Rape and Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD): Examining the Mediating Role of Explicit Sex-Power Beliefs for Men Versus Women

Many rape survivors exhibit symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and recent literature suggests survivors\u27 beliefs about sex and control may affect PTSD symptoms. The present study examined beliefs about sex and power as potential mediators of the relationship between rape and PTSD symptoms for men versus women. Participants (N = 782) reported lifetime history of rape, current PTSD symptoms, and beliefs about sex and power. Women reported higher levels of lifetime history of rape than men (19.7% for women; 9.7% for men). While rape history predicted PTSD symptoms for both genders, beliefs about sex and power were shown to be a significant partial mediator of this relationship for men, but not for women. Results extend the literature on rape and PTSD by suggesting that survivors\u27 beliefs about sex and power are connected and can affect their PTSD symptoms. Additionally, results illustrate how sexual violence against men may reaffirm male gender roles that entail power and aggression, and ultimately affect trauma recovery

The role of acculturation and training in personal protective equipment (PPE) use among Hispanic farmworkers: A follow-up from the ¡Protejase! study.

Hispanic farmworkers are at disproportionate risk of pesticide exposure. Moreover, new immigrant, Spanish-speaking farmworkers are least likely to receive safety training and protection from pesticides in the form of personal protective equipment (PPE). Provision is known to increase PPE use among farmworkers, but it is unclear whether provision helps new immigrant Hispanic farmworkers. Thus, this study examined the extent to which provision increases Hispanic farmworkers’ use of PPE. Additionally, we examined associations with English language acculturation since language barriers might influence training and use of PPE in a largely new immigrant, Spanish-speaking workforce. Farmworkers were provided three types of PPE (chemical-resistant gloves, safety glasses, and long-sleeved shirts) as part of the ¡Protejase! study. We assessed differences in the use of PPE that was provided by the ¡Protejase! study compared to PPE that farmworkers were not provided. We also measured workers’ English language acculturation, training, and other work demographic variables. PPE use was measured at baseline and after 30 days, and analyzed using OLS regression. Use of study-provided PPE was significantly higher, but only among participants with low levels of English language acculturation (p \u3c .05). Thus, providing PPE increases its use among farmworkers with low levels of English language acculturation

Novel cell-based model of the generation and maintenance of the shape and structure of the multi-layered shoot apical meristem of Arabidopsis thaliana

One of the central problems in animal and plant developmental biology is deciphering how chemical and mechanical signals interact within a tissue to produce organs of defined size, shape and function. Cell walls in plants impose a unique constraint on cell expansion since cells are under turgor pressure and do not move relative to one another. Cell wall extensibility and constantly changing distribution of stress on the wall are mechanical properties that vary between individual cells and contribute to rates of expansion and orientation of cell division. How exactly cell wall mechanical properties influence cell behavior is still largely unknown. To address this problem, a novel, subcellular element computational model of growth of stem cells within the multilayered shoot apical meristem (SAM) of Arabidopsis thaliana is developed and calibrated using experimental data. Novel features of the model include separate, detailed descriptions of cell wall extensibility and mechanical stiffness, deformation of the middle lamella and increase in cytoplasmic pressure generating internal turgor pressure. The model is used to test novel hypothesized mechanisms of formation of the shape and structure of the growing, multilayered SAM based on WUS concentration of individual cells controlling cell growth rates and layer dependent anisotropic mechanical properties of subcellular components of individual cells determining anisotropic cell expansion directions. Model simulations also provide a detailed prediction of distribution of stresses in the growing tissue which can be tested in future experiments

Validation of a tearing mode locking model using a database of disruptive plasmas at ASDEX Upgrade

An exploratory study is presented that aims at validating a model for mode locking on the basis of a large set of ASDEX Upgrade (AUG) discharges. Not discriminating between plasma configurations, the model allows to estimate the duration of the deceleration phase, as well as the critical mode width for locking. Both quantities are important for the design of disruption avoidance algorithms that aim to affect the MHD mode rotation. It was found that the model successfully described locking of large modes in those cases where the deceleration started in a quasi-stationary phase of the discharge (i.e. with low variability of the global plasma angular momentum prior to mode seeding) and where deceleration took place over temporal intervals comparable to the momentum confinement time. Theoretical braking curves and locking durations predicted with the model were in good quantitative agreement with the experiment. On the other hand, the model failed to reproduce the braking curves of modes appearing towards the end of a transient phase, e.g. during an impurity influx or when approaching the disruptive density limit. It can be concluded that the modes were not the primary cause of the plasma momentum losses within the scope of the model. A modified mode equation of motion is proposed, which accounts for transient variation of the plasma density, e.g. during the development of a MARFE, and its impact on braking predictions is discussed. Furthermore, it was observed that a substantial fraction of modes was rotating at the onset of a major disruptive event. Consequences of this observation on disruption prediction schemes in AUG are examined