Benzene oxide, the initial metabolite of the human carcinogen benzene, reacts with DNA producing 7-phenylguanine (7-PhG) and other products. We developed a highly sensitive liquid chromatography-nanoelectrospray ionization-high resolution tandem mass spectrometry-parallel reaction monitoring method for the analysis of 7-PhG in DNA. Accuracy and precision of the method were established and the detection limit was about 8amol of 7-PhG injected on the column and less than 1 adduct per 10(9) nucleotides in DNA. 7-PhG was detected in calf thymus DNA reacted with 1μM to 10mM benzene oxide. The method was applied for the analysis of DNA isolated from bone marrow, lung, and liver of B6C3F1 mice treated by gavage with 50mg/kg benzene in corn oil 5 times weekly for 4weeks. 7-PhG was not detected in any of these DNA samples. The method was applied to DNA from mouse hepatocytes exposed to 100μM benzene oxide and human TK-6 lymphoblasts exposed to 100μM, 1, and 10mM benzene oxide. 7-PhG was only detected in TK-6 cell DNA from the 10mM exposure. The method was also applied to leukocyte DNA from 10 smokers and 10 nonsmokers. 7-PhG was detected in only one DNA sample, from a nonsmoker. The results of this study do not support the hypothesis that the benzene oxide-DNA adduct 7-PhG is involved in carcinogenesis by benzene.

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BackgroundAmong laboratory technicians, the prevalence of neck and shoulder pain is widespread possibly due to typical daily work tasks such as pipetting, preparing vial samples for analysis, and data processing on a computer including mouse work - all tasks that require precision in motor control and may result in extended periods of time spent in static positions.In populations characterized by intense chronic musculoskeletal pain and diagnosed conditions in conjunction with psycho-physiological symptoms such as stress-related pain and soreness and other disabling conditions, multifactorial approaches applying a combination of individually tailored physical and cognitive strategies targeting the areas most needed, may be an effective solution to the physical and mental health challenges.The aim of this study is therefore to investigate the effect of an individually tailored biopsychosocial intervention strategy on musculoskeletal pain, stress and work disability in lab technicians with a history of musculoskeletal pain at a single worksite in Denmark.Methods/designIn this single-blind two-armed parallel-group randomized controlled trial with allocation concealment, participants receive either an individualized multifactorial intervention or “usual care” for 10 weeks at the worksite. Inclusion criteria: 1) female laboratory technician (18-67 years of age) and 2) Pain intensity ≥ 3 (0-10 Visual Analogue Scale) lasting ≥3 months with a frequency of ≥ 3 days per week in one or more of the following regions: i) upper back i) low back iii) neck, iv) shoulder, v) elbow and/or vi) hand. Exclusion criteria: 1) life-threatening disease and 2) pregnancy. Stress, as measured by Cohen´s perceived stress questionnaire is not an inclusion criteria, thus participants can participate regardless of their stress level.We will implement an individualized intervention addressing biopsychosocial elements of musculoskeletal pain with the following components; i) increasing physical capacity through strength- and motor control training; ii) lowering or preventing development of stress through mindfulness practice and learning de-catastrophizing pain management strategies through cognitive training.The primary outcome at 10-week follow-up is the between-group difference in intensity of perceived musculoskeletal pain during the last week (average value of back, neck, shoulder, elbow and hand) assessed by questionnaire (modified visual analogue scale 0-10).DiscussionThis study will provide experimental evidence to guide workplace initiatives designed towards reducing chronic musculoskeletal pain and stress.Trial registration numberClinicalTrials.gov NCT02047669.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/1471-2474-15-444) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

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Data visualization and analytics research has great potential to empower people to improve their lives by leveraging their own personal data. However, most Quantified-Selfers are neither visualization experts nor data scientists. Consequently, their visualizations of their data are often not ideal for conveying their insights. Aiming to design a visualization system to help non-experts explore and present their personal data, we conducted a pre-design empirical study. Through the lens of Quantified-Selfers, we examined what insights people gain specifically from their personal data and how they use visualizations to communicate their insights. Based on our analysis of 30 Quantified Self presentations, we characterized eight insight types (detail, self-reflection, trend, comparison, correlation, data summary, distribution, outlier) and mapped the visual annotations used to communicate them. We further discussed four areas for the design of personal visualization systems, including support for encouraging self-reflection, gaining valid insight, communicating insight, and using visual annotations.

Abstract-Internet advertisers reach millions of customers through practices that real time tracking of users' online activities. The tracking is conducted by third party ad services engaged by the Web sites to facilitate marketing campaigns. Previous research has investigated tracking practices and tracking agencies associated with popular Web sites. Here we investigate the network properties of the third party referral structures that facilitate gathering of user information for the delivery of personalized ads. By considering third party domains associated with the top ten search results for a diverse set of queries, we arrived at the networks of third party domains in four search markets. We show a consistent network structure across markets, with a dominant connected component that, on average, includes 92.8% of network vertices and 99.8% of the connecting edges. There is 99.5% chance that a user will become tracked by all top 10 trackers within 30 clicks on search results. Finally, the third party networks exhibit properties of the small world networks. This implies a high-level global and local efficiency in spreading the user information and delivering targeted ads.

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The effectiveness of adaptive user interfaces highly depends on the how accurately adaptation satisfies the needs of users. This paper presents an empirical study that examined two adaptation techniques applied on lists of textual selections. The study measured user performance controlling the accuracy of the suggestions made by the adaptive user interface. The results indicate that different adaptation techniques bare different costs and gains, which are affected by the accuracy of adaptation.