No description available.

Trichotillomania (TTM) is currently classified as an impulse disorder in the DSM-IV, but there is a growing consensus amongst researchers that trichotillomania should be placed on the putative QCD-related disorders spectrum. QCD and TTM have been compared in many fields including neurobiology, phenomenology and epidemiology. Studies of cognition in QCD and TTM typically focus on automatic thoughts and underlying assumptions and there is a paucity of research into enduring cognitive structures, or schemas, associated with the two disorders. This thesis reviews the available evidence regarding the relationship between QCD and TTM. The Young Schema Questionnaire (YSQ) was used to measure 15 maladaptive schemas in 96 QCD patients, 34 TTM patients, and 94 controls. In the comparison between QCD and TTM it was found that depression has a major impact on the profile of schemas in QCD. When controlling for depression a few differences in schema profile were found between QCD and TTM, though the schema enmeshment emerged as significant in both disorders. These findings are discussed in the light of the debate around the classification of trichotillomania in the psychiatric nomenclature. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2003.

Žmogaus plaukas – neatsiejama žmogaus organizmo dalis. Lietuvos kriminalistikos moksle plaukas priskiriamas biologinių objektų grupei, o tiriant įvairius nusikaltimus, neretai tampa puikiu informacijos šaltiniu. Baigiamajame darbe pateikiama trumpa kriminalistinio žmogaus plaukų tyrimo istorinė raida Lietuvos prieškario ir pokario laikotarpiu. Trumpai yra aprašoma žmogaus plauko struktūra. Pateikiami trys pagrindiniai kriminalistiniai plaukų tyrimo metodai: morfologinis, serologinis ir DNR analizės. Aptariamos šių metodų atlikimo galimybės Lietuvoje.Palyginimui pateikiamos naujausios žmogaus plaukų tyrimo metodikos užsienio šalyse (Anglijoje, Vokietijoje, Švedijoje) – žmogaus plauko kutikulės išliejos metodas; botaninės kilmės aplinkos dalelių (žiedadulkių ir sporų) žmogaus plaukų nuoplovose metodas; katageninių ir telogeninių plaukų DNR tyrimai, pasitelkus „LCN sistemą“; geno (MC1R), apsprendžiančio žmogaus plaukų spalvą ir odos tipą, mutacijų tyrimas; narkotinių medžiagų žmogaus galvos ir gaktos plaukuose nustatymo tyrimai. Analizuojama Lietuvos ekspertinių įstaigų 2004-2006 metų veikla, susijusi su kriminalistiniu žmogaus plaukų tyrimu. Aptariami ekspertų-specialistų anketinės apklausos rezultatai. Pateikiama išsami ekspertizės aktų analizė, statistiniai duomenys apie nusikaltimus, kurių aplinkybėms aiškinti buvo tiriami žmogaus plaukai, įrodoma žmogaus plaukų, kaip tyrimo objekto kriminalistikoje, reikšmė, tiriant smurtinius ir... [toliau žr. visą tekstą] / Human hair – a part of human body. Lithuanian Forensic Science it presents like the group of biological evidences. Due investigation of the variuos commited crimes, human hair becomes a wide source of important and useful informacion. Noted a short Lithuanian prewar and postwar history of forensic human hair exploration. Shortly described a structure of human hair. There were mentioned three, the main ways of forensic investigation of human hair in Lithuania: morphological, serological exploration and DNA analysis. The procedures and the opportunities of these methods applied in Lithuania, were discussed as well. Described the modern procedures of human hair investigation: a scale cast obtained from shaft of human hair; the exploration of polynomorphs (pollens and spores) in human hair; the DNA analysis of human catagen and telogen hair by Low Copy Number (LCN) method; a single gene (MC1R) extraction for identification of human hair colors from degraded DNR; the human hair analysis for drugs detection in it. Submited a comprehensive assay of activity in Lithuanian Forensic Institutes, which is dealing with forensic human hair investigation. There was offered an importance of human hair exploration in forensic trial. Equally, were presented an inquiry results of Lithuanian forensic experts. Were discussed a generalization of forensic experts reports, shown a statistic of commited crimes, where the human hair was found and took like... [to full text]

This thesis investigates the use of an enzyme immunoassay to measure keratin glucocorticoid concentrations in mammalian hair, bird feathers and reptilian shed skins. Keratin glucocorticoid concentrations were compared to fecal glucocorticoid concentrations produced during the period of keratin growth in the African Elephant (Loxodonta africana), the Western Lowland Gorilla (Gorilla gorilla gorilla), the Sumatran Orangutan (Pongo abelii), the Domestic Chicken (Gallus gallus domesticus), the Eastern Loggerhead Shrike (Lanius ludovicianus migrans), the African House Snake (Lamprophis fuliginosus) and the Eastern Massasauga Rattlesnake (Sistrurus catenatus catenatus). Complete biochemical validation was performed for the feather and shed skin corticosterone and fecal corticosterone enzyme immunoassays in the Domestic Chicken and the African House Snake. Biological validation was performed in the Domestic Chicken. Biological and physiological validation were attempted in the African House Snake. African Elephant, Western Lowland Gorilla and Sumatran Orangutan hair cortisol concentrations ranged from 2.10 - 312.70 ng/g. African Elephant hair corticosterone concentrations ranged from 2.68 - 20.70 ng/g. Domestic Chicken and Eastern Loggerhead Shrike feather corticosterone concentrations ranged from 1.31 - 8.09 pg/mm and from 1.09 - 6.59 pg/mm, respectively. African House Snake and Massasauga Rattlesnake shed skin corticosterone concentrations ranged from 4.42 - 124.35 ng/g and 3.82 - 22.85 ng/g, respectively. In the majority of cases, a statistically significant association was not found between summary statistical measures of fecal and keratin glucocorticoid concentrations. A statistically significant positive association was detected between hair cortisol and the coefficient of variation of fecal corticosterone in the African Elephants. A statistically significant negative association was detected between feather corticosterone and the 75th percentile and coefficient of variation of fecal corticosterone in the Eastern Loggerhead Shrikes. A statistically significant positive association was also detected between shed skin corticosterone and the mean fecal corticosterone from 3 weeks before to 1 week after the previous ecdysis in the African House Snake. Feather corticosterone concentrations were significantly higher in feathers from Domestic Chickens that were socially housed with roosters than in feathers from chickens housed individually in laying cages. A statistically significant difference was not detected between the shed skin corticosterone concentrations of the minimally handled control and the weekly handled experimental African House Snakes. Adrenocorticotropic hormone stimulation did not result in the physiological validation anticipated for shed skin corticosterone concentrations in the African House Snake. / Toronto Zoological Foundation and Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs

Hair is a remarkably complex material-semiotic entity. Caught on the cusp between self/society, meticulously contrived and purposely styled, hair is crucial in the articulation of identity and difference. However, although scholars have focused a great deal of attention on the body as a site of cultural production and identity politics, discussions surrounding hair have been largely ignored and relegated to the realm of the trivial or inconsequential. Addressing this void, this project places hair at the centre of examination in a two-part qualitative analysis. First, hair is reconfigured as sign and examined as a socio-cultural performance achieved through the reiteration of historically contingent practices, and materialized through the body. Particular attention is paid to Black women’s hair/styling practices as a vital site of cultural production, identity negotiation and radical subversion. Following this is a critical discourse analysis of the representation of hair within popular culture, with a specific focus on the way in which Black women’s hair/styling practices are fundamentally implicated in the production of identity and difference. The possibility of resistance through transgressive hair stylizations is also explored. Overall, hair is found to be intimately involved in the (re)constitution of sexed/gendered beings, integral to the process of racialization and a potential locus of resistance. However, this investigation also finds that popular culture displays –even those that purport to offer a critical analysis – fail to destabilize the underlying regimes of domination and oppression that limit and sustain the systems of meaning through which hair is understood. / Thesis (Master, Sociology) -- Queen's University, 2010-06-21 23:24:38.111

Mercury contamination is a global issue due to its neurotoxicity, and China is not an exception due to its increasing industrialization. Fish is of the most concern, in respect to human exposure to mercury, because fish accumulates methylmercury through food chain in aquatic systems. The province of Zhejiang is renowned for its cuisine that incorporates freshwater fish. Qiandao Lake, in Zheijang, was the site of a case study examining the link between the total mercury (THg) concentration in hair samples and fish consumption. A questionnaire survey and hair sampling were carried out on women of childbearing age (17-46 years) from a fishing town by Qiandao Lake. The average hair THg concentration was 0.76±0.51μg/g dw. The most-frequently consumed species included four species of carp (golden, bighead, silver and predatory) and the Mongolian redfin. Hair THg concentrations accumulated rapidly during younger years, reaching a plateau around age 25, implying that the hair mercury concentrations in adult females >25 years can be interpreted by environmental exposure. Hair THg concentrations were positively correlated both with the frequency and the average weekly amount of fish consumption. This indicates that fish consumption is an important contributor to hair mercury concentrations in the absence of occupational or environmental mercury sources. A positive correlation between selenium and mercury in hair samples was also observed, suggesting a possible antagonistic relationship. This is the first study to look at mercury exposure in an eastern China community dependent on freshwater fish. This study also compared element trends (Mg, Ca, Cr, Mn, Cu, Zn, As, Se, Pb) in hair samples from three groups: 50 residents by Qiandao Lake (QD), 17 people from Fudan University, China (FU), and 20 people from Queen’s University, Canada (KI). Trends of mean Mg, Cu, Ca, As concentrations among groups are the same (KI>FU>QD). Mn, Cr, and Hg share the same trends of QD>FU>KI. Se concentrations follow the trend of QD>KI>FU. Strong correlations between Ca and Mg were observed within each group. Relationships between Se and Hg are clear in QD but not in FU and KI, probably due to the different dietary proportion of fish. / Thesis (Master, Environmental Studies) -- Queen's University, 2009-12-14 11:52:06.906

No description available.

This thesis describes two new techniques for enhancing the rendering quality of cartoon characters in toon-shading applications. The proposed methods can be used to improve the output quality of current cel shaders. The first technique which uses 2D image-based algorithms, enhances the silhouettes of the input geometry and reduces the computer generated artefacts. The silhouettes are found by using the Sobel filter and reconstructed by Bezier curve fitting. The intensity of the reconstructed silhouettes is then modified to create a stylised appearance. In the second technique, a new hair model based on billboarded particles is introduced. This method is found to be particularly useful for generating toon-like specular highlights for hair, which are important in cartoon animations. The whole rendering framework is implemented in C++ using the OpenGL API. OpenGL extensions and GPU programming are used to take the advantage of the functionalities of currently available graphics hardware. The programming of graphics hardware is done using Cg, a high level shader language.

Sixty steers were grazed on toxic tall fescue for 104 days to determine the effects of hair coats and steroidal ear implants on physiological measurements. Steers were stratified by body weight and hair coat color for assignment to six, 3.0-ha pastures of 'Kentucky 31' tall fescue. Main plot treatments of either ten clipped or ten unclipped steers were randomly assigned to pastures. Five steers in each pasture were implanted with Synovex-S (200 mg progesterone-20 mg estradiol) and five were implanted with Compudose (25 mg estradiol) as sub-plot treatments. Hair growth rate averaged 0.29 mm/day. Sweating rate declined (P andlt; 0.001) over the grazing period and was higher (Pandlt; 0.10) with the estradiol implant. Rectal temperatures were lower (P andlt; 0.05) in clipped cattle (39.3 vs. 39.5??C) when the highest ambient temperature (33??C) of the study was recorded. At high environmental temperatures, percentage of steers actively grazing was negatively correlated (P andlt; 0.10) with ambient temperature. Winter hair coat retention, continuous hair growth, and reduced sweating caused impaired thermoregulation and thus decreased grazing frequency resulting in poor animal performance.

Harvest data are typically used to evaluate mesocarnivore population dynamics in many states, including Kentucky. While relatively easy to collect, these data are subject to reporting biases, and inferences about population trends can often only be made at coarse spatial scales. Gray fox (Urocyon cinereoargenteus), bobcat (Lynx rufus), and coyote (Canis latrans) populations in Kentucky are managed primarily through harvest data used to establish future harvest quotas. Increasingly, noninvasive survey methods have been used to characterize a number of population parameters for a variety of species; however, successful use of these methods is often site-specific. We assessed the efficacy and cost-effectiveness of two noninvasive survey methods, scat detection dogs and rub-pad hair snares, for surveying mesocarnivore species at two sites in the mixed-mesophytic forest of northeastern Kentucky. We sampled 100 hair snares covering approximately 100km2 and 27 transects covering approximately 27km2 from which 7 hair samples and 261 scat samples were collected respectively. Hair snares cost $397/sample at 6.4 hours/day, while scat detection dogs cost $47/sample at 4.9 hours/day. Genetic methods were used to identify biological samples to species and individual. Our findings should prove useful to state wildlife managers in comparatively evaluating methods for future mesocarnivore monitoring.