NON-MEDICAL USE OF PRESCRIPTION DRUGS, STRESS, CULTURAL ORIENTATION, UTILIZATION OF HEALTHCARE, AND PROTECTIVE FACTORS AMONG COLLEGE STUDENTS IN CHINA

Background: Non-medical use of prescription drugs (NMUPD) refers to the use of prescription drugs which are traditionally utilized to manage pain or treat psychiatric problems but without a doctor’s prescription. In 2010, an investigation by the Substance Use and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) revealed that 5.3% of young adults (18 to 25-year-olds) in the United States reported past-month NMUPD. NMUPD has become a growing concern owing to associations with consequences such as college dropout, poor academic achievement, and health jeopardizing behaviors. College students\u27 NMUPD has been well documented in the United States. Limited studies, however, have been conducted among college students in China. The purposes of this study are to examine the prevalence and motives of NMUPD among college students in China, and to assess its relationship with stress (i.e., perceived stress and traumatic events), mental health problems (depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)), utilization of healthcare, cultural orientation, and protective factors (i.e., resilience and future orientation). Methods: In Jan-April 2017, online data were collected using SONA system from a total of 720 undergraduates at Beijing Normal University (BNU) and University of Macau (UM) with an average age of 19.65. All participants reported their nonmedical use of prescription drugs (i.e., opioids, sedatives, stimulants, and anxiolytics) in their lifetime and the past three months, stress, mental health, utilization of healthcare, cultural orientation, and protective factors. Spearman’s rank-order corrections and logistic regression were employed for statistical analyses. Results: Findings indicate that 41.2% of Chinese students reported taking prescription drugs without a doctor’s prescription. The most commonly misused prescription drugs were opioids (40.5% lifetime use, 31.8% past-three-months use), followed by sedatives (1.8% lifetime, 0.8% past 3 months), anxiolytics (0.9% lifetime,0 .3% past three months), and stimulants (0.2% lifetime, 0% past three months). Bivariate analyses suggest significantly positive correlations of lifetime NMUPD with mental health problems (anxiety and PTSD), cultural orientation (individualism and collectivism), and utilization of healthcare (frequency of healthcare use, time spent for healthcare, and money spent for healthcare). Similar results were found in terms of past-three-month NMUPD. The results of logistic regressions indicate the significant association of lifetime NMUPD with individualism of cultural orientation, and frequency of healthcare use. Specially, individualism, frequency of healthcare use, and time spent for healthcare were found to be associated with lifetime opioid misuse, and depression was significantly associated with sedative misuse. Resilience was negatively associated with lifetime sedative misuse. Frequency of healthcare use was also found to be positively associated with past-three-month opioid misuse. Conclusion: Utilization of healthcare, cultural orientation, and mental health problems appear to be the factors associated with NMUPD among college students at BNU and UM. More discussion is needed in Chinese society about regulation of prescription drug use. Future culturally-tailored prevention intervention programs may be beneficial to reduce the risk of NMUPD among Chinese college students

CONSTRUCTION AND VALIDATION OF A NON-MEDICAL USE OF PRESCRIPTION OPIOIDS OUTCOME EXPECTANCIES SCALE AMONG COLLEGE STUDENTS IN CHINA

Background:Non-medical use of prescription opioids (NMUPO) has become a clear threat to public health. Young adults (aged 18 to 25) have a high risk of NMUPO. My prior work on Chinese undergraduates indicates a high prevalence of lifetime NMUPO (49.2%). Health behavior theories propose that outcome expectancies are robust psychosocial determinants of substance use. Literature has identified the influence of outcome expectancies on alcohol and drug use. However, the role of outcome expectancies in NMUPO in China is unknown, and a scarcity of a valid measures for NMUPO outcome expectancies may be a barrier. Our previous research also found an association of cultural orientation with NMUPD in Chinese college students, implying that cultural orientation may affect NMUPD-related perceptions, such as outcome expectancies. The purposes of this study were to (1) conduct initial work to develop and validate an NMUPO outcome expectancies scale (NMUPOES) for Chinese college students; (2) examine the association of cultural orientation with factors identified in NMUPOES. Method: Partial data (n = 202) derived from a bigger online dataset collected from 849 undergraduates (average age = 19.65) at two universities in Beijing and Macau in Jan-April 2017 was used in this study. Participants completed the NMUPOES and reported their past-3-month NMUPO and cultural orientation. Exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, and structural equation modeling were employed to test the study hypotheses. Results: Findings suggested four subscales in the 50-item NMUPOES (i.e., social enhancement and tension reduction, academic enhancement, physiological discomfort, and guilt and dependence) and two higher-order factors (i.e., positive expectancies and negative expectancies). All subscales were positively correlated and had good internal consistency. The negative expectancies scale was negatively associated with past-3-month NMUPO. No significant association was found between cultural orientation and the two expectancy factors. Conclusion:NMUPOES is a psychometrically appropriate measure of NMUPO expectancies for Chinese college students. Future research may validate the NMUPOES using a large sample size in both clinical and non-clinical populations in China. An intervention program tailored to outcome expectancies may be beneficial to reduce the risk of NMUPO in Chinese college students

Experimental Investigation of µEDM Process Parameters for Titanium Alloy with AlCrN Coated Electrode

Micro Electric discharge machining (Micro-EDM) is a non-traditional machining method, and it is widely used in mold, tool and biomedical manufacturing. Therefore, research to clarify this technology in practice is very necessary. In this article, the influence of technological parameters in micro-EDM with coated electrodes on quality indicators is investigated. The experiments were performed on titanium alloy strip (Ti-6Al-4V) and AlCrN coated tungsten carbide rod served as electrode rod. The technology parameters used in the study include Voltage (V), Capacitance (C) and Spindle Rotation (RPM), and tool wear rate (TWR), overcut (OVC) and depth (Z co-ordinate) are the Quality indicators in research results. Taguchi method is used to design experiments, and ANOVA is used to analyze the results of quality indicators. They conclude that C has greater effect on multi-performance characteristics than U and RPM. Z co-ordinate, OVC and TWR were increased with the increase in U, and C increases have resulted in Z co-ordinate and TWR both increasing. The influence of RPM on OVC and TWR is similar

Synthesis and reactions of β-diketiminato heavy group 14 metal alkoxides and phosphanides

Some low-valent, three-coordinated β-diketiminato heavy group 14 metal complexes have been synthesised and their reactions examined. Initially, our attention is focused on several β-diketiminatolead(II) alkoxides. The lead(II) alkoxides show different basic and nucleophilic reactivities from transition metal analogues. For example, the reaction between the lead(II) tert-butoxide and methyl iodide proceeds only under forcing conditions to give the lead(II) iodide and methyl tert-butyl ether. However, facile reversible carbon dioxide insertion into the lead-oxygen bond is observed. To investigate the steric effect of the bulky β-diketiminato ligand, compounds with various aromatic groups attached to nitrogen have been made. When either [(BDIPh)PbCl] (BDIPh = [HC{C(Me)N(C6H5)}2]−) or [(BDIIPP)PbCl] (BDIIPP = [HC{C(Me)N(4-iPrC6H4)}2]−) was treated with potassium tert-butoxide, the reactions gave the unexpected bis[β-diketiminato]lead(II) complexes. However, treatment of [(BDIDMP)PbCl] (BDIDMP = [HC{C(Me)N(2,6-Me2C6H3)}2]−) with AgOTf led to the expected β-diketiminatolead(II) triflate. These results suggest that the ortho-substituent on the N-aryl groups in the β-diketiminato ligand plays an important role in influencing the formation of bis[β-diketiminato]lead(II) complexes. A series of β-diketiminato heavy group 14 metal phosphanides was synthesised. The phosphorus is pyramidally coordinated in the compounds containing diphenyl- or dicyclohexylphosphanido ligands. In contrast, the geometry at phosphorus is planar in the germanium(II) and tin(II) bis(trimethylsilyl)phosphanides. The phosphorus in the lead(II) bis(trimethylsilyl)phosphanide is pyramidally coordinated. The observed conformations may be explained by the steric congestion from the β-diketiminato ligand and electronic effects in the phosphanido ligand. Reactions of the phosphanido complexes with one equivalent of elemental chalcogen give phosphinochalcogenoito complexes. Further reaction with elemental chalcogen gives phosphinodichalcogenoato complexes. In contrast, treatment of the germanium(II) dicyclohexylphosphanide with elemental chalcogen leads to the formation of germanium(IV) chalcogenide. The presence of NMR-active nuclei in these complexes makes possible detailed spectroscopic analysis

Discriminant analysis model for predicting contractor performance in Hong Kong

This thesis describes the development of an operational research model for the identification of determinating variables and prediction of contractor performance in Hong Kong. The mathematical technique used is the Discriminant Analysis approach. The model is also verified with two other analyses Multiple Regression Analysis and Unidimensional Scaling Analysis. One of the aims of the research is to betray the underlying factors that influence contractor performance which are measured in the clients' point of view. The second aim is to develop an accurate model for predicting contractor performance used by clients in vetting contractors. All aspects of the model's development are described, including the quantification of the variables, data collection, analysis of the model results, verification of the model results with other models and testing the model using independent data. Further, the variables adopted in the model are compared with the actual practices in Hong Kong. The predictive model produced by the study is made up of six variables measuring the three dimensions namely the inherent characteristics of the project, the contractor's internal attributes and the external influence of the project team, including the complexity of the project, the working experience of the project leaders, the percentage of professionally qualified staff in the company, the past performance of the contractor, the origin of the company and the architect's or client's supervision and control on the quality of work and work progress. However, the developed ndels should only be used as part of an assessment process and with caution as there are other unpredictable factors which are not able to quantify and include in the model such as the changing of the ccmpany structure and straty, change in management quality, profitability and the happening of overtrading. Nevertheless, the use of the model to exclude cximpanies fran tender lists could accelerate the contractor selection process and spare niore time for clients to concentrate on more important issues

Realization of Woodpile Structure Using Optical Interference Holography

We report the use of a (4+1)-beam optical interference holography technique to fabricate woodpile structures in photo-resists. The configuration consists of 4 linear polarized side beams arranged symmetrically around a circular polarized central beam with all the beams from the same half space, making it easily accessible experimentally. The fabricated woodpile structures are in good agreement with model simulations. Furthermore, woodpiles with the diamond symmetry are also obtained by exploiting the deformations of the photo-resists. Directional bandgaps in the visible range are also observed for the samples with and without the correct stacking of the woodpile structures.Comment: 9 pages and three figure

Do compound radicals exist as a unit of analysis in Chinese character recognition?

This study investigated the presence of compound radical representations as a unit of analysis in Chinese character recognition. Native local Cantonese-speaking undergraduates were recruited as participants. For each of the freestanding and non-freestanding conditions, a masked priming lexical decision task was used in which target type (characters containing compound radical and characters containing simple radical), prime type (compound radicals and simple radicals) and prime durations (32 ms and 48 ms) were manipulated. Interaction between prime duration and prime-target relation did not reach significance for both conditions. The results suggest that compound radicals are not represented in the process of Chinese character recognition, despite of their common occurrence as phonetic radicals. However, the pattern of interaction between prime type and prime duration noted with stimuli containing non-freestanding radical motivates further research in the direction of the existence of compound radical representation. Implications for further study of Chinese character processing are discussed.published_or_final_versionSpeech and Hearing SciencesBachelorBachelor of Science in Speech and Hearing Science

錢鍾書與張愛玲小說的語言風格研究

自夏志清的《中國現代小說史》專章討論錢鍾書（1910-1998）和張愛玲 （1921-1995）的小說後，不少學者對二人小說的藝術手法、主題、意識形態、以及修辭等各方面都作過深入的探討；但是，真正把他們的作品作為「語料」 看待，並嘗試從語言角度討論的論著並不多。故此，本文嘗試以風格學（Stylistics） 考察二人使用語言的習慣，務求呈現他們小說作品的「風格」（Style）。 眾所周知，錢鍾書和張愛玲的語言可說「獨步文壇」。因此，本文的寫作目的有三：（1）通過語法和修辭技巧的描述，呈現二人遣詞用字的習慣；（2）了解二人風格迥異的原因；（3）比較二人在比喻、對話、人物描寫等方面的異同。 本文以語言學理論為考察的準則，論文以分析、比較、歸納、演繹、引例等論證方法撰寫。本文共分五章： （一） 導論：說明研究動機和研究範圍。另外，理論基礎、研究方法和準則，以及「言語風格」、「語言風格」、「風格學」的定義，也包括在這部分。 （二） 錢鍾書語言風格研究：細析錢氏小說遣詞用字的特色，包括「語音手段」、「悖詞」（oxymoron）、「同異」、「仿詞」、「仿格」、「拆詞」、 「別解」、「疊現」、「誇張」、「引用」等修辭手法分析；而錢氏小說裏複句的特點，以及「歐化現象」，也是本章的討論範圍。 （三） 張愛玲語言風格研究：分析她作品裏的「顏色詞」、「象聲詞」、「疊 用字詞」的語法特色。她小說裏「古典小說詞匯」、「文語成分」、 詞尾「然」的考察，以及「歐化現象」也會在本章討論。 （四） 錢鍾書與張愛玲合論：從三方面比較二人的小說語言：（1）比喻。 涉及兩者比喻的結構形式，也會討論到他們用喻的獨特性；（2） 人物描寫的語言。考察二人描寫小說人物的行文習慣；（3）對話。 分析二人小說人物對話的特色和功能。 （五） 結論：總結二人的語法手段及效果，並根據前三章的研究，分析二人通過甚麼語法手段而產生他們的迥然不同的個人風格

《說文解字》省形字的說解系統研究

漢人許慎所著的《說文解字》為中國現存最早亦最完整的字書，許慎以「六書」、「省形」、「省聲」、「亦聲字」等概念為九千多個漢字的形音義作解析，其中「省形字」與「省聲字」並稱為「省變字」。從清代以來研究省聲字的學者很多，亦因而衍生出不少學說及理論，但對於省形字的分析卻未有跟上這樣的步伐，更有學者全面地否認省形字的存在 ，但大多的學者對於省形字都抱有肯定卻存疑的態度。大多數的學者對省形字的研究都環繞著將省形字重新歸納入「六書」中，但對於省形字所擁有的系統性及科學性卻沒有一個完整的說明，本文將就《說文解字》中「省形」說的系統作一淺述，包括省形字的內部系統和外部系統以及省形字出現的原因，以此來說明「省形說」的客觀性

Chiral microstructures (spirals) fabrication by holographic lithography

We present an optical interference model to create chiral microstructures (spirals) and its realization in photoresist using holographic lithography. The model is based on the interference of six equally-spaced circumpolar linear polarized side beams and a circular polarized central beam. The pitch and separation of the spirals can be varied by changing the angle between the side beams and the central beam. The realization of the model is carried out using the 325 nm line of a He-Cd laser and spirals of sub-micron size are fabricated in photoresist.Comment: 6 page