Showing papers by "University of Kansas published in 1970"

Toxoplasma gondii in Cats: Fecal Stages Identified as Coccidian Oocysts

Abstract: Isospora-type oocysts were excreted by cats following the ingestion of Toxoplasma fromn infected mice. Oocysts appeared 3 to 5 days after cyst. were ingested and 8 to 10 days after trophozoites were ingested, and also 21 to 24 days after the administration of infective fecal suspensions from cats. A close quanititative and biologic correlation between oocysts and Toxoplasma infectivity of the feces was observed which could not be separated by density gradient centrifugation and filtration methods. Toxoplasma is an intestinal coccidian of cats which is fecally spread. It has evolved to multiply in brain and muscle and in other species, making it possible for carnivorism to become another means of transmission.

Models of Development and Theories of Development

Abstract: Models, which originate in metaphor, exist on several levels ranging from all inclusive metaphysical models to narrowly circumscribed models of specific features of theories. Models at the more general levels form the determining logical context for models at lower levels. This categorical determinism stretches from metaphysical levels through scientific theories, to the manner in which we analyze, interpret, and make inferences from empirical evidence. Two radically different models which have had a pervasive effect upon the nature of psychology generally and developmental psychology specifically are the organismic and mechanistic world views. The history and nature of those models are discussed and the manner in which they become transformed into corrolary issues which form the metatheoretical basis for theory construction is analyzed. Theories built upon different world views are logically independent and cannot be assimilated to each other. They reflect different ways of looking at the world and, as such, are incompatible in their implications.

The toxoplasma gondii oocyst from cat feces

Abstract: Coccidian oocysts resembling those of Isospora bigemina were excreted by cats fed Toxoplasma. In order to identify these oocysts with Toxoplasma infectivity a number of critical comparisons were made. The appearance of oocysts and Toxoplasma infectivity was simultaneous in the feces of 23 of 24 adult cats, 3-5 days after feeding of Toxoplasma cysts; in the feces of 4 out of 9 cats, 7-10 days after feeding of trophozoites; and in 8 out of 17 cats, 20-24 days after feeding of cat feces containing oocysts. Oocysts and infectivity were present in similar numbers, and they disappeared simultaneously from the feces of cats. Oocysts and infectivity were also observed simultaneously in the feces of 9 kittens, 1-2 days old, fed Toxoplasma cysts. Oocysts could not be separated from infectivity by filtration, by continuous particle electrophoresis, or by density gradient centrifugation. Excystation of oocysts was followed by an increase in titer of Toxoplasma infectivity. Unsporulated oocysts in fresh cat feces were noninfectious to mice, but oocyst sporulation was associated quantitatively with the development of infectivity at different temperatures and conditions of oxygenation. Maximum oocyst sporulation at 48 hr correlated with the development of maximum Toxoplasma infectivity. 1 and 2% sulfuric acid, and 2.5% potassium dichromate were found to be the best preservatives for sporulation of oocysts and for the development of Toxoplasma infectivity. Low sporulation rates in 0.1% formalin, 20% ethanol, and in water were associated with low infectivity in these reagents. Neither Toxoplasma infectivity nor oocysts developed in 0.3% formalin, 1% ammonium hydroxide, or 1% iodine in 20% ethanol. Oocysts, sporocysts, and sporozoites were stained specifically with Toxoplasma antibody in the indirect fluorescent antibody test. Typical coccidian stages, schizonts, and male and female gametocytes were found in the epithelium of the small intestine of kittens fed Toxoplasma cysts. The classification of T. gondii is discussed in relation to that of other isosporan coccidia of cats and dogs. The term "Toxoplasma oocyst" is introduced and Toxoplasma is classified in the family Toxoplasmidae of the suborder Eimeriina. The species Isospora bigemina is restricted to dogs, and I. cati to cats. I. felis and so-called I. rivolta from cats were noninfectious to dogs, and did not confer immunity to subsequent infection with I. canis and I. rivolta from dogs.

Interdigital Capacitors and Their Application to Lumped-Element Microwave Integrated Circuits

Abstract: An analysis of the frequency response of interdigital capacitors, which leads to an optimal design, is given along with an expression for their static gap capacitance. The capacitor Q is given in terms of its geometry which consists of a planar interdigital thin-filrn conductor deposited on the surface of a relatively high dielectric constant substrate. Capacitance values ranging from 0.1 to 10 pF at L band with measured Q's in excess of 400 are realizable using 2-mil line and space widths on a 99.5-percent alumina substrate with a dielectric constant of 10.3. Experimental results obtained with a lumped-constant nine-section S-band Chebyscheff low-pass filter realized using spiral inductors and optimal designed interdigital capacitors are shown to be in excellent agreement with theory. The filter had less than 0.8-dB insertion loss and greater than 25dB return loss in the passband. The filter occupies an area 6.50 by 200 roils on a 24-mil-thick substrate.

Host specificity of fig wasps (agaonidae).

Abstract: For the development of seeds, the figs (Ficus spp.) are dependent upon small chalcidoid wasps of the family Agaonidae. No other means of pollination of fig flowers is available to the plant, and the wasps cannot develop anywhere except in the gall flowers of the fig.2 There has been considerable difference of opinion as to the degree of host specificity of the fig pollinators. For example, Baker (1961) did not fully accept the specificity of fig wasps, but in a later publication Baker and Hurd (1968) said that in the enormous genus Ficus a unique situation prevails in which almost every species of fig has a recognizably different wasp as a pollinator. The present paper evaluates the evidence concerning such specificity and its occasional breakdown. The female agaonids carrying pollen enter the young receptacles at the time the female flowers are ready for pollination (female phase). Wasps probably first pollinate all the female flowers (shortand long-styled) and next lay eggs in the short-styled ones. The flowers which are only pollinated develop normally and each produces a seed, while the pollinated flowers which also received agaonid eggs become "gall flowers," each nourishing a single wasp larva. The agaonid wasps reach maturity in a male-phase fig. Copulation takes place before the females escape from the galls inside the fig. After copulation, the females emerge from the galls and immediately go to the anthers, which become ripe synchronously with the softening of the fig and the emergence of the wasps inside of it. There is a difference in the way the wasps pick up the pollen from the anthers in the two subgenera of figs that reach the New World, Urostigma and Pharmacosycea. In Urostigma, exclusively pollinated by Blastophaga (Pegoscapus), the females emerge from their galls and at once go to the dehisced anthers. They pick out the pollen from the anthers using the mandibles and front legs, and move it to corbiculae or concavities located in the front coxae and in the mesosternum (Ramirez, 1969; see also Galil and Eisikowitch, 1968b and Galil and Snitzer-Pasternak, in press, for Ficus religiosa). Once the corbiculae are filled, the wasps go to exits made by the males through the fig wall and fly away. The pollen of most New World Urostigma is not shed from the anthers without wasp activity because the pollen sacs do not open sufficiently. In Pharmacosycea figs of the New World, which are exclusively pollinated by species of Tetrapus, the anthers dehisce and shed the pollen naturally and apparently without the help of the wasps; the wasps which are emerging from the galls inside the fig become completely dusted with it. They also eat it before leaving the fig. Once the newly emerged female wasps, dusted with pollen or carrying it in the corbiculae, escape from their ripe figs, they fly to another fig tree of the same species in which they developed and which pos1 Contribution number 1451 from the Department of Entomology, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas. 2 Galil and Eisikowitch (1968a) divide the developmental phases of a syconium in a way which I have followed, thus: Phase A (Prefemale): young syconium prior to the opening of the ostiole. Phase B (Female): ostiolar scales loosen, female flowers ripen, agaonid and other sycophilous wasps penetrate into the syconium and oviposit into the ovaries. Phase C (Interfloral): wasp larvae and fig embryos develop. Ovaries occupied by the larvae are transformed into galls. Phase D (Male): male flowers mature, wasps reach the adult stage, fertilized female wasps leave the syconia via channels bored by the males. Phase E (Post-floral): both the syconia and the seeds inside them ripen.

Metastatic cancer of unknown primary site

Abstract: Characteristics of 686 patients with the diagnosis of metastatic cancer of unknown primary site are examined. Average age of the series is 60.2 years and ratio of males to females is 58:42. Bones, lungs, and liver are the common sites of metastases, and adenocarcinoma, carcinoma, and anaplastic carcinoma are the most common histologic types. Survival for all patients is: 2-year 10.4%, 5-year 5.1%, and 10-year 3.3%. Average age of the 27 patients surviving 5 years or longer is 52.5 years of the 14 patients of this latter group now dead, only 2 died of cancer. Speculation about both elusive primary tumors and occasional long survival must include primary tumors too small to be found at either clinical examination or autopsy, inadvertent removal or destruction of primary earlier by physician or sloughing by host, or destruction or containment of tumor by host defense mechanisms.

Home-based reinforcement and the modification of pre-delinquents' classroom behavior.

Abstract: In Exp. I, five pre-delinquents from Achievement Place attended a special summer school math class where study behavior and rule violations were measured daily for each boy. The boys were required to take a “report card” for the teacher to mark. The teacher simply marked yes or no whether a boy had “studied the whole period” and “obeyed the class rules.” All yeses earned privileges in the home that day but a no lost all the privileges. Using a reversal design, it was shown that privileges dispensed remotely could significantly improve classroom performance. In Exp. II and III, home-based reinforcement was also shown to be effective in improving the study behavior of two youths in public school classrooms. In addition, data from Exp. III suggest that the daily feedback and reinforcement may be faded without much loss in study behavior. Home-based reinforcement was demonstrated to be a very effective and practical classroom behavior modification technique.

Nest parasitism, productivity, and clutch size in purple martins.

Abstract: Mean maximum nestling weight of purple martins decreased with increase in brood size from three to five. Martins in the absence of acarine nest parasites produced young heavier than parasitized young of the same brood size; in addition, unparasitized nestlings tended to reach a maximum weight equivalent to that of young in parasitized broods of one less member. Modal brood size for parasitized and unparasitized martins was four, but there was a significant trend toward production of broods of five by mite-free birds, and of broods of three by parasitized parents. This suggests a potentially important role for nest parasitism in the determination of clutch size in martins and other birds.

Incidence of cardiovascular disease and death in patients receiving diethylstilbestrol for carcinoma of the prostate.

Abstract: Patients treated with a 5.0-mg daily dose of diethylstilbestrol (DES) had an increased incidence of fatal and non-fatal cardiovascular disease when compared to placebo in all stages of prostatic cancer (p < 0.025). The pretreatment cardiovascular status of estrogen-treated patients was generally better than those treated with placebo. Therapy with DES 5.0 mg did not increase survival of Stage III or IV patients significantly when compared to placebo. The decrease in cancer mortality associated with the 5.0-mg dose of DES was offset by an increase in deaths from cardiovascular causes. Early endocrine treatment of patients with asymptomatic Stage III carcinoma is not indicated. Endocrine therapy should be started early only in Stage IV patients. When DES is preferred, it should be administered in a dose lower than 5.0 mg. Complications of estrogen therapy may be due to an increased incidence of thromboembolism.

Effects of teacher attention on attending behavior of two boys at adjacent desks.

Abstract: The effects of teacher attention on the attending behavior of two boys seated at adjacent desks were investigated. Baseline records were obtained of the appropriate attending behavior of two boys who were described as the most disruptive pupils in a second-grade classroom of a poverty area school. During the first experimental phase, the teacher systematically increased the amount of attention for appropriate attending in one of the pair, Edwin. This resulted in a dramatic increase in his attending rate and a lesser, though significant, increase in attending behavior of the second boy, Greg. During the second experimental phase, systematic attention for attending was instituted for Greg and was discontinued for Edwin. This resulted in further increases in attending by Greg and a reduction in attending by Edwin. A brief withdrawal of reinforcement for attending in both Greg and Edwin reduced attending levels for both. Following this reversal appropriate attending for both boys was systematically reinforced and attending returned to high levels.

Teachers and parents as researchers using multiple baseline designs.

Abstract: Two teachers and a parent used three basic multiple baseline designs to investigate the effects of systematic reinforcement and punishment procedures in the classroom and at home. (1) A fifth-grade teacher concurrently measured the same behavior (tardiness) in three stimulus situations (after morning, noon, and afternoon recesses). Posting the names of pupils on a chart titled “Today's Patriots” was made contingent on being on time after the noon recess, then successively also the morning and afternoon recesses. Tardiness was reduced to near zero rates at the points where contingencies were applied. (2) A highschool teacher recorded the same behavior (daily French-quiz grades) of three students. She then successively applied the same consequences (staying after school for individual tutoring for D and F grades) for each student. At the points where the contingency was applied, D and F grades were eliminated. (3) A mother concurrently measured three different behaviors (clarinet practice, Campfire project work, reading) of her 10-yr-old daughter. She successively applied the same contingency (going to bed early) for less than 30 min spent engaged in one after another of the behaviors. Marked increases in the behaviors were observed at the points where the contingency was applied.

Training generative verb usage by imitation and reinforcement procedures1

Abstract: Three retarded children were trained, using imitation and reinforcement procedures, to produce past and present tense forms of verbs in response to verbal requests. Two types of experimental sessions were arranged: training sessions and probe sessions. During training sessions, a child was trained to produce one verb in both the past and the present tense. Then, in a probe session, the generalization of this training was tested by presenting to the child a series of untrained verbs interspersed with previously trained verbs. Responses to untrained verbs were never reinforced. Training sessions alternated with probe sessions throughout a multiple baseline design involving four classes of verb inflections as the baselines. The results showed that, as past and present tense forms of verbs within an inflectional class were trained, the children correctly produced past and present tense forms of untrained verbs within this class. When verbs from two or more classes were trained, the children correctly produced the verb tenses from each of these classes. Thus, the imitation and reinforcement procedures were effective in teaching generative use of verb inflections.

The Evaluation of Presidents: An Extension of the Schlesinger Polls

Abstract: IN 1948 and again in 1962, Arthur M. Schlesinger asked panels of historians and political scientists to rate the Presidents of the United States in categories ranging from "great" to "failure." Although these polls have been subjected to criticism, they have proved useful.' But there are serious problems inherent in this type of research. This essay enlarges upon the Schlesinger polls, as well as updates them. It also introduces crucial methodological changes such as the use of socialpsychological scaling methods instead of a simple ranking, the inclusion of additional dimensions of evaluation, the use of a much larger and less biased sample, and the use of a single professional society as a sampling frame. The two Schlesinger studies, which created the interest in this line of inquiry, found the following ordering of Presidents (see Table 1). A question that might well have concerned many readers of the earlier presidential polls involves the possible alternative meanings and dimensions that may have been employed in the ratings of prestige. It is easy to see that an active President may be seen as prestigious, regardless of the significance of his accomplishments, or that an idealistic President may be more highly regarded than a practical one. To take into account questions like these, it was necessary to include ratings of other dimensions in addition to that of prestige. A total of seven dimensions were used in this study. The use of these additional dimensions allows for an examination of the relationships among them, which, in turn, permits increased understanding of what is involved in (or related to) the rating of presidential prestige. The present survey employed a standard social-psychological scaling

A Quantitative Study of the Foraging Ecology of Downy Woodpeckers

Abstract: Studies of the foraging ecology of Downy Woodpeckers (Dendrocopos pubescens) at the University of Kansas Natural History Reservation indicate that there is intersexual partitioning of the foraging niche, seasonal variation in the relative frequency of the modes of foraging, variation in the mode of foraging on live versus dead trees, and seasonal variation in the use of live and dead trees. Partitioning of the foraging niches by the sexes is accomplished behaviorally by a differential use of the available substratum according to limb height and diameter. The degree to which these unisexual subniches are expressed varies on live versus dead trees. Males tend to forage on small branches, generally 5 cm in diameter or less; females tend to forage on the trunk and larger limbs. The mean foraging height of males in live trees (6.0 m) is significantly different from that of males in dead trees (8.9 m); the mean foraging height of females in dead trees (8.4 m) is not significantly different from that of females in live trees (8.1 m) or of males in dead trees. The mean foraging height of males in live trees is significantly different from that of females in live trees. A similar relationship exists among the heights of the trees in which Downy Woodpeckers forage. Both male and female Downy Woodpeckers use sub—surface foraging techniques to a greater extent during the winter and superficial techniques during the warmer months. Greater use of dead trees during winter is also indicated. Dead American elms (Ulmus americana) are used as foraging sites by both sexes to a greater extent than expected by chance. Some other tree species seem to be favored and some avoided by one or both sexes.

The experimental modification of teacher attending behavior

Abstract: A method of observing and modifying teacher attention to appropriate child responses in preschool classrooms was developed. Two teachers with no formal training in reinforcement principles were observed for a baseline of eight days. Teacher A, who displayed a lower baseline rate of attending to appropriate child responses, was trained first. Teacher B was simply observed during the first part of the training condition for Teacher A. During training, A received feedback which included definitions of appropriate child responses, her frequency of attending to appropriate child responses, her total percentage of attending to appropriate child responses, and her frequency of failing to attend to appropriate child responses. Teacher B was then trained in a similar way. Both teachers showed an increase in attending to appropriate child responses subsequent to the onset of experimental feedback.

Progesterone Levels in the Cyclic and Pregnant Hamster

Abstract: Progesterone levels were determined for cyclic and pregnant hamsters by the competitive binding technique. On day 1 of the estrous cycle (metestrus) the corpora lutea (CL) contained progesterone despite the fact that luteinization had not yet occurred. Peak luteal and arterial plasma values of progesterone were reached on day 2 of the cycle, followed by an abrupt drop in activity on day 3. Progesterone was also low on the morning of day 4, but beginning in the afternoon (4 pm) there was a surge in ovarian progesterone culminating in the highest blood and ovarian levels at 8 PM of day 4. Several lines of evidence suggest that the progesterone was derived from nonluteal sources, with the interstitium as a major contributor. The critical stage during the estrous cycle for CL progesterone falls between days 2 and 3. In the pregnant hamster, progesterone levels are maintained on day 3 but at the same rate as the first 2 days of the cycle. Thus, the transformation of the cyclic CL to that of pregnancy was not c...

Least Squares and Grouping Method Estimators in the Errors in Variables Model

Abstract: The probability density function of the least squares estimator of the slope coefficient in the errors in variables model is presented. It is shown how the bias and mean-square error of the least squares estimator b depend on the parameters of the model. In particular, for a given sample size, b converges to the true parameter as one of the distribution parameters increases indefinitely. The analysis is supplemented with numerical computations of the relative bias and mean-square error. The distribution function of the grouping method estimator has the same form as that of 6. The biases and mean-square errors of b and are compared. For the case of zero within-group variance, the use of always reduces the magnitude of the relative bias and generally reduces the mean-square error. For large values of the within-group variance, use of may result in an increase in mean-square error.

Quantum mechanical calculation of the carrier distribution and the thickness of the inversion layer of a MOS field-effect transistor

Abstract: The carrier distribution in the inversion layer of a MOS-structure at room temperature was calculated assuming a quantization of the allowed energy levels at the surface and a linear electrostatic potential. It was found that for strong inversion the carrier distribution deviates considerably from the one found by using classical statistics but approaches the classical limit for weak inversion when many electric subbands are occupied. A new definition for the channel thickness was introduced based on the integrated charge in the channel and compared to other definitions. Channel thicknesses so defined range from 30 to 400 A for practical devices depending on surface potential. The integrated charge in the channel deviated little from the one found using classical statistics.

Effects of Teacher Attention and a Token Reinforcement System in a Junior High School Special Education Class

Abstract: Teacher attention and a token reinforcement system were used to bring about control in a disruptive junior high school special education classroom. Individual and group study levels were recorded d...

The Systematic Status of the Black Howler Monkey, Alouatta Pigra Lawrence

Abstract: An apparent case of sympatry between two supposed races of Alouatta pallida (Gray) was discovered near Macuspana, Tabasco, Mexico. Howler monkeys in the Tabascan series were easily separated into two distinct groups based on various characteristics of the cranium, dentition, and pelage. Further comparisons revealed that these two groups were identifiable as Alouatta palliata mexicana Merriam and Alouatta palliata pigra Lawrence. Several possible interpretations of this situation are discussed and, in view of the observed sympatry and distinctive morphological differences, pigra is elevated to specific status; the systematic status of Ahuatta villosa (Gray) also is discussed. Several admittedly speculative explanations are offered to account for the existence of two distinct species of howler monkeys in Middle America.

Effects of Listeria monocytogenes Hemolysin on Phagocytic Cells and Lysosomes.

Abstract: The effects of Listeria monocytogenes hemolysin on lysosomes and phagocytic cells were investigated. Hemolysin caused release of β-glucuronidase and acid phosphatase from suspensions of rabbit and rat lysosomes prepared from liver homogenates. The degree of lysis was proportional to the concentration of hemolysin added. There appeared to be no significant difference between the sensitivities of rat and rabbit lysosomes to disruption. Studies on the effect of p H and temperature on lytic activity suggested that hemolysin could function under conditions which might exist within phagocytic cells. Peritoneal exudates from rabbits and mice were exposed to hemolysin and observed by phase microscopy. Hemolysin possessed leucocidal activity and caused degranulation of both rabbit and mouse cells. Optimal activity against lysosomes and peritoneal exudate cells required activation of hemolysin with a reducing agent and could be prevented if hemolysin was previously incubated with cholesterol. Images