Medical clip

An X-ray transparent and biological inert medical clip for treating aneurisms and the like is described. A graphite reinforced composite film is molded into a unitary structure having a pair of hourglass-like cavities hinged together with a pair of jaws for grasping the aneurism extending from the wall of one cavity. A silicone rubber pellet is disposed in the other cavity to exert a spring force through the hinge area to normally bias the jaws into contact with each other

Pressure application technique for high-temperature composite fabrication

Technique utilizes characteristic of room-temperature vulcanizing rubber (RTV) which expands readily when heated. RTV expansion can exert uniform pressure on filament-reinforced polymer materials during curing. Technology accommodates high-temperature pressure application for P13-N polyimide composite consolidation during cure

Lightweight orthotic braces

Leg brace is constructed of fiber-reinforced polymer material. Composite material is stiffer, stronger, and lighter than most metals

ANOPP programmer's reference manual for the executive System

Documentation for the Aircraft Noise Prediction Program as of release level 01/00/00 is presented in a manual designed for programmers having a need for understanding the internal design and logical concepts of the executive system software. Emphasis is placed on providing sufficient information to modify the system for enhancements or error correction. The ANOPP executive system includes software related to operating system interface, executive control, and data base management for the Aircraft Noise Prediction Program. It is written in Fortran IV for use on CDC Cyber series of computers

Research on boron filaments and boron reinforced composites

Boron filaments for use as reinforcing phase in composite materials for aerospace structure

Preparing composite materials from matrices of processable aromatic polyimide thermoplastic blends

Composite materials with matrices of tough, thermoplastic aromatic polyimides are obtained by blending semi-crystalline polyimide powders with polyamic acid solutions to form slurries, which are used in turn to prepare prepregs, the consolidation of which into finished composites is characterized by excellent melt flow during processing

Behavioral Marital Therapy: An Evaluation of Treatment Effects Across High and Low Risk Settings

The present study examined the generalization of treatment effects of a cognitive- behavioral treatment program for marital distress. Following a baseline phase, each of four couples received two phases of marital therapy within a multiple baseline across subject design. The first phase of treatment was behavioral marital therapy (BMT) focusing on communication and problem solving skills. The second phase was cognitive- behavioral marital therapy (CBMT) which focused on conflict management skills in high risk interactive settings at home. Couples’ communication was assessed in a training setting in the clinic and each of two generalization probe settings at home (a low risk and a high risk) setting. The BMT phase produced a clear reduction in communication negativity in the training setting which generalized to both the low and the high risk setting. The CMBT phase produced little additional changes in communication, however, it was associated with changes on a measure of positive and negative partner- referent thoughts

Single Molecule Fluorescence Studies of protein structure and dynamics underlying the chloroplast signal recognition particle targeting pathway

The work presented in this dissertation explores the structural dynamics in the chloroplast signal recognition particle pathway. Findings include cpSRP shows scanning functionality similar to that in the cytosolic SRP with the ribosome. The intrinsically disordered C-terminal tail of the Albino3 protein has some transient secondary structure. Upon binding to cpSRP43 in solution, separate secondary structure formation was identified in the C-terminal tail of Albino3. Finally, to increase efficiency of analyzing fluorescence time traces for this work, a modular software was produced

Assessment of cognitive self-statements during marital problem solving: A comparison of two methods

Twenty maritally distressed couples (DC) and 20 nondistressed couples (NDC) were recruited and asked to undertake 10 minutes of problem-solving discussions, which were videotaped. Each individual partner’s cognitive self-statements during the interaction were assessed using two methods: video-assisted recall (VR) and thought listing (TL). Reported cognitions from each method were content- analysed and classified into five categories: partner- referent positive, partner- referent negative, self-referent positive, self- referent negative, and other. Proportions of reported cognitions falling into each category were analysed in two separate two-way MANOVAs (marital distress/ nondistress x sex) for the VR and TL measures. Results of each MANOVA indicated a highly significant effect of marital distress on cognitions, and a significant effect of sex on the VR but not the TL measure. Discriminant analyses showed that the VR and TL methods both discriminated between DC and NDC groups. Post hoc univariate ANOVAs indicated that DC had significantly higher proportions of negative partner- referent cognitions, and lower proportions of positive partner- referent cognitions, than NDC while problem solving. The relative merits of each cognitive assessment method, and their potential use in increasing marital therapy effectiveness, are discussed

Findings from a couple-based open trial for adult anorexia nervosa

Adult anorexia nervosa (AN) often is persistent, significantly erodes quality of life for both the patient and loved ones, and carries high medical and psychiatric comorbidity. Whereas individual psychotherapy for adult AN leads to improvement in some patients, recent findings indicate that the magnitude of improvement is limited: Only a small percentage of individuals fully recover and dropout rates are high. Thus, it is important to build upon current interventions to improve treatment response. We present results from an open trial of a couple-based intervention for adult anorexia nervosa as an adjunct treatment to standard multidisciplinary care. Twenty couples received treatment over approximately 26 weeks, including a couple-based intervention, individual CBT sessions, psychiatry visits for medication management, and nutritional counseling sessions. The results indicate that patients improved at posttest and 3-month follow-up on a variety of AN-related measures, anxiety and depression, and relationship adjustment. Partners also improved on anxiety, depression, and relationship adjustment. In an exploratory analysis, the multicomponent couple treatment intervention was benchmarked to well-conducted randomized controlled trials of individual therapy for AN; the couple intervention seems to compare favorably on AN-related measures and was associated with a lower dropout rate. In spite of methodological limitations, the findings suggest that including partners in the treatment of adult AN holds potential for bolstering treatment outcomes