A gender comparison of HIV and drug use across the rural-urban continuum

Despite the central role of women drug users in escalating AIDS statistics, there is still a limited number of studies that examine the roles of gender and drug use type in HIV seroprevalence. This lacuna in the research literature has led to significant gaps in researchers' understanding of how and to what extent women may differ in their drug-using and HIV risk behaviors compared to their better-studied male counterparts. This study, derived from a sample of 3,555 out-of-treatment drug users residing in three South Florida urban and rural communities, attempts to compare the drug usage and needle and sexual risk behaviors of male and female drug users that put them at risk for HIV infection. The overall seropositivity rate for women drug users was 26.5% compared to 19.5% for their male counterparts. Results of multivariate analyses indicate that females compared to males were 1.4 times more likely to be HIV seropositive. Risk behaviors associated with this elevated seropositivity include living arrangements, homeless status, drug use, sexual trading behaviors, and history of STDs. Furthermore, there was a strong linear relationship between drug use type and HIV seroprevalence among women drug users. Compared to those who were neither crack smokers nor injectors of illicit drugs, those who were crack smokers only were 2 times more likely to be HIV seropositive, while those who were both crack smokers and injectors were 5 times more likely to be HIV seropositive, and those who were injectors only were 6 times more likely to be HIV seropositive. These findings indicate that among women, drug abuse and its associated risk behaviors, increase the vulnerability of this population for HIV and thus render them an extremely important priority population on which to focus HIV prevention and public health efforts and programs.     

人文精神与纪录片文化景观

人文精神作为纪录片文化的内在灵魂,渗透于各种文化形态之中。然而在当代,纪录片文化中的人文精神正在被各种混杂的价值取向所遮蔽,人文精神遭遇了边缘恪守和中心遮蔽的尴尬状态。本文立足中国传统儒家人文精神和隐逸人文精神,分析了它们与纪录片文化景观之间的关系,并提出应该力图探索人文精神在当代社会的新形态。     

深化“主体性”研究的重大课题——从“认知主体”到“价值主体”

主体性曾是当代中国哲学关注的焦点问题。以往对主体性的探讨所存在的一个重大缺失在于缺乏对认知主体与价值主体的自觉区分。在哲学史上,康德最早对认知主体和价值主体的界线以及价值主体的优先性进行了深刻的阐明。这一思想理路对于我们重新理解和评估主体性原则的历史遗产,对于深入理解马克思哲学中的主体性思想,具有十分特殊的意义。坚持这种区分,把认知主体和价值主体视为主体性在性质上有着重大不同的两个维度,我们将可以在扬弃主体性狭隘的认识论内涵的同时,维护其丰富的价值论内涵;可以在拆解以认知主体为核心的主体形而上学立场的同时,为价值主体的存在合法性提供有力的辩护。马克思哲学的主体性原则在新的基础上深化了康德关于认知主体与价值主体划界和价值主体优先的思想,把人理解为自由、目的和责任主体。这是马克思主体性思想中最为精髓和最富当代价值的内容。     

铲除恐怖主义根源,建设民族和谐社会

少数分裂分子是靠歪曲历史和现实,宣扬极端宗教狂热来制造事端的。政教合一的政权必然导致宗教压迫和精神奴役,宗教对抗是人民之间相互摧残的悲剧。恐怖主义是极端宗教的产物;违背良善谋划宗教对抗是对时代的反动。民族地区稳定和谐的基础是信仰自由和宗教和谐,必须划清群体事件和犯罪案件的界限。     

论促进市场经济发展必需的社会因素

政治、文化和技术是促进经济发展的社会因素。虽然他们之间具有相辅相成的关系 ,但同时又具有不可替代性和越界性。市场经济不是万能的 ,甚至有时还会加剧或破坏某些稀缺资源的稀缺性。我国当今社会发展存在的一个突出问题就是市场经济、政治法律和伦理道德这三种制度之间界限不明、功能混乱、制衡较差。本文提出为了调动社会积极因素 ,促进市场经济健康发展 ,正确的抉择是 :深入进行政治体制改革 ;确立符合市场经济需要的文化模式 ;立足科教兴国 ,提倡素质教育 ;实现人与经济的同步现代化     

Conditional moving linear regression: Modeling the recruitment process for ALLHAT

Effective recruitment is a prerequisite for successful execution of a clinical trial. ALLHAT, a large hypertension treatment trial (N = 42,418), provided an opportunity to evaluate adaptive modeling of recruitment processes using conditional moving linear regression. Our statistical modeling of recruitment, comparing Brownian and fractional Brownian motion, indicates that fractional Brownian motion combined with moving linear regression is better than classic Brownian motion in terms of higher conditional probability of achieving a global recruitment goal in 4-week ahead projections. Further research is needed to evaluate how recruitment modeling can assist clinical trialists in planning and executing clinical trials.     

Accuracy of approximate progressively censored reliability sampling plans for exponential models

Reliability sampling plans provide an efficient method to determine the acceptability of a product based upon the lifelengths of some test units. Usually, they depend on the producer and consumer’s quality requirements and do not admit closed form solutions. Acceptance sampling plans for one- and two-parameter exponential lifetime models, derived by approximating the operating characteristic curve, are presented in this paper. The accuracy of these approximate plans, which are explicitly expressible and valid for failure and progressive censoring, is assessed. The approximation proposed in the one-parameter case is found to be practically exact. Explicit lower and upper bounds on the smallest sample size are given in the two-parameter case. Some additional advantages are also pointed out.     

Sick building syndrome and perceived indoor environmental quality: A survey of apartment buildings in Hong Kong

The outbreak of a highly communicable disease, SARS, in Asia in 2003 has revealed the health risk of living in a high-density environment. To show the important connection between human health and environmental quality, this study surveys the prevalence of sick building syndrome (SBS) among apartment residents and their evaluation of indoor environmental quality (IEQ). Based on a sample of 748 households living in Hong Kong, two interesting findings are revealed: (1) nasal discomfort was the commonest home-related SBS symptom despite the absence of any central ventilation system in apartment buildings; (2) noise, rather than ventilation, was the major IEQ problem perceived by residents. Our statistical analysis further showed that residents with SBS symptoms were less satisfied with their IEQ than those without. That is, despite a positive evaluation of specific IEQ criteria with respect to the building residents lived in, if they reported feeling SBS related symptoms, the overall IEQ evaluation of their building could still be negative. This perception bias gives rise to a sample selection problem in measuring perceived IEQ, which has implications on housing management practices and the formulation of a healthy housing policy.     

A generalized negative binomial and applications

A generalized negative binomial distribution is derived from the Markov Bernoulli sequence of successes and failures. We study the properties and applications of this distribution. The properties are illustrated by two examples of discrete time queueing systems. The distribution is then fitted to two data sets, the eruption record of Mt. Sangay, and a record of computer disk failure accesses. In the first case there is a strong serial dependence in the data and the generalized negative binomial provides a good fit, while in the second case, although there is a significant serial dependence, it is insufficient to justify the additional parameter of the distribution. We conclude by demonstrating the usefulness of the distribution in the field of statistical quality control.     

汉语言文学专业应用性改造探析

汉语言文学专业在当今社会新的人才需求架构下进行应用性改造是必然、明智的选择。马克思主义的实践观、新的知识观为专业应用性改造提供了本体论、认识论的基础，为高校知识教育向能力培养转变以增强学生就业能力的实践摸索提供了理论依据，指明了专业改革的方向，有效地指导了具体专业的实践教改活动。