Faking behavior and gender differences on a new personality research instrument.

Faking behavior was studied by comparing the personality profiles of 161 job applicants (motivated to be hired) with those of a control group of 73 graduate and undergraduate business students (motivated to obtain personal information for their own enlightenment). 44% of the Ss were female. Both groups were instructed to describe themselves honestly while completing the Self-Perception Test. Applicants did "fake good," scoring significantly higher on 10 of 11 scales; variance was significantly lower among applicants on 7 scales. Gender differences, consistent with cultural stereotypes, occurred on 5 scales. Overall profile shapes were virtually identical for student and applicant groups, suggesting that faking may not have dramatically altered the essence of the personality constructs. The scales of the test were found to have high reliability. Scale independence is discussed in relation to the 5-factor model of personality. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Peroxide crosslinking of rigid poly(vinyl chloride)

Peroxide crosslinking of unplasticized poly(vinyl chloride) with trimethylolpropane trimethacrylate was investigated. Formulations used in this work contained a nontoxic lead‐free stabilizer and showed good color and heat stability. The samples were examined by differential scanning calorimetry, and their tensile properties were measured at room temperature and at 130°C. Gel content or tetrahydrofuran‐insoluble material was measured as an indication of crosslinking. It was shown that premature crosslinking could be avoided during processing and that 190°C was the optimum processing temperature for maximum gel content. The residual unsaturation was monitored by using FTIR spectroscopy. J. VINYL ADDIT. TECHNOL., 2008. © 2008 Society of Plastics Engineers     

Esthetic decision‐making: How do people select colours for real settings?

A feature of the empirical literature in colour psychology is that little attention has been given to how people in real settings engage in colour selection. Surprisingly, with rare exceptions, we know almost nothing about this. Besides its theoretical significance within psychology, this question has practical implications for industries where colour choice is important. A study is reported into that most ubiquitous of activities, selecting a paint colour for the home. This used a retrospective method supported by qualitative data analysis (NVivo) in which participants described their process of colour selection. The results indicate a process that is far from uniform, but one that consists of two essential stages. The first involves arriving at what we refer to as an affective specification of the qualities sought. Once constructed, this leads to the second stage of matching colour attributes to that specification. Selecting a wall colour emerges as a surprisingly complex process, and one that corresponds more closely to a search than to a simple affective choice. A parallel is drawn with decision research, particularly the field of naturalistic decision‐making. From participants' reports, colour selection also emerges as a process that women appear to understand better than men. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Col Res Appl, 33, 55–60, 2008     

Isolation of porcine circovirus-like viruses from pigs with a wasting disease in the USA and Europe

Sinus pericranii is an anomalous extracranial vascular malformation that is in continuity with the intracranial dural venous sinuses. Five case reports, three congenital and two traumatic, are described. Clinical management, including evaluation, diagnosis, and treatment, is discussed. Awareness of this entity by plastic surgeons will allow for earlier diagnosis and appropriate surgical management, resulting in decreased risk of complications.     

Polymer aqueous solutions as quenching media. II. Ethylene oxide–propylene oxide copolymers

The cooling power of aqueous solutions of ethylene oxide-propylene oxide copolymers are studied with a silver standard sample by using two apparatuses quench with injection and quench with agitation. For temperature T>400°C, the viscosity plays the predominant role; for T<400°C, the cooling is controlled by the polymer precipitation and the cooling rate decreases by lowering the cloud point of the polymer solution. This work demonstrates the possibility of adjusting the cooling curves by taking into account the thermodynamical properties of the polymer.     

Retroactive excitation: Posttraining social experience with siblings consolidates maternal imprinting in ducklings (Anas platyrhynchos).

Previous studies have revealed that if mallard ducklings are given social experience with broodmates after their initial exposure to a stuffed mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) hen, they later show a visual preference for the familiar mallard over an unfamiliar redhead (Aythya americana) model. Birds kept in isolation do not make this difficult discrimination. We examined when the social experience with siblings must occur in order to contribute to maternal imprinting. We allowed 24-hr-old domestic mallard ducklings to follow a stuffed mallard hen for 30 min (training). This experience resulted in a preference for the familiar mallard over the unfamiliar redhead hen in a simultaneous choice test 48 hrs after hatching only if the birds were allowed social experience with broodmates after the training trial (i.e., from 24 to 48 hrs). Thus the visual features of the mallard hen that are necessary in order to distinguish it from the redhead hen become consolidated only after more than 1 hr into the posttraining social rearing; we term this process retroactive excitation. These results provide evidence of a nonobvious experiential contribution that conspecifics make to the development of species-typical social behavior. They also suggest that some learning and memorial processes may operate rather differently in adults and immature animals. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

In situ localization and chromosomal mapping of the AG1 (Dmp1) gene

Dentinogenesis is being used as a model for understanding the biomineralization process. The odontoblasts synthesize a structural matrix comprised of Type I collagen fibrils which define the basic architecture of the tissue. The odontoblasts also synthesize and deliver a number of dentin-specific acidic macromolecules into the extracellular compartment. These acidic macromolecules may be involved in regulating the ordered deposition of hydroxyapatite crystals within the matrix. AG1 is the first tooth-specific acidic macromolecule to have been cloned and sequenced. To identify which cells of the rat incisor pulp/odontoblast complex were responsible for synthesis of AG1, in situ hybridization was used. Digoxigenin labeled sense and anti-sense AG1 riboprobes were prepared. The AG1 mRNA was found to be expressed in the mature secretory odontoblasts. Neither pulp cells nor pre-odontoblasts showed any staining with the anti-sense probes. Chromosomal localization studies placed the AG1 gene on mouse chromosome 5q21, in tight linkage with Fgf5. AG1 has been renamed Dmp1 (dentin matrix protein 1) in accordance with present chromosomal nomenclature. Mouse 5q21 corresponds to the 4q21 locus in humans. This is the locus for the human tooth mineralization disorder dentinogenesis imperfecta Type II (DI-II). These data suggest that the Dmp1 gene is involved in mineralization and is a candidate gene for DI-II.