An attempt to condition components of urine formation in dogs

Previous research on the renal conditional reflex (CR) has resulted in contradictory data. The work of Bykov with dogs and of Hoferet al. with humans indicated that a renal CR is possible, but the experiments of Corsonet al. and Watt and Gantt with dogs having normal or transplanted cervical kidneys showed no clear-cut renal CR’s. The present work supports the latter finding. Three female mongrel dogs were used. One dog (normal) had an externalized ureter; the other two (experimental) had denervated cervical kidneys (autografts). In 155 days of experiments, the investigators found diuresis to occur only on unconditional stimulus,i.e., only when a dog drank diluted milk (one part milk to four parts water)ad lib.; the dogs drank an average of between 500 and 1,100 ml. No diuresis occurred when 30 ml. of the mixture were given (conditional stimulus). Urinalysis indicated a lack of renal conditioning with respect to the excretion rates and the concentrations of creatinine and electrolytes, except for the sodium concentration in the normal dog’s urine, which decreased on bothad lib and test (30 ml) days; the volume was not affected. Conclusion: Drinking a small quantity of diluted milk as a conditional stimulus did not produce a conditional diuretic response either in the normal dog or in the two dogs with transplanted kidneys.     

Philosophies in America

A review-article of Loren Baritz, City On a Hill, A History of Ideas and Myths in America, John Wiley and Sons C. Wright Mills, Sociology and Pragmatism, Paine-Whitman Publishers Roderick M. Chisholm, Herbert Feigl, William K. Frankena, John Passmore, Manley Thompson, Philosophy, Prentice-Hall Max Black, Philosophy in America, Cornell University Press     

Familiarity decisions for faces presented to the left and right cerebral hemispheres

Right-handed subjects were asked to decide whether or not faces presented briefly in the RVF or in the LVF were familiar (familiar faces were those of famous people). This task avoids the need for extensive semantic processing or temporary storage involved in conventional naming or identification tasks, and thus eliminates the contribution of such factors to any observed asymmetry. The resulting finding of faster reaction times to LVF faces, with no overall visual hemifield difference in error rates, is taken to indicate a right-hemisphere superiority either in the processes used to construct facial representations or in the accessing of face recognition units, or both.     

Group therapy for bulimia: Clinical experience and practical recommendations

The authors identify and describe three major types of group therapy for patients with bulimia. Psychodynamic treatment, cognitive-behavioral treatment, and self-help group treatment are techniques with different theoretical bases. Implications for group membership, time frame, leadership, contract, content, and goals are discussed for each type of group treatment. Outcome studies are reviewed, and recommendations are offered for a rational approach to the group treatment of patients with bulimia.Supported in part by a grant from the Gen-Rad Foundation.     

An investigation of children's fears and their mothers' fears

Children (75 female, 52 male) in grades 2 through 8 completed the Fear Survey Schedule for Children (FSS-FC). Their mothers completed the same questionnaire twice: once for themselves and a second time to estimate their children's fears. Spearman's rhos indicated that there was a high degree of correspondence between the mothers' rank-ordered estimates of their children's fears and the children's rank-ordered self-reports (=.86 for males, =.96 for females.However, mothers' overall estimates of their children's general fearfulness were significantly correlated only with their daughters' fearfulness, not with their sons'. Further analyses showed that mothers could generally identify their children's highest-rated fears. All test-retest measures were significant. In summary, these results suggest that mothers may provide useful clinical information about their children's specific fears and that the FSS-FC is a reliable instrument with which to assess children's fears.     

Changing industry to continuous operations: Different strokes for different plants

A survey method was designed to evaluate the effect of shift work on industrial workers and to develop recommendations for 7-day around-the-clock production work systems. A Work-Sleep Survey was then offered to 2,340 hourly and salaried workers at four plants. Each plant was in the rubber and plastic products industry and on 5-day around-the-clock operations using permanent shifts. Of the total workers, 90.38% responded to the survey. The results agree with the findings of a previous survey, offered to workers through their unions, using many of the same survey items. The plants were found to differ in worker demographics, habits, and preferences. This survey method is helpful as an aid for the design and evaluation of shift-work systems tailored to specific worker and plant requirements.