Evaluation of the Brief Wisconsin Inventory of Smoking Dependence Motives in African-American and European-American Heavy Smokers

Introduction: Emerging evidence indicates that nicotine dependence should be measured multidimensionally. A brief version of the Wisconsin Inventory of Smoking Dependence Motives (WISDM) has recently been developed in which the item count has been reduced from 68 to 37. The objectives of this study were to replicate the initial findings in a larger heavy-smoking sample, and determine whether the WISDM structure is applicable to both African-American (AA) and European-American (EA) heavy smokers. Methods: Smokers were selected from our Mid-South Tobacco Family and Case–Control studies. Available data from 2,522 smokers was selected, involving 1,633 AA and 889 EA participants. Both exploratory and confirmatory analyses were employed to evaluate the psychometric characteristics of the Brief WISDM. Results: AAs and EAs were similar in age, sex, education, marital status, cigarettes per day, and Fagerström Test for Nicotine Dependence score. Internal consistency evaluations for Brief WISDM subscales were adequate but generally lower than that of the full-scale version. Confirmatory factor analyses did not yield desirable fits for AA or EA smokers. Exploratory factor analysis revealed good agreement for item loadings on the four primary dependence motives subscales (Automaticity, Loss of Control, Craving, and Tolerance) but discrepancies on all secondary dependence motives subscales except Taste/Sensory Processes. Specific item loadings for subscales differed by ethnicity. Conclusion: The Brief WISDM demonstrated reasonable psychometric properties in our large sample. Together, we provide support for the general validity of the brief form but suggest individual item selections may benefit from further investigation

Psychosocial Interventions Delivered by Primary Care Physicians to Patients with Depression

Few high-quality studies have been conducted examining the effectiveness of psychosocial interventions performed by primary care physicians for patients with major depression. Two randomized controlled clinical trials (RCTs) found that a psychosocial intervention, specifically problem-solving therapy, is as effective as pharmacotherapy for symptoms of major depression. (Strength of recommendation: B) However, these results should be interpreted with some degree of caution because of the limited number of studies and their small sample size

Which anthropometric and lower body power variables are predictive of professional and amateur playing status in male rugby union players?

The purpose of this study was to compare anthropometric and lower body power measurements between current professional and amateur male rugby union players. The present study also sought to determine which anthropometric and physical performance variables were predictive of playing standard. Thirty professional and 30 amateur RU players performed Wattbike 6 s maximal effort (WB6S) and countermovement (CMJ) and squat jump (SJ) assessments, anthropometric measures were also taken. Dependant variables recorded and analysed including: body mass, stature, Σ8 site skinfolds, WB6S absolute and relative peak power, CMJ and SJ average concentric force, jump height, peak velocity, time to peak force, rate of force development (RFD) and absolute and relative peak force and power. Professional players were heavier, taller and leaner than their amateur counterparts (p < 0.05). Professional players performed significantly better in all physical performance measures except CMJ and SJ time to peak force, CMJ RFD and SJ relative peak force. Variables which were predictive of playing standard were: Σ8 skinfolds, CMJ peak velocity and WB6S absolute and relative peak power (p < 0.05). These findings indicate that the current body of male professional RU players is anthropometrically and physically superior to their amateur counterparts, although not all variables assessed here were predictive of playing standard. Data presented here indicate that Σ8 skinfolds, WB6S absolute and relative power and CMJ peak velocity are predictive of playing standard, whereas other anthropometric and strength and power variables are not

How much does smoking cessation cut CHD risk?

Patients with coronary heart disease (CHD) who refrain from smoking over a 2-year follow-up period decrease their relative risk (RR) for morbidity and mortality by about one third (strength of recommendation [SOR]: A, meta-analysis of 20 cohort studies). People who maintain abstinence after coronary artery bypass surgery are more likely to avoid angina, repeat revascularization, significant physical impairment, and CHD-related hospital admissions than patients who continue to smoke (SOR: A, 4 cohort studies with 1- to 20-year follow-up)

Peatland initiation and carbon accumulation in the Falkland Islands

The Falkland Islands in the South Atlantic Ocean contain extensive peatlands at the edge of their global climatic envelope, but the long-term carbon dynamics of these sites is poorly quantified. We present new data for ten sites, compile previously-published data and produce a new synthesis. Many peatlands in the Falkland Islands developed notably early, with a fifth of basal 14 C dates pre-Holocene. Falkland Islands peats have high ash content, high carbon content and high bulk density compared to global norms. In many sites carbon accumulation rates are extremely low, which may partly relate to low average rainfall, or to carbon loss through burning and aeolian processes. However, in coastal Tussac peatlands carbon accumulation can be extremely rapid. Our re-analysis of published data from Beauchene Island, the southernmost of the Falkland Islands, yields an exceptional long-term apparent carbon accumulation rate of 139 g C m −2 yr −1 , to our knowledge the highest recorded for any global peatland. This high accumulation might relate to the combination of a long growing-season and marine nutrient inputs. Given extensive coverage and carbon-dense peats the carbon stock of Falkland Islands peatlands is clearly considerable but robust quantification will require the development of a reliable peat map. Falkland Island peatlands challenge many standard assumptions and deserve more detailed study

Radio-Continuum study of the Nearby Sculptor Group Galaxies. Part 1: NGC 300 at lambda = 20 cm

A series of new radio-continuum (lambda=20 cm) mosaic images focused on the NGC 300 galactic system were produced using archived observational data from the VLA and/or ATCA. These new images are both very sensitive (rms=60 microJy) and feature high angular resolution (<10"). The most prominent new feature is the galaxy's extended radio-continuum emission, which does not match its optical appearance. Using these newly created images a number of previously unidentified discrete sources have been discovered. Furthermore, we demonstrate that a joint deconvolution approach to imaging this complete data-set is inferior when compared to an immerge approach.Comment: 13 pages, 12 figures, accepted to APSS, new version to correct the missing reference

Synthesis of a nanoscale Cu(ii)31-oxo-carboxylate cluster, and effect of Cu–oxo cluster size on visible-light absorption

Cu16–Cu31 Cu(II)-oxo-carboxylate clusters are reported, including those with condensed 1.5 nm Cu–O cores supported exclusively by O-donor ligands. A size–colour correlation is observed due to a red-shift of the charge transfer absorption band on increasing size; hence these clusters sit between small molecules and (black) CuO nanostructures