Crime specialization, seriousness progression, and Markov chains.

Sequences of violent and nonviolent offenses by 300 male offenders (mean age 26.47 yrs) were subjected to log-linear analyses of the stabilities and magnitudes of their transition probabilities (TPs). Results show that all patterns resembled a Markov process wherein the TPs were stable. The relative magnitude of these TPs indicated that there was specialization in nonviolent offenses and little tendency toward consistently violent behavior. Seriousness progression from nonviolent to violent misconduct was infrequent; however, there was substantial retrogression from violent to nonviolent offenses. (11 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Faculty consultation: A study in support of education through student interaction.

Evaluated K. Kitchener and J. Hurst's (See PA, Vol 52:Issue 4) education through student interaction discussion program from 110 students' evaluations and performance on classroom tests in an undergraduate psychology class. 10 discussion groups were formed with 5 experimental conditions: (a) student facilitator, with the education through student interaction training workshop; (b) student facilitator without the education through student interaction training workshop; (c) without the student facilitator, with the education through student interaction training workshop; (d) without the student facilitator without the education through student interaction training workshop, with the education through student interaction manual; (e) without the student facilitator, without the training workshop, and without the education through student interaction manual. Results support the use of the program with a student facilitator and/or a training workshop and indicate that having students discuss course content without structure, student facilitator, or training was inadequate. Implications for counseling psychologists in the role of consultants to faculty are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Long-term effects of divorce on parent–child relationships.

100 introductory psychology students from families that had experienced divorce 7 or more years previously and 141 introductory psychology students from continuously intact families completed a series of self-report questionnaires assessing their perceptions of their relationship with their parents. Findings indicate that although there was considerable variation from person to person, Ss from divorced families perceived their relationships with their parents, and particularly their fathers, less positively than those from intact families. It was also found that these potentially negative consequences of divorce were attenuated by Ss' recall of a healthy predivorce family life, by a more successful adjustment on the part of the child before the divorce, and by a higher quality relationship between the ex-spouses after the divorce. Results support the notion that active involvement on the part of the father and added stresses placed on the mother after the divorce are the critical determinants of the perceived quality of the current parent–child relationships. (31 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

14C dating of small archaeological samples: neolithic to iron age in the central alpine region

Accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) radiocarbon ¹⁴C dating will widen enormously the range and scope of archaeological investigations. This is due mainly to 100- to 1000-fold sample size reduction over conventional dating. In order to determine the size and the quality of samples that can be accepted for AMS ¹⁴C dating, we have selected archaeological samples relating to the Neolithic to Iron Age. The basis of our AMS target preparations is the coking (pyrolysis) of organic matter after elimination of impurities by various physical and chemical treatments. The effect of the morphology as well as of the grain size distribution of the charcoal particles was determined in order to achieve optimal conditions for accelerator dating.     

Signal validation techniques and power plant applications

Computerized signal validation is a software technique for integrating information from redundant and from functionally diverse sensors to provide highly reliable information to operating crews and to auto matic controllers. High reliability results from greater and more comprehensive use of existing sensor redundancy, and from inherent fault detection and isolation (FDI) of faulty sensors.

Operating crews at power plants have always performed some measure of manual signal validation. With the current thrust to introduce digital computers to support plant monitoring and operator aid functions# signal validation has become generally recognized as a key element in the interface between plant sensors and algorithms using sensor data. For any computerized system to be robust and to yield a false alarm rate that is credibly low, high information reliability must be assured at the front end.

Progress of research in computerized signal validation techniques has benefited the U.S. utilities by improving the reliability of safety parameter display systems (SPDS) implemented in the nuclear power plants. Conventional signal validation techniques have been combined with more robust parity space and analytic redundancy methods to provide reliable and real-time SPDS monitoring information to PWR and BWR operators. The technical details of the methods, application to PWR and BWR SPDS, and the extension of the techniques to plant control functions are reviewed in this paper.     

Can you social engineer your way into your network?

At larger customer sites, I am frequently asked to see if I can get into a computer facility or asked to gain access to corporate assets. One of the more successful manners in which to do this is via social engineering.     

Identification and characterization of m4 selective muscarinic antagonists

Our interest in the area of m4 muscarinic antagonists had led us to study a series of benzoxazine isoquinolines. One of the most potent and selective compounds of this series is example 1 with an IC50 value of 90.7 nM at m4 receptors, and 72-fold (m1), 38-fold (m2), 10-fold (m3), and 82-fold (m5) more selective compared to the other receptors. The synthesis and receptor binding affinity of analogs of 1 are reported.     

Cognitive activity and suggestions for analgesia in the reduction of reported pain.

Assessed 38 undergraduates' pain magnitude and pain tolerance for arm immersion in ice water during a baseline and posttest session. Before the posttest, half the Ss received an analgesia suggestion. On the basis of their written testimony, Ss were classified as having either predominately coped (e.g., imagined event inconsistent with pain or made positive self-statements) or predominantly exaggerated (e.g., worried about and exaggerated the noxious aspects of the situation) during each immersion. On both immersions, copers reported less pain and exhibited higher pain tolerance than exaggerators. Moreover, the suggestion was associated with reductions in reported pain only when it transformed baseline exaggerators into posttest copers. (28 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)