Spray desorption collection of free fatty acids onto a solid phase microextraction fiber for trap grease analysis in biofuel production.

Spray desorption collection (SDC) is a sample collection and preparation method that allows for the collection of soluble chemical compounds directly from solid surfaces. Here the analysis of trap grease, a potential biofuel feedstock, is demonstrated by combining SDC with solid phase micro-extraction (SPME) collection followed by direct GC-MS analysis. The SPME fiber collects droplets of solvent, which has picked up analytes from the solid sample surface. It is found that the SDC-SPME combination is a simple and convenient method to collect sample components from surfaces when they are less volatile than heptanoic acid, while the collection efficiency of highly volatile compounds is increasingly reduced due to the purging effect of the nebulising gas. In a real trap grease analysis the SDC-SPME method was able to analyze both the longer chain fatty acids in the sample, important for energy production evaluation of the sample, as well as volatile sample components down to pentanoic acid, which may add to off-odours produced during biofuel use.

Atmospheric chemistry of a model biodiesel fuel, CH3C(O)O(CH2)2OC(O)CH3: kinetics, mechanisms, and products of Cl atom and OH radical initiated oxidation in the presence and absence of NOx.

Relative rate techniques were used to study the kinetics of the reactions of Cl atoms and OH radicals with ethylene glycol diacetate, CH3C(O)O(CH2)2OC(O)CH3, in 700 Torr of N2/O2 diluent at 296 K. The rate constants measured were k(Cl + CH3C(O)O(CH2)2OC(O)CH3) = (5.7 +/- 1.1) x 10(-12) and k(OH + CH3C(O)O(CH2)2OC(O)CH3) = (2.36 +/- 0.34) x 10(-12) cm3 molecule-1 s-1. Product studies of the Cl atom initiated oxidation of ethylene glycol diacetate in the absence of NO in 700 Torr of O2/N2 diluent at 296 K show the primary products to be CH3C(O)OC(O)CH2OC(O)CH3, CH3C(O)OC(O)H, and CH3C(O)OH. Product studies of the Cl atom initiated oxidation of ethylene glycol diacetate in the presence of NO in 700 Torr of O2/N2 diluent at 296 K show the primary products to be CH3C(O)OC(O)H and CH3C(O)OH. The CH3C(O)OCH2O* radical is formed during the Cl atom initiated oxidation of ethylene glycol diacetate, and two loss mechanisms were identified: reaction with O2 to give CH3C(O)OC(O)H and alpha-ester rearrangement to give CH3C(O)OH and HC(O) radicals. The reaction of CH3C(O)OCH2O2* with NO gives chemically activated CH3C(O)OCH2O* radicals which are more likely to undergo decomposition via the alpha-ester rearrangement than CH3C(O)OCH2O* radicals produced in the peroxy radical self-reaction.

Human anatomy: a foundation for education about death and dying in medicine.

In most medical schools, little curricular time is devoted to the art of medicine, and this is particularly evident with respect to death education. We make a case for including education on death and dying in medical schools, specifically its early introduction in the anatomy course. Studies indicate that whereas dissection of cadavers is an exciting discovery for most students, for many it is traumatic and if not addressed, students may use depersonalization and denial as their approach to suffering. The dissecting experiences in two different medical schools are described. The University of Massachusetts program developed in a traditional curriculum and explores humanistic issues with lectures and group discussions. Parallels are drawn between dissection and patient care, and coping styles are discussed openly. In the problem-based curriculum at Dalhousie Medical School, death and grief are discussed in the first week of medical school, and students are given information about the body donor program and support systems for students. This program is part of a longitudinal curriculum on death and dying. In both schools, students tour the dissecting rooms before the course begins and organize memorial events for body donors at the end of the academic year. These examples illustrate how death education can begin early in the medical curriculum and contribute to the development of practitioners who are sensitive to broader issues of human mortality.

Humanities in surgery, a life threatening situation: communicating the diagnosis.

Surgeons should be able to communicate emotion-laden information to patients effectively. In most medical schools, there is an implicit assumption that students will learn communication skills through observation of appropriate role models. Young physicians often feel ill prepared to convey such information with sensitivity and understanding. University of Massachusetts Medical School's curriculum includes a program that addresses the communication skills involved in surgical practice and the ethical issues they raise. Videotaped vignettes of doctor-patient interactions culled from dramatic and documentary sources are viewed and discussed with students in small groups. These highly evocative vignettes are of live and role played doctor-patient encounters. The elements of communication are analyzed, as are psychosocial, existential, legal and ethical issues.

Humanities in medical education: rationale and resources for the dissection laboratory.

Dissection of a human body during an anatomy course raises for first-year medical students questions about invasion of privacy, cadaver sources, dying and death. Emotions evoked are often heightened by the fear and uneasiness each student experiences when dissecting the body of a human being. Providing curricular resources for identification and discussion of reactions to death and dissection early in the first year can demonstrate to students the humanity of having such reactions, and that these reactions can be understood and managed more or less appropriately. An elective course has been offered to first-year medical students at the University of Massachusetts Medical School for 10 years; the students' reception of this evolving programme has been enthusiastic. The rationale, content, resources and responses of such a course are presented.

Lingering terminal illness and family: insights from literature.

Literature invites us to enter into the human dilemma in a manner that is different from but no less penetrating than clinical observation. The writer's craft uncovers realities other than the statistically measurable and objective. In languages far from the strictly literal and closer to indirection, symbolism, and aesthetics, the literary artist probes imagination and consciousness. He presents us with transcripts of conversations replete with intonations, and we thereby become privy to motivations and inner thoughts. The artistry of a piece of fiction, autobiographical essay, poem, or drama propels us into empathetic relationships. We feel with the emotions of the involved dramatis personae; we witness their interactions; we experience their points of view. And by such participation, we, the readers, come to perceive and even refine our own. Themes of chronic illness, dying, and bereavement are certainly not alien to literature. This paper explores several literary moments that may help the professional who is working with these issues to have a broader appreciation of the subtleties of these human experiences.

Experiences with learning about death and dying in the undergraduate anatomy curriculum.

Discussions about death, dying, and dissection during the first-year curriculum were initiated at the University of Massachusetts Medical School to deal with personal questions and emotions evoked by cadaver dissection. This report describes the evoluation of these discussions, their timing with respect to dissection, the present content of these sessions, and the importance of follow-up. Student response has been positive.

Workshops in caring: a first module.

Workshops in Caring were designed to expose attitudes, biases, and concerns of a nursing home staff toward aging, illness, and death. This paper touches on techniques and materials (more literary and humanistic than clinical) for encouraging participants to focus on and share their feelings. What inhibits or facilitates a caring relationship between elderly, often terminally ill, residents and staff members was the prime focus of both sessions: "Will You Still Need Me, Will You Still Feed Me?" and "Who Owns One's Life?"