The association between parenting behavior and somatization in adolescents explained by physiological responses in adolescents

Introduction: This study adds to the knowledge on somatization in adolescents by exploring its relation with parenting behavior and the mediating/moderating role of physiological responses in adolescents to parenting behavior. Method: Eighteen adolescents with high and 18 adolescents with low somatization scores and their mothers completed a discussion task, from which observed parenting behavior scores were derived. Skin conductance in adolescents was measured before and during the discussion. Results: For adolescents with high levels of physiological responses, unadaptive parenting was related to a higher chance of high somatization scores. For low physiologically responsive adolescents, the relation between parenting behavior and somatization was not significant. Conclusion: Parenting behavior is not univocally related to somatization in adolescents, but the association depends on physiological responses in adolescents. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

Experimental study of factors influencing the risk of drift from field sprayers Part 2: Spray application technique.

Recently, spray drift and its effects have become an important aspect of risk assessment in the registration process of pesticides in Belgium. In this regulation, drift reducing spray application techniques can be used to reduce buffer zones. The purpose of this research is to measure and compare the amount of drift sediment for different spray application techniques under field conditions. A drift prediction equation for the reference spraying was used to compare other spraying techniques with the reference spraying, under different weather conditions. Drift measurements were performed for several combinations of nozzle type (flat fan, low-drift, air injection) and size (ISO 02, 03, 04 and 06), spray pressure (2, 3 and 4 bar), driving speed (4, 6, 8 and 10 km.h-1) and spray boom height (0.3, 0.5 and 0.75 m). Nozzle type as well as spray pressure, driving speed and spray boom height, have an important effect on the amount of spray drift. Larger nozzle sizes, lower spray pressures and driving speeds and lower spray boom heights generally reduce spray drift. Concerning nozzle types, air injection nozzles have the highest drift reduction potential followed by the low-drift nozzles and the standard flat fan nozzles

Trilingual conversations: a window into multicompetence

A recurrent theme in the literature on trilingual language use is the question of whether there is a specific “trilingual competence.” In this paper we consider this question in the light of codeswitching patterns in two dyadic trilingual conversations between a mother and daughter conducted in (Lebanese) Arabic, French, and English. Quantitative and qualitative analysis of codeswitching in both conversants shows that, despite the fact that both subjects are fluent in all three languages, uses of switching are significantly different for mother and daughter across a number of features, including relative frequency of different switch types, and the incidence of hybrid constructions involving items from two or more languages. The subjects appear to display qualitatively distinct profiles of competence in the trilingual mode. This in turn leads to the conclusion that the facts of trilingual language use are best characterized in terms of “multicompetence” (Cook, 1991). The paper concludes with some further reflections on the uniqueness of trilingual language use (an “old chestnut” in trilingualism research, cf. Klein, 1995)

Experimental study of factors influencing the risk of drift from field sprayers, Part 1: Meteorological conditions

Spray drift can be defined as the quantity of plant protection product that is carried out of the sprayed (treated) area by the action of air currents during the application process. This continues to be a major problem in applying agricultural pesticides. The purpose of this research is to measure and compare the amount of drift for different climatological conditions under field conditions. Sedimenting spray drift was determined by sampling in a defined downwind area at different positions in a flat meadow using horizontal drift collectors for a reference spraying. Meteorological conditions were monitored during each experiment. A drift prediction equation for the reference spraying was set up to predict the expected magnitude of sedimenting at various drift distances and atmospheric conditions. The measurements proved the important effect of weather conditions (temperature, relative humidity and wind speed) on the amount of spray drift. A lower wind speed or a higher relative humidity decreases the amount of spray drift. Taking into account the correlation between temperature and relative humidity, a lower temperature will also result in lower drift values due to the cumulative effect of relative humidity. This equation can be used to quantify the effect of meteorological conditions, to compare measurements using other spraying techniques under different weather conditions to the reference spraying and to perform spray drift risk assessments

Operationalising and measuring language dominance

The paper offers a new way to measure language ability in bilinguals, based on measures of lexical richness. The validity of proposed approach is tested in a variety of ways