Older Adults’ Perception of Successful Aging

Uspješno starenje je pomalo kontroverzan konstrukt kojeg nije lako operacionalizirati. Različiti teorijski pristupi koriste različite kriterije ili definicije uspješnog starenja iz kojih proizlaze različiti pokušaji operacionalizacije ovoga konstrukta. U ovom istraživanju polazi se od subjektivnih ili laičkih koncepcija uspješnog starenja, odnosno od toga kako same starije osobe shvaćaju uspješno starenje. Na prigodnom uzorku od 235 osoba starijih od 60 godina provedeno je istraživanje s ciljem ispitivanja njihove percepcije uspješnog starenja. U istraživanju je korišten hrvatski prijevod (Ambrosi-Randić i Plavšić, 2008) liste od dvadeset obilježja uspješnog starenja za koja su Phelan i sur. (2004) utvrdili da su se najčešće pojavljivala u ranijoj literaturi o ovom konstruktu. Rezultati su pokazali da je od 20 ispitanih obilježja njih 12 preko 70% ispitanih starijih osoba procijenilo važnima za uspješno starenje. Najveći postotak sudionika je važnim za uspješno starenje procijenio dobro zdravlje, sposobnost pojedinca da se brine o sebi i da se osjeća dobro sa samim sobom. Najmanje važnima za uspješno starenje pokazali su se dugovječnost, radni angažman nakon umirovljenja te učenje novih stvari i u starijoj dobi. Utvrđene su i razlike u procjeni važnosti nekih obilježja uspješnog starenja s obzirom na neka sociodemografska obilježja sudionika. Tako se pokazalo da je značajno više žena negoli muškaraca važnim za uspješno starenje procijenilo podršku obitelji i prijatelja, dok su osobe višeg u odnosu na one nižeg stupnja obrazovanja kontinuirano učenje novih stvari procjenjivale važnijim za uspješno starenje. Pokušaji objašnjenja konstrukta uspješnog starenja svakako bi trebali uzeti u obzir i kako same starije osobe vide uspješno starenje.Successful aging is in a way controversial concept which is not easy to measure. Different theoretical approaches use different criteria or definitions of successful aging on which different ways of operationalization of this construct are based upon. This study uses subjective or laypersons’ conceptions of successful aging or the way that older people themselves understand successful aging. The study with the aim of exploring the older adults’ perception of successful aging was conducted on a sample of 235 community-dwelling subjects older than 60. The Croatian translation (Ambrosi-Randić and Plavšić, 2008) of the list of 20 attributes of successful aging, which Phelan et al. (2004) identified in published literature on successful aging, was used in the study. Results showed that 12 out of 20 attributes were rated as important to successful aging by more than 70% of respondents. Good health, being able to take care of oneself and feeling good about oneself were rated as important by the greatest number of respondents. Living a very long time, being able to work after usual retirement age and continuing to learn new things were rated as the least important to successful aging. Additionally, differences in ratings of importance of some attributes of successful aging regarding some sociodemographic characteristics were found. Precisely, significantly more women than men considered support from family and friends as important for successful aging, while participants with higher, compared to those with lower educational background, continuing to learn new things rated as more important to successful aging. Efforts to define successful aging should undoubtedly consider older adults’ beliefs about successful aging as well.</p

Gamma radiation survey of the LDEF spacecraft

The retrieval of the Long Duration Exposure Facility spacecraft in January 1990 after nearly six years in orbit offered a unique opportunity to study the long term buildup of induced radioactivity in the variety of materials on board. We conducted the first complete gamma-ray survey of a large spacecraft on LDEF shortly after its return to earth. A surprising observation was the Be-7 activity which was seen primarily on the leading edge of the satellite, implying that it was picked up by LDEF in orbit. This is the first known evidence for accretion of a radioactive isotope onto an orbiting spacecraft. Other isotopes observed during the survey, the strongest being Na-22, are all attributed to activation of spacecraft components. Be-7 is a spallation product of cosmic rays on nitrogen and oxygen in the upper atmosphere. However, the observed density is much greater than expected due to cosmic-ray production in situ. This implies transport of Be-7 from much lower altitudes up to the LDEF orbit

SEED PRODUCTION OF SOME FIELD CROPS IN THE Bc INSTITUTE, ZAGREB

Organizirana potrošnja sjemena ratarskih kultura u Hrvatskoj u razdoblju od 1990. do 1998. godine, bila je ovisna o ekonomskom interesu poljoprivrednika za proizvodnju, klimatskim uvjetima za vrijeme sjetve i ratnim uvjetima od 1991 . do 1995. godine. Ovo se posebno odnosi na najvažniju krušaricu ozimu pšenicu koja je u 1992. godini požnjevena sa 169.000 ha. Međutim, u jesen 1998. godine dolazi do daljnjeg smanjenja sjetve ozime pšenice u Hrvatskoj na svega 160.578 ha. Ovim je smanjena potrošnja certificiranog sjemena ozime pšenice u Hrvatskoj na svega 26.687 tona, što je najniža količina u zadnjih nekoliko decenija. Smanjena je potrošnja svih kreacija pa i kreacija Bc Instituta. Kreacije ostalih strnih žitarica Bc Instituta jare zobi i jarog ječma u sjemenskoj proizvodnji imaju blagi trend rasta i na razini su od 300 tona sjemena godišnje. Sjemenarstvo krmnih kultura, poglavito višegodišnjih trava i leguminoza kreiranih u Bc Institutu Zagreb sa svojim visokim potencijalom rodnosti, adaptibilnosti, kakvoćama i stabilnim urodima, imajući u vidu velike mogućnosti i perspektivu razvoja stočarstva uz očekivane poticajne mjere države, ima veliko značenje. Sjemenarstvo krmnih kultura, danas u Hrvatskoj je zabrinjavajuće, jer domaća proizvodnja ne zadovoljava ni umanjene potrebe, pa se ovo sjeme uvozi, često sumnjivog podrijetla i kakvoće.Organized seed consumption of some field crops in Croatia in the period from 1990 to 1998 was dependent on the farmers\u27 economic interest to produce, on climatic conditions during sowing time and on the war conditions from 1991 to 1995. This particularly refers to the most important bread grain, winter wheat, which was harvested from 169.000 ha in 1992. However, in autumn of 1998, there was further reduction in the area planted to winter wheat in Croatia down to 160.578 ha. In this way consumption of certified seed of winter wheat in Croatia was reduced to mere 26.687 t, which is the lowest quantity in the last few decades. Consumption of all varieties was reduced including the Bc Institute\u27s. Seed production of other cereal crops developed by the Bc lnstitute, spring oats and spring barley, has a slight trend of growing and is on the level of 300 t of seed per year. Seed production of fodder crops, particularly perennial grasses and pulses developed by the Zagreb Bc Institute with their high yielding potential, adaptability, quality, and stable yield, is of great importance bearing in mind great possibilities and perspectives for livestock development and with expected measures of government support. Seed production of fodder crops in Croatia is of great concern because domestic production does not meet even the existing reduced needs and the seeds, often of doubtful origin and quality is being imported

Three-Dimensional Spatially Constrained Sulfur Isotopes Highlight Processes Controlling Sulfur Cycling in the Near Surface of the Iheya North Hydrothermal System, Okinawa Trough

Abstract Modern seafloor hydrothermal systems are unique environments in which many of the Earth's reservoirs, including the hydrosphere, biosphere, and geosphere, dynamically interact. Analysis of spatially constrained sulfur isotope compositions from fluids and hydrothermal precipitates within the discharge zone of a volcanogenic system can be used to trace the interactions between the various isotopically distinct sulfur reservoirs that result in the formation of hydrothermal massive sulfide deposits. Here we present in situ sulfur isotope results from laterally and vertically constrained euhedral hydrothermal pyrite from the Iheya North hydrothermal system in the Okinawa Trough, which was investigated during the Integrated Ocean Drilling Program Expedition 331. Hydrothermal pyrite at the North Big Chimney yields δ34S values of ~+11.9 ± 1.1‰ (1σ), which are near identical to the δ34S composition of the vent fluid. Outward, ~150 and ~450 m from North Big Chimney, hydrothermal pyrite within drill core yields δ34S equal to +10.9 ± 1.3‰ (1σ) and +7.0 ± 3.8‰ (1σ), respectively, showing a shift in isotopic composition away from the main vent site. This evolution to a lighter and more scattered isotopic signature of hydrothermal pyrite (which is easily identifiable from biogenic pyrite) is interpreted to indicate that the hydrothermal fluid leached sulfides (formed previously by biogenic processes) from the surrounding sedimentary strata. As the most significant metal enrichments (Fe, Zn, Cu, Bi, Tl, and Cd) are associated with samples that contain average hydrothermal pyrite δ34S values similar to δ34S of the vent fluid, we demonstrate that sulfur isotopes can vector toward metals in seafloor massive sulfide deposits

The proton and deuteron F_2 structure function at low Q^2

Measurements of the proton and deuteron $F_2$ structure functions are presented. The data, taken at Jefferson Lab Hall C, span the four-momentum transfer range $0.06 < Q^2 < 2.8$ GeV$^2$, and Bjorken $x$ values from 0.009 to 0.45, thus extending the knowledge of $F_2$ to low values of $Q^2$ at low $x$. Next-to-next-to-leading order calculations using recent parton distribution functions start to deviate from the data for $Q^2<2$ GeV$^2$ at the low and high $x$-values. Down to the lowest value of $Q^2$, the structure function is in good agreement with a parameterization of $F_2$ based on data that have been taken at much higher values of $Q^2$ or much lower values of $x$, and which is constrained by data at the photon point. The ratio of the deuteron and proton structure functions at low $x$ remains well described by a logarithmic dependence on $Q^2$ at low $Q^2$.Comment: 3 figures, submitted pape

Measurements of electron-proton elastic cross sections for 0.4<Q2<5.5(GeV/c)20.4 < Q^2 < 5.5 (GeV/c)^2

We report on precision measurements of the elastic cross section for electron-proton scattering performed in Hall C at Jefferson Lab. The measurements were made at 28 unique kinematic settings covering a range in momentum transfer of 0.4 $<$ $Q^2$ $<$ 5.5 $(\rm GeV/c)^2$. These measurements represent a significant contribution to the world's cross section data set in the $Q^2$ range where a large discrepancy currently exists between the ratio of electric to magnetic proton form factors extracted from previous cross section measurements and that recently measured via polarization transfer in Hall A at Jefferson Lab.Comment: 17 pages, 18 figures; text added, some figures replace

Longitudinal-Transverse Separations of Structure Functions at Low Q2Q^{2} for Hydrogen and Deuterium

We report on a study of the longitudinal to transverse cross section ratio, $R=\sigma_L/\sigma_T$, at low values of $x$ and $Q^{2}$, as determined from inclusive inelastic electron-hydrogen and electron-deuterium scattering data from Jefferson Lab Hall C spanning the four-momentum transfer range 0.06 $< Q^{2} < 2.8$ GeV$^{2}$. Even at the lowest values of $Q^{2}$, $R$ remains nearly constant and does not disappear with decreasing $Q^{2}$, as expected. We find a nearly identical behaviour for hydrogen and deuterium.Comment: 4 pages, 2 gigure

Relationship between propagule pressure and colonization pressure in invasion ecology: a test with ships' ballast

Increasing empirical evidence indicates the number of released individuals (i.e. propagule pressure) and number of released species (i.e. colonization pressure) are key determinants of the number of species that successfully invade new habitats. In view of these relationships, and the possibility that ships transport whole communities of organisms, we collected 333 ballast water and sediment samples to investigate the relationship between propagule and colonization pressure for a variety of diverse taxonomic groups (diatoms, dinoflagellates and invertebrates). We also reviewed the scientific literature to compare the number of species transported by ships to those reported in nature. Here, we show that even though ships transport nearly entire local communities, a strong relationship between propagule and colonization pressure exists only for dinoflagellates. Our study provides evidence that colonization pressure of invertebrates and diatoms may fluctuate widely irrespective of propagule pressure. We suggest that the lack of correspondence is explained by reduced uptake of invertebrates into the transport vector and the sensitivity of invertebrates and diatoms to selective pressures during transportation. Selection during transportation is initially evident through decreases in propagule pressure, followed by decreased colonization pressure in the most sensitive taxa