstrating that the pipe breaks are due to a pressure rise between the frozen section of the pipe and the blind end of the system. The pipe typically fails at a weak link in the system at a significantly elevated pressure, remote from the freeze area. This paper describes additional testing on plastic pipes, including PVC, CPVC, and PE, that are used in many water supply and sprinkler systems. In the previous study, a critical length of frozen pipe was calculated that would cause the burst due to overpressure remote from the freeze. In the case of plastic piping, the length of time that the pipe is over-pressured also affects the failure due to creep effects. Prior freeze failures in a plastic piping system may cause damage to the remaining non-failed pipe that could lead to future failures even if another freeze event does not occur.Copyright © 2009 by ASME

In this paper the confinement of the MeV ions that are created by D–D reactions in the TFTR tokamak [in Plasma Physics and Controlled Nuclear Fusion Research 1988 (IAEA, Vienna, 1989), Vol. 1, p. 27] is described. The ions that escape from the plasma are measured by a new type of detector located just outside the plasma edge. Most measurements made with this detector are consistent with the first‐orbit loss of these ions. Exceptions are correlated with strong magnetohydrodynamic activity, and a preliminary explanation is presented.

Two fractured 8″ IPS SDR 26 PVC 1120 water pipe specimens were analyzed to determine the causes of failure. The pipes were part of a water distribution system in a condominium apartment complex. The analysis included evaluation of material properties, examination of the fracture surfaces, and fracture stress calculations utilizing linear elastic fracture mechanics. It was concluded from these studies that both pipe specimens failed due to excessive bending of the pipeline sections during the after installation.