Flux pinning in hot isostatically pressed Bi2Sr2CaCu2Ox

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Miller, D.J.; Sengupta, S.; Hettinger, J.D.; Shi, D.; Gray, K.E.; Nash, A.S.; Goretta, K.C.

1992-01-01

Magnetic hysteresis data were taken from 4.2 to 35 K on Bi 2 Sr 2 CaCu 2 O x samples that were hot isostatically pressed at 105 MPa in an inert atmosphere at 825 degree C. One set of samples was pressed for only 15 min while the other was pressed for 120 min. The samples pressed for 15 min contained a high density of dislocations and planar faults, while the samples pressed for 120 min contained fewer dislocations and faults, with most dislocations present within subgrain boundaries. The samples with the complex dislocation/planar fault structures exhibited substantially larger hysteresis loops, suggesting enhanced flux pinning

Hyperfine enhanced nuclear magnetic cooling of PrCu6 pressed in indium

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lewis, J.D.

1976-06-01

Pressing of PrCu 6 in In was studied as part of the study of the preparation of nuclear coolants. Problems of low thermal conductivity through the bulk sample appear to be solved using this method. Indium was shown to be useful as a matrix ''glue'' owing to its low heat capacity and desirable mechanical properties. The eddy current heating increase observed in the PrCu 6 --In sample was not excessive. The study also showed that the quality of demagnetization samples depends on preparation techniques. 12 figures, 28 references

Cognitive factors affecting free recall, cued recall, and recognition tasks in Alzheimer's disease.

Science.gov (United States)

Yamagishi, Takashi; Sato, Takuya; Sato, Atsushi; Imamura, Toru

2012-01-01

Our aim was to identify cognitive factors affecting free recall, cued recall, and recognition tasks in patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD). We recruited 349 consecutive AD patients who attended a memory clinic. Each patient was assessed using the Alzheimer's Disease Assessment Scale (ADAS) and the extended 3-word recall test. In this task, each patient was asked to freely recall 3 previously presented words. If patients could not recall 1 or more of the target words, the examiner cued their recall by providing the category of the target word and then provided a forced-choice recognition of the target word with 2 distracters. The patients were divided into groups according to the results of the free recall, cued recall, and recognition tasks. Multivariate logistic regression analysis for repeated measures was carried out to evaluate the net effects of cognitive factors on the free recall, cued recall, and recognition tasks after controlling for the effects of age and recent memory deficit. Performance on the ADAS Orientation task was found to be related to performance on the free and cued recall tasks, performance on the ADAS Following Commands task was found to be related to performance on the cued recall task, and performance on the ADAS Ideational Praxis task was found to be related to performance on the free recall, cued recall, and recognition tasks. The extended 3-word recall test reflects deficits in a wider range of memory and other cognitive processes, including memory retention after interference, divided attention, and executive functions, compared with word-list recall tasks. The characteristics of the extended 3-word recall test may be advantageous for evaluating patients' memory impairments in daily living.

A Simplified Model of an Offset Ram Press for Sunflower Oil ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This paper presents the theoretical analysis of a simplified model of a ram press. The design of the ram press is based on the classical slider-crank mechanism. A force analysis of the press was performed for several successive positions of the driving lever (handle) and for a range of values of certain dimensionless ...

A Low-Cost Auto-Stop Hydraulic Press for Making KBr Disc

Science.gov (United States)

Hon, Ping-Kay

1998-05-01

A hydraulic press fitted with an adjustable torque wrench, together with a stand made of iron bars will form an auto-stop hydraulic press for making KBr disc in IR studies. Total material cost is about $100. All parts are readily available from the local hardware stores. The modified torque wrench is also useful to replace the lever in the standard laboratory press.

Cognitive Factors Affecting Free Recall, Cued Recall, and Recognition Tasks in Alzheimer’s Disease

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Takashi Yamagishi

2012-07-01

Full Text Available Background/Aims: Our aim was to identify cognitive factors affecting free recall, cued recall, and recognition tasks in patients with Alzheimer’s disease (AD. Subjects: We recruited 349 consecutive AD patients who attended a memory clinic. Methods: Each patient was assessed using the Alzheimer’s Disease Assessment Scale (ADAS and the extended 3-word recall test. In this task, each patient was asked to freely recall 3 previously presented words. If patients could not recall 1 or more of the target words, the examiner cued their recall by providing the category of the target word and then provided a forced-choice recognition of the target word with 2 distracters. The patients were divided into groups according to the results of the free recall, cued recall, and recognition tasks. Multivariate logistic regression analysis for repeated measures was carried out to evaluate the net effects of cognitive factors on the free recall, cued recall, and recognition tasks after controlling for the effects of age and recent memory deficit. Results: Performance on the ADAS Orientation task was found to be related to performance on the free and cued recall tasks, performance on the ADAS Following Commands task was found to be related to performance on the cued recall task, and performance on the ADAS Ideational Praxis task was found to be related to performance on the free recall, cued recall, and recognition tasks. Conclusion: The extended 3-word recall test reflects deficits in a wider range of memory and other cognitive processes, including memory retention after interference, divided attention, and executive functions, compared with word-list recall tasks. The characteristics of the extended 3-word recall test may be advantageous for evaluating patients’ memory impairments in daily living.

Mechanical properties of hot-pressed Al-4.5 wt. % Cu/WC composite

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Samaneh Bernoosi

2014-12-01

Full Text Available In this study, the elemental powders of aluminum and copper were initially subjected to mechanical alloying using an attrition ball mill under argon atmosphere to produce an Al-4.5 wt% Cu powder alloy. The WC nanoparticles were then added to the powder alloy and milled in a planetary ball mill to explore the role of the WC nanoparticles on the mechanical properties of the fabricated composite powder. The experimental results revealed that a solid solution of Al-Cu could be formed after MA and a good dispersion of the WC nanoparticles in the aluminum matrix was obtained as characterized using X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy, respectively. The results of hardness and compression tests of the hot pressed composites indicated that the MA followed by the hot-press processes was successful to fabricate an alloy and a metal matrix composite with considerable mechanical properties. However, a decreasing trend in the hardness and strength of the composites with the WC contents of more than 5wt% was observed. The maximum values of 260 HV and 575 MPa were obtained for a composite containing 5 wt% of nano ceramic particles.

The VMAT-2 inhibitor tetrabenazine affects effort-related decision making in a progressive ratio/chow feeding choice task: reversal with antidepressant drugs.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Patrick A Randall

Full Text Available Behavioral activation is a fundamental feature of motivation, and organisms frequently make effort-related decisions based upon evaluations of reinforcement value and response costs. Furthermore, people with major depression and other disorders often show anergia, psychomotor retardation, fatigue, and alterations in effort-related decision making. Tasks measuring effort-based decision making can be used as animal models of the motivational symptoms of depression, and the present studies characterized the effort-related effects of the vesicular monoamine transport (VMAT-2 inhibitor tetrabenazine. Tetrabenazine induces depressive symptoms in humans, and also preferentially depletes dopamine (DA. Rats were assessed using a concurrent progressive ratio (PROG/chow feeding task, in which they can either lever press on a PROG schedule for preferred high-carbohydrate food, or approach and consume a less-preferred lab chow that is freely available in the chamber. Previous work has shown that the DA antagonist haloperidol reduced PROG work output on this task, but did not reduce chow intake, effects that differed substantially from those of reinforcer devaluation or appetite suppressant drugs. The present work demonstrated that tetrabenazine produced an effort-related shift in responding on the PROG/chow procedure, reducing lever presses, highest ratio achieved and time spent responding, but not reducing chow intake. Similar effects were produced by administration of the subtype selective DA antagonists ecopipam (D1 and eticlopride (D2, but not by the cannabinoid CB1 receptor neutral antagonist and putative appetite suppressant AM 4413, which suppressed both lever pressing and chow intake. The adenosine A2A antagonist MSX-3, the antidepressant and catecholamine uptake inhibitor bupropion, and the MAO-B inhibitor deprenyl, all reversed the impairments induced by tetrabenazine. This work demonstrates the potential utility of the PROG/chow procedure as a

Fabrication of Titanium Diboride-Cu Composite by Self-High Temperature Synthesis plus Quick Press

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

Jinyong ZHANG; Zhengyi FU; Weimin WANG

2005-01-01

Titanium diboride based composites, good candidates for contact materials, have high hardness, Young's modulus,high temperature stability, and excellent electrical, thermal conductivity. However a good interface of TiB2/Cu is very difficult to achieve for oxidation of TiB2. To avoid this oxidation behavior, the in situ combusting synthesis technology, SHS, was used to prepare TiB2/Cu composite. Thecharacters of Ti-B-xCu SHS were studied in detail,such as combustion temperature, products phases and grain size. Based on the experimental results a proper technology way of self-high temperature synthesis plus quick press (SHS/QP) was determined and compact TiB2/Cu composites with relative density over than 97 pct of the theoretical were fabricated by this method. The properties and microstructures of these TiB2 based composites were also investigated.

Disinhibition by propranolol and chlordiazepoxide of nonrewarded lever-pressing in the rat is unaffected by dorsal noradrenergic bundle lesion.

Science.gov (United States)

Salmon, P; Tsaltas, E; Gray, J A

1989-03-01

Ten male Sprague-Dawley rats received 6-hydroxydopamine-induced lesions of the dorsal noradrenergic bundle and 10 others underwent control operations. The lesion depleted levels of noradrenaline in the hippocampus to 2% of those in the controls. All rats were then trained for 16 sessions to lever-press in a Skinner box on a variable interval 18 sec schedule of food-reinforcement, then for 42 days on a successive discrimination between periods of variable interval (VI 18 sec) food-reinforcement and periods of extinction. This report describes the effects of chlordiazepoxide (CDP; 5 mg/kg) and propranolol (5 and 10 mg/kg) injected intraperitoneally in both groups on modified ABBA designs after this training. Both drugs increased the response rates in extinction periods. The effect of propranolol was similar at each dose and smaller than that of CDP. Although CDP and propranolol (5 mg/kg) increased variable interval response rates also, this could not account for the effect on extinction response rates. Responding did not differ between the lesioned and control animals and the effects of drugs were similar in each group. It is unlikely that CDP or propranolol release nonrewarded responding by disrupting transmission in the dorsal noradrenergic bundle.

Pressing Tasks in the Care of Children of Preschool and School Age

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Tseytlin, I

1960-01-01

...). It concerns pressing tasks of public health with regard to the care of children of pre-school and school age in order to strengthen the bond between school and life which also promotes the further...

Ghrelin enhances cue-induced bar pressing for high fat food.

Science.gov (United States)

St-Onge, Veronique; Watts, Alexander; Abizaid, Alfonso

2016-02-01

Ghrelin is an orexigenic hormone produced by the stomach that acts on growth hormone secretagogue receptors (GHSRs) both peripherally and centrally. The presence of GHSRs in the ventral tegmental area (VTA) suggests that ghrelin signaling at this level may increase the incentive value of palatable foods as well as other natural and artificial rewards. The present investigation sought to determine if ghrelin plays a role in relapse to such foods following a period of abstinence. To achieve this, thirty-six male Long Evans rats were trained to press a lever to obtain a high fat chocolate food reward on a fixed ratio schedule of 1. Following an extinction period during which lever presses were not reinforced, rats were implanted with a cannula connected to a minipump that continuously delivered ghrelin, a GHSR antagonist ([d-Lys-3]-GHRP-6), or saline in the VTA for 14days. One week later, food reward-associated cues, food reward priming, and an overnight fast were used to induce reinstatement of the lever pressing response. Our results indicate that intra-VTA ghrelin enhances cue-induced reinstatement of responses for palatable food pellets. To the extent that the reinstatement paradigm is considered a valid model of relapse in humans, this suggests that ghrelin signaling facilitates relapse to preferred foods in response to food cues through GHSR signaling in the VTA. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The dopamine D2/D3 receptor agonist quinpirole increases checking-like behaviour in an operant observing response task with uncertain reinforcement: a novel possible model of OCD.

Science.gov (United States)

Eagle, Dawn M; Noschang, Cristie; d'Angelo, Laure-Sophie Camilla; Noble, Christie A; Day, Jacob O; Dongelmans, Marie Louise; Theobald, David E; Mar, Adam C; Urcelay, Gonzalo P; Morein-Zamir, Sharon; Robbins, Trevor W

2014-05-01

Excessive checking is a common, debilitating symptom of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). In an established rodent model of OCD checking behaviour, quinpirole (dopamine D2/3-receptor agonist) increased checking in open-field tests, indicating dopaminergic modulation of checking-like behaviours. We designed a novel operant paradigm for rats (observing response task (ORT)) to further examine cognitive processes underpinning checking behaviour and clarify how and why checking develops. We investigated i) how quinpirole increases checking, ii) dependence of these effects on D2/3 receptor function (following treatment with D2/3 receptor antagonist sulpiride) and iii) effects of reward uncertainty. In the ORT, rats pressed an 'observing' lever for information about the location of an 'active' lever that provided food reinforcement. High- and low-checkers (defined from baseline observing) received quinpirole (0.5mg/kg, 10 treatments) or vehicle. Parametric task manipulations assessed observing/checking under increasing task demands relating to reinforcement uncertainty (variable response requirement and active-lever location switching). Treatment with sulpiride further probed the pharmacological basis of long-term behavioural changes. Quinpirole selectively increased checking, both functional observing lever presses (OLPs) and non-functional extra OLPs (EOLPs). The increase in OLPs and EOLPs was long-lasting, without further quinpirole administration. Quinpirole did not affect the immediate ability to use information from checking. Vehicle and quinpirole-treated rats (VEH and QNP respectively) were selectively sensitive to different forms of uncertainty. Sulpiride reduced non-functional EOLPs in QNP rats but had no effect on functional OLPs. These data have implications for treatment of compulsive checking in OCD, particularly for serotonin-reuptake-inhibitor treatment-refractory cases, where supplementation with dopamine receptor antagonists may be beneficial

The dopamine D2/D3 receptor agonist quinpirole increases checking-like behaviour in an operant observing response task with uncertain reinforcement: A novel possible model of OCD?

Science.gov (United States)

Eagle, Dawn M.; Noschang, Cristie; d’Angelo, Laure-Sophie Camilla; Noble, Christie A.; Day, Jacob O.; Dongelmans, Marie Louise; Theobald, David E.; Mar, Adam C.; Urcelay, Gonzalo P.; Morein-Zamir, Sharon; Robbins, Trevor W.

2014-01-01

Excessive checking is a common, debilitating symptom of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). In an established rodent model of OCD checking behaviour, quinpirole (dopamine D2/3-receptor agonist) increased checking in open-field tests, indicating dopaminergic modulation of checking-like behaviours. We designed a novel operant paradigm for rats (observing response task (ORT)) to further examine cognitive processes underpinning checking behaviour and clarify how and why checking develops. We investigated i) how quinpirole increases checking, ii) dependence of these effects on D2/3 receptor function (following treatment with D2/3 receptor antagonist sulpiride) and iii) effects of reward uncertainty. In the ORT, rats pressed an ‘observing’ lever for information about the location of an ‘active’ lever that provided food reinforcement. High- and low-checkers (defined from baseline observing) received quinpirole (0.5 mg/kg, 10 treatments) or vehicle. Parametric task manipulations assessed observing/checking under increasing task demands relating to reinforcement uncertainty (variable response requirement and active-lever location switching). Treatment with sulpiride further probed the pharmacological basis of long-term behavioural changes. Quinpirole selectively increased checking, both functional observing lever presses (OLPs) and non-functional extra OLPs (EOLPs). The increase in OLPs and EOLPs was long-lasting, without further quinpirole administration. Quinpirole did not affect the immediate ability to use information from checking. Vehicle and quinpirole-treated rats (VEH and QNP respectively) were selectively sensitive to different forms of uncertainty. Sulpiride reduced non-functional EOLPs in QNP rats but had no effect on functional OLPs. These data have implications for treatment of compulsive checking in OCD, particularly for serotonin-reuptake-inhibitor treatment-refractory cases, where supplementation with dopamine receptor antagonists may be

Contribution of the Cerebellum in Cue-Dependent Force Changes During an Isometric Precision Grip Task.

Science.gov (United States)

Kutz, Dieter F; Schmid, Barbara C; Meindl, Tobias; Timmann, Dagmar; Kolb, Florian P

2016-08-01

The "raspberry task" represents a precision grip task that requires continuous adjustment of grip forces and pull forces. During this task, subjects use a specialised grip rod and have to increase the pull force linearly while the rod is locked. The positions of the fingers are unrestrained and freely selectable. From the finger positions and the geometry of the grip rod, a physical lever was derived which is a comprehensive measurement of the subject's grip behaviour. In this study, the involvement of the cerebellum in establishing cued force changes (CFC) was examined. The auditory stimulus was associated with a motor behaviour that has to be readjusted during an ongoing movement that already started. Moreover, cerebellar involvement on grip behaviour was examined. The results show that patients presenting with degenerating cerebellar disease (CBL) were able to elicit CFC and were additionally able to optimise grip behaviour by minimising the lever. Comparison of the results of CBL with a control group of healthy subjects showed, however, that the CFC incidence was significantly lower and the reduction of the lever was less in CBL. Hence, the cerebellum is involved not only in the classical conditioning of reflexes but also in the association of sensory stimuli with complex changes in motor behaviour. Furthermore, the cerebellum is involved in the optimisation of grip behaviour during ongoing movements. Recent studies lead to the assumption that the cerebello-reticulo-spinal pathway might be important for the reduced optimisation of grip behaviour in CBL.

Levered and unlevered Beta

OpenAIRE

Fernandez, Pablo

2003-01-01

We prove that in a world without leverage cost the relationship between the levered beta ( L) and the unlevered beta ( u) is the No-costs-of-leverage formula: L = u + ( u - d) D (1 - T) / E. We also analyze 6 alternative valuation theories proposed in the literature to estimate the relationship between the levered beta and the unlevered beta (Harris and Pringle (1985), Modigliani and Miller (1963), Damodaran (1994), Myers (1974), Miles and Ezzell (1980), and practitioners) and prove that all ...

The effects of ionizing radiation on the performance of signaled and unsignalled bar-press shock postponement in the rat

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Burghardt, W.F. Jr.

1988-01-01

Forty-eight rats in four conditions were used to determine the efficacy of preshock warning tones in maintaining bar-press shock postponement performance after irradiation. The SIDMAN group performed without external cues. The SIGNAL group received a 5 sec warning tone preceding shock. The COSAV group had preshock warning tones available for 60 sec following a response on another lever, and was used to assess the ability to maintain performance on two levers simultaneously. In VISIG, warning tones always preceded shocks, but followed shock postponement responses unpredictably. Sham-irradiated control groups were used to compare baseline performance on each task, and for comparison with irradiated subjects. Irradiated subjects could perform the movements necessary to successfully avoid shock. They were able to detect and respond appropriately to preshock warning tones when present, although COSAV subjects did not continue to respond to produce them. Irradiated subjects experienced a significant and lasting increase in the number of shocks received, except when no external cues were available

Preparation of a high strength Al-Cu-Mg alloy by mechanical alloying and press-forming

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tang Huaguo [State Key Laboratory of Rare Earth Utilization, Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Changchun 130022 (China); Cheng Zhiqiang [College of Resources and Environment, Jilin Agricultural University, Changchun 130118 (China); Liu Jianwei [State Key Laboratory of Rare Earth Utilization, Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Changchun 130022 (China); Ma Xianfeng, E-mail: xfma@ciac.jl.cn [State Key Laboratory of Rare Earth Utilization, Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Changchun 130022 (China)

2012-07-30

Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer A high strength aluminum alloy of Al-2 wt.%Mg-2 wt.%Cu has been prepared by mechanical alloying and press-forming. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The alloy only consists of solid solution {alpha}-Al. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The grains size of {alpha}-Al was about 300 nm-5 {mu}m. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The solid solution strengthening and the grain refinement strengthening are the main reasons for such a high strength. - Abstract: A high strength aluminum alloy, with the ratio of 96 wt.%Al-2 wt.%Mg-2 wt.%Cu, has been prepared by mechanical alloying and press-forming. The alloy exhibited a high tensile strength of 780 MPa and a high microhardness of 180 HV. X-ray diffraction characterizations confirmed that the alloy only consists of a solid solution {alpha}-Al. Microstructure characterizations revealed that the grain size of {alpha}-Al was about 300 nm-5 {mu}m. The solid solution strengthening and the grain refinement strengthening were considered to be the reason for such a high strength.

Genetic influences on free and cued recall in long-term memory tasks.

Science.gov (United States)

Volk, Heather E; McDermott, Kathleen B; Roediger, Henry L; Todd, Richard D

2006-10-01

Long-term memory (LTM) problems are associated with many psychiatric and neurological illnesses and are commonly measured using free and cued recall tasks. Although LTM has been linked with biologic mechanisms, the etiology of distinct LTM tasks is unknown. We studied LTM in 95 healthy female twin pairs identified through birth records in the state of Missouri. Performance on tasks of free recall of unrelated words, free and cued recall of categorized words, and the vocabulary section of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS-R) were examined using structural equation modeling. Additive genetic and unique environmental factors influenced LTM and intelligence. Free recall of unrelated and categorized words, and cued recall of categorized words, were moderately heritable (55%, 38%, and 37%). WAIS-R vocabulary score was highly heritable (77%). Controlling for verbal intelligence in multivariate analyses of recall, two components of genetic influence on LTM were found; one for all three recall scores and one for free and cued categorized word recall. Recall of unrelated and categorized words is influenced by different genetic and environmental factors indicating heterogeneity in LTM. Verbal intelligence is etiologically different from LTM indicating that these two abilities utilize different brain functions.

Activation of selected shoulder muscles during unilateral wall and bench press tasks under submaximal isometric effort.

Science.gov (United States)

Tucci, Helga T; Ciol, Marcia A; de Araújo, Rodrigo C; de Andrade, Rodrigo; Martins, Jaqueline; McQuade, Kevin J; Oliveira, Anamaria S

2011-07-01

Controlled laboratory study. To assess the activation of 7 shoulder muscles under 2 closed kinetic chain (CKC) tasks for the upper extremity using submaximal isometric effort, thus providing relative quantification of muscular isometric effort for these muscles across the CKC exercises, which may be applied to rehabilitation protocols for individuals with shoulder weakness. CKC exercises favor joint congruence, reduce shear load, and promote joint dynamic stability. Additionally, knowledge about glenohumeral and periscapular muscle activity elicited during CKC exercises may help clinicians to design protocols for shoulder rehabilitation. Using surface electromyography, activation level was measured across 7 shoulder muscles in 20 healthy males, during the performance of a submaximal isometric wall press and bench press. Signals were normalized to the maximal voluntary isometric contraction, and, using paired t tests, data were analyzed between the exercises for each muscle. Compared to the wall press, the bench press elicited higher activity for most muscles, except for the upper trapezius. Levels of activity were usually low but were above 20% maximal voluntary isometric contraction for the serratus anterior on both tasks, and for the long head triceps brachii on the bench press. Both the bench press and wall press, as performed in this study, led to relatively low EMG activation levels for the muscles measured and may be considered for use in the early phases of rehabilitation.

Beta-adrenoreceptor blockade abolishes atomoxetine-induced risk taking.

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Fan Nils; Pan, Jing Samantha; Li, Xinwang

2016-01-01

Clinical studies have shown that patients with exaggerated risk-taking tendencies have high baseline levels of norepinephrine. In this work, we systemically manipulated norepinephrine levels in rats and studied their behavioral changes in a probabilistic discounting task, which is a paradigm for gauging risk taking. This study aims to explore the effects of the selective norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor (atomoxetine at doses of 0.6, 1.0 and 1.8 mg/kg), and receptor selective antagonists (propranolol at a single dose of 1.0/kg, and prazosin at a single dose of 0.1 mg/kg), on risk taking using a probabilistic discounting task. In this task, there were two levers available to rats: pressing the 'small/certain' lever guaranteed a single food pellet, and pressing the 'large/risky' lever yielded either four pellets or none. The probability of receiving four food pellets decreased across the four experimental blocks from 100% to 12.5%. Atomoxetine increased the tendency to choose the large/risky lever. It significantly reduced the lose-shift effect (i.e. pressing a different lever after losing a trial), but did not affect the win-stay effect (i.e. pressing the same lever after winning a trial). Furthermore, co-administration of beta-adrenoreceptor antagonist, propranolol, eliminated the effects of atomoxetine on risk taking and the lose-shift effect; but co-administration of alpha1-adrenoreceptor antagonist, prazosin, did not. Atomoxetine boosted NE levels and increased risk taking. This was because atomoxetine decreased rats' sensitivity to losses. These effects were likely mediated by beta-adrenoreceptor. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Study on the process of sintering matrix metallic Fe-Cu-25%Nb and Fe-Cu-25%Co during hot pressing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Batista, A.C.; Oliveira, H.C.P.; Souza, M.H.; Assis, P.S.

2016-01-01

The sintering process promotes densification and the evolution of the microstructure of the material, with consequent significant increase in hardness and mechanical strength. However, few studies show the influence of pressure and temperature during sintering by hot pressing. In this sense, this work aims to evaluate the microstructural changes and properties with the variation of pressure and temperature and the type suffered by sintering metal powders during sintering by hot pressing. For this, two samples were studied by changing the sintering parameters: 25% Fe-50% Cu-25% Nb and 25% Fe-50% Cu-25% Co. Samples were analyzed by SEM / EDS in order to check the morphology and the presence of pores, as well as the interaction between the metallic constituents of each sample by the EDS analysis in line. They also determined the relative density, porosity and Vickers hardness (HV5). At the end of the study it was concluded that niobium alloy composite element by sintering activated suffered together with the liquid phase sintering. For cobalt alloys were observed by liquid phase sintering. The increase in the severity of the sintering conditions (temperature and pressure) led to an improvement in physical and mechanical properties of the alloys, which indicates that these parameters are directly related to the mechanisms of diffusion in the sintering process, improving the properties and diffusivity between elements. (author)

Grain Refinement and High-Performance of Equal-Channel Angular Pressed Cu-Mg Alloy for Electrical Contact Wire

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Aibin Ma

2014-12-01

Full Text Available Multi-pass equal-channel angular pressing (EACP was applied to produce ultrafine-grained (UFG Cu-0.2wt%Mg alloy contact wire with high mechanical/electric performance, aim to overcome the catenary barrier of high-speed trains by maximizing the tension and improving the power delivery. Microstructure evolution and overall properties of the Cu-Mg alloy after different severe-plastic-deformation (SPD routes were investigated by microscopic observation, tensile and electric tests. The results show that the Cu-Mg alloy after multi-pass ECAP at 473 K obtains ultrafine grains, higher strength and desired conductivity. More passes of ECAP leads to finer grains and higher strength, but increasing ECAP temperature significantly lower the strength increment of the UFG alloy. Grain refinement via continuous SPD processing can endow the Cu-Mg alloy superior strength and good conductivity characteristics, which are advantageous to high-speed electrification railway systems.

Microstructures and mechanical properties of Cu/Ti{sub 3}SiC{sub 2}/C/MWCNTs composites prepared by vacuum hot-pressing sintering

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Xiaosong, Jiang, E-mail: xsjiang@yeah.net [School of Materials Science and Engineering, Southwest Jiaotong University, Chengdu, Sichuan 610031 (China); Liu, Wanxia; Li, Jingrui [School of Materials Science and Engineering, Southwest Jiaotong University, Chengdu, Sichuan 610031 (China); Shao, Zhenyi [Department of Mechanical Engineering, Chengdu Technological University, Chengdu, Sichuan 610031 (China); Zhu, Degui [School of Materials Science and Engineering, Southwest Jiaotong University, Chengdu, Sichuan 610031 (China)

2015-01-05

Highlights: • Cu/Ti{sub 3}SiC{sub 2}/C/MWCNTs composites were prepared using vacuum hot-pressing sintering. • Dispersions of MWCNTs were prepared using 10 μg/ml gallic acid aqueous solution. • MWCNTs content has no effect on generation of TiC and Cu{sub 9}Si to effect matrix’s performance. - Abstract: Cu/Ti{sub 3}SiC{sub 2}/C/MWCNTs composites were prepared by vacuum hot-pressing sintering. Microstructures and mechanical properties of Cu/Ti{sub 3}SiC{sub 2}/C/MWCNTs composites with different multi-walled carbon nanotubes contents have been systematically investigated. The microstructures of the composites were examined by optical microscopy, X-ray diffraction, back scattered electron imaging, scanning electron microscope and energy dispersive spectrometer. The mechanical properties were determined from Brinell hardness and tensile tests. The results demonstrated that there was an optimum value of MWCNTs content which has an impact on microstructures and mechanical properties of Cu/Ti{sub 3}SiC{sub 2}/C/MWCNTs composites. Based on MWCNTs content on properties and microstructure of Cu/Ti{sub 3}SiC{sub 2}/C/MWCNTs composites, effects of MWCNTs on improvement of the composites and strengthening mechanism have been analyzed.

Methamphetamine, d-amphetamine and p-chloroamphetamine induced neurotoxicity differentially effect impulsive responding on the stop-signal task in rats

Science.gov (United States)

Furlong, Teri M.; Leavitt, Lee S.; Keefe, Kristen A.; Son, Jong-Hyun

2016-01-01

Abused amphetamines, such as d-amphetamine (AMPH) and methamphetamine (METH), are highly addictive and destructive to health and productive lifestyles. The abuse of these drugs is associated with impulsive behavior, which is likely to contribute to addiction. The amphetamines also differentially damage dopamine (DA) and serotonin (5-HT) systems, which regulate impulsive behavior; therefore, exposure to these drugs may differentially alter impulsive behavior to effect the progression of addiction. We examined the impact of neurotoxicity induced by three amphetamines on impulsive action using a stop-signal task in rats. Animals were rewarded with a food pellet after lever pressing (i.e. a go trial), unless an auditory cue was presented and withholding lever press gained reward (i.e. a stop trial). Animals were trained on the task and then exposed to a neurotoxic regimen of either AMPH, p-chloroamphetamine (PCA), or METH. These regimens preferentially reduced DA transporter levels in striatum, 5-HT transporter levels in prefrontal cortex, or both, respectively. Assessment of performance on the stop-signal task beginning one week after the treatment revealed that AMPH produced a deficit in go-trial performance, whereas PCA did not alter performance on either trial type. In contrast, METH produced a deficit in stop-trial performance (i.e. impulsive action) but not go-trial performance. These findings suggest that the different neurotoxic consequences of substituted amphetamines are associated with different effects on inhibitory control over behavior. Thus, the course of addiction and maladaptive behavior resulting from exposure to these substances is likely to differ. PMID:26846719

Comparing temporal order judgments and choice reaction time tasks as indices of exogenous spatial cuing.

Science.gov (United States)

Eskes, Gail A; Klein, Raymond M; Dove, Mary Beth; Coolican, Jamesie; Shore, David I

2007-11-30

Attentional disorders are common in individuals with neurological or psychiatric conditions and impact on recovery and outcome. Thus, it is critical to develop theory-based measures of attentional function to understand potential mechanisms underlying the disorder and to evaluate the effect of intervention. The present study compared two alternative methods to measure the effects of attentional cuing that could be used in populations of individuals who may not be able to make manual responses normally or may show overall slowing in responses. Spatial attention was measured with speeded and unspeeded methods using either manual or voice responses in two standard attention paradigms: the cued target discrimination reaction time (RT) paradigm and the unspeeded temporal order judgment (TOJ) task. The comparison of speeded and unspeeded tasks specifically addresses the concern about interpreting RT differences between cued and uncued trials (taken as a proxy for attention) in the context of drastically different baseline RTs. We found significant cuing effects for both tasks (speeded RT and untimed TOJ) and both response types (vocal and manual) giving clinicians and researchers alternative methods with which to measure the effects of attention in different populations who may not be able to perform the standard speeded RT task.

Specification of Scientific Tasks in Collaboration between Science, Industry and State, and Impact of Political Factors on Managerial Levers and Economy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bondarenko Tetiana M.

2016-11-01

Full Text Available The issue of collaboration between science, industry and state is of relevance in domestic and international practice. In leading countries of the world and in Ukraine compatible production and scientific complexes are created; collaboration between research institutions and state is established, in particular the theory and practice of collaboration between science, industry and state on the basis of Triple Helix Model is widespread in the world; in scientific papers objects of research of economic processes, subjects of research of the economic theory are considered. However, there are no works where the objects and tasks of economic researches are studied on the basis of macroeconomic environment, and a distinct principle to distinguish research objects relating to different economies and types of production is laid out; scientific and practical problems of economy in the field of collaboration between state, science and industry are clearly defined. According to the purpose of the article (to specify scientific and practical tasks to rationalize scientific research, the experience gained is systematized and a scheme-matrix of scientific and practical problems is proposed. In scientific practice there are works highlighting principles of scientific research work, research tasks in the field of economy, scientific problems of economy but there are no works considering both principles and tasks of collaboration of academic economists with state and industry in order to provide scientists with recommendations on optimization of economic processes to improve the economic efficiency. Taking into account the experience gained, principles of collaboration of academic economists with the state and industry are identified. On the basis of the developed matrix of scientific and practical tasks, the principle of impact of political factors on managerial levers, the level of Gross Domestic Product and Gross Social Product is demonstrated.

Thermoelectric Properties of Cu-doped Bi2-xSbxTe3 Prepared by Encapsulated Melting and Hot Pressing

Science.gov (United States)

Jung, Woo-Jin; Kim, Il-Ho

2018-03-01

P-type Bi2-xSbxTe3:Cum (x = 1.5-1.7 and m = 0.002-0.003) solid solutions were synthesized using encapsulated melting and were consolidated using hot pressing. The effects of Sb substitution and Cu doping on the charge transport and thermoelectric properties were examined. The lattice constants decreased with increasing Sb and Cu contents. As the amount of Sb substitution and Cu doping was increased, the electrical conductivity increased, and the Seebeck coefficient decreased owing to the increase in the carrier concentration. All specimens exhibited degenerate semiconductor characteristics and positive Hall and Seebeck coefficients, indicating p-type conduction. The increased Sb substitution caused a shift in the onset temperature of the intrinsic transition and bipolar conduction to higher temperatures. The electronic thermal conductivity increased with increasing Sb and Cu contents owing to the increase in the carrier concentration, while the lattice thermal conductivity slightly decreased due to alloy scattering. A maximum figure of merit, ZTmax = 1.25, was achieved at 373 K for Bi0.4Sb1.6Te3:Cu0.003.

Study of the viability to obtain quasicrystal in the composition AlCuFe using high-energy milling, followed by pressing and sintering

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Coelho, Rodrigo Estevam; Cruz, Ramon Mateus Santos; Esteves, Paulo Jesus Costa; Viana, Silvana Garcia; Lima, Severino Jackson Guedes de

2009-01-01

This work was observed the phase formations of the mixture Al-Cu-Fe processed vial mechanical alloying, powders pressing at room temperature and subsequent heat treatment. The mixture of powders was made on the nominal composition Al 65 Cu 2 0Fe 15 . A mill of high energy of the horizontal atrittor type was used to process the powders mixtures, in fixed time of two hours of milling. After milling, the powders were pressing in a die closed, with a diameter of about 28mm. The samples were observed by optical microscopy and analyzed X-ray diffractometry. The results obtained in this study provide a basis for setting parameters may be used as a basis for future research and possible applications. (author)

Parallel learning in an autoshaping paradigm.

Science.gov (United States)

Naeem, Maliha; White, Norman M

2016-08-01

In an autoshaping task, a single conditioned stimulus (CS; lever insertion) was repeatedly followed by the delivery of an unconditioned stimulus (US; food pellet into an adjacent food magazine) irrespective of the rats' behavior. After repeated training trials, some rats responded to the onset of the CS by approaching and pressing the lever (sign-trackers). Lesions of dorsolateral striatum almost completely eliminated responding to the lever CS while facilitating responding to the food magazine (US). Lesions of the dorsomedial striatum attenuated but did not eliminate responding to the lever CS. Lesions of the basolateral or central nucleus of the amygdala had no significant effects on sign-tracking, but combined lesions of the 2 structures impaired sign-tracking by significantly increasing latency to the first lever press without affecting the number of lever presses. Lesions of the dorsal hippocampus had no effect on any of the behavioral measures. The findings suggest that sign-tracking with a single lever insertion as the CS may consist of 2 separate behaviors learned in parallel: An amygdala-mediated conditioned orienting and approach response and a dorsal striatum-mediated instrumental response. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

Characteristics of radiation-induced performance changes in bar-press avoidance with and without a preshock warning cue

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Burghardt, W.F. Jr.; Hunt, W.A.

1989-01-01

Rats were trained to perform one of three tasks in which responses on a lever delayed the onset of footshock for 20 sec. One task provided a warning tone beginning 15 sec after the last response on the lever and lasting for 5 sec just prior to the presentation of a shock (fixed-interval signalled avoidance), while a second task provided no external cues (unsignalled avoidance). The third task was similar to the fixed-interval signalled avoidance task, except that the warning tone preceding shock began at varying intervals after the last response on the lever (variable-interval signalled avoidance). Animals trained on the signalled avoidance paradigms received fewer shocks than those on the unsignalled avoidance paradigm. After 10 krads of gamma radiation, animals performing on either task with cues were less able to avoid shock, although they recovered somewhat over a 90-min period. The animals not provided cues also experienced more shocks during the first 10 min after irradiation but were relatively less affected in performing the task. Response rates on the bar and the patterns of responding on these tasks were not significantly different after irradiation, except that animals responded after the onset of shock more often after irradiation than before. These results suggest that rats will continue to effectively use task related cues after irradiation, but that the relative degree of behavioral decrement may depend on the initial level of performance or possibly the complexity of the task

Portfolio Diversification with Commodity Futures: Properties of Levered Futures

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Woodard, J.D.; Egelkraut, T.M.; Garcia, P.; Pennings, J.M.E.

2005-01-01

Portfolio Diversification with Commodity Futures: Properties of Levered Futures This study extends previous work on the impact of commodity futures on portfolio performance by explicitly incorporating levered futures into the portfolio optimization problem. Using data on nine individual commodity

Functional states of rat cortical circuits during the unpredictable availability of a reward-related cue.

Science.gov (United States)

Fernández-Lamo, Iván; Sánchez-Campusano, Raudel; Gruart, Agnès; Delgado-García, José M

2016-11-21

Proper performance of acquired abilities can be disturbed by the unexpected occurrence of external changes. Rats trained with an operant conditioning task (to press a lever in order to obtain a food pellet) using a fixed-ratio (1:1) schedule were subsequently placed in a Skinner box in which the lever could be removed randomly. Field postsynaptic potentials (fPSPs) were chronically evoked in perforant pathway-hippocampal CA1 (PP-CA1), CA1-subiculum (CA1-SUB), CA1-medial prefrontal cortex (CA1-mPFC), mPFC-nucleus accumbens (mPFC-NAc), and mPFC-basolateral amygdala (mPFC-BLA) synapses during lever IN and lever OUT situations. While lever presses were accompanied by a significant increase in fPSP slopes at the five synapses, the unpredictable absence of the lever were accompanied by decreased fPSP slopes in all, except PP-CA1 synapses. Spectral analysis of local field potentials (LFPs) recorded when the animal approached the corresponding area in the lever OUT situation presented lower spectral powers than during lever IN occasions for all recording sites, apart from CA1. Thus, the unpredictable availability of a reward-related cue modified the activity of cortical and subcortical areas related with the acquisition of operant learning tasks, suggesting an immediate functional reorganization of these neural circuits to address the changed situation and to modify ongoing behaviors accordingly.

Action-Effect Associations in Voluntary and Cued Task-Switching

Science.gov (United States)

Sommer, Angelika; Lukas, Sarah

2018-01-01

The literature of action control claims that humans control their actions in two ways. In the stimulus-based approach, actions are triggered by external stimuli. In the ideomotor approach, actions are elicited endogenously and controlled by the intended goal. In the current study, our purpose was to investigate whether these two action control modes affect task-switching differently. We combined a classical task-switching paradigm with action-effect learning. Both experiments consisted of two experimental phases: an acquisition phase, in which associations between task, response and subsequent action effects were learned and a test phase, in which the effects of these associations were tested on task performance by presenting the former action effects as preceding effects, prior to the task (called practiced effects). Subjects either chose freely between tasks (ideomotor action control mode) or they were cued as to which task to perform (sensorimotor action control mode). We aimed to replicate the consistency effect (i.e., task is chosen according to the practiced task-effect association) and non-reversal advantage (i.e., better task performance when the practiced effect matches the previously learned task-effect association). Our results suggest that participants acquired stable action-effect associations independently of the learning mode. The consistency effect (Experiment 1) could be shown, independent of the learning mode, but only on the response-level. The non-reversal advantage (Experiment 2) was only evident in the error rates and only for participants who had practiced in the ideomotor action control mode. PMID:29387027

Using clinical governance levers to support change in a cancer care reform.

Science.gov (United States)

Brault, Isabelle; Denis, Jean-Louis; Sullivan, Terrence James

2015-01-01

Introducing change is a difficult issue facing all health care systems. The use of various clinical governance levers can facilitate change in health care systems. The purpose of this paper is to define clinical governance levers, and to illustrate their use in a large-scale transformation. The empirical analysis deals with the in-depth study of a specific case, which is the organizational model for Ontario's cancer sector. The authors used a qualitative research strategy and drew the data from three sources: semi-structured interviews, analysis of documents, and non-participative observations. From the results, the authors identified three phases and several steps in the reform of cancer services in this province. The authors conclude that a combination of clinical governance levers was used to transform the system. These levers operated at different levels of the system to meet the targeted objectives. To exercise clinical governance, managers need to acquire new competencies. Mobilizing clinical governance levers requires in-depth understanding of the role and scope of clinical governance levers. This study provides a better understanding of clinical governance levers. Clinical governance levers are used to implement an organizational environment that is conducive to developing clinical practice, as well as to act directly on practices to improve quality of care.

Encoding tasks dissociate the effects of divided attention on category-cued recall and category-exemplar generation.

Science.gov (United States)

Parker, Andrew; Dagnall, Neil; Munley, Gary

2012-01-01

The combined effects of encoding tasks and divided attention upon category-exemplar generation and category-cued recall were examined. Participants were presented with pairs of words each comprising a category name and potential example of that category. They were then asked to indicate either (i) their liking for both of the words or (ii) if the exemplar was a member of the category. It was found that divided attention reduced performance on the category-cued recall task under both encoding conditions. However, performance on the category-exemplar generation task remained invariant across the attention manipulation following the category judgment task. This provides further evidence that the processes underlying performance on conceptual explicit and implicit memory tasks can be dissociated, and that the intentional formation of category-exemplar associations attenuates the effects of divided attention on category-exemplar generation.

Influence of equal-channel angular pressing on precipitation in an Al-Zn-Mg-Cu alloy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sha, G.; Wang, Y.B.; Liao, X.Z.; Duan, Z.C.; Ringer, S.P.; Langdon, T.G.

2009-01-01

Processing by equal-channel angular pressing (ECAP) affects the morphology of η precipitates in an Al-Zn-Mg-Cu (Al-7136) alloy. It is shown by transmission electron microscopy that ECAP changes the orientation of precipitates and this influences the atomic configuration and the interfacial energy at the η/α-Al interfaces. Consequently, η precipitates adopt an isotropic growth mode and evolve into equiaxed particles. A three-dimensional atom probe analysis demonstrates that large η precipitates formed in different numbers of ECAP passes are of similar composition. The coalescence of smaller precipitates, rather than the fragmentation of larger precipitates, dominates the precipitate evolution.

The structure of affective action representations: temporal binding of affective response codes.

Science.gov (United States)

Eder, Andreas B; Müsseler, Jochen; Hommel, Bernhard

2012-01-01

Two experiments examined the hypothesis that preparing an action with a specific affective connotation involves the binding of this action to an affective code reflecting this connotation. This integration into an action plan should lead to a temporary occupation of the affective code, which should impair the concurrent representation of affectively congruent events, such as the planning of another action with the same valence. This hypothesis was tested with a dual-task setup that required a speeded choice between approach- and avoidance-type lever movements after having planned and before having executed an evaluative button press. In line with the code-occupation hypothesis, slower lever movements were observed when the lever movement was affectively compatible with the prepared evaluative button press than when the two actions were affectively incompatible. Lever movements related to approach and avoidance and evaluative button presses thus seem to share a code that represents affective meaning. A model of affective action control that is based on the theory of event coding is discussed.

Levers Histopathology of the Skin* .,

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Books. Levers Histopathology of the Skin*. By David Elder, Rosalie Elenitsas, Christine Jaworsky and. Bernett Johnson ... for the poor quality of most of the black and white clinical pictures, which ... R85. Long. Me~ord, UK: E B Adams, 1996.

Noninvasive determination of optical lever sensitivity in atomic force microscopy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Higgins, M.J.; Proksch, R.; Sader, J.E.; Polcik, M.; Mc Endoo, S.; Cleveland, J.P.; Jarvis, S.P.

2006-01-01

Atomic force microscopes typically require knowledge of the cantilever spring constant and optical lever sensitivity in order to accurately determine the force from the cantilever deflection. In this study, we investigate a technique to calibrate the optical lever sensitivity of rectangular cantilevers that does not require contact to be made with a surface. This noncontact approach utilizes the method of Sader et al. [Rev. Sci. Instrum. 70, 3967 (1999)] to calibrate the spring constant of the cantilever in combination with the equipartition theorem [J. L. Hutter and J. Bechhoefer, Rev. Sci. Instrum. 64, 1868 (1993)] to determine the optical lever sensitivity. A comparison is presented between sensitivity values obtained from conventional static mode force curves and those derived using this noncontact approach for a range of different cantilevers in air and liquid. These measurements indicate that the method offers a quick, alternative approach for the calibration of the optical lever sensitivity

Noninvasive determination of optical lever sensitivity in atomic force microscopy

Science.gov (United States)

Higgins, M. J.; Proksch, R.; Sader, J. E.; Polcik, M.; Mc Endoo, S.; Cleveland, J. P.; Jarvis, S. P.

2006-01-01

Atomic force microscopes typically require knowledge of the cantilever spring constant and optical lever sensitivity in order to accurately determine the force from the cantilever deflection. In this study, we investigate a technique to calibrate the optical lever sensitivity of rectangular cantilevers that does not require contact to be made with a surface. This noncontact approach utilizes the method of Sader et al. [Rev. Sci. Instrum. 70, 3967 (1999)] to calibrate the spring constant of the cantilever in combination with the equipartition theorem [J. L. Hutter and J. Bechhoefer, Rev. Sci. Instrum. 64, 1868 (1993)] to determine the optical lever sensitivity. A comparison is presented between sensitivity values obtained from conventional static mode force curves and those derived using this noncontact approach for a range of different cantilevers in air and liquid. These measurements indicate that the method offers a quick, alternative approach for the calibration of the optical lever sensitivity.

Physiological evaluation of a newly designed lever mechanism for wheelchairs

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van der Woude, L H; Veeger, DirkJan (H. E. J.); de Boer, Y; Rozendal, R H

1993-01-01

Lever-propelled wheelchairs have been described as more efficient and less physically demanding than hand-rim-propelled wheelchairs. To evaluate a newly designed lever mechanism (MARC) in both one- and two-arm use, a series of wheelchair exercise tests were performed on a motor-driven treadmill.

Does the Lever Sign Test Have Added Value for Diagnosing Anterior Cruciate Ligament Ruptures?

Science.gov (United States)

Lichtenberg, Miranda C.; Koster, Christiaan H.; Teunissen, Lennart P.J.; Oosterveld, Frits G.J.; Harmsen, Annelieke M.K.; Haverkamp, Daniel; Hoornenborg, Daniel; Berg, Robert P.; Bloemers, Frank W.; Faber, Irene R.

2018-01-01

Background: Diagnosing an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) rupture based on a physical examination remains a challenge for both surgeons and physical therapists. The lever sign test was developed to overcome the practical limitations of other tests and to optimize diagnosis. An evaluation of the measurement properties of the lever sign test is needed to make adequate interpretations in practice. Purpose: To evaluate the reliability and diagnostic value of the lever sign test. Study Design: Cohort study (diagnosis); Level of evidence, 2. Methods: A total of 94 patients were recruited between November 2014 and July 2016. Patients were included if they were at least 16 years old, suffered from knee trauma, and had indications for knee arthroscopic surgery. Lever sign, anterior drawer, Lachman, and pivot-shift test outcomes were examined by an orthopaedic/trauma surgeon and a physical therapist. A test-retest design was used to investigate interrater reliability. Moreover, the lever sign test outcomes, alone and in combination with the other diagnostic tests, were compared with arthroscopic results, which served as the gold standard for the test’s diagnostic value. Results: The lever sign test and pivot-shift test had kappa values exceeding 0.80 for interrater reliability. The kappa values for the anterior drawer test and Lachman test were 0.80 and 0.77, respectively. The lever sign test showed the highest specificity (100%) and the lowest sensitivity (39%) when compared with the other 3 tests. Moreover, its positive and negative predictive values were 100% and 65%, respectively, while an accuracy of 71% was calculated. Clustering the lever sign test parallel with the other 3 tests resulted in the highest accuracy of 91%. Conclusion: The lever sign test appears to have high interrater reliability and is the most specific test, showing a maximal positive predictive value. A positive lever sign test result indicates an ACL rupture. These results support the added value

Ergonomic Evaluation of Space Shuttle Light-Weight Seat Lever Position and Operation

Science.gov (United States)

Maida, J.; Rajulu, Sudhakar L.; Bond, Robert L. (Technical Monitor)

2000-01-01

During a Shuttle flight in the early part of 1999, one of the crewmembers was unable to operate the backrest lever for the light-weight seat in microgravity. It is essential that the crewmembers are able to adjust this back-rest lever, which is titled forward 2 degrees from vertical during launch and then moved backwards to 10 degrees aft of vertical upon reaching orbit. This adjustment is needed to cushion the crewmembers during an inadvertent crash landing situation. The original Shuttle seats, which had seat controls located on the front left and right sides of the seat, were replaced recently with the new light-weight seats. The controls for these new, seats were moved to the night side with one control at the front and the other at the back. While it was uncertain whether the problem encountered was unique to that crewmember or not it was clear to the personnel responsible for maintaining the Shuttle seats that not knowing the cause of the problem posed a safety concern for NASA. Hence the Anthropometry and Biomechanics Facility (ABF) of the Johnson Space Center was requested to perform an evaluation of the seat controls and provide NASA with appropriate recommendations on whether the seat lever positions and operations should be modified. The ABF designed an experiment to investigate the amount of pull force exerted by subjects, wearing an unpressurized or pressurized crew launch escape suit, when controls were placed in the front and back (on the right side) of the light-weight seat. Single-axis load cells were attached to the seat levers, which measured the maximum static pull forces that were exerted by the subjects. Twelve subjects, six male and six female, participated in this study. Each subject was asked to perform the pull test at least three times for each combination of lever position and suit pressure conditions. The results from this study showed that as a whole (or in general), the subjects were able to pull on the lever at the back position with

Simple die pressing for making artificial holes in single-grain Gd1.5Ba2Cu3O7−y superconductors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, K-M; Park, S-D; Jun, B-H; Kim, C-J; Ko, T K

2012-01-01

The presence of artificial holes in single-grain REBa 2 Cu 3 O 7−y (RE123, RE: rare-earth elements) bulk superconductors can facilitate oxygen diffusion into superconducting grains through the increased surface area. In addition to the enhancement of oxygen diffusion, the mechanical properties and thermal conductivity of bulk superconductors can be improved by filling holes with a metallic conductive phase. This study presents a new and simple hole-making process for single-grain RE123 bulk superconductors. Artificial holes 3 or 5 mm in diameter were made for Gd 1.5 Ba 2 Cu 3 O 7−y (Gd1.5) powder compacts prior to the sintering/melt growth process using specially designed pressing dies. The die pressing neither induced cracking in powder compacts nor influenced thermal procedures for the Gd123 growth. Single-grain Gd1.5 bulk superconductors with holes were successfully fabricated by a top-seeded melt growth (TSMG) process using Gd1.5 powder compacts with holes. The die pressing was proven as a time-saving process in comparison with the conventional method which makes holes in sintered or melt-processed hard bodies by mechanical drilling. The detailed fabrication process of single-grain Gd1.5 bulk superconductor with holes, magnetic levitation forces, and magnetic flux density, estimated for the single-grain Gd123 bulk superconductors with holes, are reported. (paper)

On strain-induced dissolution of θ' and θ particles in Al-Cu binary alloy during equal channel angular pressing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liu Zhiyi; Bai Song; Zhou Xuanwei; Gu Yanxia

2011-01-01

Research highlights: → θ' particles in Al-Cu binary alloy was found to dissolve more rapidly than θ particles. → The different dissolution behavior of the θ' and θ phase was thermodynamically analysed. → The critical radius and free energy barrier for the strain-induced dissolution were calculated. - Abstract: The deformable θ' particle in Al-Cu binary alloy was found to dissolve more rapidly than the indeformable θ particle due to an additional increasing strain energy accumulated in the deformed θ' plate as well as an increasing interface energy led by the formation of sub-boundary in the θ' plate and fragmentation of the particle during equal channel angular pressing (ECAP). The critical radius and the free energy barrier for the strain-induced dissolution of both θ' and θ particles were calculated.

The influence of short-term memory on standard discrimination and cued identification olfactory tasks.

Science.gov (United States)

Zucco, Gesualdo M; Hummel, Thomas; Tomaiuolo, Francesco; Stevenson, Richard J

2014-01-30

Amongst the techniques to assess olfactory functions, discrimination and cued identification are those most prone to the influence of odour short-term memory (STM). Discrimination task requires participants to detect the odd one out of three presented odourants. As re-smelling is not permitted, an un-intended STM load may generate, even though the task purports to assess discrimination ability. Analogously, cued identification task requires participants to smell an odour, and then select a label from three or four alternatives. As the interval between smelling and reading each label increases this too imposes a STM load, even though the task aims to measure identification ability. We tested whether modifying task design to reduce STM load improve performance on these tests. We examined five age-groups of participants (Adolescents, Young adults, Middle-aged, Elderly, very Elderly), some of whom should be more prone to the effects of STM load than others, on standard and modified tests of discrimination and identification. We found that using a technique to reduce STM load improved performance, especially for the very Elderly and Adolescent groups. Sources of error are now prevented. Findings indicate that STM load can adversely affect performance in groups vulnerable from memory impairment (i.e., very Elderly) and in those who may still be acquiring memory-based representations of familiar odours (i.e., Adolescents). It may be that adults in general would be even more sensitive to the effects of olfactory STM load reduction, if the odour-related task was more difficult. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The Effects of Lever Arm (Instrument Offset) Error on GRAV-D Airborne Gravity Data

Science.gov (United States)

Johnson, J. A.; Youngman, M.; Damiani, T.

2017-12-01

High quality airborne gravity collection with a 2-axis, stabilized platform gravity instrument, such as with a Micro-g LaCoste Turnkey Airborne Gravity System (TAGS), is dependent on the aircraft's ability to maintain "straight and level" flight. However, during flight there is constant rotation about the aircraft's center of gravity. Standard practice is to install the scientific equipment close to the aircraft's estimated center of gravity to minimize the relative rotations with aircraft motion. However, there remain small offsets between the instruments. These distance offsets, the lever arm, are used to define the rigid-body, spatial relationship between the IMU, GPS antenna, and airborne gravimeter within the aircraft body frame. The Gravity for the Redefinition of the American Vertical Datum (GRAV-D) project, which is collecting airborne gravity data across the U.S., uses a commercial software package for coupled IMU-GNSS aircraft positioning. This software incorporates a lever arm correction to calculate a precise position for the airborne gravimeter. The positioning software must do a coordinate transformation to relate each epoch of the coupled GNSS-IMU derived position to the position of the gravimeter within the constantly-rotating aircraft. This transformation requires three inputs: accurate IMU-measured aircraft rotations, GNSS positions, and lever arm distances between instruments. Previous studies show that correcting for the lever arm distances improves gravity results, but no sensitivity tests have been done to investigate how error in the lever arm distances affects the final airborne gravity products. This research investigates the effects of lever arm measurement error on airborne gravity data. GRAV-D lever arms are nominally measured to the cm-level using surveying equipment. "Truth" data sets will be created by processing GRAV-D flight lines with both relatively small lever arms and large lever arms. Then negative and positive incremental

An analysis of policy levers used to implement mental health reform in Australia 1992-2012.

Science.gov (United States)

Grace, Francesca C; Meurk, Carla S; Head, Brian W; Hall, Wayne D; Carstensen, Georgia; Harris, Meredith G; Whiteford, Harvey A

2015-10-24

Over the past two decades, mental health reform in Australia has received unprecedented government attention. This study explored how five policy levers (organisation, regulation, community education, finance and payment) were used by the Australian Federal Government to implement mental health reforms. Australian Government publications, including the four mental health plans (published in 1992, 1998, 2003 and 2008) were analysed according to policy levers used to drive reform across five priority areas: [1] human rights and community attitudes; [2] responding to community need; [3] service structures; [4] service quality and effectiveness; and [5] resources and service access. Policy levers were applied in varying ways; with two or three levers often concurrently used to implement a single initiative or strategy. For example, changes to service structures were achieved using various combinations of all five levers. Attempts to improve service quality and effectiveness were instead made through a single lever-regulation. The use of some levers changed over time, including a move away from prescriptive, legislative use of regulation, towards a greater focus on monitoring service standards and consumer outcomes. Patterns in the application of policy levers across the National Mental Health Strategy, as identified in this analysis, represent a novel way of conceptualising the history of mental health reform in Australia. An improved understanding of the strategic targeting and appropriate utilisation of policy levers may assist in the delivery and evaluation of evidence-based mental health reform in the future.

Specificity of the bilingual advantage for memory: Examining cued recall, generalization, and working memory in monolingual, bilingual, and trilingual toddlers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Natalie Hiromi Brito

2014-12-01

Full Text Available The specificity of the bilingual advantage in memory was examined by testing groups of monolingual, bilingual, and trilingual 24-month-olds on tasks tapping cued recall, memory generalization and working memory. For the cued recall and memory generalization conditions, there was a 24-hour delay between time of encoding and time of retrieval. In addition to the memory tasks, parent-toddler dyads completed a picture-book reading task, in order to observe emotional responsiveness, and a parental report of productive vocabulary. Results indicated no difference between language groups on cued recall, working memory, emotional responsiveness, or productive vocabulary, but a significant difference was found in the memory generalization condition with only the bilingual group outperforming the baseline control group. These results replicate and extend results from past studies (Brito and Barr, 2012; 2014; Brito et al., in press and suggest a bilingual advantage specific to memory generalization.

Influence of cold isostatic pressing on the magnetic properties of Ni-Zn-Cu ferrite

Science.gov (United States)

Le, Trong Trung; Valdez-Nava, Zarel; Lebey, Thierry; Mazaleyrat, Frédéric

2018-04-01

In power electronics, there is the need to develop solutions to increase the power density of converters. Interleaved multicellular transformers allow interleaving many switching cells and, as a result, a possible increase in the power density. This converter is often composed of a magnetic core having the function of an intercell transformer (ICT) and, depending on the complexity of the designed architecture, its shape could be extremely complex. The switching frequencies (1-10 MHz) for the new wide band gap semiconductors (SiC, GaN) allow to interleave switching cell at higher frequencies than silicon-based semiconductors (materials, but their limit in frequency drive raises the need of higher frequency magnetic materials, such Ni-Zn ferrites. These materials can operate in medium and high power converters up to 10 MHz. We propose to use Ni0,30Zn0,57Cu0,15Fe2O4 ferrite and to compress it by cold isostatic pressing (CIP) into a a green ceramic block and to machine it to obtain the desired ICT of complex shape prior sintering. We compare the magnetic permeability spectra and hysteresis loops the CIP and uniaxially pressed ferrites. The effect of temperature and sintering time as well as high-pressure on properties will be presented in detail. The magnetic properties of the sintered cores are strongly dependent on the microstructure obtained.

Cognitive Factors Affecting Free Recall, Cued Recall, and Recognition Tasks in Alzheimer’s Disease

OpenAIRE

Takashi Yamagishi; Takuya Sato; Atsushi Sato; Toru Imamura

2012-01-01

Background/Aims: Our aim was to identify cognitive factors affecting free recall, cued recall, and recognition tasks in patients with Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Subjects: We recruited 349 consecutive AD patients who attended a memory clinic. Methods: Each patient was assessed using the Alzheimer’s Disease Assessment Scale (ADAS) and the extended 3-word recall test. In this task, each patient was asked to freely recall 3 previously presented words. If patients could not recall 1 or more of the ...

A technique for the calibration of Andrade-Chalmers cam levers used on creep tests

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mendoza, A.; Salazar, A.; Morales, A.; Montemayor-Aldrete, M.

1994-01-01

In this work we report the analysis of typical errors arising from an Andrade-Chalmers lever cam, used as machine for mechanical constant stress tests. A procedure to obtain the magnitude of the applied stress as a function of the rotation of the lever arm was developed by used a mechanism which allow us to simulate the sample deformation. The used physical mechanism involves LVDT and Load Cell transducers. The characteristic parameters of the lever arm were founded using a least squares criterion procedure on the digitalized values of transducers signals. The departure existing between an actual lever and ideal one was fully analyzed. (Author) 18 refs

La Lever house, New York

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sergio de Miguel

2012-12-01

Full Text Available

Resumen

En el último siglo la mítica ciudad de Nueva York ha sido capaz de definir y transmitir las más contagiosas propuestas de  construcción del futuro.
El edificio de la Lever House, erigido en el corazón de Manhattan al comienzo de la prodigiosa década de los cincuenta, consiguió ser la constatación de que el perseguido sueño de la “torre de cristal” era por fin posible. La poética y secular conquista de la  levedad avanzó entonces a través de un prosaico y paradójico objeto publicitario. Un particular crisol de negocio, oportunidad y audacia hicieron de ésta sorprendente pieza un icono   fundamental de la globalizada arquitectura moderna americana.

Nota* En la edición electrónica este artículo se ha publicado con toda documentación gráfica aportada por el autor.

Palabras clave

Lever house, torre, levedad, cristal, publicidad, icono

Abstract

In the last century, the mythical city of New York has been able to define and transmit the most contagious proposals of  innovative construction.
The Lever House Building, erected in the heart of Manhattan at  the start of the prodigious 1950s managed to become a  statement for the possibility of finally realizing the sought‐after
dream of building a glass tower. The poetics and secular   conquest of lightness therefore made a leap forward through a prosaic and paradoxical publicity item. A special crucible of business, opportunity and audacity made a fundamental icon of globalized modern American Architecture out of this surprising work.

Note * In the online edition this article is published with all graphic material provided by the author.

Quantitative Analysis of Language Production in Parkinson's Disease Using a Cued Sentence Generation Task

Science.gov (United States)

Vanhoutte, Sarah; De Letter, Miet; Corthals, Paul; Van Borsel, John; Santens, Patrick

2012-01-01

The present study examined language production skills in Parkinson's disease (PD) patients. A unique cued sentence generation task was created in order to reduce demands on memory and attention. Differences in sentence production abilities according to disease severity and cognitive impairments were assessed. Language samples were obtained from 20…

Effect of hot pressing additives on the leachability of hot pressed sodium hydrous titanium oxide

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Valentine, T.M.; Sambell, R.A.J.

1980-01-01

Sodium hydrous titanium oxide is an ion exchange resin which can be used for immobilizing medium level waste (MLW) liquors. When hot pressed, it undergoes conversion to a ceramic. Three low melting point materials (borax, bismuth trioxide, and a mixture of PbO/CuO) were added to the (Na)HTiO and the effect that each of these had on aiding densification was assessed. Hot pressing temperature, applied pressure, and percentage addition of hot pressing aid were varied. Percentage open porosity, flexural strength, and leachability were measured. There was a linear relationship between the percentage open porosity and the logarithm of the leach rate for a constant percentage addition of each additive

Mechanical efficiency of two commercial lever-propulsion mechanisms for manual wheelchair locomotion.

Science.gov (United States)

Lui, Jordon; MacGillivray, Megan K; Sheel, A William; Jeyasurya, Jeswin; Sadeghi, Mahsa; Sawatzky, Bonita Jean

2013-01-01

The purpose of this study was to (1) evaluate the mechanical efficiency (ME) of two commercially available lever-propulsion mechanisms for wheelchairs and (2) compare the ME of lever propulsion with hand rim propulsion within the same wheelchair. Of the two mechanisms, one contained a torsion spring while the other used a roller clutch design. We hypothesized that the torsion spring mechanism would increase the ME of propulsion due to a passive recovery stroke enabled by the mechanism. Ten nondisabled male participants with no prior manual wheeling experience performed submaximal exercise tests using both lever-propulsion mechanisms and hand rim propulsion on two different wheelchairs. Cardiopulmonary parameters including oxygen uptake (VO2), heart rate (HR), and energy expenditure (En) were determined. Total external power (Pext) was measured using a drag test protocol. ME was determined by the ratio of Pext to En. Results indicated no significant effect of lever-propulsion mechanism for all physiological measures tested. This suggests that the torsion spring did not result in a physiological benefit compared with the roller clutch mechanism. However, both lever-propulsion mechanisms showed decreased VO2 and HR and increased ME (as a function of slope) compared with hand rim propulsion (p propulsion mechanisms tested are more mechanically efficient than conventional hand rim propulsion, especially when slopes are encountered.

When and Where Learning is Taking Place: Multisynaptic Changes in Strength During Different Behaviors Related to the Acquisition of an Operant Conditioning Task by Behaving Rats.

Science.gov (United States)

Fernández-Lamo, Iván; Delgado-García, José M; Gruart, Agnès

2018-03-01

Although it is generally assumed that brain circuits are modified by new experiences, the question of which changes in synaptic efficacy take place in cortical and subcortical circuits across the learning process remains unanswered. Rats were trained in the acquisition of an operant conditioning in a Skinner box provided with light beams to detect animals' approaches to lever and feeder. Behaviors such as pressing the lever, eating, exploring, and grooming were also recorded. Animals were chronically implanted with stimulating and recording electrodes in hippocampal, prefrontal, and subcortical sites relevant to the task. Field synaptic potentials were evoked during the performance of the above-mentioned behaviors and before, during, and after the acquisition process. Afferent pathways to the hippocampus and the intrinsic hippocampal circuit were slightly modified in synaptic strength during the performance of those behaviors. In contrast, afferent and efferent circuits of the medial prefrontal cortex were significantly modified in synaptic strength across training sessions, mostly at the moment of the largest change in the learning curve. Performance of behaviors nondirectly related to the acquisition process (exploring, grooming) also evoked changes in synaptic strength across training. This study helps to understand when and where learning is being engraved in the brain. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

49 CFR 236.340 - Electromechanical interlocking machine; locking between electrical and mechanical levers.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... Electromechanical interlocking machine; locking between electrical and mechanical levers. In electro-mechanical interlocking machine, locking between electric and mechanical levers shall be maintained so that mechanical... 49 Transportation 4 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Electromechanical interlocking machine; locking...

The role of the lateral habenula in punishment.

Science.gov (United States)

Jean-Richard Dit Bressel, Philip; McNally, Gavan P

2014-01-01

The lateral habenula (LHb) is a small epithalamic structure that projects via the fasciculus retroflexus to the midbrain. The LHb is known to modulate midbrain dopamine (DA) neurons, including inhibition of ventral tegmental area (VTA) neurons via glutamatergic excitation of the GABAergic rostromedial tegmental nucleus (RMTg). A variety of lines of evidence show activity in LHb and the LHb-RMTg pathway is correlated with, and is sufficient to support, punishment learning. However, it is not immediately clear whether LHb is necessary for punishment. Here we used a within-subjects punishment task to assess the role of LHb in the acquisition and expression of punishment as well as in aversive choice. Rats that pressed two individually presented levers for pellet rewards rapidly suppressed responding to one lever if it also caused footshock deliveries (punished lever) but continued pressing a second lever that did not cause footshock (unpunished lever). Infusions of an AMPA receptor antagonist (NBQX) into LHb had no effect on the acquisition or expression of this punishment, or on aversive choice, but did increase locomotion. Infusion of the sodium channel blocker bupivacaine likewise had no effect on expression of punishment. However, infusion of the calcium channel blocker mibefradil did affect expression of punishment by significantly decreasing the latency with which rats responded on the punished lever and significantly increasing unpunished lever-pressing. Taken together, these findings indicate that the LHb plays a limited role in punishment, influencing only latency to respond. This role is linked to calcium channel permeability and not AMPA receptor or sodium channel permeability.

Reward Motivation Enhances Task Coding in Frontoparietal Cortex.

Science.gov (United States)

Etzel, Joset A; Cole, Michael W; Zacks, Jeffrey M; Kay, Kendrick N; Braver, Todd S

2016-04-01

Reward motivation often enhances task performance, but the neural mechanisms underlying such cognitive enhancement remain unclear. Here, we used a multivariate pattern analysis (MVPA) approach to test the hypothesis that motivation-related enhancement of cognitive control results from improved encoding and representation of task set information. Participants underwent two fMRI sessions of cued task switching, the first under baseline conditions, and the second with randomly intermixed reward incentive and no-incentive trials. Information about the upcoming task could be successfully decoded from cue-related activation patterns in a set of frontoparietal regions typically associated with task control. More critically, MVPA classifiers trained on the baseline session had significantly higher decoding accuracy on incentive than non-incentive trials, with decoding improvement mediating reward-related enhancement of behavioral performance. These results strongly support the hypothesis that reward motivation enhances cognitive control, by improving the discriminability of task-relevant information coded and maintained in frontoparietal brain regions. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

What role does performance information play in securing improvement in healthcare? a conceptual framework for levers of change.

Science.gov (United States)

Levesque, Jean-Frederic; Sutherland, Kim

2017-08-28

Across healthcare systems, there is consensus on the need for independent and impartial assessment of performance. There is less agreement about how measurement and reporting performance improves healthcare. This paper draws on academic theories to develop a conceptual framework-one that classifies in an integrated manner the ways in which change can be leveraged by healthcare performance information. A synthesis of published frameworks. The framework identifies eight levers for change enabled by performance information, spanning internal and external drivers, and emergent and planned processes: (1) cognitive levers provide awareness and understanding; (2) mimetic levers inform about the performance of others to encourage emulation; (3) supportive levers provide facilitation, implementation tools or models of care to actively support change; (4) formative levers develop capabilities and skills through teaching, mentoring and feedback; (5) normative levers set performance against guidelines, standards, certification and accreditation processes; (6) coercive levers use policies, regulations incentives and disincentives to force change; (7) structural levers modify the physical environment or professional cultures and routines; (8) competitive levers attract patients or funders. This framework highlights how performance measurement and reporting can contribute to eight different levers for change. It provides guidance into how to align performance measurement and reporting into quality improvement programme. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2017. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

Influence of cold isostatic pressing on the magnetic properties of Ni-Zn-Cu ferrite

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Trong Trung Le

2018-04-01

Full Text Available In power electronics, there is the need to develop solutions to increase the power density of converters. Interleaved multicellular transformers allow interleaving many switching cells and, as a result, a possible increase in the power density. This converter is often composed of a magnetic core having the function of an intercell transformer (ICT and, depending on the complexity of the designed architecture, its shape could be extremely complex. The switching frequencies (1-10 MHz for the new wide band gap semiconductors (SiC, GaN allow to interleave switching cell at higher frequencies than silicon-based semiconductors (<1 MHz. Intercell transformers must follow this increase in frequency times-fold the number of switching cells. Current applications for ICT transformers use Mn-Zn based materials, but their limit in frequency drive raises the need of higher frequency magnetic materials, such Ni-Zn ferrites. These materials can operate in medium and high power converters up to 10 MHz. We propose to use Ni0,30Zn0,57Cu0,15Fe2O4 ferrite and to compress it by cold isostatic pressing (CIP into a a green ceramic block and to machine it to obtain the desired ICT of complex shape prior sintering. We compare the magnetic permeability spectra and hysteresis loops the CIP and uniaxially pressed ferrites. The effect of temperature and sintering time as well as high-pressure on properties will be presented in detail. The magnetic properties of the sintered cores are strongly dependent on the microstructure obtained.

Jan Lever: Challenging the Role of Typological Thinking in Reformational Views of Biology

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Cook, Harry; Flipse, A.C.

2017-01-01

This essay analyzes the view of evolution of Jan Lever (1922–2010), founder of the biology department at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, and compares his view with those of J.H. Diemer and H. Dooyeweerd. Together with Dooyeweerd, Lever wrote a series of chapters on the species concept in

Development of isometric force and force control in children

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Smits-Engelsman, B.C.M.; Westenberg, Y.; Duysens, J.E.J.

2004-01-01

Fifty-six children between 5 and 12 years of age and 15 adults performed a task (pressing on a lever with the index finger of the preferred hand), in which a force had to be maintained constant at five levels with on-line visual feedback. Since this is a simple isometric task, the hypothesis is that

Development of isometric force and force control in children.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Smits-Engelsman, B.C.M.; Westenberg, Y.; Duysens, J.E.J.

2003-01-01

Fifty-six children between 5 and 12 years of age and 15 adults performed a task (pressing on a lever with the index finger of the preferred hand), in which a force had to be maintained constant at five levels with on-line visual feedback. Since this is a simple isometric task, the hypothesis is that

Shift in the intrinsic excitability of medial prefrontal cortex neurons following training in impulse control and cued-responding tasks.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Scott J Hayton

Full Text Available Impulse control is an executive process that allows animals to inhibit their actions until an appropriate time. Previously, we reported that learning a simple response inhibition task increases AMPA currents at excitatory synapses in the prelimbic region of the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC. Here, we examined whether modifications to intrinsic excitability occurred alongside the synaptic changes. To that end, we trained rats to obtain a food reward in a response inhibition task by withhold responding on a lever until they were signaled to respond. We then measured excitability, using whole-cell patch clamp recordings in brain slices, by quantifying action potentials generated by the injection of depolarizing current steps. Training in this task depressed the excitability of layer V pyramidal neurons of the prelimbic, but not infralimbic, region of the mPFC relative to behavioral controls. This decrease in maximum spiking frequency was significantly correlated with performance on the final session of the task. This change in intrinsic excitability may represent a homeostatic mechanism counterbalancing increased excitatory synaptic inputs onto those neurons in trained rats. Interestingly, subjects trained with a cue that predicted imminent reward availability had increased excitability in infralimbic, but not the prelimbic, pyramidal neurons. This dissociation suggests that both prelimbic and infralimbic neurons are involved in directing action, but specialized for different types of information, inhibitory or anticipatory, respectively.

Professional WordPress design and development

CERN Document Server

Williams, Brad; Stern, Hal

2014-01-01

The highest rated WordPress development and design book on the market is back with an all new third edition. Professional WordPress is the only WordPress book targeted to developers, with advanced content that exploits the full functionality of the most popular CMS in the world. Fully updated to align with WordPress 4.1, this edition has updated examples with all new screenshots, and full exploration of additional tasks made possible by the latest tools and features. You will gain insight into real projects that currently use WordPress as an application framework, as well as the basic usage a

Blind rats are not profoundly impaired in the reference memory Morris water maze and cannot be clearly discriminated from rats with cognitive deficits in the cued platform task.

Science.gov (United States)

Lindner, M D; Plone, M A; Schallert, T; Emerich, D F

1997-06-01

The Morris water maze is commonly used to test cognitive function in rodent models of neurological disorders including age-related cognitive deficits. It is often assumed that the most profoundly impaired aged rats may be blind due to retinal degeneration, and it has been reported that animals with visual sensory deficits can be identified based on their performance in a cued platform task. The results of the present study demonstrate that blind rats can perform surprisingly well in the reference memory version of the Morris water maze, and that blind rats cannot be selectively excluded based on performance in the cued platform task since atropine-treated rats also perform poorly in the cued platform task. Future studies may be able to develop screening procedures that help to eliminate subjects with non-cognitive deficits, but the present results do not support the use of the cued platform or straight swim task as screening procedures. Experimenters must be careful to consider the role that visual sensory function and other non-cognitive factors may have in performance of the spatial learning Morris water maze, and also the role that severe cognitive deficits may have in performance of the cued platform task.

Functional Roles of Neural Preparatory Processes in a Cued Stroop Task Revealed by Linking Electrophysiology with Behavioral Performance.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chao Wang

Full Text Available It is well established that cuing facilitates behavioral performance and that different aspects of instructional cues evoke specific neural preparatory processes in cued task-switching paradigms. To deduce the functional role of these neural preparatory processes the majority of studies vary aspects of the experimental paradigm and describe how these variations alter markers of neural preparatory processes. Although these studies provide important insights, they also have notable limitations, particularly in terms of understanding the causal or functional relationship of neural markers to cognitive and behavioral processes. In this study, we sought to address these limitations and uncover the functional roles of neural processes by examining how variability in the amplitude of neural preparatory processes predicts behavioral performance to subsequent stimuli. To achieve this objective 16 young adults were recruited to perform a cued Stroop task while their brain activity was measured using high-density electroencephalography. Four temporally overlapping but functionally and topographically distinct cue-triggered event related potentials (ERPs were identified: 1 A left-frontotemporal negativity (250-700 ms that was positively associated with word-reading performance; 2 a midline-frontal negativity (450-800 ms that was positively associated with color-naming and incongruent performance; 3 a left-frontal negativity (450-800 ms that was positively associated with switch trial performance; and 4 a centroparietal positivity (450-800 ms that was positively associated with performance for almost all trial types. These results suggest that at least four dissociable cognitive processes are evoked by instructional cues in the present task, including: 1 domain-specific task facilitation; 2 switch-specific task-set reconfiguration; 3 preparation for response conflict; and 4 proactive attentional control. Examining the relationship between ERPs and behavioral

Functional Roles of Neural Preparatory Processes in a Cued Stroop Task Revealed by Linking Electrophysiology with Behavioral Performance.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Chao; Ding, Mingzhou; Kluger, Benzi M

2015-01-01

It is well established that cuing facilitates behavioral performance and that different aspects of instructional cues evoke specific neural preparatory processes in cued task-switching paradigms. To deduce the functional role of these neural preparatory processes the majority of studies vary aspects of the experimental paradigm and describe how these variations alter markers of neural preparatory processes. Although these studies provide important insights, they also have notable limitations, particularly in terms of understanding the causal or functional relationship of neural markers to cognitive and behavioral processes. In this study, we sought to address these limitations and uncover the functional roles of neural processes by examining how variability in the amplitude of neural preparatory processes predicts behavioral performance to subsequent stimuli. To achieve this objective 16 young adults were recruited to perform a cued Stroop task while their brain activity was measured using high-density electroencephalography. Four temporally overlapping but functionally and topographically distinct cue-triggered event related potentials (ERPs) were identified: 1) A left-frontotemporal negativity (250-700 ms) that was positively associated with word-reading performance; 2) a midline-frontal negativity (450-800 ms) that was positively associated with color-naming and incongruent performance; 3) a left-frontal negativity (450-800 ms) that was positively associated with switch trial performance; and 4) a centroparietal positivity (450-800 ms) that was positively associated with performance for almost all trial types. These results suggest that at least four dissociable cognitive processes are evoked by instructional cues in the present task, including: 1) domain-specific task facilitation; 2) switch-specific task-set reconfiguration; 3) preparation for response conflict; and 4) proactive attentional control. Examining the relationship between ERPs and behavioral

Techniques for establishing schedules with wheel running as reinforcement in rats.

Science.gov (United States)

Iversen, I H

1993-07-01

In three experiments, access to wheel running was contingent on lever pressing. In each experiment, the duration of access to running was reduced gradually to 4, 5, or 6 s, and the schedule parameters were expanded gradually. The sessions lasted 2 hr. In Experiment 1, a fixed-ratio 20 schedule controlled a typical break-and-run pattern of lever pressing that was maintained throughout the session for 3 rats. In Experiment 2, a fixed-interval schedule of 6 min maintained lever pressing throughout the session for 3 rats, and for 1 rat, the rate of lever pressing was positively accelerated between reinforcements. In Experiment 3, a variable-ratio schedule of 20 or 35 was in effect and maintained lever pressing at a very stable pace throughout the session for 2 of 3 rats; for 1 rat, lever pressing was maintained at an irregular rate. When the session duration was extended to successive 24-hr periods, with food and water accessible in Experiment 3, lever pressing settled into a periodic pattern occurring at a high rate at approximately the same time each day. In each experiment, the rats that developed the highest local rates of running during wheel access also maintained the most stable and highest rates of lever pressing.

[Equivalent Lever Principle of Ossicular Chain and Amplitude Reduction Effect of Internal Ear Lymph].

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, Xiaoyan; Qin, Renjia

2015-04-01

This paper makes persuasive demonstrations on some problems about the human ear sound transmission principle in existing physiological textbooks and reference books, and puts forward the authors' view to make up for its literature. Exerting the knowledge of lever in physics and the acoustics theory, we come up with an equivalent simplified model of manubrium mallei which is to meet the requirements as the long arm of the lever. We also set up an equivalent simplified model of ossicular chain--a combination of levers of ossicular chain. We disassemble the model into two simple levers, and make full analysis and demonstration on them. Through the calculation and comparison of displacement amplitudes in both external auditory canal air and internal ear lymph, we may draw a conclusion that the key reason, which the sound displacement amplitude is to be decreased to adapt to the endurance limit of the basement membrane, is that the density and sound speed in lymph is much higher than those in the air.

What’s Easier: Doing What You Want, or Being Told What to Do? Cued versus Voluntary Language and Task Switching

Science.gov (United States)

Gollan, Tamar H.; Kleinman, Daniel; Wierenga, Christina E.

2014-01-01

The current study contrasted cued versus voluntary switching to investigate switching efficiency and possible sharing of control mechanisms across linguistic and non-linguistic domains. Bilinguals switched between naming pictures in Spanish versus English or between reading numbers aloud versus adding their digits, either without or with repetition of stimuli, and with fewer requirements as to when and how much they had to switch relative to previous instantiations of voluntary switching. Without repetition (Experiment 1), voluntary responses were faster than cued responses on both stay and switch trials (especially in the non-linguistic switching task), whereas in previous studies the voluntary advantage was restricted to switch-cost reduction. Similarly, when targets were presented repeatedly (Experiment 2), voluntary responses were faster overall for both linguistic and non-linguistic switching, though here the advantage tended to be larger on switch trials. Experiment 3 confirmed the overall voluntary speed advantage for the read-add task in monolinguals, and revealed a reduction in switch costs only for a different non-linguistic task (size-parity judgments). These results reveal greater overall advantages for voluntary over cued switching than previously reported, but also that the precise manifestation of the voluntary advantage can vary with different tasks. In the linguistic domain, lexical inaccessibility introduces some unique control mechanisms, and repetition may magnify cross-domain overlap in control mechanisms. Finally, under some limited conditions, cost-free switches were found in both linguistic and non-linguistic domains; however, suspension of top-down control may be restricted to language or highly automatic tasks. PMID:25313951

Level of recall, retrieval speed, and variability on the Cued-Recall Retrieval Speed Task (CRRST) in individuals with amnestic mild cognitive impairment.

Science.gov (United States)

Ramratan, Wendy S; Rabin, Laura A; Wang, Cuiling; Zimmerman, Molly E; Katz, Mindy J; Lipton, Richard B; Buschke, Herman

2012-03-01

Individuals with amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI) show deficits on traditional episodic memory tasks and reductions in speed of performance on reaction time tasks. We present results on a novel task, the Cued-Recall Retrieval Speed Task (CRRST), designed to simultaneously measure level and speed of retrieval. A total of 390 older adults (mean age, 80.2 years), learned 16 words based on corresponding categorical cues. In the retrieval phase, we measured accuracy (% correct) and retrieval speed/reaction time (RT; time from cue presentation to voice onset of a correct response) across 6 trials. Compared to healthy elderly adults (HEA, n = 303), those with aMCI (n = 87) exhibited poorer performance in retrieval speed (difference = -0.13; p cued-learning and processing speed variability may facilitate early detection of dementia in at-risk older adults.

High density high-TC ceramic superconductors by hot pressing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mak, S.; Chaklader, A.C.D.

1989-01-01

High density and high T C superconductor specimens, YBa 2 Cu 3 O x , have been produced by hot-pressing. The factors studied are the effect of hot pressing on the density, the oxygen stoichiometry, the crystal structure, and the critical temperature. Hot pressing followed by heat treatment increased the density of the specimen to 93%. The hot pressing itself did not significantly affect the oxygen content in the specimen, and although the crystal structure appeared to be orthorhombic, the specimens were not superconducting above liquid nitrogen temperature. The superconductivity was restored after head treatment in oxygen. The highest critical temperature (T C ) of the hot pressed pellets was 82K, which was slightly lower than the T C that could be obtained with the cold pressed/sintered pellets. (6 refs., 5 figs., tab.)

The C-Lever Project: Haptics for Automotive Applications

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Garcia Canseco, E.; Ayemlong Fokem, A.; Serrarens, A.F.A.; Steinbuch, M.; Stigter, H.

2010-01-01

The goal of this project is to research the effectiveness of a controlled haptic force feedback shift lever that can accurately reproduce the behavior of a manual gear shift during driving, and that can also be used to control interior and comfort functions in the car.

WordPress 24-Hour Trainer

CERN Document Server

Plumley, George

2011-01-01

The eagerly anticipated second edition, completely updated for WordPress 3.1 As an open source content management system, WordPress allows users to easily build feature-rich web sites with no programming experience. This unique book-and-video package is a friendly, self-paced beginners guide to the latest release of WordPress. Lessons are focused on practical, everyday tasks that users will need to create and maintain their sites: entering new content, creating new pages, managing menus, making content search-engine friendly. Plus you'll find lots of tips based on years of experience teaching

WordPress 3 Cookbook

CERN Document Server

Shreves, Ric

2011-01-01

This is a Packt Cookbook, which means it contains step-by-step instructions to achieve a particular goal or solve a particular problem. There are plenty of screenshots and explained practical tasks to make comprehension quick and easy. This book is not specifically for developers or programmers; rather it can be used by anyone who wants to get more out of their WordPress blog by following step-by-step instructions. A basic knowledge of PHP/XHTML/CSS/WordPress is desirable but not necessary.

Validation of operant social motivation paradigms using BTBR T+tf/J and C57BL/6J inbred mouse strains

Science.gov (United States)

Martin, Loren; Sample, Hannah; Gregg, Michael; Wood, Caleb

2014-01-01

Background As purported causal factors are identified for autism spectrum disorder (ASD), new assays are needed to better phenotype animal models designed to explore these factors. With recent evidence suggesting that deficits in social motivation are at the core of ASD behavior, the development of quantitative measures of social motivation is particularly important. The goal of our study was to develop and validate novel assays to quantitatively measure social motivation in mice. Methods In order to test the validity of our paradigms, we compared the BTBR strain, with documented social deficits, to the prosocial C57BL/6J strain. Two novel conditioning paradigms were developed that allowed the test mouse to control access to a social partner. In the social motivation task, the test mice lever pressed for a social reward. The reward contingency was set on a progressive ratio of reinforcement and the number of lever presses achieved in the final trial of a testing session (breakpoint) was used as an index of social motivation. In the valence comparison task, motivation for a food reward was compared to a social reward. We also explored activity, social affiliation, and preference for social novelty through a series of tasks using an ANY-Maze video-tracking system in an open-field arena. Results BTBR mice had significantly lower breakpoints in the social motivation paradigm than C57BL/6J mice. However, the valence comparison task revealed that BTBR mice also made significantly fewer lever presses for a food reward. Conclusions The results of the conditioning paradigms suggest that the BTBR strain has an overall deficit in motivated behavior. Furthermore, the results of the open-field observations may suggest that social differences in the BTBR strain are anxiety induced. PMID:25328850

Validation of operant social motivation paradigms using BTBR T+tf/J and C57BL/6J inbred mouse strains.

Science.gov (United States)

Martin, Loren; Sample, Hannah; Gregg, Michael; Wood, Caleb

2014-09-01

As purported causal factors are identified for autism spectrum disorder (ASD), new assays are needed to better phenotype animal models designed to explore these factors. With recent evidence suggesting that deficits in social motivation are at the core of ASD behavior, the development of quantitative measures of social motivation is particularly important. The goal of our study was to develop and validate novel assays to quantitatively measure social motivation in mice. In order to test the validity of our paradigms, we compared the BTBR strain, with documented social deficits, to the prosocial C57BL/6J strain. Two novel conditioning paradigms were developed that allowed the test mouse to control access to a social partner. In the social motivation task, the test mice lever pressed for a social reward. The reward contingency was set on a progressive ratio of reinforcement and the number of lever presses achieved in the final trial of a testing session (breakpoint) was used as an index of social motivation. In the valence comparison task, motivation for a food reward was compared to a social reward. We also explored activity, social affiliation, and preference for social novelty through a series of tasks using an ANY-Maze video-tracking system in an open-field arena. BTBR mice had significantly lower breakpoints in the social motivation paradigm than C57BL/6J mice. However, the valence comparison task revealed that BTBR mice also made significantly fewer lever presses for a food reward. The results of the conditioning paradigms suggest that the BTBR strain has an overall deficit in motivated behavior. Furthermore, the results of the open-field observations may suggest that social differences in the BTBR strain are anxiety induced.

Large Signal Circuit Model of Two-Section Gain Lever Quantum Dot Laser

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Horri Ashkan; Mirmoeini Seyedeh Zahra; Faez Rahim

2012-01-01

An equivalent circuit model for the design and analysis of two-section gain lever quantum dot (QD) laser is presented. This model is based on the three level rate equations with two independent carrier populations and a single longitudinal optical mode. By using the presented model, the effect of gain lever on QD laser performances is investigated. The results of simulation show that the main characteristics of laser such as threshold current, transient response, output power and modulation response are affected by differential gain ratios between the two-sections

Basolateral amygdala supports the maintenance of value and effortful choice of a preferred option.

Science.gov (United States)

Hart, Evan E; Izquierdo, Alicia

2017-02-01

The basolateral amygdala (BLA) is known to be involved in appetitive behavior, yet its role in cost-benefit choice of qualitatively different rewards (more/less preferred), beyond magnitude differences (larger/smaller), is poorly understood. We assessed the effects of BLA inactivations on effortful choice behavior. Rats were implanted with cannulae in BLA and trained to stable lever pressing for sucrose pellets on a progressive ratio schedule. Rats were then introduced to a choice: chow was concurrently available while they could work for the preferred sucrose pellets. Rats were infused with either vehicle control (aCSF) or baclofen/muscimol prior to test. BLA inactivations produced a significant decrease in lever presses for sucrose pellets compared to vehicle, and chow consumption was unaffected. Inactivation had no effect on sucrose pellet preference when both options were freely available. Critically, when lab chow was not concurrently available, BLA inactivations had no effect on the number of lever presses for sucrose pellets, indicating that primary motivation in the absence of choice remains intact with BLA offline. After a test under specific satiety for sucrose pellets, BLA inactivation rendered animals less sensitive to devaluation relative to control. The effects of BLA inactivations in our task are not mediated by decreased appetite, an inability to perform the task, a change in food preference, or decrements in primary motivation. Taken together, BLA supports the specific value and effortful choice of a preferred option. © 2016 Federation of European Neuroscience Societies and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

The jaw is a second-class lever in Pedetes capensis (Rodentia: Pedetidae

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Philip G. Cox

2017-08-01

Full Text Available The mammalian jaw is often modelled as a third-class lever for the purposes of biomechanical analyses, owing to the position of the resultant muscle force between the jaw joint and the teeth. However, it has been proposed that in some rodents the jaws operate as a second-class lever during distal molar bites, owing to the rostral position of the masticatory musculature. In particular, the infraorbital portion of the zygomatico-mandibularis (IOZM has been suggested to be of major importance in converting the masticatory system from a third-class to a second-class lever. The presence of the IOZM is diagnostic of the hystricomorph rodents, and is particularly well-developed in Pedetes capensis, the South African springhare. In this study, finite element analysis (FEA was used to assess the lever mechanics of the springhare masticatory system, and to determine the function of the IOZM. An FE model of the skull of P. capensis was constructed and loaded with all masticatory muscles, and then solved for biting at each tooth in turn. Further load cases were created in which each masticatory muscle was removed in turn. The analyses showed that the mechanical advantage of the springhare jaws was above one at all molar bites and very close to one during the premolar bite. Removing the IOZM or masseter caused a drop in mechanical advantage at all bites, but affected strain patterns and cranial deformation very little. Removing the ZM had only a small effect on mechanical advantage, but produced a substantial reduction in strain and deformation across the skull. It was concluded that the masticatory system of P. capensis acts as a second class lever during bites along almost the entire cheek tooth row. The IOZM is clearly a major contributor to this effect, but the masseter also has a part to play. The benefit of the IOZM is that it adds force without substantially contributing to strain or deformation of the skull. This may help explain why the

Can common measures of core stability distinguish performance in a shoulder pressing task under stable and unstable conditions?

Science.gov (United States)

Keogh, Justin W L; Aickin, Sam E; Oldham, Anthony R H

2010-02-01

The primary purpose of this study was to determine whether a range of static core stability (CS) measures could distinguish shoulder press performance in unstable vs. stable conditions. Thirty resistance-trained men gave informed consent to participate in this study. One-repetition maximum strength (from 0.90), moderate (0.85 Core stability training (with or without a SB) may therefore only lead to significant improvements in functional dynamic performance if the postures, mode and velocity of contraction performed in training, are similar to the competitive tasks.

Axial strain localization of CuCrZr tubes during manufacturing of ITER-like mono-block W/Cu components using HIP

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhao, S.X.; Peng, L.J.; Li, Q.; Wang, W.J.; Wei, R.; Qin, S.G.; Shi, Y.L.; Chang, S.P.; Xu, Y.; Liu, G.H.; Wang, T.J.; Luo, G.-N.

2014-01-01

Highlights: • Axial cracking and denting of CuCrZr tubes were observed. • Annealing the as-received tubes can alleviate cracking. • Denting results in the formation bonding flaws at the Cu/CuCrZr interfaces. - Abstract: Two forms of axial strain localization of CuCrZr tubes, i.e., cracking and denting, were observed during the manufacturing of ITER-like mono-block W/Cu components for EAST employing hot isostatic pressing (HIP). Microscopic investigations indicate that the occurrence of axial strain localization correlates to the heavily deformed Cu grains and elongated Cr-rich precipitates as well as highly anisotropic microstructures, which impair the circumferential ductility. Annealing the as-received tubes at 600 °C alleviates cracking due to partial recrystallization of Cu grains. However, the annealed tubes are still sensitive to wall thinning (caused by non-uniform polishing or tube bending), which results in denting. Denting may cause bonding flaws at CuCrZr/Cu interfaces and the underlying mechanisms are discussed. To some extent, denting seems do not affect the high heat flux performance of components. In this paper, we demonstrate that testing only the axial mechanical properties is not enough for manufacturers who use HIP or hot radial pressing technologies, especially for those anisotropic tubes

Sibelius: Luonnotar. Chevauchee nocturne et lever du soleil / Pierre Gervasoni

Index Scriptorium Estoniae

Gervasoni, Pierre

1996-01-01

Uuest heliplaadist "Sibelius: Luonnotar. Chevauchee nocturne et lever du soleil. 4 Legendes. Orchestre Philharmonique Royal de Stockholm, Paavo Järvi. Virgin Classics 545 213-2 (CD:167F). 1996. TT: 1h 13'22"

Coupling of lever arm swing and biased Brownian motion in actomyosin.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Qing-Miao Nie

2014-04-01

Full Text Available An important unresolved problem associated with actomyosin motors is the role of Brownian motion in the process of force generation. On the basis of structural observations of myosins and actins, the widely held lever-arm hypothesis has been proposed, in which proteins are assumed to show sequential structural changes among observed and hypothesized structures to exert mechanical force. An alternative hypothesis, the Brownian motion hypothesis, has been supported by single-molecule experiments and emphasizes more on the roles of fluctuating protein movement. In this study, we address the long-standing controversy between the lever-arm hypothesis and the Brownian motion hypothesis through in silico observations of an actomyosin system. We study a system composed of myosin II and actin filament by calculating free-energy landscapes of actin-myosin interactions using the molecular dynamics method and by simulating transitions among dynamically changing free-energy landscapes using the Monte Carlo method. The results obtained by this combined multi-scale calculation show that myosin with inorganic phosphate (Pi and ADP weakly binds to actin and that after releasing Pi and ADP, myosin moves along the actin filament toward the strong-binding site by exhibiting the biased Brownian motion, a behavior consistent with the observed single-molecular behavior of myosin. Conformational flexibility of loops at the actin-interface of myosin and the N-terminus of actin subunit is necessary for the distinct bias in the Brownian motion. Both the 5.5-11 nm displacement due to the biased Brownian motion and the 3-5 nm displacement due to lever-arm swing contribute to the net displacement of myosin. The calculated results further suggest that the recovery stroke of the lever arm plays an important role in enhancing the displacement of myosin through multiple cycles of ATP hydrolysis, suggesting a unified movement mechanism for various members of the myosin family.

Coupling of lever arm swing and biased Brownian motion in actomyosin.

Science.gov (United States)

Nie, Qing-Miao; Togashi, Akio; Sasaki, Takeshi N; Takano, Mitsunori; Sasai, Masaki; Terada, Tomoki P

2014-04-01

An important unresolved problem associated with actomyosin motors is the role of Brownian motion in the process of force generation. On the basis of structural observations of myosins and actins, the widely held lever-arm hypothesis has been proposed, in which proteins are assumed to show sequential structural changes among observed and hypothesized structures to exert mechanical force. An alternative hypothesis, the Brownian motion hypothesis, has been supported by single-molecule experiments and emphasizes more on the roles of fluctuating protein movement. In this study, we address the long-standing controversy between the lever-arm hypothesis and the Brownian motion hypothesis through in silico observations of an actomyosin system. We study a system composed of myosin II and actin filament by calculating free-energy landscapes of actin-myosin interactions using the molecular dynamics method and by simulating transitions among dynamically changing free-energy landscapes using the Monte Carlo method. The results obtained by this combined multi-scale calculation show that myosin with inorganic phosphate (Pi) and ADP weakly binds to actin and that after releasing Pi and ADP, myosin moves along the actin filament toward the strong-binding site by exhibiting the biased Brownian motion, a behavior consistent with the observed single-molecular behavior of myosin. Conformational flexibility of loops at the actin-interface of myosin and the N-terminus of actin subunit is necessary for the distinct bias in the Brownian motion. Both the 5.5-11 nm displacement due to the biased Brownian motion and the 3-5 nm displacement due to lever-arm swing contribute to the net displacement of myosin. The calculated results further suggest that the recovery stroke of the lever arm plays an important role in enhancing the displacement of myosin through multiple cycles of ATP hydrolysis, suggesting a unified movement mechanism for various members of the myosin family.

New alternative methods of analyzing human behavior in cued target acquisition.

Science.gov (United States)

Maltz, Masha; Shinar, David

2003-01-01

Target acquisition tasks in natural environments are often augmented by cuing systems that advise human observers during the decision process. With present technological limitations, cuing systems are imperfect, so the question arises whether cuing aids should be implemented under all conditions. We examined target acquisition performance under different levels of task complexity and cuing system reliability. We introduce here two new methods to help define observer behavior trends in cued target acquisition: a quantitative measure of observer search behavior in a temporal sense and a measure of the extent of observer reliance on the cue. We found that observer reliance on the cue correlated with task difficulty and the perceived reliability of the cue. Cuing was generally helpful in complex tasks, whereas cuing reduced performance in easy tasks. Consequently, cuing systems should be implemented only when the task is difficult enough to warrant the intrusion of a cue into the task. Actual or potential applications of this research include the design and implementation of imperfect automated aids dealing with augmented reality.

Study of the mechanism of clamping and detachment of a core sample by core lever lifters

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Barabashkin, I I; Mizyakin, V M; Nikitin, S V

1981-01-01

Geometric dimensions of the basic elements of a core lifter should be determined depending on the clamping conditions. The changes should be determined depending on the conditions of the core sample diameter, critical angle between the lever and the core samples in the necessary depth of submersion of the contact edge of the lever into its surface. The core lifter KTsRZ-80 with eccentric core reception makes it possible to arrange more efficiently the core removing elements on the edge of the band. The use of the core lifters with eccentric plan of arrangement of the levers and their optimal length increases the removal of the core sample.

Teach yourself visually complete WordPress

CERN Document Server

Majure, Janet

2013-01-01

Take your WordPress skills to the next level with these tips, tricks, and tasks Congratulations on getting your blog up and running with WordPress! Now are you ready to take it to the next level? Teach Yourself VISUALLY Complete WordPress takes you beyond the blogging basics with expanded tips, tricks, and techniques with clear, step-by-step instructions accompanied by screen shots. This visual book shows you how to incorporate forums, use RSS, obtain and review analytics, work with tools like Google AdSense, and much more.Shows you how to use mobile tools to edit a

Microstructural evolution of Fe-rich particles in an Al-Zn-Mg-Cu alloy during equal-channel angular pressing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sha, G.; Wang, Y.B.; Liao, X.Z.; Duan, Z.C.; Ringer, S.P.; Langdon, T.G.

2010-01-01

The microstructures of a severely deformed Al-Zn-Mg-Cu (AA7136) alloy have been characterized carefully using transmission electron microscopy and three-dimensional atom probe analysis. The Fe-rich intermetallic particles are predominantly Al 13 Fe 4 type in the as-extruded alloy. Significantly, equal-channel angular pressing (ECAP) at 200 deg. C refines Fe-rich particles from ∼1 to 2 μm to as small as ∼50 nm after 4 passes processing, and effectively narrow down their size distribution with the increase of number of ECAP passes. In addition, small Fe-rich particles evolve into spherical morphology and are in a more uniform distribution. The formations of Fe-rich phases in AA7136, the kinetic and thermodynamic effects in relation to the refinement of Fe-rich particles and their morphology evolution during ECAP processing are discussed.

Rotational foot placement specifies the lever arm of the ground reaction force during the push-off phase of walking initiation.

Science.gov (United States)

Erdemir, Ahmet; Piazza, Stephen J

2002-06-01

The lever arm of the ground reaction force (GRF) about the talocrural joint axis is a functionally important indicator of the nature of foot loading. Walking initiation experiments (ten subjects; age, 23-29 years) were completed to demonstrate that rotational foot placement is a possible strategy to specify the lever arm. Externally-rotated foot placement resulted in larger lever arms during push-off. A computer simulation of push-off revealed that a decreased lever arm reduces the plantarflexion moment necessary to maintain a constant forward velocity, while increasing the required plantarflexion velocity. Shortening of the foot thus diminishes the muscular force demand but also requires high muscle fiber shortening velocities that may limit the force generating capacity of plantar flexors. Decreased plantar flexion moment and slow walking previously noted in partial-foot amputees may result from shortened lever arms in this manner.

Disconnection of basolateral amygdala and insular cortex disrupts conditioned approach in Pavlovian lever autoshaping.

Science.gov (United States)

Nasser, Helen M; Lafferty, Danielle S; Lesser, Ellen N; Bacharach, Sam Z; Calu, Donna J

2018-01-01

Previously established individual differences in appetitive approach and devaluation sensitivity observed in goal- and sign-trackers may be attributed to differences in the acquisition, modification, or use of associative information in basolateral amygdala (BLA) pathways. Here, we sought to determine the extent to which communication of associative information between BLA and anterior portions of insular cortex (IC) supports ongoing Pavlovian conditioned approach behaviors in sign- and goal-tracking rats, in the absence of manipulations to outcome value. We hypothesized that the BLA mediates goal-, but not sign- tracking approach through interactions with the IC, a brain region involved in supporting flexible behavior. We first trained rats in Pavlovian lever autoshaping to determine their sign- or goal-tracking tendency. During alternating test sessions, we gave unilateral intracranial injections of vehicle or a cocktail of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) receptor agonists, baclofen and muscimol, unilaterally into the BLA and contralaterally or ipsilaterally into the IC prior to reinforced lever autoshaping sessions. Consistent with our hypothesis we found that contralateral inactivation of BLA and IC increased the latency to approach the food cup and decreased the number of food cup contacts in goal-trackers. While contralateral inactivation of BLA and IC did not affect the total number of lever contacts in sign-trackers, this manipulation increased the latency to approach the lever. Ipsilateral inactivation of BLA and IC did not impact approach behaviors in Pavlovian lever autoshaping. These findings, contrary to our hypothesis, suggest that communication between BLA and IC maintains a representation of initially learned appetitive associations that commonly support the initiation of Pavlovian conditioned approach behavior regardless of whether it is directed at the cue or the location of reward delivery. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Is induction produced by upcoming food-pellet reinforcement the outcome of an increase in overall activity or in operant responding?

Science.gov (United States)

Weatherly, Jeffrey N; Arthur, Emily I L; Nurnberger, Jeri T

2006-01-01

Researchers have demonstrated that rats reliably increase their rates of pressing a lever for 1% liquid-sucrose reinforcement if they will soon have the opportunity to press a lever for food-pellet reinforcement. In the present experiments, the authors investigated if this increase in response rates occurred because the upcoming food pellets produced an increase in all behaviors (i.e., general arousal) or an increase in only the specific operant response (i.e., lever pressing). The results of Experiments 1 and 2 showed that the appearance of induction in rats' lever pressing for 1% sucrose reinforcement when food-pellet reinforcement was upcoming did not coincide with increases in the frequency of running in a wheel or making a nonreinforced nose-poke response. On the other hand, in Experiment 3, the authors found the appearance of induction coincided with increase nonreinforced lever presses on an adjacent lever. These results shed doubt on the idea that induction is a result of a general increase in all activity, and suggest instead that the increase in responding that occurs during induction is limited to the operant response.

Thermoelectric Properties of Hot-Pressed and PECS-Sintered Magnesium-Doped Copper Aluminum Oxide

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Chang; Morelli, Donald T.

2011-05-01

Copper aluminum oxide (CuAlO2) is considered as a potential candidate for thermoelectric applications. Partially magnesium-doped CuAlO2 bulk pellets were fabricated using solid-state reactions, hot-pressing, and pulsed electric current sintering (PECS) techniques. X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy were adopted for structural analysis. High-temperature transport property measurements were performed on hot-pressed samples. Electrical conductivity increased with Mg doping before secondary phases became significant, while the Seebeck coefficient displayed the opposite trend. Thermal conductivity was consistently reduced as the Mg concentration increased. Effects of Mg doping, preparation conditions, and future modification on this material's properties are discussed.

Drug versus sweet reward: greater attraction to and preference for sweet versus drug cues.

Science.gov (United States)

Madsen, Heather B; Ahmed, Serge H

2015-05-01

Despite the unique ability of addictive drugs to directly activate brain reward circuits, recent evidence suggests that drugs induce reinforcing and incentive effects that are comparable to, or even lower than some nondrug rewards. In particular, when rats have a choice between pressing a lever associated with intravenous cocaine or heroin delivery and another lever associated with sweet water delivery, most respond on the latter. This outcome suggests that sweet water is more reinforcing and attractive than either drug. However, this outcome may also be due to the differential ability of sweet versus drug levers to elicit Pavlovian feeding-like conditioned responses that can cause involuntary lever pressing, such as pawing and biting the lever. To test this hypothesis, rats first underwent Pavlovian conditioning to associate one lever with sweet water (0.2% saccharin) and a different lever with intravenous cocaine (0.25 mg) or heroin (0.01 mg). Choice between these two levers was then assessed under two operant choice procedures: one that permitted the expression of Pavlovian-conditioned lever press responses during choice, the other not. During conditioning, Pavlovian-conditioned lever press responses were considerably higher on the sweet lever than on either drug lever, and slightly greater on the heroin lever than on the cocaine lever. Importantly, though these differences in Pavlovian-conditioned behavior predicted subsequent preference for sweet water during choice, they were not required for its expression. Overall, this study confirms that rats prefer the sweet lever because sweet water is more reinforcing and attractive than cocaine or heroin. © 2014 Society for the Study of Addiction.

Effects of exposure to 56Fe particles of protons on fixed-ratio operant responding in rats

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rabin, B.M.; Buhler, L.L.; Jenkins, D.G.; Joseph, J.A.; Shukitt-Hale, B.

2002-01-01

On long-duration trips outside of the magnetosphere, astronauts will be exposed to protons and to heavy particles which can affect their performance of required tasks. It is essential to determine the range of behaviors that might be affected by exposure to these types of radiation in order to understand the nature of behavioral deficits and to develop effective countermeasures. The present experiment examined the ability of rats to make an operant response following exposure to protons (250 MeV, 4 Gy) or 56 Fe particles (1 GeV/n, 1 or 2 Gy). Following irradiation, rats were trained to press a lever in order to obtain food reinforcement. They were then placed on an ascending fixed-ratio schedule from FR-1 (each lever press rewarded with a food pellet) through FR-35 (35 lever presses required for 1 food pellet). Rats exposed to 4 Gy of protons or 1 Gy of 56 Fe particles responded similarly to controls, increasing their rate of responding as the ratio increased. However, rats exposed to 2 Gy of 56 Fe particles failed to increase their rate of responding at ratios greater than FR-20, indicating that rats exposed to 2 Gy of 56 Fe particles cannot respond appropriately to increasing work requirements. (author)

77 FR 9890 - Solicitation of Input From Stakeholders Regarding the Smith-Lever 3(d) Children, Youth, and...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-02-21

... DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE National Institute of Food and Agriculture Solicitation of Input From Stakeholders Regarding the Smith-Lever 3(d) Children, Youth, and Families at Risk Sustainable Community... (Pub. L. 110-246) (FCEA) amended section 3(d) of the Smith-Lever Act (7 U.S.C. 343(d)) to provide the...

Effects of Haloperidol on Responding Maintained with Food and Sucrose-Water

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Carlos F. Aparicio

2010-02-01

Full Text Available The “hedonic” value of reinforcers is mediated by dopamine. Accordingly,haloperidol diminishes the value of reinforcers, by interfering with the emission of operant behaviors. Alternatively, the interference of dopamine transmission does not prevent animals from eating food. Thus, reinforcers remain intact after the administration of haloperidol. We assessed these possibilities with eight Wistar rats and two types of reinforcers, food-pellets and sucrose-water, delivered under multiple reinforcement schedules. Ingeneral, lever presses maintained by food-pellets were higher than those maintained by sucrose-water. Haloperidol produced dose-related decreases in lever presses and obtained reinforcers. Different doses had no effect on the number of lever presses. Subcutaneous administrations of haloperidol produced higher decreases in lever presses than intra-peritoneal administrations. Decreases in lever pressing were not necessarily accompanied by substantial reductions in obtained food-pellets and sucrose-water reinforcers; underthe effects of haloperidol rats continued to produce a considerable number of both types of reinforcers.

Production of press moulds by plasma spray forming process

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Borisov, Y.; Myakota, I.; Polyakov, S.

2001-01-01

Plasma spray forming process for production of press moulds which are used for manufacture of articles from plastics was developed. The press moulds were produced by plasma spraying of Cu-Al-Fe-alloy powder on surface of a master model. The master models were made from non-metallic materials with heat resistance below 70 C (wood, gypsum etc). Double cooling system which provides for a control of surface model temperature and quenching conditions of sprayed material was designed. It made possible on the one hand to support model surface temperature below 70 C and on the other hand to provide for temperature conditions of martensite transformation in Cu-Al-system with a fixation of metastable ductile α + β 1 -phase. This allowed to decrease residual stresses in sprayed layer (up to 0,5-2,5 MPa), to increase microhardness of the coating material (up to 1200-1800 MPa) and its ductility (σ B = 70-105 MPa, δ = 6-12 %). This plasma spray forming process makes possible to spray thick layers (5-20 mm and more) without their cracking and deformation. The process is used for a production of press moulds which are applied in shoes industry, for fabrication of toys, souvenirs etc. (author)

Levers for change: philanthropy in select South East Asian countries ...

International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

2016-04-29

Apr 29, 2016 ... Levers for change: philanthropy in select South East Asian countries ... the low donor awareness of societal needs and the lack of donor education and skills development. ... Tourism is an important driver of economic growth throughout Southeast Asia. ... Supporting sustainable economic growth in ASEAN.

A Lever Coupling Mechanism in Dual-Mass Micro-Gyroscopes for Improving the Shock Resistance along the Driving Direction

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yang Gao

2017-04-01

Full Text Available This paper presents the design and application of a lever coupling mechanism to improve the shock resistance of a dual-mass silicon micro-gyroscope with drive mode coupled along the driving direction without sacrificing the mechanical sensitivity. Firstly, the mechanical sensitivity and the shock response of the micro-gyroscope are theoretically analyzed. In the mechanical design, a novel lever coupling mechanism is proposed to change the modal order and to improve the frequency separation. The micro-gyroscope with the lever coupling mechanism optimizes the drive mode order, increasing the in-phase mode frequency to be much larger than the anti-phase one. Shock analysis results show that the micro-gyroscope structure with the designed lever coupling mechanism can notably reduce the magnitudes of the shock response and cut down the stress produced in the shock process compared with the traditional elastic coupled one. Simulations reveal that the shock resistance along the drive direction is greatly increased. Consequently, the lever coupling mechanism can change the gyroscope’s modal order and improve the frequency separation by structurally offering a higher stiffness difference ratio. The shock resistance along the driving direction is tremendously enhanced without loss of the mechanical sensitivity.

Modified compensation algorithm of lever-arm effect and flexural deformation for polar shipborne transfer alignment based on improved adaptive Kalman filter

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang, Tongda; Cheng, Jianhua; Guan, Dongxue; Kang, Yingyao; Zhang, Wei

2017-01-01

Due to the lever-arm effect and flexural deformation in the practical application of transfer alignment (TA), the TA performance is decreased. The existing polar TA algorithm only compensates a fixed lever-arm without considering the dynamic lever-arm caused by flexural deformation; traditional non-polar TA algorithms also have some limitations. Thus, the performance of existing compensation algorithms is unsatisfactory. In this paper, a modified compensation algorithm of the lever-arm effect and flexural deformation is proposed to promote the accuracy and speed of the polar TA. On the basis of a dynamic lever-arm model and a noise compensation method for flexural deformation, polar TA equations are derived in grid frames. Based on the velocity-plus-attitude matching method, the filter models of polar TA are designed. An adaptive Kalman filter (AKF) is improved to promote the robustness and accuracy of the system, and then applied to the estimation of the misalignment angles. Simulation and experiment results have demonstrated that the modified compensation algorithm based on the improved AKF for polar TA can effectively compensate the lever-arm effect and flexural deformation, and then improve the accuracy and speed of TA in the polar region. (paper)

WordPress 24-hour trainer

CERN Document Server

Plumley, George

2015-01-01

Create and expand feature-rich sites with no programming experience Ready to build, maintain, and expand your web site with WordPress but have no prior programming experience? WordPress 24-Hour Trainer, 3rd Edition is your book-and-video learning solution that walks you step-by-step through all the important features you will need to know. Lessons range from focused, practical everyday tasks to more advanced, creative features. Learn from an industry professional how to enter content, create pages, manage menus, utilize plug-ins, connect to social media, create membership and e-commerce site

A Learning Center on the Lever for Young Children.

Science.gov (United States)

Keislar, Evan R.; Luckenbill, Maryann

This document describes a project designed to explore the possibilities of children's learning in mechanics. The principle of the lever, one example of a simple machine, was used in the form of a balance toy. The apparatus was set up as a game in a specially devised learning center. The children made non-verbal predictions as to which way the bar…

Learning strategy preference of 5XFAD transgenic mice depends on the sequence of place/spatial and cued training in the water maze task.

Science.gov (United States)

Cho, Woo-Hyun; Park, Jung-Cheol; Chung, ChiHye; Jeon, Won Kyung; Han, Jung-Soo

2014-10-15

Learning strategy preference was assessed in 5XFAD mice, which carry 5 familial Alzheimer's disease (AD) mutations. Mice were sequentially trained in cued and place/spatial versions of the water maze task. After training, a strategy preference test was conducted in which mice were required to choose between the spatial location where the platform had previously been during the place/spatial training, and a visible platform in a new location. 5XFAD and non-transgenic control mice showed equivalent escape performance in both training tasks. However, in the strategy preference test, 5XFAD mice preferred a cued strategy relative to control mice. When the training sequence was presented in the reverse order (i.e., place/spatial training before cued training), 5XFAD mice showed impairments in place/spatial training, but no differences in cued training or in the strategy preference test comparing to control. Analysis of regional Aβ42 deposition in brains of 5XFAD mice showed that the hippocampus, which is involved in the place/spatial learning strategy, had the highest levels of Aβ42 and the dorsal striatum, which is involved in cued learning strategy, showed a small increase in Aβ42 levels. The effect of training protocol order on performance, and regional differences in Aβ42 deposition observed in 5XFAD mice, suggest differential functional recruitment of brain structures related to learning in healthy and AD individuals. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Synthesis of lever-blade dampers with enhanced mechanical structure

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Igor I. Sydorenko

2015-03-01

Full Text Available Since the torsion bar represents just an elastic element, the energy dissipation in suspensions problem is highly relevant for its application. Currently in quality of a dissipation device in torsion suspension are used the hydraulic dampers with movable members reciprocating translational motion respectively to the housing or lever-type hydraulic shock absorbers of piston and vane types, with the movable member’s rotational movement respectively to the housing. These dampers are implementing only throttle-valve performance type, associated with these devices’ functional capacities and depending on design constraints. The paper presents a synthesis of innovative lever-blade dampers, whose performance is not related to the value of working chambers inner pressure. Their essential peculiarity relates to the mechanical control loop presence in the structure that determines a close relationship between the performance and the value of the shock absorber movable element displacement relatively to the body. In the process of synthesis carried out tested are the appropriate methods, built on the basis of technical systems’ modeling with modified kinematic graphs. The synthesis results are shown in the form of two structurally implemented samples. Performed is a comparative analysis of the samples with their basic performance determining.

Fabrication and tensile properties of rapidly solidified Cu-10wt. %Ni alloy. [Cu-10Ni

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Baril, D; Angers, R; Baril, J [Dept. of Mining and Metallurgy, Laval Univ., Ste-Foy, Quebec (Canada)

1992-10-15

Cu-10wt.%Ni ribbons were produced by melt spinning and cut into small particles with a blade cutter mill. The powders were then hot consolidated to full density by hot pressing followed by hot extrusion. Tensile properties of the resulting pieces were measured. Cu-10wt.%Ni cast ingots were also hot extruded and mechanically tested to compare with the rapidly solidified alloy and to evaluate the possible benefits brought by the rapid solidification process.

Commissioner for Inland Revenue V Lever Brothers and Unilever Ltd

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Lever Brothers, the South African tax case that formed the basis of this research, was concerned with determining the source of interest income. In its time, this was one of the landmark cases and established tax principles that were valid for 54 years, until superseded by changes to legislation. The research presented a ...

Energy efficiency: Lever for the Energy Transition

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2012-12-01

The Eco-electric industry group (FFIE, FGME, Gimelec, IGNES, SERCE) has conducted a study to evaluate the energy saving potential of active energy efficiency solutions in the residential and commercial building sectors. Based on field implementations and demonstrators, it has been demonstrated that active energy efficiency can sustainably achieve substantial savings for households, companies and public authorities. Energy Efficiency - Lever for the energy transition presents the results and conclusions of that study, alongside with recommendations for public authority in terms of building retrofit policy for putting France on the best possible 'trajectory' from a budgetary and environmental point of view. (author)

Commissioner for Inland Revenue v Lever Brothers and Unilever Ltd

African Journals Online (AJOL)

kirstam

21Key words: Lever Brothers and Unilever; South African income tax; source of income; interest; the “practical man”; the .... facilities, and he housed his employees in a model village of well-built homes on the factory site. ... be cancelled and any excess of the value of the shares over the debt would be adjusted by a money.

Synchronization in primate cerebellar granule cell layer local field potentials: Basic anisotropy and dynamic changes during active expectancy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Richard Courtemanche

2009-07-01

Full Text Available The cerebellar cortex is remarkable for its organizational regularity, out of which task-related neural networks should emerge. So, in Purkinje cells, both complex and simple spike network patterns are evident in sensorimotor behavior. However, task-related patterns of activity in the granule cell layer (GCL have been less studied. We recorded local field potential (LFP activity simultaneously in pairs of GCL sites in monkeys performing an active expectancy (lever-press task, in passive expectancy, and at rest. LFP sites were selected when they showed strong 10-25 Hz oscillations; pair orientation was in stereotaxic sagittal and coronal (mainly, and diagonal. As shown previously, LFP oscillations at each site were modulated during the lever-press task. Synchronization across LFP pairs showed an evident basic anisotropy at rest: sagittal pairs of LFPs were better synchronized (more than double the cross-correlation coefficients than coronal pairs, and more than diagonal pairs. On the other hand, this basic anisotropy was modifiable: during the active expectancy condition, where sagittal and coronal orientations were tested, synchronization of LFP pairs would increase just preceding movement, most notably for the coronal pairs. This lateral extension of synchronization was not observed in passive expectancy. The basic pattern of synchronization at rest, favoring sagittal synchrony, thus seemed to adapt in a dynamic fashion, potentially extending laterally to include more cerebellar cortex elements. This dynamic anisotropy in LFP synchronization could underlie GCL network organization in the context of sensorimotor tasks.

Explicit goal-driven attention, unlike implicitly learned attention, spreads to secondary tasks.

Science.gov (United States)

Addleman, Douglas A; Tao, Jinyi; Remington, Roger W; Jiang, Yuhong V

2018-03-01

To what degree does spatial attention for one task spread to all stimuli in the attended region, regardless of task relevance? Most models imply that spatial attention acts through a unitary priority map in a task-general manner. We show that implicit learning, unlike endogenous spatial cuing, can bias spatial attention within one task without biasing attention to a spatially overlapping secondary task. Participants completed a visual search task superimposed on a background containing scenes, which they were told to encode for a later memory task. Experiments 1 and 2 used explicit instructions to bias spatial attention to one region for visual search; Experiment 3 used location probability cuing to implicitly bias spatial attention. In location probability cuing, a target appeared in one region more than others despite participants not being told of this. In all experiments, search performance was better in the cued region than in uncued regions. However, scene memory was better in the cued region only following endogenous guidance, not after implicit biasing of attention. These data support a dual-system view of top-down attention that dissociates goal-driven and implicitly learned attention. Goal-driven attention is task general, amplifying processing of a cued region across tasks, whereas implicit statistical learning is task-specific. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).

Corporate social responsibility's discourse in lithuanian business press

OpenAIRE

Marčenkovas, Marius

2014-01-01

The object of this master work is corporate social responsibility's (CSR) discourse. The purpose of this work is to analyze how Lithuanian business press presents CSR topic. The main tasks to reach this purpose are: overview and compare CSR definitions; analyze media impact to CSR; analyze and summarize CSR discourse in Lithuanian business press. Literature analysis, synthesis and comparative methods were used to drawn conclusions. After the literature analysis of such scientists as Ph. Kotle...

Dispensing apparatus for use in a cued food delivery task.

Science.gov (United States)

Deweese, Menton M; Claiborne, Kimberly N; Ng, Jennifer; Dirba, Danika D; Stewart, Hannah L; Schembre, Susan M; Versace, Francesco

2015-01-01

Neurobiological models of obesity postulate that obese individuals have difficulty regulating food intake partly because they attribute excessive salience to stimuli signaling food availability. Typically, human studies that investigate the relationship between brain responses to food-related stimuli and obesity present food cues without subsequent delivery of food. However, in order to identify the brain correlates of cue reactivity, we must record brain responses to food-related cues signaling food availability. Therefore, we have developed a dispensing apparatus for use in a cued-food delivery task in which event-related potentials (ERPs) to food-related images predicting food delivery and images not predicting food delivery can be recorded. Here, we describe a method where:•The experimental apparatus dispenses an edible item (i.e., a chocolate candy) which may or may not be eaten, or a non-edible control item (e.g., a plastic bead).•Deposit boxes are available to store uneaten candies and the non-edible control items.•The dispensing mechanism is capable of recording the exact timestamp when each delivery event occurs (e.g., release from the dispenser, arrival in the receptacle, storage in the deposit box).

Long-lasting effects of performance-contingent unconscious and conscious reward incentives during cued task-switching.

Science.gov (United States)

Capa, Rémi L; Bouquet, Cédric A; Dreher, Jean-Claude; Dufour, André

2013-01-01

Motivation is often thought to interact consciously with executive control, although recent studies have indicated that motivation can also be unconscious. To date, however, the effects of unconscious motivation on high-order executive control functions have not been explored. Only a few studies using subliminal stimuli (i.e., those not related to motivation, such as an arrow to prime a response) have reported short-lived effects on high-order executive control functions. Here, building on research on unconscious motivation, in which a behavior of perseverance is induced to attain a goal, we hypothesized that subliminal motivation can have long-lasting effects on executive control processes. We investigated the impact of unconscious/conscious monetary reward incentives on evoked potentials and neural activity dynamics during cued task-switching performance. Participants performed long runs of task-switching. At the beginning of each run, a reward (50 cents or 1 cent) was displayed, either subliminally or supraliminally. Participants earned the reward contingent upon their correct responses to each trial of the run. A higher percentage of runs was achieved with higher (conscious and unconscious) than lower rewards, indicating that unconscious high rewards have long-lasting behavioral effects. Event-related potential (ERP) results indicated that unconscious and conscious rewards influenced preparatory effort in task preparation, as suggested by a greater fronto-central contingent negative variation (CNV) starting at cue-onset. However, a greater parietal P3 associated with better reaction times (RTs) was observed only under conditions of conscious high reward, suggesting a larger amount of working memory invested during task performance. Together, these results indicate that unconscious and conscious motivations are similar at early stages of task-switching preparation but differ during task performance. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Creativity and Control : A Paradox-Evidence from the Levers of Control Framework

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Speklé, R.F.; van Elten, Hilco; Widener, Sally

2017-01-01

Both control and creativity are important drivers of organizational success (Gilson, Mathieu, Shally, and Ruddy 2005; Hirst, Van Knippenberg, Chen, and Sacramento 2011). However, they are often regarded as conflicting. We use the Levers of Control (LoC) framework to examine the relationships between

Creativity and Control : A Paradox: Evidence from the Levers of Control Framework

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Speklé, R.F.; Elten, van H.J.; Widener, S.

2017-01-01

Both control and creativity are important drivers of organizational success (Gilson, Mathieu, Shally, and Ruddy 2005; Hirst, Van Knippenberg, Chen, and Sacramento 2011). However, they are often regarded as conflicting. We use the Levers of Control (LoC) framework to examine the relationships between

Prediction of Pressing Quality for Press-Fit Assembly Based on Press-Fit Curve and Maximum Press-Mounting Force

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bo You

2015-01-01

Full Text Available In order to predict pressing quality of precision press-fit assembly, press-fit curves and maximum press-mounting force of press-fit assemblies were investigated by finite element analysis (FEA. The analysis was based on a 3D Solidworks model using the real dimensions of the microparts and the subsequent FEA model that was built using ANSYS Workbench. The press-fit process could thus be simulated on the basis of static structure analysis. To verify the FEA results, experiments were carried out using a press-mounting apparatus. The results show that the press-fit curves obtained by FEA agree closely with the curves obtained using the experimental method. In addition, the maximum press-mounting force calculated by FEA agrees with that obtained by the experimental method, with the maximum deviation being 4.6%, a value that can be tolerated. The comparison shows that the press-fit curve and max press-mounting force calculated by FEA can be used for predicting the pressing quality during precision press-fit assembly.

Increases in food intake or food-seeking behavior induced by GABAergic, opioid, or dopaminergic stimulation of the nucleus accumbens: is it hunger?

Science.gov (United States)

Hanlon, Erin C; Baldo, Brian A; Sadeghian, Ken; Kelley, Ann E

2004-03-01

Previous work has shown that stimulation of GABAergic, opioid, or dopaminergic systems within the nucleus accumbens modulates food intake and food-seeking behavior. However, it is not known whether such stimulation mimics a motivational state of food deprivation that commonly enables animals to learn a new operant response to obtain food. In order to address this question, acquisition of lever pressing for food in hungry animals was compared with acquisition in non-food-deprived rats subjected to various nucleus accumbens drug treatments. All animals were given the opportunity to learn an instrumental response (a lever press) to obtain a food pellet. Prior to training, ad lib-fed rats were infused with the gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA)A agonist muscimol (100 ng/0.5 microl per side) or the mu-opioid receptor agonist D-Ala2, N-me-Phe4, Gly-ol5-enkephalin (DAMGO, 0.25 microg/0.5 microl per side), or saline into the nucleus accumbens shell (AcbSh). The indirect dopamine agonist amphetamine (10 microg/0.5 microl per side) was infused into the AcbSh or nucleus accumbens core (AcbC) of ad lib-fed rats. An additional group was food deprived and infused with saline in the AcbSh. Chow and sugar pellet intake responses after drug treatments were also evaluated in free-feeding tests. Muscimol, DAMGO, or amphetamine did not facilitate acquisition of lever pressing for food, despite clearly increasing food intake in free-feeding tests. In contrast, food-deprived animals rapidly learned the task. These findings suggest that pharmacological stimulation of any of these neurochemical systems in isolation is insufficient to enable acquisition of a food-reinforced operant task. Thus, these selective processes, while likely involved in control of food intake and food-seeking behavior, appear unable to recapitulate the conditions necessary to mimic the state of negative energy balance.

Reliable quantification of bite-force performance requires use of appropriate biting substrate and standardization of bite out-lever.

Science.gov (United States)

Lappin, A Kristopher; Jones, Marc E H

2014-12-15

Bite-force performance is an ecologically important measure of whole-organism performance that shapes dietary breadth and feeding strategies and, in some taxa, determines reproductive success. It also is a metric that is crucial to testing and evaluating biomechanical models. We reviewed nearly 100 published studies of a range of taxa that incorporate direct in vivo measurements of bite force. Problematically, methods of data collection and processing vary considerably among studies. In particular, there is little consensus on the appropriate substrate to use on the biting surface of force transducers. In addition, the bite out-lever, defined as the distance from the fulcrum (i.e. jaw joint) to the position along the jawline at which the jaws engage the transducer, is rarely taken into account. We examined the effect of bite substrate and bite out-lever on bite-force estimates in a diverse sample of lizards. Results indicate that both variables have a significant impact on the accuracy of measurements. Maximum bite force is significantly greater using leather as the biting substrate compared with a metal substrate. Less-forceful bites on metal are likely due to inhibitory feedback from mechanoreceptors that prevent damage to the feeding apparatus. Standardization of bite out-lever affected which trial produced maximum performance for a given individual. Indeed, maximum bite force is usually underestimated without standardization because it is expected to be greatest at the minimum out-lever (i.e. back of the jaws), which in studies is rarely targeted with success. We assert that future studies should use a pliable substrate, such as leather, and use appropriate standardization for bite out-lever. © 2014. Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd.

Hybrid Kalman and unscented Kalman filters for INS/GPS integrated system considering constant lever arm effect

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

常国宾; 柳明

2015-01-01

In inertial navigation system (INS) and global positioning system (GPS) integrated system, GPS antennas are usually not located at the same location as the inertial measurement unit (IMU) of the INS, so the lever arm effect exists, which makes the observation equation highly nonlinear. The INS/GPS integration with constant lever arm effect is studied. The position relation of IMU and GPS’s antenna is represented in the earth centered earth fixed frame, while the velocity relation of these two systems is represented in local horizontal frame. Due to the small integration time interval of INS, i.e. 0.1 s in this work, the nonlinearity in the INS error equation is trivial, so the linear INS error model is constructed and addressed by Kalman filter’s prediction step. On the other hand, the high nonlinearity in the observation equation due to lever arm effect is addressed by unscented Kalman filter’s update step to attain higher accuracy and better applicability. Simulation is designed and the performance of the hybrid filter is validated.

Interface characteristic during bonding of Be and HR-1 stainless steel by hot pressing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li Hui; Kang Renmu; Zhou Shangqi; Kong Jilan; Zhang Pengcheng

2010-01-01

Be and HR-I stainless steel was diffusion bonded by hot pressing. The microstructure,composition and phase distribution and mechanical properties of the joints were analyzed using the optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy(SEM), scanning auger microspectroscopy(SAM) and x-ray diffraction(XRD), and the effect of different interlayer materials Cu and Al and Ag-Cu alloy was also discussed. The results show that it is not easy to joint Be and HR-1 stainless when Al was used as the interlayer material, but good joints can be obtained using Cu and Ag and Cu alloy as the interlayer materials, because the formation of Be-Fe brittle intermetallic compounds was prevented. Ag-Cu alloy is the best interlayer materials among them, as it can reduce the mutual diffusion between Be and Fe. (authors)

Characterizing piezoscanner hysteresis and creep using optical levers and a reference nanopositioning stage

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Xie, H.; Regnier, S.; Rakotondrabe, M.

2009-01-01

A method using atomic force microscope (AFM) optical levers and a reference nanopositioning stage has been developed to characterize piezoscanner hysteresis and creep. The piezoscanner is fixed on a closed-loop nanopositioning stage, both of which have the same arrangement on each axis of the three spatial directions inside the AFM-based nanomanipulation system. In order to achieve characterization, the optical lever is used as a displacement sensor to measure the relative movement between the nanopositioning stage and the piezoscanner by lateral tracking a well-defined slope with the tapping mode of the AFM cantilever. This setup can be used to estimate a piezoscanner's voltage input with a reference displacement from the nanopositioning stage. The hysteresis and creep were accurately calibrated by the method presented, which use the current setup of the AFM-based nanomanipulation system without any modification or additional devices.

The microstructures and mechanical properties of Al-15Si-2.5Cu-0.5Mg/(wt%)B{sub 4}C composites produced through hot pressing technique and subjected to hot extrusion

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ozer, Alpay, E-mail: alpiozer@gmail.com

2016-11-01

In this study, B{sub 4}C (5, 10, and 15 wt%) particle-reinforced Ecka Alumix 231{sup ®} aluminum matrix composites were produced through the hot pressing technique. Some of these samples were subjected to hot extrusion as a secondary treatment at 4:1 ratio at a temperature of 555 °C. The obtained samples were subjected to density measurement, hardness test, microstructure analysis, and three-point bending test, and their fracture surfaces were examined. A density of over 99% was found in the samples. Al-rich solid solution and primary Si, CuAl{sub 2}, Al{sub 2}CuMg, and Mg{sub 2}Si phases in the microstructure were determined through X-ray diffraction analysis. Grain sizes were found to be 20 μm and 2 μm in the microstructures of the samples produced through hot pressing technique and of those subjected to additional hot extrusion, respectively. High hardness values were obtained in the samples subjected to hot extrusion. In these samples, wt% B{sub 4}C particle ratio and transverse rupture strength increased considerably. Furthermore, the highest compressive strain value was obtained in the 10 wt% B{sub 4}C particle-reinforced composites subjected to hot extrusion. - Highlights: • Liquid phase formed at the temperature of hot pressing and hot extrusion. • In the samples, over 99.19% density was obtained. • Average matrix grain size was measured to be 2 μm through hot extrusion. • As wt% B{sub 4}C ratio increased, transverse rupture strength values increased. • High compressive strain values were obtained in the hot extrusion samples.

Great expectations: patient choice as a lever for change in health care.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Friele, R.D.

2011-01-01

The introduction of market forces in the Dutch health care system is partially based on assumptions regarding patients' behavior. They are expected to actively choose their care providers. Their choices may work as a lever for change. When asked, most patients say that they find it very important to

Fabrication and Analysis of the Wear Properties of Hot-Pressed Al-Si/SiCp + Al-Si-Cu-Mg Metal Matrix Composite

Science.gov (United States)

Bang, Jeongil; Oak, Jeong-Jung; Park, Yong Ho

2016-01-01

The aim of this study was to characterize microstructures and mechanical properties of aluminum metal matrix composites (MMC's) prepared by powder metallurgy method. Consolidation of mixed powder with gas atomized Al-Si/SiCp powder and Al-14Si-2.5Cu-0.5Mg powder by hot pressing was classified according to sintering temperature and sintering time. Sintering condition was optimized using tensile properties of sintered specimens. Ultimate tensile strength of the optimized sintered specimen was 228 MPa with an elongation of 5.3% in longitudinal direction. In addition, wear properties and behaviors of the sintered aluminum-based MMC's were analyzed in accordance with vertical load and linear speed. As the linear speed and vertical load of the wear increased, change of the wear behavior occurred in order of oxidation of Al-Si matrix, formation of C-rich layer, Fe-alloying to matrix, and melting of the specimen

A novel vibrotactile system for stimulating the glabrous skin of awake freely behaving rats during operant conditioning.

Science.gov (United States)

Devecioğlu, İsmail; Güçlü, Burak

2015-03-15

Rat skin is innervated by mechanoreceptive fibers similar to those in other mammals. Tactile experiments with behaving rats mostly focus on the vibrissal system which does not exist in humans. The aim of this study was to design and implement a novel vibrotactile system to stimulate the glabrous skin of behaving rats during operant conditioning. A computer-controlled vibrotactile system was developed for various tasks in which the volar surface of unrestrained rats' fore- and hindpaws was stimulated in an operant chamber. The operant chamber was built from off-the-shelf components. A highly accurate electrodynamic shaker with a novel multi-probe design was used for generating mechanical displacements. Twenty-five rats were trained for four sequential tasks: (A) middle-lever (trial start signal) press, (B) side-lever press with an associated visual cue, (C) similar to (B) with the addition of an auditory/tactile stimulus, (D) auditory/tactile detection (yes/no) task. Out of 9 rats which could complete the tactile version of this training schedule, 5 had over 70% accuracy in the tactile version of the detection task. Unlike actuators for stimulating whiskers, this system does not require a particular head/body alignment and can be used with freely behaving animals. The vibrotactile system was found to be effective for conditioning freely behaving rats based on stimuli applied on the glabrous skin. However, detection accuracies were lower compared to those in tasks involving whisker stimulation reported previously, probably due to differences in cortical processing. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

High-sucrose diets in male rats disrupt aspects of decision making tasks, motivation and spatial memory, but not impulsivity measured by operant delay-discounting.

Science.gov (United States)

Wong, Alanna; Dogra, Vimi R; Reichelt, Amy C

2017-06-01

Excessive consumption of sugar sweetened drinks is proposed to produce functional changes in the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex, leading to perturbations in behavioural control. Impairments in behavioural control have been observed in obese people on tasks that involve making choices, including delay-discounting, indicative of increased impulsivity. In this study we examined the impact of 2h daily access to 10% sucrose (or no sucrose in controls) in young male rats on behavioural tasks reliant on hippocampal function including delay-discounting, T-maze forced choice alternation and place recognition memory, as well as progressive ratio to measure motivation. We observed deficits in place recognition memory and T-maze forced choice alternation, indicative of hippocampal deficits in rats with a history of sucrose consumption. Moreover, rats with a history of sucrose consumption were less motivated to lever press for rewards on a progressive ratio schedule. However, rats with a history of sucrose consumption performed equally to control animals during the delay-discounting task, suggesting that they discounted for reward size over a delay in a manner comparable to control animals. These findings indicate that high-sucrose diets impact on spatial and working memory processes, but do not induce impulsive-like choice behaviours in rats, suggesting that unhealthy diet choices may not influence this aspect of decision-making behaviour. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Corticospinal signals recorded with MEAs can predict the volitional forearm forces in rats.

Science.gov (United States)

Guo, Yi; Mesut, Sahin; Foulds, Richard A; Adamovich, Sergei V

2013-01-01

We set out to investigate if volitional components in the descending tracts of the spinal cord white matter can be accessed with multi-electrode array (MEA) recording technique. Rats were trained to press a lever connected to a haptic device with force feedback to receive sugar pellets. A flexible-substrate multi-electrode array was chronically implanted into the dorsal column of the cervical spinal cord. Field potentials and multi-unit activities were recorded from the descending axons of the corticospinal tract while the rat performed a lever pressing task. Forelimb forces, recorded with the sensor attached to the lever, were reconstructed using the hand position data and the neural signals through multiple trials over three weeks. The regression coefficients found from the trial set were cross-validated on the other trials recorded on same day. Approximately 30 trials of at least 2 seconds were required for accurate model estimation. The maximum correlation coefficient between the actual and predicted force was 0.7 in the test set. Positional information and its interaction with neural signals improved the correlation coefficient by 0.1 to 0.15. These results suggest that the volitional information contained in the corticospinal tract can be extracted with multi-channel neural recordings made with parenchymal electrodes.

Cognitive judgment bias interacts with risk based decision making and sensitivity to dopaminergic challenge in rats

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Robert Drozd

2016-08-01

Full Text Available Although cognitive theory has implicated judgement bias in various psychopathologies, its role in decision making under risk remains relatively unexplored. In the present study we assessed the effects of cognitive judgment bias on risky choices in rats. First, we trained and tested the animals on the rat version of the probability-discounting task. During discrete trials, the rats chose between two levers; a press on the ‘small/certain’ lever always resulted in the delivery of one reward pellet, whereas a press on the ‘large/risky’ lever resulted in the delivery of four pellets. However, the probability of receiving a reward from the ‘large/risky’ lever gradually decreased over the four trial blocks. Subsequently, the rats were re-trained and evaluated on a series of ambiguous-cue interpretation tests, which permitted their classification according to the display of ‘optimistic’ or ‘pessimistic’ traits. Because dopamine has been implicated in both: risky choices and optimism, in the last experiment, we compared the reactivity of the dopaminergic system in the ‘optimistic’ and ‘pessimistic’ animals using the apomorphine (2mg/kg s.c. sensitivity test. We demonstrated that as risk increased, the proportion of risky lever choices decreased significantly slower in ‘optimists’ compared with ‘pessimists’ and that these differences between the two groups of rats were associated with different levels of dopaminergic system reactivity. Our findings suggest that cognitive judgement bias, risky decision-making and dopamine are linked, and they provide a foundation for further investigation of the behavioural traits and cognitive processes that influence risky choices in animal models.

Electron microscopic evidence for the myosin head lever arm mechanism in hydrated myosin filaments using the gas environmental chamber

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Minoda, Hiroki; Okabe, Tatsuhiro; Inayoshi, Yuhri; Miyakawa, Takuya; Miyauchi, Yumiko; Tanokura, Masaru; Katayama, Eisaku; Wakabayashi, Takeyuki; Akimoto, Tsuyoshi; Sugi, Haruo

2011-01-01

Research highlights: → We succeeded in recording structural changes of hydrated myosin cross-bridges. → We succeeded in position-marking the cross-bridges with site-directed antibodies. → We recorded cross-bridge movement at different regions in individual cross-bridge. → The movement was smallest at the cross-bridge-subfragment two boundary. → The results provide evidence for the cross-bridge lever arm mechanism. -- Abstract: Muscle contraction results from an attachment-detachment cycle between the myosin heads extending from myosin filaments and the sites on actin filaments. The myosin head first attaches to actin together with the products of ATP hydrolysis, performs a power stroke associated with release of hydrolysis products, and detaches from actin upon binding with new ATP. The detached myosin head then hydrolyses ATP, and performs a recovery stroke to restore its initial position. The strokes have been suggested to result from rotation of the lever arm domain around the converter domain, while the catalytic domain remains rigid. To ascertain the validity of the lever arm hypothesis in muscle, we recorded ATP-induced movement at different regions within individual myosin heads in hydrated myosin filaments, using the gas environmental chamber attached to the electron microscope. The myosin head were position-marked with gold particles using three different site-directed antibodies. The amplitude of ATP-induced movement at the actin binding site in the catalytic domain was similar to that at the boundary between the catalytic and converter domains, but was definitely larger than that at the regulatory light chain in the lever arm domain. These results are consistent with the myosin head lever arm mechanism in muscle contraction if some assumptions are made.

Engaging and Supporting a University Press Scholarly Community

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Megan Taylor

2018-03-01

Full Text Available In this paper we explore how the development of The University of Huddersfield Press, a publisher of open access scholarly journals and monographs, has enabled the sharing of research with a wider online audience. We situate the development of the Press within a wider research environment and growing community of New University Presses (NUPs where there is an increasing demand for demonstrating research impact, which drives the need for improved analysis and reporting of impact data, a task that often falls within the remit of library and academic support services. We detail the benefits of the University Press Manager role in terms of ensuring professional service that delivers consistency and sustainability. We go on to outline the experiences of engaging with different online spaces and detail the extensive support for student authors. We argue that in order for the Press to support building a strong and engaged scholarly community and provide new spaces for emerging research, continued investment in both platform development and infrastructure is required.

Implementing a university e-learning strategy: levers for change within academic schools

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rhona Sharpe

2006-12-01

Full Text Available This paper describes the implementation of an e-learning strategy at a single higher education institution in terms of the levers used to promote effective uptake and ensure sustainable embedding. The focus of this work was at the level of the academic school using a range of change practices including the appointment of school-based learning technologists and e-learning champions, supporting schools to write their own strategies, a pedagogical framework of engaging with e-learning, and curriculum development and evaluation of school-supported projects. It is clear that the implementation of the e-learning strategy has led to a large and increasing proportion of our students experiencing blended learning. In addition, there are initial indications that this has enhanced some learning and teaching processes. Where there has been sustainable embedding of effective e-learning, the following levers were identified as particularly important: flexibility in practices that allow schools to contextualise their plans for change, the facilitation of communities of key staff and creating opportunities for staff to voice and challenge their beliefs about e-learning.

Modulation of the sound press level by the treatment of polymer diaphragms through ion implantation method

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yeo, Sunmog; Park, Jaewon; Lee, Hojae

2010-01-01

We present two different surface modification treatments, an ion implantation, and an ion beam mixing, and show that the surface modifications caused by these treatments are useful tools to modulate the sound press level. The ion implantations on various polymer diaphragms cause an increase in the resonant frequency so that the sound press level is lowered at low frequencies. On the contrary, a Cu or Fe 2 O 3 coating by using an ion beam mixing method causes a decrease in the resonant frequency, resulting in a high sound press level at low frequencies. We discuss the physical reasons for the change in the sound press level due to the ion-implantation methods.

Cu-O superconductors: through a lens, but darkly

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Orenstein, J.; Thomas, G.A.; Rapkine, D.H.

1987-01-01

Measurements of reflectivity R, for single crystal samples of La 2 CuO 4 (c-La) and pressed pellets of ceramic La/sub 2-x/Sr/sub x/CuO 4 (LaSr) for x = 0, 0.04, 0.075, 0.175, 0.225 are reported. A plot of R vs log nu for c-La is shown. The samples were cube-like objects approximately 2 mm on a side, which were polished as previously described

Dissociation between spontaneously hypertensive (SHR) andWistar–Kyoto (WKY) rats in baseline performance and methylphenidate response on measures of attention, impulsivity and hyperactivity in a Visual Stimulus Position Discrimination Task

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Thanos, P.K.

2009-10-08

The spontaneously hypertensive rat (SHR) is a widely accepted rodent model of Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), and methylphenidate (MP) is a central nervous systemstimulant that has been shown to have a dose-related positive effect on attention task performance in humans with ADHD. The current study was undertaken to compare SHR to its typical control strain, Wistar-Kyoto(WKY) rats, on the performance of a Visual Stimulus Position Discrimination Task (VSPDT) as well as of the responsiveness of the two rat strains to MP treatment. The rats were initially trained on the VSPDT, in which a light cue was presented randomly at three different cue-light intervals (1 s, 300 ms and 100 ms) over one of two levers, and presses on the lever corresponding to the light cue were reinforced with a food pellet. Once rats reached stable performance, the treatment phase of the study began, during which they received daily intraperitoneal (IP) injections of saline, 2 mg/kg, 5 mg/kg, and 10 mg/kg of MP in a randomized order immediately prior to being tested on the VSPDT. Baseline performance accuracy on the VSPDT did not differ between the groups. Furthermore, a striking strain dissociation was evident in the response of the two strains to treatment; VSPDT performance was substantially disrupted by the 5 and 10 mg/kg dose in the WKY rats but only mildly in the SHR rats. Response omissions were also increased only in WKY rats. Finally, both strains had increased locomotor activity in the operant chamber following MP treatment. These findings point to an important difference in response tendency toMP in the two strains that supports a view that a critical difference between these strains may suggest neurochemical and neuroadaptive differences associated with the behavioral impairments of ADHD.

Improper positioning of the elevator lever of duodenoscopes may lead to sequestered bacteria that survive disinfection by automated endoscope reprocessors.

Science.gov (United States)

Alfa, Michelle J; Singh, Harminder; Duerksen, Donald R; Schultz, Gale; Reidy, Carol; DeGagne, Pat; Olson, Nancy

2018-01-01

Some outbreaks associated with contaminated duodenoscopes have been attributed to biofilm formation. The objective of this study was to determine whether bacteria within an organic matrix could survive if the elevator lever was improperly positioned in the automated endoscope reprocessor (AER) after 1 round of reprocessing. Duodenoscope lever cavities with an open or sealed elevator wire channel were inoculated with 6-7 Log 10 of both Escherichia coli and Enterococcus faecalis in ATS2015 (Healthmark Industries, Fraser, MI) and dried for 2 hours. The duodenoscopes with the lever in the horizontal position were processed through 2 makes of AERs. The cavity was sampled using a flush-brush-flush method to determine the quantity of surviving bacteria. E faecalis (range, 21-6 Log 10 CFU) and E coli (range, 0-3 Log 10 CFU) survived disinfection of sealed or unsealed elevator wire channel duodenoscopes in 2 different AERs with and without cleaning cycles. If bacteria in organic residue are under the improperly positioned lever, then just 1 round of use is sufficient for bacteria to survive both liquid chemical sterilization and liquid chemical HLD regardless of whether or not the AER had a cleaning cycle. Copyright © 2018 Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology, Inc. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Observing Responses and Serial Stimuli: Searching for the Reinforcing Properties of the S-

Science.gov (United States)

Escobar, Rogelio; Bruner, Carlos A.

2009-01-01

The control exerted by a stimulus associated with an extinction component (S-) on observing responses was determined as a function of its temporal relation with the onset of the reinforcement component (S+). Lever pressing by rats was reinforced on a mixed random-interval extinction schedule. Each press on a second lever produced stimuli…

Opioidergic and dopaminergic modulation of cost/benefit decision-making in Long Evans Rats.

Science.gov (United States)

Morales, Ileana; Currie, Paul J; Hackenberg, Timothy D; Pastor, Raúl

2017-10-01

Eating disorders are associated with impaired decision-making and dysfunctional reward-related neurochemistry. The present study examined the potential contributions of dopamine and opioid signaling to these processes using two different decision-making tasks. In one task, Long Evans Rats chose between working for a preferred food (high-carbohydrate banana-flavored sucrose pellets) by lever pressing on a progressive-ratio schedule of reinforcement vs. obtaining less preferred laboratory chow that was concurrently available. In a second (effort-free) task, rats chose between the same two reinforcers when they were both available freely. Rats were trained in these tasks before receiving haloperidol (0.00, 0.05, 0.10mg/kg, intraperitoneally (i.p.)) or naloxone (0.0, 1.5, 3.0mg/kg, i.p.). In the first task, haloperidol decreased breakpoint, lever presses, number of reinforcers earned, and increased chow intake, whereas naloxone decreased breakpoint and number of reinforcers earned but had no effect on chow consumption. In the effort-free task, haloperidol reduced intakes of both foods without affecting preference, whereas naloxone selectively reduced the consumption of banana-pellets. The present findings support converging evidence suggesting that DA signaling affects processes more closely related to appetitive motivation, leaving other components of motivation unchanged. By contrast, opioid signaling appears to mediate aspects of hedonic feeding by selectively altering intakes of highly palatable foods. For preferred foods, both appetitive and consummatory aspects of food intake were altered by opioid receptor antagonism. Our findings argue against a general suppression of appetite by either compound, as appetite manipulations have been shown to unselectively alter intakes of both types of food regardless of the task employed. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Adult neurogenesis affects motivation to obtain weak, but not strong, reward in operant tasks.

Science.gov (United States)

Karlsson, Rose-Marie; Wang, Alice S; Sonti, Anup N; Cameron, Heather A

2018-04-16

Decreased motivation to seek rewards is a key feature of mood disorders that correlates with severity and treatment outcome. This anhedonia, or apathy, likely reflects impairment in reward circuitry, but the specific neuronal populations controlling motivation are unclear. Granule neurons generated in the adult hippocampus have been implicated in mood disorders, but are not generally considered as part of reward circuits. We investigated a possible role of these new neurons in motivation to work for food and sucrose rewards in operant conditioning tasks using GFAP-TK pharmacogenetic ablation of adult neurogenesis in both rats and mice. Rats and mice lacking adult neurogenesis showed normal lever press responding during fixed ratio training, reward devaluation, and Pavlovian Instrumental Transfer, suggesting no impairment in learning. However, on an exponentially progressive ratio schedule, or when regular chow was freely available in the testing chamber, TK rats and mice showed less effort to gain sucrose tablets. When working for balanced food tablets, which rats and mice of both genotypes strongly preferred over sucrose, the genotype effects on behavior were lost. This decrease in effort under conditions of low reward suggests that loss of adult neurogenesis decreases motivation to seek reward in a manner that may model behavioral apathy. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Effect of cantilever geometry on the optical lever sensitivities and thermal noise method of the atomic force microscope.

Science.gov (United States)

Sader, John E; Lu, Jianing; Mulvaney, Paul

2014-11-01

Calibration of the optical lever sensitivities of atomic force microscope (AFM) cantilevers is especially important for determining the force in AFM measurements. These sensitivities depend critically on the cantilever mode used and are known to differ for static and dynamic measurements. Here, we calculate the ratio of the dynamic and static sensitivities for several common AFM cantilevers, whose shapes vary considerably, and experimentally verify these results. The dynamic-to-static optical lever sensitivity ratio is found to range from 1.09 to 1.41 for the cantilevers studied - in stark contrast to the constant value of 1.09 used widely in current calibration studies. This analysis shows that accuracy of the thermal noise method for the static spring constant is strongly dependent on cantilever geometry - neglect of these dynamic-to-static factors can induce errors exceeding 100%. We also discuss a simple experimental approach to non-invasively and simultaneously determine the dynamic and static spring constants and optical lever sensitivities of cantilevers of arbitrary shape, which is applicable to all AFM platforms that have the thermal noise method for spring constant calibration.

R&D of CuCrZr tubes for W/Cu monoblock components

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhao, Sixiang, E-mail: sxzhao@impcas.ac.cn [Institute of Plasma Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences (ASIPP), P.O. Box 1126, Hefei 230031 (China); Ma, Linsheng [State Nuclear Bao Ti Zirconium Industry Company, 206 Hi-Tech Avenue, Baoji 721013 (China); Peng, Lingjian [Advanced Technology & Materials Co., Ltd. - AT& M, Beijing 100081 (China); Gao, Bo [State Nuclear Bao Ti Zirconium Industry Company, 206 Hi-Tech Avenue, Baoji 721013 (China); Li, Chun [Laboratory of Advanced materials, School of Materials Science & Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084 (China); Li, Qiang; Wang, Wanjing; Wei, Ran; Xu, Yuping [Institute of Plasma Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences (ASIPP), P.O. Box 1126, Hefei 230031 (China); Pan, Ningjie; Qin, Sigui; Shi, Yingli; Liu, Guohui; Wang, Tiejun [Advanced Technology & Materials Co., Ltd. - AT& M, Beijing 100081 (China); Luo, Guang-Nan, E-mail: gnluo@ipp.ac.cn [Institute of Plasma Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences (ASIPP), P.O. Box 1126, Hefei 230031 (China); Hefei Center for Physical Science and Technology, Hefei 230031 (China); Hefei Science Center of CAS, Hefei 230031 (China)

2016-11-15

Highlights: • CuCrZr tubes with excellent HIP performance and good resistance to grain growth have been developed. • A circumferential ductility testing manner for small-diameter tubes has been utilized in this study. • The evolution of microstructures has been revealed throughout the new tube forming processes. - Abstract: In order to avoid the occurrence of two types of longitudinal defects (strain localization and folding flaws), which were observed in the CuCrZr tubes of EAST W/Cu upper divertor components, in the future manufacturing of monoblock components using hot isostatic pressing (HIP), a new CuCrZr tube forming protocol is proposed. The evolution of Cu grains and Cr-rich particles is monitored by scanning electron microscopy throughout the new tube forming processes. The final microstructures of the newly developed tubes are totally different from those of the EAST project previously chosen tubes and the elongation of Cr-rich precipitates has been substantially suppressed by using the new tube forming protocol. The newly developed tubes show better HIP performance than the EAST previously chosen ones. Since circumferential mechanical properties, especially ductility, are of great importance, a circumferential ductility testing manner for small-diameter tubes, which might be a supplement to longitudinal tensile testing, has been utilized and the preliminary testing results are given. The recrystallization behavior of the newly developed tubes is also investigated.

A systematic review of surface electromyography analyses of the bench press movement task

Science.gov (United States)

Gołaś, Artur; Blazek, Dusan; Maszczyk, Adam; Wilk, Michał; Pietraszewski, Przemysław; Petr, Miroslav; Uhlir, Petr; Zając, Adam

2017-01-01

Background The bench press exercise (BP) plays an important role in recreational and professional training, in which muscle activity is an important multifactorial phenomenon. The objective of this paper is to systematically review electromyography (EMG) studies performed on the barbell BP exercise to answer the following research questions: Which muscles show the greatest activity during the flat BP? Which changes in muscle activity are related to specific conditions under which the BP movement is performed? Strategy PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) in the Cochrane Library were searched through June 10, 2016. A combination of the following search terms was used: bench press, chest press, board press, test, measure, assessment, dynamometer, kinematics and biomechanics. Only original, full-text articles were considered. Results The search process resulted in 14 relevant studies that were included in the discussion. The triceps brachii (TB) and pectoralis major (PM) muscles were found to have similar activity during the BP, which was significantly higher than the activity of the anterior deltoid. During the BP movement, muscle activity changes with exercise intensity, velocity of movement, fatigue, mental focus, movement phase and stability conditions, such as bar vibration or unstable surfaces. Under these circumstances, TB is the most common object of activity change. Conclusions PM and TB EMG activity is more dominant and shows greater EMG amplitude than anterior deltoid during the BP. There are six factors that can influence muscle activity during the BP; however, the most important factor is exercise intensity, which interacts with all other factors. The research on muscle activity in the BP has several unresolved areas, such as clearly and strongly defined guidelines to perform EMG measurements (e.g., how to elaborate with surface EMG limits) or guidelines for the use of exact muscle models. PMID

A systematic review of surface electromyography analyses of the bench press movement task.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Petr Stastny

Full Text Available The bench press exercise (BP plays an important role in recreational and professional training, in which muscle activity is an important multifactorial phenomenon. The objective of this paper is to systematically review electromyography (EMG studies performed on the barbell BP exercise to answer the following research questions: Which muscles show the greatest activity during the flat BP? Which changes in muscle activity are related to specific conditions under which the BP movement is performed?PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL in the Cochrane Library were searched through June 10, 2016. A combination of the following search terms was used: bench press, chest press, board press, test, measure, assessment, dynamometer, kinematics and biomechanics. Only original, full-text articles were considered.The search process resulted in 14 relevant studies that were included in the discussion. The triceps brachii (TB and pectoralis major (PM muscles were found to have similar activity during the BP, which was significantly higher than the activity of the anterior deltoid. During the BP movement, muscle activity changes with exercise intensity, velocity of movement, fatigue, mental focus, movement phase and stability conditions, such as bar vibration or unstable surfaces. Under these circumstances, TB is the most common object of activity change.PM and TB EMG activity is more dominant and shows greater EMG amplitude than anterior deltoid during the BP. There are six factors that can influence muscle activity during the BP; however, the most important factor is exercise intensity, which interacts with all other factors. The research on muscle activity in the BP has several unresolved areas, such as clearly and strongly defined guidelines to perform EMG measurements (e.g., how to elaborate with surface EMG limits or guidelines for the use of exact muscle models.

A systematic review of surface electromyography analyses of the bench press movement task.

Science.gov (United States)

Stastny, Petr; Gołaś, Artur; Blazek, Dusan; Maszczyk, Adam; Wilk, Michał; Pietraszewski, Przemysław; Petr, Miroslav; Uhlir, Petr; Zając, Adam

2017-01-01

The bench press exercise (BP) plays an important role in recreational and professional training, in which muscle activity is an important multifactorial phenomenon. The objective of this paper is to systematically review electromyography (EMG) studies performed on the barbell BP exercise to answer the following research questions: Which muscles show the greatest activity during the flat BP? Which changes in muscle activity are related to specific conditions under which the BP movement is performed? PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) in the Cochrane Library were searched through June 10, 2016. A combination of the following search terms was used: bench press, chest press, board press, test, measure, assessment, dynamometer, kinematics and biomechanics. Only original, full-text articles were considered. The search process resulted in 14 relevant studies that were included in the discussion. The triceps brachii (TB) and pectoralis major (PM) muscles were found to have similar activity during the BP, which was significantly higher than the activity of the anterior deltoid. During the BP movement, muscle activity changes with exercise intensity, velocity of movement, fatigue, mental focus, movement phase and stability conditions, such as bar vibration or unstable surfaces. Under these circumstances, TB is the most common object of activity change. PM and TB EMG activity is more dominant and shows greater EMG amplitude than anterior deltoid during the BP. There are six factors that can influence muscle activity during the BP; however, the most important factor is exercise intensity, which interacts with all other factors. The research on muscle activity in the BP has several unresolved areas, such as clearly and strongly defined guidelines to perform EMG measurements (e.g., how to elaborate with surface EMG limits) or guidelines for the use of exact muscle models.

Effect of short-term prefeeding and body weight on wheel running and responding reinforced by the opportunity to run in a wheel.

Science.gov (United States)

Belke, Terry W; Pierce, W David; Jensen, K

2004-07-30

A biobehavioural analysis of activity anorexia suggests that the motivation for physical activity is regulated by food supply and body weight. In the present experiment, food allocation was varied within subjects by prefeeding food-deprived rats 0, 5, 10 and 15 g of food before sessions of lever pressing for wheel-running reinforcement. The experiment assessed the effects of prefeeding on rates of wheel running, lever pressing, and postreinforcement pausing. Results showed that prefeeding animals 5 g of food had no effect. Prefeeding 10 g of food reduced lever pressing for wheel running and rates of wheel running without a significant change in body weight; the effect was, however, transitory. Prefeeding 15 g of food increased the animals' body weights, resulting in a sustained decrease of wheel running and lever pressing, and an increase in postreinforcement pausing. Overall the results indicate that the motivation for physical activity is regulated by changes in local food supply, but is sustained only when there is a concomitant change in body weight.

Fabrication of in-situ grown graphene reinforced Cu matrix composites

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Yakun; Zhang, Xiang; Liu, Enzuo; He, Chunnian; Shi, Chunsheng; Li, Jiajun; Nash, Philip; Zhao, Naiqin

2016-01-01

Graphene/Cu composites were fabricated through a graphene in-situ grown approach, which involved ball-milling of Cu powders with PMMA as solid carbon source, in-situ growth of graphene on flaky Cu powders and vacuum hot-press sintering. SEM and TEM characterization results indicated that graphene in-situ grown on Cu powders guaranteed a homogeneous dispersion and a good combination between graphene and Cu matrix, as well as the intact structure of graphene, which was beneficial to its strengthening effect. The yield strength of 244 MPa and tensile strength of 274 MPa were achieved in the composite with 0.95 wt.% graphene, which were separately 177% and 27.4% enhancement over pure Cu. Strengthening effect of in-situ grown graphene in the matrix was contributed to load transfer and dislocation strengthening. PMID:26763313

Mediodorsal Thalamic Neurons Mirror the Activity of Medial Prefrontal Neurons Responding to Movement and Reinforcement during a Dynamic DNMTP Task.

Science.gov (United States)

Miller, Rikki L A; Francoeur, Miranda J; Gibson, Brett M; Mair, Robert G

2017-01-01

The mediodorsal nucleus (MD) interacts with medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) to support learning and adaptive decision-making. MD receives driver (layer 5) and modulatory (layer 6) projections from PFC and is the main source of driver thalamic projections to middle cortical layers of PFC. Little is known about the activity of MD neurons and their influence on PFC during decision-making. We recorded MD neurons in rats performing a dynamic delayed nonmatching to position (dDNMTP) task and compared results to a previous study of mPFC with the same task (Onos et al., 2016). Criterion event-related responses were observed for 22% (254/1179) of neurons recorded in MD, 237 (93%) of which exhibited activity consistent with mPFC response types. More MD than mPFC neurons exhibited responses related to movement (45% vs. 29%) and reinforcement (51% vs. 27%). MD had few responses related to lever presses, and none related to preparation or memory delay, which constituted 43% of event-related activity in mPFC. Comparison of averaged normalized population activity and population response times confirmed the broad similarity of common response types in MD and mPFC and revealed differences in the onset and offset of some response types. Our results show that MD represents information about actions and outcomes essential for decision-making during dDNMTP, consistent with evidence from lesion studies that MD supports reward-based learning and action-selection. These findings support the hypothesis that MD reinforces task-relevant neural activity in PFC that gives rise to adaptive behavior.

Wettability of hot-pressed samples of boron-containing aluminium compounds by liquid metals and alloys

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kharlamov, A.I.; Nizhenko, V.I.; Kirillova, N.V.; Floka, L.I.

2000-01-01

Highly dispersed powders of aluminium borides and borocarbides were sintered by hot pressing method. Temperature dependence of wettability of hot-pressed boride samples (α-AlB 12 and AlB 18 ) and aluminium borocarbides (Al 3 B 48 C 2 , Al 8 B 4 C 2 and AlB 24 C) by liquid aluminium, copper, germanium, silicon and melts Al + 25 wt.%Si and Cu + (3-6) wt.%Ti was studied. Dependence of a compound wettability on the ratio of components in it was analyzed [ru

27Al, 63Cu NMR spectroscopy and electrical transport in Heusler Cu-Mn-Al alloy powders

Science.gov (United States)

Nadutov, V. M.; Perekos, A. O.; Kokorin, V. V.; Trachevskii, V. V.; Konoplyuk, S. M.; Vashchuk, D. L.

2018-02-01

The ultrafine powder of the Heusler Cu-13,1Mn-12,6Al (wt.%) alloy produced by electrical spark dispersion (ESD) in ethanol and the pellets prepared by pressing of the powders and aged in various gas environment (air, Ar, vacuum) were studied by XRD, nuclear magnetic resonance, magnetic and electric transport methods. The constituent phases were identified as b.c.c. α-Cu-Mn-Al, f.c.c. γ-Cu-Mn-Al, Cu2MnAl, and oxides. The sizes of the coherently scattering domains (CSD) and the saturation magnetizations were in the range of 4-90 nm and 0-1.5 Am2/kg, respectively. 27Al and 63Cu NMR spectra of the powders and pellets have shown hyperfine structure caused by contributions from atomic nuclei of the constituent phases. The aging of pellets in different gas environments had effect on their phase composition but no effect on dispersion of the phases. In contrast to the as-cast alloy, electrical resistance of the pellets evidenced semiconducting behavior at elevated temperatures due to the presence of metal oxides formed on the surfaces of nanoparticles.

Probing muscle myosin motor action: x-ray (m3 and m6) interference measurements report motor domain not lever arm movement.

Science.gov (United States)

Knupp, Carlo; Offer, Gerald; Ranatunga, K W; Squire, John M

2009-07-10

The key question in understanding how force and movement are produced in muscle concerns the nature of the cyclic interaction of myosin molecules with actin filaments. The lever arm of the globular head of each myosin molecule is thought in some way to swing axially on the actin-attached motor domain, thus propelling the actin filament past the myosin filament. Recent X-ray diffraction studies of vertebrate muscle, especially those involving the analysis of interference effects between myosin head arrays in the two halves of the thick filaments, have been claimed to prove that the lever arm moves at the same time as the sliding of actin and myosin filaments in response to muscle length or force steps. It was suggested that the sliding of myosin and actin filaments, the level of force produced and the lever arm angle are all directly coupled and that other models of lever arm movement will not fit the X-ray data. Here, we show that, in addition to interference across the A-band, which must be occurring, the observed meridional M3 and M6 X-ray intensity changes can all be explained very well by the changing diffraction effects during filament sliding caused by heads stereospecifically attached to actin moving axially relative to a population of detached or non-stereospecifically attached heads that remain fixed in position relative to the myosin filament backbone. Crucially, and contrary to previous interpretations, the X-ray interference results provide little direct information about the position of the myosin head lever arm; they are, in fact, reporting relative motor domain movements. The implications of the new interpretation are briefly assessed.

Quantifying Social Motivation in Mice Using Operant Conditioning.

Science.gov (United States)

Martin, Loren; Iceberg, Erica

2015-08-08

In this protocol, social motivation is measured in mice through a pair of operant conditioning paradigms. To conduct the experiments, two-chambered shuttle boxes were equipped with two operant levers (left and right) and a food receptacle in one chamber, which was then divided from the second chamber by an automated guillotine door covered by a wire grid. Different stimulus mice, rotated across testing days, served as a social stimulus behind the wire grid, and were only visible following the opening of the guillotine door. Test mice were trained to lever press in order to open the door and gain access to the stimulus partner for 15 sec. The number of lever presses required to obtain the social reward progressively increased on a fixed schedule of 3. Testing sessions ended after test mice stopped lever pressing for 5 consecutive minutes. The last reinforced ratio or breakpoint can be used as a quantitative measure of social motivation. For the second paradigm, test mice were trained to discriminate between left and right lever presses in order to obtain either a food reward or the social reward. Mice were rewarded for every 3 presses of each respective lever. The number of food and social rewards can be compared as a measurement of the value placed upon each reward. The ratio of each reward type can also be compared between mouse strains and the change in this ratio can be monitored within testing sessions to measure satiation with a given reward type. Both of these operant conditioning paradigms are highly useful for the quantification of social motivation in mouse models of autism and other disorders of social behavior.

Effect of equal-channel angular pressing and aging on the microstructure and mechanical properties of an Al-Cu-Mg-Si alloy

Science.gov (United States)

Gazizov, M. R.; Dubina, A. V.; Zhemchuzhnikova, D. A.; Kaibyshev, R. O.

2015-07-01

The effect of intermediate equal-channel angular pressing (ECAP) and final aging at 170°C on the mechanical properties and microstructure of aluminum alloy belonging to Al-Cu-Mg-Si system stress with a Cu/Mg ratio (AA2014) is considered. After quenching and aging (treatment T6), the yield stress (σ0.2) and ultimate tensile strength (σu) are ˜415 and ˜450 MPa, respectively; the elongation to fracture (δ) is 4.2%. The precipitation strengthening is reached due to the precipitation of θ″-, θ'-, β″-, and Q'/ C-phase particles. After intermediate ECAP and subsequent aging for 0.5 h, σ0.2 and σu increase to 470 and 535 MPa, respectively; δ increases to ˜9.5%. The plastic deformation leads to the formation of a microstructure that consists of deformation bands characterized by a high density of dislocations. During aging for 0.5 h, the partial decomposition of supersaturated solid solution and formation of segregations within grains and at dislocations and precipitation of the Guinier-Preston zones and β″ phase also occur; all of this ensure the maximum increase in the strength of the AA2014 alloy. As the aging time increases to 8 h, the slight decrease in both σ0.2 and σu to 465 and 515 MPa and δ to ˜6% takes place. It has been shown that the intermediate ECAP does not affect the sequence of the precipitation of main strengthening θ″ and θ' phases during aging. However, in this case, the volume fraction of strengthening particles decreases significantly and their dispersivity increases.

A 3-lever discrimination procedure reveals differences in the subjective effects of low and high doses of MDMA.

Science.gov (United States)

Harper, David N; Langen, Anna-Lena; Schenk, Susan

2014-01-01

Drug discrimination studies have suggested that the subjective effects of low doses of (±)3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) are readily differentiated from those of d-amphetamine (AMPH) and that the discriminative stimulus properties are mediated by serotonergic and dopaminergic mechanisms, respectively. Previous studies, however, have primarily examined responses to doses that do not produce substantial increases in extracellular dopamine. The present study determined whether doses of MDMA that produce increases in synaptic dopamine would also produce subjective effects that were more like AMPH and were sensitive to pharmacological manipulation of D1-like receptors. A three-lever drug discrimination paradigm was used. Rats were trained to respond on different levers following saline, AMPH (0.5mg/kg, IP) or MDMA (1.5mg/kg, IP) injections. Generalization curves were generated for a range of different doses of both drugs and the effect of the D1-like antagonist, SCH23390 on the discriminative stimulus effects of different doses of MDMA was determined. Rats accurately discriminated MDMA, AMPH and saline. Low doses of MDMA produced almost exclusive responding on the MDMA lever but at doses of 3.0mg/kg MDMA or higher, responding shifted to the AMPH lever. The AMPH response produced by higher doses of MDMA was attenuated by pretreatment with SCH23390. The data suggest that low doses and higher doses of MDMA produce distinct discriminative stimuli. The shift to AMPH-like responding following administration of higher doses of MDMA, and the decrease in this response following administration of SCH23390 suggests a dopaminergic component to the subjective experience of MDMA at higher doses. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Production and processing of Cu-Cr-Nb alloys

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ellis, D.L.; Michal, G.M.; Orth, N.W.

1990-01-01

A new Cu-based alloy possessing high strength, high conductivity, and good stability at elevated temperatures was recently produced. This paper details the melting of the master alloys, production of rapidly solidified ribbon, and processing of the ribbon to sheet by hot pressing and hot rolling

Production and processing of Cu-Cr-Nb alloys

Science.gov (United States)

Ellis, David L.; Michal, Gary M.; Orth, Norman W.

1990-01-01

A new Cu-based alloy possessing high strength, high conductivity, and good stability at elevated temperatures was recently produced. This paper details the melting of the master alloys, production of rapidly solidified ribbon, and processing of the ribbon to sheet by hot pressing and hot rolling.

Performance on a strategy set shifting task during adolescence in a genetic model of attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder: Methylphenidate vs. atomoxetine treatments

Science.gov (United States)

Harvey, Roxann C; Jordan, Chloe J; Tassin, David H; Moody, Kayla R; Dwoskin, Linda P; Kantak, Kathleen M

2013-01-01

Research examining medication effects on set shifting in teens with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is lacking. An animal model of ADHD may be useful for exploring this gap. The Spontaneously Hypertensive Rat (SHR) is a commonly used animal model of ADHD. SHR and two comparator strains, Wistar-Kyoto (WKY) and Wistar (WIS), were evaluated during adolescence in a strategy set shifting task under conditions of a 0-sec or 15-sec delay to reinforcer delivery. The task had three phases: initial discrimination, set shift and reversal learning. Under 0-sec delays, SHR performed as well as or better than WKY and WIS. Treatment with 0.3 mg/kg/day atomoxetine had little effect, other than to modestly increase trials to criterion during set shifting in all strains. Under 15-sec delays, SHR had longer lever press reaction times, longer latencies to criterion and more trial omissions than WKY during set shifting and reversal learning. These deficits were not reduced systematically by 1.5 mg/kg/day methylphenidate or 0.3 mg/kg/day atomoxetine. Regarding learning in SHR, methylphenidate improved initial discrimination, whereas atomoxetine improved set shifting but disrupted initial discrimination. During reversal learning, both drugs were ineffective in SHR, and atomoxetine made reaction time and trial omissions greater in WKY. Overall, WIS performance differed from SHR or WKY, depending on phase. Collectively, a genetic model of ADHD in adolescent rats revealed that neither methylphenidate nor atomoxetine mitigated all deficits in SHR during the set shifting task. Thus, methylphenidate or atomoxetine monotherapy may not mitigate all set shift task-related deficits in teens with ADHD. PMID:23376704

Oxytocin Reduces Cocaine Cued Fos Activation in a Regionally Specific Manner

Science.gov (United States)

Leong, Kah-Chung; Freeman, Linnea R; Berini, Carole R; Ghee, Shannon M; See, Ronald E

2017-01-01

Abstract Background Oxytocin may be a possible treatment for multiple neuropsychiatric disorders, including cocaine addiction. Little is known about the site-specific effects of oxytocin on various drug addiction-related brain regions. Furthermore, sexually dimorphic effects of oxytocin on neural function in the addiction circuit have not been established. Here, we studied Fos expression following cocaine-cued reinstatement in both male and female rats. Methods Male and female rats underwent self-administration, extinction, and reinstatement tests. On test days, rats were given oxytocin or vehicle, and lever pressing was measured in response to conditioned cocaine cues. Rats were perfused and Fos staining measured in the central amygdala, medial prefrontal cortex, nucleus accumbens core, and subthalamic nucleus. Fos/oxytocin double labeling occurred in the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus. Results Rats reinstated to cocaine cues relative to extinction responding and oxytocin reduced cocaine seeking. Oxytocin combined with contingent cue presentations increased Fos+ oxytocin cell bodies within the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus relative to vehicle. Fos expression robustly increased in the central amygdala following oxytocin administration. Oxytocin reversed cue-induced Fos expression in the medial prefrontal cortex, nucleus accumbens core, and subthalamic nucleus. Central oxytocin infusion also attenuated reinstated cocaine seeking. Conclusions Oxytocin decreased reinstated cocaine seeking, increased Fos activation in the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus and central amygdala, but normalized cue-induced Fos activation in the medial prefrontal cortex, nucleus accumbens core, and subthalamic nucleus, thereby demonstrating regionally specific activation patterns. No sex differences were seen for the effects of oxytocin on cocaine seeking and Fos activation, indicating that oxytocin acts on similar central neural circuits critical to

Inefficient cognitive control in adult ADHD: evidence from trial-by-trial Stroop test and cued task switching performance

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Heuser Isabella

2007-08-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Contemporary neuropsychological models of ADHD implicate impaired cognitive control as contributing to disorder characteristic behavioral deficiencies and excesses; albeit to varying degrees. While the traditional view of ADHD postulates a core deficiency in cognitive control processes, alternative dual-process models emphasize the dynamic interplay of bottom-up driven factors such as activation, arousal, alerting, motivation, reward and temporal processing with top-down cognitive control. However, neuropsychological models of ADHD are child-based and have yet to undergo extensive empirical scrutiny with respect to their application to individuals with persistent symptoms in adulthood. Furthermore, few studies of adult ADHD samples have investigated two central cognitive control processes: interference control and task-set coordination. The current study employed experimental chronometric Stroop and task switching paradigms to investigate the efficiency of processes involved in interference control and task-set coordination in ADHD adults. Methods 22 adults diagnosed with persistent ADHD (17 males and 22 matched healthy control subjects performed a manual trial-by-trial Stroop color-word test and a blocked explicitly cued task switching paradigm. Performance differences between neutral and incongruent trials of the Stroop task measured interference control. Task switching paradigm manipulations allowed for measurement of transient task-set updating, sustained task-set maintenance, preparatory mechanisms and interference control. Control analyses tested for the specificity of group × condition interactions. Results Abnormal processing of task-irrelevant stimulus features was evident in ADHD group performance on both tasks. ADHD group interference effects on the task switching paradigm were found to be dependent on the time allotted to prepare for an upcoming task. Group differences in sustained task-set maintenance and

mGluR5 positive allosteric modulation and its effects on MK-801 induced set-shifting impairments in a rat operant delayed matching/non-matching-to-sample task

Science.gov (United States)

LaCrosse, Amber L.; Burrows, Brian T.; Angulo, Rachel M.; Conrad, Phoebe R.; Himes, Sarah M.; Mathews, Nordia; Wegner, Scott A.; Taylor, Sara B.; Olive, M. Foster

2014-01-01

Rationale Positive allosteric modulators (PAMs) of type 5 metabotropic glutamate receptors (mGluR5) exert pro-cognitive effects in animal models of various neuropsychiatric diseases. However, few studies to date have examined ability of mGluR5 PAMs to reverse cognitive deficits in operant delayed matching/non-matching-to-sample (DMS/DNMS) tasks. Objectives To determine the ability of the mGluR5 PAM 3-cyano-N-1,3-diphenyl-1H-pyrazol-5-yl)benzamide (CDPPB) to reverse set-shifting deficits induced by the NMDA receptor antagonist MK-801. Methods Male Sprague-Dawley rats were initially trained to lever press for sucrose reinforcement under either DMS or DNMS conditions. Following successful acquisition of the task, reinforcement conditions were reversed (DNMS→DMS or DMS→DNMS). In Experiment 1, rats were treated daily prior to each session with either vehicle/vehicle, vehicle/MK-801 (0.06 mg/kg) simultaneously, CDPPB (20 mg/kg)/MK-801 simultaneously, or CDPPB 30 min prior to MK-801. In Experiment 2, rats were treated with either vehicle/vehicle, vehicle/MK-801, or CDPPB 30 min prior to MK-801 only prior to sessions that followed task reversal. Results In Experiment 1, no group differences in initial task acquisition were observed. Rats treated with vehicle+MK−801 showed significant set-shifting impairments following task reversal, which were partially attenuated by simultaneous administration of CDPPB/MK-801, and completely precluded by administration of CDPPB 30 min prior to MK-801. In Experiment 2, MK-801 did not impair reversal learning and no other group differences were observed. Conclusions MK-801 induced deficits in operant set-shifting ability were prevented by pretreatment with CDPPB. MK-801 did not produce deficits in initial task learning or when treatment was initiated following task reversal. PMID:24973895

Elaboration and characterization of silver sheathed YBaCuO and BiSrCaCuO wires

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Regnier, P.; Chaffron, L.; Schmirgeld, L.

1990-01-01

We report on our recent progress in the elaboration of silver sheathed high-Tc superconducting wires. It is shown that careful optimization of the swaging and pressing stages leads to a compacity of nearly 100% for the green ceramic, which considerably reduces the problem of its shrinkage in the silver clad during sintering, and consequently increases the critical current density far above 10 3 A/cm 2 at 77 K. Electrical and microstructural characterization of the wires are presented and compared with other published data. In particular, for both YBaCuO and BiSrCaCuO ribbons, it is shown that the thinner the ribbon the higher the critical current density. But this effect is much more pronounced for BiSrCaCuO because, due to partial melting of the former ceramic during the elaboration process, there is a pronounced enhancement of its texture as its thickness is reduced

Targeted deletion of the GABRA2 gene encoding alpha2-subunits of GABA(A) receptors facilitates performance of a conditioned emotional response, and abolishes anxiolytic effects of benzodiazepines and barbiturates.

Science.gov (United States)

Dixon, C I; Rosahl, T W; Stephens, D N

2008-07-01

Mice with point-mutated alpha2 GABA(A) receptor subunits (rendering them diazepam insensitive) are resistant to the anxiolytic-like effects of benzodiazepines (BZs) in the conditioned emotional response (CER) test, but show normal anxiolytic effects of a barbiturate. We investigated the consequence of deleting the alpha2-subunit on acquisition of the CER with increasing intensity of footshock, and on the anxiolytic efficacy of a benzodiazepine, diazepam, and a barbiturate, pentobarbital. alpha2 knockout (KO) and wildtype (WT) mice were trained in a conditioned emotional response (CER) task, in which lever pressing for food on a variable interval (VI) schedule was suppressed during the presentation of a compound light/tone conditioned stimulus (CS+) that predicted footshock. The ability of diazepam and of pentobarbital to reduce suppression during the CS+ was interpreted as an anxiolytic response. There were no differences between the genotypes in shock sensitivity, as assessed by their flinch responses to increasing levels of shock. However, alpha2 KO mice showed a greater suppression of lever pressing than WT littermates in the presence of a compound cue signalling footshock. Diazepam (0, 0.5, 1 and 2 mg/kg) induced a dose-dependent anxiolytic-like effect in WT mice but no such effect was seen in KO mice. Similarly, although pentobarbital (20 mg/kg) reduced the ability of the CS+ to reduce lever pressing rates in WT mice, this effect was not seen in the KO. These findings suggest that alpha2-containing GABA(A) receptors mediate the anxiolytic effects of barbiturates, as well as benzodiazepines, and that they may be involved in neuronal circuits underlying conditioned anxiety.

Stimulus- and response-reinforcer contingencies in autoshaping, operant, classical, and omission training procedures in rats.

Science.gov (United States)

Atnip, G W

1977-07-01

Separate groups of rats received 500 trials of lever-press training under autoshaping (food delivery followed 10-second lever presentations, or occurred immediately following a response); operant conditioning (responding was necessary for food delivery); and classical conditioning (food followed lever presentations regardless of responding). Each group then received 500 trials on an omission procedure in which food was omitted on trials with a response. Another group received 1000 trials on the omission procedure, and a fifth group, random control, received 1000 uncorrelated presentations of lever and food. The autoshaping, operant, and classical groups reached high response levels by the end of initial training. Acquisition was fastest in the autoshaping group. Responding remained consistently low in the control group. The omission group responded at a level between the control group and the other three groups. During omission training, responding in these three groups declined to the omission-group level. During omission training, the rats continued contacting the lever frequently after lever pressing had declined. Response maintenance under omission training seems not to require topographic similarity between the response and reinforcer-elicited consummatory behaviors.

An Integrated Model of Cognitive Control in Task Switching

Science.gov (United States)

Altmann, Erik M.; Gray, Wayne D.

2008-01-01

A model of cognitive control in task switching is developed in which controlled performance depends on the system maintaining access to a code in episodic memory representing the most recently cued task. The main constraint on access to the current task code is proactive interference from old task codes. This interference and the mechanisms that…

Memory Asymmetry of Forward and Backward Associations in Recognition Tasks

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Jiongjiong; Zhu, Zijian; Mecklinger, Axel; Fang, Zhiyong; Li, Han

2013-01-01

There is an intensive debate on whether memory for serial order is symmetric. The objective of this study was to explore whether associative asymmetry is modulated by memory task (recognition vs. cued recall). Participants were asked to memorize word triples (Experiment 1–2) or pairs (Experiment 3–6) during the study phase. They then recalled the word by a cue during a cued recall task (Experiment 1–4), and judged whether the presented two words were in the same or in a different order compared to the study phase during a recognition task (Experiment 1–6). To control for perceptual matching between the study and test phase, participants were presented with vertical test pairs when they made directional judgment in Experiment 5. In Experiment 6, participants also made associative recognition judgments for word pairs presented at the same or the reversed position. The results showed that forward associations were recalled at similar levels as backward associations, and that the correlations between forward and backward associations were high in the cued recall tasks. On the other hand, the direction of forward associations was recognized more accurately (and more quickly) than backward associations, and their correlations were comparable to the control condition in the recognition tasks. This forward advantage was also obtained for the associative recognition task. Diminishing positional information did not change the pattern of associative asymmetry. These results suggest that associative asymmetry is modulated by cued recall and recognition manipulations, and that direction as a constituent part of a memory trace can facilitate associative memory. PMID:22924326

Nucleus accumbens opioid, GABaergic, and dopaminergic modulation of palatable food motivation: contrasting effects revealed by a progressive ratio study in the rat.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Min; Balmadrid, Christian; Kelley, Ann E

2003-04-01

The current studies were designed to evaluate whether incentive motivation for palatable food is altered after manipulations of opioid, GABAergic, and dopaminergic transmission within the nucleus accumbens. A progressive ratio schedule was used to measure lever-pressing for sugar pellets after microinfusion of drugs into the nucleus accumbens in non-food-deprived rats. The mu opioid agonist D-Ala2, NMe-Phe4, Glyo15-enkephalin and the indirect dopamine agonist amphetamine induced a marked increase in break point and correct lever-presses; the GABA(A) agonist muscimol did not affect breakpoint or lever-presses. The data suggest that opioid, dopaminergic, and GABAergic systems within the accumbens differentially modulate food-seeking behavior through mechanisms related to hedonic evaluation of food, incentive salience, and control of motor feeding circuits, respectively.

The hippocampus, time and working memory.

Science.gov (United States)

Rawlins, J N; Tsaltas, E

1983-12-01

Rats were trained on a discrete trial working memory leverpress alternation task, following hippocampal lesions (HC), cortical control lesions (CC) or sham operations (SO). Each trial consisted of a forced information response, for which a randomly selected lever was presented followed by a free choice stage, when both levers were presented. The rats were rewarded for pressing the lever which had not been presented at the information stage. When the information response was not rewarded, all rats learnt the task equally well at IRIs of up to 12.75 sec. When the information response was rewarded, the HC rats showed impaired choice accuracy. The extent of this impairment depended on the IRI, being greatest at long IRIs, and least at short ones. Varying the number of leverpresses required to complete the information response affected choice accuracy equivalently in all groups: all rats chose significantly less accurately when only one leverpress was required than when ten leverpresses were required. There was no interaction between the lesion treatments and the information response requirements. It was concluded that both the length of the IRI and the occurrence of events during the IRI determine the extent of the hippocampal lesion-induced performance deficit in working memory tasks. It is proposed that hippocampal damage disrupts an intermediate-term, high-capacity memory buffer, but leaves both a residual short-term memory system and the long-term retention of associations unaffected. This proposal leads to the prediction that reference memory tasks should also be affected by hippocampal lesions when a delay is introduced between making a response and being rewarded for doing so.

Preparation and microstructure of hot-pressed YIG

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Abdul Halim Shaari; Mansor Hashim; Sidek Haji Abd Aziz

1992-01-01

Bulk magnetic ceramics such as yttrium-iron-garnet (YIG) and nickel-zinc ferrite were prepared by the conventional-firing and hot-press techniques. Pre-sintering and sintering, both in air, were carried out at temperature ≥ 1200 0 C. Initial density and microstructural measurements show that the high density samples with uniform grain size can be readily achieved by hot-pressing. The well-defined microstructures, the high density attained. The agreement of saturation magnetization 4πMs values and the high resistivities indicated that the optimized preparation conditions for conventional firing yielded yttrium-iron-garnet of good quality. Quenched and isochronally annealed, the YIG samples were also found to retain their room-temperature saturation-magnetization and resonance linewidth values after any single heat treatment. However, the electrical resistivity and the effective linewidth clearly exhibited isochronal recovery. A possible model to explain this behaviour and its implications on microwave applications are discussed. Ferrites of the type MFe 2 O 4 where M=Mg, Mn, Co, Fe, Cu, Zn and Cd and of the type Ni1-2xSnxFe 2 O4 have also been prepared and their properties are being studied

Preparation of a high strength Al–Cu–Mg alloy by mechanical alloying and press-forming

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tang Huaguo; Cheng Zhiqiang; Liu Jianwei; Ma Xianfeng

2012-01-01

Highlights: ► A high strength aluminum alloy of Al–2 wt.%Mg–2 wt.%Cu has been prepared by mechanical alloying and press-forming. ► The alloy only consists of solid solution α-Al. ► The grains size of α-Al was about 300 nm–5 μm. ► The solid solution strengthening and the grain refinement strengthening are the main reasons for such a high strength. - Abstract: A high strength aluminum alloy, with the ratio of 96 wt.%Al–2 wt.%Mg–2 wt.%Cu, has been prepared by mechanical alloying and press-forming. The alloy exhibited a high tensile strength of 780 MPa and a high microhardness of 180 HV. X-ray diffraction characterizations confirmed that the alloy only consists of a solid solution α-Al. Microstructure characterizations revealed that the grain size of α-Al was about 300 nm–5 μm. The solid solution strengthening and the grain refinement strengthening were considered to be the reason for such a high strength.

One-step synthesis and microstructure of CuO-SDC composites

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Firmino, H.C.T.; Araujo, A.J.M.; Dutra, R.P.S.; Macedo, D.A., E-mail: hellentorrano@hotmail.com, E-mail: allanjp1993@hotmail.com, E-mail: ricardopsd@gmail.com, E-mail: damaced@gmail.com [Universidade Federal da Paraiba (UFPB), Joao Pessoa, PB (Brazil); Nascimento, R.M., E-mail: rmaribondo@ufrnet.br [Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte (UFRN), Natal, RN (Brazil); Rajesh, S., E-mail: rajeshayr@gmail.com [University of Aveiro (Portugal)

2017-01-15

An in situ one step synthesis route based on the polymeric precursor method was used to produce dual phase CuO-samaria doped ceria (SDC) nanocomposite powders. This chemical route allowed to obtain composite powders with reduced particle size and uniform distribution of Cu, Ce and Sm elements. The particulate material was characterized by powder X-ray diffraction (XRD) combined with Rietveld refinement. CuO-SDC sintered in air between 950 to 1050 °C and subsequently reduced to Cu-SDC cermets were further characterized by XRD and scanning electron microscopy. The open porosity was measured using the Archimedes' principle. Suitable microstructures for both charge transfer and mass transport processes (30 to 45% porosity) were attained in Cu-SDC cermets previously fired at 1000 to 1050 °C. Overall results indicated that CuO-SDC composites and Cu-SDC cermets with potential application as anodes for solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) can be obtained by microstructural design. An anode supported half-cell was prepared by co-pressing and co-firing gadolinia doped ceria (CGO) and the herein synthesized CuO-SDC nanocomposite powder. (author)

Synergetic Effect of Graphene and MWCNTs on Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Cu/Ti3SiC2/C Nanocomposites

Science.gov (United States)

Jiang, Xiaosong; Song, Tingfeng; Shao, Zhenyi; Liu, Wanxia; Zhu, Degui; Zhu, Minhao

2017-11-01

Multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) and graphenes have been taken for novel reinforcements due to their unique structure and performance. However, MWCNTs or graphenes reinforced copper matrix composites could not catch up with ideal value due to reinforcement dispersion in metal matrix, wettability to metal matrix, and composite material interface. Taking advantage of the superior properties of one-dimensional MWCNTs and two-dimensional graphenes, complementary performance and structure are constructed to create a high contact area between MWCNTs and graphenes to the Cu matrix. Mechanical alloying, hot pressing, and hot isostatic pressing techniques are used to fabricate Cu matrix self-lubricating nanocomposites. Effects of MWCNTs and graphenes on mechanical properties and microstructures of Cu/Ti3SiC2/C nanocomposites are studied. The fracture and strengthening mechanisms of Cu/Ti3SiC2/C nanocomposites are explored on the basis of structure and composition of Cu/Ti3SiC2/C nanocomposites with formation and function of interface.

NRC Information Notice No. 93-22: Tripping of Klockner-Moeller molded-case circuit breakers due to support lever failure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Grimes, B.K.

1993-01-01

On July 1, 1992, Virginia Electric and Power Company (VEPCO), licensee for North Anna Power Station (North Anna), Units 1 and 2, reported to the NRC that over a three-month period in 1992, three K-M model NZM6-63, 480-Vac MCCBs had tripped without appreciable load or fault condition or other electrical or mechanical transient. The three failed MCCBs were located in the cable vault and tunnel area of North Anna-2 and supplied power to motor operated valves in the charging and safety injection systems. The switch handles were found in the trip-free position and the breakers could not be relatched and reclosed. Examination of the internals of one of the three failed breakers revealed that its support lever (also described by VEPCO as a ''spring arm''), located in the rear compartment of the case, had fractured. This caused the breaker to trip and to become incapable of being reclosed. The NRC has determined that the support levers only in K-M model NZM6, NZM6b, and NZMH6 MCCBs, rated for 100 amperes and below and manufactured from 1972 on, have been made of the same type of plastic used in the support levers of the MCCBs that failed at North Anna-2

Metallurgically prepared NiCu alloys as cathode materials for hydrogen evolution reaction

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang, Kunchan; Xia, Ming; Xiao, Tao; Lei, Ting; Yan, Weishan

2017-01-01

Ni−Cu bimetallic alloys with Cu content of 5, 10, 20, 30 and 50 wt% are prepared by powder metallurgy method, which consisted of powder mixing, pressing and sintering processes. The X-ray diffraction (XRD) measurement confirms that all the five Ni−Cu alloys possess the f.c.c. structure. The hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) activity of the prepared Ni−Cu alloy electrodes was studied in 6 M KOH solution by cathodic current-potential curves and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) techniques. It was found that the electrocatalytic activity for the HER depended on the composition of Ni−Cu alloys, where Ni−10Cu alloy exhibited considerably higher HER activity than Ni plate and other Ni−Cu alloys, indicative of its chemical composition related intrinsic activity. - Highlights: • Ni−Cu alloys with various Cu contents were prepared by powder metallurgy method. • Ni−Cu alloy exhibits chemical composition related synergistic effect for HER activity. • Ni−10Cu alloy electrode presents a most efficient activity for HER. • Two time constants are observed in Nyquist curve and both of them related to the kinetics of HER.

Metallurgically prepared NiCu alloys as cathode materials for hydrogen evolution reaction

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wang, Kunchan; Xia, Ming [State Key Laboratory of Powder Metallurgy, Central South University, Changsha 410083 (China); Xiao, Tao [2nd Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha 410011 (China); Lei, Ting, E-mail: tlei@mail.csu.edu.cn [State Key Laboratory of Powder Metallurgy, Central South University, Changsha 410083 (China); Yan, Weishan [State Key Laboratory of Powder Metallurgy, Central South University, Changsha 410083 (China)

2017-01-15

Ni−Cu bimetallic alloys with Cu content of 5, 10, 20, 30 and 50 wt% are prepared by powder metallurgy method, which consisted of powder mixing, pressing and sintering processes. The X-ray diffraction (XRD) measurement confirms that all the five Ni−Cu alloys possess the f.c.c. structure. The hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) activity of the prepared Ni−Cu alloy electrodes was studied in 6 M KOH solution by cathodic current-potential curves and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) techniques. It was found that the electrocatalytic activity for the HER depended on the composition of Ni−Cu alloys, where Ni−10Cu alloy exhibited considerably higher HER activity than Ni plate and other Ni−Cu alloys, indicative of its chemical composition related intrinsic activity. - Highlights: • Ni−Cu alloys with various Cu contents were prepared by powder metallurgy method. • Ni−Cu alloy exhibits chemical composition related synergistic effect for HER activity. • Ni−10Cu alloy electrode presents a most efficient activity for HER. • Two time constants are observed in Nyquist curve and both of them related to the kinetics of HER.

Manufacturing and testing of W/Cu mono-block small scale mock-up for EAST by HIP and HRP technologies

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Li, Qiang [Institute of Plasma Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences (ASIPP), Hefei, Anhui (China); Qin, Sigui [Advanced Technology and Materials Co., Ltd, Beijing (China); Wang, Wanjing; Qi, Pan [Institute of Plasma Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences (ASIPP), Hefei, Anhui (China); Roccella, Selanna; Visca, Eliseo [Associazione EURATOM-ENEA sulla Fusione, Frascati (Italy); Liu, Guohui [Advanced Technology and Materials Co., Ltd, Beijing (China); Luo, Guang-Nan, E-mail: liqiang577@ipp.ac.cn [Institute of Plasma Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences (ASIPP), Hefei, Anhui (China)

2013-10-15

ITER-like W/Cu mono-block plasma-facing components (PFCs) will be used in vertical target regions of the experimental advanced superconducting tokamak (EAST) divertor. The first W/Cu mono-block small scale mock-up with five W mono-blocks has been manufactured successfully by technological combination of hot isostatic pressing (HIP) and hot radial pressing (HRP). The joining of a W mono-block and a pure copper interlayer was achieved by means of HIP technology and the bonding strength was over 150 MPa. The good bonding between the pure copper interlayer and a CuCrZr cooling tube was obtained by means of HRP technology. In order to understand deeply the process of HRP, the stress distribution of the mock-up during HRP process was simulated using ANSYS code. Ultrasonic Nondestructive Testing (NDT) of the W/Cu and Cu/CuCrZr interfaces was performed, showing that excellent bonding of the W/Cu and Cu/CuCrZr interfaces. The thermal cycle fatigue testing of the mock-up has been carried out by means of an e-beam device in Southwest Institute of Physics, Chengdu (SWIP) and the mock-up withstood 1000 cycles of heat loads up to 8.4 MW/m{sup 2} with the cooling water of 2 m/s, 20 °C, 0.2 MPa.

IE Information Notice No. 85-93: Westinghouse Type DS circuit breakers, potential failure of electric closing feature because of broken spring release latch lever

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jordan, E.L.

1992-01-01

On April 14, 1985, the Westinghouse Nuclear Services Integration Division (NSID) issued Technical Bulletin No. NSID-TB-85-17 advising their customers of a potential malfunction in Westinghouse Type DS Class 1E circuit breakers because of broken spring release latch levers. These electrically operated type DS breakers will not close electrically when the spring release latch lever has been broken off. Twenty-five broken levers have been reported and evaluated. This evaluation shows concentrations of incidents traceable to manufacturing in the following periods of time: early 1975, April 1976, and early 1978. This circuit breaker failure, as discussed, adversely affects the safety function (closing on demand) when the circuit breaker is used in the Engineered Safety Features Systems. However, this failure mode will not affect the safety trip function when it is used in the reactor protection system

Cued Memory Reactivation During SWS Abolishes the Beneficial Effect of Sleep on Abstraction.

Science.gov (United States)

Hennies, Nora; Lambon Ralph, Matthew A; Durrant, Simon J; Cousins, James N; Lewis, Penelope A

2017-08-01

Extracting regularities from stimuli in our environment and generalizing these to new situations are fundamental processes in human cognition. Sleep has been shown to enhance these processes, possibly by facilitating reactivation-triggered memory reorganization. Here, we assessed whether cued reactivation during slow wave sleep (SWS) promotes the beneficial effect of sleep on abstraction of statistical regularities. We used an auditory statistical learning task, in which the benefit of sleep has been firmly established. Participants were exposed to a probabilistically determined sequence of tones and subsequently tested for recognition of novel short sequences adhering to this same statistical pattern in both immediate and delayed recall sessions. In different groups, the exposure stream was replayed during SWS in the night between the recall sessions (SWS-replay group), in wake just before sleep (presleep replay group), or not at all (control group). Surprisingly, participants who received replay in sleep performed worse in the delayed recall session than the control and the presleep replay group. They also failed to show the association between SWS and task performance that has been observed in previous studies and was present in the controls. Importantly, sleep structure and sleep quality did not differ between groups, suggesting that replay during SWS did not impair sleep but rather disrupted or interfered with sleep-dependent mechanisms that underlie the extraction of the statistical pattern. These findings raise important questions about the scope of cued memory reactivation and the mechanisms that underlie sleep-related generalization. © Sleep Research Society 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Sleep Research Society. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail journals.permissions@oup.com.

The Department of Defense Press Pool: Did in Work in Panama?

Science.gov (United States)

1990-01-01

who would physically attack a paper and its printer that did not reflect their opinion (Tebbel, 5). Politicians rarely brought the papers to task...Rico single-handedly and James Creelman , a reporter for Hearst, leading a bayonet charge outside Santiago. Military and press relations were good. The

Densification of YBa2Cu3O7-x

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhou, J.P.; Sorrell, C.C.; Dou, S.X.; Liu, H.K.; Bourdillon, A.J.

1991-01-01

YBa 2 Cu 3 O 7-x is normally densified by solid-state reaction at 935deg-980deg C for 2-4 h in air or at 940deg-1000deg C for 5-10 h in flowing oxygen. Typical densities achieved these ways are 70-80% of theoretical. Rahaman et al. obtained 95% density by rapidly inserting samples in a furnace at 800deg C. Densities of 94-100% can be achieved by sinter-forging, hot pressing, and hot isostatic pressing. The present work reports a rapid sintering technique whereby 100% density can be achieved without the use of specialised equipment

Uncovering the Problem-Solving Process: Cued Retrospective Reporting Versus Concurrent and Retrospective Reporting

OpenAIRE

Van Gog, Tamara; Paas, Fred; Van Merriënboer, Jeroen; Witte, P.

2007-01-01

This study investigated the amounts of problem-solving process information ("action," "why," "how," and "metacognitive") elicited by means of concurrent, retrospective, and cued retrospective reporting. In a within-participants design, 26 participants completed electrical circuit troubleshooting tasks under different reporting conditions. The method of cued retrospective reporting used the original computer-based task and a superimposed record of the participant's eye fixations and mouse-keyb...

Smashing WordPress Themes Making WordPress Beautiful

CERN Document Server

Hedengren, Thord Daniel

2011-01-01

The ultimate guide to WordPress Themes - one of the hottest topics on the web today WordPress is so much more than a blogging platform, and Smashing WordPress Themes teaches readers how to make it look any way they like - from a corporate site, to a photography gallery and moreWordPress is one of the hottest tools on the web today and is used by sites including The New York Times, Rolling Stone, flickr, CNN, NASA and of course Smashing MagazineBeautiful full colour throughout - web designers expect nothing lessSmashing Magazine will fully support this book by by promoting it through their webs

Does nanocrystalline Cu deform by Coble creep near room temperature?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li, Y.J.; Blum, W.; Breutinger, F.

2004-01-01

The proposal that nanocrystalline Cu produced by electro deposition (ED) creeps at temperatures slightly above room temperature by diffusive flow via grain boundaries (Coble creep) has been checked by compression tests. It was found that the minimum creep rates obtained in tension are significantly larger than those in compression, probably due to interference of tensile fracture. Scanning electron microscopic investigation showed that the spacing between large-angle grain boundaries is about 10 μm rather than the reported value of 30 nm. Comparison with coarse grained and ultrafine grained Cu produced by equal channel angular pressing showed that the ED-Cu work hardens similarly to coarse grained Cu in contrast to ultrafine grained Cu which reaches its maximum deformation resistance within a small strain interval of 0.04 and has distinctly higher strain rate sensitivity of flow stress. The present results are consistent with the established knowledge that there is no softening by grain boundaries, e.g. due to Coble creep, near room temperature in Cu with grain sizes above 1 μm. The grain boundary effect observed in ultrafine grained Cu is interpreted in terms of modification of dislocation generation and dislocation annihilation by grain boundaries

Parrotfish grazing ability: interspecific differences in relation to jaw-lever mechanics and relative weight of adductor mandibulae on an Okinawan coral reef

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Atsushi Nanami

2016-09-01

Full Text Available Parrotfishes (family Labridae: Scarini are regarded to have important roles for maintaining the ecosystem balance in coral reefs due to their removal of organic matter and calcic substrates by grazing. The purpose of the present study was to clarify the interspecific differences in grazing ability of five parrotfish species (Chlorurus sordidus, C. bowersi, Scarus rivulatus, S. niger and S. forsteni in relation to interspecific differences in jaw-lever mechanics and the relative weight of the adductor mandibulae (muscles operating jaw closing. The grazing ability was calculated by using stomach contents (CaCO3 weight/organic matter weight defined as the grazing ability index (GAI. There were significant interspecific differences in GAI (C. sordidus = C. bowersi > S. rivulatus > S. niger = S. forsteni. Teeth of C. sordidus and C. bowersi were protrusive-shape whereas teeth of S. rivulatus, S. niger and S. forsteni were flat-shape. C. sordidus and C. bowersihave jaw-lever mechanics producing a greater biting force and have a larger weight of adductor mandibulae. S. rivulatus has jaw-lever mechanics producing a greater biting force but a smaller weight of adductor mandibulae that produce an intermediate biting force. In contrast, S. niger and S. forsteni have jaw-lever mechanics producing a lesser biting force and have a smaller weight of adductor mandibulae. Feeding rates and foray size of S. rivulatus, S. niger and S. forsteni were greater than C. sordidus and C. bowersi. The degree in bioerosion (GAI × feeding rate was the largest for S. rivulatusand the smallest for S. forsteni. The degree in bioerosion for C. sordidus was larger than S. niger whereas relatively equal between C. bowersi and S. niger. These results suggest that interspecific difference in GAI was explained by interspecific differences in teeth shape, jaw-lever mechanics and relative weight of adductor mandibulae. The interspecific difference in the degree of bioerosion suggests

Parrotfish grazing ability: interspecific differences in relation to jaw-lever mechanics and relative weight of adductor mandibulae on an Okinawan coral reef.

Science.gov (United States)

Nanami, Atsushi

2016-01-01

Parrotfishes (family Labridae: Scarini) are regarded to have important roles for maintaining the ecosystem balance in coral reefs due to their removal of organic matter and calcic substrates by grazing. The purpose of the present study was to clarify the interspecific differences in grazing ability of five parrotfish species (Chlorurus sordidus, C. bowersi, Scarus rivulatus, S. niger and S. forsteni) in relation to interspecific differences in jaw-lever mechanics and the relative weight of the adductor mandibulae (muscles operating jaw closing). The grazing ability was calculated by using stomach contents (CaCO3 weight/organic matter weight) defined as the grazing ability index (GAI). There were significant interspecific differences in GAI (C. sordidus = C. bowersi > S. rivulatus > S. niger = S. forsteni). Teeth of C. sordidus and C. bowersi were protrusive-shape whereas teeth of S. rivulatus, S. niger and S. forsteni were flat-shape. C. sordidus and C. bowersihave jaw-lever mechanics producing a greater biting force and have a larger weight of adductor mandibulae. S. rivulatus has jaw-lever mechanics producing a greater biting force but a smaller weight of adductor mandibulae that produce an intermediate biting force. In contrast, S. niger and S. forsteni have jaw-lever mechanics producing a lesser biting force and have a smaller weight of adductor mandibulae. Feeding rates and foray size of S. rivulatus, S. niger and S. forsteni were greater than C. sordidus and C. bowersi. The degree in bioerosion (GAI × feeding rate) was the largest for S. rivulatusand the smallest for S. forsteni. The degree in bioerosion for C. sordidus was larger than S. niger whereas relatively equal between C. bowersi and S. niger. These results suggest that interspecific difference in GAI was explained by interspecific differences in teeth shape, jaw-lever mechanics and relative weight of adductor mandibulae. The interspecific difference in the degree of bioerosion suggests the

Similar acute physiological responses from effort and duration matched leg press and recumbent cycling tasks

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

James Steele

2018-02-01

Full Text Available The present study examined the effects of exercise utilising traditional resistance training (leg press or ‘cardio’ exercise (recumbent cycle ergometry modalities upon acute physiological responses. Nine healthy males underwent a within session randomised crossover design where they completed both the leg press and recumbent cycle ergometer conditions. Conditions were approximately matched for effort and duration (leg press: 4 × 12RM using a 2 s concentric and 3 s eccentric repetition duration controlled with a metronome, thus each set lasted  60 s; recumbent cycle ergometer: 4 × 60 s bouts using a resistance level permitting 80–100 rpm but culminating with being unable to sustain the minimum cadence for the final 5–10 s. Measurements included VO2, respiratory exchange ratio (RER, blood lactate, energy expenditure, muscle swelling, and electromyography. Perceived effort was similar between conditions and thus both were well matched with respect to effort. There were no significant effects by ‘condition’ in any of the physiological responses examined (all p > 0.05. The present study shows that, when both effort and duration are matched, resistance training (leg press and ‘cardio’ exercise (recumbent cycle ergometry may produce largely similar responses in VO2, RER, blood lactate, energy expenditure, muscle swelling, and electromyography. It therefore seems reasonable to suggest that both may offer a similar stimulus to produce chronic physiological adaptations in outcomes such as cardiorespiratory fitness, strength, and hypertrophy. Future work should look to both replicate the study conducted here with respect to the same, and additional physiological measures, and rigorously test the comparative efficacy of effort and duration matched exercise of differing modalities with respect to chronic improvements in physiological fitness.

Diseño de mecanismos de palancas asistido por computadora. // Computer Aided Design of lever mechanisms.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

J. L. Betancourt Herrera

2001-07-01

Full Text Available En la práctica del diseño industrial hay múltiples problemas que requieren de la creación de un mecanismo concaracterísticas de movimiento peculiares. La elección de un método que permita la síntesis estructural, el planteamiento ysolución de las ecuaciones correspondientes, requeridas para el análisis cinemático de los mecanismos de palancas, en unaforma clara y simple, es un problema muy complejo de resolver en sentido general.Tomando como referencia la teoría para la formación de los grupos de Assur, el autor desarrolló el método de los gruposestructurales y sobre esta base el software DSM (Diseño y Simulación de Mecanismos, que es la herramienta de cómputopropuesta para apoyar al diseñador en el proceso de Diseño Cualitativo de Mecanismos de Palancas Asistido porComputadora, que consiste en un proceso iterativo entre síntesis y análisis con el que se pueden obtener los resultados de lavariación de la estructura de un mecanismo y de sus parámetros fundamentales, prácticamente en tiempo real.En el presente trabajo se definen y ejemplifican los conceptos y elementos principales relacionados con el diseñocualitativo de mecanismos de palancas asistido por computadora.Palabras claves: CAD, mecanismos de palancas, diseño industrial, análisis cinemático, síntesis estructural.___________________________________________________________________________AbstractThere are series of problems in industrial design practice that require a mechanism with specific characteristic movement.Selecting a method for achieving a clear and simple structural synthesis and cinematic analysis of lever mechanisms isgenerally understood as a hard-solving problem. Based on Assur´s Group Forming Theory, the author developed theStructural Groups Method and the DSM software (Design and Simulation of Mechanisms. This software is a tool intendedto help designers in the process of Computer Assisted Qualitative Design of Lever Mechanisms. It consists

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN COMPACTING PRESSURE AND CONDITIONS IN PRESSING CHAMBER DURING BIOMASS PRESSING

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Peter Križan

2016-02-01

Full Text Available In this paper, we will present the impact of the conditions in pressing chambers during the pressing of wooden briquettes. The conditions in pressing chambers can significantly impact the resulting compacting pressure required for the pressing of briquettes. In the introduction, we show which parameters of the pressing chamber during pressing can impact the resulting compacting pressure. The experiment results which are shown in this paper described the detected impact of some important pressing chamber parameters. This experiment aims to detect the pressing chamber length impact and the impact of the way of pressing. By setting the pressing conditions, we will be able to achieve the suitable resulting compacting pressure with respect to the required final briquettes quality.

A Multitasking General Executive for Compound Continuous Tasks

Science.gov (United States)

Salvucci, Dario D.

2005-01-01

As cognitive architectures move to account for increasingly complex real-world tasks, one of the most pressing challenges involves understanding and modeling human multitasking. Although a number of existing models now perform multitasking in real-world scenarios, these models typically employ customized executives that schedule tasks for the…

Wave Energy, Lever Operated Pivoting Float LOPF Study

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Margheritini, Lucia

The fully instrumented Resen Waves Lever Operated Pivoting Float LOPF wave energy buoy model has gone through the first stage of testing in regular waves in scale 1:25 of the North Sea wave conditions, in the 3D deep wave basin at the Hydraulic and Coastal Engineering Laboratory of Aalborg...... University in Denmark. The model size was 60cm W x 90cm L x 21cm H. The 60 cm width pointed towards the wave front. The LOPF buoy is characterized by a simple mechanical design with few moving parts and direct electrical output and it is taut moored to the sea bed, so all forces are referenced to the seabed...... for maximum energy output in regular as well as irregular waves. During storms the buoy pivots and streamlines itself to minimize loads on the mooring line. A conservative estimate shows that a full scale system for North Sea conditions has a float size width of 15 m that will, with 60% generator efficiency...

Functional Task Test: 3. Skeletal Muscle Performance Adaptations to Space Flight

Science.gov (United States)

Ryder, Jeffrey W.; Wickwire, P. J.; Buxton, R. E.; Bloomberg, J. J.; Ploutz-Snyder, L.

2011-01-01

The functional task test is a multi-disciplinary study investigating how space-flight induced changes to physiological systems impacts functional task performance. Impairment of neuromuscular function would be expected to negatively affect functional performance of crewmembers following exposure to microgravity. This presentation reports the results for muscle performance testing in crewmembers. Functional task performance will be presented in the abstract "Functional Task Test 1: sensory motor adaptations associated with postflight alternations in astronaut functional task performance." METHODS: Muscle performance measures were obtained in crewmembers before and after short-duration space flight aboard the Space Shuttle and long-duration International Space Station (ISS) missions. The battery of muscle performance tests included leg press and bench press measures of isometric force, isotonic power and total work. Knee extension was used for the measurement of central activation and maximal isometric force. Upper and lower body force steadiness control were measured on the bench press and knee extension machine, respectively. Tests were implemented 60 and 30 days before launch, on landing day (Shuttle crew only), and 6, 10 and 30 days after landing. Seven Space Shuttle crew and four ISS crew have completed the muscle performance testing to date. RESULTS: Preliminary results for Space Shuttle crew reveal significant reductions in the leg press performance metrics of maximal isometric force, power and total work on R+0 (pperformance metrics were observed in returning Shuttle crew and these adaptations are likely contributors to impaired functional tasks that are ambulatory in nature (See abstract Functional Task Test: 1). Interestingly, no significant changes in central activation capacity were detected. Therefore, impairments in muscle function in response to short-duration space flight are likely myocellular rather than neuromotor in nature.

Effects of autoshaping procedures on 3H-8-OH-DPAT-labeled 5-HT1a binding and 125I-LSD-labeled 5-HT2a binding in rat brain.

Science.gov (United States)

Tomie, Arthur; Di Poce, Jason; Aguado, Allison; Janes, Amy; Benjamin, Daniel; Pohorecky, Larissa

2003-06-13

Effects of experience with Pavlovian autoshaping procedures on lever-press autoshaping conditioned response (CR) performance and 3H-8-OH-DPAT-labeled binding of 5-HT(1a) receptors as well as 125I-LSD-labeled binding of 5-HT(2a) receptors were evaluated in four groups of male Long-Evans hooded rats. Two groups of rats (Group Paired High CR and Group Paired Low CR) received Pavlovian autoshaping procedures wherein the presentation of a lever (conditioned stimulus, CS) was followed by the response-independent presentation of food (unconditioned stimulus, US). Rats in Group Paired High CR (n=12) showed more rapid CR acquisition and higher asymptotic levels of lever-press autoshaping CR performance relative to rats in Group Low CR (n=12). Group Omission (n=9) received autoshaping with an omission contingency, such that performing the lever-press autoshaping CR resulted in the cancellation the food US, while Group Random (n=9) received presentations of lever CS and food US randomly with respect to one another. Though Groups Omission and Random did not differ in lever-press autoshaping CR performance, Group Omission showed significantly lower levels of 3H-8-OH-DPAT-labeled 5-HT(1a) binding in post-synaptic areas (frontal cortex, septum, caudate putamen), as well as significantly higher plasma corticosterone levels than Group Random. In addition, Group Random showed higher levels of 3H-8-OH-DPAT-labeled 5-HT(1a) binding in pre-synaptic somatodendritic autoreceptors on dorsal raphe nucleus relative to each of the other three groups. Autoradiographic analysis of 125I-LSD-labeled 5-HT(2a) receptor binding revealed no significant differences between Groups Paired High CR and Paired Low CR or between Groups Omission and Random in any brain regions.

Properties of the CuGaSe2 and CuInSe2 (001) surface

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Deniozou, T.

2005-01-01

The main task of this work was to investigate the (001) CuGaSe 2 and CuInSe 2 surface in dependence of preparation and stoichiometry. The knowledge of the atomic structure as well as other surface properties is important in respect to optimization of novel thin film solar cells. For the characterization of the layers mainly Auger electron Spectroscopy, low-energy electron diffraction and photoelectron spectroscopy were implemented. The development of an appropriate procedure with Ar + sputtering and annealing combined with decapping enabled the preparation of clean and well-ordered surfaces. Different surface structures were observed in dependence of the layer preparation and composition. A (4 x 1) reconstruction was observed for the first time on CuGaSe 2 layers grown with a moderate Cu-excess after preparation by sputtering and annealing. Similarly a (4 x 2) reconstruction was detected on CuInSe2 surfaces of Cu-poor layers. A reconstruction could be also observed on Cu-poorer layers, however the facets/steps could not be completely removed. Cu-richer layers were facet-free, however the observed reconstruction was also weaker. Thus it was shown that in contrary to recent expectations, according to which only the (112) surface is stable, also the (001) can be stable under particular conditions. The appearance of facets or steps is correlated with the presence of CuIn 3 Se 5 or CuGa 3 Se 5 phases. This information is furthermore important for the understanding of grain boundaries in polycrystalline CuGaSe 2 and CuInSe 2 . Binding energy shifts were observed for the first time on all Se3d, In4d, Ga3d, Cu3d core levels of the reconstructed surfaces. By comparison with results from the literature from the similar ZnSe (100) surface a modell for the (4 x 2) reconstruction was proposed. The surface components in the Se3d, In4d and Cu3d emission were attributed to Se dimers or In and Cu adatoms respectively. The x 1 periodicity of the (4 x 1) reconstruction of CuGaSe 2 is

Episodic feeling-of-knowing accuracy and cued recall in the elderly: evidence for double dissociation involving executive functioning and processing speed.

Science.gov (United States)

Perrotin, Audrey; Isingrini, Michel; Souchay, Céline; Clarys, David; Taconnat, Laurence

2006-05-01

This research investigated adult age differences in a metamemory monitoring task-episodic feeling-of-knowing (FOK) and in an episodic memory task-cued recall. Executive functioning and processing speed were examined as mediators of these age differences. Young and elderly adults were administered an episodic FOK task, a cued recall task, executive tests and speed tests. Age-related decline was observed on all the measures. Correlation analyses revealed a pattern of double dissociation which indicates a specific relationship between executive score and FOK accuracy, and between speed score and cued recall. When executive functioning and processing speed were evaluated concurrently on FOK and cued recall variables, hierarchical regression analyses showed that executive score was a better mediator of age-related variance in FOK, and that speed score was the better mediator of age-related variance in cued recall.

Sterile Reverse Osmosis Water Combined with Friction Are Optimal for Channel and Lever Cavity Sample Collection of Flexible Duodenoscopes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Michelle J. Alfa

2017-11-01

Full Text Available IntroductionSimulated-use buildup biofilm (BBF model was used to assess various extraction fluids and friction methods to determine the optimal sample collection method for polytetrafluorethylene channels. In addition, simulated-use testing was performed for the channel and lever cavity of duodenoscopes.Materials and methodsBBF was formed in polytetrafluorethylene channels using Enterococcus faecalis, Escherichia coli, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Sterile reverse osmosis (RO water, and phosphate-buffered saline with and without Tween80 as well as two neutralizing broths (Letheen and Dey–Engley were each assessed with and without friction. Neutralizer was added immediately after sample collection and samples concentrated using centrifugation. Simulated-use testing was done using TJF-Q180V and JF-140F Olympus duodenoscopes.ResultsDespite variability in the bacterial CFU in the BBF model, none of the extraction fluids tested were significantly better than RO. Borescope examination showed far less residual material when friction was part of the extraction protocol. The RO for flush-brush-flush (FBF extraction provided significantly better recovery of E. coli (p = 0.02 from duodenoscope lever cavities compared to the CDC flush method.Discussion and conclusionWe recommend RO with friction for FBF extraction of the channel and lever cavity of duodenoscopes. Neutralizer and sample concentration optimize recovery of viable bacteria on culture.

Limitations to the Generality of Cocaine Locomotor Sensitization

OpenAIRE

Marusich, Julie A.; Branch, Marc N.; Dallery, Jesse

2008-01-01

Repeated exposure to cocaine often leads to tolerance to effects on operant behavior, whereas sensitization often develops to effects on locomotor activity. The purpose of the present set of experiments was to examine if locomotor sensitization to cocaine would develop in the presence or absence of an operant contingency in rats. In Experiment 1, rats lever pressed on an FR schedule of reinforcement, and were administered chronic cocaine. Tolerance to effects of cocaine on lever pressing deve...

Increased sign-tracking behavior in adolescent rats.

Science.gov (United States)

DeAngeli, Nicole E; Miller, Sarah B; Meyer, Heidi C; Bucci, David J

2017-11-01

An autoshaping procedure was used to test the notion that conditioned stimuli (CSs) gain greater incentive salience during adolescence than young adulthood under conditions of social isolation rearing and food restriction. Rats were single-housed and placed on food restriction during 10 daily training sessions in which a lever (CS + ) was presented then followed immediately by a food unconditioned stimulus (US). A second lever (CS - ) was presented on intermixed trials and was not reinforced. Despite the fact that food delivery was not contingent on the rats' behavior, all rats exhibited behaviors directed towards the lever (i.e., sign-tracking). In the adolescent group, the rate of lever pressing and the percentage of trials with a lever press were higher than in young adults. Initially, group differences were observed when rats were retrained when the adolescents had reached young adulthood. These findings support the hypothesis that cues that come to predict reward become imbued with excessive motivational value in adolescents, perhaps contributing to the hyper-responsiveness to reward-related stimuli typically observed during this period of development. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Parkinson's Disease Is Associated with Goal Setting Deficits during Task Switching

Science.gov (United States)

Meiran, Nachshon; Friedman, Gilad; Yehene, Eynat

2004-01-01

Ten Parkinson's Disease (PD) patients and 10 control participants were tested using a task-switching paradigm in which there was a random task sequence, and the task was cued in every trial. Five PD patients showed a unique error profile. Their performance approximated guessing when accuracy was dependent on correct task identification, and was…

Energy integration: Regional economic integration lever and possible insertion factor in the global economy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lokolo, M.C.

2001-01-01

In the 1920s, just after the War, an idea began taking root in the Old Continent, to build what could be described as the United States of Europe. Thirty years later, in 1951, a new source of energy, coal, paved the way for the economic integration of Europe. It culminated into monetary integration in January 2002. Economic integration makes sense in the context of the relatively small size of some national economies and markets, and the judicious utilization of rare resources and their unequal distribution. In this document, the author elaborated on the principles at play in economic integration and argued that the integration of the national energy markets could be the lever for economic integration through the gradual elimination of the various obstacles to trade. The author first presented a brief historical overview of economic integration from the perspective of global economic relationships, covering the period between the two world wars to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) to the World Trade Organization (WTO). The concept and the forms of economic integration were reviewed. Energy integration as a lever of regional economic integration and as a factor in global economic insertion were discussed. Energy integration is a tool for the improvement of the human condition. 15 refs

Rules and more rules: the effects of multiple tasks, extensive training, and aging on task-switching performance.

Science.gov (United States)

Buchler, Norbou G; Hoyer, William J; Cerella, John

2008-06-01

Task-switching performance was assessed in young and older adults as a function of the number of task sets to be actively maintained in memory (varied from 1 to 4) over the course of extended training (5 days). Each of the four tasks required the execution of a simple computational algorithm, which was instantaneously cued by the color of the two-digit stimulus. Tasks were presented in pure (task set size 1) and mixed blocks (task set sizes 2, 3, 4), and the task sequence was unpredictable. By considering task switching beyond two tasks, we found evidence for a cognitive control system that is not overwhelmed by task set size load manipulations. Extended training eliminated age effects in task-switching performance, even when the participants had to manage the execution of up to four tasks. The results are discussed in terms of current theories of cognitive control, including task set inertia and production system postulates.

Perceptual and Conceptual Priming of Cue Encoding in Task Switching

Science.gov (United States)

Schneider, Darryl W.

2016-01-01

Transition effects in task-cuing experiments can be partitioned into task switching and cue repetition effects by using multiple cues per task. In the present study, the author shows that cue repetition effects can be partitioned into perceptual and conceptual priming effects. In 2 experiments, letters or numbers in their uppercase/lowercase or…

The Role of Control System in Increasing Corporate social Performance: The Use of Levers of Control

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hasan Fauzi

2008-06-01

Full Text Available One important instrument to be used in the control system design is strategic behaviors that can lead to the expected organization performance.  Referring to the extended definition of strategic behavior using stakeholder-based strategic behavior, corporate social performance is kind of strategic behavior to be influenced by using control system. This paper discusses how control system, using Simons‟ levers of control can play important role in increasing the corporate social performance. The interaction between control system, including belief system, boundary system, diagnostic control system, and interactive control system, as well as the corporate financial performance (CFP can affect the corporate social performance (CSP due to fact that increase in CFP resulting from the appropriate use of control system components enables the company has more chance to do the CSP. The levers of control are deemed to form an integral part of employee socialization and support the development of an organization‟s culture, the system of shared beliefs, values, norms, and mores of organizational members which are deemed to be a primary determinant of the direction of employee behavior.

Uncovering the problem-solving process: cued retrospective reporting versus concurrent and retrospective reporting.

Science.gov (United States)

van Gog, Tamara; Paas, Fred; van Merriënboer, Jeroen J G; Witte, Puk

2005-12-01

This study investigated the amounts of problem-solving process information ("action," "why," "how," and "metacognitive") elicited by means of concurrent, retrospective, and cued retrospective reporting. In a within-participants design, 26 participants completed electrical circuit troubleshooting tasks under different reporting conditions. The method of cued retrospective reporting used the original computer-based task and a superimposed record of the participant's eye fixations and mouse-keyboard operations as a cue for retrospection. Cued retrospective reporting (with the exception of why information) and concurrent reporting (with the exception of metacognitive information) resulted in a higher number of codes on the different types of information than did retrospective reporting.

Wsbnd Cu functionally graded material: Low temperature fabrication and mechanical characterization

Science.gov (United States)

Yusefi, Ali; Parvin, Nader; Mohammadi, Hossein

2018-04-01

In this study, we fabricated and characterized a Wsbnd Cu functionally graded material (FGM) with 11 layers, including a pure copper layer. Samples were prepared by mixing a mechanically alloyed Nisbnd Mnsbnd Cu powder with W and Cu powders, stacking the powders, pressing the stacked layers, and finally sintering at 1000 °C. The utilization of a Nisbnd Mnsbnd Cu system may reduce the cost but without losing the good sintering behavior and physical and mechanical properties. The composition of the material was analyzed based on scanning electron microscopy images and by energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy mapping, which indicated that in the presence of Ni and Mn, the Cu atoms could diffuse into the W particles. All of the layers had a very high relative density, thereby indicating their densification and excellent sintering behavior. We also found that the porosity values in the Cu phase remained unchanged at approximately 2.39% across the FGM. Mechanical measurements showed that the hardness (72%), modulus of elasticity (61%), and ultimate tensile strength (58%) increased with the W content across the Wsbnd Cu FGM, whereas the fracture toughness (KIC) varied in the opposite manner (minimum of 4.52 MPa/m0.5).

Mechanical properties and electrical conductivity of Cu-Cr and Cu-Cr-4% SiC nanocomposites for thermo-electric applications

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mula, Suhrit; Sahani, Pankajini; Pratihar, S.K.; Mal, Siddhartha; Koch, Carl C.

2011-01-01

Highlights: → Ball-milled Cu-Cr and Cu-Cr-SiC nanopowders successfully consolidated by microwave sintering. → Addition of nanosize SiC in Cu-Cr leads to enhanced sintered density, wear and hardness. → A good combination of wear resistance, hardness and electrical conductivity resulted in Cu 94 Cr 6 -4% SiC. → Microwave suscepting SiC particles played a pivotal role in good densification retaining matrix grains 99 Cr 1 , Cu 94 Cr 6 , Cu 99 Cr 1 -4 wt.% SiC and Cu 94 Cr 6 -4 wt.% SiC (average particle size ∼30 nm). The 50 h ball-milled samples were uniaxially pressed, and then pellets were sintered at 800 deg. C, 900 deg. C and 1000 deg. C for a constant soaking period of 30 min by microwave sintering technique. Microstructural characterization was carried out by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM). Sintered compacts resulted a highly densified compacts (∼95% relative density) while retaining ultra-fine grains (100-200 nm) in the matrix. The mechanical properties, namely, hardness and wear resistance, and electrical conductivity of the sintered specimens were also evaluated. The best combination of mechanical properties (e.g. hardness ∼2.4 GPa) and electrical conductivity (60.3% of IACS) were obtained for Cu 94 Cr 6 -4 wt.% SiC sintered at 900 deg. C. This is possibly due to presence of ultra-fine grains in the bulk samples, good densification and proper bonding between particles. The results were analyzed in the light of interactions of microwaves between metallic matrix and microwave susceptive SiC particulates.

WordPress Bible

CERN Document Server

Brazell, Aaron

2010-01-01

The WordPress Bible provides a complete and thorough guide to the largest self hosted blogging tool. This guide starts by covering the basics of WordPress such as installing and the principles of blogging, marketing and social media interaction, but then quickly ramps the reader up to more intermediate to advanced level topics such as plugins, WordPress Loop, themes and templates, custom fields, caching, security and more. The WordPress Bible is the only complete resource one needs to learning WordPress from beginning to end.

Effects of processing parameters on Be/CuCrZr joining

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Park, Jeong-Yong; Lee, Jung-Suk; Choi, Byung-Kwon; Park, Sang-Yun; Hong, Bong Guen; Jeong, Yong Hwan; Jung, Ki-Jung

2007-01-01

A joining of Be/CuCrZr has been considered as the key technology for the fabrication of the ITER first wall. Among the joining methods, Hot isostatic pressing (HIP), which is one of the diffusion bonding methods, is the most feasible method to join the Be and CuCrZr alloy. In the HIP joining of Be and CuCrZr, the interlayer was used to prevent the formation of brittle intermetallic compounds in the interface. Therefore, it is crucial to select a suitable interlayer for a joining of Be and CuCrZr. On the other hand, the diffusion between Be and CuCrZr would be enhanced with an increase of the HIP joining temperature, thereby increasing the joint strength. However, the HIP joining temperature is limited by the mechanical properties of CuCrZr. During the fabrication process of the ITER first wall, CuCrZr is subjected to several thermal cycles including a solution annealing, a cooling and an aging. The HIP joining of Be and CuCrZr corresponds to the aging of CuCrZr. The HIP joining at a higher temperature would cause a degradation of the mechanical properties of CuCrZr by an overaging effect although it is preferable for an improvement of the joint strength. In this study, the effect of the cooling rate on the mechanical properties of aged CuCrZr was investigated to find the maximum HIP temperature without a degradation of the mechanical properties of CuCrZr

High strength and utilizable ductility of bulk ultrafine-grained Cu-Al alloys

Science.gov (United States)

An, X. H.; Han, W. Z.; Huang, C. X.; Zhang, P.; Yang, G.; Wu, S. D.; Zhang, Z. F.

2008-05-01

Lack of plasticity is the main drawback for nearly all ultrafine-grained (UFG) materials, which restricts their practical applications. Bulk UFG Cu-Al alloys have been fabricated by using equal channel angular pressing technique. Its ductility was improved to exceed the criteria for structural utility while maintaining a high strength by designing the microstructure via alloying. Factors resulting in the simultaneously enhanced strength and ductility of UFG Cu-Al alloys are the formation of deformation twins and their extensive intersections facilitating accumulation of dislocations.

Task Uncertainty Can Account for Mixing and Switch Costs in Task-Switching

Science.gov (United States)

Rennie, Jaime L.

2015-01-01

Cognitive control is required in situations that involve uncertainty or change, such as when resolving conflict, selecting responses and switching tasks. Recently, it has been suggested that cognitive control can be conceptualised as a mechanism which prioritises goal-relevant information to deal with uncertainty. This hypothesis has been supported using a paradigm that requires conflict resolution. In this study, we examine whether cognitive control during task switching is also consistent with this notion. We used information theory to quantify the level of uncertainty in different trial types during a cued task-switching paradigm. We test the hypothesis that differences in uncertainty between task repeat and task switch trials can account for typical behavioural effects in task-switching. Increasing uncertainty was associated with less efficient performance (i.e., slower and less accurate), particularly on switch trials and trials that afford little opportunity for advance preparation. Interestingly, both mixing and switch costs were associated with a common episodic control process. These results support the notion that cognitive control may be conceptualised as an information processor that serves to resolve uncertainty in the environment. PMID:26107646

Freedom of the Press In the Scope of Human Rights

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sri Ayu Astuti

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Freedom of expression and press freedom is the embodiment of the recognition of human rights. Freedom of expression is also the existence of press to disclose the news with honesty and do not get a pressure to deliver the news to the public space, which in news production is known as a work of journalism. Now the  press has gained freedom of expression in the news production process which is guaranteed in the state constitution. Although Article 28 of the Constitution of the Republic of Indonesia 1945 does not point directly at the press, However, Article 28 F emphasis on processing and storage as well as ownership, excavations to information. It also contains provisions on the freedom of expression of others, which should be valued and respected. It shows equality for everyone in his position before the law in accordance with Article 27 1945 Constitution, which emphasizes the recognition of constitutional rights that belong to every person in the state of law in the Republic of Indonesia. Thus the press, which have freedom of expression in the writings of journalistic works are required to be responsible for the published news. So as not to face the legal issues and criminalization, then press should perform tasks and functions to enforce ethics as the precautionary principle when processing the news and broadcast it to the public space, as well as upholding human rights. How To Cite: Astuti, S. (2014. Freedom of the Press In the Scope of Human Rights. Rechtsidee, 1(1, 101-118. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.21070/jihr.v1i1.96

Economic Levers for Mitigating Interest Flooding Attack in Named Data Networking

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Licheng Wang

2017-01-01

Full Text Available As a kind of unwelcome, unavoidable, and malicious behavior, distributed denial of service (DDoS is an ongoing issue in today’s Internet as well as in some newly conceived future Internet architectures. Recently, a first step was made towards assessing DDoS attacks in Named Data Networking (NDN—one of the promising Internet architectures in the upcoming big data era. Among them, interest flooding attack (IFA becomes one of the main serious problems. Enlightened by the extensive study on the possibility of mitigating DDoS in today’s Internet by employing micropayments, in this paper we address the possibility of introducing economic levers, say, dynamic pricing mechanism, and so forth, for regulating IFA in NDN.

Enhancement of a visual reinforcer by D-amphetamine and nicotine in adult rats: relation to habituation and food restriction.

Science.gov (United States)

Wright, Jennifer M; Ren, Suelynn; Constantin, Annie; Clarke, Paul B S

2018-03-01

Nicotine and D-amphetamine can strengthen reinforcing effects of unconditioned visual stimuli. We investigated whether these reinforcement-enhancing effects reflect a slowing of stimulus habituation and depend on food restriction. Adult male rats pressed an active lever to illuminate a cue light during daily 60-min sessions. Depending on the experiment, rats were challenged with fixed or varying doses of D-amphetamine (0.25-2 mg/kg IP) and nicotine (0.025-0.2 mg/kg SC) or with the tobacco constituent norharman (0.03-10 μg/kg IV). Experiment 1 tested for possible reinforcement-enhancing effects of D-amphetamine and norharman. Experiment 2 investigated whether nicotine and amphetamine inhibited the spontaneous within-session decline in lever pressing. Experiment 3 assessed the effects of food restriction. Amphetamine (0.25-1 mg/kg) and nicotine (0.1 mg/kg) increased active lever pressing specifically (two- to threefold increase). The highest doses of nicotine and amphetamine also affected inactive lever responding (increase and decrease, respectively). With the visual reinforcer omitted, responding was largely extinguished. Neither drug appeared to slow habituation, as assessed by the within-session decline in lever pressing, and reinforcement-enhancing effects still occurred if the drugs were given after this decline had occurred. Food restriction enhanced the reinforcement-enhancing effect of amphetamine but not that of nicotine. Responding remained goal-directed after several weeks of testing. Low doses of D-amphetamine and nicotine produced reinforcement enhancement even in free-feeding subjects, independent of the spontaneous within-session decline in responding. Reinforcement enhancement by amphetamine, but not nicotine, was enhanced by concurrent subchronic food restriction.

Evaluation of hardening and softening behaviors in Zn–21Al–2Cu alloy processed by equal channel angular pressing

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

José Luis Hernández-Rivera

2017-10-01

Full Text Available The microstructural evolution of as-cast and homogenized Zn–21Al–2Cu samples after two and six passes in an equal channel angular pressing (ECAP at room temperature was reported. A homogenization treatment for 24 h at 350 °C was applied to the as-cast samples followed by deformation. An annealing heat treatment was performed on all samples after the ECAP process. Our results showed that the homogenized and deformed samples displayed a uniform fine-grained microstructure after annealing, while as-cast samples without homogenization treatment presented only some regions of fine-grained microstructure. The level of microsegregation was higher in the as-cast samples as compared to the homogenized ones even after annealing. Vickers microhardness measurement on samples after deformation is smaller than the original material indicating a softening. However, after the annealing treatment, the microhardness increased, indicating that there was a slight hardening of the material. Keywords: Severe plastic deformation, ECAP, Work softening, Annealing, Hardening, Fine grain

SPOT WELDING COPPER–1%Cr ELECTRODE TIPS PRODUCED VIA EQUAL CHANNEL ANGULAR PRESSING

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Luay Bakir Hussain

2010-09-01

Full Text Available A sharp 120o Equal channel angular pressing (ECAP following rout Bc was applied at room temperature to refine the grains sizes of pure copper and copper-1%Chromium alloy for spot welding electrode tips application. Initially deformation behavior was investigated with the position using colorful plasticine as work piece followed by copper alloy. It was found the deformation at the central part of the work piece is heavily sheared than the outer part. Optical and Scanning electron microscopy were used to study the progress of grain refining under the influence of rotation and number of passes during pressing. The influnece of elongated fibrous nano graines on electrical conductivity and hardness were discussed. Shear test of spot welded 303 stainless steel indicated that nano structural Cu-1%Cr electrode tips used showed a superior results compared to commercial electrodes

WordPress for dummies

CERN Document Server

Sabin-Wilson, Lisa

2014-01-01

The bestselling WordPress guide, fully updated to cover the 2013 enhancements WordPress has millions of users, and this popular guide has sold more than 105,000 copies in its previous editions. With the newest releases of WordPress, author and WordPress expert Lisa Sabin-Wilson has completely updated the book to help you use and understand all the latest features. You'll learn about both the hosted WordPress.com version and the more flexible WordPress.org, which requires third-party hosting. Whether you're switching to WordPress from another blogging platform or just beginning to blog, you'll

Differential Effects of Aging on Autobiographical Memory Tasks

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Katinka Dijkstra

2016-05-01

Full Text Available This study examined the role of aging in the recall and recognition of autobiographical memories. Young and older adults submitted personal events during a period of 3 months to an Internet diary. After this period, they performed a cued-recall test based on what, who, and where retrieval cues. Three months later, participants completed a recognition test in which the descriptions of half the entries were altered. The results indicated no age differences on the cued-recall task, but several age differences on the recognition task. Older adults were more susceptible to accept altered entries as authentic, particularly when these changes had been subtle. However, despite their lower performance, older adults were more confident with the accuracy of their decisions. The results suggest that different mechanisms underlie the recall and recognition of autobiographical memories, and that only tasks that subtly tap into source monitoring abilities are affected by cognitive aging processes.

Experimental and Theoretical Investigations of a Mechanical Lever System Driven by a DC Motor

Science.gov (United States)

Nana, B.; Fautso Kuiate, G.; Yamgoué, S. B.

This paper presents theoretical and experimental results on the investigation of the dynamics of a nonlinear electromechanical system made of a lever arm actuated by a DC motor and controlled through a repulsive magnetic force. We use the method of harmonic balance to derive oscillatory solutions. Theoretical tools such as, bifurcation diagrams, Lyapunov exponents, phase portraits, are used to unveil the rich nonlinear behavior of the system including chaos and hysteresis. The experimental results are in close accordance with the theoretical predictions.

Reciprocating pellet press

Science.gov (United States)

Jones, Charles W.

1981-04-07

A machine for pressing loose powder into pellets using a series of reciprocating motions has an interchangeable punch and die as its only accurately machines parts. The machine reciprocates horizontally between powder receiving and pressing positions. It reciprocates vertically to press, strip and release a pellet.

Press Advertising – Varieties and Sub-Varieties. Methods of Promoting the Press

OpenAIRE

Mikosz, Joanna

2016-01-01

In the text entitled “Press advertising – varieties and sub-varieties. Methods of promoting the press”, the author discusses press advertising, which is a fast developing mass-media phenomenon. Modernity has granted press advertising a high quality of print and paper, as well as Infinite possibilities of combining various promotional forms with the press. The author argues that press advertising is one of the best ways in which a company can communicate with the market. Its advantage is, abov...

Fabrication of tungsten tip for scanning tunneling microscope by the lever principle

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang Yang; Wang Huabin; Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing; Gong Jinlong; Zhu Dezhang

2007-01-01

A novel experimental setup was designed to fabricate tungsten tips for scanning tunneling microscope (STM), based on simple mechanical lever principle. The equipment can quickly separate the tip from electrolyte to avoid the further etching of the fine-shaped tungsten tip. The setup is advantageous for its simplicity over complex electronic control systems. The use result in scanning electron microscope demonstrates that the radius of the tip can reach 50 nm. The tip was applied to scan the surface of highly-oriented pyrolytic graphite, and the results were satisfactory. It is shown that the tip can be used for the scanning of atomically resolved images. (authors)

Anterior cingulate cortex supports effort allocation towards a qualitatively preferred option.

Science.gov (United States)

Hart, Evan E; Gerson, Julian O; Zoken, Yael; Garcia, Marisella; Izquierdo, Alicia

2017-07-01

The anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) is known to be involved in effortful choice, yet its role in cost-benefit evaluation of qualitatively different rewards (more/less preferred), beyond magnitude differences (larger/smaller), is poorly understood. Selecting between qualitatively different options is a decision type commonly faced by humans. Here, we assessed the role of ACC on a task that has primarily been used to probe striatal function in motivation. Rats were trained to stable performance on a progressive ratio schedule for sucrose pellets and were then given sham surgeries (control) or excitotoxic NMDA lesions of ACC. Subsequently, a choice was introduced: chow was concurrently available while animals could work for the preferred sucrose pellets. ACC lesions produced a significant decrease in lever presses for sucrose pellets compared to control, whereas chow consumption was unaffected. Lesions had no effect on sucrose pellet preference when both options were freely available. When laboratory chow was not concurrently available, ACC-lesioned rats exhibited similar lever pressing as controls. During a test under specific satiety for sucrose pellets, ACC-lesioned rats also showed intact devaluation effects. The effects of ACC lesions in our task are not mediated by decreased appetite, a change in food preference, a failure to update value or a learning deficit. Taken together, we found that ACC lesions decreased effort for a qualitatively preferred option. These results are discussed with reference to effects of striatal manipulations and our recent report of a role for basolateral amygdala in effortful choice. © 2017 Federation of European Neuroscience Societies and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Task uncertainty can account for mixing and switch costs in task-switching.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Patrick S Cooper

Full Text Available Cognitive control is required in situations that involve uncertainty or change, such as when resolving conflict, selecting responses and switching tasks. Recently, it has been suggested that cognitive control can be conceptualised as a mechanism which prioritises goal-relevant information to deal with uncertainty. This hypothesis has been supported using a paradigm that requires conflict resolution. In this study, we examine whether cognitive control during task switching is also consistent with this notion. We used information theory to quantify the level of uncertainty in different trial types during a cued task-switching paradigm. We test the hypothesis that differences in uncertainty between task repeat and task switch trials can account for typical behavioural effects in task-switching. Increasing uncertainty was associated with less efficient performance (i.e., slower and less accurate, particularly on switch trials and trials that afford little opportunity for advance preparation. Interestingly, both mixing and switch costs were associated with a common episodic control process. These results support the notion that cognitive control may be conceptualised as an information processor that serves to resolve uncertainty in the environment.

Magnetic and dielectric studies of multiferroic CuO nanoparticles confined to porous glass

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Charnaya, E.V.; Lee, M.K.; Tien, C.; Pak, V.N.; Formus, D.V.; Pirozerskii, A.L.; Nedbai, A.I.; Ubyivovk, E.V.; Baryshnikov, S.V.; Chang, L.J.

2012-01-01

Dc magnetization and ac electric permittivity were measured for the CuO-porous glass nanocomposite made and for pressed powder CuO. Magnetization curves showed a bend between two linear segments for both the nanocomposite and bulk cupric oxide at 230 K evidencing that the temperature of the transition from the paramagnetic into multiferroic phase did not change noticeably under nanoconfinement. Results suggested also a reduction of the temperature of the second transition into the collinear antiferromagnetic phase. ZFC and FC magnetizations were found to bifurcate for the nanocomposite and bulk CuO. The bifurcation was accompanied with peaks on ZFC magnetization. - Highlights: ► CuO nanoparticles embedded into porous glass compared to bulk. ► ZFC and FC magnetizations bifurcate in the nanocomposite and bulk CuO. ► Dc magnetization suggests a reduction of the temperature T N1 till about 190 K. ► Temperature T N2 of the transition into multiferroic phase did not change.

Designing reading tasks to foster critical thinking Designing reading tasks to foster critical thinking

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Leda Maria Braga Tomitch

2008-04-01

Full Text Available What else is there besides multiple choice exercises, questions or true-false statements? What kind of readers do we EFL/ESL teachers, want to develop? Fortunately, there are alternative possibilities for designing reading activities which, besides being more interesting and fun for the students than the traditional tasks, can help develop more active and critical readers. A search in EFL/ESL reading textbooks has revealed that the most frequently encountered types of reading activities are comprehension questions, multiple-choice exercises, and true-false statements (Tomitch, in press a. These tasks have been used throughout the history of language teaching, and one must agree that they have their merits. However, there are reasons why they should not be used as the only source of activity in the classroom. What else is there besides multiple choice exercises, questions or true-false statements? What kind of readers do we EFL/ESL teachers, want to develop? Fortunately, there are alternative possibilities for designing reading activities which, besides being more interesting and fun for the students than the traditional tasks, can help develop more active and critical readers. A search in EFL/ESL reading textbooks has revealed that the most frequently encountered types of reading activities are comprehension questions, multiple-choice exercises, and true-false statements (Tomitch, in press a. These tasks have been used throughout the history of language teaching, and one must agree that they have their merits. However, there are reasons why they should not be used as the only source of activity in the classroom.

Microstructural characterization and compression properties of TiC0.61/Cu(Al) composite synthesized from Cu and Ti3AlC2 powders

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Huang, Zhenying; Bonneville, Joel; Zhai, Hongxiang; Gauthier-Brunet, Veronique

2014-01-01

Highlights: • Submicro-layered TiC 0.61 /Cu(Al) nanocomposite. • MAX phase. • High yield stress. • Deformation mechanism. - Abstract: A new submicro-layered TiC 0.61 /Cu(Al) composite has been prepared by hot-pressing a mixture of 50 vol.% Ti 3 AlC 2 and 50 vol.% Cu powders at 1150 °C and 30 MPa. It is shown that the initial reinforcement Ti 3 AlC 2 particles have, after synthesis, an unusual microstructure, which consists of submicron-thick layers of TiC 0.61 and Cu(Al) alloy. Both the width of the TiC 0.61 and Cu(Al) layers are ∼150 nm. Thus, the Ti 3 AlC 2 particles are decomposed into the TiC 0.61 phase, while the additional Al atoms provided by Ti 3 AlC 2 diffuse into the molten Cu matrix at high temperature. Compression tests were performed at constant strain rate in the temperature range 20–800 °C. The new designed TiC 0.61 /Cu(Al) composite has both a high yield stress, σ 0.2 measured at 0.2% strain offset, and a high ultimate compressive strength, σ UCS , which is attributed to strong interface bonding between TiC 0.61 and Cu(Al) phase. For instance, at 20 and 200 °C, σ 0.2 is 770 MPa and 700 MPa, while σ UCS is 1.18 GPa and 1 GPa, respectively. Plastic deformation takes place in the Cu(Al) matrix. Wavy slip lines are observed indicating that cross-slip could be the dominant deformation mechanism

Differential contribution of left and right prefrontal cortex to associative cued-recall memory: a parametric PET study.

Science.gov (United States)

Lepage, Martin

2004-03-01

Several brain imaging studies have implicated prefrontal regions bilaterally during cued-recall memory tasks and yet the functional significance of these regions remains poorly understood. Using PET, we examined the neural activity in prefrontal regions of 15 subjects while they performed three cued-recall tasks differing in pre-experimental semantic associations between cues and targets. This manipulation produced varying levels of retrieval performance when one member (a semantic category name) of the triad was used as a cue for the retrieval of the other two members. The percentage of items correctly recalled was 10, 46, and 70 in the low, medium, and high cued-recall conditions, respectively. Linear contrast analyses of the PET data identified brain regions where neural activity varied with the number of items retrieved from memory. A left lateral prefrontal region showed maximal activity during the high cued-recall condition, which likely reflects processes involved in retrieval success and possibly in the generation of memory responses. Three right prefrontal regions (anterior and dorsolateral) showed maximal activity during the low cued-recall condition, which likely reflects processes involved in memory search/monitoring. These findings add further support for a bilateral prefrontal contribution to memory cued-recall tasks and point to differential roles of the two hemispheres.

WordPress For Dummies

CERN Document Server

Sabin-Wilson, Lisa

2011-01-01

The bestselling guide to WordPress, fully updated to help you get your blog going! Millions of bloggers rely on WordPress, the popular, free blogging platform. This guide covers all the features and improvements in the most up-to-date version of WordPress. Whether you are switching to WordPress from another blogging platform or just starting your first blog, you'll find the advice in this friendly guide gets you up to speed on both the free-hosted WordPress.com version and WordPress.org, which requires the purchase of web hosting services, and figure out which version is best for you. You'll b

Optimisation of thallium ''1223'' high-temperature superconducting wire by a single-stage cold deformation process. [TlPbSrCaCuO

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Glowacki, B A [IRC in Superconductivity, Cambridge (United Kingdom) Materials Science and Metallurgy, Cambridge (United Kingdom); Ashworth, S P [BICC Cables Ltd., Erith (United Kingdom)

1992-09-15

Superconducting tapes containing (Tl[sub 0.5]Pb[sub 0.5])Sr[sub 2]Ca[sub 2]Cu[sub 3]O[sub 9] were manufactured by a powder-in-tube technique and a single annealing stage. The (Tl[sub 0.5]Pb[sub 0.5])Sr[sub 2]Ca[sub 2]Cu[sub 3]O[sub 9] forms a ''1223'' structure with a Tc of over 120 K. A cold pressing stage was found to be necessary to achieve the higher J[sub c] values at 77 K. The transport J[sub c] was found to depend on: the annealing temperature, annealing time and pressing pressure. SEM examination of the Tl-1223 grain structure showed a marked difference between rolled and pressed tapes. This is ascribed to the production of a lead-rich phase during pressing, this is supported by XRD evidence. No significant degree of grain alignment was found in the Tl-1223 tapes, either by XRD analysis or by the measurement of transport critical current in applied magnetic fields. (orig.).

Sex and Adolescent Ethanol Exposure Influence Pavlovian Conditioned Approach.

Science.gov (United States)

Madayag, Aric C; Stringfield, Sierra J; Reissner, Kathryn J; Boettiger, Charlotte A; Robinson, Donita L

2017-04-01

Alcohol use among adolescents is widespread and a growing concern due to long-term behavioral deficits, including altered Pavlovian behavior, that potentially contribute to addiction vulnerability. We tested the hypothesis that adolescent intermittent ethanol (AIE) exposure alters Pavlovian behavior in males and females as measured by a shift from goal-tracking to sign-tracking. Additionally, we investigated GLT-1, an astrocytic glutamate transporter, as a potential contributor to a sign-tracking phenotype. Male and female Sprague-Dawley rats were exposed to AIE (5 g/kg, intragastric) or water intermittently 2 days on and 2 days off from postnatal day (P) 25 to 54. Around P70, animals began 20 daily sessions of Pavlovian conditioned approach (PCA), where they learned that a cue predicted noncontingent reward delivery. Lever pressing indicated interaction with the cue, or sign-tracking, and receptacle entries indicated approach to the reward delivery location, or goal-tracking. To test for effects of AIE on nucleus accumbens (NAcc) excitatory signaling, we isolated membrane subfractions and measured protein levels of the glutamate transporter GLT-1 after animals completed behavior as a measure of glutamate homeostasis. Females exhibited elevated sign-tracking compared to males with significantly more lever presses, faster latency to first lever press, and greater probability to lever press in a trial. AIE significantly increased lever pressing while blunting goal-tracking, as indicated by fewer cue-evoked receptacle entries, slower latency to receptacle entry, and lower probability to enter the receptacle in a trial. No significant sex-by-exposure interactions were observed in sign- or goal-tracking metrics. Moreover, we found no significant effects of sex or exposure on membrane GLT-1 expression in the NAcc. Females exhibited enhanced sign-tracking compared to males, while AIE decreased goal-tracking compared to control exposure. Our findings support the

Dissociating word stem completion and cued recall as a function of divided attention at retrieval.

Science.gov (United States)

Clarke, A J Benjamin; Butler, Laurie T

2008-10-01

The aim of this study was to investigate the widely held, but largely untested, view that implicit memory (repetition priming) reflects an automatic form of retrieval. Specifically, in Experiment 1 we explored whether a secondary task (syllable monitoring), performed during retrieval, would disrupt performance on explicit (cued recall) and implicit (stem completion) memory tasks equally. Surprisingly, despite substantial memory and secondary costs to cued recall when performed with a syllable-monitoring task, the same manipulation had no effect on stem completion priming or on secondary task performance. In Experiment 2 we demonstrated that even when using a particularly demanding version of the stem completion task that incurred secondary task costs, the corresponding disruption to implicit memory performance was minimal. Collectively, the results are consistent with the view that implicit memory retrieval requires little or no processing capacity and is not seemingly susceptible to the effects of dividing attention at retrieval.

Levels of Processing with Free and Cued Recall and Unilateral Temporal Lobe Epilepsy

Science.gov (United States)

Lespinet-Najib, Veronique; N'Kaoua, Bernard; Sauzeon, Helene; Bresson, Christel; Rougier, Alain; Claverie, Bernard

2004-01-01

This study investigates the role of the temporal lobes in levels-of-processing tasks (phonetic and semantic encoding) according to the nature of recall tasks (free and cued recall). These tasks were administered to 48 patients with unilateral temporal epilepsy (right ''RTLE''=24; left ''LTLE''=24) and a normal group (n=24). The results indicated…

WordPress Bible

CERN Document Server

Brazell, Aaron

2011-01-01

Get the latest word on the biggest self-hosted blogging tool on the marketWithin a week of the announcement of WordPress 3.0, it had been downloaded over a million times. Now you can get on the bandwagon of this popular open-source blogging tool with WordPress Bible, 2nd Edition. Whether you're a casual blogger or programming pro, this comprehensive guide covers the latest version of WordPress, from the basics through advanced application development. If you want to thoroughly learn WordPress, this is the book you need to succeed.Explores the principles of blogging, marketing, and social media

Wetting of molybdenum with molten Cu-O alloys

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yupko, V.L.; Garbuz, V.V.; Kryuchkova, N.I.

1992-01-01

The Cu-O alloys were prepared from type MOb copper (GOST 859-78) with an oxygen content of 0.001 wt.% and type ChDA cuprous oxide (MRTU 6-09-1451-64), the powder of which was first pressed into briquettes. The weighted portions of Cu 2 O were weighed on an Elektrobalans scale having an absolute error of ±5 · 10 -7 g. The relative error in weighing an approximately 1 · 10 -4 g weighed portion of Cu 2 O for preparation of the alloy with the minimum oxygen content of 0.002% was, therefore, ± 0.5% and consequently for the alloys with a higher oxygen content the accuracy was higher. The alloys were prepared on a ZrO 2 + 5% Y 2 O 3 ceramic at 1,420 K in a vacuum of 6.7 · 10 -3 Pa,d their weight was 1.0-1.5 g, and the melting time 30 sec. The pure type MOb copper was remelted in the same manner. The time relationships of the angle of wetting of molybdenum by molten Cu-O alloys under conditions of combined heating are given. With an increase in oxygen content from 0.004 to 0.005%, wetting drops sharply

Physiological and subjective measures of workload when shovelling with a conventional and two-handled ('levered') shovel.

Science.gov (United States)

Bridger, R S; Cabion, N; Goedecke, J; Rickard, S; Schabort, E; Westgarth-Taylor, C; Lambert, M I

1997-11-01

Previous studies have suggested that the two-handled (levered) shovel is advantageous over the conventional spade from a biomechanical point of view. The aim of this experiment was to determine whether less energy was consumed while shovelling a load of sand with this shovel compared to a conventional tool. Accordingly, an experiment was designed in which subjects (n = 10) shovelled 1815 kg sand under laboratory conditions using either a conventional or a levered shovel. Heart rate and oxygen consumption were measured continuously during the trial and subjective data on perceived exertion, general fatigue and body discomfort were recorded after the trial. Although total energy expenditure was similar under both conditions (120 +/- 20 and 125 +/- 25 kcal; conventional versus two-handled spade), average heart rate was 4% higher when the two-handled shovel was used (p shovel (p shovel 1815 kg sand with the conventional shovel and the two-handled tool despite lower mass of sand per scoop with the latter. This can be explained by the fact that the increased mass of the additional handle compensated for the lower mass of sand per scoop. The higher average heart rate while shovelling with the two-handled shovel can be explained by the more erect posture.

Strength, body composition, and functional outcomes in the squat versus leg press exercises.

Science.gov (United States)

Rossi, Fabrício E; Schoenfeld, Brad J; Ocetnik, Skyler; Young, Jonathan; Vigotsky, Andrew; Contreras, Bret; Krieger, James W; Miller, Michael G; Cholewa, Jason

2018-03-01

The purpose of this study was to compare strength, body composition, and functional outcome measures following performance of the back squat, leg press, or a combination of the two exercises. Subjects were pair-matched based on initial strength levels and then randomly assigned to 1 of 3 groups: a squat-only group (SQ) that solely performed squats for the lower body; a leg press-only group (LP) that solely performed leg presses for the lower body, or a combined squat and leg press group (SQ-LP) that performed both squats and leg presses for the lower body. All other RT variables were held constant. The study period lasted 10 weeks with subjects performing 2 lower body workouts per week comprising 6 sets per session at loads corresponding to 8-12 RM with 90- to 120-second rest intervals. Results showed that SQ had greater transfer to maximal squat strength compared to the leg press. Effect sizes favored SQ and SQ-LP versus LP with respect to countermovement jump while greater effect sizes for dynamic balance were noted for SQ-LP and LP compared to SQ, although no statistical differences were noted between conditions. These findings suggest that both free weights and machines can improve functional outcomes, and that the extent of transfer may be specific to the given task.

CNTs Modified and Enhanced Cu Matrix Composites

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

ZHANG Wen-zhong

2016-12-01

Full Text Available The composite powders of 2%-CNTs were prepared by wet ball milling and hydrogen annealing treatment-cold pressing sintering was used to consolidate the ball milled composite powders with different modifications of the CNTs. The results show that the length of the CNTs is shortened, ports are open, and amorphous carbon content is increased by ball milling. And after a mixed acid purification, the impurity on the surface of the CNTs is completely removed,and a large number of oxygen-containing reactive groups are introduced; the most of CNTs can be embedded in the Cu matrix and the CNTs have a close bonding with the Cu matrix, forming the lamellar composite structure, then, ultrafine-grained composite powders can be obtained by hydrogen annealing treatment. Shortening and purification of the CNTs are both good for dispersion and bonding of CNTs in the Cu matrix, and the tensile strength and hardness of the composites after shortening and purification reaches the highest, and is 296MPa and 139.8HV respectively, compared to the matrix, up to 123.6% in tensile strength and 42.9% in hardness, attributed to the fine grain strengthening and load transferring.

Tactics at the category level of purchasing and supply management: sourcing levers, contingencies and performance

OpenAIRE

Hesping, Frank

2015-01-01

For the ‘front-line’ purchasing agent, it is obvious that not all categories of products and supplier relationships should be managed in the same way. Rather, in a modern category management approach, firms group similar products into ‘sourcing categories’ forming coherent supply markets (e.g., ‘metal sheets’, ‘leather’, ‘displays’, ‘cables’, etc.). Thus, to achieve cost reduction targets, a tailored mix of tactical sourcing levers for each sourcing category may be required. The fundamental q...

Mechanochemical Effects on the Synthesis of Copper Orthophosphate and cyclo-Tetraphosphate Bulks by the Hydrothermal Hot Pressing Method

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Isao Tanaka

2009-01-01

Full Text Available Copper orthophosphate, Cu3(PO42, and cyclo-tetraphosphates, Cu2P4O12, were synthesized using phosphoric acid and basic copper carbonate, and then treated with a planetary mill for up to 360 minutes. The un-milled and milled samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD and Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR spectroscopy. SEM images, particle size distribution, specific surface area, UV-Vis reflectance spectra were also used to evaluate the materials. The un-milled and milled materials were used to fabricate copper phosphate bulks by a hydrothermal hot pressing method. The influence of powder condition on the sintering behavior of the copper phosphates was studied.

Nucleus accumbens corticotropin-releasing factor increases cue-triggered motivation for sucrose reward: paradoxical positive incentive effects in stress?

Science.gov (United States)

Peciña, Susana; Schulkin, Jay; Berridge, Kent C

2006-04-13

Corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) is typically considered to mediate aversive aspects of stress, fear and anxiety. However, CRF release in the brain is also elicited by natural rewards and incentive cues, raising the possibility that some CRF systems in the brain mediate an independent function of positive incentive motivation, such as amplifying incentive salience. Here we asked whether activation of a limbic CRF subsystem magnifies the increase in positive motivation for reward elicited by incentive cues previously associated with that reward, in a way that might exacerbate cue-triggered binge pursuit of food or other incentives? We assessed the impact of CRF microinjections into the medial shell of nucleus accumbens using a pure incentive version of Pavlovian-Instrumental transfer, a measure specifically sensitive to the incentive salience of reward cues (which it separates from influences of aversive stress, stress reduction, frustration and other traditional explanations for stress-increased behavior). Rats were first trained to press one of two levers to obtain sucrose pellets, and then separately conditioned to associate a Pavlovian cue with free sucrose pellets. On test days, rats received microinjections of vehicle, CRF (250 or 500 ng/0.2 microl) or amphetamine (20 microg/0.2 microl). Lever pressing was assessed in the presence or absence of the Pavlovian cues during a half-hour test. Microinjections of the highest dose of CRF (500 ng) or amphetamine (20 microg) selectively enhanced the ability of Pavlovian reward cues to trigger phasic peaks of increased instrumental performance for a sucrose reward, each peak lasting a minute or so before decaying after the cue. Lever pressing was not enhanced by CRF microinjections in the baseline absence of the Pavlovian cue or during the presentation without a cue, showing that the CRF enhancement could not be explained as a result of generalized motor arousal, frustration or stress, or by persistent attempts to

Cued memory reactivation during slow-wave sleep promotes explicit knowledge of a motor sequence.

Science.gov (United States)

Cousins, James N; El-Deredy, Wael; Parkes, Laura M; Hennies, Nora; Lewis, Penelope A

2014-11-26

Memories are gradually consolidated after initial encoding, and this can sometimes lead to a transition from implicit to explicit knowledge. The exact physiological processes underlying this reorganization remain unclear. Here, we used a serial reaction time task to determine whether targeted memory reactivation (TMR) of specific memory traces during slow-wave sleep promotes the emergence of explicit knowledge. Human participants learned two 12-item sequences of button presses (A and B). These differed in both cue order and in the auditory tones associated with each of the four fingers (one sequence had four higher-pitched tones). Subsequent overnight sleep was monitored, and the tones associated with one learned sequence were replayed during slow-wave sleep. After waking, participants demonstrated greater explicit knowledge (p = 0.005) and more improved procedural skill (p = 0.04) for the cued sequence relative to the uncued sequence. Furthermore, fast spindles (13.5-15 Hz) at task-related motor regions predicted overnight enhancement in procedural skill (r = 0.71, p = 0.01). Auditory cues had no effect on post-sleep memory performance in a control group who received TMR before sleep. These findings suggest that TMR during sleep can alter memory representations and promote the emergence of explicit knowledge, supporting the notion that reactivation during sleep is a key mechanism in this process. Copyright © 2014 Cousins et al.

News/Press Releases

Data.gov (United States)

Office of Personnel Management — A press release, news release, media release, press statement is written communication directed at members of the news media for the purpose of announcing programs...

Head First WordPress

CERN Document Server

Siarto, Jeff

2010-01-01

Whether you're promoting your business or writing about your travel adventures, Head First WordPress will teach you not only how to make your blog look unique and attention-grabbing, but also how to dig into the more complex features of WordPress 3.0 to make your website work well, too. You'll learn how to move beyond the standard WordPress look and feel by customizing your blog with your own URL, templates, plugin functionality, and more. As you learn, you'll be working with real WordPress files: The book's website provides pre-fab WordPress themes to download and work with as you follow al

WordPress multisite administration

CERN Document Server

Longren, Tyler

2013-01-01

This is a simple, concise guide with a step-by-step approach, packed with screenshots and examples to set up and manage a network blog using WordPress.WordPress Multisite Administration is ideal for anyone wanting to familiarize themselves with WordPress Multisite. You'll need to know the basics about WordPress, and having at least a broad understanding of HTML, CSS, and PHP will help, but isn't required.

The neurosteroid pregnenolone sulfate neutralized the learning impairment induced by intrahippocampal nicotine in alcohol-drinking rats.

Science.gov (United States)

Martín-García, E; Pallarès, M

2005-01-01

The effects of intrahippocampal administration of nicotine and the neurosteroids pregnenolone sulfate and allopregnanolone on acquiring the lever-press response and extinction in a Skinner box were examined using voluntary alcohol-drinking rats. A free-choice drinking procedure that implies early availability of the alcoholic solution (10% ethanol v/v+3% glucose w/v in distilled water) was used. Alcohol and control rats were deprived of food and assigned at random to six groups. Each group received two consecutive intrahippocampal (dorsal CA1) injections immediately after 1-h of drinking ethanol and before the free lever-press response shaping and extinction session. The groups were: saline-saline; saline-pregnenolone sulfate (5 ng, 24 microM); saline-allopregnanolone (0.2 microg, 1.26 microM); nicotine (4.6 microg, 20 mM)-saline; nicotine-pregnenolone sulfate; nicotine-allopregnanolone. Blood alcohol concentrations were assessed the day before conditioning. The combination of the oral self-administration of ethanol and the intrahippocampal injection of nicotine deteriorated the ability to acquire the lever-press response. This effect was neutralized by intrahippocampal pregnenolone sulfate (negative modulator of the GABA(A) receptor complex), and it was not affected by intrahippocampal allopregnanolone (positive GABA receptor complex A modulator). Pregnenolone sulfate and allopregnanolone had no effects per se on lever-press acquisition, neither in alcohol-drinking rats nor in controls. Alcohol consumption facilitated operant extinction just as anxiolytics that act as positive modulators of the GABA receptor complex A receptors do, possibly reducing the anxiety or aversion related to non-reinforcement. This effect was increased by intrahippocampal nicotine.

Wheel-running reinforcement in free-feeding and food-deprived rats.

Science.gov (United States)

Belke, Terry W; Pierce, W David

2016-03-01

Rats experiencing sessions of 30min free access to wheel running were assigned to ad-lib and food-deprived groups, and given additional sessions of free wheel activity. Subsequently, both ad-lib and deprived rats lever pressed for 60s of wheel running on fixed ratio (FR) 1, variable ratio (VR) 3, VR 5, and VR 10 schedules, and on a response-initiated variable interval (VI) 30s schedule. Finally, the ad-lib rats were switched to food deprivation and the food-deprived rats were switched to free food, as rats continued responding on the response-initiated VI 30-s schedule. Wheel running functioned as reinforcement for both ad-lib and food-deprived rats. Food-deprived rats, however, ran faster and had higher overall lever-pressing rates than free-feeding rats. On the VR schedules, wheel-running rates positively correlated with local and overall lever pressing rates for deprived, but not ad-lib rats. On the response-initiated VI 30s schedule, wheel-running rates and lever-pressing rates changed for ad-lib rats switched to food deprivation, but not for food-deprived rats switched to free-feeding. The overall pattern of results suggested different sources of control for wheel running: intrinsic motivation, contingencies of automatic reinforcement, and food-restricted wheel running. An implication is that generalizations about operant responding for wheel running in food-deprived rats may not extend to wheel running and operant responding of free-feeding animals. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Effect of Interfacial Modifying on Thermo-physical Properties of SiCp/Cu Composites

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

LIU Meng

2016-08-01

Full Text Available SiCp/Cu composites were successfully fabricated by vacuum hot-pressing method. Molybdenum coating was deposited on the surface of silicon carbide by sol-gel method. The effects of the interfacial design on thermo-physical properties of SiCp/Cu composites were studied. The results indicate that:continuous and uniform MoO3 coating can be deposited on the surface of silicon carbide by peroxomolybdic acid sol-gel system, and the best processing parameters are as follows:SiC:MoO3=5:1(mass ratio, H2O2:C2H5OH=1:1(volume ratio, and surface pretreatment with acetone and hydrofluoric acid is good to the deposition and growth of MoO3 coating. After hydrogen reduction at 540℃ for 90min the MoO3 is changed into MoO2, and then hydrogen reduction at 940℃ for 90min the MoO2 is changed into Mo absolutely, and the Mo coating is continuous and uniform. SiCp/Cu composites prepared by vacuum hot-pressing method show a compact and uniform microstructure, and the thermal conductivity of the composites is increased obviously after the Mo coating interfacial modification, which can reach 214.16W·m-1·K-1 when the volume of silicon carbide is about 50%.

Microstructural and mechanical characterization of Cu-0.8 wt.%Y

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Carro, G.; Muñoz, A.; Monge, M.A.; Savoini, B.; Pareja, R.

2015-01-01

Dispersion strengthened Cu-0.8 wt.%Y has been produced by a powder metallurgy route and subsequent consolidation by hot isostatic pressing at 1123 K and 172 MPa. A fully dense alloy has been obtained that exhibits a microstructure characterized by equiaxed grains with sizes ranging from 0.5 to 50 μm. Yttrium-rich particles with an average size of 0.92 μm have been observed inside the grains and decorating the grain boundaries. As expected, the tensile tests carried out from room temperature to 773 K have revealed that both the YS and the UTS decrease with increasing temperature. This alloy exhibits better tensile properties and microhardness than OFHC Cu. This improvement is attributed to the presence of the Y-rich particles.

Microstructural and mechanical characterization of Cu-0.8 wt.%Y

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Carro, G., E-mail: gcarro@fis.uc3m.es; Muñoz, A.; Monge, M.A.; Savoini, B.; Pareja, R.

2015-10-15

Dispersion strengthened Cu-0.8 wt.%Y has been produced by a powder metallurgy route and subsequent consolidation by hot isostatic pressing at 1123 K and 172 MPa. A fully dense alloy has been obtained that exhibits a microstructure characterized by equiaxed grains with sizes ranging from 0.5 to 50 μm. Yttrium-rich particles with an average size of 0.92 μm have been observed inside the grains and decorating the grain boundaries. As expected, the tensile tests carried out from room temperature to 773 K have revealed that both the YS and the UTS decrease with increasing temperature. This alloy exhibits better tensile properties and microhardness than OFHC Cu. This improvement is attributed to the presence of the Y-rich particles.

Texturing of superconducting Bi-Pb-Sr-Ca-Cu-O ceramics by combining the effect of a magnetic field and hot pressing in one direction; Texturation des ceramiques supraconductrices Bi-Pb-Sr-Ca-Cu-O par combinaison des effets du champ magnetique et de la contrainte uniaxiale a haute temperature

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Noudem, J G

1995-10-27

Superconducting Bi-(Pb)-Sr-Ca-Cu-O (Bi:2223) ceramics have a weak 77 K transport critical current density (Jc) due to porosity and the presence of misaligned platelets. In order to obtain higher critical current densities in these materials, it is necessary to increase their density and induce a preferential crystallographic orientation. We have developed a texturing process using solidification in a magnetic field combined with hot pressing. The experimental set-up provides a uniaxial pressure of 60 MPa and temperature up to 1100 deg C in a magnetic field of 8 T. Magnetic melt texturing (MMT) proved to be very effective in producing bulk oriented samples of polycrystalline Bi:2223 (crystallite c-axis oriented parallel to the field direction). These samples have Jc values of up to 1450 A/cm{sup 2} and a density of 5.1 g/cm{sup 3}. The texturing by hot pressing (HP) gives homogeneous, dense ({approx} 6 g/cm{sup 3}; 95 % of the theoretical limit) ceramics with a Jc of 2500 A/cm{sup 2}. Tapes of Ag/Bi:2223 provided by Alcatel Alsthom were also successful textured using HP. Finally we have demonstrated that the combination of solidification in a magnetic field with hot pressing (MMHPT) improves both the texture and density of the samples. Moreover the samples are very homogeneous and mechanically resistant. The 77 K transport critical current densities have values up to 3800 A/cm{sup 2} and 1100 A/cm{sup 2} along the (ab) and c-axis respectively. We have demonstrated that these samples are of potential use a current limiters. (author) 146 refs.

The Global University Press

Science.gov (United States)

Dougherty, Peter J.

2012-01-01

The modern world's understanding of American university press has long been shaped by university-press books. American university-press books are good international advertisements for the universities whose logos grace their spines. The growth of transnational scholarship and the expansion of digital communications networks are converging in ways…

The effects of transverse rotation angle on compression and effective lever arm of prosthetic feet during simulated stance.

Science.gov (United States)

Major, Matthew J; Howard, David; Jones, Rebecca; Twiste, Martin

2012-06-01

Unlike sagittal plane prosthesis alignment, few studies have observed the effects of transverse plane alignment on gait and prosthesis behaviour. Changes in transverse plane rotation angle will rotate the points of loading on the prosthesis during stance and may alter its mechanical behaviour. This study observed the effects of increasing the external transverse plane rotation angle, or toe-out, on foot compression and effective lever arm of three commonly prescribed prosthetic feet. The roll-over shape of a SACH, Flex and single-axis foot was measured at four external rotation angle conditions (0°, 5°, 7° and 12° relative to neutral). Differences in foot compression between conditions were measured as average distance between roll-over shapes. Increasing the transverse plane rotation angle did not affect foot compression. However, it did affect the effective lever arm, which was maximized with the 5° condition, although differences between conditions were small. Increasing the transverse plane rotation angle of prosthetic feet by up to 12° beyond neutral has minimal effects on their mechanical behaviour in the plane of walking progression during weight-bearing.

Hot-pressed geopolymer

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ranjbar, Navid; Mehrali, Mohammad; Maheri, Mahmoud R.

2017-01-01

This research explores the use of simultaneous heating and pressing techniques in order to enhance the mechanical properties of fly ash (FA) based geopolymer under relatively low temperature conditions to ensure minimum-porosity. Four effective parameters of pressing force, alkali activator...

Heavy metals (Cd, Cu, Ni and Pb) content in two fish species of ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

GREGORY

2010-09-13

Sep 13, 2010 ... Water pollution and fish physiology. CRC press. Florida, USA, p. 245. Kalay M, Canli M (2000). Elimination of essential (Cu, Zn) and nonessential (Cd, Pb) metals from tissue of a freshwater fish Tilapia zillii following and uptake protocol. Turk. J. Zool. 24: 429-436. Karadede H, Ünlü E (2000). Concentrations ...

Postactivation potentiation: effect of various recovery intervals on bench press power performance.

Science.gov (United States)

Ferreira, Sandra Lívia de Assis; Panissa, Valéria Leme Gonçalves; Miarka, Bianca; Franchini, Emerson

2012-03-01

Postactivation potentiation (PAP) is a strategy used to improve performance in power activities. The aim of this study was to determine if power during bench press exercise was increased when preceded by 1 repetition maximum (1RM) in the same exercise and to determine which time interval could optimize PAP response. For this, 11 healthy male subjects (age, 25 ± 4 years; height, 178 ± 6 cm; body mass, 74 ± 8 kg; bench press 1RM, 76 ± 19 kg) underwent 6 sessions. Two control sessions were conducted to determine both bench press 1RM and power (6 repetitions at 50% 1RM). The 4 experimental sessions were composed of a 1RM exercise followed by power sets with different recovery intervals (1, 3, 5, and 7 minutes), performed on different days, and determined randomly. Power values were measured via Peak Power equipment (Cefise, Nova Odessa, São Paulo, Brazil). The conditions were compared using an analysis of variance with repeated measures, followed by a Tukey test. The significance level was set at p bench press and that such a strategy could be applied as an interesting alternative to enhance the performance in tasks aimed at increasing upper-body power performance.

Change of Pressing Chamber Conicalness at Briquetting Process in Briquetting Machine Pressing Chamber

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Peter Križan

2012-01-01

Full Text Available In this paper, we will present the impact of the conical shape of a pressing chamber, an important structural parameter. Besides the known impact of the technological parameters of pressing chambers, it is also very important to pay attention to their structural parameters. In the introduction, we present a theoretical analysis of pressing chamber conicalness. An experiment aimed at detecting this impact was performed at our institute, and it showed that increasing the conicalness of a pressing chamber improves the quality of the final briquettes. The conicalness of the pressing chamber has a significanteffect on the final briquette quality and on the construction of briquetting machines. The experimental findings presented here show the importance of this parameter in the briquetting process.

Parietal lesion effects on cued recall following pair associate learning.

Science.gov (United States)

Ben-Zvi, Shir; Soroker, Nachum; Levy, Daniel A

2015-07-01

We investigated the involvement of the posterior parietal cortex in episodic memory in a lesion-effects study of cued recall following pair-associate learning. Groups of patients who had experienced first-incident stroke, generally in middle cerebral artery territory, and exhibited damage that included lateral posterior parietal regions, were tested within an early post-stroke time window. In three experiments, patients and matched healthy comparison groups executed repeated study and cued recall test blocks of pairs of words (Experiment 1), pairs of object pictures (Experiment 2), or pairs of object pictures and environmental sounds (Experiment 3). Patients' brain CT scans were subjected to quantitative analysis of lesion volumes. Behavioral and lesion data were used to compute correlations between area lesion extent and memory deficits, and to conduct voxel-based lesion-symptom mapping. These analyses implicated lateral ventral parietal cortex, especially the angular gyrus, in cued recall deficits, most pronouncedly in the cross-modal picture-sound pairs task, though significant parietal lesion effects were also found in the unimodal word pairs and picture pairs tasks. In contrast to an earlier study in which comparable parietal lesions did not cause deficits in item recognition, these results indicate that lateral posterior parietal areas make a substantive contribution to demanding forms of recollective retrieval as represented by cued recall, especially for complex associative representations. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Teach yourself visually WordPress

CERN Document Server

Majure, Janet

2012-01-01

Get your blog up and running with the latest version of WordPress WordPress is one of the most popular, easy-to-use blogging platforms and allows you to create a dynamic and engaging blog, even if you have no programming skills or experience. Ideal for the visual learner, Teach Yourself VISUALLY WordPress, Second Edition introduces you to the exciting possibilities of the newest version of WordPress and helps you get started, step by step, with creating and setting up a WordPress site. Author and experienced WordPress user Janet Majure shares advice, insight, and best practices for taking full

Blockade of muscarinic receptors impairs the retrieval of well-trained memory

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shogo eSoma

2014-04-01

Full Text Available Acetylcholine (ACh is known to play an important role in memory functions, and its deficit has been proposed to cause the cognitive decline associated with advanced age and Alzheimer’s disease (the cholinergic hypothesis. Although many studies have tested the cholinergic hypothesis for recently acquired memory, only a few have investigated the role of ACh in the retrieval process of well-trained cognitive memory, which describes the memory established from repetition and daily routine. To examine this point, we trained rats to perform a two-alternative forced-choice visual detection task. Each trial was started by having the rats pull upward a central-lever, which triggered the presentation of a visual stimulus to the right or left side of the display monitor, and then pulling upward a stimulus-relevant choice-lever located on both sides. Rats learned the task within 10 days, and the task training was continued for a month. Task performance was measured with or without systemic administration of a muscarinic ACh receptor (mAChR antagonist, scopolamine (SCOP, prior to the test. After 30 min of SCOP administration, rats stopped manipulating any lever even though they explored the lever and surrounding environment, suggesting a loss of the task-related associative memory. Three hours later, rats were recovered to complete the trial, but the rats selected the levers irrespective of the visual stimulus, suggesting they remembered a series of lever-manipulations in association with a reward, but not association between the reward and visual stimulation. Furthermore, an m1-AChR, but not nicotinic AChR antagonist caused a similar deficit in the task execution. SCOP neither interfered with locomotor activity nor drinking behavior, while it influenced anxiety. These results suggest that the activation of mAChRs at basal ACh levels is essential for the recall of well-trained cognitive memory.

Microstructure, mechanical and tribological behavior of hot-pressed mechanically alloyed Al–Zn–Mg–Cu powders

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Azimi, A.; Fallahdoost, H.; Nejadseyfi, O.

2015-01-01

Highlights: • Nanocrystalline Al7050 alloy was synthesized by mechanical alloying. • Longer milling time led to increasing porosity in hot-pressed samples. • Significant improvement in strength and wear resistance was obtained by increasing the milling time up to 40 h. - Abstract: This research focuses on the preparation of Al7050 alloy via mechanical alloying and hot pressing techniques. The effect of milling time on the microstructure and densification response was investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscope (SEM). Furthermore, the mechanical properties of the samples including microhardness, compression strength, and wear resistance were examined as a function of milling time. The results of the experiments proved that by increasing the milling time the crystallite size was reduced, which has a significant effect on improving the mechanical properties. In addition, porosity formation increased when the milling time was increased due to reduction of the compressibility of finer particles. By increasing the milling time to more than 40 h, a relatively invariable crystallite size was obtained and it was observed that the porosities expanded in the samples. Therefore, the compressive strength, hardness, and wear resistance were enhanced up to 40 h milling time and then the strengthening effect was relatively diminished. On observing surfaces with SEM, the dominant wear mechanism was recognized as abrasion, delamination and adhesion

Cu-TiB metal matrix composites prepared by powder metallurgy route

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Guo Z.

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Titanium boride (TiB is characterized by good conductivity, high strength and high melting point. In this work, TiB was used to make Cu-TiB metal matrix composites (MMCs. Amounts of TiB added into Cu matrix were 2wt.%, 5wt.%, 10 wt.% and 15 wt.%. The samples were pressed at pressures of 500MPa, 600MPa, 700MPa and 800MPa and sintered at 820o and 920o, respectively. The properties of the sintered composites such as hardness and impact toughness were studied. Hardness and impact toughness of samples increased with increasing pressures and decreased with increasing contents of TiB. Composite with good mechanical properties and high conductivity was obtained from the sample containing 2wt.%TiB compacted at 800MPa and sintered at 920o. It was shown that 2wt.% TiB is a suitable content to make Cu-TiB MMCs with good mechanical properties and excellent conductivity.

Validity of a Commercial Linear Encoder to Estimate Bench Press 1 RM from the Force-Velocity Relationship

OpenAIRE

Bosquet, Laurent; Porta-Benache, Jeremy; Blais, Jérôme

2010-01-01

The aim of this study was to assess the validity and accuracy of a commercial linear encoder (Musclelab, Ergotest, Norway) to estimate Bench press 1 repetition maximum (1RM) from the force - velocity relationship. Twenty seven physical education students and teachers (5 women and 22 men) with a heterogeneous history of strength training participated in this study. They performed a 1 RM test and a force - velocity test using a Bench press lifting task in a random order. Mean 1 RM was 61.8 ± 15...

Brain correlates of performance in a free/cued recall task with semantic encoding in Alzheimer disease.

Science.gov (United States)

Lekeu, Françoise; Van der Linden, Martial; Chicherio, Christian; Collette, Fabienne; Degueldre, Christian; Franck, Georges; Moonen, Gustave; Salmon, Eric

2003-01-01

The goal of this study was to explore in patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD) the brain correlates of free and cued recall performance using an adaptation of the procedure developed by Grober and Buschke (1987). This procedure, which ensures semantic processing and coordinates encoding and retrieval, has been shown to be very sensitive to an early diagnosis of AD. Statistical parametric mapping (SPM 99) was used to establish clinicometabolic correlations between performance at free and cued verbal recall and resting brain metabolism in 31 patients with AD. Results showed that patient's score on free recall correlated with metabolic activity in right frontal regions (BA 10 and BA 45), suggesting that performance reflected a strategic retrieval attempt. Poor retrieval performance was tentatively attributed to a loss of functional correlation between frontal and medial temporal regions in patients with AD compared with elderly controls. Performance on cued recall was correlated to residual metabolic activity in bilateral parahippocampal regions (BA 36), suggesting that performance reflected retrieval of semantic associations, without recollection in AD. In conclusion, this study demonstrates that the diagnostic sensitivity for Alzheimer's disease of the cued recall performance in the Grober and Buschke procedure (1987) depends on the activity of parahippocampal regions, one of the earliest targets of the disease. Moreover, the results suggest that the poor performance of patients with AD during free and cued recall is related to a decreased connectivity between parahippocampal regions and frontal areas.

Pilot Research as Advocacy: The Case of Sayana Press in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo

Science.gov (United States)

Binanga, Arsene; Bertrand, Jane T

2016-01-01

ABSTRACT In the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), the Ministry of Health authorizes only physicians and nurses to give injections, with one exception—medical and nursing students may also give injections if supervised by a clinical instructor. The emergence of the injectable contraceptive Sayana Press in some African countries prompted the DRC to test the acceptability and feasibility of distributing Sayana Press and other contraceptive methods at the community level through medical and nursing students. Sayana Press is similar in formulation to the injectable contraceptive Depo-Provera but contains a lower dose and is administered subcutaneously using a single-use syringe with a short needle called the Uniject system. The Uniject system allows Sayana Press to be administered by community health workers without clinical training or by self-injection. In this pilot, the advocacy objective was to obtain approval from the Ministry of Health to allow medical and nursing students to inject Sayana Press, as a first step toward authorization for community health workers to provide the method. The pilot described in this article documents a process whereby an innovative approach moved from concept to implementation to replication in less than 2 years. It also paved the way for testing additional progressive strategies to increase access to contraception at the community level. Because the pilot project included a research component designed to assess benefits and challenges, it provided the means to introduce the new task-shifting approach, which might not have been approved otherwise. Key pilot activities included: (1) increasing awareness of Sayana Press among family planning stakeholders at a national conference on family planning, (2) enlisting the support of key decision makers in designing the pilot, (3) obtaining marketing authorization to distribute Sayana Press in the DRC, (4) implementing the pilot from July to December 2015, (5) conducting quantitative

Pilot Research as Advocacy: The Case of Sayana Press in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Science.gov (United States)

Binanga, Arsene; Bertrand, Jane T

2016-12-23

In the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), the Ministry of Health authorizes only physicians and nurses to give injections, with one exception-medical and nursing students may also give injections if supervised by a clinical instructor. The emergence of the injectable contraceptive Sayana Press in some African countries prompted the DRC to test the acceptability and feasibility of distributing Sayana Press and other contraceptive methods at the community level through medical and nursing students. Sayana Press is similar in formulation to the injectable contraceptive Depo-Provera but contains a lower dose and is administered subcutaneously using a single-use syringe with a short needle called the Uniject system. The Uniject system allows Sayana Press to be administered by community health workers without clinical training or by self-injection. In this pilot, the advocacy objective was to obtain approval from the Ministry of Health to allow medical and nursing students to inject Sayana Press, as a first step toward authorization for community health workers to provide the method. The pilot described in this article documents a process whereby an innovative approach moved from concept to implementation to replication in less than 2 years. It also paved the way for testing additional progressive strategies to increase access to contraception at the community level. Because the pilot project included a research component designed to assess benefits and challenges, it provided the means to introduce the new task-shifting approach, which might not have been approved otherwise. Key pilot activities included: (1) increasing awareness of Sayana Press among family planning stakeholders at a national conference on family planning, (2) enlisting the support of key decision makers in designing the pilot, (3) obtaining marketing authorization to distribute Sayana Press in the DRC, (4) implementing the pilot from July to December 2015, (5) conducting quantitative and

Analysis of Institutional Press Releases and its Visibility in the Press

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

José Antonio Alcoceba-Hernando, Ph.D.

2010-01-01

Full Text Available The relationships between institutional communication and media communication influence the shaping of social representations of public issues. This research article analyses these relationships based on the case study of the external communication of a public institution, the press releases of Spain’s Youth Institute (Instituto de la Juventud, aka, Injuve, during three years and their repercussion in the press during the same period of time. The results obtained in this research allowed drawing conclusions on the types of communication production of the aforementioned institution and the news treatment of such pieces of information by the printed and digital media. The press releases and the news items were studied using quantitative media content analysis which focused, especially, in referential issues like the information treatment, the thematic analysis, youth representations in the case of the releases; and the visibility of the press releases in the making of news

Microstructural characterization and compression properties of TiC{sub 0.61}/Cu(Al) composite synthesized from Cu and Ti{sub 3}AlC{sub 2} powders

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Huang, Zhenying, E-mail: zhyhuang@bjtu.edu.cn [Institute of Material Science and Engineering, School of Mechanical and Electronic Control Engineering, Beijing Jiaotong University, Beijing 100044 (China); Institut PPRIME, Département de Physique et Mécanique des Matériaux, CNRS, Université de Poitiers, ENSMA, UPR 3346, SP2MI, Téléport 2 Boulevard Marie et Pierre Curie, BP 30179, F86962 Futuroscope Chasseneuil Cedex (France); Bonneville, Joel [Institut PPRIME, Département de Physique et Mécanique des Matériaux, CNRS, Université de Poitiers, ENSMA, UPR 3346, SP2MI, Téléport 2 Boulevard Marie et Pierre Curie, BP 30179, F86962 Futuroscope Chasseneuil Cedex (France); Zhai, Hongxiang [Institute of Material Science and Engineering, School of Mechanical and Electronic Control Engineering, Beijing Jiaotong University, Beijing 100044 (China); Gauthier-Brunet, Veronique [Institut PPRIME, Département de Physique et Mécanique des Matériaux, CNRS, Université de Poitiers, ENSMA, UPR 3346, SP2MI, Téléport 2 Boulevard Marie et Pierre Curie, BP 30179, F86962 Futuroscope Chasseneuil Cedex (France); and others

2014-07-25

Highlights: • Submicro-layered TiC{sub 0.61}/Cu(Al) nanocomposite. • MAX phase. • High yield stress. • Deformation mechanism. - Abstract: A new submicro-layered TiC{sub 0.61}/Cu(Al) composite has been prepared by hot-pressing a mixture of 50 vol.% Ti{sub 3}AlC{sub 2} and 50 vol.% Cu powders at 1150 °C and 30 MPa. It is shown that the initial reinforcement Ti{sub 3}AlC{sub 2} particles have, after synthesis, an unusual microstructure, which consists of submicron-thick layers of TiC{sub 0.61} and Cu(Al) alloy. Both the width of the TiC{sub 0.61} and Cu(Al) layers are ∼150 nm. Thus, the Ti{sub 3}AlC{sub 2} particles are decomposed into the TiC{sub 0.61} phase, while the additional Al atoms provided by Ti{sub 3}AlC{sub 2} diffuse into the molten Cu matrix at high temperature. Compression tests were performed at constant strain rate in the temperature range 20–800 °C. The new designed TiC{sub 0.61}/Cu(Al) composite has both a high yield stress, σ{sub 0.2} measured at 0.2% strain offset, and a high ultimate compressive strength, σ{sub UCS}, which is attributed to strong interface bonding between TiC{sub 0.61} and Cu(Al) phase. For instance, at 20 and 200 °C, σ{sub 0.2} is 770 MPa and 700 MPa, while σ{sub UCS} is 1.18 GPa and 1 GPa, respectively. Plastic deformation takes place in the Cu(Al) matrix. Wavy slip lines are observed indicating that cross-slip could be the dominant deformation mechanism.

In Search of Cross-Talk Facilitation in a Dual-Cued Recall Task

Science.gov (United States)

Rickard, Timothy C.; Bajic, Daniel

2005-01-01

Despite earlier evidence that the presence of 2 redundant cues can facilitate activation of a common response, T. C. Rickard and D. Bajic (2004) found no dual-cue facilitation in the case of cued recall, provided that each cue-response association was learned independently. In this study the authors investigated the generality of their results…

Appetitive operant conditioning in mice: heritability and dissociability of training stages

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hemi A I Malkki

2010-11-01

Full Text Available To study the heritability of different training stages of appetitive operant conditioning, we carried out behavioural screening of 5 standard inbred mouse strains, 28 recombinant-inbred (BxD mouse lines and their progenitor strains C57BL/6J and DBA/2J. We also computed correlations between successive training stages to study whether learning deficits at an advanced stage of operant conditioning may be dissociated from normal performance in preceding phases of training.The training consisted of two phases: an operant nose poking phase, in which mice learned to collect a sucrose pellet from a food magazine by nose poking, and an operant lever press and nose poking phase, in which mice had to execute a sequence of these two actions to collect a food pellet. As a measure of magazine oriented exploration, we also studied the nose poke entries in the food magazine during the intertrial intervals at the beginning of the first session of the nose-poke training phase.We found significantly heritable components in initial magazine checking behaviour, operant nose-poking and lever press-nose poking. Performance levels in these phases were positively correlated, but several individual strains were identified that showed poor lever press-nose poking while performing well in preceding training stages. Quantitative trait loci mapping revealed suggestive likelihood ratio statistic peaks for initial magazine checking behaviour and lever press – nose poking. These findings indicate that consecutive stages towards more complex operant behavior show significant heritable components, as well as dissociability between stages in specific mouse strains. These heritable components may reside in different chromosomal areas.

Facilitation of extinction of operant behaviour in C57Bl/6 mice by chlordiazepoxide and D-cycloserine.

Science.gov (United States)

Leslie, Julian C; Norwood, Kelly; Kennedy, Paul J; Begley, Michael; Shaw, David

2012-09-01

Effects on the extinction of GABAergic drug, chlordiazepoxide (CDP), and glutamatergic drug, D: -cycloserine (DCS), in C57BL/6 mice were compared. Following a palatability test (Experiment 1), Experiments 2-6 involved food-reinforced lever press training followed by extinction sessions at 1- or 4-day intervals. The effects of drugs were examined. Experiment 7 involved a two-lever task. CDP did not affect food palatability (Experiment 1), but facilitated extinction when administered prior to extinction sessions via intracerebral (Experiment 2) or peripheral administration at 1-day (Experiments 3-7) or 4-day intervals (Experiment 6). Reducing the amount of training prior to extinction reduced the delay in the effect of CDP typically seen, and CDP had a larger effect in early sessions on mice that had received less training (Experiment 3). There was some evidence that CDP could be blocked by flumazenil (Experiment 4), and CDP withdrawal reversed extinction facilitation (Experiments 5 and 7). With 4-day intervals, DCS administered immediately following extinction sessions, or pre-session CDP, facilitated extinction with 48-trial sessions (experiment 6B). With six-trial sessions, the co-administration of post-session DCS enhanced facilitation produced by pre-session CDP (experiment 6A). Finally, CDP facilitated extinction in a dose-related fashion following training on a two-lever food-reinforced task (Experiment 7). The findings are consistent with the hypotheses that two neurotransmitter systems have different roles in operant extinction and that glutamatergic systems are involved in extinction learning and GABAergic systems involved in the expression of that learning. This parallels findings with extinction following Pavlovian conditioning, which has been more extensively investigated.

WordPress Top Plugins

CERN Document Server

Corbin, Brandon

2010-01-01

Time flies when you're having fun. This is the right way to describe this WordPress Top Plugins book by Brandon Corbin. With real world examples and by showing you the perks of having these plugins installed on your websites, the author is all set to captivate your interest from start to end. Regardless of whether this is your first time working with WordPress, or you're a seasoned WordPress coding ninja, WordPress Top Plugins will walk you through finding and installing the best plugins for generating and sharing content, building communities and reader base, and generating real advertising r

Which Freedom of the Press?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rytter, Jens Elo

2010-01-01

The article surveys the historical and current meaning of "Freedom of the Press" in constitutional and human rights law. Two different conceptions exist, the narrow one defining freedom of the press as the freedom of every one to publish without prior restraint, the broader one defining it as a...... privileged freedom of the organised press to gather and report on information of public interest. These two conceptions have very different answers to the question of whether the press should enjoy some privilege to be exempt from ordinary legislation when such legislation restricts the access of the press to inform...

Solid-state interaction between nickel and YBa/sub 2/Cu/sub 3/O/sub x/

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Champagne, B; Parent, L; Moreau, C

1989-01-01

As part of a search for suitable metals for use in composite cables made up of high-temperature superconductors in a metallic matrix, the solid-state reaction between nickel and YBa/sub 2/Cu/sub 3/O/sub x/ was studied. Green compacts of YBa/sub 2/Cu/sub 3/O/sub x/ were hot isostatically pressed (HIPed) in nickel. The microstructure, density and nature of phases present in HIPed parts were characterized. Resistivity measurements indicated that HIPed parts are not superconducting owing to the loss of oxygen and required an annealing step in oxygen for restoring superconductivity. The diffusion of nickel into YBa/sub 2/Cu/sub 3/O/sub x/ as well as the diffusion of Ba, Cu and Y into nickel was very limited. However, a thin interaction zone consisting of a nickel-rich oxide compound was formed at the Ni-YBa/sub 2/Cu/sub 3/O/sub x/ interface. The presence of such an interaction zone could have a detrimental effect on the thermal stabilization of Ni-YBa/sub 2/Cu/sub 3/O/sub x/ composite wires. 7 refs., 6 figs., 1 tab.

Enhancing the CuCrZr/316L HIP-joint by Ni electroplating

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wei, R. [Institute of Plasma Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei, 230031 (China); Science Island Branch of Graduate School, University of Science & Technology of China, Hefei, 230031 (China); Zhao, S.X., E-mail: sxzhao@impcas.ac.cn [Institute of Modern Physics, Chinese Academy of Science, Lanzhou, 730000 (China); Dong, H.; Che, H.Y. [Advanced Technology and Materials Co. Ltd., Beijing, 100081 (China); Li, Q.; Wang, W.J.; Wang, J.C.; Wang, X.L.; Sun, Z.X. [Institute of Plasma Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei, 230031 (China); Luo, G.-N. [Institute of Plasma Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei, 230031 (China); Science Island Branch of Graduate School, University of Science & Technology of China, Hefei, 230031 (China); Hefei Center for Physical Science and Technology, Hefei, 230022 (China); Hefei Science Center of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei, 230027 (China)

2017-04-15

Highlights: • The quality of CuCrZr/316L HIP-joint can be enhanced by nickel electroplating on CuCrZr and 316L. • Nickel layer can prevent the occurrence of nickel-poor region in 316L and protect CuCrZr from oxidation. • A Charpy Impact Value as high as 111.5 ± 3.3 J/cm{sup 2} can be obtained by HIP at 980 °C, 140 MPa for 2 h. • At high temperature, CuCrZr is easily oxidized even in the situation of a high vacuum degree of 2 × 10{sup −5} Pa. - Abstract: The quality of CuCrZr/316L joint is crucial for the safety of ITER hypervapotron cooling structure and hot isostatic pressing (HIP) is an important bonding technique for this structure. In this paper, the authors present a finding that the CuCrZr/316L HIP-joint can be enhanced by nickel electroplating on 316L and CuCrZr. A Charpy Impact Value as high as 111.5 ± 3.3 J/cm{sup 2}, which is more than two times the value in a published article, is obtained. The influence of nickel electroplating is twofold: (1) it can prevent the occurrence of nickel-poor region in 316L and the formation of ferrite; (2) it can protect CuCrZr from oxidation during the heating stage of HIP. However, tensile test is not as effective as Charpy Impact Test in characterizing the bonding quality of the CuCrZr/316L HIP-joint. The surface treatment employed in this study is amenable to batch-scale industrial manufacturing at low cost.

Hot-pressing steatite bodies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aparicio Arroyo, E.

1967-01-01

Requirements for some special nuclear engineering ceramic shapes are: big size, impervious, dimensional accuracy and good mechanical and dielectric properties. Limitations of te conventional methods and advantages of te hot pressing techniques for the manufacturing of these shapes are discussed. Hot pressing characteristics of a certain steatite powder are studied. Occurrence of an optimum densification temperature just above the tale decomposition range is found. Experimental data show that the height/diameter ratio of the specimen has no effect on the sintering conditions. Increasing darkness from the graphite mould is detected above the optimum temperature. The hot-pressed steatite is compared with a fired dry-pressed sample of the same composition. (Author) 13 refs

Pam heterozygous mice reveal essential role for Cu in amygdalar behavioral and synaptic function.

Science.gov (United States)

Gaier, Eric D; Eipper, Betty A; Mains, Richard E

2014-05-01

Copper (Cu) is an essential element with many biological roles, but its roles in the mammalian nervous system are poorly understood. Mice deficient in the cuproenzyme peptidylglycine α-amidating monooxygenase (Pam(+/-) mice) were initially generated to study neuropeptide amidation. Pam(+/-) mice exhibit profound deficits in a few behavioral tasks, including enhancements in innate fear along with deficits in acquired fear. Interestingly, several Pam(+/-) phenotypes were recapitulated in Cu-restricted wild-type mice and rescued in Cu-supplemented Pam(+/-) mice. These behaviors correspond to enhanced excitability and deficient synaptic plasticity in the amygdala of Pam(+/-) mice, which are also rescued by Cu supplementation. Cu and ATP7A are present at synapses, in key positions to respond to and influence synaptic activity. Further study demonstrated that extracellular Cu is necessary for wild-type synaptic plasticity and sufficient to induce long-term potentiation. These experiments support roles for PAM in Cu homeostasis and for synaptic Cu in amygdalar function. © 2014 New York Academy of Sciences.

Mathematical modelling of wet paper pressing

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bežanovic, D.

2005-01-01

The aim of this project is to reduce energy costs in paper production by optimising the process in the press section of a paper machine. In this press section water is squeezed as it passes through the press nip. In a modern press section the moisture content of the sheet after three or four presses

Development and application of W/Cu flat-type plasma facing components at ASIPP

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Q.; Zhao, S. X.; Sun, Z. X.; Xu, Y.; Li, B.; Wei, R.; Wang, W. J.; Qin, S. G.; Shi, Y. L.; Xie, C. Y.; Wang, J. C.; Wang, X. L.; Missirlian, M.; Guilhem, D.; Liu, G. H.; Yang, Z. S.; Luo, G.-N.

2017-12-01

W/Cu flat-type plasma facing components (PFCs) were widely used in divertor of fusion device because of its advantages, such as low cost, light in weight and good machinability. However, it is very difficult to manufacture them due to the large mismatch between the thermo-mechanical properties of W and Cu. Institute of Plasma Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences (ASIPP) has successfully developed W/Cu flat-type PFCs for EAST W/Cu divertor project by hot isostatic pressing (HIP) technology. This paper presents the development and application of W/Cu flat-type PFCs at ASIPP. The optimized manufacturing process is to cast pure copper onto the rear side of W tiles at temperature of 1200 °C firstly, and then to HIP the W/Cu tiles onto CuCrZr heat sink at temperature of 600 °C, pressure of 150 MPa and duration of 3 h. W/Cu flat-type testing mock-up for EAST survived 1000 cycles at heat load of 5 MW m-2 in high heat flux tests. And then ASIPP prepared two mock-ups for CEA’s tungsten environment in steady-state tokamak (WEST) project. One mock-up withstood successfully 302 cycles of 20 MW m-2, which are far beyond the design requirement. Since 2014, W/Cu flat-type PFCs were wildly used in EAST upper divertor as baffle and dome components which showed excellent performance in 2015 and 2016 campaigns. Given the success in EAST upper divertor, W/Cu flat-type concept is as well applied in the design of actively cooled Langmuir probes which will be mounted onto EAST divertor targets soon.

Development and application of W/Cu flat-type plasma facing components at ASIPP

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li, Q; Sun, Z X; Xu, Y; Li, B; Wei, R; Wang, W J; Xie, C Y; Wang, J C; Wang, X L; Yang, Z S; Luo, G-N; Zhao, S X; Qin, S G; Shi, Y L; Liu, G H; Missirlian, M; Guilhem, D

2017-01-01

W/Cu flat-type plasma facing components (PFCs) were widely used in divertor of fusion device because of its advantages, such as low cost, light in weight and good machinability. However, it is very difficult to manufacture them due to the large mismatch between the thermo-mechanical properties of W and Cu. Institute of Plasma Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences (ASIPP) has successfully developed W/Cu flat-type PFCs for EAST W/Cu divertor project by hot isostatic pressing (HIP) technology. This paper presents the development and application of W/Cu flat-type PFCs at ASIPP. The optimized manufacturing process is to cast pure copper onto the rear side of W tiles at temperature of 1200 °C firstly, and then to HIP the W/Cu tiles onto CuCrZr heat sink at temperature of 600 °C, pressure of 150 MPa and duration of 3 h. W/Cu flat-type testing mock-up for EAST survived 1000 cycles at heat load of 5 MW m −2 in high heat flux tests. And then ASIPP prepared two mock-ups for CEA’s tungsten environment in steady-state tokamak (WEST) project. One mock-up withstood successfully 302 cycles of 20 MW m −2 , which are far beyond the design requirement. Since 2014, W/Cu flat-type PFCs were wildly used in EAST upper divertor as baffle and dome components which showed excellent performance in 2015 and 2016 campaigns. Given the success in EAST upper divertor, W/Cu flat-type concept is as well applied in the design of actively cooled Langmuir probes which will be mounted onto EAST divertor targets soon. (paper)

Preparation and characterization of monel (70% Ni-30% Cu) metallic filters; Preparacao e caracterizacao de filtro metalico monel (70% Ni-30% Cu)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Camargo Lavos, I de

1994-12-31

This work investigates a process for the fabrication and characterization of monel (Ni-Cu) filters. The powder consolidation was made by vibration or by pressing at various pressures (200, 300 e 400 MPa). The sintering was carried out at 1100{sup 0} C during 1 hour under H{sub 2} atmosphere. The filter characterization was performed by measuring its density, porosity, filtering capacity and permeability. It was obtained a correlation between the processing variables (consolidation and sintering), including powder properties, and the filters characteristics. (author). 59 refs, 41 figs, 7 tabs.

Velocity- and power-load relationships of the bench pull vs. bench press exercises.

Science.gov (United States)

Sánchez-Medina, L; González-Badillo, J J; Pérez, C E; Pallarés, J G

2014-03-01

This study compared the velocity- and power-load relationships of the antagonistic upper-body exercises of prone bench pull (PBP) and bench press (BP). 75 resistance-trained athletes performed a progressive loading test in each exercise up to the one-repetition maximum (1RM) in random order. Velocity and power output across the 30-100% 1RM were significantly higher for PBP, whereas 1RM strength was greater for BP. A very close relationship was observed between relative load and mean propulsive velocity for both BP (R2=0.97) and PBP (R2=0.94) which enables us to estimate %1RM from velocity using the obtained prediction equations. Important differences in the load that maximizes power output (Pmax) and the power profiles of both exercises were found according to the outcome variable used: mean (MP), peak (PP) or mean propulsive power (MPP). When MP was considered, the Pmax load was higher (56% BP, 70% PBP) than when PP (37% BP, 41% PBP) or MPP (37% BP, 46% PBP) were used. For each variable there was a broad range of loads at which power output was not significantly different. The differing velocity- and power-load relationships between PBP and BP seem attributable to the distinct muscle architecture and moment arm levers involved in these exercises. © Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.

Effects of ethanol on Pavlovian autoshaping in rats.

Science.gov (United States)

Tomie, A; Cunha, C; Mosakowski, E M; Quartarolo, N M; Pohorecky, L A; Benjamin, D

1998-09-01

Approach responses, consummatory behaviors, and directed motor responses maintained by food reward resemble autoshaping CRs and are increased by lower doses of ethanol. This study evaluated the effects of presession i.p. injections of ethanol doses (0.00, 0.25, 0.50, 0.70. or 1.00 g/kg) on the acquisition of lever-press autoshaping CR performance in groups of male Long-Evans hooded rats. Paired groups received 15 daily sessions of Pavlovian autoshaping procedures, wherein the insertion of a retractable lever for 5 s (CS) was followed by the response-independent presentation of food (US). Ethanol facilitated lever-press autoshaping CR acquisition, as revealed by dose-related increases in the number of trials on which CRs were performed. The form of the dose-effect curve was inverted U-shaped with maximal responding induced during sessions 1-5 by the 0.70 g/kg ethanol dose. A similar dose-effect curve was observed during sessions 11-15, revealing that the effects of ethanol on autoshaping CR performance were relatively stable. A pseudoconditioning control group injected presession with 0.50 g/kg ethanol received training wherein the food US was presented randomly with respect to the lever CS. Few lever-presses were performed by the Random 0.50 group, indicating that ethanol's effects on autoshaping CR acquisition and maintenance observed in the Paired 0.50 group were not due to its psychomotor activating effects. A non-injection control group performed more autoshaping CRs than did the control group injected presession with saline, indicating that daily presession i.p. injections per se suppress autoshaping CR performance. Results reveal that low doses of ethanol enhance Pavlovian conditioning of directed motor and consummatory-like responding maintained by food reward. Implications for autoshaping accounts of impulsivity and drug abuse are considered.

Ecological Relevance Determines Task Priority in Older Adults' Multitasking.

Science.gov (United States)

Doumas, Michail; Krampe, Ralf Th

2015-05-01

Multitasking is a challenging aspect of human behavior, especially if the concurrently performed tasks are different in nature. Several studies demonstrated pronounced performance decrements (dual-task costs) in older adults for combinations of cognitive and motor tasks. However, patterns of costs among component tasks differed across studies and reasons for participants' resource allocation strategies remained elusive. We investigated young and older adults' multitasking of a working memory task and two sensorimotor tasks, one with low (finger force control) and one with high ecological relevance (postural control). The tasks were performed in single-, dual-, and triple-task contexts. Working memory accuracy was reduced in dual-task contexts with either sensorimotor task and deteriorated further under triple-task conditions. Postural and force performance deteriorated with age and task difficulty in dual-task contexts. However, in the triple-task context with its maximum resource demands, older adults prioritized postural control over both force control and memory. Our results identify ecological relevance as the key factor in older adults' multitasking. © The Author 2013. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Gerontological Society of America. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

What causes addiction problems? Environmental, biological and constitutional explanations in press portrayals from four European welfare societies.

Science.gov (United States)

Hellman, Matilda; Majamäki, Maija; Rolando, Sara; Bujalski, Michał; Lemmens, Paul

2015-03-01

Press items (N = 1327) about addiction related problems were collected from politically independent daily newspapers in Finland, Italy, the Netherlands, and Poland from 1991, 1998, and 2011. A synchronized qualitative coding was performed for discerning the descriptions of the genesis to the problems in terms of described causes to and reasons for why they occur. Environmental explanations were by far the most common and they varied most between the materials. The analysis documents how the portrayals include traces of their contextual origin, relating to different media tasks and welfare cultural traditions. Meaning-based differences were also assigned to the kind of problems that held the most salience in the press reporting. A general worry over societal change is tied into the explanations of accumulating addiction problems and underpins the press reporting in all countries.

A multitasking general executive for compound continuous tasks.

Science.gov (United States)

Salvucci, Dario D

2005-05-06

As cognitive architectures move to account for increasingly complex real-world tasks, one of the most pressing challenges involves understanding and modeling human multitasking. Although a number of existing models now perform multitasking in real-world scenarios, these models typically employ customized executives that schedule tasks for the particular domain but do not generalize easily to other domains. This article outlines a general executive for the Adaptive Control of Thought-Rational (ACT-R) cognitive architecture that, given independent models of individual tasks, schedules and interleaves the models' behavior into integrated multitasking behavior. To demonstrate the power of the proposed approach, the article describes an application to the domain of driving, showing how the general executive can interleave component subtasks of the driving task (namely, control and monitoring) and interleave driving with in-vehicle secondary tasks (radio tuning and phone dialing). 2005 Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc.

Probabilistic numerical discrimination in mice.

Science.gov (United States)

Berkay, Dilara; Çavdaroğlu, Bilgehan; Balcı, Fuat

2016-03-01

Previous studies showed that both human and non-human animals can discriminate between different quantities (i.e., time intervals, numerosities) with a limited level of precision due to their endogenous/representational uncertainty. In addition, other studies have shown that subjects can modulate their temporal categorization responses adaptively by incorporating information gathered regarding probabilistic contingencies into their time-based decisions. Despite the psychophysical similarities between the interval timing and nonverbal counting functions, the sensitivity of count-based decisions to probabilistic information remains an unanswered question. In the current study, we investigated whether exogenous probabilistic information can be integrated into numerosity-based judgments by mice. In the task employed in this study, reward was presented either after few (i.e., 10) or many (i.e., 20) lever presses, the last of which had to be emitted on the lever associated with the corresponding trial type. In order to investigate the effect of probabilistic information on performance in this task, we manipulated the relative frequency of different trial types across different experimental conditions. We evaluated the behavioral performance of the animals under models that differed in terms of their assumptions regarding the cost of responding (e.g., logarithmically increasing vs. no response cost). Our results showed for the first time that mice could adaptively modulate their count-based decisions based on the experienced probabilistic contingencies in directions predicted by optimality.

Four Theories of the Press.

Science.gov (United States)

Siebert, Fred S.; And Others

A systematic understanding of the press requires an understanding of the social and political structures within which the press operates. This book discusses four theories that have determined the kind of press the Western world has had: authoritarian, libertarian, socially responsible, and Soviet communist. Each chapter discusses press…

WordPress 3.7 complete

CERN Document Server

Król, Karol

2013-01-01

WordPress 3.5 Complete: Third Edition is a comprehensive and step-by-step tutorial packed with screenshots and examples to make it easy and quick to pick it up.This WordPress book is a guide to WordPress for online publishers and web developers. If you are new to blogging and want to create your own blog or website from scratch, then ""WordPress 3.5 Complete: Third Edition"" is for you. No prior knowledge of HTML/CSS or PHP is required.

Deuterium transport in Cu, CuCrZr, and Cu/Be

Science.gov (United States)

Anderl, R. A.; Hankins, M. R.; Longhurst, G. R.; Pawelko, R. J.

This paper presents the results of deuterium implantation/permeation experiments and TMAP4 simulations for a CuCrZr alloy, for OFHC-Cu and for a Cu/Be bi-layered structure at temperatures from 700 to 800 K. Experiments used a mass-analyzed, 3-keV D 3+ ion beam with particle flux densities of 5 × 10 19 to 7 × 10 19 D/m 2 s. Effective diffusivities and surface molecular recombination coefficients were derived giving Arrhenius pre-exponentials and activation energies for each material: CuCrZr alloy, (2.0 × 10 -2 m 2/s, 1.2 eV) for diffusivity and (2.9 × x10 -14 m 4/s, 1.92 eV) for surface molecular recombination coefficients; OFHC Cu, (2.1 × 10 -6 m 2/s, 0.52 eV) for diffusivity and (9.1 × 10 -18 m 4/s, 0.99 eV) for surface molecular recombination coefficients. TMAP4 simulation of permeation data measured for a Cu/Be bi-layer sample was achieved using a four-layer structure (Cu/BeO interface/Be/BeO back surface) and recommended values for diffusivity and solubility in Be, BeO and Cu.

Thermochemical properties of oxides in Y-Ba-Cu-O, Sr-Bi-O, Cu-Nb-O, Sr-Cu-O, Ca-Cu-O, Cu-O and Hg-Ba-Ca-Cu-O systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Moiseev, G.K.; Vatolin, N.A.; Il'inykh, N.I.

2000-01-01

Thermochemical properties (ΔH 0 298 , S 0 298 , H 0 298 -H 0 0 , C p (T), C p at T>T melt ) of complex oxides in Y-Ba-Cu-O, Sr-Bi-O, Cu-Nb-O, Sr-Cu-O, Ca-Cu-O, Cu-O and Hg-Ba-Ca-Cu-O systems obtained with application of calculation methods are presented. Nonexperimental methods of estimation, revision and correction of standard formation enthalpies of inorganic compounds are described [ru

Information and processes underlying semantic and episodic memory across tasks, items, and individuals.

Science.gov (United States)

Cox, Gregory E; Hemmer, Pernille; Aue, William R; Criss, Amy H

2018-04-01

The development of memory theory has been constrained by a focus on isolated tasks rather than the processes and information that are common to situations in which memory is engaged. We present results from a study in which 453 participants took part in five different memory tasks: single-item recognition, associative recognition, cued recall, free recall, and lexical decision. Using hierarchical Bayesian techniques, we jointly analyzed the correlations between tasks within individuals-reflecting the degree to which tasks rely on shared cognitive processes-and within items-reflecting the degree to which tasks rely on the same information conveyed by the item. Among other things, we find that (a) the processes involved in lexical access and episodic memory are largely separate and rely on different kinds of information, (b) access to lexical memory is driven primarily by perceptual aspects of a word, (c) all episodic memory tasks rely to an extent on a set of shared processes which make use of semantic features to encode both single words and associations between words, and (d) recall involves additional processes likely related to contextual cuing and response production. These results provide a large-scale picture of memory across different tasks which can serve to drive the development of comprehensive theories of memory. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).

Fostering development of nursing practices to support integrated care when implementing integrated care pathways: what levers to use?

Science.gov (United States)

Longpré, Caroline; Dubois, Carl-Ardy

2017-11-29

Care integration has been the focus of recent health system reforms. Given their functions at all levels of the care continuum, nurses have a substantial and primordial role to play in such integration processes. The aim of this study was to identify levers and strategies that organizations can use to support the development of a nursing practice aligned with the requirements of care integration in a health and social services centre (HSSC) in Quebec. The research design was a cross-sectional descriptive qualitative study based on a single case study with nested levels of analysis. The case was a public, multi-disciplinary HSSC in a semi-urban region of Quebec. Semi-structured interviews with 37 persons (nurses, professionals, managers, administrators) allowed for data saturation and ensured theoretical representation by covering four care pathways constituting different care integration contexts. Analysis involved four steps: preparing a predetermined list of codes based on the reference framework developed by Minkman (2011); coding transcript content; developing general and summary matrices to group observations for each care pathway; and creating a general model showing the overall results for the four pathways. The organization's capacity for response with regard to developing an integrated system of services resulted in two types of complementary interventions. The first involved investing in key resources and renewing organizational structures; the second involved deploying a series of organizational and clinical-administrative processes. In resource terms, integration efforts resulted in setting up new strategic services, re-arranging physical infrastructures, and deploying new technological resources. Organizational and clinical-administrative processes to promote integration involved renewing governance, improving the flow of care pathways, fostering continuous quality improvement, developing new roles, promoting clinician collaboration, and strengthening

Stimulant effects of adenosine antagonists on operant behavior: differential actions of selective A2A and A1 antagonists

Science.gov (United States)

Randall, Patrick A.; Nunes, Eric J.; Janniere, Simone L.; Stopper, Colin M.; Farrar, Andrew M.; Sager, Thomas N.; Baqi, Younis; Hockemeyer, Jörg; Müller, Christa E.

2012-01-01

Rationale Adenosine A2A antagonists can reverse many of the behavioral effects of dopamine antagonists, including actions on instrumental behavior. However, little is known about the effects of selective adenosine antagonists on operant behavior when these drugs are administered alone. Objective The present studies were undertaken to investigate the potential for rate-dependent stimulant effects of both selective and nonselective adenosine antagonists. Methods Six drugs were tested: two nonselective adenosine antagonists (caffeine and theophylline), two adenosine A1 antagonists (DPCPX and CPT), and two adenosine A2A antagonists (istradefylline (KW6002) and MSX-3). Two schedules of reinforcement were employed; a fixed interval 240-s (FI-240 sec) schedule was used to generate low baseline rates of responding and a fixed ratio 20 (FR20) schedule generated high rates. Results Caffeine and theophylline produced rate-dependent effects on lever pressing, increasing responding on the FI-240 sec schedule but decreasing responding on the FR20 schedule. The A2A antagonists MSX-3 and istradefylline increased FI-240 sec lever pressing but did not suppress FR20 lever pressing in the dose range tested. In fact, there was a tendency for istradefylline to increase FR20 responding at a moderate dose. A1 antagonists failed to increase lever pressing rate, but DPCPX decreased FR20 responding at higher doses. Conclusions These results suggest that adenosine A2A antagonists enhance operant response rates, but A1 antagonists do not. The involvement of adenosine A2A receptors in regulating aspects of instrumental response output and behavioral activation may have implications for the treatment of effort-related psychiatric dysfunctions, such as psychomotor slowing and anergia in depression. PMID:21347642

A Multi-Area Stochastic Model for a Covert Visual Search Task.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Michael A Schwemmer

Full Text Available Decisions typically comprise several elements. For example, attention must be directed towards specific objects, their identities recognized, and a choice made among alternatives. Pairs of competing accumulators and drift-diffusion processes provide good models of evidence integration in two-alternative perceptual choices, but more complex tasks requiring the coordination of attention and decision making involve multistage processing and multiple brain areas. Here we consider a task in which a target is located among distractors and its identity reported by lever release. The data comprise reaction times, accuracies, and single unit recordings from two monkeys' lateral interparietal area (LIP neurons. LIP firing rates distinguish between targets and distractors, exhibit stimulus set size effects, and show response-hemifield congruence effects. These data motivate our model, which uses coupled sets of leaky competing accumulators to represent processes hypothesized to occur in feature-selective areas and limb motor and pre-motor areas, together with the visual selection process occurring in LIP. Model simulations capture the electrophysiological and behavioral data, and fitted parameters suggest that different connection weights between LIP and the other cortical areas may account for the observed behavioral differences between the animals.

Specificity of the bilingual advantage for memory: examining cued recall, generalization, and working memory in monolingual, bilingual, and trilingual toddlers.

Science.gov (United States)

Brito, Natalie H; Grenell, Amanda; Barr, Rachel

2014-01-01

The specificity of the bilingual advantage in memory was examined by testing groups of monolingual, bilingual, and trilingual 24-month-olds on tasks tapping cued recall, memory generalization and working memory. For the cued recall and memory generalization conditions, there was a 24-h delay between time of encoding and time of retrieval. In addition to the memory tasks, parent-toddler dyads completed a picture-book reading task, in order to observe emotional responsiveness, and a parental report of productive vocabulary. Results indicated no difference between language groups on cued recall, working memory, emotional responsiveness, or productive vocabulary, but a significant difference was found in the memory generalization condition with only the bilingual group outperforming the baseline control group. These results replicate and extend results from past studies (Brito and Barr, 2012, 2014; Brito et al., 2014) and suggest a bilingual advantage specific to memory generalization.

Differential effects of emotionally versus neutrally cued autobiographical memories on performance of a subsequent cognitive task: Effects of task difficulty

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kymberly eYoung

2012-08-01

Full Text Available Attention is a limited resource, and in order to improve processing of the attended information, competing processes must be suppressed. Although it is well established that an experimentally induced change in mood state comprises one type of competing process that can impair performance on a subsequent task, no study has investigated whether an emotionally valenced autobiographical memory (AM also can alter performance on a subsequent task. We therefore examined the effects of AM recall on cognitive performance. Healthy participants (n=20 per experiment recalled AMs in response to positive, negative, and neutral cue words. Following each AM participants completed a simple perceptual task (Experiment 1 or solved moderately difficult subtraction problems (Experiment 2. In Experiment 1 participants performed less accurately following exposure to positive or negative versus neutral cue words (ps<0.001, and also were less accurate following negative versus positive cue words (p<0.001. In Experiment 2, in contrast, no difference in accuracy or response times reached statistical significance. Performance accuracy even trended towards being higher following exposure to negative versus neutral cue words (p=0.08. The results of Experiment 1 suggested that recalling emotionally salient AMs reduces the attention directed toward a simple continuous performance task administered immediately following the AM task, conceivably due to persistent contemplation of the AM. The negative results of Experiment 2 suggested that the effect of AMs on attention was attenuated, however, by increasing the difficulty of the subsequent task. Our results have implications for patients with MDD, as performing cognitively demanding tasks may allow them to attenuate the impairing effects of negative rumination on cognition.

Smashing WordPress Beyond the Blog

CERN Document Server

Hedengren, Thord Daniel

2011-01-01

Smashing WordPress shows you how to utilize the power of the WordPress platform, and provides a creative spark to help you build WordPress-powered sites that go beyond the obvious. The second edition of Smashing WordPress has been updated for WordPress 3.1+, which includes internal, custom post types, the admin bar, and lots of other useful new features. You will learn the core concepts used to post types, the admin bar, and lots of other useful new features. You will learn the core concepts used to build just about anything in WordPress, resulting in fast deployments and greater design flexib

Smashing WordPress Beyond the Blog

CERN Document Server

Hedengren, Thord Daniel

2012-01-01

The ultimate guide to WordPress, from the world's most popular resource for web designers and developers As one of the hottest tools on the web today for creating a blog, WordPress has evolved to be much more that just a blogging platform and has been pushed beyond its original purpose. With this new edition of a perennially popular WordPress resource, Smashing Magazine offers you the information you need so you can maximize the potential and power of WordPress. WordPress expert Thord Daniel Hedengren takes you beyond the basic blog to show you how to leverage the capabilities of WordPress to

Microstructure and thermal properties of Cu-SiC composite materials depending on the sintering technique

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chmielewski Marcin

2017-01-01

Full Text Available The presented paper investigates the relationship between the microstructure and thermal properties of copper-silicon carbide composites obtained through hot pressing (HP and spark plasma sintering (SPS techniques. The microstructural analysis showed a better densification in the case of composites sintered in the SPS process. TEM investigations revealed the presence of silicon in the area of metallic matrix in the region close to metal-ceramic boundary. It is the product of silicon dissolving process in copper occurring at an elevated temperature. The Cu-SiC interface is significantly defected in composites obtained through the hot pressing method, which has a major influence on the thermal conductivity of materials.

Heimdall System for MSSS Sensor Tasking

Science.gov (United States)

Herz, A.; Jones, B.; Herz, E.; George, D.; Axelrad, P.; Gehly, S.

In Norse Mythology, Heimdall uses his foreknowledge and keen eyesight to keep watch for disaster from his home near the Rainbow Bridge. Orbit Logic and the Colorado Center for Astrodynamics Research (CCAR) at the University of Colorado (CU) have developed the Heimdall System to schedule observations of known and uncharacterized objects and search for new objects from the Maui Space Surveillance Site. Heimdall addresses the current need for automated and optimized SSA sensor tasking driven by factors associated with improved space object catalog maintenance. Orbit Logic and CU developed an initial baseline prototype SSA sensor tasking capability for select sensors at the Maui Space Surveillance Site (MSSS) using STK and STK Scheduler, and then added a new Track Prioritization Component for FiSST-inspired computations for predicted Information Gain and Probability of Detection, and a new SSA-specific Figure-of-Merit (FOM) for optimized SSA sensor tasking. While the baseline prototype addresses automation and some of the multi-sensor tasking optimization, the SSA-improved prototype addresses all of the key elements required for improved tasking leading to enhanced object catalog maintenance. The Heimdall proof-of-concept was demonstrated for MSSS SSA sensor tasking for a 24 hour period to attempt observations of all operational satellites in the unclassified NORAD catalog, observe a small set of high priority GEO targets every 30 minutes, make a sky survey of the GEO belt region accessible to MSSS sensors, and observe particular GEO regions that have a high probability of finding new objects with any excess sensor time. This Heimdall prototype software paves the way for further R&D that will integrate this technology into the MSSS systems for operational scheduling, improve the software's scalability, and further tune and enhance schedule optimization. The Heimdall software for SSA sensor tasking provides greatly improved performance over manual tasking, improved

Computer-mediated communication: task performance and satisfaction.

Science.gov (United States)

Simon, Andrew F

2006-06-01

The author assessed satisfaction and performance on 3 tasks (idea generation, intellective, judgment) among 75 dyads (N = 150) working through 1 of 3 modes of communication (instant messaging, videoconferencing, face to face). The author based predictions on the Media Naturalness Theory (N. Kock, 2001, 2002) and on findings from past researchers (e.g., D. M. DeRosa, C. Smith, & D. A. Hantula, in press) of the interaction between tasks and media. The present author did not identify task performance differences, although satisfaction with the medium was lower among those dyads communicating through an instant-messaging system than among those interacting face to face or through videoconferencing. The findings support the Media Naturalness Theory. The author discussed them in relation to the participants' frequent use of instant messaging and their familiarity with new communication media.

Structure of Enhanced Cued Recall Task in the 7 Minute Screen Test.

Science.gov (United States)

Mora-Simon, Sara; Ladera-Fernandez, Valentina; Garcia-Garcia, Ricardo; Patino-Alonso, María C; Perea-Bartolome, M Victoria; Unzueta-Arce, Jaime; Perez-Arechaederra, Diana; Rodriguez-Sanchez, Emiliano

2017-01-01

Episodic memory in the 7 Minute Screen is assessed by the Enhanced Cued Recall (ECR) test. The ECR test is composed of three phases, Identification, Immediate Recall, and Free and Cued Recall. However, just the last phase is considered for the total score. We believe that collecting the performance data of the Identification and Immediate Recall phases could provide information regarding possible difficulties or impairments in the different aspects involved in the temporal mnesic process of acquisition of new information, such as in working memory or visual identification. The objective was to assess the goodness of fit for the three phases of the ECR test using a Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) to show if each phase is separated from each other as a different aspect that participates in the mnesic process. A total of 311 participants greater than 65 years were included in this study. Confirmatory factor analyses were conducted for each individual phase. The analyses show that the ECR test consists of three separate phases that identify different steps of the mnesic process. Individual scores for each phase could allow for investigation of patient performance in different aspects of the memory process and could help in further neuropsychological assessment.

Interpretation of photovoltaic pulses in normal YBa2Cu3O7

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Scott, J.F.

1990-01-01

200 mV photovoltaic voltage pulses reported [C. L. Chang, A. Kleinhammes, W. G. Moulton, and L. R. Testardi Phys. Rev. B (in press)] for YBa 2 Cu 3 O 7 illuminated with 2--30 mJ/cm 2 at 532 nm are interpreted in terms of the complete theory of photovoltaic responses, including off-diagonal terms not recognized in the original theory. The resulting predictions are in reasonable quantitative agreement with experiment

Muscle activation when performing the chest press and shoulder press on a stable bench vs. a Swiss ball.

Science.gov (United States)

Uribe, Brandon P; Coburn, Jared W; Brown, Lee E; Judelson, Daniel A; Khamoui, Andy V; Nguyen, Diamond

2010-04-01

The aim of this study was to examine the effects of a stable surface (bench) vs. an unstable surface (Swiss ball) on muscle activation when performing the dumbbell chest press and shoulder press. Sixteen healthy men (24.19 +/- 2.17 years) performed 1 repetition maximum (1RM) tests for the chest press and shoulder press on a stable surface. A minimum of 48 hours post 1RM, subjects returned to perform 3 consecutive repetitions each of the chest press and shoulder press at 80% 1RM under 4 different randomized conditions (chest press on bench, chest press on Swiss ball, shoulder press on bench, shoulder press on Swiss ball). Electromyography was used to assess muscle activation of the anterior deltoid, pectoralis major, and rectus abdominus. The results revealed no significant difference in muscle activation between surface types for either exercise. This suggests that using an unstable surface neither improves nor impairs muscle activation under the current conditions. Coaches and other practitioners can expect similar muscle activation when using a Swiss ball vs. a bench.

Spatial working memory interferes with explicit, but not probabilistic cuing of spatial attention

Science.gov (United States)

Won, Bo-Yeong; Jiang, Yuhong V.

2014-01-01

Recent empirical and theoretical work has depicted a close relationship between visual attention and visual working memory. For example, rehearsal in spatial working memory depends on spatial attention, whereas adding a secondary spatial working memory task impairs attentional deployment in visual search. These findings have led to the proposal that working memory is attention directed toward internal representations. Here we show that the close relationship between these two constructs is limited to some but not all forms of spatial attention. In five experiments, participants held color arrays, dot locations, or a sequence of dots in working memory. During the memory retention interval they performed a T-among-L visual search task. Crucially, the probable target location was cued either implicitly through location probability learning, or explicitly with a central arrow or verbal instruction. Our results showed that whereas imposing a visual working memory load diminished the effectiveness of explicit cuing, it did not interfere with probability cuing. We conclude that spatial working memory shares similar mechanisms with explicit, goal-driven attention but is dissociated from implicitly learned attention. PMID:25401460

Hippocampal lesions impair performance on a conditional delayed matching and non-matching to position task in the rat.

Science.gov (United States)

Sloan, Hazel L; Döbrössy, Màtè; Dunnett, Stephen B

2006-08-10

The hippocampus is thought to be involved in a range of cognitive processes, from the ability to acquire new memories, to the ability to learn about spatial relationships. Humans and monkeys with damage to the hippocampus are typically impaired on delayed matching to sample tasks, of which the operant delayed matching to position task (DMTP) is a rat analogue. The reported effects of hippocampal damage on DMTP vary, ranging from delay-dependent deficits to no deficit whatsoever. The present study investigates a novel memory task; the conditional delayed matching/non-matching to position task (CDM/NMTP) in the Skinner box. CDM/NMTP uses the presence of specific stimulus cues to signify whether a particular trial is matching or non-matching in nature. Thus, it incorporates both the task contingencies within one session, and supplements the requirement for remembering the side of the lever in the sample phase with attending to the stimulus and remembering the conditional discrimination for the rule. Rats were trained preoperatively and the effects of bilateral excitotoxic lesions of the hippocampus were examined on postoperative retention of the task. Rats with lesions of the hippocampus incurred a significant impairment on the task that was manifest at all delays intervals. Despite a bias towards matching during training, trials of either type were performed with equivalent accuracy and neither rule was affected differentially by the lesion. This task may prove useful in determining the cognitive roles of a range of brain areas.

Low-temperature densification and excellent thermal properties of W–Cu thermal-management composites prepared from copper-coated tungsten powders

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang, Lianmeng; Chen, Wenshu; Luo, Guoqiang; Chen, Pingan; Shen, Qiang; Wang, Chuanbin

2014-01-01

Highlights: • High-density (98.4%) W–20 wt.%Cu composites were low-temperature fabricated. • A highly pure Cu network and a homogenous microstructure formed in the composites. • The interfaces between W and Cu are well bonded with no spaces. • The composites have excellent thermal properties. -- Abstract: High-density W–20 wt.%Cu composites containing a Cu-network structure and exhibiting good thermal properties were fabricated by low-temperature hot-press sintering from high-purity copper-coated tungsten powders. The relative density of W–20 wt.%Cu composites sintered at 950 °C–100 MPa–2 h was 98.4%. The low-temperature densification of W–Cu composites occurs because the sintering mode of the coated particles involves only sintering of Cu to Cu, rather than both Cu to W and Cu to Cu, as required for conventional powder particles. The microstructure shows that a network of high-purity Cu extends throughout the composites, and that the W is distributed homogeneously; the interfaces between W and Cu show good contact. The composites have excellent thermal conductivity (239 W/(m K)) and a relatively low coefficient of thermal expansion (7.4 × 10 −6 /K), giving them some of the best properties reported to date for thermal-management materials. The excellent performance is mainly because of their structure, which arises from the characteristics of the high-purity copper-coated tungsten powders

Nucleus accumbens corticotropin-releasing factor increases cue-triggered motivation for sucrose reward: paradoxical positive incentive effects in stress?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Schulkin Jay

2006-04-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF is typically considered to mediate aversive aspects of stress, fear and anxiety. However, CRF release in the brain is also elicited by natural rewards and incentive cues, raising the possibility that some CRF systems in the brain mediate an independent function of positive incentive motivation, such as amplifying incentive salience. Here we asked whether activation of a limbic CRF subsystem magnifies the increase in positive motivation for reward elicited by incentive cues previously associated with that reward, in a way that might exacerbate cue-triggered binge pursuit of food or other incentives? We assessed the impact of CRF microinjections into the medial shell of nucleus accumbens using a pure incentive version of Pavlovian-Instrumental transfer, a measure specifically sensitive to the incentive salience of reward cues (which it separates from influences of aversive stress, stress reduction, frustration and other traditional explanations for stress-increased behavior. Rats were first trained to press one of two levers to obtain sucrose pellets, and then separately conditioned to associate a Pavlovian cue with free sucrose pellets. On test days, rats received microinjections of vehicle, CRF (250 or 500 ng/0.2 μl or amphetamine (20 μg/0.2 μl. Lever pressing was assessed in the presence or absence of the Pavlovian cues during a half-hour test. Results Microinjections of the highest dose of CRF (500 ng or amphetamine (20 μg selectively enhanced the ability of Pavlovian reward cues to trigger phasic peaks of increased instrumental performance for a sucrose reward, each peak lasting a minute or so before decaying after the cue. Lever pressing was not enhanced by CRF microinjections in the baseline absence of the Pavlovian cue or during the presentation without a cue, showing that the CRF enhancement could not be explained as a result of generalized motor arousal, frustration or stress

Fabrication and characterization of Cu/YSZ cermet high-temperature electrolysis cathode material prepared by high-energy ball-milling method

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Sungkyu; Kang, Kyoung-Hoon; Kim, Jong-Min; Hong, Hyun Seon; Yun, Yongseung; Woo, Sang-Kook

2008-01-01

Cu/YSZ composites (40 and 60 vol.% Cu powder with balance YSZ) was successfully fabricated by high-energy ball-milling of Cu and YSZ powders at 400 rpm for 24 h, pressing into pellets (O 13 mm x 2 mm) and subsequent sintering process at 900 deg. C under flowing 5%-H 2 /Ar gas for use as cermet cathode material of high-temperature electrolysis (HTE) of water vapor in a more economical way compared with conventional Ni/YSZ cermet cathode material. The Cu/YSZ composite powders thus synthesized and sintered were characterized using various analytical tools such as XRD, SEM, and laser diffraction and scattering method. Electrical conductivity of sintered Cu/YSZ cermet pellets thus fabricated was measured using 4-probe technique and compared with that of Ni/YSZ cermets. The effect of composites composition on the electrical conductivity was investigated and marked increase in electrical conductivity for copper contents greater than 40 vol.% in the composite was explained by percolation threshold

Effect of botanical extracts containing carnosic acid or rosmarinic acid on learning and memory in SAMP8 mice.

Science.gov (United States)

Farr, Susan A; Niehoff, Michael L; Ceddia, Michael A; Herrlinger, Kelli A; Lewis, Brandon J; Feng, Shulin; Welleford, Andrew; Butterfield, D Allan; Morley, John E

2016-10-15

Oxidative damage is one of the hallmarks of the aging process. The current study evaluated effects of two proprietary antioxidant-based ingredients, rosemary extract and spearmint extract containing carnosic acid and rosmarinic acid, respectively, on learning and memory in the SAMP8 mouse model of accelerated aging. The two rosemary extracts contained carnosic acid (60% or 10% carnosic acid) and one spearmint extract contained 5% rosmarinic acid. Three doses of actives in each extract were tested: 32, 16, 1.6 or 0mg/kg. After 90days of treatment mice were tested in T-maze foot shock avoidance, object recognition and lever press. Rosemary extract containing 60% carnosic acid improved acquisition and retention in T-maze foot shock, object recognition and lever press. Rosemary extract with 10% carnosic acid improved retention in T-maze foot shock avoidance and lever press. Spearmint with 5% rosmarinic acid improved acquisition and retention in T-maze foot shock avoidance and object recognition. 4-hydroxynonenal (HNE) was reduced in the brain cortex after treatment with all three extracts (Prosemary with 10% carnosic acid (Prosemary have beneficial effects on learning and memory and brain tissue markers of oxidation that occur with age in SAMP8 mice. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Investing in a Large Stretch Press

Science.gov (United States)

Choate, M.; Nealson, W.; Jay, G.; Buss, W.

1986-01-01

Press for forming large aluminum parts from plates provides substantial economies. Study assessed advantages and disadvantages of investing in large stretch-forming press, and also developed procurement specification for press.

Dissociation of implicit and explicit memory tests: effect of age and divided attention on category exemplar generation and cued recall.

Science.gov (United States)

Isingrini, M; Vazou, F; Leroy, P

1995-07-01

In this article, we report an experiment that provides further evidence concerning the differences between explicit and implicit measures of memory. The effects of age and divided attention on the implicit conceptual test of category exemplar generation (CEG) were compared with their effects on the explicit test of cued, recall, where the category names served as cues in both tasks. Four age groups (20-35, 40-55, 60-75, and 76-90) were compared. Half of the subjects were also required to carry out a secondary letter-detection task during the learning phase. Cued recall performance was significantly impaired by increased age and imposition of the secondary task. In contrast, the CEG task was unaffected by these two factors. These results suggest that implicit conceptual tasks and explicit memory tasks are mediated by different processes. This conclusion opposes those of previous studies that showed that experimental manipulations (level of processing, generation, organization) influenced these two kinds of memory tests in a similar way.

AUPress: A Comparison of an Open Access University Press with Traditional Presses

Science.gov (United States)

McGreal, Rory; Chen, Nian-Shing

2011-01-01

This study is a comparison of AUPress with three other traditional (non-open access) Canadian university presses. The analysis is based on the rankings that are correlated with book sales on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca. Statistical methods include the sampling of the sales ranking of randomly selected books from each press. The results of one-way…

Growth of intermetallics between Sn/Ni/Cu, Sn/Ag/Cu and Sn/Cu layered structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Horváth, Barbara; Illés, Balázs; Shinohara, Tadashi

2014-01-01

Intermetallic growth mechanisms and rates are investigated in Sn/Ni/Cu, Sn/Ag/Cu and Sn/Cu layer systems. An 8–10 μm thick Sn surface finish layer was electroplated onto a Cu substrate with a 1.5–2 μm thick Ni or Ag barrier layer. In order to induce intermetallic layer growth, the samples were aged in elevated temperatures: 50 °C and 125 °C. Intermetallic layer growth was checked by focused ion beam–scanning ion microscope. The microstructures and chemical compositions of the intermetallic layers were observed with a transmission electron microscope. It has been found that Ni barrier layers can effectively block the development of Cu 6 Sn 5 intermetallics. The intermetallic growth characteristics in the Sn/Cu and Sn/Ni/Cu systems are very similar. The intermetallic layer grows towards the Sn layer and forms a discrete layer. Differences were observed only in the growth gradients and surface roughness of the intermetallic layer which may explain the different tin whiskering properties. It was observed that the intermetallic layer growth mechanisms are completely different in the Ag barrier layers compared to the Ni layers. In the case of Sn/Ag/Cu systems, the Sn and Cu diffused through the Ag layer, formed Cu 6 Sn 5 intermetallics mainly at the Sn/Ag interface and consumed the Ag barrier layer. - Highlights: • Intermetallic growth was characterised in Sn/Ni/Cu, Sn/Ag/Cu and Sn/Cu layer systems. • Intermetallic growth rates and roughness are similar in the Sn/Cu and Sn/Ni/Cu systems. • Sn/Ni/Cu system contains the following intermetallic layer structure Sn–Ni3Sn4–Ni3Sn2–Ni3Sn–Ni. • In the case of Sn/Ag/Cu systems the Sn and Cu diffusion consumes the Ag barrier layer. • When Cu reaches the Sn/Ag interface a large amount of Cu 6 Sn 5 forms above the Ag layer

EPR, IR and DC conductivity studies of xCuO–(100–x) Bi2O3 glasses

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Transition metal oxides such as CuO, V2O5, etc can form glasses when mixed ... on a stainless steel block and pressing with another steel block. .... Bi2O3 glass system at different temperatures. Activation energy (eV). Glass. 416·6 K. 454·5 K.

Health as a lever for another development.

Science.gov (United States)

Banerji, D

1978-01-01

In India the health services are unable to meet the real needs of the poor. The colonial policy of exploitation, expropriation and plunder created widespread disruption in the way of life of the Indian people. The colonialism destroyed the health culture of India and created a Western bias in the health services which continues to this day. The bias has extend to research - for example, by postulating a correlation between malnutrition and mental retardation. The commitment of the current political leadership to bypass the medical establishment and go directly to the people has created a favorable setting to challenge the basic scientific, sociological and economic premises of the earlier approach to development of the health services in India, and to formulate a new approach to development of the health services in India, and to formulate a new approach to take its place. The main premise of Another Development in the health services is to begin with the people - a framework is designed for a health service system particularly tailored to meet the needs of the people. Efforts to relieve the suffering caused by health problems can contribute to the initiation of political, economic and social action. In this context, the formulation and implementation of Another Development in Health acquires much significance: 1) the very alleviation of suffering has political significance, because it narrows the gap between the ruling classes and the masses; 2) Another Development in Health would provide an entry point for change agents, who could use the opportunity to work with the people to initiate changes in other social and economic fields; and 3) by generating social awareness, Another Development in Health may work as a lever for promoting similar developments in other social and economic fields.

CuO reduction induced formation of CuO/Cu2O hybrid oxides

Science.gov (United States)

Yuan, Lu; Yin, Qiyue; Wang, Yiqian; Zhou, Guangwen

2013-12-01

Reduction of CuO nanowires results in the formation of a unique hierarchical hybrid nanostructure, in which the parent oxide phase (CuO) works as the skeleton while the lower oxide (Cu2O) resulting from the reduction reaction forms as partially embedded nanoparticles that decorate the skeleton of the parent oxide. Using in situ transmission electron microscopy observations of the reduction process of CuO nanowires, we demonstrate that the formation of such a hierarchical hybrid oxide structure is induced by topotactic nucleation and growth of Cu2O islands on the parent CuO nanowires.

BuddyPress theme development

CERN Document Server

Lister, Tammie

2013-01-01

This book is a hands-on tutorial guide to using BuddyPress.This book is great for designers and developers who are looking to learn how to develop BuddyPress themes. It's assumed that the reader has some understanding of Wordpress and is familiar with CSS and HTML.

Fabrication and characterization of Cu/YSZ cermet high temperature electrolysis cathode material prepared by high-energy ball-milling method

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Sungkyu; Kim, Jong-Min; Hong, Hyun Seon; Woo, Sang-Kook

2009-01-01

Cu/YSZ cermet (40 and 60 vol.% Cu powder with balance YSZ) is a more economical cathode material than the conventional Ni/YSZ cermet for high temperature electrolysis (HTE) of water vapor and it was successfully fabricated by high-energy ball-milling of Cu and YSZ powders, pressing into pellets (o 13 mm x 2 mm) and subsequent sintering process at 700 deg. C under flowing 5%-H 2 /Ar gas. The Cu/YSZ composite material thus fabricated was characterized using various analytical tools such as XRD, SEM, and laser diffraction and scattering method. Electrical conductivity of sintered Cu/YSZ cermet pellets thus fabricated was measured by using 4-probe technique for comparison with that of conventional Ni/YSZ cermets. The effect of composite composition on the electrical conductivity was investigated and a marked increase in electrical conductivity for copper contents greater than 40 vol.% in the composite was explained by percolation threshold. Also, Cu/YSZ cermet was selected as a candidate for HTE cathode of self-supporting planar unit cell and its electrochemical performance was investigated, paving the way for preliminary correlation of high-energy ball-milling parameters with observed physical and electrochemical performance of Cu/YSZ cermets

Morphology and chemical composition of Cu/Sn/Cu and Cu(5 at-%Ni)/Sn/Cu(5 at-%Ni) interconnections

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Wierzbicka-Miernik, A.; Wojewoda-Budka, J.; Litynska-Dobrzynska, L.; Kodentsov, A.; Zieba, P.

2012-01-01

In the present paper, scanning and transmission electron microscopies as well as energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy investigations were performed to describe the morphology and chemical composition of the intermetallic phases growing in Cu/Sn/Cu and Cu(Ni)/Sn/Cu(Ni) interconnections during the

Resolving the Paradox of the Active User: Stable Suboptimal Performance in Interactive Tasks

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Fu, Wai-Tat; Gray, Wayne D

2004-01-01

...: Cognitive Aspects of Human Computer Interaction, Cambridge, MIT Press, MA, USA] the persistent use of inefficient procedures in interactive tasks by experienced or even expert users when demonstrably more efficient procedures exist...

Urban Consortium Energy Task Force - Year 21 Final Report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2003-04-01

The Urban Consortium Energy Task Force (UCETF), comprised of representatives of large cities and counties in the United States, is a subgroup of the Urban Consortium, an organization of the nation's largest cities and counties joined together to identify, develop and deploy innovative approaches and technological solutions to pressing urban issues.

Conférence de presse | Press Conference

CERN Multimedia

CERN. Geneva; Bejar Alonso, Isabel

2018-01-01

10:00-11:00 Conférence de presse en présence de Lucio Rossi, chef du projet LHC à Haute Luminosité et Isabel Bejar Alonso, chargée de la configuration, de la qualité et des ressources du projet LHC à Haute Luminosité.

Tarefas repetitivas sob pressão temporal: os distúrbios musculoesqueléticos e o trabalho industrial Repetitive tasks under time pressure: the musculoskeletal disorders and the industrial work

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rita de Cássia Pereira Fernandes

2010-05-01

Full Text Available Realizou-se estudo ergonômico a fim de caracterizar as tarefas repetitivas e as demandas psicossociais no trabalho industrial em empresa do ramo plástico da Região Metropolitana de Salvador (BA. Realizaram-se observações globais das tarefas nas primeiras visitas à empresa, visando conhecer a organização geral, o funcionamento da produção e os determinantes das tarefas. Observaram-se nesta etapa que as exigências temporais na execução das tarefas implicavam demandas psicossociais e demandas físicas, em especial, os movimentos repetitivos. Na segunda etapa, realizaram-se observações sistemáticas, com entrevistas simultâneas. Mediu-se a duração dos ciclos básicos das tarefas na moldagem/acabamento das embalagens e registrou-se a ocorrência de perturbações que exigiam das trabalhadoras sua regulação. Identificaram-se variabilidades do trabalho, evidenciando como são geradas as demandas extras e como as exigências cognitivas e físicas podem ser exacerbadas pela pressão temporal. A insuficiência dos meios de trabalho, as exigências temporais da gestão da produção e uma organização do trabalho caracterizada pelo baixo controle conformam uma situação em que a continuidade da produção apenas é possível à custa de hipersolicitação do corpo das trabalhadoras.An ergonomic study was carried out to characterize repetitive work and psychosocial demands at work in a plastic industry in The Greater Salvador, State of Bahia, Brazil. Global observations of tasks were preliminary carried out to investigate work organization, production organization and tasks determinants. Time requirements in tasks development involved psychosocial demands and physical demands, particularly when the latter implied very fast repetitive work. Secondly, those findings led to systematic observations with simultaneous interviews of workers. Work cycles in each task of molding/finishing plastic bags were measured by video analysis. All

IR and TPD studies of the interaction of alkenes with Cu + sites in CuNaY and CuNaX zeolites of various Cu content. The heterogeneity of Cu + sites

Science.gov (United States)

Datka, J.; Kukulska-Zajaç, E.; Kozyra, P.

2006-08-01

Cu + ions in zeolites activate organic molecules containing π electrons by π back donation, which results in a distinct weakening of multiple bonds. In this study, we followed the activation of alkenes (ethene and propene) by Cu + ions in CuY and CuX zeolites of various Cu content. We also studied the strength of bonding of alkenes to Cu + ions. IR studies have shown that there are two kinds of Cu + sites of various electron donor properties. We suppose that they could be attributed to the presence of Cu + ions of various number of oxygen atoms surrounding the cation. IR studies have shown that Cu ions introduced into Y and X zeolites in the first-order (at low Cu content) form Cu + ions of stronger electron donor properties (i.e. activate alkenes to larger extend) than Cu ions introduced in the next order (at higher Cu content). IR and TPD studies of alkenes desorption evidenced that Cu + ions of stronger electron donor properties bond alkenes stronger than less electron donor ones. It suggests that π back donation has more important contribution to the strength of bonding alkenes to cation than π donation.

Different Ways to Cue a Coherent Memory System: A Theory for Episodic, Semantic, and Procedural Tasks.

Science.gov (United States)

Humphreys, Michael S.; And Others

1989-01-01

An associative theory of memory is proposed to serve as a counterexample to claims that dissociations among episodic, semantic, and procedural memory tasks necessitate separate memory systems. The theory is based on task analyses of matching (recognition and familiarity judgments), retrieval (cued recall), and production (free association). (TJH)

A New Paradigm for Evaluating Avoidance/Escape Motivation.

Science.gov (United States)

Tsutsui-Kimura, Iku; Bouchekioua, Youcef; Mimura, Masaru; Tanaka, Kenji F

2017-07-01

Organisms have evolved to approach pleasurable opportunities and to avoid or escape from aversive experiences. These 2 distinct motivations are referred to as approach and avoidance/escape motivations and are both considered vital for survival. Despite several recent advances in understanding the neurobiology of motivation, most studies addressed approach but not avoidance/escape motivation. Here we develop a new experimental paradigm to quantify avoidance/escape motivation and examine the pharmacological validity. We set up an avoidance variable ratio 5 task in which mice were required to press a lever for variable times to avoid an upcoming aversive stimulus (foot shock) or to escape the ongoing aversive event if they failed to avoid it. We i.p. injected ketamine (0, 1, or 5 mg/kg) or buspirone (0, 5, or 10 mg/kg) 20 or 30 minutes before the behavioral task to see if ketamine enhanced avoidance/escape behavior and buspirone diminished it as previously reported. We found that the performance on the avoidance variable ratio 5 task was sensitive to the intensity of the aversive stimulus. Treatment with ketamine increased while that with buspirone decreased the probability of avoidance from an aversive stimulus in the variable ratio 5 task, being consistent with previous reports. Our new paradigm will prove useful for quantifying avoidance/escape motivation and will contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of motivation. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of CINP.

Determination of Ti, Cr, Cu and Ta in niobium oxide by X-ray fluorescence method

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dixit, R.M.; Deshpande, S.S.

1986-01-01

An x-ray fluorescence method for the determination of Ti, Cr, Cu and Ta in niobium oxide has been developed. Samples/standards in powder form are mixed with boric acid in the proportion of 1:1 (400 mg. each). Double layer pellets are prepared by pressing this mixture over a primary boric acid pellet. Philips PW-1220, a semiautomatic x-ray spectrometer with tungsten target x-ray tube for excitation and LiF (200) crystal for dispersion have been used. The determination range is from 0.005 to 0.1per cent for Ti and Cr, 0.01 to 0.1per cent for Cu and 0.05 to 1per cent for Ta. (author)

Porous HKUST-1 derived CuO/Cu2O shell wrapped Cu(OH)2 derived CuO/Cu2O core nanowire arrays for electrochemical nonenzymatic glucose sensors with ultrahigh sensitivity

Science.gov (United States)

Yu, Cuiping; Cui, Jiewu; Wang, Yan; Zheng, Hongmei; Zhang, Jianfang; Shu, Xia; Liu, Jiaqin; Zhang, Yong; Wu, Yucheng

2018-05-01

Self-supported CuO/Cu2O@CuO/Cu2O core-shell nanowire arrays (NWAs) are successfully fabricated by a simple and efficient method in this paper. Anodized Cu(OH)2 NWAs could in-situ convert to HKUST-1 at room temperature easily. Cu(OH)2 NWAs cores and HKUST-1 shells transform into CuO/Cu2O simultaneously after calcinations and form CuO/Cu2O@CuO/Cu2O core-shell NWAs. This smart configuration of the core-shell structure not only avoids the agglomeration of the traditional MOF-derived materials in particle-shape, but also facilitates the ion diffusion and increases the active sites. This novel structure is employed as substrate to construct nonenzymatic glucose sensors. The results indicate that glucose sensor based on CuO/Cu2O@CuO/Cu2O core-shell NWAs presents ultrahigh sensitivity (10,090 μA mM-1 cm-2), low detection limit (0.48 μM) and wide linear range (0.99-1,330 μM). In addition, it also shows excellent anti-interference ability toward uric acid, ascorbic acid and L-Cysteine co-existing with glucose, good reproducibility and superior ability of real sample analysis.

Development of an indirect counterbalanced pendulum optical-lever thrust balance for micro- to millinewton thrust measurement

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Grubišić, A N; Gabriel, S B

2010-01-01

This paper describes the design and testing of an indirect hanging pendulum thrust balance using a laser-optical-lever principle to provide micro- to millinewton thrust measurement for the development of electric propulsion systems. The design philosophy allows the selection of the total thrust range in order to maximize resolution through a counterbalanced pendulum principle, as well as passive magnetic damping in order to allow relatively rapid transient thrust measurement. The balance was designed for the purpose of hollow cathode microthruster characterization, but could be applied to other electric propulsion devices in the thrust range of micro- to millinewtons. An initial thrust characterization of the T5 hollow cathode is presented

Comparative study of Cu-Zr and Cu-Ru alloy films for barrier-free Cu metallization

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang Ying; Cao Fei; Zhang Milin; Liu Yuntao

2011-01-01

The properties of Cu-Zr and Cu-Ru alloy films were comparatively studied to evaluate their potential use as alloying elements. Cu alloy films were deposited on SiO 2 /Si substrates by magnetron sputtering. Samples were subsequently annealed and analyzed by four-point probe measurement, X-ray diffraction, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy and Auger electron spectroscopy. X-ray diffraction data suggest that Cu film has preferential (111) crystal orientation and no extra peak corresponding to any compound of Cu, Zr, Ru, and Si. According to transmission electron microscopy results, Cu grains grow in size for both systems but the grain sizes of the Cu alloy films are smaller than that of pure Cu films. These results indicate that Cu-Zr film is suitable for advanced barrier-free metallization in terms of interfacial stability and lower resistivity.

The role of peripheral vision in implicit contextual cuing.

Science.gov (United States)

van Asselen, Marieke; Castelo-Branco, Miguel

2009-01-01

Implicit contextual cuing refers to the ability to learn the association between contextual information of our environment and a specific target, which can be used to guide attention during visual search. It was recently suggested that the storage of a snapshot image of the local context of a target underlies implicit contextual cuing. To make such a snapshot, it is necessary to use peripheral vision. In order to test whether peripheral vision can underlie implicit contextual cuing, we used a covert visual search task, in which participants were required to indicate the orientation of a target stimulus while foveating a fixation cross. The response times were shorter when the configuration of the stimuli was repeated than when the configuration was new. Importantly, this effect was still found after 10 days, indicating that peripherally perceived spatial context information can be stored in memory for long periods of time. These results indicate that peripheral vision can be used to make a snapshot of the local context of a target.

[Therapeutic education in pediatric dentistry: analysis of obstacles and levers to the development of programmes in France in 2016].

Science.gov (United States)

Marquillier, Thomas; Trentesaux, Thomas; Gagnayre, Rémi

2017-01-01

Over recent years, therapeutic patient education has become part of dental medicine. Management of early childhood caries, known to be a very common chronic disease, has evolved to include an educational dimension. The objective of this study was to identify the levers and barriers to the development of formalized therapeutic education programmes and alternatives. A comprehensive exploratory qualitative study was conducted between November 2015 and June 2016 on a targeted sample of 15 people aware of the problem of TPE in dentistry. The study showed that TPE training in dentistry is underdeveloped, despite its numerous benefits: change of the healthcare professional's approach, implementation of structured educational programmes, development of research, etc. There are many obstacles to the development of TPE programmes: insufficient resources, rigid legislation or lack of knowledge of TPE practices. The dental profession is an obstacle itself because of its lack of understanding and variable degrees of integration the medical community. There are multiple levers, but the main ones are changing attitudes of the profession and the provision of resources to develop TPE. Although alternatives to TPE programmes exist (accompanying measures, short educational strategies, connected health), they cannot replace TPE. More educational strategies must be developed in the field of dentistry. However, the framework of TPE must be adapted to the profession to ensure good uptake.

Cu/Cu{sub 2}O/CuO nanoparticles: Novel synthesis by exploding wire technique and extensive characterization

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sahai, Anshuman [Department of Physics and Materials Science and Engineering, Jaypee Institute of Information Technology, A-10, Sector-62, Noida 201307 (India); Goswami, Navendu, E-mail: navendugoswami@gmail.com [Department of Physics and Materials Science and Engineering, Jaypee Institute of Information Technology, A-10, Sector-62, Noida 201307 (India); Kaushik, S.D. [UGC-DAE-Consortium for Scientific Research Mumbai Centre, R5 Shed, BARC, Mumbai 400085 (India); Tripathi, Shilpa [UGC-DAE Consortium for Scientific Research, Indore, M.P. (India)

2016-12-30

Highlights: The salient features of this research article are following: • Mixed phase synthesis of Cu/Cu{sub 2}O/CuO nanoparticles prepared by Exploding Wire Technique (EWT). • Predominant Cu/Cu{sub 2}O phases along with minor CuO phase revealed through XRD, TEM, Raman, FTIR, UV–Visible and PL analyses. • XPS analysis provided direct evidences of Cu{sup 2+} and Cu{sup +} along with O deficiency for prepared nanoparticles. • Room temperature weak ferromagnetic behaviour was demonstrated for Cu/Cu{sub 2}O/CuO nanoparticles. - Abstract: In this article, we explore potential of Exploding Wire Technique (EWT) to synthesize the copper nanoparticles using the copper metal in a plate and wire geometry. Rietveld refinement of X-ray diffraction (XRD) pattern of prepared material indicates presence of mixed phases of copper (Cu) and copper oxide (Cu{sub 2}O). Agglomerates of copper and copper oxide comprised of ∼20 nm average size nanoparticles observed through high resolution transmission electron microscope (HRTEM) and energy dispersive x-ray (EDX) spectroscopy. Micro-Raman (μR) and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopies of prepared nanoparticles reveal existence of additional minority CuO phase, not determined earlier through XRD and TEM analysis. μR investigations vividly reveal cubic Cu{sub 2}O and monoclinic CuO phases based on the difference of space group symmetries. In good agreement with μRaman analysis, FTIR stretching modes corresponding to Cu{sub 2}-O and Cu-O were also distinguished. Investigations of μR and FTIR vibrational modes are in accordance and affirm concurrence of CuO phases besides predominant Cu and Cu{sub 2}O phase. Quantum confinement effects along with increase of band gaps for direct and indirect optical transitions of Cu/Cu{sub 2}O/CuO nanoparticles are reflected through UV–vis (UV–vis) spectroscopy. Photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy spots the electronic levels of each phase and optical transitions processes

Effects of extinction in multiple contexts on renewal of instrumental responses.

Science.gov (United States)

Bernal-Gamboa, Rodolfo; Nieto, Javier; Uengoer, Metin

2017-09-01

In two experiments with rats, we investigated the effects of using multiple contexts during extinction on renewal of lever-pressing behavior. During the first phase of both experiments, rats were reinforced to press a lever for food in Context A. Then, responses underwent extinction. For half of the animals, extinction sessions were conducted in a single context, whereas the other half received extinction in three different contexts. In Experiment 1, we observed that extinction in multiple contexts eliminated ABC renewal, but had no detectable impact on ABA renewal. Experiment 2 revealed that conducting extended extinction training in multiple contexts attenuated ABA renewal. Theoretical and clinical implications of the present findings are discussed. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Dose and elasticity of demand for self-administered cocaine in rats.

Science.gov (United States)

Kearns, David N; Silberberg, Alan

2016-04-01

The present experiment tested whether the elasticity of demand for self-administered cocaine in rats is dose-dependent. Subjects lever pressed for three different doses of intravenous cocaine - 0.11, 0.33, and 1.0 mg/kg/infusion - on a demand procedure where the number of lever presses required per infusion increased within a session. The main finding was that demand for the 0.11 mg/kg dose was more elastic than it was for the two larger doses. There was no difference in demand elasticity between the 0.33 and 1.0 mg/kg doses. These results parallel findings previously reported in monkeys. The present study also demonstrated that a within-session procedure can be used to generate reliable demand curves.

Iron appetite and latent learning in rats.

Science.gov (United States)

Woods, S C; Vasselli, J R; Milam, K M

1977-11-01

Two experiments are reported which show that rats are capable of forming an association between the presence of iron in a solution when it is not specifically needed and a subsequent state of iron deficiency. Specifically, rats were trained to lever press for water while thirsty. One group received ferrous ions in addition to the water. When these rats were subsequently rendered iron deficient, they lever pressed more under extinction conditions as a graded function of lower hemoglobin levels. Controls that either did not receive ferrous ions during training or received solutions other than ferrous solutions during training did not respond this way under extinction conditions. This is therefore a type of latent learning previously demonstrated only for sodium appetite.

WordPress all-in-one for dummies

CERN Document Server

Sabin-Wilson, Lisa

2013-01-01

Top WordPress guide, now fully updated for the latest WordPress release! This updated new edition comprises one of the largest collections of practical intermediate to advanced information on WordPress. Fully updated for the latest WordPress release, this in-depth book covers it all, from setting up your software to publishing your site, using SEO and social media, developing and using plug-ins, running multiple sites with WordPress, and more. Veteran author Lisa Sabin-Wilson is a top authority on WordPress, and she and her co-authors pack this book with essential and easy-to-follo

Working memory capacity and the spacing effect in cued recall.

Science.gov (United States)

Delaney, Peter F; Godbole, Namrata R; Holden, Latasha R; Chang, Yoojin

2018-07-01

Spacing repetitions typically improves memory (the spacing effect). In three cued recall experiments, we explored the relationship between working memory capacity and the spacing effect. People with higher working memory capacity are more accurate on memory tasks that require retrieval relative to people with lower working memory capacity. The experiments used different retention intervals and lags between repetitions, but were otherwise similar. Working memory capacity and spacing of repetitions both improved memory in most of conditions, but they did not interact, suggesting additive effects. The results are consistent with the ACT-R model's predictions, and with a study-phase recognition process underpinning the spacing effect in cued recall.

Press to compress contaminated wastes drums

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Prevost, J.

1993-01-01

This patent describes a press for contaminated wastes drums pressing. The press is made of a structure comprising a base and an upper stringer bind to the base by vertical bearers, a compression system comprising a main cylinder and a ram, connected to the upper stringer

Comparison Of Human Modelling Tools For Efficiency Of Prediction Of EVA Tasks

Science.gov (United States)

Dischinger, H. Charles, Jr.; Loughead, Tomas E.

1998-01-01

Construction of the International Space Station (ISS) will require extensive extravehicular activity (EVA, spacewalks), and estimates of the actual time needed continue to rise. As recently as September, 1996, the amount of time to be spent in EVA was believed to be about 400 hours, excluding spacewalks on the Russian segment. This estimate has recently risen to over 1100 hours, and it could go higher before assembly begins in the summer of 1998. These activities are extremely expensive and hazardous, so any design tools which help assure mission success and improve the efficiency of the astronaut in task completion can pay off in reduced design and EVA costs and increased astronaut safety. The tasks which astronauts can accomplish in EVA are limited by spacesuit mobility. They are therefore relatively simple, from an ergonomic standpoint, requiring gross movements rather than time motor skills. The actual tasks include driving bolts, mating and demating electric and fluid connectors, and actuating levers; the important characteristics to be considered in design improvement include the ability of the astronaut to see and reach the item to be manipulated and the clearance required to accomplish the manipulation. This makes the tasks amenable to simulation in a Computer-Assisted Design (CAD) environment. For EVA, the spacesuited astronaut must have his or her feet attached on a work platform called a foot restraint to obtain a purchase against which work forces may be actuated. An important component of the design is therefore the proper placement of foot restraints.

ISS Expedition 08 Press Kit

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — Press kit for ISS mission Expedition 08 from 10/2003-04/2004. Press kits contain information about each mission overview, crew, mission timeline, benefits, and media...

CH{sub 4} dehydrogenation on Cu(1 1 1), Cu@Cu(1 1 1), Rh@Cu(1 1 1) and RhCu(1 1 1) surfaces: A comparison studies of catalytic activity

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhang, Riguang; Duan, Tian [Key Laboratory of Coal Science and Technology of Ministry of Education and Shanxi Province, Taiyuan University of Technology, Taiyuan 030024, Shanxi (China); Ling, Lixia [Key Laboratory of Coal Science and Technology of Ministry of Education and Shanxi Province, Taiyuan University of Technology, Taiyuan 030024, Shanxi (China); Research Institute of Special Chemicals, Taiyuan University of Technology, Taiyuan 030024, Shanxi (China); Wang, Baojun, E-mail: wangbaojun@tyut.edu.cn [Key Laboratory of Coal Science and Technology of Ministry of Education and Shanxi Province, Taiyuan University of Technology, Taiyuan 030024, Shanxi (China)

2015-06-30

Highlights: • Adsorbed Rh atom on Cu catalyst exhibits better catalytic activity for CH{sub 4} dehydrogenation. • The adsorbed Rh atom is the reaction active center for CH{sub 4} dehydrogenation. • The morphology of Cu substrate has negligible effect on CH{sub 4} dehydrogenation. - Abstract: In the CVD growth of graphene, the reaction barriers of the dehydrogenation for hydrocarbon molecules directly decide the graphene CVD growth temperature. In this study, density functional theory method has been employed to comparatively probe into CH{sub 4} dehydrogenation on four types of Cu(1 1 1) surface, including the flat Cu(1 1 1) surface (labeled as Cu(1 1 1)) and the Cu(1 1 1) surface with one surface Cu atom substituted by one Rh atom (labeled as RhCu(1 1 1)), as well as the Cu(1 1 1) surface with one Cu or Rh adatom (labeled as Cu@Cu(1 1 1) and Rh@Cu(1 1 1), respectively). Our results show that the highest barrier of the whole CH{sub 4} dehydrogenation process is remarkably reduced from 448.7 and 418.4 kJ mol{sup −1} on the flat Cu(1 1 1) and Cu@Cu(1 1 1) surfaces to 258.9 kJ mol{sup −1} on RhCu(1 1 1) surface, and to 180.0 kJ mol{sup −1} on Rh@Cu(1 1 1) surface, indicating that the adsorbed or substituted Rh atom on Cu catalyst can exhibit better catalytic activity for CH{sub 4} complete dehydrogenation; meanwhile, since the differences for the highest barrier between Cu@Cu(1 1 1) and Cu(1 1 1) surfaces are smaller, the catalytic behaviors of Cu@Cu(1 1 1) surface are very close to the flat Cu(1 1 1) surface, suggesting that the morphology of Cu substrate does not obviously affect the dehydrogenation of CH{sub 4}, which accords with the reported experimental observations. As a result, the adsorbed or substituted Rh atom on Cu catalyst exhibit a better catalytic activity for CH{sub 4} dehydrogenation compared to the pure Cu catalyst, especially on Rh-adsorbed Cu catalyst, we can conclude that the potential of synthesizing high-quality graphene with the

Attentional demands of cued walking in healthy young and elderly adults

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Peper, C.E.; Oorthuizen, J.K.; Roerdink, M.

2012-01-01

Acoustic and visual cues are frequently used in gait rehabilitation. Attuning the steps to the cues is attentionally demanding. We examined the attentional demands of walking to two types of cues using a probe reaction time (RT) task. The steps were cued by either metronome beeps or visual stepping

Remotely operated closure device for a pipeline with a fixed pipeline flange. Fernbedient betaetigbare Verschlussvorrichtung fuer eine Rohrleitung mit ortsfestem Rohrleitungsflansch

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Westendorf, H.

1987-01-29

The remotely operated closure is set by suspension centring on the circumference of a blank flange on the fixed pipeline flange to be closed. By operating a central actuating mechanism at the closure, the clamping levers are adjusted so that the blank flange is clamped to the pipeline flange and the two flanges are pressed together. The spring-loaded clamping levers are particularly suitable for actuating the closure with the pliers of a manipulator of a large cell.

Bullying the media : Cultural and climato-economic readings of press repression versus press freedom

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Van de Vliert, E.

Journalists and media assistants in many places are murdered, imprisoned, censored, threatened, and similarly harrassed. Here I document that, and explain why, there are three climato-economic niches of press repression versus press freedom as part of broader syndromes of national culture. A

Estimation of Lifetime Duration for a Lever Pin of Runner Blade Operating Mechanism using a Graphic – analytic Method

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ana-Maria Budai

2015-09-01

Full Text Available In this paper are presented a graphic - analytic method that can be used to estimate the fatigue lifetime duration for an operating mechanism lever pin to a Kaplan turbine. The presented calculus algorithm is adapted from the one used by Fuji Electric to made strength calculus in order to refurbish a Romanian hydropower plant, equipped with a Kaplan turbine. The graphic part includes a 3D fatigue diagram for rotating bending stress designed by Fuji Electric specialists.

Activation of Selected Core Muscles during Pressing

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Thomas W. Nesser

2015-10-01

Full Text Available Introduction: Unstable surface training is often used to activate core musculature during resistance training. Unfortunately, unstable surface training is risky and leads to detraining. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine core muscle activation during stable surface ground-based lifts. Methods: Fourteen recreational trained and former NCAA DI athletes (weight 84.2 ± 13.3 kg; height 176.0 ± 9.5 cm; age 20.9 ± 2.0 years volunteered for participation. Subjects completed two ground-based lifts: overhead press and push-press. Surface EMG was recorded from 4 muscles on the right side of the body (Rectus Abdominus (RA, External Oblique (EO, Transverse Abdominus (TA, and Erector Spinae (ES. Results: Paired sample T-tests identified significant muscle activation differences between the overhead press and the push-press included ES and EO. Average and peak EMG for ES was significantly greater in push-press (P<0.01. Anterior displacement of COP was significantly greater in push-press compared to overhead press during the eccentric phase. Conclusion: The push-press was identified as superior in core muscle activation when compared to the overhead pressing exercise. Keywords: torso, stability, weight lifting, resistance training

D-Cycloserine Facilitates Reversal in an Animal Model of Post-traumatic Stress Disorder.

Science.gov (United States)

George, Sophie A; Rodriguez-Santiago, Mariana; Riley, John; Abelson, James L; Floresco, Stan B; Liberzon, Israel

2018-03-23

Many psychiatric disorders are associated with cognitive dysfunction that is ineffectively treated by existing pharmacotherapies and which may contribute to poor real-world functioning. D-cycloserine (DCS) is a partial N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) agonist that has attracted attention because of its cognitive enhancing properties, including in people with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Here, we examined the effect of DCS on reversal learning - a type of cognitive flexibility - following exposure to single prolonged stress (SPS), a rodent model of PTSD. Male Sprague Dawley rats (n = 64) were trained to press levers in an operant chamber, matched for performance and assigned to SPS or control (unstressed) groups. Following SPS, rats received three additional lever press sessions, followed by a side bias test on day three. One day later they learned a response discrimination rule (press left or right lever, opposite to side bias) and on a subsequent day were trained (and tested) for reversal to the opposite lever. DCS (15 mg/kg) or vehicle was administered 30 minutes prior to the reversal session. No between-group differences were found in acquisition or retrieval of the initial rule, but a significant drug x stress interaction on response discrimination reversal indicated that DCS had a greater beneficial effect on SPS rats' cognitive flexibility than it did on performance in controls. These findings add to a growing literature on the beneficial effects of DCS for treating a wide variety of deficits that develop following exposure to extreme stress and may have implications for the development of novel pharmacotherapies for PTSD. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Cu/Cu2O/CuO nanoparticles: Novel synthesis by exploding wire technique and extensive characterization

Science.gov (United States)

Sahai, Anshuman; Goswami, Navendu; Kaushik, S. D.; Tripathi, Shilpa

2016-12-01

In this article, we explore potential of Exploding Wire Technique (EWT) to synthesize the copper nanoparticles using the copper metal in a plate and wire geometry. Rietveld refinement of X-ray diffraction (XRD) pattern of prepared material indicates presence of mixed phases of copper (Cu) and copper oxide (Cu2O). Agglomerates of copper and copper oxide comprised of ∼20 nm average size nanoparticles observed through high resolution transmission electron microscope (HRTEM) and energy dispersive x-ray (EDX) spectroscopy. Micro-Raman (μR) and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopies of prepared nanoparticles reveal existence of additional minority CuO phase, not determined earlier through XRD and TEM analysis. μR investigations vividly reveal cubic Cu2O and monoclinic CuO phases based on the difference of space group symmetries. In good agreement with μRaman analysis, FTIR stretching modes corresponding to Cu2-O and Cu-O were also distinguished. Investigations of μR and FTIR vibrational modes are in accordance and affirm concurrence of CuO phases besides predominant Cu and Cu2O phase. Quantum confinement effects along with increase of band gaps for direct and indirect optical transitions of Cu/Cu2O/CuO nanoparticles are reflected through UV-vis (UV-vis) spectroscopy. Photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy spots the electronic levels of each phase and optical transitions processes occurring therein. Iterative X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) fitting of core level spectra of Cu (2p3/2) and O (1s), divulges presence of Cu2+ and Cu+ in the lattice with an interesting evidence of O deficiency in the lattice structure and surface adsorption. Magnetic analysis illustrates that the prepared nanomaterial demonstrates ferromagnetic behaviour at room temperature.

Wave energy, lever operated pivoting float LOPF study

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Margheritini, L.

2012-11-01

The fully instrumented Resen Waves Lever Operated Pivoting Float LOPF wave energy buoy model has gone through the first stage of testing in regular waves in scale 1:25 of the North Sea wave conditions, in the 3D deep wave basin at the Hydraulic and Coastal Engineering Laboratory of Aalborg University in Denmark. The model size was 60cm W x 90cm L x 21cm H. The 60 cm width pointed towards the wave front. The LOPF buoy is characterized by a simple mechanical design with few moving parts and direct electrical output and it is taut moored to the sea bed, so all forces are referenced to the seabed for maximum energy output in regular as well as irregular waves. During storms the buoy pivots and streamlines itself to minimize loads on the mooring line. A conservative estimate shows that a full scale system for North Sea conditions has a float size width of 15 m that will, with 60% generator efficiency, produce 610 MWh/y (609.497 kWh/y) with an average power output of 69.6 kW, which requires a generator capacity of 700 kW. It is expected the generator efficiency can be increased to 90% in the future. More specific calculations (from EnergiNet) show that with one generator of 695 kW the expected power production is 585 MWh/y; with a generator of 250 kW and 100 kW, the expected power production is 481 MWh/y and 182 MWh/y respectively. In addition there are several areas for future improvements for increased power production. (Author)

Behavioral Neurophysiology of Ethanol

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Janak, Patricia

2002-01-01

.... Alcohol consumption by humans can be modeled in the rat using operant behavioral procedures in which an arbitrary response, such as a lever press, is reinforced by the presentation of small amounts...

Distinct neural control of intrinsic and extrinsic muscles of the hand during single finger pressing.

Science.gov (United States)

Dupan, Sigrid S G; Stegeman, Dick F; Maas, Huub

2018-06-01

Single finger force tasks lead to unintended activation of the non-instructed fingers, commonly referred to as enslaving. Both neural and mechanical factors have been associated with this absence of finger individuality. This study investigates the amplitude modulation of both intrinsic and extrinsic finger muscles during single finger isometric force tasks. Twelve participants performed single finger flexion presses at 20% of maximum voluntary contraction, while simultaneously the electromyographic activity of several intrinsic and extrinsic muscles associated with all four fingers was recorded using 8 electrode pairs in the hand and two 30-electrode grids on the lower arm. The forces exerted by each of the fingers, in both flexion and extension direction, were recorded with individual force sensors. This study shows distinct activation patterns in intrinsic and extrinsic hand muscles. Intrinsic muscles exhibited individuation, where the agonistic and antagonistic muscles associated with the instructed fingers showed the highest activation. This activation in both agonistic and antagonistic muscles appears to facilitate finger stabilisation during the isometric force task. Extrinsic muscles show an activation independent from instructed finger in both agonistic and antagonistic muscles, which appears to be associated with stabilisation of the wrist, with an additional finger-dependent modulation only present in the agonistic extrinsic muscles. These results indicate distinct muscle patterns in intrinsic and extrinsic hand muscles during single finger isometric force pressing. We conclude that the finger specific activation of intrinsic muscles is not sufficient to fully counteract enslaving caused by the broad activation of the extrinsic muscles. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Preparation and characterization of monel (70% Ni-30% Cu) metallic filters

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Camargo Lavos, I. de.

1993-01-01

This work investigates a process for the fabrication and characterization of monel (Ni-Cu) filters. The powder consolidation was made by vibration or by pressing at various pressures (200, 300 e 400 MPa). The sintering was carried out at 1100 0 C during 1 hour under H 2 atmosphere. The filter characterization was performed by measuring its density, porosity, filtering capacity and permeability. It was obtained a correlation between the processing variables (consolidation and sintering), including powder properties, and the filters characteristics. (author). 59 refs, 41 figs, 7 tabs

Tailoring Graphene Morphology and Orientation on Cu(100), Cu(110), and Cu(111)

Science.gov (United States)

Jacobberger, Robert; Arnold, Michael

2013-03-01

Graphene CVD on Cu is phenomenologically complex, yielding diverse crystal morphologies, such as lobes, dendrites, stars, and hexagons, of various orientations. We present a comprehensive study of the evolution of these morphologies as a function of Cu surface orientation, pressure, H2:CH4, and nucleation density. Growth was studied on ultra-smooth, epitaxial Cu films inside Cu enclosures to minimize factors that normally complicate growth. With low H2:CH4, Mullins-Sekerka instabilities propagate to form dendrites, indicating transport limited growth. In LPCVD, the dendrites extend hundreds of microns in the 100, 111, and 110 directions on Cu(100), (110), and (111) and are perturbed by twin boundaries. In APCVD, multiple preferred dendrite orientations exist. With increasing H2:CH4, the dendritic nature of growth is suppressed. In LPCVD, square, rectangle, and hexagon crystals form on Cu(100), (110) and (111), reflecting the Cu crystallography. In APCVD, the morphology becomes hexagonal on each surface. If given ample time, every growth regime yields high-quality monolayers with D:G Raman ratio rationally tailor the graphene crystal morphology and orientation.

The role of GABAB receptors in morphine self-administration

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Effat Ramshini

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Background: There is only little information about the effects of GABA receptors agonist and antagonist on morphine self-administration. Present study was designed to assess role of GABAB receptors in the regulation of morphine-reinforced self-administration. Methods: This study was performed in four groups of rats: (1 Saline group, which received saline in the self-administration session. (2 Morphine group, which received morphine in saline solution in the self-administration session. (3 Baclofen + Morphine group, which received both baclofen 20 min before self- administration test and morphine in the self-administration session. (4 Phaclofen + Morphine group, which received both phaclofen 20 min before self- administration test and morphine in the self-administration session. The number of lever pressing and self-infusion were recorded. Results: Morphine significantly increased the number of active lever pressing dose dependently in self-administration session in comparative with saline group. Administration of baclofen, 20 min before morphine self-administration produced significant decrease in the initiation of morphine self-administration during all session. Conversely, pre-treatment of phaclofen increased the number of active lever pressing and self-infusion in this test. Conclusion: Our results indicated a short-term treatment by baclofen, reduced morphine-maintenance response in a dose-dependent manner, suggesting that GABAB receptor agonists could be useful for reversing the neuroadaptations related to opiates.

Degree of elaborative processing in two implicit and two explicit memory tasks

OpenAIRE

Pitarque, Alfonso; Algarabel González, Salvador; Meseguer, Enrique

1992-01-01

The level of elaborative processing made by subjects to pairs of words (read vs. generated) and the degree of relationship between the words of each pair (related, rhymed, or rhymed and related) were manipulated on two explicit tasks (cued recall and recognition) and two implicit tasks (word-stem completion and tachistoscopic word identification) to test the empirical validity of the processing-approach theory (see, e.g., Roediger, 1990a, 1990b; Roediger, Srinivas, & Weldon, 1989) of explicit...

Towards Better Computational Models of the Balance Scale Task: A Reply to Shultz and Takane

Science.gov (United States)

van der Maas, Han L. J.; Quinlan, Philip T.; Jansen, Brenda R. J.

2007-01-01

In contrast to Shultz and Takane [Shultz, T.R., & Takane, Y. (2007). Rule following and rule use in the balance-scale task. "Cognition", in press, doi:10.1016/j.cognition.2006.12.004.] we do not accept that the traditional Rule Assessment Method (RAM) of scoring responses on the balance scale task has advantages over latent class analysis (LCA):…

The Effects of Word Frequency and Context Variability in Cued Recall

Science.gov (United States)

Criss, Amy H.; Aue, William R.; Smith, Larissa

2011-01-01

Normative word frequency and context variability affect memory in a range of episodic memory tasks and place constraints on theoretical development. In four experiments, we independently manipulated the word frequency and context variability of the targets (to-be-generated items) and cues in a cued recall paradigm. We found that high frequency…

Cu-62, Cu-64 and Cu-66 production with 4.2 MeV deuterons

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Avila, Mario; Morales, J.R.; Riquelme, H.O.

1996-01-01

Full text: The natural copper irradiation with deuterons produces the Cu-62, Cu-64 and Cu-66 radionuclides. Of two radioisotopes, those with deficiencies in neutrons, are applied in nuclear medicine diagnostic processes, mainly for the nuclear characteristic of the decay modes. The positron emitters, of short life mean Cu-62 (9.1 min, β + ) and Cu(12.7 h), are radionuclides applied in radio pharmacological preparation for brain, core, blood flux studies. The radiochemical process consists in the de solution of the irradiated metallic copper target, in acid medium. The result solution, can be neutralized with a base or a buffer at wished pH. Using a deuteron beam of 4,2 ± 0,1 MeV energy has been obtained total yields of 1,103 ± 0,011 μCl/μAh medium for 62 Cu and of 0,148 ± 0,015 μCl/μAh for 64 Cu

Two layer powder pressing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schreiner, H.

1979-01-01

First, significance and advantages of sintered materials consisting of two layers are pointed out. By means of the two layer powder pressing technique metal powders are formed resulting in compacts with high accuracy of shape and mass. Attributes of basic powders, different filling methods and pressing techniques are discussed. The described technique is supposed to find further applications in the field of two layer compacts in the near future

Procedural justice seen to be done. The judiciary’s press guidelines in the light of publicity and procedural justice

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Lent, Leonie

2014-01-01

The aim of this article is to assess the recent attempts by the Dutch judiciary to gain more public acceptance of its tasks and functioning in criminal justice by enhancing its relationship with the press. The central question to be answered is to what extent the current stance towards the media, as

Remotely operated closure device for a pipeline with a fixed pipeline flange

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Westendorf, H.

1987-01-01

The remotely operated closure is set by suspension centring on the circumference of a blank flange on the fixed pipeline flange to be closed. By operating a central actuating mechanism at the closure, the clamping levers are adjusted so that the blank flange is clamped to the pipeline flange and the two flanges are pressed together. The spring-loaded clamping levers are particularly suitable for actuating the closure with the pliers of a manipulator of a large cell. (DG) [de

Neural correlates of cued recall in young and older adults: an event-related potential study.

Science.gov (United States)

Angel, Lucie; Fay, Séverine; Bouazzaoui, Badiâa; Granjon, Lionel; Isingrini, Michel

2009-01-07

This experiment investigated age differences in electrophysiological correlates of retrieval success in a word-stem cued recall task. Young adults (M+/-SD: 21.4 years+/-1.9) performed this memory task more accurately than older participants (M+/-SD: 65.1 years+/-3.3). Robust event-related brain potential (ERP) old/new effects were identified in both age groups. The main age differences were observed in latency and lateralization of ERP effects. Young adults exhibited a parietal effect that became focused over left parietal electrodes, whereas no asymmetry was observed in older adults. Moreover, ERP effects were more delayed in the older group. Overall, these findings provide some evidence of the reduction of processing speed during aging and suggest that young and older adults may recruit distinct cerebral patterns during episodic cued recall.

Development of bonding techniques for cryogenic components (2). HIP bonding between Cu Alloys and Ti, cryogenic stainless steels

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Saito, Shigeru; Ouchi, Nobuo [Japan Atomic Energy Research Inst., Tokai, Ibaraki (Japan). Tokai Research Establishment; Fukaya, Kiyoshi [Nihon Advanced Technology Ltd., Tokai, Ibaraki (Japan); Ishiyama, Shintaro [Japan Atomic Energy Research Inst., Oarai, Ibaraki (Japan). Oarai Research Establishment; Tsuchiya, Yoshinori; Nakajima, Hideo [Japan Atomic Energy Research Inst., Naka, Ibaraki (Japan). Naka Fusion Research Establishment

2003-03-01

Several joints between dissimilar materials are required in the superconducting (SC) magnet system of SC linear accelerator or fusion reactor, Pure titanium (Ti) is one of candidate materials for a jacket of SC coil of fusion reactor because Ti is non-magnetic material and has a feature that its thermal expansion is similar to SC material in addition to good corrosion resistance and workability. Also, Ti does not require strict control of environment during reaction heat treatment of SC material. Copper (Cu) or Cu-alloy is used in electrical joints and cryogenic stainless steel (SS) is used in cryogenic pipes. Therefore, it is necessary to develop new bonding techniques for joints between Ti, Cu, and SS because jacket, electrical joint and cryogenic pipe have to be bonded each other to cool SC coils. Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute (JAERI) has started to develop dissimilar material joints bonded by hot isostatic pressing (HIP), which can bring a high strength joint with good tolerance and can applied to a large or complex geometry device. HIP conditions for Cu-Ti, Cu alloy-Ti, Cu alloy-SS were investigated in this study and most stable HIP condition were evaluated by microscopic observation, tensile and bending tests at room temperature. (author)

Removal of Cu(II) ions from contaminated waters using a conducting microfiltration membrane.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Xueye; Wang, Zhiwei; Chen, Haiqin; Wu, Zhichao

2017-10-05

Efficient removal of toxic metals using low-pressure membrane processes from contaminated waters is an important but challenging task. In the present work, a conducting microfiltration membrane prepared by embedding a stainless steel mesh in the active layer of a polyvinylidene fluoride membrane is developed to remove Cu(II) ions from contaminated waters. Results showed that the conducting membrane had favorable electrochemical properties and stability as cathode. Batch tests showed that Cu(II) removal efficiency increased with the increase of voltages and leveled off with the further enhancement of electric field. The optimal voltages were determined to be 1.0V and 2.0V for the influent Cu(II) concentrations of 5mg/L and 30mg/L, respectively. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction results demonstrated the presence of Cu(0) and Cu(OH) 2 on the membrane surface. The removal mechanisms involved the intrinsic adsorption of membrane, electrosorption of membrane, adsorption of deposited layer, chemical precipitation of Cu(OH) 2 and deposition of Cu(0) which were aided by electrophoresis and electrochemical oxidation-reduction. Long-term tests showed that the major contributors for Cu(II) removal were the deposition of Cu(0) by electrochemical reduction-oxidation (47.3%±8.5%) and chemical precipitation (41.1%±0.2%), followed by electrosorption, adsorption by the fouling layer and membrane intrinsic sorption. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Memory Asymmetry of Forward and Backward Associations in Recognition Tasks

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Jiongjiong; Zhao, Peng; Zhu, Zijian; Mecklinger, Axel; Fang, Zhiyong; Li, Han

2013-01-01

There is an intensive debate on whether memory for serial order is symmetric. The objective of this study was to explore whether associative asymmetry is modulated by memory task (recognition vs. cued recall). Participants were asked to memorize word triples (Experiments 1-2) or pairs (Experiments 3-6) during the study phase. They then recalled…

Chip compacting press; Jido kirikuzu asshukuki

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Oura, K. [Yuken Kogyo Co. Ltd., Kanagawa (Japan)

1998-08-15

The chips exhausted from various machine tools are massy, occupy much space and make working environment worse by staying added cutting oil to lower part. The chips are exhausted as a result of machining and have not constant quality. Even if used material is same the chips have various shapes and properties by kinds and machining methods of used machine tools, and are troublesome materials from a standpoint of their treatment. Pressing and solidification of the chips have frequently been tried. A chip compacting press introduced in this paper, a relatively cheap chip compacting press aimed for relatively small scale chip treatment, and has such characteristics and effects as follows. Chips are pressed and solidified by each raw material, so fractional management can be easily conducted. As casting metal chips and curled chips of iron and aluminum can be pressed to about 1/3 to 1/5 and about 1/40, respectively, space saving can be conducted. Chip compacting pressing upgrades its transporting efficiency to make possible to reduce its transporting cost. As chip solidification controls its oxidation and most cutting oil are removed, chips are easy to recycle. 2 figs., 1 tab.

WordPress web application development

CERN Document Server

Ratnayake, Rakhitha Nimesh

2013-01-01

An extensive, practical guide that explains how to adapt WordPress features, both conventional and trending, for web applications.This book is intended for WordPress developers and designers who have the desire to go beyond conventional website development to develop quality web applications within a limited time frame and for maximum profit. Experienced web developers who are looking for a framework for rapid application development will also find this to be a useful resource. Prior knowledge with of WordPress is preferable as the main focus will be on explaining methods for adapting WordPres

Professional WordPress Plugin Development

CERN Document Server

Williams, Brad; Tadlock, Justin

2011-01-01

Taking WordPress to the next level with advanced plugin developmentWordPress is used to create self-hosted blogs and sites, and it's fast becoming the most popular content management system (CMS) on the Web. Now you can extend it for personal, corporate and enterprise use with advanced plugins and this professional development guide. Learn how to create plugins using the WordPress plugin API: utilize hooks, store custom settings, craft translation files, secure your plugins, set custom user roles, integrate widgets, work with JavaScript and AJAX, create custom post types. You'll find a practic

Event-Related Potentials in a Cued Go-NoGo Task Associated with Executive Functions in Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder; A Case-Control Study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anne L. Høyland

2017-07-01

Full Text Available Executive functions are often affected in autism spectrum disorders (ASD. The underlying biology is however not well known. In the DSM-5, ASD is characterized by difficulties in two domains: Social Interaction and Repetitive and Restricted Behavior, RRB. Insistence of Sameness is part of RRB and has been reported related to executive functions. We aimed to identify differences between ASD and typically developing (TD adolescents in Event Related Potentials (ERPs associated with response preparation, conflict monitoring and response inhibition using a cued Go-NoGo paradigm. We also studied the effect of age and emotional content of paradigm related to these ERPs. We investigated 49 individuals with ASD and 49 TD aged 12–21 years, split into two groups below (young and above (old 16 years of age. ASD characteristics were quantified by the Social Communication Questionnaire (SCQ and executive functions were assessed with the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function (BRIEF, both parent-rated. Behavioral performance and ERPs were recorded during a cued visual Go-NoGo task which included neutral pictures (VCPT and pictures of emotional faces (ECPT. The amplitudes of ERPs associated with response preparation, conflict monitoring, and response inhibition were analyzed. The ASD group showed markedly higher scores than TD in both SCQ and BRIEF. Behavioral data showed no case-control differences in either the VCPT or ECPT in the whole group. While there were no significant case-control differences in ERPs from the combined VCPT and ECPT in the whole sample, the Contingent Negative Variation (CNV was significantly enhanced in the old ASD group (p = 0.017. When excluding ASD with comorbid ADHD we found a significantly increased N2 NoGo (p = 0.016 and N2-effect (p = 0.023 for the whole group. We found no case-control differences in the P3-components. Our findings suggest increased response preparation in adolescents with ASD older than 16 years and

A comparative study between spiral-filter press and belt press implemented in a cloudy apple juice production process.

Science.gov (United States)

De Paepe, Domien; Coudijzer, Katleen; Noten, Bart; Valkenborg, Dirk; Servaes, Kelly; De Loose, Marc; Diels, Ludo; Voorspoels, Stefan; Van Droogenbroeck, Bart

2015-04-15

In this study, advantages and disadvantages of the innovative, low-oxygen spiral-filter press system were studied in comparison with the belt press, commonly applied in small and medium size enterprises for the production of cloudy apple juice. On the basis of equivalent throughput, a higher juice yield could be achieved with spiral-filter press. Also a more turbid juice with a higher content of suspended solids could be produced. The avoidance of enzymatic browning during juice extraction led to an attractive yellowish juice with an elevated phenolic content. Moreover, it was found that juice produced with spiral-filter press demonstrates a higher retention of phenolic compounds during the downstream processing steps and storage. The results demonstrates the advantage of the use of a spiral-filter press in comparison with belt press in the production of a high quality cloudy apple juice rich in phenolic compounds, without the use of oxidation inhibiting additives. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Cu-ZSM-5, Cu-ZSM-11, and Cu-ZSM-12 Catalysts for Direct NO Decomposition

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kustova, Marina; Kustov, Arkadii; Christiansen, Sofie E.

2006-01-01

Cu-ZSM-5 has for many years been recognized as a unique catalyst for direct NO decomposition. Here, it is discovered that both Cu-ZSM-11 and Cu-ZSM-12 are about twice as active as Cu-ZSM-5. This difference is attributed to the active sites located almost exclusively in the straight zeolite pores...

Determination of Mn, Fe, and Cu in chemically-treated wood pulps by the XRF addition method

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Raemoe, J.; Klasila, T.; Piepponen, S. [VTT Chemical Technology (Finland); Sillanpaeae, M. [Oulu Univ. (Finland)

2001-08-01

A rapid X-ray fluorescence addition method has been developed for quantification of the technically most important metals in wood pulp matrix (Mn, Fe, and Cu). Pretreatment consisted of just two steps: first, acid was added to the sample to achieve homogeneous distribution of the metals; the pulp was then pressed lightly on to Mylar film. Total analysis time was less than 10 min. The concentration range investigated was up to 15 mg kg{sup -1} for Mn and up to 5 mg kg{sup -1} for Fe and Cu. Metal concentrations in Scandinavian pulps are not expected to exceed these amounts. The quantification limit was 2 mg kg{sup -1} for all three metals. The reproducibilities and repeatabilities were concentration-dependent and varied between 3 and 19% and between 1 and 17%, respectively. The squares of the linear correlation coefficients between measured intensity and added metal concentration were 0.994, 0.950, and 0.932 for Mn, Fe, and Cu, respectively. (orig.)

Electromigration in Cu(Al) and Cu(Mn) damascene lines

Science.gov (United States)

Hu, C.-K.; Ohm, J.; Gignac, L. M.; Breslin, C. M.; Mittal, S.; Bonilla, G.; Edelstein, D.; Rosenberg, R.; Choi, S.; An, J. J.; Simon, A. H.; Angyal, M. S.; Clevenger, L.; Maniscalco, J.; Nogami, T.; Penny, C.; Kim, B. Y.

2012-05-01

The effects of impurities, Mn or Al, on interface and grain boundary electromigration (EM) in Cu damascene lines were investigated. The addition of Mn or Al solute caused a reduction in diffusivity at the Cu/dielectric cap interface and the EM activation energies for both Cu-alloys were found to increase by about 0.2 eV as compared to pure Cu. Mn mitigated and Al enhanced Cu grain boundary diffusion; however, no significant mitigation in Cu grain boundary diffusion was observed in low Mn concentration samples. The activation energies for Cu grain boundary diffusion were found to be 0.74 ± 0.05 eV and 0.77 ± 0.05 eV for 1.5 μm wide polycrystalline lines with pure Cu and Cu (0.5 at. % Mn) seeds, respectively. The effective charge number in Cu grain boundaries Z*GB was estimated from drift velocity and was found to be about -0.4. A significant enhancement in EM lifetimes for Cu(Al) or low Mn concentration bamboo-polycrystalline and near-bamboo grain structures was observed but not for polycrystalline-only alloy lines. These results indicated that the existence of bamboo grains in bamboo-polycrystalline lines played a critical role in slowing down the EM-induced void growth rate. The bamboo grains act as Cu diffusion blocking boundaries for grain boundary mass flow, thus generating a mechanical stress-induced back flow counterbalancing the EM force, which is the equality known as the "Blech short length effect."

STEM-based workbook: Enhancing students' STEM competencies on lever system

Science.gov (United States)

Sejati, Binar Kasih; Firman, Harry; Kaniawati, Ida

2017-05-01

Twenty-first century is a century of technology, a rapid development of scientific studies and technology make them relied heavily on each other. This research investigated about the effect of STEM-based workbook in enhancing students' STEM competencies in terms of knowledge understanding, problem solving skill, innovative abilities, and responsibility. The workbook was tried on 24 students that applied engineering design processes together with mathematics and science knowledge to design and create an egg cracker. The result showed that the implementation of STEM-based workbook on lever system in human body is effective to improve students' STEM competencies, it can be proven by students' result on their knowledge understanding improvement which can be seen from normalized gain () score is 0.41 and categorized as medium improvement, students' problem solving skill is also improving where it obtained a medium improvement with normalized gain as much as 0.45. Innovative abilities also encountered an the improvement, the workbook analysis obtained a higher score which means students can be more innovative after finishing their workbook. Last, students' responsibility is keep improving day by day, students' effort gain the highest score it means that the students become more responsible after implementation of STEM-based workbook. All of the results are supported with the response of students towards STEM-based workbook implementation which showed positive response in all indicators.

Development of bonding techniques between W and Cu-alloys for plasma facing components by HIP method (3). Bonding tests with Au-foil insert

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Saito, Shigeru

2002-07-01

In recent years, it has been considered that W (tungsten) is one of candidate materials for armor tiles of plasma a facing components (PFC), like first wall or divertor, of fusion reactor. On the other hand, Cu-alloys, like OFHC-Cu or DS-Cu, are proposed as heat sink materials behind the plasma facing materials because of its high thermal conductivity. It is necessary to develop a reliable bonding techniques in order to fabricate PFC. JAERI has developed the hot isostatic press (HIP) bonding process to bond W with Cu-alloys. In this experiments, bonding tests with Au-foil insert were performed. We could get the best HIP bonding conditions for W and Cu-alloys with Au-foil as 1123K x 2hours x 147MPa. It was shown that the HIP temperature was 150K lower than that of without Au-foil. Furthermore, the tensile strength was similar to that of with without Au-foil. (author)

Physical mechanisms of Cu-Cu wafer bonding

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rebhan, B.

2014-01-01

Modern manufacturing processes of complex integrated semiconductor devices are based on wafer-level manufacturing of components which are subsequently interconnected. When compared with classical monolithic bi-dimensional integrated circuits (2D ICs), the new approach of three-dimensional integrated circuits (3D ICs) exhibits significant benefits in terms of signal propagation delay and power consumption due to the reduced metal interconnection length and allows high integration levels with reduced form factor. Metal thermo-compression bonding is a process suitable for 3D interconnects applications at wafer level, which facilitates the electrical and mechanical connection of two wafers even processed in different technologies, such as complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) and microelectromechanical systems (MEMS). Due to its high electrical conductivity, copper is a very attractive material for electrical interconnects. For Cu-Cu wafer bonding the process requires typically bonding for around 1 h at 400°C and high contact pressure applied during bonding. Temperature reduction below such values is required in order to solve issues regarding (i) throughput in the wafer bonder, (ii) wafer-to-wafer misalignment after bonding and (iii) to minimise thermo-mechanical stresses or device degradation. The aim of this work was to study the physical mechanisms of Cu-Cu bonding and based on this study to further optimise the bonding process for low temperatures. The critical sample parameters (roughness, oxide, crystallinity) were identified using selected analytical techniques and correlated with the characteristics of the bonded Cu-Cu interfaces. Based on the results of this study the impact of several materials and process specifications on the bonding result were theoretically defined and experimentally proven. These fundamental findings subsequently facilitated low temperature (LT) metal thermo-compression Cu-Cu wafer bonding and even room temperature direct

Parametric changes in response equilibrium during an intra-cranial self stimulation (ICSS) task: can reward value be assessed independently of absolute threshold?

Science.gov (United States)

Easterling, K W; Holtzman, S G

1997-01-01

Traditional ICSS methodologies have attempted to evaluate changes in the rewarding value of brain stimulation by assessing the lowest value of the stimulation that will support responding. However, orderly changes in suprathreshold indicants of hedonic magnitude such as titration point have been shown. In the present experiments, rats were trained to respond on two ICSS autotitration schedules in which every response on one lever produced stimulation of the medial forebrain bundle, and every Xth response decreased either the stimulation current or the stimulation frequency. At any time, a response on a second "reset" lever restored the stimulation current or frequency available on the stimulation lever to its starting level and operationally defined changes in "reward value". In order to study this titration point measure, two response requirements (responses/stepdown; step size) and two stimulation parameters (initial stimulation level; train duration) were systematically varied. Under both current and frequency titration schedules, data indicated that response rate and titration point remained stable over repeated trials and multiple testing days--parameters being constant. Across all conditions, compared to the frequency titration schedule, subjects responding under the current titration schedule showed significantly higher titration points and lower rates of responding. Indicating the independence of rate and titration point data, parametric manipulations did not affect titration point and rate data concurrently. Results support the conclusion that titration point is a relative measure of "reward value" that is generally independent of response rate, but that is affected by manipulations that alter the amount of stimulation available between "resets". Additional work is needed in order to determine the relationship between the magnitude of stimulation needed to maintain minimal responding and that needed to maintain response equilibrium in an autotitration task.

Analysis of Skeletal Muscle Metrics as Predictors of Functional Task Performance

Science.gov (United States)

Ryder, Jeffrey W.; Buxton, Roxanne E.; Redd, Elizabeth; Scott-Pandorf, Melissa; Hackney, Kyle J.; Fiedler, James; Ploutz-Snyder, Robert J.; Bloomberg, Jacob J.; Ploutz-Snyder, Lori L.

2010-01-01

PURPOSE: The ability to predict task performance using physiological performance metrics is vital to ensure that astronauts can execute their jobs safely and effectively. This investigation used a weighted suit to evaluate task performance at various ratios of strength, power, and endurance to body weight. METHODS: Twenty subjects completed muscle performance tests and functional tasks representative of those that would be required of astronauts during planetary exploration (see table for specific tests/tasks). Subjects performed functional tasks while wearing a weighted suit with additional loads ranging from 0-120% of initial body weight. Performance metrics were time to completion for all tasks except hatch opening, which consisted of total work. Task performance metrics were plotted against muscle metrics normalized to "body weight" (subject weight + external load; BW) for each trial. Fractional polynomial regression was used to model the relationship between muscle and task performance. CONCLUSION: LPMIF/BW is the best predictor of performance for predominantly lower-body tasks that are ambulatory and of short duration. LPMIF/BW is a very practical predictor of occupational task performance as it is quick and relatively safe to perform. Accordingly, bench press work best predicts hatch-opening work performance.

Synthesis and densification of Cu added Fe-based BMG composite powders by gas atomization and electrical explosion of wire

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, J.C., E-mail: jckimpml@ulsan.ac.k [University of Ulsan, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Ulsan 680-749 (Korea, Republic of); Ryu, H.J.; Kim, J.S. [University of Ulsan, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Ulsan 680-749 (Korea, Republic of); Kim, B.K.; Kim, Y.J. [Department of Powder Materials, Korea Institute of Materials Science, Changwon 641-831 (Korea, Republic of); Kim, H.J. [Advanced Materials Division, Korea Institute of Industrial Technology, Incheon 406-130 (Korea, Republic of)

2009-08-26

In this study, the Fe-based (Fe-C-Si-B-P-Cr-Mo-Al) BMG powders were produced by the high pressure gas atomization process, and they were combined with the ductile Cu powders produced by the electrical explosion of wire (EEW). The Fe-based amorphous powders and Cu added BMG composite powders were compacted by the spark plasma sintering (SPS) processes into cylindrical shape. In the SPS press, the as-prepared powders were sintered at 793 K and 843 K. The relative density increased to 98% when the pressure increased up to 500 MPa by optimum control of the SPS process parameters. The micro-Vickers hardness was over 1100 Hv.

The Effect of Heat Treatments on Alloying of Pre-mixed Al + 4.5 wt. % Cu Powders

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kübra KÖPRÜLÜ

2018-06-01

Full Text Available In this study, 4.5 wt. % Cu powder was added to Al powder and mixed for 45 minutes to produce premixed metal powders. Premixed powders were compacted by cold pressing at 20 MPa. After that these samples were pressed at 500℃ under 200 MPa for 30 minutes by hot pressed method. Hot pressed block samples were subjected to diffusion annealing at 540 ℃ for 2, 4, 8, 16, 32 hours. These samples, produced by powder metallurgy, are used at metallographic and microscopic researches to investigate the diffusion process. During the diffusion annealing, it was determined that significant amount of copper powder particles was dissolved in the Al matrix by diffusion. Diffusion annealing was followed by aging heat treatment, characterized by metallographic and mechanical tests. According to the increasing the annealing time, the homogeneity of the chemical composition is not provided, however the increasing of the heat treatment (T6 capability of the produced parts, and partial porosity which is believed to be due to atomic diffusion, have been observed. Moreover, in the XRD analyses, it was determined that the phases of -Al,  and  were formed in the microstructure.

Carbon Supported Oxide-Rich Pd-Cu Bimetallic Electrocatalysts for Ethanol Electrooxidation in Alkaline Media Enhanced by Cu/CuOx

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zengfeng Guo

2016-04-01

Full Text Available Different proportions of oxide-rich PdCu/C nanoparticle catalysts were prepared by the NaBH4 reduction method, and their compositions were tuned by the molar ratios of the metal precursors. Among them, oxide-rich Pd0.9Cu0.1/C (Pd:Cu = 9:1, metal atomic ratio exhibits the highest electrocatalytic activity for ethanol oxidation reaction (EOR in alkaline media. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS and high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM confirmed the existence of both Cu and CuOx in the as-prepared Pd0.9Cu0.1/C. About 74% of the Cu atoms are in their oxide form (CuO or Cu2O. Besides the synergistic effect of Cu, CuOx existed in the Pd-Cu bimetallic nanoparticles works as a promoter for the EOR. The decreased Pd 3d electron density disclosed by XPS is ascribed to the formation of CuOx and the spill-over of oxygen-containing species from CuOx to Pd. The low Pd 3d electron density will decrease the adsorption of CH3COads intermediates. As a result, the electrocatalytic activity is enhanced. The onset potential of oxide-rich Pd0.9Cu0.1/C is negative shifted 150 mV compared to Pd/C. The oxide-rich Pd0.9Cu0.1/C also exhibited high stability, which indicated that it is a candidate for the anode of direct ethanol fuel cells (DEFCs.

Learning not to respond: Role of the hippocampus in withholding responses during omission training.

Science.gov (United States)

White, Norman M; Naeem, Maliha

2017-02-01

Autoshaping is a Pavlovian learning paradigm in which rats experience pairings of a CS and a US independently of their behavior. When the CS is a lever inserted into the test cage and the US is food delivered to an adjacent magazine, many rats acquire a lever-pressing response called 'sign-tracking' even though that response has no effect on the occurrence of either the CS or the US. Since these lever presses are always followed by the US, it has been suggested that sign-tracking could be due to unintended reinforcement of the response. To eliminate the possibility of such instrumental learning the omission schedule, in which a response to the CS cancels the US, was introduced. Previous research has shown that training rats on autoshaping and switching them to an omission schedule generally reduces but does not eliminate sign-tracking, suggesting that it may be due to both Pavlovian and instrumental learning. In the present study naive rats trained on an omission schedule sign-tracked less than a control group exposed to random, unpaired CS and US presentations, suggesting that they learned to withhold the lever press response because of the negative contingency between that response and the US. In a second experiment rats with dorsal hippocampus lesions sign-tracked more than sham-lesioned rats on omission schedules, suggesting that this case of learning not to respond is hippocampus-based. This conclusion is consistent with many previous findings on the inability of hippocampal rats to withhold or suppress responding, and with studies suggesting that one form of extinction of learned responses in normal rats is due to competition from hippocampus-based learning not to respond. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

ChloroMitoCU: Codon patterns across organelle genomes for functional genomics and evolutionary applications.

Science.gov (United States)

Sablok, Gaurav; Chen, Ting-Wen; Lee, Chi-Ching; Yang, Chi; Gan, Ruei-Chi; Wegrzyn, Jill L; Porta, Nicola L; Nayak, Kinshuk C; Huang, Po-Jung; Varotto, Claudio; Tang, Petrus

2017-06-01

Organelle genomes are widely thought to have arisen from reduction events involving cyanobacterial and archaeal genomes, in the case of chloroplasts, or α-proteobacterial genomes, in the case of mitochondria. Heterogeneity in base composition and codon preference has long been the subject of investigation of topics ranging from phylogenetic distortion to the design of overexpression cassettes for transgenic expression. From the overexpression point of view, it is critical to systematically analyze the codon usage patterns of the organelle genomes. In light of the importance of codon usage patterns in the development of hyper-expression organelle transgenics, we present ChloroMitoCU, the first-ever curated, web-based reference catalog of the codon usage patterns in organelle genomes. ChloroMitoCU contains the pre-compiled codon usage patterns of 328 chloroplast genomes (29,960 CDS) and 3,502 mitochondrial genomes (49,066 CDS), enabling genome-wide exploration and comparative analysis of codon usage patterns across species. ChloroMitoCU allows the phylogenetic comparison of codon usage patterns across organelle genomes, the prediction of codon usage patterns based on user-submitted transcripts or assembled organelle genes, and comparative analysis with the pre-compiled patterns across species of interest. ChloroMitoCU can increase our understanding of the biased patterns of codon usage in organelle genomes across multiple clades. ChloroMitoCU can be accessed at: http://chloromitocu.cgu.edu.tw/. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Kazusa DNA Research Institute.

Highly charged swelling mica reduces Cu bioavailability in Cu-contaminated soils

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Stuckey, Jason W. [Department of Crop and Soil Sciences, Pennsylvania State University, 116 ASI Building, University Park, PA 16802 (United States); Neaman, Alexander [Facultad de Agronomia, P. Universidad Catolica de Valparaiso, Centro Regional de Estudios en Alimentos Saludables (Chile); Ravella, Ramesh; Komarneni, Sridhar [Department of Crop and Soil Sciences, Pennsylvania State University, 116 ASI Building, University Park, PA 16802 (United States); Martinez, Carmen Enid [Department of Crop and Soil Sciences, Pennsylvania State University, 116 ASI Building, University Park, PA 16802 (United States)], E-mail: cem17@psu.edu

2009-01-15

This is the first test of a highly charged swelling mica's (Na-2-mica) ability to reduce the plant-absorbed Cu in Cu-contaminated soils from Chile. Perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) was grown in two acid soils (Sector 2: pH 4.2, total Cu = 172 mg Cu kg{sup -1} and Sector 3: pH 4.2, total Cu = 112 mg Cu kg{sup -1}) amended with 0.5% and 1% (w/w) mica, and 1% (w/w) montmorillonite. At 10 weeks of growth, both mica treatments decreased the shoot Cu of ryegrass grown in Sector 2 producing shoot Cu concentrations above 21-22 mg Cu kg{sup -1} (the phytotoxicity threshold for that species), yet the mica treatments did not reduce shoot Cu concentrations when grown in Sector 3, which were at a typical level. The mica treatments improved shoot growth in Sector 3 by reducing free and extractable Cu to low enough levels where other nutrients could compete for plant absorption and translocation. In addition, the mica treatments improved root growth in both soils, and the 1% mica treatment reduced root Cu in both soils. This swelling mica warrants further testing of its ability to assist re-vegetation and reduce Cu bioavailability in Cu-contaminated surface soils. - In situ remediation of Cu-contaminated soils with a synthetic mica (Na-2-mica) will aid in re-vegetative efforts.

Al-matrix composite materials reinforced by Al-Cu-Fe particles

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bonneville, J; Laplanche, G; Joulain, A; Gauthier-Brunet, V; Dubois, S

2010-01-01

Al-matrix material composites were produced using hot isostatic pressing technique, starting with pure Al and icosahedral (i) Al-Cu-Fe powders. Depending on the processing temperature, the final reinforcement particles are either still of the initial i-phase or transformed into the tetragonal ω-Al0 0.70 Cu 0.20 Fe 0.10 crystalline phase. Compression tests performed in the temperature range 293K - 823K on the two types of composite, i.e. Al/i and Al/ω, indicate that the flow stress of both composites is strongly temperature dependent and exhibit distinct regimes with increasing temperature. Differences exist between the two composites, in particular in yield stress values. In the low temperature regime (T ≤ 570K), the yield stress of the Al/ω composite is nearly 75% higher than that of the Al/i composite, while for T > 570K both composites exhibit similar yield stress values. The results are interpreted in terms of load transfer contribution between the matrix and the reinforcement particles and elementary dislocation mechanisms in the Al matrix.

Punicalagin Green Functionalized Cu/Cu2O/ZnO/CuO Nanocomposite for Potential Electrochemical Transducer and Catalyst

Science.gov (United States)

Fuku, X.; Kaviyarasu, K.; Matinise, N.; Maaza, M.

2016-09-01

A novel ternary Punica granatum L-Cu/Cu2O/CuO/ZnO nanocomposite was successfully synthesised via green route. In this work, we demonstrate that the green synthesis of metal oxides is more viable and facile compare to other methods, i.e., physical and chemical routes while presenting a potential electrode for energy applications. The prepared nanocomposite was characterised by both microscopic and spectroscopic techniques. High-resolution scanning electron microscopy (HRSEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) techniques revealed different transitional phases with an average nanocrystallite size of 29-20 mm. It was observed that the nanocomposites changed from amorphous-slightly crystalline Cu/Cu2O to polycrystalline Cu/Cu2O/CuO/ZnO at different calcination temperatures (room temperature-RT- 600 °C). The Cu/Cu2O/ZnO/CuO metal oxides proved to be highly crystalline and showed irregularly distributed particles with different sizes. Meanwhile, Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy confirmed the purity while together with ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis) spectroscopy proved the proposed mechanism of the synthesised nanocomposite. UV-Vis showed improved catalytic activity of the prepared metal oxides, evident by narrow band gap energy. The redox and electrochemical properties of the prepared nanocomposite were achieved by cyclic voltammetry (CV), electrochemical impedance (EIS) and galvanostatic charge-discharge (GCD). The maximum specific capacitance ( C s) was calculated to be 241 F g-1 at 50 mV s-1 for Cu/Cu2O/CuO/ZnO nanoplatelets structured electrode. Moreover, all the CuO nanostructures reveal better power performance, excellent rate as well as long term cycling stability. Such a study will encourages a new design for a wide spectrum of materials for smart electronic device applications.

Indre spenninger og ytre press

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ibsen, Bjarne

2011-01-01

Anmeldelse af bogen 'Norsk idrett. Indre spenninger og ytre press' redigeret af Dag Vidar Hanstad, Gunnar Breivik, Mari Kristin Sisjord og Hans B. Skaset og udgivet af forlaet akilles.......Anmeldelse af bogen 'Norsk idrett. Indre spenninger og ytre press' redigeret af Dag Vidar Hanstad, Gunnar Breivik, Mari Kristin Sisjord og Hans B. Skaset og udgivet af forlaet akilles....

Parrotfish grazing ability: interspecific differences in relation to jaw-lever mechanics and relative weight of adductor mandibulae on an Okinawan coral reef

OpenAIRE

Nanami, Atsushi

2016-01-01

Parrotfishes (family Labridae: Scarini) are regarded to have important roles for maintaining the ecosystem balance in coral reefs due to their removal of organic matter and calcic substrates by grazing. The purpose of the present study was to clarify the interspecific differences in grazing ability of five parrotfish species (Chlorurus sordidus, C. bowersi, Scarus rivulatus, S. niger and S. forsteni) in relation to interspecific differences in jaw-lever mechanics and the relative weight of th...

Taxing working memory during retrieval of emotional memories does not reduce memory accessibility when cued with reminders

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kevin eVan Schie

2015-02-01

Full Text Available Earlier studies have shown that when individuals recall an emotional memory while simultaneously doing a demanding dual-task (e.g., playing Tetris, mental arithmetic, making eye movements, this reduces self-reported vividness and emotionality of the memory. These effects have been found up to one week later, but have largely been confined to self-report ratings. This study examined whether this dual-tasking intervention reduces memory performance (i.e., accessibility of emotional memories. Undergraduates (N = 60 studied word-image pairs and rated the retrieved image on vividness and emotionality when cued with the word. Then they viewed the cues and recalled the images with or without making eye movements. Finally, they re-rated the images on vividness and emotionality. Additionally, fragments from images from all conditions were presented and participants identified which fragment was paired earlier with which cue. Findings showed no effect of the dual-task manipulation on self-reported ratings and latency responses. Cued recall may not have been sufficient to elicit specific and continuous target retrieval for memory blurring to occur. The study demonstrates boundaries to the effects of the dual-tasking procedure.

Cu-62, Cu-64 and Cu-66 production with 4.2 MeV deuterons; Produccion de {sup 62} Cu y {sup 64} Cu con deuterones de 4,2 MeV

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Avila, Mario; Morales, J R; Riquelme, H O [Chile Univ., Santiago (Chile). Facultad de Ciencias. Dept. de Fisica

1997-12-31

Full text: The natural copper irradiation with deuterons produces the Cu-62, Cu-64 and Cu-66 radionuclides. Of two radioisotopes, those with deficiencies in neutrons, are applied in nuclear medicine diagnostic processes, mainly for the nuclear characteristic of the decay modes. The positron emitters, of short life mean Cu-62 (9.1 min, {beta}{sup +}) and Cu(12.7 h), are radionuclides applied in radio pharmacological preparation for brain, core, blood flux studies. The radiochemical process consists in the de solution of the irradiated metallic copper target, in acid medium. The result solution, can be neutralized with a base or a buffer at wished pH. Using a deuteron beam of 4,2 {+-} 0,1 MeV energy has been obtained total yields of 1,103 {+-} 0,011 {mu}Cl/{mu}Ah medium for 62 Cu and of 0,148 {+-} 0,015 {mu}Cl/{mu}Ah for 64 Cu.

WordPress all-in-one for dummies

CERN Document Server

Sabin-Wilson, Lisa; Palmer, Kevin

2011-01-01

A convenient how-to guide for maximizing your WordPress experience. WordPress is a state-of-the-art blog publishing platform with nearly ten million active installations. Eight minibooks provide you with expanded coverage of the most important topics to the WordPress community, such as WordPress basics, theme designs, plug-in development, social media integration, SEO, customization, and running multiple sites. Veteran author Lisa Sabin-Wilson leads an authoritative team of authors who offer their unique knowledge and skillset while sharing invaluable advice for maximizing your site's potentia

Development of bonding techniques of W and Cu-alloys for plasma facing components of fusion reactor with HIP method

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Saito, S.; Fukaya, K.; Ishiyama, S.; Eto, M.; Sato, K.; Akiba, M.

1998-01-01

W (tungsten) and Cu (copper)-alloys, like oxygen free high thermal conductivity (OFHC)-copper or dispersion strengthened (DS)-copper, are candidate materials for plasma facing components(PFC) of TOKAMAK type fusion reactor as armor tile and heat sink, respectively. However, PFC are exposed to cyclic high heat load and heavy irradiation by 14 MeV neutrons. Under these conditions, thermal stresses at bonding interface and irradiation damage will decrease the bonding strength between W and Cu alloys. Therefore, it is necessary to develop a reliable bonding techniques in order to make PFC with enough integrity. We have applied the hot isostatic press (HIP) method to bond W with Cu-alloys. In this experiments, to optimize HIP bonding conditions, four point bending tests were performed for different bonding conditions at temperatures from R.T. to 873 K and we obtained an optimum HIP bonding condition for W and OFHC-Cu as 1273 SK x 2 hours x 98 ∼ 147 MPa. Tensile tests were also performed at the same temperature range. The tensile strength of the bonded W / Cu was almost equal to that of OFHC Cu which was HIPed at the same conditions. Tensile specimens were broken at the bonding interface or OFHC-Cu side. Bonding tests of W and DS-Cu showed that HIP was not successful because tungsten oxide was produced at the bonding interface and residual stresses were not relaxed. Therefore, it was concluded that some insert materials will be needed to bond W and DS-Cu. (author)

Interface analysis of A1 matrix composites produced by hot isostatic pressing, squeeze casting and semi-solid processing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shamsul, J.B.; Zainal Arifin Ahmad; Faaizulaswad, M.S.; Azmi, R.

2000-01-01

The interface analysis has been carried out an aluminium based composites system produced by hot isostatic pressing, squeeze casting and semi-solid processing. A range of different fabrication techniques has been used to produce different types of microstructure of Al 2124 (Al-Cu-Mg) reinforced with 5 weight % SiC particles. Blending followed by hot isostatic pressing is used to fabricate composite I. Composite II was 6061 (Al-Si-Mg) wrought aluminium alloy reinforced with fibres of alumina-silica (V f = 0.58) and fabricated by squeeze casting. Finally, A356 (AlSi7Mg0.3) alloy was reinforced with 20 Vol.% of SiC particles (13 μm) and namely as composite III. Composite III is fabricated by semi-solid processing. Interface analysis was done by optical microscopy, scanning and transmission electron microscopy. Composite I exhibited good interface bonding and dislocation was also observed near the interface. Elements such as Al, Fe, Cr, Mn were found near the interface of composite II and intermetallic of iron rich inclusion and Mg 2 Si were observed near the interface of composite III. (Author)

Preparation of conductive Cu patterns by directly writing using nano-Cu ink

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Li, Wei [School of Materials Science and Engineering, Tianjin University, Tianjin 300072 (China); Li, Wenjiang; Wei, Jun [School of Materials Science and Engineering, Tianjin University of Technology, Tianjin 300384 (China); Tan, Junjun [School of Chemical and Materials and Engineering, Hubei University of Technology, Hubei 435003 (China); Chen, Minfang, E-mail: mfchentj@126.com [School of Materials Science and Engineering, Tianjin University of Technology, Tianjin 300384 (China)

2014-07-01

Conductive and air-stable Cu patterns were directly made on ordinary photo paper using a roller pen filled with nano-Cu ink, which was mainly composed of metallic Cu nanoparticles (NPs) capped with poly(N-vinylpyrrolidone) (PVP). The nano-Cu NPs were obtained via the reduction of Cu{sup 2+} ions by using an excess of hydrazine and PVP. The low sintering temperature (160 °C) in Ar atmosphere played an important role for the preparation of air-stable Cu patterns. The conductivity of a radio-frequency identification antenna made from nano-Cu ink was tested by a lamp, and its resistivity achieved 13.4 ± 0.4 μΩ cm. The Cu NPs were confirmed by means of X-ray powder diffraction and X-ray photoelectron spectra, and the Cu patterns were characterized by scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray spectrometry. A mechanism for the high conductivity of the Cu pattern made from Cu NPs is proposed. - Highlights: • The synthesis of pure Cu is related to the reducing agent and capping agent. • The sintering under Ar atmosphere prevents Cu pattern's rapid oxidation. • The formation of the bulk Cu decreases the resistivity of the Cu pattern.

Cu/Cu{sub 2}O/CuO loaded on the carbon layer derived from novel precursors with amazing catalytic performance

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhao, Xiaoli, E-mail: zhaoxiaoli_zxl@126.com [State Key Laboratory of Environmental Criteria and Risk Assessment, Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences, Beijing 100012 (China); Tan, Yixin [State Key Laboratory of Environmental Criteria and Risk Assessment, Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences, Beijing 100012 (China); State Key Laboratory of Environmental Chemistry and Ecotoxicology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100085 (China); Wu, Fengchang, E-mail: wu_fengchang@126.com [State Key Laboratory of Environmental Criteria and Risk Assessment, Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences, Beijing 100012 (China); Niu, Hongyun [State Key Laboratory of Environmental Chemistry and Ecotoxicology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100085 (China); Tang, Zhi [State Key Laboratory of Environmental Criteria and Risk Assessment, Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences, Beijing 100012 (China); Cai, Yaqi [State Key Laboratory of Environmental Chemistry and Ecotoxicology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100085 (China); Giesy, John P. [State Key Laboratory of Environmental Criteria and Risk Assessment, Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences, Beijing 100012 (China); Department of Veterinary Biomedical Sciences and Toxicology Centre, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan (Canada)

2016-11-15

A simple, novel method for synthesis of Cu/Cu{sub 2}O/CuO on surfaces of carbon (Cu/Cu{sub 2}O/CuO@C) as a non-noble-metal catalyst for reduction of organic compounds is presented. Compared with noble metals, Cu/Cu{sub 2}O/CuO@C particles are more efficient and less expensive. Characterization of the Cu/Cu{sub 2}O/CuO@C composites by high-resolution transmission electron microscope (HRTEM), x-ray diffraction (XRD), infrared spectroscopy and Raman analysis, revealed that it was composed of graphitized carbon with numerous nanoparticles (100 nm in diameter) of Cu/CuO/Cu{sub 2}O that were uniformly distributed on internal and external surfaces of the carbon support. Gallic acid (GA) has been used as both organic ligand and carbon precursor with metal organic frameworks (MOFs) as the sacrificial template and metal oxide precursor in this green synthesis. The material combined the advantages of MOFs and Cu-containing materials, the porous structure provided a large contact area and channels for the pollutions, which results in more rapid catalytic degradation of pollutants and leads to greater efficiency of catalysis. The material gave excellent catalytic performance for organic dyes and phenols. In this study, Cu/Cu{sub 2}O/CuO@C was used as catalytic to reduce 4-NP, which has been usually adopted as a model reaction to check the catalytic ability. Catalytic experiment results show that 4-NP was degraded approximately 3 min by use of 0.04 mg of catalyst and the conversion of pollutants can reach more than 99%. The catalyst exhibited little change in efficacy after being utilized five times. Rates of degradation of dyes, such as Methylene blue (MB) and Rhodamine B (RhB) and phenolic compounds such as O-Nitrophenol (O-NP) and 2-Nitroaniline (2-NA) were all similar. - Highlights: • We present an effective catalyst for reductive degradation of organic dyes and phenols in water. • Compared with noble metals, Cu/Cu{sub 2}O/CuO@C particles are more efficient and less

Hand movement deviations in a visual search task with cross modal cuing

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hürol Aslan

2007-01-01

Full Text Available The purpose of this study is to demonstrate the cross-modal effects of an auditory organization on a visual search task and to investigate the influence of the level of detail in instructions describing or hinting at the associations between auditory stimuli and the possible locations of a visual target. In addition to measuring the participants’ reaction times, we paid special attention to tracking the hand movements toward the target. According to the results, the auditory stimuli unassociated with the target locations slightly –but significantly- increased the deviation of the hand movement from the path leading to the target location. The increase in the deviation depended on the degree of association between auditory stimuli and target locations, albeit not on the level of detail in the instructions about the task.

Validation of the Face-Name Pairs Task in Major Depression: Impaired recall but not recognition.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kimberley J Smith

2014-02-01

Full Text Available Major depression can be associated with neurocognitive deficits which are believed in part to be related to medial temporal lobe pathology. The purpose of this study was to investigate this impairment using a hippocampal-dependent neuropsychological task. The Face-Name pairs task was used to assess associative memory functioning in 19 patients with major depression. When compared to age-sex-and-education matched controls, patients with depression showed impaired learning, delayed cued-recall and delayed free-recall. However, they also showed preserved recognition of the verbal and nonverbal components of this task. Results indicate that the face-name pairs task is sensitive to neurocognitive deficits in major depression.

Analysis of barriers and levers to the implementation of strategies of adaptation to climate changes - 2014-2015. The case of urban communities. Final report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Simonet, Guillaume; Leseur, Alexia

2015-12-01

This is the final report of a research project (ABSTRACT-colurba) which aimed at exploring decision mechanisms and organisational dynamics underlying the elaboration of strategies of adaptation to climate changes by using results of a field study among ten previously selected French local communities. The objectives were to determine priority local social and economic challenges associated with expected impacts of climate changes, to identify economic, organisational and cognitive barriers and levers (at the State, representative or collectivity level) to an optimal implementation of measures of reduction of local vulnerabilities to climate changes, to identify possible or already used diagnosis tools for the assessment of costs and of priority investments, and to make comparisons with other referenced cases and to assess possibilities to bypass barriers thanks to a dialogue with stakeholders. After a presentation of the project (objectives, institutional context, guides and methodologies, scientific approach for data acquisition and analysis), the report presents and discusses the obtained results regarding the place given to adaptation in local policies (PCET, the French local climate-energy plans), representations of adaptation, the inclusion of adaptation in the agenda of public climatic action, tools to make adaptation operational, barriers and levers to action implementation

Rats do not respond differently in the presence of stimuli signaling wheel-running reinforcers of different durations.

Science.gov (United States)

Belke, Terry W

2007-05-01

Rats were exposed to a fixed interval 30 s schedule that produced opportunities to run of equal or unequal durations to assess the effect of differences in duration on responding. Each duration was signaled by a different stimulus. Wheel-running reinforcer duration pairs were 30 s 30 s, 50 s 10 s, and 55 s 5 s. An analysis of median postreinforcement pause duration and mean local lever-pressing rates broken down by previous reinforcer duration and duration of signaled upcoming reinforcer showed that postreinforcement pause duration was affected by the duration of the previous reinforcer but not by the stimulus signaling the duration of the upcoming reinforcer. Local lever-pressing rates were not affected by either previous or upcoming reinforcer duration. In general, the results are consistent with indifference between these durations obtained using a concurrent choice procedure.

Pellet presses for remote fuel fabrication

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Densley, P.J.

1978-01-01

Two types of mechanical presses are being tested from the remote operation and remote maintenance aspects. Results will be used to recommend the type of press and design considerations required for operation in a remotely operated and maintained process line

Task relevance modulates the cortical representation of feature conjunctions in the target template.

Science.gov (United States)

Reeder, Reshanne R; Hanke, Michael; Pollmann, Stefan

2017-07-03

Little is known about the cortical regions involved in representing task-related content in preparation for visual task performance. Here we used representational similarity analysis (RSA) to investigate the BOLD response pattern similarity between task relevant and task irrelevant feature dimensions during conjunction viewing and target template maintenance prior to visual search. Subjects were cued to search for a spatial frequency (SF) or orientation of a Gabor grating and we measured BOLD signal during cue and delay periods before the onset of a search display. RSA of delay period activity revealed that widespread regions in frontal, posterior parietal, and occipitotemporal cortices showed general representational differences between task relevant and task irrelevant dimensions (e.g., orientation vs. SF). In contrast, RSA of cue period activity revealed sensory-related representational differences between cue images (regardless of task) at the occipital pole and additionally in the frontal pole. Our data show that task and sensory information are represented differently during viewing and during target template maintenance, and that task relevance modulates the representation of visual information across the cortex.

Fully dense anisotropic nanocomposite Sm(Co,Fe,Zr,Cu,B)z (z=7.5-12) magnets

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Huang, M.Q.; Turgut, Z.; Wheeler, B.; Lee, D.; Liu, S.; Ma, B.M.; Peng, Y.G.; Chu, S.Y.; Laughlin, D.E.; Horwath, J.C.; Fingers, R.T.

2005-01-01

Fully dense anisotropic nanocomposite Sm(Co 0.58 Fe 0.31 Zr 0.05 Cu 0.04 B 0.02 ) z (z=7.5-12) magnets have been synthesized via rapid hot pressing and hot deformation processes. The highest (BH) max ∼10.6 MGOe was observed for a magnet with z=10. X-ray diffraction and M-H measurements indicated that the easy magnetization direction of magnets prefers to be in the hot pressing direction. Transmission electron microscopy investigation confirmed that plastic deformation is an important route for forming magnetic anisotropy in the Sm-Co-type nanocomposite magnets. Some stripe and/or platelike patterns have been observed inside the nanograins (50-200 nm), which may present as twins, and stacking faults. The (0001) twins have been observed in the 2:17R phase

Support for an auto-associative model of spoken cued recall: evidence from fMRI.

Science.gov (United States)

de Zubicaray, Greig; McMahon, Katie; Eastburn, Mathew; Pringle, Alan J; Lorenz, Lina; Humphreys, Michael S

2007-03-02

Cued recall and item recognition are considered the standard episodic memory retrieval tasks. However, only the neural correlates of the latter have been studied in detail with fMRI. Using an event-related fMRI experimental design that permits spoken responses, we tested hypotheses from an auto-associative model of cued recall and item recognition [Chappell, M., & Humphreys, M. S. (1994). An auto-associative neural network for sparse representations: Analysis and application to models of recognition and cued recall. Psychological Review, 101, 103-128]. In brief, the model assumes that cues elicit a network of phonological short term memory (STM) and semantic long term memory (LTM) representations distributed throughout the neocortex as patterns of sparse activations. This information is transferred to the hippocampus which converges upon the item closest to a stored pattern and outputs a response. Word pairs were learned from a study list, with one member of the pair serving as the cue at test. Unstudied words were also intermingled at test in order to provide an analogue of yes/no recognition tasks. Compared to incorrectly rejected studied items (misses) and correctly rejected (CR) unstudied items, correctly recalled items (hits) elicited increased responses in the left hippocampus and neocortical regions including the left inferior prefrontal cortex (LIPC), left mid lateral temporal cortex and inferior parietal cortex, consistent with predictions from the model. This network was very similar to that observed in yes/no recognition studies, supporting proposals that cued recall and item recognition involve common rather than separate mechanisms.

A study of pressureless microwave sintering, microwave-assisted hot press sintering and conventional hot pressing on properties of aluminium/alumina nanocomposite

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Abedinzadeh, Reza; Safavi, Seyed Mohsen; Karimzadeh, Fathallah [Isfahan University, Isfahan (Iran, Islamic Republic of)

2016-05-15

Bulk Al/4wt-%Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} nanocomposites were prepared by consolidating nanocomposite powders using pressureless microwave sintering, microwave-assisted hot press sintering and conventional hot pressing techniques. Microstructural observations revealed that the microwave-assisted hot press sintering at different sintering temperatures of 400.deg.C and 500.deg.C resulted in more densification and smaller grain size for Al/Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} nanocomposite as compared with the conventional hot pressing. Moreover, the application of pressure in microwave sintering process led to more densification and grain growth. Mechanical properties resulting from microhardness and nanoindentation tests were also compared between three-method processed samples. It was found that the microwave-assisted hot-pressed sample exhibited higher hardness and elastic modulus in comparison with microwave-sintered and conventional hot-pressed samples. The improvement in the mechanical properties can be ascribed to lower porosity of microwave-assisted hot-pressed sample.

Stability of Cu-Precipitates in Al-Cu Alloys

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Torsten E. M. Staab

2018-06-01

Full Text Available We present first principle calculations on formation and binding energies for Cu and Zn as solute atoms forming small clusters up to nine atoms in Al-Cu and Al-Zn alloys. We employ a density-functional approach implemented using projector-augmented waves and plane wave expansions. We find that some structures, in which Cu atoms are closely packed on {100}-planes, turn out to be extraordinary stable. We compare the results with existing numerical or experimental data when possible. We find that Cu atoms precipitating in the form of two-dimensional platelets on {100}-planes in the fcc aluminum are more stable than three-dimensional structures consisting of the same number of Cu-atoms. The preference turns out to be opposite for Zn in Al. Both observations are in agreement with experimental observations.

Effects of pressing temperature and initial microstructure on the equal channel angular pressing of Ti-6Al-4V alloy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ko, Y.G.; Lee, Y.H.; Jung, W.S.; Shin, D.H.; Lee, C.S.

2003-01-01

The effects of pressing temperature and initial microstructure on the equal channel angular (ECA) pressing of Ti-6Al-4V alloy were investigated in this study. The ECA pressing was carried out isothermally with route C at 500 C, 600 C and 700 C for two typical microstructures, i.e., the Widmanstaetten microstructure and the equiaxed microstructure. The results showed that ECA pressing at 600 C and 700 C was successful without producing any noticeable segment at the specimen surfaces, while a large amount of surface segments were produced at 500 C. After 1 pass pressing at 600 C, the equiaxed microstructure showed more uniform material flow at the surface than the Widmanstaetten microstructure. However, this microstructural influence was diminished with increase of the number of the ECA pressing. A flow-localization parameter that quantifies the flow non-uniform tendency in case of flow softening materials was used to explain the different results in each microstructure. (orig.)

The influence of the mechanical treatment on the properties of the superconductors Bi-Sr-Ca-Cu-O

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Smrckova, O.; Sykorova, D.; Novakova, K.

1995-01-01

The aim of the present paper was to verify the influence of consolidation of the micro-structure of the samples on electrical properties (T c , J c ) of the superconductors with the composition Bi 3.2 Pb 0. 8Sr 4 Ca 5 Cu 7 O x . The samples which were pressed up to 1.1 GPa and annealed the critical flow current density was increased triple in comparison with original samples

Perturbations in different forms of cost/benefit decision making induced by repeated amphetamine exposure.

Science.gov (United States)

Floresco, Stan B; Whelan, Jennifer M

2009-08-01

Psychostimulant abuse has been linked to impairments in cost-benefit decision making. We assessed the effects of repeated amphetamine (AMPH) treatment in rodents on two distinct forms of decision making. Separate groups of rats were trained for 26 days on either a probabilistic (risk) or effort-discounting task, each consisting of four discrete blocks of ten choice trials. One lever always delivered a smaller reward (one or two pellets), whereas another lever delivered a four-pellet reward. For risk-discounting, the probability of receiving the larger reward decreased across trial blocks (100-12.5%), whereas on the effort task, four pellets could be obtained after a ratio of presses that increased across blocks (2-20). After training, rats received 15 saline or AMPH injections (escalating from 1 to 5 mg/kg) and were then retested during acute and long-term withdrawal. Repeated AMPH administration increased risky choice 2-3 weeks after drug exposure, whereas these treatments did not alter effort-based decision making in a separate group of animals. However, prior AMPH exposure sensitized the effects of acute AMPH on both forms of decision making, whereby lower doses were effective at inducing "risky" and "lazy" patterns of choice. Repeated AMPH exposure leads to relatively long-lasting increases in risky choice, as well as sensitization to the effects of acute AMPH on different forms of cost/benefit decision making. These findings suggest that maladaptive decision-making processes exhibited by psychostimulant abusers may be caused in part by repeated drug exposure.

The Formation Mechanism of Cu(In0.7Ga0.3Se2 Nanoparticles and the Densification Trajectory of the Se-Rich Quaternary Target by Hot Pressing

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Qiang Ma

2018-03-01

Full Text Available In this paper, a method to obtain the CuInGaSe2 (CIGS absorber layer with an appropriate selenium content is put forward, in which a Se-rich target is used to deposit a CIGS thin-film and this film is annealed in a Se-free inert atmosphere. The key issue of this method is the preparation of a Se-rich target with a homogeneous composition and a high-density. The formation mechanism of CuInSe2 and CuGaSe2 is investigated and the results point to the intermediate phase Cu2−xSe playing a role of a nucleation core. The sintering densification trajectory of the target with the addition of extra selenium is researched. Additionally, an effective way to avoid the sintering defects is proposed. Finally, a conversion efficiency of 11.2% for the CIGS solar cell is reached by sputtering from the obtained Se-rich target.

Idealized Compression Ratio for a Screw Briquetting Press

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Peter Biath

2012-01-01

Full Text Available This paper deals with issues in determining the ideal compression ratio for a screw briquetting press. First, the principles of operation and a basic description of the main parts of a screw briquetting press are introduced. The next section describes the pressing space by means of 3D software. The pressing space was created using a Boolean subtract function. The final section of the paper measures the partial volumes of the pressing chamber in CATIA V5 by function of measuring. The measured values are substituted into the formula for the compression ratio, and the resulting evaluations are presented in the diagram in the conclusion of this paper.

Volatile organic compound emissions during hot-pressing of southern pine particleboard : panel size effects and trade-off between press time and temperature

Science.gov (United States)

Wenlong Wang; Douglas J. Gardner; Melissa G.D. Baumann

2002-01-01

In previous research, it was shown that decreasing either press temperature or press time generally resulted in decreased volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions during the hot-pressing of southern pine particleboard. However, because it is impossible to reduce both pressing time and temperature while maintaining panel physical and mechanical properties, this study...

Method for Single-Cell Mass and Electrophoretic Mobility Measurement

Science.gov (United States)

2010-02-01

Gain - Electrcal a) -- Fluidic Computer 4- DAQ 4 Pneumatic Press. Press. , Reg. Reg- Optical Piezo Lever Xtal Analyte Buffer Waste b) Analyte -* T...and suspended microchannel each as linear resistors with a constant resistivity whose resistance is proportional to cross-sectional area and inversely...electric field of 585 V/cm. 4.3 Device Actuation The amplitude of the drive voltage applied to the piezo crystal determines the oscillation amplitude of the

Influence of Cu content on the cell biocompatibility of Ti–Cu sintered alloys

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhang, Erlin, E-mail: zhangel@atm.neu.edu.cn [Key Lab. for Anisotropy and Texture of Materials, Education Ministry of China, Northeastern University, Shenyang 110819 (China); Jiamusi University, Jiamusi 154007 (China); Zheng, Lanlan [Jiamusi University, Jiamusi 154007 (China); Liu, Jie [Key Lab. for Anisotropy and Texture of Materials, Education Ministry of China, Northeastern University, Shenyang 110819 (China); Dept. of Prosthodontics, The Affiliated Hospital of Medical College, Qingdao University, Qingdao 266003 (China); Bai, Bing [Dept. of Prosthodontics, School of Stomatology, China Medical University, Liaoning Institute of Dental Research, Shenyang 110001 (China); Liu, Cong [Jiamusi University, Jiamusi 154007 (China)

2015-01-01

The cell toxicity and the cell function of Ti–Cu sintered alloys with different Cu contents (2, 5, 10 and 25 wt.%, respectively) have been investigated in comparison with commercial pure titanium in order to assess the influence of Cu content on the cell biocompatibility of the Ti–Cu alloys. The cytotoxicity was studied by examining the MG63 cell response by CCK8 assessment. The cell morphology was evaluated by acridine orange/ethidium bromide (AO/EB) fluorescence and observed under scanning electronic microscopy (SEM). The cell function was monitored by measuring the AKP activity. It has been shown by the AO/EB morphology results that the cell death on both cp-Ti sample and Ti–Cu samples is due to apoptosis rather than necrosis. Although more apoptotic cells were found on the Ti–2Cu and Ti–5Cu samples, no evidence of Cu content dependent manner of apoptosis has been found. SEM observation indicated very good cell adhesion and spread on the cp-Ti sample and the Ti–Cu samples with different Cu contents. CCK8 results displayed that increase in the Cu content in Ti–Cu alloys does not bring about any difference in the cell viability. In addition, AKP test results indicated that no difference in the differentiation of MG63 was found between the cp-Ti and the Ti–Cu samples and among the Ti–Cu samples. All results indicated that Ti–Cu alloys exhibit very good cell biocompatibility and the Cu content up to 25 wt.% in the Ti–Cu alloys has no influence on the cell proliferation and differentiation. - Highlights: • The effect of Cu content on the cell biocompatibility has been investigated. • Cu content shows no influence on the cell proliferation. • Cu content shows no effect on the cell differentiation.

Influence of Cu content on the cell biocompatibility of Ti–Cu sintered alloys

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang, Erlin; Zheng, Lanlan; Liu, Jie; Bai, Bing; Liu, Cong

2015-01-01

The cell toxicity and the cell function of Ti–Cu sintered alloys with different Cu contents (2, 5, 10 and 25 wt.%, respectively) have been investigated in comparison with commercial pure titanium in order to assess the influence of Cu content on the cell biocompatibility of the Ti–Cu alloys. The cytotoxicity was studied by examining the MG63 cell response by CCK8 assessment. The cell morphology was evaluated by acridine orange/ethidium bromide (AO/EB) fluorescence and observed under scanning electronic microscopy (SEM). The cell function was monitored by measuring the AKP activity. It has been shown by the AO/EB morphology results that the cell death on both cp-Ti sample and Ti–Cu samples is due to apoptosis rather than necrosis. Although more apoptotic cells were found on the Ti–2Cu and Ti–5Cu samples, no evidence of Cu content dependent manner of apoptosis has been found. SEM observation indicated very good cell adhesion and spread on the cp-Ti sample and the Ti–Cu samples with different Cu contents. CCK8 results displayed that increase in the Cu content in Ti–Cu alloys does not bring about any difference in the cell viability. In addition, AKP test results indicated that no difference in the differentiation of MG63 was found between the cp-Ti and the Ti–Cu samples and among the Ti–Cu samples. All results indicated that Ti–Cu alloys exhibit very good cell biocompatibility and the Cu content up to 25 wt.% in the Ti–Cu alloys has no influence on the cell proliferation and differentiation. - Highlights: • The effect of Cu content on the cell biocompatibility has been investigated. • Cu content shows no influence on the cell proliferation. • Cu content shows no effect on the cell differentiation

Renal Cu and Na excretion and hepatic Cu metabolism in both Cu acclimated and non acclimated rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Grosell, M.; Hogstrand, C.; Wood, C.M.

1998-01-01

protein depending on whether the Cu is derived from recent branchial uptake or is already present in the plasma prior to Cu-64 exposure. The plasma Cu pool derived from recent branchial uptake and the Cu pool present in the plasma prior to Cu-64 exposure is accessible to renal excretion to different...... Na+ efflux decreased by 40%, which was largely due to increased tubular Na+ reabsorption. Renal compensation for the impaired branchial Na+ uptake, seen during Cu exposure, thus seems to be involved in Cu acclimation in rainbow trout. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science B.V....

Unidirectional interference in use of nondominant hand during concurrent Grooved Pegboard and random number generation tasks.

Science.gov (United States)

Strenge, Hans; Niederberger, Uwe

2008-06-01

The interference effect between Grooved Pegboard task with either hand and the executive task of cued verbal random number generation was investigated. 24 normal right-handed subjects performed each task under separate (single-task) and concurrent (dual-task) conditions. Articulatory suppression was required as an additional secondary task during pegboard performance. Analysis indicated an unambiguous distinction between the two hands. Comparisons of single-task and dual-task conditions showed an asymmetrical pattern of unidirectional interference with no practice effects during pegboard performance. Concurrent performance with nondominant hand but not the dominant hand of random number generation performance became continuously slower. There was no effect of divided attention on pegboard performance. Findings support the idea that the nondominant hand on the pegboard and random number tasks draw from the same processing resources but that for the executive aspect random number generation is more sensitive to changes in allocation of attentional resources.

Developmental changes in children's abilities to share and allocate attention in a dual task.

Science.gov (United States)

Irwin-Chase, H; Burns, B

2000-09-01

Characterizing developmental changes in children's dual-task performance has been problematic because differences in divided attention abilities are easily confounded with differences in overall capacity. Two experiments showed that after individual differences in children's capacity for single-task performance were controlled for, age differences between second- (M = 8.1 years) and fifth-grade (M = 11.1 years) children did not exist in dual-task performance when tasks were of equal priority. However, when tasks had different priorities, only fifth-grade children could differentially allocate attention in the dual task. Results are discussed within the coordination hypothesis framework (see A. F. Kramer & J. L. Larish, 1996), which suggests that changes in dual-task performance with aging are due to changes in the ability to coordinate and control the allocation of attention. It is argued that linking the investigations of children's attention with research on attention and aging provides both methodological and theoretical benefits. Copyright 2000 Academic Press.

Compression Properties and Electrical Conductivity of In-Situ 20 vol.% Nano-Sized TiCx/Cu Composites with Different Particle Size and Morphology.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Dongdong; Bai, Fang; Sun, Liping; Wang, Yong; Wang, Jinguo

2017-05-04

The compression properties and electrical conductivity of in-situ 20 vol.% nano-sized TiC x /Cu composites fabricated via combustion synthesis and hot press in Cu-Ti-CNTs system at various particles size and morphology were investigated. Cubic-TiC x /Cu composite had higher ultimate compression strength (σ UCS ), yield strength (σ 0.2 ), and electric conductivity, compared with those of spherical-TiC x /Cu composite. The σ UCS , σ 0.2 , and electrical conductivity of cubic-TiC x /Cu composite increased by 4.37%, 20.7%, and 17.8% compared with those of spherical-TiC x /Cu composite (526 MPa, 183 MPa, and 55.6% International Annealed Copper Standard, IACS). Spherical-TiC x /Cu composite with average particle size of ~94 nm exhibited higher ultimate compression strength, yield strength, and electrical conductivity compared with those of spherical-TiC x /Cu composite with 46 nm in size. The σ UCS , σ 0.2 , and electrical conductivity of spherical-TiC x /Cu composite with average size of ~94 nm in size increased by 17.8%, 33.9%, and 62.5% compared with those of spherical-TiC x /Cu composite (417 MPa, 121 MPa, and 40.3% IACS) with particle size of 49 nm, respectively. Cubic-shaped TiC x particles with sharp corners and edges led to stress/strain localization, which enhanced the compression strength of the composites. The agglomeration of spherical-TiC x particles with small size led to the compression strength reduction of the composites.

Cu-Zr-Ag bulk metallic glasses based on Cu8Zr5 icosahedron

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Xia Junhai; Qiang Jianbing; Wang Yingmin; Wang Qing; Dong Chuang

2007-01-01

Based on the cluster line criterion, the Ag addition into the Cu 8 Zr 5 cluster composition is investigated for the search of ternary Cu-Zr-Ag bulk metallic glasses with high glass forming abilities. Two initial binary compositions Cu 0.618 Zr 0.382 and Cu 0.64 Zr 0.36 are selected. The former one corresponds to a deep eutectic point; it is also the composition of the Cu 8 Zr 5 icosahedron, which is derived from the Cu 8 Zr 3 structure. The latter one, which can be regarded as the Cu 8 Zr 5 cluster plus a glue atom Cu, is the best glass-forming composition in the Cu-Zr binary system. Two composition lines (Cu 0.618 Zr 0.382 ) 1-x Ag x and (Cu 0.64 Zr 0.36 ) 1-x Ag x are thus constructed in the Cu-Zr-Ag system by linking these two compositions with the third constitute Ag. A series of Cu-Zr-Ag bulk metallic glasses are found with 2-8 at.% Ag contents in both composition lines. The optimum composition (Cu 0.618 Zr 0.382 ) 0.92 Ag 0.08 within the searched region with the highest T g /T l = 0.633, is located along the cluster line (Cu 0.618 Zr 0.382 ) 1-x Ag x , where the deep eutectic Cu 0.618 Zr 0.382 exactly corresponds to the dense packing cluster Cu 8 Zr 5 . The alloying mechanism is discussed in the light of atomic size and electron concentration factors