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Objective. A comprehensive electronic self-report assessment, called PainCAS® (Clinical Assessment System), was developed and implemented in three clinics. PainCAS captures demographic information, pain assessment, quality-of-life variables, and contains validated, electronic versions of screeners for risk of aberrant opioid-related behaviors (the SOAPP and COMM). This investigation sought to determine the impact of PainCAS on documentation of pain and opioid risk evaluations. Exploratory hypotheses examined changes in the content of the patient- provider interaction and any impact on outcome. Methods. In study 1, chart reviews were conducted between pain patients who completed the electronic program (N = 89) and controls who represented standard of care (N = 120). In study 2, two groups of chronic pain patients (treatment-as-usual Control condition = 75, PainCAS Experimental condition = 72) were interviewed after completing their index clinic visit and completed mailed questionnaires 3 months later. Results. Results revealed significantly more key, pain-relevant chart elements documented in charts of patients who completed the PainCAS than those using a traditional paper questionnaire (Study 1

Background: The Screener and Opioid Assessment for Patients with Pain-Revised (SOAPP-R) is a 24-item self-report instrument that was developed to aid providers in predicting aberrant medication-related behaviors among chronic pain patients. Although the SOAPP-R has garnered widespread use, certain patients may be dissuaded from taking it because of its length. Administrative barriers associated with lengthy questionnaires further limit its utility.Objective: To investigate the extent to which two techniques for computer-based administration (curtailment and stochastic curtailment) reduce the average test length of the SOAPP-R without unduly affecting sensitivity and specificity.Design: Retrospective study.Setting: Pain management centers.Subjects: Four hundred and twenty-eight chronic non-cancer pain patients.Methods: Subjects had taken the full-length SOAPP-R and been classified by the Aberrant Drug Behavior Index (ADBI) as having engaged or not engaged in aberrant medication-related behavior. Curtailment and stochastic curtailment were applied to the data in post-hoc simulation. Sensitivity and specificity with respect to the ADBI, as well as average test length, were computed for the full-length test, curtailment, and stochastic curtailment.Results: The full-length SOAPP-R exhibited a sensitivity of 0.745 and a specificity of 0.671 for predicting the ADBI. Curtailment reduced the average test length by 26% while exhibiting the same sensitivity and specificity as the full-length test. Stochastic curtailment reduced the average test length by as much as 65% while always exhibiting sensitivity and specificity for the ADBI within 0.035 of those of the full-length test.Conclusions: Curtailment and stochastic curtailment have potential to improve the SOAPP-R's efficiency in computer-based administrations.

Objective Research on substance abusers in treatment suggests that tapentadol, a prescription analgesic, may have relatively low abuse potential. Messages posted by recreational drug abusers on online forums were examined for amount of discussion and endorsement for abuse of tapentadol and comparator drugs. Methods Internet messages posted between January 1, 2011 and September 30, 2012 on seven drug-abuse web forums were evaluated. Proportions of posts and unique authors discussing tapentadol were compared with eight comparator compounds. Postcontent was coded to compare endorsement for abuse of tapentadol with two comparators, one drug with high desirability for abuse and one with low desirability for abuse. Results A total of 1,940,121 messages posted during the study period were copied from selected web forums. The proportion of all posts discussing tapentadol (proportion = 0.0003) was significantly lower than any of the comparator compounds (range of odds ratios from 16.6 to 104.3; P

Chrysomya megacephala (F.) and Chrysomya rufifacies (Macquart) were colonized so that larval growth rates could be compared. Colonies were also established to provide insight into the protein needs of adult C. rufifacies and developmental rates of the ensuing larvae. The C. megacephala and C. rufifacies laboratory colonies were reared for five and six generations, respectively, at 28°C. C. megacephala developmental mean rate from egg to adult was 20.4 ± 0.38 d. First-instar larvae emerge in 1.4 ± 0.24 d, second-instar larvae develop in 2.6 ± 0.38 d and third instars occur at 6.3 ± 0.72 d. Development from egg to pupation occurred in 12 ± 1.10 d. C. rufifacies developed at a mean rate of 16.2 ± 0.78 d from egg to adult emergence. Each stage occurred in succession from first-instar larvae 1.1 ± 0.25 d, second-instar larvae developed 2.3 ± 0.25 d later, and the third-instar larvae developed 5.7 ± 0.41 d later. The larvae pupated 10.0 ± 0.57 d after oviposition. Both of these flies can be collected in the wild and easily colonized using conditioned chicken as an oviposition and larval medium. C. megacephala apparently prefers a lower development and maintenance temperature than C. rufifacies, as evidenced by the high pupal mortality. Laboratory-reared C. rufifacies benefited from bloodmeal as a protein supplement to enhance egg production. C. rufifacies larvae were not observed preying on each other and additional larval species were not provided to serve as prey.

Introduction. Given the increase in misuse and abuse of prescription opioids, clinicians clearly benefit from a standardized tool to screen patients being considered for chronic opioid therapy. The Screener and Opioid Assessment for Patients with Pain-Revised (SOAPP-R) is a widely used opioid risk assessment tool in clinical practice. As one third of the US population experiences chronic noncancer pain at any given time, and the Hispanic population now accounts for about 16% of the nation's population, the availability of a Spanish-language SOAPP-R fills an important clinical need. Objective. To derive a linguistically validated Spanish-language version of the SOAPP®-R. Method. Each step of Spanish translation and linguistic validation of the SOAPP-R was based on the US Food and Drug Administration and the International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research translation process. Result. A linguistically validated Spanish-language version of the SOAPP-R. Conclusion. The Spanish SOAPP-R may be useful as a risk assessment tool, considered along with other clinical information, by clinicians who prescribe opioid therapy for patients whose preferred language is Spanish.

The Radiation Protection in Medicine conference, reviewed in this journal supplement, outlined nine strategies to promote radiation protection for patients. The Alliance for Radiation Safety in Pediatric Imaging has focused its work on three of those areas: creating awareness of the need and opportunities for radiation protection for children; developing open-source educational materials for medical professionals and parents on this critical topic for improved patient safety and communication; and lastly, advocating on behalf of children with industry, government and regulatory bodies to improve equipment design and safety features, standardisation of nomenclature and displays of dose reports across vendor platforms that reflect the special considerations of children.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has a mandate to assist member states in areas of human health and particularly in the use of radiation for diagnosis and treatment. Clinical audit is seen as an essential tool to assist in assuring the quality of radiation medicine, particularly in the instance of multidisciplinary audit of diagnostic radiology. Consequently, an external clinical audit programme has been developed by the IAEA to examine the structure and processes existent at a clinical site, with the basic objectives of: (1) improvement in the quality of patient care; (2) promotion of the effective use of resources; (3) enhancement of the provision and organisation of clinical services; (4) further professional education and training. These objectives apply in four general areas of service delivery, namely quality management and infrastructure, patient procedures, technical procedures and education, training and research. In the IAEA approach, the audit process is initiated by a request from the centre seeking the audit. A three-member team, comprising a radiologist, medical physicist and radiographer, subsequently undertakes a 5-d audit visit to the clinical site to perform the audit and write the formal audit report. Preparation for the audit visit is crucial and involves the local clinical centre completing a form, which provides the audit team with information on the clinical centre. While all main aspects of clinical structure and process are examined, particular attention is paid to radiation-related activities as described in the relevant documents such as the IAEA Basic Safety Standards, the Code of Practice for Dosimetry in Diagnostic Radiology and related equipment and quality assurance documentation. It should be stressed, however, that the clinical audit does not have any regulatory function. The main purpose of the IAEA approach to clinical audit is one of promoting quality improvement and learning. This paper describes the background to the clinical audit programme and the IAEA clinical audit protocol.

Objective. The present study builds on research to model abusers' perceptions of particular analgesics' attractiveness for abuse and extends these methods to derive an estimate of attractiveness for abuse of a not-yet-marketed abuse-deterrent formulation (ADF) of a prescription opioid (Remoxy®, Pain Therapeutics, Inc., San Mateo, CA, and King Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Bristol, TN). In a previous study, the Opioid Attractiveness Technology Scaling (OATS) method identified, from a drug abuser's point of view, the particular features of a prescription opioid relevant to its attractiveness for recreational use. A second online sample rated the extent to which these features applied to particular products they had actually used/abused. These data were used to model the abusers' overall preference for prescription opioids they had used/abused. Design. In the present study, this method was applied to a not-yet-marketed ADF using substance abuse counselors as proxies for prescription opioid abusers. Thirty-eight counselors were given materials describing the new ADF along with four known products. Results. Thirty-two counselors demonstrated sufficient agreement with abusers' ratings of the overall attractiveness of these drugs. The overall model yielded a significant pseudo R2 of 0.15 ( P < 0.001), with increasing model fit based on preferred route of administration, from swallowing whole (pseudo R2 = 0.06; P < 0.001) and best for those who preferred to inject (pseudo R2 = 0.40; P < 0.001). Data from a cross-validation group of 16 counselors/proxies were used to calculate the OATS scores for the five rated drugs and revealed significant differences between the ADF and OxyContin® (Purdue Pharma LP, Stamford, CT), Percocet® (Endo Pharmaceuticals, Chadds Ford, PA), and Vicodin® (Abbott Laboratories, Abbott Park, IL), but not Talwin® NX (Sanofi-aventis, Bridgewater, NJ), which was identified in the prior study as a highly unattractive drug for recreational purposes. Conclusions. The OATS method shows promise for providing pre-marketing estimates of attractiveness for abuse of not-yet-marketed ADFs.

Objective. Prescription opioids are the second most misused/abused drug in the United States behind only marijuana. Recreational prescription opioid users appear to prefer some products over others; however, the extent to which attributes of any particular formulation account for such preferences has yet to be determined. The Opioid Attractiveness Technology Scaling was developed to identify the particular features of a prescription opioid that are relevant to its attractiveness for recreational use, and to use these features to model attractiveness for recreational use of particular prescription opioid formulations. Design. Four hundred and ninety-one self-reported recreational prescription opioid users identified 43 product features as being relevant to determining whether a product is “attractive” or “unattractive” for recreational use. Average ratings were used to determine appropriate weights to be applied to the features. A factor analysis yielded 10, highly differentiated factors. Five hundred and sixty-four prescription opioid abusers were then asked to rate the extent to which the 43 features identified in Study 1 were relevant to specific prescription opioid products they had used. Results. Respondents provided an overall preference rating of these products and a model was created. A random intercept model yielded a significant pseudo R2 of 0.14 (chi-square = 310.02, degrees of freedom [df] = 10, P < 0.001). The model fit least well, albeit significantly, for abusers who preferred to swallow the drug (pseudo R2 = 0.06; chi-square = 55.52, df = 10, P < 0.001) and best for those who preferred to inject (pseudo R2 = 0.37; chi-square = 199.34, df = 10, P < 0.001). Conclusions. The relevance of the model is discussed along with possible modifications that might allow prediction of “attractiveness” of “abuse deterrent” formulations that have not yet been marketed.

Mosquito Magnet-X traps were modified for use with blue, green, red, and blue-green-red light-emitting diodes and olfactory attractants to determine the response of Lutzomyia shannoni (Dyar) and Lutzomyia vexator (Coquillett) (Diptera: Psychodidae) field populations to these attractants. Red and blue-green-red-baited traps captured the highest numbers of Lu. shannoni and Lu. vexator, respectively, although, there were no significant differences between the colors. Baiting the traps with CO2 attracted significantly higher numbers of Lu. shannoni but showed no effect on Lu. vexator capture. In comparison with CO2 alone, Lu. shannoni preferred 1-octen-3-ol and 1-hexen-3-ol (0.05 g per trap) in combination with CO2.

This was a case-control study of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation cases spanning 5 years. Bloodstream infection (BSI) occurred in 12/207 subjects, with Candida spp.-4, Pseudomonas spp.-2 and Staphylococcal spp.-2 being predominant. No risk factors for BSI were identified. Exposure to broad spectrum antibiotics was common in both BSI and control patients. Prophylactic antimicrobials did not decrease the risk of BSI.

Two thin elastic plates, which may have different physical parameters, occupy the parallel regions 0 < x < a, 0 < y < b, z = -d and 0 < x < a, 0 < y < b, z = 0, in a Cartesian coordinate system, where the separation distance d is much less than the dimensions a and b. The plates are simply connected to a structure that occupies the rest of the region -d < z < 0. The side walls (x = 0 or a, 0 < y < b, -d < z < 0 and y = 0 or b, 0 < x < a, -d < z < 0) are taken to be acoustically soft; the surfaces z = -d and z = 0, outside the rectangular regions occupied by the plates, are taken to be acoustically hard. Light compressible fluid (air) is in each of the half-spaces outside the plates and in the rectangular region between them. A sound field is induced by a high-frequency plane wave. Allowance is made for a small element of damping in the fluid trapped between the plates, as well as damping in the plates. Estimates are derived for the transmitted power, averaged over a frequency band and with respect to all incidence directions, in the asymptotic limits of small fluid loading and high frequency. For the case where the two plates have identical physical properties, detailed asymptotic estimates are given for the form of the peaks in the transmitted power, at a discrete set of operating frequencies, both above and below the plates' coincidence frequency.

Attack rates, progeny production, sex ratios, and host use efficiency of Muscidufurax raptor Girualt and Sanders, Spalangia cameroni Perkins, S. endius (Walker), S. nigroaenea Curtis, S. gemina Boucek (Hymenoptera: Pteromalidae), and Dirhinus himalayanus (Hymenoptera: Chalcididae) were evaluated in laboratory bioassays with five dipteran hosts: house fly (Musca domestica L.), stable fly (Stomoxys calcitrans L.), horn fly (Hematobia irritans L.), black dump fly [Hydrotaea aenescens (Weidemann)] (Diptera: Muscidae), and a flesh fly (Sarcophaga bullata Parker) (Diptera: Sarcophagidae). M. raptor, S.cameroni, and S. endius readily attacked and produced progeny on all five host species, with substantially lower production from S. bullata than from the muscid hosts. Rates of host attacks by S. nigroaenea and S. gemina were similar on house fly, stable fly, and black dump fly hosts, with lower rates on horn fly; almost no progeny were produced by S. nigroaenea on S. bullata hosts. D. himalayanus, a larg...

Growth curves were studied for the egg, larva, and pupa of the secondary screwworm, Cochliomyia macellaria (F), under mean cyclic temperatures of 15.6, 21.1, 26.7, 32.2, and a constant 25.0 degrees C. Development from egg to adult under all regimes ranged from 170 to 588 h. A constant temperature regime of 25 degrees C produced a range of pupation times from 92 to 142 h, with adult emergence ranging from 196 to 261 h. The maximal preferential temperature of 39 degrees C was determined for maggots by using a gradient system. The minimal variation in the range of larval lengths and development time makes this species suitable for establishing relatively narrow confidence intervals when constructing a postmortem interval estimate for use in legal investigations.

Seventy-two percent of 215 male green tree frog, Hyla cinerea (Schneider), captured in Alachua and Levy counties, FL, between April and mid-September 1978 and 1979 were infected with an undescribed Trypanosoma sp. None of the 31 female frogs captured concurrently was infected. Periodic sampling of the peripheral blood from the infected male frogs showed that the trypanosomes were present in high numbers only at night. Conspecific trypanosomes also were found in the mid and hind guts of female Corethrella wirthi Stone flies collected on or near male frogs in the field. Transmission of the parasite to uninfected frogs was demonstrated by exposure of male and female frogs to naturally infected flies and to parasites injected subdermally. This is the first report of parasite transmission by a species of Corethrella.

Studies were carried out in which laboratory mice were subjected to sequential feedings by slow feeding Ornithodoros talaje (Guerín-Méneville) larvae to detect and characterize the host cellular response. After the first exposure, histological evidence showed a strong neutrophil infiltration at the site of attachment and feeding. By the third exposure, a marked shift to lymphocytes was noted in the mouse tissues using histological preparations of the feeding ticks. Lymphocyte proliferation tests also provided indirect evidence of a host lymphocyte response as a result of the three tick exposures and feedings.

Preliminary observations made during colony maintenance of argasid ticks led us to suspect that the host immune response of laboratory mice being used for tick feeding might be causing increased tick mortality. Sequential feeding trials were conducted on laboratory mice using fast- and slow-feeding Ornithodoros larvae. Acquired host resistance was demonstrated. With the fast-feeding O. turicata (Dugès), the average amount of weight gained during feeding decreased significantly the second and third times larvae were exposed to the same mice. With the slow-feeding O. talaje (Guérin-Méneville), mortality at the second and third exposure significantly increased when compared with that seen upon naive mice. Implications for natural modulation of argasid tick populations resulting from nearly constant host exposure to ticks of this nature are also discussed.

Field studies were conducted to assess the reliability of carbon dioxide baits in sampling Ornithodoros turicata Duges. Tick response to about 50 g of dry ice placed at various distances away from tick-infested burrows was monitored over a 2-h period. In addition, tick attraction to different flow rates of carbon dioxide was monitored. Tests were conducted over a 15-mo period, during which seasonal effects on O. turicata response to CO2 were assessed. The efficacy of the baits was evaluated at night and in daytime. Ticks responded to dry ice baits placed up to 8 m away from the burrows. There was no significant difference in the total number of ticks attracted in a 1-h period using 500 to 2,000 ml CO2/min. At night, ticks were attracted to CO2 bits throughout the year except in December and January. By contrast, ticks were attracted to CO2 baits during daytime only between May and mid-December.

A study was conducted to determine the prevalence and biology of endosymbionts in local populations of fleas collected from dogs and cats in Alachua Co., Florida. Four hundred three Ctenocephalides felis (Bouché), 194 Pulex simulans Baker, and 44 Echidnophaga gallinacea (Westwood) were examined. Fleas were collected from 52 dogs and 51 cats. From 1 to 20 fleas were dissected from each host. A variety of microorganisms and metazoa was observed, including a baculovirus, gram-negative bacteria, rickettsia-like organisms, amoebae, trypanosomatid flagellates, cephaline gregarines, and microsporidia. Microfilariae of the dog heartworm, Dirofilaria immitis, entomophilic nematodes, and metacestodes of the tapeworm Dipylidium caninum were also observed.

We present the results of TRIFFID simultaneous V- and B-band observations of the cores of the globular clusters M15, M92 and NGC 6712. A variability search of their dense centres was made feasible through performing post-exposure image sharpening on the images, increasing the image resolution by a factor of similar to2. The isis implementation of the image subtraction technique developed by Alard & Lupton was then used to detect flux variations in our image sets. We have obtained periods for all observable variables (in our field of view) in NGC 6712 and we have found two new RR Lyrae variables (an RRab and an RRc). We have confirmed three variables in our field of view of the M92. For M15, we detect 48 variables in our field of view, 23 of which are new discoveries. We obtain periods and amplitudes for all variables and classify new ones based on the light-curve shape, the most significant period and the mean magnitude in the V band. Among the detected RR Lyrae we find 19 RRc, 12 RRab and two RRd types. In the subsequent analysis we find a marked increase in RRc over RRab variables in the core. In a refined procedure to search for fainter objects we find no dwarf novae in our field of view of M15. Simulations performed on the data set to quantify our sensitivity to such objects indicate that an upper limit of 10 dwarf novae (at 92 per cent probability) exist in our field of view. The implications this result has on globular clusters are discussed.

The preparation and use of a durable silicone membrane for feeding Culicoides mississippiensis in the laboratory are described. Defibrinated bovine blood with no additives and blood that contained 0.3% sodium citrate were each used successfully in the membrane feeding apparatus, providing a mean feeding percentage of ca. 78%. No significant differences ( P > 0.05) were noted in mean number of eggs matured (40 ± 11; 35 ± 12; 37 ± 13) or in the percentage of egg hatch (72 ± 5%; 61 ± 13%; 68 ± 6%) among females fed, respectively, on a human host, defribrinated bovine blood, and citrated bovine blood.

Chrysops cincticornis females deposited eggs in clusters of 2 or 3 tiers on the leaves of Juncus effusus (rush), Carex crinita (sedge), and on grasses at the edge of a pond in southwestern Virginia, USA. Although variable in size and shape, 44 egg masses contained an average of 215.5 eggs (range = 33–612). Thirty-one gravid females captured while resting on vegetation had an average of 403 stage V oocytes (range = 161–603). Fecundity was significantly correlated with wing lengths, but in each of 31 females there were an additional 15–50 ovarioles that had neither evidence of prior egg release nor development of primary follicles beyond stage II. The multi-tiered egg masses of C. cincticornis differ from those of some other deer flies

Summary. Magnetic extracts were prepared from samples of Upper Jurassic and Lower Cretaceous pelagic limestones from France and Spain. Thermomagnetic analysis of the magnetic extracts using a microbalance required careful monitoring of base weight changes during heating. Heating in argon gas atmosphere induced production of magnetite during heating while slight oxidation occurred during heating in air. the dominant Curie temperature detected by the thermomagnetic analyses was the 585°C Curie temperature of magnetite. the 680°C Curie temperature of haematite was only detected when isothermal remanent magnetism (IRM) data indicated large concentrations of haematite. Even when IRM data indicated its presence, the thermomagnetic analyses did not detect the Neel temperature of goethite. Although thermomagnetic analyses of magnetic extracts provide more direct identification of the dominant, strongly ferromagnetic minerals, IRM acquisition and subsequent thermal demagnetization is a superior technique in detecting high coercivity, weakly ferromagnetic minerals such as goethite and haematite.

Extrinsic development of Leishmania mexicana was observed in two anthropophilic sand flies, Lutzomyia diabolica (Hall) and Lu. shannoni (Dyar). First indication of development of ingested amastigotes appeared between 18 and 24 h postfeeding, when light to moderate infections of short, ovoid, slightly motile forms with short flagella were seen undergoing binary fission within the intraperitrophic space of the abdominal midgut. Later the parasites elongated and migrated forward, establishing a massive infection in the cardia, where broad, dividing forms were packed behind the stomodeal valve; many were attached to its cuticular surface by flagellar modifications called hemidesmosomes. Once this point in the life cycle of the parasite was reached, most promastigotes ceased dividing and became shorter and highly active. These metacyclic forms appeared first in the region of the cardia and stomodeal valve, then spread anteriorly to the pharynx, cibarium, and proboscis, as well as posteriorly to the midgut and hindgut.

The radioisotope 32P was used in insect host contamination models to determine potential pathways for pathogenic agents transmitted by horn flies ( Haematobia irritans ) and stable flies ( Stomoxys calcitrans ). In both species, transfer of 32P to a new food source was seen for the 1st and 2nd feedings after feeding initially on tagged food sources. Transfer of tagged feces was observed after 54 min. in the stable fly and 75 min. in the horn fly. Resecretion of tagged saliva required 1 hr, 57 min. for horn flies and 6 hr for stable flies. In 1 case, stable fly saliva was tagged after 3 hr and 21 min. Regurgitative feeding was demonstrated in the stable fly but not in horn flies. Regurgitated fluids included serum and red blood cells, as well as 32P-tagged matter.

Field and laboratory investigations were conducted during 1975 and 1976 to determine which black fly species transmitted Leucocytozoon smithi to turkeys in Florida. Potential vectors were netted, aspirated from domestic turkeys exposed in the field, collected in Manitoba traps, and captured in turkey-baited blackout box and ramp-type traps. Transmission trials conducted in the laboratory involved both container-reared and wild-caught black flies, and turkeys with both naturally and laboratory-acquired L. smithi infections. Three black fly species ( Simiilium slossonae, S. congareenarum , and S. meridionale ) were incriminated as vectors of L. smithi to turkeys in Florida; field observations and laboratory trials showed that S. slossonae is the primary vector.

Laboratory investigations were conducted to determine the fecundity of blood fed females, the effects of constant temperature on development of immature stages, and the presence of autogeny in Culicoides mississippiensis Hoffman. Average fecundity of blood-fed females was 35 eggs per female. A positive seasonal correlation between fecundity and wing length was established (range, 32 to 38 eggs per female for females with wing lengths of 1.06 to 1.3 mm). The mean number of eggs which hatched per female was 10.33. Development of immature stages was studied at five constant temperatures (10, 15, 20, 25, and 30°C), and was successful at 15, 20, and 25°C. Development times were inversely related to temperature. The optimal temperature for rearing was 20°C. Complete development at this temperature required a total of 57 days.

Summary A combined pdaeomagnetic, hysteresis, thermomagnetic, and electron microprobe study has been carried out on pillow basalts from Late Tertiary oceanic crust exposed on Macquarie Island. Oriented cores were collected from four sites in the North Head region where the basalts are unmetamorphosed but have suffered pervasive seafloor weathering and at four sites near Langdon Point where the pillow lavas have experienced metamorphism to the greenschist facies. Field geologic and petrologic evidence suggests that the North Head samples are representative of the weathered zone of Late Tertiary oceanic crust while the specimens from Langdon Point are representative of pillow basalts from > 500m into the oceanic lithosphere. Geometric mean intensities of natural remanence (NRM) were 0.7 × 10−3 G for North Head samples and 0.6 × 10−3 G for specimens from Langdon Point. The geometric mean values of low field susceptibility (x) and Koenigsberger ratio (Q) for North Head samples (0.1 × 10−3 G Oe−1 and 9.8) are similar to those of DSDP basalts. The mean value of X and Q for Langdon Point samples (2.8 × 10−3 G Oe−1 and 0.3) is similar to those observed in metabasalt dredged from oceanic escarpments. Hysteresis, thermomagnetic and electron microprobe data indicate that the titanomaghemites in the North Head samples have suffered a high degree of low temperature oxidation. Langdon Point samples show reversible thermomagnetic curves with a magnetic Curie temperature (580° C), indicating that metamorphism has altered the magnetic mineralogy. This metamorphism is thought to occur at or near the ridge during the seafloor spreading process. Thus, the NRM of the metamorphosed pillow basalts would still record geomagnetic reversals and contribute to magnetic lineations. The low NRM intensities are ascribed to prolonged seafloor weathering of North Head samples and to metamorphism of the basalts from Langdom Point. Since the 10−3 G NRM intensities of pillow basalts are too low to account for the observed amplitude of marine magnetic anomalies, the underlying basaltic and doleritic sheeted dyke complex must also contribute to the anomalies.

Burrows of the gopher tortoise, Gopherus polyphemus Daudin, were sampled for Ornithodoros turicata (Dugès) infestation using carbon dioxide baits and vacuum extraction. Ticks were captured, marked, released, and recaptured, and population estimates were made using the Lincoln index. Estimated population ranged from 47 to 1,338 ticks per burrow. The tick population consisted predominantly of nymphs, with a significant increase in the larval population during the months of June and July. Adult sex ratio was slightly male-biased, but numbers of adults collected were consistently low. Ticks exhibited a low interburrow movement, but depth preferences fluctuated with season; more ticks occurred in the upper strata of the burrows during the hot, humid months.

The following characteristics are described from a laboratory colony of the Florida subspecies of Ornithodoros turicata reared on suckling mice: egg incubation period and percent hatch; prefeeding, feeding, and premolting periods for larvae and 1st-6th nymphal instars; male and female feeding and mating periods; egg number; and ovipositional period and pattern. Behavioral and other observational data are reported, including some comparisons with several other Ornithodoros spp. and with published accounts of the life history of O. turicata from the western U.S. Based on distributional, behavioral, and biological information, the name americanus is resurrected for the Florida subspecies of O. turicata .

Male Hybomitra hinei wrighti hovered over sand roads in Florida, presumably waiting for passing females. Slow-motion cinematography revealed that, when presented with a small, fast-moving object, the flies changed directions to chase the object, using a half loop and roll. This is quite similar to an aerobatic maneuver known as the Immelmann turn.

The 1966 ANSI standard FORTRAN specifies the input of numerical data only in fixed format. Described here is a scheme, written in ANSI 66 FORTRAN, which allows numerical data prepared in accordance with the FORTRAN 77 free-format specification to be read. In addition, the scheme is designed so that ill-formed or ambiguous data are given a reasonable interpretation and the location of the suspect data and the value assumed are identified. (Received October 1979)