Estimation of Benchmark Dose of Lifetime Cadmium Intake for Adverse Renal Effects Using Hybrid Approach in Inhabitants of an Environmentally Exposed River Basin in Japan

The aim of this study is to estimate the reference level of lifetime cadmium intake (LCd) as the benchmark doses (BMDs) and their 95% lower confidence limits (BMDLs) for various renal effects by applying a hybrid approach. The participants comprised 3,013 (1,362 men and 1,651 women) and 278 (129 men and 149 women) inhabitants of the Cd‐polluted and nonpolluted areas, respectively, in the environmentally exposed Kakehashi River basin. Glucose, protein, aminonitrogen, metallothionein, and β₂‐microglobulin in urine were measured as indicators of renal dysfunction. The BMD and BMDL that corresponded to an additional risk of 5% were calculated with background risk at zero exposure set at 5%. The obtained BMDLs of LCd were 3.7 g (glucose), 3.2 g (protein), 3.7 g (aminonitrogen), 1.7 g (metallothionein), and 1.8 g (β₂‐microglobulin) in men and 2.9 g (glucose), 2.5 g (protein), 2.0 g (aminonitrogen), 1.6 g (metallothionein), and 1.3 g (β₂‐microglobulin) in women. The lowest BMDL was 1.7 g (metallothionein) and 1.3 g (β₂‐microglobulin) in men and women, respectively. The lowest BMDL of LCd (1.3 g) was somewhat lower than the representative threshold LCd (2.0 g) calculated in the previous studies. The obtained BMDLs may contribute to further discussion on the health risk assessment of cadmium exposure.     

Causes of lingering communist movement after Indonesia’s September Thirtieth Movement: the case of border area between Sarawak and West Kalimantan

This article focuses on the communist movement on both sides of the border in Sarawak and West Kalimantan around 1965 when the September Thirtieth Movement (abortive coup) took place in Jakarta. The people in Sarawak were seeking independence and opposed to being integrated into the Federation of Malaysia in the first half of the 1960s. However, after the September Thirtieth Movement, the communist movement in Sarawak started losing support both domestically and internationally (especially support from Indonesia). Nevertheless, even with the persecution by Suharto’s army, the Sarawak guerrillas and the Indonesian Communist Party in West Kalimantan cooperated in their struggle for a few years after 1965. This situation was aided by the remoteness of these areas from the centers of the nation-states (Malaysia and Indonesia) and also by the cooperation between the guerrillas and the local Chinese in West Kalimantan.     

Cumulants of random sum distributions

Consider a random variable S being the sum of a number N of independent and identically distributed random variables X_j (j = 1, 2, ...) where the number N is itself a non-negative integer-valued random variable independent of the X_j An explicit expression of the r-th cumulant of S is given in terms of the cumulants of N and X_j, Asymptotic properties of the distribution of S are also discussed.     

Inheritance of sex ratio in the Kanzawa spider mite,Tetranychus kanzawai Kishida

Summary The frequency distributions in sex ratios of offspring from 4 fieldTetranychus kanzawai populations were examined. No significant difference was observed between average sex ratios of the 4 populations, although there was a great variability within each population, especially in the population fromPueraia lobata. Using the population fromP. lobata, inbred lines with high (H) and low (L) sex ratios were selected. Crossing experiments between H and L showed that sex ratio is determined by the genotype of mothers. It seemed that sex ratio is cointrolled by several genes, with no cytoplasmic factor involved.     

Recurrence formula on the joint distribution of sample skewness and kurtosis under normality

Abstract

Two recurrence relations with respect to sample size are given concerning the joint distribution of skewness and kurtosis of random observations from a normal population: one between the probability density functions and the other between the product moments. As a consequence, the latter yields a recurrence formula for the moments of sample kurtosis. The exact moments of Jarque-Bera statistic is also given.     

The union-intersection principle applied to the test of dimensionality

In the first section Anderson-Rao-Fujikoshi's test statistics for testing the hypothesis of dimensionality are reviewed and then Olkin-Tomsky's generalized union-intersection principle is applied to show that a new class of test statistics for testing the hypothesis of dimensionality are derived which includes the likelihood ratio test statistics, the trace test statistics and a version of ROY'S maximum root test statistics.     

Relationships between muscle strength and multi-channel surface EMG parameters in eighty-eight elderly

Background

Since age-related muscle strength loss cannot be explained solely by muscle atrophy, other determinants would also contribute to muscle strength in elderly. The present study aimed to clarify contribution of neuromuscular activation pattern to muscle strength in elderly group. From 88 elderlies (age: 61~?83 years), multi-channel surface electromyography (EMG) of the vastus lateralis muscle was recorded with two-dimensional 64 electrodes during isometric submaximal ramp-up knee extension to assess neuromuscular activation pattern. Correlation analysis and stepwise regression analysis were performed between muscle strength and the parameters for signal amplitude and spatial distribution pattern, i.e., root mean square (RMS), correlation coefficient, and modified entropy of multi-channel surface EMG.

Results

There was a significant correlation between muscle strength and RMS (r =?0.361, p =?0.001) in the elderly. Muscle thickness (r =?0.519, p <?0.001), RMS (r =?0.288, p?=?0.001), and normalized RMS (r =?0.177, p =?0.047) were selected as major determinants of muscle strength in stepwise regression analysis (r?=?0.664 in the selected model).

Conclusion

These results suggest that inter-individual difference in muscle strength in elderly can be partly explained by surface EMG amplitude. We concluded that neuromuscular activation pattern is also major determinants of muscle strength on elderly in addition to indicator of muscle volume.

     

日本对外经济政策的演变(上)——从日美产业结构调整磋商到东亚共同体构想的提出

20世纪90年代,日本对外经济政策经历了两个方面的模式转变:第一,在贸易摩擦的应对和处理方面,摆脱了以往重视双边磋商和达成妥协的作法,转向通过多边框架以法律途径解决争端的轨道;第二,在贸易与投资自由化的促进方面,从多边主义转向了区域主义和双边主义。本文主要探讨导致这一模式转变的原因、模式转变过程中的促进势力和抵制势力以及抵制势力被克服的政策形成过程、两个模式之间的矛盾与冲突以及模式转变的稳定性等问题,在此基础上分析和展望日本今后的对外经济政策走向。     

New Classification of Research Misconduct from the Viewpoint of Truth,Trust, and Risk

ABSTRACT

Fabrication, Falsification and Plagiarism (FFP) and Questionable Research Practice (QRP) have been used worldwide in the classification of research misconduct. However, FFP comprises two distinct categories of misconduct: FF is extreme research misconduct that betrays truth, while P undermines trust of science community. Irreproducibility and inadequate practice of research also betray trust. Research misconduct has the potential to cause serious risk of safety in daily life. The proposed classification system is outlined as follows: Class I misconduct: Betrayal of the truth: (1) Fabrication and (2) Falsification. Class II misconduct: Betrayal of trust: (1) Plagiarism of text ; Irreproducibility; and (3) Inadequate research practice. Class III misconduct: Risk to safety of health and industrial products: (1) Risk to safety of health and (2) Risk to safety of industrial products. The proposed classification reflects deeper values of truth, trust, and risk more directly than the previous classification and elucidates issues about nature and significance of misconduct.