Interaction of Stress, Lead Burden, and Age on Cognition in Older Men: The VA Normative Aging Study

BACKGROUND. Low-level exposure to lead and to chronic stress may independently influence cognition. However, the modifying potential of psychosocial stress on the neurotoxicity of lead and their combined relationship to aging-associated decline have not been fully examined. OBJECTIVES. We examined the cross-sectional interaction between stress and lead exposure on Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) scores among 811 participants in the Normative Aging Study, a cohort of older U.S. men. METHODS. We used two self-reported measures of stress appraisal-a self-report of stress related to their most severe problem and the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS). Indices of lead exposure were blood lead and bone (tibia and patella) lead. RESULTS. Participants with higher self-reported stress had lower MMSE scores, which were adjusted for age, education, computer experience, English as a first language, smoking, and alcohol intake. In multivariable-adjusted tests for interaction, those with higher PSS scores had a 0.57-point lower (95% confidence interval, -0.90 to 0.24) MMSE score for a 2-fold increase in blood lead than did those with lower PSS scores. In addition, the combination of high PSS scores and high blood lead categories on one or both was associated with a 0.05-0.08 reduction on the MMSE for each year of age compared with those with low PSS score and blood lead level (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS. Psychological stress had an independent inverse association with cognition and also modified the relationship between lead exposure and cognitive performance among older men. Furthermore, high stress and lead together modified the association between age and cognition.National Institutes of Health (R01ES07821, R01HL080674, R01HL080674-02S1, R01ES013744, ES05257-06A1, P20MD000501, P42ES05947, ES03918-02); National Center for Research Resources General Clinical Research Center (M01RR02635); Leaves of Grass Foundation; United States Department of Veterans Affair

The Independent and Interactive Effects of the Big Five Personality Dimensions upon Dispositional Coping and Coping Effectiveness in Sport.

We examined the independent and interactive effects of the Big-Five personality traits on dispositional coping and coping effectiveness among athletes. Participants were 400 athletes (mean age 22.97, s =7.00) from the United Kingdom. The athletes completed measures of personality, dispositional coping, and coping effectiveness. The Big-Five personality traits independently predicted the use of higher-order coping dimensions. Extraversion, agreeableness, and openness positively predicted task-oriented coping. Neuroticism positively predicted distraction-oriented coping, whereas agreeableness, extraversion and conscientiousness were negative predictors. Both extraversion and neuroticism positively predicted disengagement-oriented coping, whereas agreeableness and conscientiousness were negative predictors. Only neuroticism predicted coping effectiveness, which emerged as a negative predictor. Findings also showed a two-way interaction effect for predicting task-oriented coping between neuroticism and openness, and between extraversion and neuroticism. A further two-way interaction effect for predicting distraction-oriented coping was found between agreeableness and conscientiousness. These findings reinforce the need to investigate not only independent, but also interactive effects of personality dimensions upon sport-related dispositional coping

Formation of plasma around a small meteoroid: 1. Kinetic theory

This article is a companion to Dimant and Oppenheim [2017] https://doi.org/10.1002/2017JA023963.This paper calculates the spatial distribution of the plasma responsible for radar head echoes by applying the kinetic theory developed in the companion paper. This results in a set of analytic expressions for the plasma density as a function of distance from the meteoroid. It shows that at distances less than a collisional mean free path from the meteoroid surface, the plasma density drops in proportion to 1/R where R is the distance from the meteoroid center; and, at distances much longer than the mean‐free‐path behind the meteoroid, the density diminishes at a rate proportional to 1/R2. The results of this paper should be used for modeling and analysis of radar head echoes.This work was supported by NSF grant AGS-1244842. (AGS-1244842 - NSF

Cognitive Information Processing

Contains reports on six research projects split into two sections.Joint Services Electronics Programs (U. S. Army, U. S. Navy, and U. S. Air Force) under Contract DA 36-039-AMC-03200(E)National Science Foundation (Grant GK-835)National Institutes of Health (Grant 2 P01 MH-04737-06)National Aeronautics and Space Administration (Grant NsG-496

Consumer credit in comparative perspective

We review the literature in sociology and related fields on the fast global growth of consumer credit and debt and the possible explanations for this expansion. We describe the ways people interact with the strongly segmented consumer credit system around the world—more specifically, the way they access credit and the way they are held accountable for their debt. We then report on research on two areas in which consumer credit is consequential: its effects on social relations and on physical and mental health. Throughout the article, we point out national variations and discuss explanations for these differences. We conclude with a brief discussion of the future tasks and challenges of comparative research on consumer credit.Accepted manuscrip

New apparatus for DTA at 2000 bar: thermodynamic studies on Au, Ag, Al and HTSC oxides

A new DTA (Differential Thermal Analysis) device was designed and installed in a Hot Isostatic Pressure (HIP) furnace in order to perform high-pressure thermodynamic investigations up to 2 kbar and 1200C. Thermal analysis can be carried out in inert or oxidising atmosphere up to p(O2) = 400 bar. The calibration of the DTA apparatus under pressure was successfully performed using the melting temperature (Tm) of pure metals (Au, Ag and Al) as standard calibration references. The thermal properties of these metals have been studied under pressure. The values of DV (volume variation between liquid and solid at Tm), ROsm (density of the solid at Tm) and ALPHAm (linear thermal expansion coefficient at Tm) have been extracted. A very good agreement was found with the existing literature and new data were added. This HP-DTA apparatus is very useful for studying the thermodynamics of those systems where one or more volatile elements are present, such as high TC superconducting oxides. DTA measurements have been performed on Bi,Pb(2223) tapes up to 2 kbar under reduced oxygen partial pressure (p(O2) = 0.07 bar). The reaction leading to the formation of the 2223 phase was found to occur at higher temperatures when applying pressure: the reaction DTA peak shifted by 49C at 2 kbar compared to the reaction at 1 bar. This temperature shift is due to the higher stability of the Pb-rich precursor phases under pressure, as the high isostatic pressure prevents Pb from evaporating.Comment: 6 figures, 3 tables, Thermodynamics, Thermal property, Bi-2223, fundamental valu

Life after hip fracture - Impact of home rehabilitation versus conventional care and patients' experiences of the recovery process in a short- and long-term perspective

Aim In a short- and long-term perspective compare a geriatric home rehabilitation programme (HR) for patients with hip fracture with conventional care (CC), and to capture the patients experience of the consequences of the injury and their conceptions of what influences the recovery process. Method The thesis is based on two quantitative and two qualitative studies. The two quantitative studies were randomized and controlled, longitudinal intervention studies in which 102 community-dwelling elderly patients who had received either HR (n = 48) or CC (n = 54) were followed for one year after discharge. The HR programme, which started immediately after admission to hospital, included active participation from patients in setting goals and planning discharge. The programme was focused on encouraging the participants’ self-efficacy and exercising daily activities. Assessment of balance confidence, degree of independence and frequency of daily activities, health-related quality of life, mood, perceived recovery, and basic physical performance were made one month, six months and one year after hospital discharge. In the qualitative, phenomenographic studies 18 patients were interviewed one month and one year after discharge about how they experienced the consequences of the hip fracture and their conceptions of the recovery process. Results The main recovery for all participants took place during the first six months after discharge. The results show that those who had participated in the HR programme recovered faster than those who hade received CC. Additionally, in a longer perspective they were more confident and independent than the CC group, although the differences between the groups had diminished at one year. Only 14 persons in the HR group and five persons in the CC group considered themselves fully recovered after one year. The results from the interviews showed that the hip fracture caused social and existential cracks in the individuals’ lives. The hip fracture came unexpectedly and resulted in an experience of a changed body and a more restricted life. The interviewees experienced that they had increased difficulties to move and to manage independently. One reaction was that their pre-fracture self-view as being healthy and stable had been punctured by the injury. Although positive experiences, such as being satisfied with the recovery, were also expressed, many of the negative consequences remained or had even deepened one year after discharge. A dominating experience was that they were more cautious, afraid of further falls, and felt more sedentary and isolated than before the fracture. Conclusions The results show that the negative consequences of a hip fracture are substantial and long-lasting. However, the HR programme had a more significant impact than CC on the participants’ functioning and confidence, which was most evident in the early phase of the recovery. An essential task for health care should be to create continued possibilities for rehabilitation after discharge from hospital also in a longer perspective, and not primarily focus on the medical and physical needs. The patients’ experiences and psychological reactions that may follow a hip fracture should also be considered

Evaluation of a brief pilot nutrition and exercise intervention for the prevention of weight gain in general practice patients

Objective To pilot-test a brief written prescription recommending lifestyle changes delivered by general practitioners (GPs) to their patients.Design The Active Nutrition Script (ANS) included five nutrition messages and personalised exercise advice for a healthy lifestyle and/or the prevention of weight gain. GPs were asked to administer 10 scripts over 4 weeks to 10 adult patients with a body mass index (BMI) of between 23 and 30 kg m&minus; 2. Information recorded on the script consisted of patients\u27 weight, height, waist circumference, gender and date of birth, type and frequency of physical activity prescribed, and the selected nutrition messages. GPs also recorded reasons for administering the script. Interviews recorded GPs views on using the script.Setting General practices located across greater Melbourne.Subjects and results Nineteen GPs (63% female) provided a median of nine scripts over 4 weeks. Scripts were administered to 145 patients (mean age: 54 &plusmn; 13.2 years, mean BMI: 31.7 &plusmn; 6.3 kg m&minus; 2; 57% female), 52% of whom were classified as obese (BMI &gt;30 kg m&minus; 2). GPs cited &lsquo;weight reduction&rsquo; as a reason for writing the script for 78% of patients. All interviewed GPs (90%, n = 17) indicated that the messages were clear and simple to deliver.Conclusions GPs found the ANS provided clear nutrition messages that were simple to deliver. However, GPs administered the script to obese patients for weight loss rather than to prevent weight gain among the target group. This has important implications for future health promotion interventions designed for general practice.<br /

Precautionary Regulation in Europe and the United States: A Quantitative Comparison

Much attention has been addressed to the question of whether Europe or the United States adopts a more precautionary stance to the regulation of potential environmental, health, and safety risks. Some commentators suggest that Europe is more risk-averse and precautionary, whereas the US is seen as more risk-taking and optimistic about the prospects for new technology. Others suggest that the US is more precautionary because its regulatory process is more legalistic and adversarial, while Europe is more lax and corporatist in its regulations. The flip-flop hypothesis claims that the US was more precautionary than Europe in the 1970s and early 1980s, and that Europe has become more precautionary since then. We examine the levels and trends in regulation of environmental, health, and safety risks since 1970. Unlike previous research, which has studied only a small set of prominent cases selected non-randomly, we develop a comprehensive list of almost 3,000 risks and code the relative stringency of regulation in Europe and the US for each of 100 risks randomly selected from that list for each year from 1970 through 2004. Our results suggest that: (a) averaging over risks, there is no significant difference in relative precaution over the period, (b) weakly consistent with the flip-flop hypothesis, there is some evidence of a modest shift toward greater relative precaution of European regulation since about 1990, although (c) there is a diversity of trends across risks, of which the most common is no change in relative precaution (including cases where Europe and the US are equally precautionary and where Europe or the US has been consistently more precautionary). The overall finding is of a mixed and diverse pattern of relative transatlantic precaution over the period