Intrapersonal positive future thinking predicts repeat suicide attempts in hospital-treated suicide attempters

Objective: Although there is clear evidence that low levels of positive future thinking (anticipation of positive experiences in the future) and hopelessness are associated with suicide risk, the relationship between the content of positive future thinking and suicidal behavior has yet to be investigated. This is the first study to determine whether the positive future thinking–suicide attempt relationship varies as a function of the content of the thoughts and whether positive future thinking predicts suicide attempts over time. Method: A total of 388 patients hospitalized following a suicide attempt completed a range of clinical and psychological measures (depression, hopelessness, suicidal ideation, suicidal intent and positive future thinking). Fifteen months later, a nationally linked database was used to determine who had been hospitalized again after a suicide attempt. Results: During follow-up, 25.6% of linked participants were readmitted to hospital following a suicide attempt. In univariate logistic regression analyses, previous suicide attempts, suicidal ideation, hopelessness, and depression—as well as low levels of achievement, low levels of financial positive future thoughts, and high levels of intrapersonal (thoughts about the individual and no one else) positive future thoughts predicted repeat suicide attempts. However, only previous suicide attempts, suicidal ideation, and high levels of intrapersonal positive future thinking were significant predictors in multivariate analyses. Discussion: Positive future thinking has predictive utility over time; however, the content of the thinking affects the direction and strength of the positive future thinking–suicidal behavior relationship. Future research is required to understand the mechanisms that link high levels of intrapersonal positive future thinking to suicide risk and how intrapersonal thinking should be targeted in treatment interventions

Meeting Tomorrow's Skill Needs through Pre-Employment Teaching Programmes for New Zealand Schools

This paper will review work in progress on a teaching programme for students whose formal education tends to terminate at the secondary school level. The perception of need is based initially on the structural shifts taking place in industrial demographics that postulate a decline in the new entrant replacement rate in western style development economies, and a rising dependence on indigenous labour supply. These trends suggest it is time to reconsider the case of New Zealand, using Torsten Husen’s seminal concept of the reserve of talent. It proposes a triadic model as a possible strategic tool, in which a given school and its local community, together with a designated employing firm in a specific category of skilled work, collaborate in a combination of teaching-learning and practical exercises. The intention is to raise the level of information available to job seekers, employing firms and the socio-economic perception of employment opportunities, within the community. While the course intended to have a general application across industries it will utilize as an example, a working model of the civil engineering industry, which has been the focus of some preliminary testing

Customer perception of switch-feel in luxury sports utility vehicles

Successful new product introduction requires that product characteristics relate to the customer on functional, emotional, aesthetic and cultural levels. As a part of research into automotive human machine interfaces (HMI), this paper describes holistic customer research carried out to investigate how the haptics of switches in luxury sports utility vehicles (SUVs) are perceived by customers. The application of these techniques, including an initial proposal for objective specifications, is addressed within the broader new product introduction context, and benefits described. One-hundred and one customers of SUVs assessed the feel of automotive push switches, completing the tasks both in, and out of vehicles to investigate the effect of context. Using the semantic differential technique, hedonic testing, and content analysis of customers’ verbatim comments, a holistic picture has been built up of what influences the haptic experience. It was found that customers were able to partially discriminate differences in switch-feel, alongside considerations of visual appearance, image, and usability. Three factors named ‘Affective’, ‘Robustness and Precision’, and ‘Silkiness’ explained 61% of the variance in a principle components analysis. Correlations of the factors with acceptance scores were 0.505, 0.371, and 0.168, respectively

Characterization of Microbial Activity

The overall goal of this study is to investigate the phenomena that affect the fate and transport of radionuclides in the environment. The objective of this task, “Characterization of Microbial Activity”, is to develop a molecular biological method for the characterization of the microbial population indigenous to the Yucca Mountain Project site, with emphasis in detection and measurement of species or groups of microorganisms that could be involved in actinide and/or metal reduction, and subsurface transport. Subtasks consist of QA planning and preparation, and literature review. This task is part of a cooperative agreement between the UNLV Research Foundation and the U.S. Department of Energy (#DE-FC28-04RW12237) titled “Yucca Mountain Groundwater Characterization”

Factors Associated with Attrition from Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy in Patients with a History of Suicidal Depression

We report data from a randomised controlled trial of mindfulness-based cognitive therapy to pilot procedures for people with a history of suicidal ideation or behaviour, focusing in particular on the variables that distinguish those who complete an adequate ‘dose’ of treatment, from those who drop out. Sixty-eight participants were randomised to either immediate treatment with mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) (n = 33) or to the waitlist (n = 36) arm of the trial. In addition to collecting demographic and clinical information, we assessed participants’ cognitive reactivity using the means end problem-solving task, completed before and after a mood induction procedure. Ten participants dropped out of treatment, and eight dropped out of the waitlist condition. Those who dropped out of MBCT were significantly younger than those who completed treatment, less likely to be on antidepressants, had higher levels of depressive rumination and brooding and showed significantly greater levels of problem-solving deterioration following mood challenge. None of these factors distinguished participants in the waiting list condition who remained in the study from those who dropped out. Our results suggest that individuals with high levels of cognitive reactivity, brooding and depressive rumination may find it particularly difficult to engage with MBCT, although paradoxically they are likely to have the most to gain from the development of mindfulness skills if they remain in class. Addressing how such patients can be best prepared for treatment and supported to remain in treatment when difficulties arise is an important challenge

A holistic multi-scale approach to using 3D scanning technology in accident reconstruction

Three-dimensional scanning and documentation methods are becoming increasingly employed by law enforcement personnel for crime scene and accident scene recording. Three-dimensional documentation of the victim’s body in such cases is also increasingly used as the field of forensic radiology and imaging is expanding rapidly. These scanning technologies enable a more complete and detailed documentation than standard autopsy. This was used to examine a fatal pedestrian-vehicle collision where the pedestrian was killed by a van whilst crossing the road. Two competing scenarios were considered for the vehicle speed calculation: the pedestrian being projected forward by the impact or the pedestrian being carried on the vehicle’s bonnet. In order to assist with this, the impact area of the accident vehicle was scanned using laser surface scanning, the victim was scanned using postmortem CT and micro-CT and the data sets were combined to virtually match features of the vehicle to injuries on the victim. Micro-CT revealed additional injuries not previously detected, lending support to the pedestrian-carry theory

The Mirage of Triangular Arbitrage in the Spot Foreign Exchange Market

We investigate triangular arbitrage within the spot foreign exchange market using high-frequency executable prices. We show that triangular arbitrage opportunities do exist, but that most have short durations and small magnitudes. We find intra-day variations in the number and length of arbitrage opportunities, with larger numbers of opportunities with shorter mean durations occurring during more liquid hours. We demonstrate further that the number of arbitrage opportunities has decreased in recent years, implying a corresponding increase in pricing efficiency. Using trading simulations, we show that a trader would need to beat other market participants to an unfeasibly large proportion of arbitrage prices to profit from triangular arbitrage over a prolonged period of time. Our results suggest that the foreign exchange market is internally self-consistent and provide a limited verification of market efficiency

UNLV New Horizons Band & Red Rock Saxophone Quartet & UNLV Symphonic Winds

Program listing performers and works performed