Discriminating Groups

A group G is termed discriminating if every group separated by G is discriminated by G. In this paper we answer several questions concerning discrimination which arose from [2]. We prove that a finitely generated equationally Noetherian group G is discriminating if and only if the quasivariety generated by G is the minimal universal class containing G. Among other results, we show that the non-abelian free nilpotent groups are non-discriminating. Finally we list some open problems concerning discriminating groups

Daily Eastern News: January 15, 1981

https://thekeep.eiu.edu/den_1981_jan/1002/thumbnail.jp

Daily Eastern News: January 15, 1981

https://thekeep.eiu.edu/den_1981_jan/1002/thumbnail.jp

Constructing appropriate models for meta-analyses

Meta-analysis combines individual studies or trials to achieve one overall treatment effect estimate and has come a long way since first appearing within medical literature 30 years ago. Most articles examine how best to combine the individual trials and measure the combined estimate. A lot of articles also examine the different sources of variation, between study variation and within study variation, which occur when performing a meta-analysis, and how 'best' to account for the between study variation, the heterogeneity. Very little information however, has been published on the relationship which occurs between the treatment effect estimate and the heterogeneity. Most publications examine these two measures individually, assuming they are independent, however further examination of this relationship brings this assumption of independence into question. We have examined the relationship of the treatment effect estimates and their corresponding heterogeneities for 125 independent meta-analyses using the frequentist approach and note that the results indicate a relationship is present. This relationship will have a resulting effect on how one measures the treatment effect estimates and their corresponding heterogeneity and is something that is considered here, using a Bayesian approach, along with a few other Bayesian modeling approaches. Building on these Bayesian approaches, we consider whether a hierarchical model which would allow a meta-analysis of meta-analyses can be produced

Pedometer-Determined Physical Activity and Health Variables in African-American Women (40-62 years of age)

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the relationship between pedometer-determined physical activity, measured in steps per day, and several health variables in middle-aged, African-American women. Height, weight, waist circumference, hip circumference, and % body fat were measured in 69 African-American females (mean age 51.4 ± 5.4 years). Subjects wore a pedometer for 7 consecutive days after their laboratory visit and average steps/day were compared to each health variable. For statistical analyses, subjects were categorized into 3 different groups based on their physical activity level. The categories were \u3c 5,000 steps/day, 5,000-7,499 steps/day, and \u3e 7,500 steps/day. A one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was performed to examine the health variables among the three groups. Partial correlation coefficients controlling for age were calculated for steps/day and BMI, body fat, waist and hip circumference, and WHR. Significance was set at P\u3c 0.05 for all tests. This is the first study to investigate the relationships between steps/day and % body fat in middle-aged, African-American females. Significant differences were found among the least active and most active groups for age (P=0.013), average steps/day (P\u3c0.001), body weight (P=0.003), BMI (P=0.005), % body fat (P\u3c0.001), waist circumference (P=0.004), and hip circumference (P=0.043). When a partial correlation controlling for age was used to compare steps/day to body composition variables, negative correlations still existed for each variable. These correlations were significant for BMI (P\u3c0.001), % body fat (P\u3c0.001), waist circumference (P=0.002), and hip circumference (P=0.015). These results show that women who accumulated more steps/day had significantly lower body fat percentages, BMI values, waist circumferences, and hip circumferences

Acupuncture for the prevention of chemotherapy‐induced nausea and vomiting in cancer patients: A systematic review and meta‐analysis

Purpose: To assess the effectiveness and safety of acupuncture for the prevention of chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting (CINV), with a specific intention on exploring sources of between-study variation in treatment effects. Methods: MEDLINE, EMBASE, Cochrane CENTRAL, CINAHL, Chinese Biomedical Literature Database, VIP Chinese Science and Technology Periodicals Database, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, and Wanfang were searched to identify randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that compared acupuncture to sham acupuncture or usual care (UC). The main outcome is complete control (no vomiting episodes and/or no more than mild nausea) of CINV. GRADE approach was used to rate the certainty of evidence. Results: Thirty-eight RCTs with a total of 2503 patients were evaluated. Acupuncture in addition to UC may increase the complete control of acute vomiting (RR, 1.13; 95% CI, 1.02 to 1.25; 10 studies) and delayed vomiting (RR, 1.47; 95% CI, 1.07 to 2.00; 10 studies) when compared with UC only. No effects were found for all other review outcomes. The certainty of evidence was generally low or very low. None of the predefined moderators changed the overall findings, but in an exploratory moderator analysis we found that an adequate reporting of planned rescue antiemetics might decrease the effect size of complete control of acute vomiting (p = 0.035). Conclusion: Acupuncture in addition to usual care may increase the complete control of chemotherapy-induced acute vomiting and delayed vomiting but the certainty of evidence was very low. Well-designed RCTs with larger sample sizes, standardized treatment regimens, and core outcome measures are needed