Dissing oneself versus dissing rivals: Effects of status, personality, and sex on the short-term and long-term attractiveness of self-deprecating and other-deprecating humor

This study explores the adaptive functions and design features of self-and other-deprecating humor. Sixty-four female and 32 male college students participated in a two-part study. In the first part, we examined the relationships among participant demographics, personality traits, and preferences for producing different types of humor. Men report using more other-deprecating humor than women do, and the use of other-deprecating humor decreases with age for both sexes. In the second part of the study, each participant listened to tape recordings of opposite-sex people who were described as having different levels of status, and who produced different types of humor; then participants rated each person's attractiveness as a potential short-term and long-term mate. Humor type and presenter status had no effects on short-term attractiveness, but self-deprecating humor by high-status presenters (but not low-status presenters) increased long-term attractiveness for both sexes. These results are discussed in the light of sexual selection theory and costly signaling theory

Content Validation of a Home Parenteral Nutrition–Patient‐Reported Outcome Questionnaire

Background: Patient‐reported outcome (PRO) instruments collect information from patients about health conditions and disease management, including quality of life (QOL). Clinicians acknowledge patient concerns about QOL but need guidance to assess the nature and severity of individually experienced problems. The Home Parenteral Nutrition (HPN)–Patient‐Reported Outcome Questionnaire (PROQ) was developed for use during medical appointments or homecare visits to address this gap. The purpose of this research was to provide evidence that the HPN‐PROQ items and scale possess content validity. Methods: A mixed‐method study design was used. In phase 1, cognitive interviews (CIs) were conducted with 32 HPN patients. Thematic analysis was used to assess participant understanding of the instructions, items, and response scales and overall utility of the HPN‐PROQ. In phase 2, 13 expert clinicians evaluated the relevance of items to the HPN population using the Content Validity Index (CVI) to produce item‐level (I‐CVI) and scale‐level (S‐CVI) scores. Items with an I‐CVI score ≥0.783 were retained. Results: Fifty‐four percent of items were deemed as being comprehensible, acceptable, and clear; 25% were revised; and 11% were deleted. In phase 2, 79% of items were rated highly relevant. The S‐CVI score was 0.96. The final HPN‐PROQ contains 34 items. Conclusion: This study established acceptable content validity of the HPN‐PROQ. This PROQ may help foster patient‐clinician communication about lifestyle adaptation and QOL

2D THz-THz-Raman Photon-Echo Spectroscopy of Molecular Vibrations in Liquid Bromoform

Fundamental properties of molecular liquids are governed by long-range interactions that most prominently manifest at terahertz (THz) frequencies. Here we report the detection of nonlinear THz photon-echo (rephasing) signals in liquid bromoform using THz-THz-Raman spectroscopy. Together, the many observed signatures span frequencies from 0.5 to 8.5 THz and result from couplings between thermally populated ladders of vibrational states. The strongest peaks in the spectrum are found to be multiquantum dipole and 1-quantum polarizability transitions and may arise from nonlinearities in the intramolecular dipole moment surface driven by intermolecular interactions

Coherent two-dimensional terahertz-terahertz-Raman spectroscopy

We present 2D terahertz-terahertz-Raman (2D TTR) spectroscopy, the first technique, to our knowledge, to interrogate a liquid with multiple pulses of terahertz (THz) light. This hybrid approach isolates nonlinear signatures in isotropic media, and is sensitive to the coupling and anharmonicity of thermally activated THz modes that play a central role in liquid-phase chemistry. Specifically, by varying the timing between two intense THz pulses, we control the orientational alignment of molecules in a liquid, and nonlinearly excite vibrational coherences. A comparison of experimental and simulated 2D TTR spectra of bromoform (CHBr_3), carbon tetrachloride (CCl_4), and dibromodichloromethane (CBr_2Cl_2) shows previously unobserved off-diagonal anharmonic coupling between thermally populated vibrational modes