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Conference Review “Anxiety, Urgency, Outrage, Hope . . . A Conference on Political Feeling.” Franke Institute for the Humanities, University of Chicago, October 19–20, 200

Men and women from the STRIDE clinical trial: An assessment of stimulant abstinence symptom severity at residential treatment entry

Background and Objectives Gender‐specific factors associated with stimulant abstinence severity were examined in a stimulant abusing or dependent residential treatment sample (N = 302). Method Bivariate statistics tested gender differences in stimulant abstinence symptoms, measured by participant‐reported experiences of early withdrawal. Multivariate linear regression examined gender and other predictors of stimulant abstinence symptom severity. Results Women compared to men reported greater stimulant abstinence symptom severity. Anxiety disorders and individual anxiety‐related abstinence symptoms accounted for this difference. African American race/ethnicity was predictive of lower stimulant abstinence severity. Discussion and Conclusions Women were more sensitive to anxiety‐related stimulant withdrawal symptoms. Scientific Significance Clinics that address anxiety‐related abstinence symptoms, which more commonly occur in women, may improve treatment outcome. (Am J Addict 2015;XX:XX –XX

Measure Guideline. Energy-Efficient Window Performance and Selection

This document provides guidelines for the selection of energy-efficient windows in new and existing residential construction in all US climate zones. It includes information on window products, their attributes and performance. It provides cost/benefit information on window energy savings as well as information on non-energy benefits such as thermal comfort and reduced HVAC demands. The document also provides information on energy impacts of design decisions such as window orientation, total glazing area and shading devices and conditions. Information on resources for proper window installation is included as well. This document is for builders, homeowners, designers and anyone making decisions about selecting energy efficient window. It is intended to complement other Building America information and efforts

Acute Effects Of 24-h Sleep Deprivation On Salivary Cortisol And Testosterone Concentrations And Testosterone To Cortisol Ratio Following Supplementation With Caffeine Or Placebo

International Journal of Exercise Science 10(1): 108-120, 2017. Caffeine has become a popular ergogenic aid amongst athletes and usage to improve athletic performance has been well documented. The effect of caffeine on anabolic and catabolic hormones in a sleep-deprived state has had little investigation to date. The purpose of the current study was to investigate the potential of caffeine to offset the effects, if any, of short-term sleep deprivation and exercise on an athlete’s testosterone and cortisol concentrations via salivary technique. Eleven competitive male athletes volunteered to be part of this prospective double-blinded study. Three test days were scheduled for each athlete; one non-sleep deprived, one sleep-deprived with caffeine supplementation (6 mg.kg-1) and one sleep-deprived with placebo ingestion. Sleep deprivation was defined as 24-h without sleep. Each test day was composed of 2 aerobic components: a modified Hoff test and a Yo-Yo test. Testosterone and cortisol concentrations were measured via salivary analysis at 4 different time-points; T1 to T4, representing baseline, and pre- and post-aerobic components, respectively. Overall no significant differences were detected comparing the different sleep states for testosterone or cortisol concentrations. A trend existed whereby the sleep-deprived with caffeine ingestion state mirrored the non-sleep deprived state for cortisol concentration. Therefore, caffeine supplementation may have potential benefits for athletes during short-term aerobic exercise when sleep-deprived. An increase in mean testosterone concentration post-aerobic exercise was only observed in the sleep-deprived with caffeine ingestion state

Change in Brainstem Gray Matter Concentration Following a Mindfulness-Based Intervention is Correlated with Improvement in Psychological Well-Being

Individuals can improve their levels of psychological well-being (PWB) through utilization of psychological interventions, including the practice of mindfulness meditation, which is defined as the non-judgmental awareness of experiences in the present moment. We recently reported that an 8-week-mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) course lead to increases in gray matter concentration in several brain areas, as detected with voxel-based morphometry of magnetization prepared rapid acquisition gradient echo MRI scans, including the pons/raphe/locus coeruleus area of the brainstem. Given the role of the pons and raphe in mood and arousal, we hypothesized that changes in this region might underlie changes in well-being. A subset of 14 healthy individuals from a previously published data set completed anatomical MRI and filled out the PWB scale before and after MBSR participation. PWB change was used as the predictive regressor for changes in gray matter density within those brain regions that had previously shown pre- to post-MBSR changes. Results showed that scores on five PWB subscales as well as the PWB total score increased significantly over the MBSR course. The change was positively correlated with gray matter concentration increases in two symmetrically bilateral clusters in the brainstem. Those clusters appeared to contain the area of the pontine tegmentum, locus coeruleus, nucleus raphe pontis, and the sensory trigeminal nucleus. No clusters were negatively correlated with the change in PWB. This preliminary study suggests a neural correlate of enhanced PWB. The identified brain areas include the sites of synthesis and release of the neurotransmitters, norepinephrine and serotonin, which are involved in the modulation of arousal and mood, and have been related to a variety of affective functions as well as associated clinical dysfunctions

Crops in the woolbelt : current options and emerging prospects

It has traditionally been more profitable to grow sheep for wool in the medium rainfall parts of the south-west of Western Australia than to grow crops . Crop production has been difficult owing to the hilly terrain, the frequency of waterlogging, the high incidence of damaging frosts in some areas, the frequency of losses from diseases, difficulties with wet weather at harvest, and a lack of adapted crop varieties. Advances over the past decade have made cropping on a limited scale potentially profitable in the woo/belt. This article is intended to bring the various options for crop production to the attention of wool growers. Further detailed information will be required for successful production and is available from your local office of the Department of Agriculture

A phylogenetically distinct lineage of Pyrenopeziza brassicae associated with chlorotic leaf spot of Brassicaceae in North America

Light leaf spot, caused by the ascomycete Pyrenopeziza brassicae Sutton & Rawlinson, is an established disease of Brassicaceae in the United Kingdom (UK), continental Europe, and Oceania (OC, including New Zealand and Australia). The disease was reported in North America (NA) for the first time in 2014 on Brassica spp. in the Willamette Valley of western Oregon, followed by detection in Brassica juncea cover crops and on B. rapa weeds in northwestern Washington in 2016. Preliminary DNA sequence data and field observations suggest that isolates of the pathogen present in NA might be distinct from those in the UK, continental Europe, and OC. Comparisons of isolates from these regions genetically (multilocus sequence analysis, MAT gene sequences, and rep-PCR DNA fingerprinting), pathogenically (B. rapa inoculation studies), biologically (sexual compatibility), and morphologically (colony and conidial morphology) demonstrated two genetically distinct evolutionary lineages. Lineage 1 comprised isolates from the UK, continental Europe, and OC, and included the P. brassicae type specimen. Lineage 2 contained the NA isolates associated with recent disease outbreaks in the Pacific Northwest region of the USA. Symptoms caused by isolates of the two lineages on B. rapa and B. juncea differed, so ‘chlorotic leaf spot’ is proposed for the disease caused by lineage 2 isolates of P. brassicae. Isolates of the two lineages differed in genetic diversity as well as sensitivity to the fungicides carbendazim and prothioconazole

Microtopography Matters: Belowground CH4 Cycling Regulated by Differing Microbial Processes in Peatland Hummocks and Lawns

Water table depth and vegetation are key controls of methane (CH4) emissions from peatlands. Microtopography integrates these factors into features called microforms. Microforms often differ in CH4 emissions, but microform-dependent patterns of belowground CH4 cycling remain less clearly resolved. To investigate the impact of microtopography on belowground CH4 cycling, we characterized depth profiles of the community composition and activity of CH4-cycling microbes using 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing, incubations, and measurements of porewater CH4 concentration and isotopic composition from hummocks and lawns at Sallie\u27s Fen in NH, USA. Geochemical proxies of methanogenesis and methanotrophy indicated that microforms differ in dominant microbial CH4 cycling processes. Hummocks, where water table depth is lower, had higher porewater redox potential (Eh) and higher porewater δ13C-CH4 values in the upper 30 cm than lawns, where water table depth is closer to the peat surface. Porewater δ13C-CH4 and δD-CH3D values were highest at the surface of hummocks where the ratio of methanotrophs to methanogens was also greatest. These results suggest that belowground CH4 cycling in hummocks is more strongly regulated by methanotrophy, while in lawns methanogenesis is more dominant. We also investigated controls of porewater CH4 chemistry. The ratio of the relative abundance of methanotrophs to methanogens was the strongest predictor of porewater CH4 concentration and δ13C-CH4, while vegetation composition had minimal influence. As microbial community composition was strongly influenced by redox conditions but not vegetation, we conclude that water table depth is a stronger control of belowground CH4 cycling across microforms than vegetation