The Relationship Between Background Music and Symptomatology in Adults Diagnosed With ADHD

Individuals who have been diagnosed with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) often experience symptoms that interfere with their daily functioning, concentration, and performance at school, at home, in the workplace, and in social settings. Previous research has been conducted into the effects of background music on various facets of learning, mostly with populations of children and individuals without ADHD. The focus in this clinical research project was to examine the relationship between background music and symptomatology in 18 adult students between the ages of 18 and 26 years who had been diagnosed with any type of ADHD. Results did not indicate significance toward the primary hypothesis that those who completed a learning task while listening to background music would report fewer symptoms of ADHD after the task compared to those who completed the task in silence. However, several patterns from ANCOVA analyses indicated significance toward the secondary hypothesis that gender differences would affect individuals’ perception and endorsement of ADHD symptomatology. Female participants consistently reported greater ADHD symptomatology than male participants. From the findings of this study, it is recommended that mental health clinicians use caution when diagnosing and treating ADHD across the age and gender spectrums

Mechanical Properties Of Fibrous Network Materials

We discuss mechanical behavior of specific fibrous network materials, including the evolution of tension in fibrin clots, compression of pulmonary emboli, and fracture of Whatman filter paper.The first material, fibrin clots, consist of random networks of fibrin fibers. When clots form by polymerization they develop tensile pre-stresses. We construct a mathematical model for the evolution of tension in isotropic fibrin gels. As the fiber diameter grows over time, properties which depend on it, such as the stored energy per unit length of a single fiber, the force-stretch relation of a fiber, and therefore the tension in the network as a whole, also evolve over time. The second fibrous network is pulmonary emboli, which consist of random networks of fibrin fibers with fluid-filled pores and red blood cells (RBCs). Stress-strain responses of human pulmonary emboli under cyclic compression were measured, revealing that emboli exhibit hysteretic stress-strain curves characteristic of foams. We describe the hysteretic response of emboli using a model of phase transitions, in which the compressed embolus is segregated into coexisting rarefied and densified phases whose fractions change as compression progresses. Our model takes into account RBC rupture in compressed emboli and stresses due to fluid flow through their small pores. The mechanical response of emboli is shown to vary depending on their RBC content. The third fibrous network is Whatman filter paper. The effect of humidity on properties such as out-of-plane fracture toughness of Whatman filter paper is studied for a broad range of relative humidities. Crack growth is modeled using traction-separation laws, whose parameters are fitted to experiments. Additionally, a novel model is developed to capture the high peak and sudden drop in the experimental force measurement caused by the existence of an initiation region, an imperfect zone ahead of a nascent crack. The relative effect of each independent parameter is explored to better understand the humidity dependence of the traction-separation parameters. The materials studied have biological, clinical, and industrial applications, and the methods described here are also applicable to other fibrous network materials

Prinzipiengemeinschaft der Europäischen Union und die Frage des Wertetransfers

Das System der Prinzipiengemeinschaft der Europäischen Union ist unter anderem auf zwei Fundamenten gebaut: Auf die gesamteuropäische Gemeinschaft und auf den Prinzipienkatalog. Die gesamteuropäische Gemeinschaft ist ein Produkt der Summe aller Organisationen, Konventionen und Verträge der europäischen Staaten nach dem Ende des Zweiten Weltkrieges. Drei zentralen Aufgaben standen hier im Vordergrund: Die Friedenssicherung, die wirtschaftliche Integration und die Entwicklung der Menschenrechte und Grundfreiheiten. Die wichtigsten drei Gruppen zu Erreichung dieser Ziele waren die NATO, die WEU, die KSZE 1975 und die Charta von Paris 1990. Die Organisationen der Europäischen Union von der Montanunion 1952 bis zum Reformvertrag 2009. Der Europarat. Eine vierte Gruppe, die die äußeren Grenzen einer Prinzipiengemeinschaft noch offen lässt, bildet sich aus Organisationen und Verträgen der Peripherie: Der Barcelona-Prozess 1995, die ENP 2004, die Union für den Mittelmeerraum 2008 und zuletzt die östliche Partnerschaft 2009. Der Prinzipienkatalog ist die Zusammenfassung aller Prinzipien, Normen und Leitlinien, die die europäischen Organisationen und Verträge nach 1945 produziert haben. Im Vordergrund stehen die EMRK 1950, die ESC 1961 und 1996, die Kopenhagener Kriterien 1993 und die Helsinki Akte 1975. Die Grundlinien der EMRK und der ESC wurden in der Charta der Grundrechte der Europäischen Union 2009 wiedergegeben. Dadurch bekam die Union ein neues Gesicht und gilt nun als ein Hauptträger des Prinzipienkatalogs. Durch den Werte- und Normentransfer werden die Inhalte des Prinzipienkatalogs in das Nationalrecht der Mitgliedstaaten, oft mit Verzögerung, übertragen. Die verstärkte Bindung des Nationalstaates an die Union beeinflusste sowohl den nationalen als auch den europäischen Identifizierungsgehalt der Unionsbürger. Das Wertesystem und die Werteprioritäten der Menschen in Europa sind sowohl durch die Öffnung der Grenzen innerhalb des Kontinents, als auch durch die wirtschaftlichen und wissenschaftlichen Entwicklungen in den postindustriellen Gesellschaften geprägt. Die Ausdehnung und die neue Positionierung der Europäischen Union im internationalen System verleihen der Frage des Imperiums Aktualität. Im Zentrum steht die Überlegung, ob die demokratische Qualität des Zentrums durch die Ausdehnung schwächer wird. Im Unterschied zu Imperien des 19. Jahrhunderts beobachten wir eine willige Peripherie dem aktiven Zentrum gegenüber. Ein Sogeffekt der Peripherie trug massiv zur Ausdehnung der Union bei. Ein Vergleich mit den klassischen Imperien des 19. Jahrhunderts sowie mit der Weltmachtpolitik der Vereinigten Staaten von Amerika im 21. Jahrhundert zeigte die scharfen Trennlinien, die ein auf Gewaltlosigkeit und wirtschaftliche Beziehungen aufgebautes Europa des 21. Jahrhunderts kennzeichnen. Und schließlich bietet die politische Theorie des 21. Jahrhunderts rationale Lösungen, sowohl zur Demokratisierung des möglichen Imperiums als auch zur Konsolidierung der Prinzipiengemeinschaft.The Community of Principles of the European Union is built on two pillars, which are the pan-European Community and the catalogue of principles. The pan-European community is product of the sum of all organizations, conventions and treaties of the European countries established after the Second World War. The three main tasks were peacekeeping, economic integration and the development of a European catalogue of human rights and fundamental freedoms. The three most important groups to achieve these objectives were: 1) The NATO, the WEU, the CSCE 1975 and the Charter of Paris 1990. 2) The organizations of the European Union: from the Coal and Steel Community 1952 to the Reform Treaty 2009. 3) The Council of Europe A fourth group, which keeps the external boundaries of the Community of Principles still open, consists of the organizations and treaties of the periphery: the Barcelona process 1995, the ENP 2004, the Union for the Mediterranean 2008 and most recently the Eastern Partnership 2009. The Catalogue of Principles is the summary of all the principles, standards and guidelines of the European organizations and contracts since 1945. In the most important are the ECHR 1950, the ESC 1961 and 1996, the Copenhagen criteria of 1993 and the Helsinki Act 1975. The base lines of the ECHR and the ESC were reflected in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union 2009. This gave the Union a new face. The Process of Value- and Normtransfer applies the contents of the Catalogue of Principles in the national law of Member States. The increased integration of the Nation-state with the Union affected both the national and the European identification of the European citizens. The value systems and value priorities of the people in Europe are characterized both by the opening of borders within the continent as well as by the economic and scientific developments in post-industrial societies. The expansion and repositioning of the European Union in the international system renewed the question of empire. The focus of the question, is whether the democratic quality of the Centre will get weaker, due to the further expansion of the European Union. Unlike empires of the 19th century, we observe a willing periphery. A suction effect of the periphery allows the expansion of the Union. A comparison with the classical empires of the 19th century and with the world power politics of the United States of America in the 21st century shows the sharp distinction to Europe of non-violence and economic relations. And finally, the political theory of the 21 century offers us rational solutions to the democratization of the prospect future Empire and so to consolidate the Community of Principles

Clopidogrel: A Pharmacogenomic Perspective on its Use in Coronary Artery Disease

The thienopyridine antiplatelet agent clopidogrel is an effective drug for the prevention of vascular events. However, data has accumulated over time to suggest it is prone to significant interpatient variability. While there are several factors that contribute to this, one of the most important is variability in forming the active metabolite necessary for clopidogrel function. Several enzymes are involved in formation of this metabolite, and two, CYP2C19 and P-glycoprotein, appear to have alleles that both occur frequently in the population and have a clinically significant impact. Patients carrying these alleles can be identified, but it remains to be determined if this information is necessary or sufficient for risk stratification. Furthermore, if patients with high-risk alleles are identified, it is unclear how treatment should be adjusted

The Frequency and Causes of Photoallergic Contact Dermatitis among Dermatology Outpatients

Too many patients with photoallergy remain undiagnoseddue to unsatisfactory knowledge among doctors and limited access tophotopatch testing. The objectives of this study were to analyze thefrequency of patients requiring diagnostic work-up for photoallergiccontact dermatitis among dermatology patients, and to identify thecausative photosensitizers. This prospective study involved 1000 consecutive,first-referred dermatology outpatients. All patients with ahistory of dermatitis induced or aggravated by exposure to light werequalified for photopatch testing. In the study group, 36 (3.6%; 95%CI:2.4-4.8%) persons required photopatch testing based on their clinicalsymptoms. As the total number of patients requiring patch tests ofany kind amounted to 205, the percentage of photopatch tested patientsamong all patch-tested patients was 17.5% (95%CI: 12.2-22.8%).Photoallergic contact dermatitis was ultimately confirmed in 15 (1.5%;0.7-2.3%) persons: 7 females and 8 males aged 6-60 (median 33) years.Nine patients turned out photoallergic to at least one nonsteroidal antiinflammatorydrug, with ketoprofen photoallergy being most frequent(5 patients, in each case clinically relevant), followed by etofenamate(4 non-relevant reactions) and diclofenac (1 relevant reaction). Five patientswere positive to at least one organic sunscreen, most frequentlyto benzophenone-3 (2 patients). “Classical” contact allergy to testedphotohaptens was found in 15 persons, including 7 with coexistingphotoallergy. In conclusion, patients requiring diagnostic work-up forphotoallergy constitute a relevant group among dermatology patients,therefore, it seems advisable that all second-level dermatology referralcenters be capable of photopatch testing. Due attention should also bepaid to photoallergy in dermatology training.</p

Intrinsic point defect properties and engineering in silicon and germanium Czochralski crystal growth

C