The impact of watching television on evening melatonin levels

Self‐luminous electronic devices emit optical radiation at short wavelengths, close to the peak sensitivity of melatonin suppression. The present paper investigated if light from a 178‐cm (70 in.) television suppressed melatonin. Results showed that light from televisions does not impact melatonin levels in the evening.     

<Emphasis Type="Italic">A Midsummer Night’s Dream</Emphasis> (with flying robots)

Seven flying robot “fairies” joined human actors in the Texas A&;M production of William Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. The production was a collaboration between the departments of Computer Science and Engineering, Electrical and Computer Engineering, and Theater Arts. The collaboration was motivated by two assertions. First, that the performing arts have principles for creating believable agents that will transfer to robots. Second, the theater is a natural testbed for evaluating the response of untrained human groups (both actors and the audience) to robots interacting with humans in shared spaces, i.e., were believable agents created? The production used two types of unmanned aerial vehicles, an AirRobot 100-b quadrotor platform about the size of a large pizza pan, and six E-flite Blade MCX palm-sized toy helicopters. The robots were used as alter egos for fairies in the play; the robots did not replace any actors, instead they were paired with them. The insertion of robots into the production was not widely advertised so the audience was the typical theatergoing demographic, not one consisting of people solely interested technology. The use of radio-controlled unmanned aerial vehicles provides insights into what types of autonomy are needed to create appropriate affective interactions with untrained human groups. The observations from the four weeks of practice and eight performances contribute (1) a taxonomy and methods for creating affect exchanges between robots and untrained human groups, (2) the importance of improvisation within robot theater, (3) insights into how untrained human groups form expectations about robots, and (4) awareness of the importance of safety and reliability as a design constraint for public engagement with robot platforms. The taxonomy captures that apparent affect can be created without explicit affective behaviors by the robot, but requires talented actors to convey the situation or express reactions. The audience’s response to robot crashes was a function of whether they had the opportunity to observe how the actors reacted to robot crashes on stage, suggesting that pre-existing expectations must be taken into account in the design of autonomy. Furthermore, it appears that the public expect robots to be more reliable (an expectation of consumer product hardening) and safe (an expectation from product liability) than the current capabilities and this may be a major challenge or even legal barrier for introducing robots into shared public spaces. These contributions are expected to inform design strategies for increasing public engagement with robot platforms through affect, and shows the value of arts-based approaches to public encounters with robots both for generating design strategies and for evaluation.     

Higher-Order Adaptive Finite Difference Methods for Fully Nonlinear Elliptic Equations

We introduce generalised finite difference methods for solving fully nonlinear elliptic partial differential equations. Methods are based on piecewise Cartesian meshes augmented by additional points along the boundary. This allows for adaptive meshes and complicated geometries, while still ensuring consistency, monotonicity, and convergence. We describe an algorithm for efficiently computing the non-traditional finite difference stencils. We also present a strategy for computing formally higher-order convergent methods. Computational examples demonstrate the efficiency, accuracy, and flexibility of the methods.     

Effectiveness of cationically modified cellulose polymers for dewatering algae

A method to flocculate algal cultures of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii using four different industrially produced polymers is presented. Starting with a 1 wt% stock polymer solution, flocculation times less than 60 min were observed for 0.1 to 0.6 g polymer per L of algae culture, while control samples took greater than 1400 min to flocculate. Cell counts showed that 99% of the cells were flocculated using the polymers compared to 73% for the control. Finally, the flocculation process was successful at both 5 and 40 mL batch sizes for one polymer; therefore, the method is efficient, effective and may be scalable.     

Birth cohort differences in self-esteem, 1988–2008: A cross-temporal meta-analysis.

Three meta-analyses find increases over the generations in Rosenberg Self-Esteem scale (RSE) scores between 1988 and 2008 among American middle school (d = 0.78, n = 10,119), high school (d = 0.39, n = 16,669), and college students (d = 0.30, n = 28,918). The changes are consistent with an increasing emphasis on self-worth in American culture and, for high school students, with small increases in academic competence over time. College students' scores change only when the RSE is administered with a 4-point Likert scale with no midpoint. By 2008, a score of 40 (perfect self-esteem) was the modal response of college students, chosen by 18% of participants; 51% scored 35 or over. Given these shifts in responses, the possibility of revising the RSE is discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Molecular characterization of Listeria monocytogenes isolated from a poultry further processing facility and from fully cooked product

This study was undertaken to explore environmental sources of Listeria monocytogenes in a commercial chicken further processing facility and to compare the isolates obtained from this facility with others obtained from fully cooked product. In a survey conducted at the processing facility, 40 environmental sites (encompassing two production lines and representing areas in which raw and cooked products are processed) were cultured for L. monocytogenes. The resulting isolates were subjected to molecular subtyping by ribotyping, and these isolates were compared with 25 isolates collected by plant personnel from product contact surfaces and from fully cooked product. Eighty-nine environmental and product isolates were divided into 15 distinct ribogroups. Two ribogroups included isolates from fully cooked product; the members of these two ribogroups were subjected to further analysis by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis, resulting in four clusters. L. monocytogenes isolates from fully cooked product produced on line 1 were found to be indistinguishable from isolates collected from (i) drains on the raw-product side of line 1 and (ii) the floor surface in the cooked-product area of line 1. L. monocytogenes isolates from fully cooked product from line 2 were found to be indistinguishable from isolates collected from (i) the spiral freezer exit conveyor on line 2, (ii) raw product contact surfaces on line 1, and (iii) drains in the cooked-product area of line 1. These data suggest that L. monocytogenes can colonize a poultry further processing facility and eventually be transferred to fully cooked product.     

Survey of shell egg processing plant sanitation programs: effects on non-egg-contact surfaces

To successfully implement a hazard analysis critical control point plan, prerequisite programs are essential. Sanitation standard operating procedures are an important part of such a plan and can reduce contamination levels so that food safety and quality are not adversely affected. Noncontact surfaces in the shell egg processing plants can serve as a reservoir of cross-contamination. The objective of this study was to assess the efficacy of sanitation programs used in a variety of shell egg processing facilities (in-line, off-line, and mixed operations). Fourteen different noncontact surfaces were sampled in nine commercial facilities across the southeastern United States. Non-egg-contact surfaces were defined as those where the shell egg does not come into direct contact with the surface or with the fluid from that surface. Gauze pads soaked in sterile phosphate-buffered saline were used for sampling at the end of a processing day (POST) and again the next morning prior to operations (PRE). Aerobic plate counts (APCs) and numbers of Enterobacteriaceae were determined. No significant differences (P > 0.05) were found between POST and PRE counts for either population recovered from the 14 sampling sites. Only samples from the floor under the farm belts, nest-run loader, washers, and packer heads were reduced by 1 log CFU/ml of rinsate for APCs or Enterobacteriaceae counts. APCs of more than 10(4) CFU/ml of rinsate were recovered from many samples. Highest APCs were found on the floor under the farm belt and on shelves of the nest-run carts. High APCs were found on the wheel surface for off-line carts and on the loading dock floor. Highest Enterobacteriaceae counts were found in samples from the floor, drain, and nest-run egg cart shelves. A lack of significant difference between POST and PRE counts indicates that current sanitation programs could be improved. These data suggest that traffic patterns for the movement of eggs and materials through the plant should be reevaluated so that cross-contamination is reduced.     

“Okay,My Rant is Over”: The Language of Emotion in Computer-Mediated Communication

Even when instructors take steps to mitigate conflict between students, online discussions are likely to be more emotional than face-to-face discussions, and student posts frequently bear characteristics of ranting. This paper uses a model from the field of psycholinguistics to identify linguistic features that writers use to communicate emotion in CMC to substitute for the nonverbal emotional cues that speakers and listeners rely on in face-to-face conversation. Our analysis of the online forum for a course called Presidential Election Rhetoric illustrates not only that students use linguistic features to express emotion but also that they transmit emotion to one another through the use of these features. Additionally, we suggest that students’ unfamiliarity expressing emotion subtly and accurately using linguistic features contributes to the quality of ranting in CMC. Finally, we recommend specific strategies to help students further hone their skills at expressing and perceiving emotion in CMC.     

Predicting student attitudes about racial diversity and gender equity.

[Correction Notice: An erratum for this article was reported in Vol 4(3) of Journal of Diversity in Higher Education (see record 2011-16523-001). There are two errors in Table 2 under the RWA heading and the Cog-gender heading. The necessary changes are provided in the erratum.] [Correction Notice: An erratum for this article was reported in Journal of Diversity in Higher Education on August 1 2011 (see record 2011-16523-001). There are two errors in Table 2. Under the RWA heading, the SDO row should have indicated a positive correlation of .266**, not -.266**. Under the Cog-gender heading, the SDO row should have indicated a negative correlation of -.438**, not .438**.] Factors related to attitudes about racial diversity and gender equity were examined in an ethnically diverse sample of 432 college students (167 European Americans, 83 African Americans, 81 Asian Americans, and 82 Hispanic Americans). In addition to variables of self-interest (i.e., ethnicity, gender, and political views), social ideology (i.e., social dominance orientation, right-wing authoritarianism) and personality traits (openness to experience) were uniquely predictive of attitudes about racial diversity and gender equity. Hierarchical regressions revealed that social dominance orientation most strongly predicted racial attitudes, while right-wing authoritarianism most strongly predicted gender attitudes. Implications for diversity education efforts related to prejudice reduction are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)