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Weapon
Selected AbstractsThe Hypothesis,Testing Ordering System: A New Competitive Weapon of Japanese Convenience Stores in a New Digital EraINDUSTRIAL RELATIONS, Issue 4 2002Susumu OgawaArticle first published online: 17 DEC 200 This study focuses on the store,ordering system practiced by Japanese convenience stores. The article examines (1) the conceptual categorization of such ordering systems, (2) the history of the system development at three major convenience stores, and (3) the characteristics of 7,Eleven's development that led the way toward an innovative ordering system. [source] The CFE: Another Weapon for Fighting FraudJOURNAL OF CORPORATE ACCOUNTING & FINANCE, Issue 4 2001Anthony M. Lendez Certified Fraud Examiners (CFEs) belong to the world's largest antifraud SWAT team. And one day, you may need their help. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. [source] Investigating the nature of expressiveness in stranger, acquaintance and intrafamilial homicidesJOURNAL OF INVESTIGATIVE PSYCHOLOGY AND OFFENDER PROFILING, Issue 3 2005Stephanie K. Last Abstract This study explores the role of the victim,offender relationship in the dynamics of homicide, by examining the crime scene behaviour of 25 intrafamilial, 30 acquaintance and 27 stranger homicide offenders (n = 82). Six crime scene variables were examined: ,Weapon from the scene', ,Excessive wounding', ,Facial trauma', ,Multiple wounds to a single area', ,Post-mortem activity' and ,Manual violence'. The first objective was to identify whether these variables could be combined to form a partially ordered scale of expressiveness. The second was to examine whether the nature of this expressive crime scene varied according to the victim and offender relationship. It was hypothesised that the intrafamilial homicides would be characterised by a more expressive crime scene. This was examined by Partial Order Scalogram Analysis which supported the hypothesised link between the level of expressed emotion evident in the crime scene and the nature of the victim,offender relationship. Further analysis on the individual variables revealed that the best single predictor of the relationship between victim and offender was the presence of multiple wounding. These findings are discussed both as contributing to a theoretical understanding of the emotional salience of crime scene actions when killing a family member, and in practical terms in relation to the significance of these variables for both police investigations and clinical interventions with homicide perpetrators. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Attempts to Reduce and Eliminate Nuclear Weapons through the Nuclear Non -Proliferation Treaty and the Creation of Nuclear -Weapon -Free ZonesPEACE & CHANGE, Issue 4 2008Paul J. Magnarella Nuclear weapons remain the most dangerous weapons of mass destruction threatening our lives and planet. To date, the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) is the most comprehensive international agreement aimed at limiting these weapons. In response to some of NPT's shortcomings, a large number of nonnuclear weapon states have joined together to create nuclear-weapon-free zones (NWFZs). By doing so, they emphatically rejected nuclear weapons on their soil, in their territorial waters, and in their air space. In addition, they ask nuclear weapon states to solemnly promise not to use nuclear weapons against zone members and to do nothing to promote nuclear weapons in their zones. Currently, much of the Southern Hemisphere is covered by NWFZs. An NWFZ has been newly created in Central Asia, and the League of Arab States is considering one in the Middle East. [source] Extracorporeal Life Support: A Simple and Effective Weapon for Postcardiotomy Right Ventricular FailureARTIFICIAL ORGANS, Issue 7 2009Kuo-Sheng Liu Abstract Postcardiotomy right ventricular (RV) failure develops during the perioperative period following pulmonary hypertensive crisis or acute myocardial infarction. This study reports our institutional experience in treating these patients with extracorporeal life support (ECLS). Between June 2002 and July 2005, 46 adults were treated with ECLS for postcardiotomy shock. Acute RV failure was the cause of support in 14 (30%). Patient mean age was 55.7 ± 15.4 years. Cardiac pathologies were valvular (n = 7), coronary (n = 1), combined coronary and valvular disease (n = 2), complex congenital heart (n = 2), aortic aneurysm (n = 1), and cardiomyopathy post heart transplant (n = 1). The triggers of RV failure were pulmonary hypertension (n = 6), RV infarction (n = 4), and not defined (n = 4). Patients were supported on ECLS for a mean duration of 71 ± 52 h (range, 10,183 h). Major complications included acute renal failure requiring hemodialysis (n = 4), reexploration for bleeding (n = 2), and acute subdural hematoma (n = 1). Nine (64%) patients were successfully weaned from ECLS, and seven (50%) survived to discharge. Preexisting pulmonary hypertension had a favorable tendency for weaning, and acute renal failure requiring hemodialysis correlated with in-hospital mortality. ECLS is beneficial for treating postcardiotomy RV failure when conventional therapy is exhausted. As it can be deployed rapidly and does not require resternotomy for weaning, ECLS could be regarded as the first choice of mechanical support for postcardiotomy RV failure. [source] Have the causes of maxillofacial fractures changed over the last 16 years in Finland?DENTAL TRAUMATOLOGY, Issue 1 2005An epidemiological study of 725 fractures Abstract,,, A retrospective study was undertaken to assess causes of maxillofacial fractures in Helsinki in 1981 and 1997. Hospital records of 725 patients were analyzed according to several factors including age, sex, cause of fracture and time of the injury. The time intervals between the accident and hospital examination were also evaluated. Number of maxillofacial fractures was 318 in 1981 and 407 in 1997 (27.9% increase) and most patients were men. The male to female ratio was 2.8:1 in 1981, 3:1 in 1997. In 1981, most affected patients were in the age group of 31,40 years (33.2% of men, 28.9% of women). Sixteen years later the most affected age group was 41,50 years (23.3% of men, 30.4% of women). Assault was the cause of the injury in 42% of patients followed by traffic accidents (26%) and fall (17%). During the study period violence had become more severe in nature. Kicking as the cause of maxillofacial fracture increased by 7.3% and use of a weapon by 5.7% between the years studied. Bicycle accidents increased by 19.3% but motor vehicle accidents decreased by 31.6% between the years. Falls, and bicycle and pedestrian accidents were the causes that accounted for most of the increase in maxillofacial fracture. In 1997, maxillofacial fractures were slightly more common from June to August and from Friday to Sunday than at other times (45.2 and 50%, respectively). [source] A comparison of risk factors for habitual violence in pre-trial subjectsACTA PSYCHIATRICA SCANDINAVICA, Issue 2002S. Z. Kaliski Objective: Pre-trial referrals to the Valkenberg Hospital forensic unit over a 6-month period were studied. Habitually violent offenders were compared with those with no history of violence. Methods:, Risk factors known to be associated with violent behaviour were elicited, i.e. demographics, behaviour during index offence (such as impulsivity, identity of victim, use of weapon, accomplices, intoxication, psychotic symptoms), psychiatric and family histories, history of suicide attempts, past child abuse, head injury, criminal record, psychiatric diagnosis and presence of medical disorders. EEG's, Barratt's Impulsivity, Zuckerman's Sensation Seeking and Mini-Mental Scales were administered. Behaviour in the ward during the 30 days was also appraised. Logistic regression models were used to determine relative risks. Results:, There were 155 subjects; 89.7% were male, 71.6% were single and 58.7% were unemployed. For 44.5% the index offence was violent, and 9.7% had committed sexual offences; 61.9% had histories of habitual violence. A psychotic disorder was diagnosed in 32.3% and a personality disorder in 48.4%. Habitually violent subjects were distin- guished by a history of issuing threats (OR=3.68; CI=3.19,4.16; P= 0.000), delusions of persecution (OR=3.43; CI=2.67,4.17; P=0.001), history of conduct disorder (OR=1.95; CI=1.70,2.19; P=0.006), alcohol/substance abuse (OR=2.08; CI=1.53,2.61; P=0.008) and violent index offence (OR=1.66; CI=1.54,2.61; P=0.035). Conclusion: This seems to confirm the relationship between threats, feeling threatened, psychosis, a history of antisocial behaviour and alcohol abuse. [source] Histology and biochemical composition of the autotomy mantle of Ficus ficus (Mesogastropoda: Ficidae)ACTA ZOOLOGICA, Issue 2 2002L. L. Liu Abstract When the foot of the figsnail Ficus ficus is mechanically stimulated, a portion of the mantle on the side of the inner lip, recognized as the autotomy tissue, swells then autotomizes. Studies of the behaviour and population dynamics of mantle autotomy in F. ficus have previously been reported, but here, a detailed description of the structure of the autotomy tissue is presented for the first time. Whether or not this autotomy tissue has the secondary function of a storage compartment was also investigated through analysis of its biochemical composition. Figsnails were collected from the coast of Kaohsiung, Taiwan. Histological observations indicated that the most obvious feature of the autotomy tissue is the extensive network of muscle fibres and connective tissues. In the swollen autotomy tissue, not only do the epithelia rupture, but the connective tissue expands threefold on the dorsal side and 15-fold on the ventral side. Chemical analysis of body composition indicated that the average contents of protein, lipid, carbohydrate and ash in the foot, mantle and autotomy tissue are in the range of 55.6,76.5%, 0.6,14.1%, 2.0,27.9% and 6.5,13.5%, respectively, with the caloric value ranging from 4.7 to 5.5 kcal g,1 dry wt. The content of carbohydrate in the autotomy tissue is much less than that in the foot and mantle, i.e. 2.0,6.8% vs. 13.0,27.9%. There is no indication that the autotomy tissue serves as an energy reserve. Hence, it is suggested that the autotomy tissue functions only as a defensive weapon. [source] Characteristics of Household Addresses That Repeatedly Contact 911 to Report Intimate Partner ViolenceACADEMIC EMERGENCY MEDICINE, Issue 6 2004Debra Houry MD Abstract Objectives: To determine whether households that generate several 911 calls differ in important ways from those that make a single call and to determine whether households that generate repeat 911 calls for intimate partner violence (IPV) experience more severe violence than those that do not. Methods: All cases of police-documented IPV were reviewed and linked with their respective 911 calls. Each incident report was reviewed to determine the relationship between the offender and victim, demographic characteristics of the offender and victim, weapon and substance involvement, prior incidents of IPV, and violence severity. Results: Of the 1,505 IPV addresses identified during the 12-month study interval, 1,010 (67.1%) placed more than one phone call to report IPV. Sixty-nine percent of African American victims, 50.6% of white victims, and 36.8% of Hispanic victims were repeat callers (p < 0.001). There were no differences between addresses that generated repeat calls versus single calls with respect to offender alcohol or drug involvement, presence of children, victim age, or offender age. Sixty-seven percent of households with severe violence and 66.9% of households with minor violence generated repeat 911 calls (p = 0.98). Conclusions: Ethnic differences in 911 use for IPV exist between African Americans, whites, and Hispanics. However, unknown societal, economic, or cultural issues could have influenced this finding. Households that repeatedly contacted 911 during the study interval to report IPV were not more likely to experience severe violence than those that placed a single 911 call. [source] DIVERSITY IN THE WEAPONS OF SEXUAL SELECTION: HORN EVOLUTION IN THE BEETLE GENUS ONTHOPHAGUS (COLEOPTERA: SCARABAEIDAE)EVOLUTION, Issue 5 2005Douglas J. Emlen Abstract Both ornaments and weapons of sexual selection frequently exhibit prolific interspecific diversity of form. Yet, most studies of this diversity have focused on ornaments involved with female mate choice, rather than on the weapons of male competition. With few exceptions, the mechanisms of divergence in weapon morphology remain largely unexplored. Here, we characterize the evolutionary radiation of one type of weapon: beetle horns. We use partial sequences from four nuclear and three mitochondrial genes to develop a phylogenetic hypothesis for a worldwide sample of 48 species from the dung beetle genus Onthophagus (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae). We then use these data to test for multiple evolutionary origins of horns and to characterize the evolutionary radiation of horns. Although our limited sampling of one of the world's most species-rich genera almost certainly underestimates the number of evolutionary events, our phylogeny reveals prolific evolutionary lability of these exaggerated sexually selected weapons (more than 25 separate gains and losses of five different horn types). We discuss these results in the context of the natural history of these beetles and explore ways that sexual selection and ecology may have interacted to generate this extraordinary diversity of weapon morphology. [source] Cytolethal distending toxin (CDT): a bacterial weapon to control host cell proliferation?FEMS MICROBIOLOGY LETTERS, Issue 2 2001Jean de Rycke Abstract Cytolethal distending toxins (CDT) constitute a family of genetically related bacterial protein toxins able to stop the proliferation of numerous cell lines. This effect is due to their ability to trigger in target cells a signaling pathway that normally prevents the transition between the G2 and the M phase of the cell cycle. Produced by several unrelated Gram-negative mucosa-associated bacterial species, CDTs are determined by a cluster of three adjacent genes (cdtA, cdtB, cdtC) encoding proteins whose respective role is not yet fully elucidated. The CDT-B protein presents sequence homology to several mammalian and bacterial phosphodiesterases, such as DNase I. The putative nuclease activity of CDT-B, together with the activation by CDT of a G2 cell cycle checkpoint, strongly suggests that CDT induces an as yet uncharacterized DNA alteration. However, the effective entry of CDT into cells and subsequent translocation into the nucleus have not yet been demonstrated by direct methods. The relationship between the potential DNA-damaging properties of this original family of toxins and their role as putative virulence factors is discussed. [source] Comparison of Web-Based versus Paper-and-Pencil Self-Administered Questionnaire: Effects on Health Indicators in Dutch AdolescentsHEALTH SERVICES RESEARCH, Issue 5p1 2008Petra M. Van De Looij-Jansen Objective. The aim of this study is to investigate differences in responses related to (mental) health and behavior between two methods of data collection: web-based (web) and paper-and-pencil (p&p). Study Design. Within each participating school all third-grade classes (mainly 14,15-year-old pupils) were randomly assigned to either the Internet condition (n=271) or the paper-and-pencil condition (n=261). Principal Findings. Significant but small differences were found for the strengths and difficulties subscales "emotional symptoms" (p&p>web) and "prosocial behavior" (p&p>web), and carrying a weapon (web>p&p). Perceived level of privacy and confidentiality did not differ between the two modes. Conclusions. The findings suggest that in a controlled school setting, web-based administration of health indicators yields almost the same results as paper-and-pencil administration. To generalize these findings, we recommend repeated studies in other populations and settings. [source] Archery, Romance and Elite Culture in England and Wales, c.1780,1840HISTORY, Issue 294 2004Martin Johnes During the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, the longbow was rendered redundant as a weapon of war by technological developments such as the musket. Yet at the end of the eighteenth century, archery was revived as a fashionable pastime amongst the English aristocracy thanks to a nostalgic taste for the gothic and medieval. Archery societies were set up across the country, each with its own strict entry criteria, outlandish costumes and extravagant dinners. In a period that saw the making of the modern British upper class, as landowners became more powerful, more unified and more status-conscious, archery societies were havens of exclusivity and a way of reinforcing and reassuring one's own position in society. Furthermore, women could not only compete in the contests but retain and display their ,feminine forms' whilst doing so, and thus the clubs also acted as a forum for introductions, flirtation and romance. This article explores the meaning of archery for upper-class men and women and demonstrates how wider social needs and interests shaped play, recreation and fashion. [source] The Courts of the Prior and the Bishop of Durham in the Later Middle AgesHISTORY, Issue 278 2000Cynthia J. Neville The operation of the common law in late medieval county Durham was characterized by several unique features. Among these were the independence of episcopal officials from interference from royal agents in the execution of the law, and the great variety of temporal courts found there. Within the lands of the palatinate, jurisdiction over suspects accused of felony was shared by both the bishop and the prior of Durham. The origins of this unusual division of judicial authority was an agreement dated c.1229, known as Le Convenit. It defined the relationship between the bishop, the temporal lord of the palatinate, and the prior of the Benedictine monastery in Durham who, as a landholder second only to the bishop, held a separate court for the suit of his free tenants. That relationship was often fraught with tension, for both lords were jealous of the prestige , and the revenues , incumbent on the exercise of judicial authority in their lands. This article examines the origins of Le Convenit, and the consequences of the agreement on criminal legal procedure in late medieval Durham. Successive priors of the monastery struggled tirelessly against the bishops to preserve the privileges they won in 1229, and Le Convenit remained throughout this period a potent weapon in their determination to give expression to lordly power and authority. [source] Slavery and the FoundingHISTORY COMPASS (ELECTRONIC), Issue 5 2006Matthew Mason One of the oldest but hottest debates over the U.S. Constitution has concerned its relationship to slavery, a dispute that goes right to the heart of the meaning of the founding of the republic. Some observers have portrayed slavery as a , even the , vital problem of the Founding, and denounced the Constitution as a proslavery document. Other scholars contend that this picture unduly elevates the importance of slavery in the contest over the Constitution and distorts the intent of the Founders. This essay reviews recent entries in this debate to frame its argument that slavery figured largely as a weapon that Federalists and Antifederalists wielded to press their more primary points. It examines the debates over , and using , the various slavery clauses in the document to conclude that slavery was a versatile tool in rather than a core concern of the Constitutional Convention and ratification debates. [source] The immune system: a weapon of mass destruction invented by evolution to even the odds during the war of the DNAsIMMUNOLOGICAL REVIEWS, Issue 1 2002Melvin Cohn Summary: Living systems operate under interactive selective pressures. Populations have the ability to anticipate the future by generating a repertoire of elements that cope with new selective pressures. If the repertoire of such elements were transcendental, natural selection could not operate because any one of them would be too rare. This is the problem that vertebrates faced in order to deal with a vast number of pathogens. The solution was to invent an immune system that underwent somatic evolution. This required a random repertoire that was generated somatically and divided the antigenic universe into combinatorials of determinants. As a result, it became virtually impossible for pathogens to escape recognition but the functioning of such a repertoire required two new regulatory mechanisms: 1) a somatic discriminator between Not-To-Be-Ridded (,Self') and To-Be-Ridded (,Non-self') antigens, and 2) a way to optimize the magnitude and choice of the class of the effector response. The principles governing this dual regulation are analyzed in the light of natural selection. Abstract I.,Introduction A. ,...doth protest too much' Living things obey the laws of natural selection What started the wars between the DNAs? The passage from germline to somatic evolution? E. Two classes of pathogen must be faced F. Two pathways are required for a successful immune response, II. The NTBR,TBR discrimination A. The three laws of the NTBR-TBR discrimination B. The mechanism of the NTBR-TBR discrimination C. Facing the "chicken and egg" problem III. The regulation of effector class IV. The somatically selected immune repertoire A. The Protecton is the unit of function B. The humoral immune system C. The cell-mediated immune system D. The meaning of specificity V. Why understand when you can cure without it? VI. Coda: Extracting the postulates used to explain immune behavior O.K. José! What would it take to change your mind? Mechkonik [source] Acholeplasma laidlawii up-regulates granulysin gene expression via transcription factor activator protein-1 in a human monocytic cell line, THP-1IMMUNOLOGY, Issue 3 2001Yutaka Kida Summary An antimicrobial protein granulysin is constitutively expressed in cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTL) and natural killer (NK) cells. However, little is known about the precise regulatory mechanisms underlying granulysin gene expression. In this study, we examined the regulatory mechanisms underlying granulysin gene expression using a human monocytic cell line, THP-1, treated with Acholeplasma laidlawii. The level of granulysin mRNA expression in THP-1 cells was significantly augmented in response to stimulation with A. laidlawii. The transfection of reporter gene constructs into THP-1 cells indicated that DNA sequences between residues ,329 and ,239, relative to the transcriptional start site of the granulysin gene, are responsible for mediating gene induction. In addition, mutagenesis of a putative activator protein-1 (AP-1)-binding site between residues ,277 and ,271 in the granulysin promoter resulted in the reduction of granulysin promoter activity. Electrophoretic mobility shift assays (EMSA) demonstrated that nuclear extract prepared from A. laidlawii- treated THP-1 cells can generate specific binding to DNA oligonucleotides encompassing the AP-1-binding site, whereas unstimulated nuclear extract from the cells failed to do so. Furthermore, competition and supershift assays confirmed that A. laidlawii can induce the activation of AP-1. These results indicate that AP-1 dominantly participates in the regulation of inducible granulysin gene expression in THP-1 cells. Therefore, the finding of inducible granulysin gene expression by A. laidlawii suggests that inducible granulysin in macrophages may function as a protective weapon when microbial invasion occurs. [source] Engineered Migration and the Use of Refugees as Political Weapons: A Case Study of the 1994 Cuban Balseros CrisisINTERNATIONAL MIGRATION, Issue 4 2002Kelly M. Greenhill This paper presents a case study of the August 1994 Cuban balseros crisis, during which more than 35,000 fled the island and headed toward Florida in the span of a few weeks. It argues that Castro launched the crisis in an attempt to manipulate US fears of another Mariel, and in order to compel a shift in US policy, both on immigration and on a wider variety of issues. The paper further contends that from Castro's perspective, this exercise in coercion proved a qualified success , his third such successful use of the Cuban people as an asymmetric political weapon against the US. In addition, the paper argues that Castro's success was predicated on his ability to internationalize his own domestic crisis and transform it into an American domestic political and foreign policy crisis. Finally, it offers a novel explanation of how, why, and under what conditions, states and/or non,state actors may attempt to use refugees as coercive political weapons. Although dwarfed in size by the larger 1980 Mariel boatlift, the 1994 crisis is important for several reasons. First, despite its brevity, it had far reaching consequences for US,Cuban relations. Without warning or preamble, it catalyzed a shift in US policy vis,ŕ,vis Cuban immigration that represented a radical departure from what it had been for the previous three decades. Second, it influenced US domestic politics on the national level, by expanding the scope and salience of the issue, and mobilizing not only Floridians, but also the larger public concerned about illegal immigration. Third, the crisis illustrated the potential potency of engineered migration as an asymmetric weapon of the weak. Finally, the brief, but significant, interactions of international and domestic actors in this case warrant examination because, although the 1994 crisis was limited, in its dynamics it resembles myriad other international refugee crises, large and small. Thus the case offers valuable lessons that may aid in dealing with future (real or threatened) crises. [source] Cross-sectional study of violence in emerging adulthoodAGGRESSIVE BEHAVIOR, Issue 2 2009Robert F. MarcusArticle first published online: 9 DEC 200 Abstract Theories of emerging adulthood, the evolutionary perspective, and the presence of turning points in the lives of 19,25-year olds were examined in relation to serious perpetrated violence for a cross-sectional sample of men and women (n=14,098) from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health), Wave III. Perpetrated, self-reported violence included armed robbery, gang fighting, using a weapon in a fight, pulling a knife or gun on someone, or shooting or stabbing someone. Results showed that 11.3% of emergent adults had perpetrated at least one of these behaviors in the past year. Hierarchical logistic regression analysis partially supported the three theories for both men and women, beyond the contribution of violence in adolescence. The presence of Wave III violence was more likely given the unique contributions of unmarried status and economic risk. Moreover, and consistent with the theory of emerging adulthood, both sensation seeking and depression declined with age and contributed to the acknowledgement of Wave III violence, beyond the contribution of controls for Wave I violence (6 years earlier), demographics, age, gender, unmarried status, and economic risk. Findings of age-related declines and gender differences in prevalence rates were consistent with previous research on nationally representative samples, and with the predictions of the three theories. Aggr. Behav. 35:188,202, 2009. © 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Long-term RNA interference and its application to hepatitis B virusJOURNAL OF DIGESTIVE DISEASES, Issue 3 2009Jin Shui PAN RNA interference (RNAi) is an ancient defensive mechanism in eukaryotes to control gene expressing and defend their genomes from foreign invaders. It refers to the phenomenon that double-stranded RNA results in the sequence-specific silencing of target gene expression. Although it was documented in a relatively short time ago, intensive research has facilitated making its mechanism clear. Researchers have found that it was a powerful tool for analyzing the functions of genes and treating tumors, infectious diseases and genetic abnormalities that are associated with a dominant gene defect. However, delivery in vivo, low blood stability and poor intracellular uptake present significant challenges for the development of RNAi reagents in clinical use. Thus, long-term inducible RNAi was designed. There are hundreds of millions of hepatitis B virus (HBV) carriers in the world at present, a portion of whom will lose their lives after several years due to chronic complications such as cirrhosis, hepatocellular carcinomas or both. Although a preventive vaccine is now available, the present therapeutic options for chronically infected patients are limited and of low efficiency. Admittedly, to date most RNAi experiments have been done in vitro, but it is hoped that they may be developed into a therapeutic strategy for HBV in the near future. In this article the principles and construction of long-term RNA are discussed. Its therapeutic potentiality and attention to the potential hazards will also outlined. We conclude that this ancient defensive mechanism can be recruited as a powerful weapon in the fight against HBV. [source] Phytoceuticals: Mighty but ignored weapons against Helicobacter pylori infectionJOURNAL OF DIGESTIVE DISEASES, Issue 3 2008Sun-Young LEE Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection causes peptic ulcer disease, mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT) lymphomas and gastric adenocarcinomas, for which the pathogenesis of chronic gastric inflammation prevails and provides the pathogenic basis. Since the role of H. pylori infection is promoting carcinogenesis rather than acting as a direct carcinogen, as several publications show, eradication alone cannot be the right answer for preventing H. pylori -associated gastric cancer. Therefore, a non-antimicrobial approach has been suggested to attain microbe-associated cancer prevention through controlling H. pylori -related chronic inflammatory processes and mediators responsible for carcinogenesis. Phytoceutical is a term for plant products that are active on biological systems. Phytoceuticals such as Korean red ginseng, green tea, red wine, flavonoids, broccoli sprouts, garlic, probiotics and flavonoids are known to inhibit H. pylori colonization, decrease gastric inflammation by inhibiting cytokine and chemokine release, and repress precancerous changes by inhibiting nuclear factor-kappa B DNA binding, inducing profuse levels of apoptosis and inhibiting mutagenesis. Even though further unsolved issues are awaited before phytoceuticals are accepted as a standard treatment for H. pylori infection, phytoceuticals can be a mighty weapon for either suppressing or modulating the disease-associated footprints of H. pylori infection. [source] Against Time: Scheduling, Momentum, and Moral Order at Wartime Los AlamosJOURNAL OF HISTORICAL SOCIOLOGY, Issue 1 2004Charles Thorpe As well as allowing coordination of the large and geographically dispersed sites of the atomic bomb project, the scheduling regime operated as a system of social control, suppressing opposition to the use of the weapon. The analysis suggests the importance of historical and ethnographic attention to how schedules inscribe instrumental rationality in the quotidian life of modern organizations. [source] Views of Intimate Partner Violence in Same- and Opposite-Sex RelationshipsJOURNAL OF MARRIAGE AND FAMILY, Issue 2 2009Susan B. Sorenson Attitudes toward same-sex intimate relationships and intimate partner violence (IPV) are changing. Little research, however, has examined norms about IPV in same-sex relationships. Using a fractional factorial (experimental vignette) design, we conducted random-digit-dialed interviews in four languages with 3,679 community-residing adults. Multivariate analyses of responses to 14,734 vignettes suggest that IPV against gay male, lesbian, and heterosexual women is more likely than that against heterosexual men to be considered illegal and that it should be illegal, police called, and a stay-away order issued. Regardless of gender and sexual orientation, the type of abuse and whether a weapon was displayed are the strongest predictors of respondents' judgments about whether a behavior is illegal and merits a range of societal interventions. [source] Screening Adolescents in the Emergency Department for Weapon CarriageACADEMIC EMERGENCY MEDICINE, Issue 2 2010Rebecca M. Cunningham MD Abstract Objectives:, The objective was to describe the prevalence and correlates of past-year weapon involvement among adolescents seeking care in an inner-city emergency department (ED). Methods:, This cross-sectional study administered a computerized survey to all eligible adolescents (age 14,18 years), 7 days a week, who were seeking care over an 18-month period at an inner-city Level 1 ED. Validated measures were administered, including measures of demographics, sexual activity, substance use, injury, violent behavior, weapon carriage, and/or weapon use. Zero-inflated Poisson (ZIP) regression models were used to identify correlates of the occurrence and past-year frequency of these weapons variables. Results:, Adolescents (n = 2069, 86% response rate) completed the computerized survey. Fifty-five percent were female; 56.5% were African American. In the past year, 20% of adolescents reported knife or razor carriage, 7% reported gun carriage, and 6% pulled a knife or gun on someone. Although gun carriage was more frequent among males, females were as likely to carry a knife or pull a weapon in the past year. Conclusions:, One-fifth of all adolescents seeking care in this inner-city ED have carried a weapon. Understanding weapon carriage among teens seeking ED care is a critical first step to future ED-based injury prevention initiatives. ACADEMIC EMERGENCY MEDICINE 2010; 17:168,176 © 2010 by the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine [source] Prevalence and Patterns of Alcohol Consumption and Health-Risk Behaviors Among High School Students in ThailandALCOHOLISM, Issue 12 2009Sawitri Assanangkornchai Background:, Underage drinking is a significant social and public health problem in Thailand. We report the prevalence and patterns of alcohol consumption and associated health-risk behaviors using data from a 2007,2008 national school survey. Method: A cross-sectional survey using a self-administered questionnaire was conducted among 50,033 high school and vocational college students from 201 schools in 40 provinces between December 2007 and February 2008. Results: The prevalence rates of past-year drinking, past-30-day binge drinking, and drinking until intoxication were 25.5, 9.5, and 17.3% in boys and 14.5, 3.7, and 7.2% in girls, respectively. Higher school levels, lower grades, living with someone other than their own parents, and having family members with substance or alcohol problems were significantly associated with all kinds of drinking. Binge drinkers were significantly more likely to have drinking consequences, e.g., driving after drinking, nausea and vomiting, and having a hangover than were nonbinge drinkers. The rates of other behavior and emotional problems were 2.5 to 6.7 times as likely in drinkers as nondrinkers, including smoking (35.1% vs. 4.9%), prescription drug misuse (17.7% vs. 6.7%), illicit substance use (17.8% vs. 2.4%), carrying a weapon (6.5% vs. 1.8%), feeling depressed (23.2% vs. 10.9%), suicidal attempt (10.5% vs. 3.8%), and sexual intercourse (30.5% vs. 5.7%). Conclusion: Alcohol consumption is a serious problem among adolescents in Thailand and is strongly associated with various health-risk behaviors. Effective age- and gender-specific interventions should be implemented to discourage underage drinking and associated adverse health and social consequences. [source] Drinking Alcohol before Age 13 and Negative Outcomes in Late AdolescenceALCOHOLISM, Issue 11 2009Neta Peleg-Oren Background:, Research has shown that adolescents who begin drinking at an early stage in life are at greater risk of developing alcohol dependency, as well as a variety of negative outcomes, for instance, delinquent behavior. Most of these studies have focused on those who begin drinking in middle adolescence, but little attention has been paid to youth who initiate drinking under the age of 13. Twenty percent of adolescents have begun using alcohol by the age of 13. The purpose of the study is to examine whether initiating alcohol use before the age of 13 exacerbates negative outcomes in late adolescence. Methods:, Data for the study were derived from 2 school-based statewide surveys conducted in Florida: the 2005 YRBS and the 2006 FYSAS. The sample included 12,352 11th and 12th grade students divided into 3 groups: students who initiated alcohol use under the age of 13, students who initiated alcohol use at age 13 or later, and students who never used alcohol. Results:, Results showed that after adjusting for gender, ethnicity/race, and grade, adolescents who initiated alcohol use before age 13 were more likely to report problems with school performance and display delinquent behaviors (carrying a gun, carrying a weapon to school, and recent marijuana use). Conclusion:, Although no temporal relationships can be determined between drinking alcohol before age 13 and delinquent behavior outcomes, the results suggested that adolescents under the age of 13 need to be included in national epidemiological surveys on alcohol use and more efforts need to be directed toward the implementation of prevention programs early in elementary and middle schools. [source] Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance , United States, 2001JOURNAL OF SCHOOL HEALTH, Issue 8 2002Jo Anne Grunbaum ABSTRACT: Priority health-risk behaviors, which contribute to the leading causes of mortality and morbidity among youth and adults, often are established during youth, extend into adulthood, are interrelated, and are preventable. This report covers data during February-December 2001. The Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS) monitors six categories of priority healthrisk behaviors among youth and young adults; these behaviors contribute to unintentional injuries and violence; tobacco use; alcohol and other drug use; sexual behaviors that contribute to unintended pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), including human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection; unhealthy dietary behaviors; and physical inactivity. The YRBSS includes a national school-based survey conducted by CDC as well as state, territorial, and local school-based surveys conducted by education and health agencies. This report summarizes results from the national survey, 34 state surveys, and 18 local surveys conducted among students in grades 9,12 during February-December 2001. In the United States, approximately three-fourths of all deaths among persons aged 10,24 years result from only four causes: motor-vehicle crashes, other unintentional injuries, homicide, and suicide. Results from the 2001 national Youth Risk Behavior Survey demonstrated that numerous high school students engage in behaviors that increase their likelihood of death from these four causes: 14.1% had rarely or never worn a seat belt during the 30 days preceding the survey; 30.7% had ridden with a driver who had been drinking alcohol; 17.4% had carried a weapon during the 30 days preceding the survey; 47.1% had drunk alcohol during the 30 days preceding the survey; 23.9% had used marijuana during the 30 days preceding the survey; and 8.8% had attempted suicide during the 12 months preceding the survey. Substantial morbidity and social problems among young persons also result from unintended pregnancies and STDs, including HIV infection. In 2001, 45.6% of high school students had ever had sexual intercourse; 42.1% of sexually active students had not used a condom at last sexual intercourse; and 23% had ever injected an illegal drug. Two-thirds of all deaths among persons aged ,25 years result from only two causes: cardiovascular disease and cancer. The majority of risk behaviors associated with these two causes of death are initiated during adolescence. In 2001, 28.5% of high school students had smoked cigarettes during the 30 days preceding the survey; 78.6% had not eaten ,5 servings per day of fruits and vegetables during the 7 days preceding the survey; 105% were overweight; and 67.8% did not attend physical education class daily. Health and education officials at national, state, and local levels are using these YRBSS data to analyze and improve policies and programs to reduce priority health-risk behaviors among youth. The YRBSS data also are being used to measure progress toward achieving 16 national health objectives for 2010 and 3 of the 10 leading health indicators. [source] Welfare Reform in America: A Clash of Politics and ResearchJOURNAL OF SOCIAL ISSUES, Issue 4 2000Diana M. Zuckerman The 1996 welfare reform law radically changed welfare as we knew it, after many years of debate and concerns across the ideological spectrum. Research should have provided essential information to revise the program, but instead, research was used as an ideological weapon to support conflicting points of view. President Clinton promised to end welfare as we know it but his welfare reform plan was superceded by the election of a Republican majority of the House and Senate in 1994. The resulting welfare bill included key elements from the Republican Contract with America. The purpose of this article is to describe how political pressures resulted in a dramatic change in law, despite doomsday predictions and almost no solid information about the law's likely impact. [source] SEXUAL DIMORPHISM AND BODY SCARRING IN THE BOTO (AMAZON RIVER DOLPHIN) INIA GEOFFRENSISMARINE MAMMAL SCIENCE, Issue 1 2006A. R. Martin Abstract Measurements and quantitative descriptions of a large sample of live adult botos (Inia geoffrensis) were obtained from the Mamirauá Reserve in the central Amazon. Males were on average 16% longer and weighed 55% more than females, demonstrating that this species is one of the most sexually dimorphic of all cetaceans for size. Males were also pinker than females, more heavily scarred by intraspecific tooth rakes, and had more life-threatening injuries. Some larger males had areas of modified skin that may simply be scar tissue, but may also be a heritable characteristic used as a shield or weapon. As in sperm whales, sexual size dimorphism and male-male aggression appear to be linked in botos, suggesting fierce competition for a resource,probably mating opportunities. The boto is unique among river dolphins in that males are larger than females. This distinction implies long evolutionary separation and fundamental differences in social behavior. [source] Therapeutics targeting tumor immune escape: Towards the development of new generation anticancer vaccinesMEDICINAL RESEARCH REVIEWS, Issue 3 2008Simone Mocellin Abstract Despite the evidence that immune effectors can play a significant role in controlling tumor growth under natural conditions or in response to therapeutic manipulation, it is clear that malignant cells evade immune surveillance in most cases. Considering that anticancer vaccination has reached a plateau of results and currently no vaccination regimen is indicated as a standard anticancer therapy, the dissection of the molecular events underlying tumor immune escape is the necessary condition to make anticancer vaccines a therapeutic weapon effective enough to be implemented in the routine clinical setting. Recent years have witnessed significant advances in our understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying tumor immune escape. These mechanistic insights are fostering the development of rationally designed therapeutics aimed at reverting the immunosuppressive circuits that undermine an effective antitumor immune response. In this review, the best characterized mechanisms that allow cancer cells to evade immune surveillance are overviewed and the most debated controversies constellating this complex field are highlighted. In addition, the latest therapeutic strategies devised to overcome tumor immune escape are described, with special regard to those entering clinical phase investigation. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Med Res Rev, 28, No. 3, 413,444, 2008 [source] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||