Reach and posture hand preferences during arboreal feeding in sifakas (Propithecus sp.): A test of the postural origins theory of behavioral lateralization.

Sixteen sifakas (11 Propithecus verreauxi coquereli, 2 Propithecus verreauxi verreauxi form majori, and 3 Propithecus tattersalli) were videotaped as they fed on leaves in an arboreal context. The hand used to feed and the hand used to maintain postural stability was coded. For each subject, the lateral bias of the hand used to feed was opposite the hand used in postural support. Seven sifakas displayed no bias for feeding or posture-related hand use, 7 sifakas displayed significant feeding-related reach preferences for pulling branches to the mouth (5 left- and 2 right-hand preferences), and 9 sifakas exhibited significant hand preferences for postural support (2 left-, 7 right-hand preferent). Although these data do not strongly support the postural origins theory of behavioral lateralization, the modal preference pattern for sifakas that displayed significant hand preferences for posture and feeding involve a left bias for feeding and a right bias for postural support. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Formation of subwavelength grating on molybdenum mirrors using a femtosecond Ti:sapphire laser system operating at 10 Hz

We report formation of subwavelength surface grating over large surface area of molybdenum mirror by multiple irradiation of amplified femtosecond laser pulses from a homemade Ti:sapphire oscillator-amplifier laser system in a raster scan configuration. The laser system delivered 2 mJ, 80 fs duration laser pulses at a pulse repetition rate of 10 Hz. Various parameters such as pulse fluence, number of pulses, laser polarization, scan speed, and scan steps were optimized to obtain uniform subwavelength gratings. Energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy measurements were conducted to analyze the elemental composition of mirror surfaces before and after laser treatment.     

Extending the information delivery manual approach to identify information requirements for performance analysis of HVAC systems

Heating, Ventilation and Air-Conditioning (HVAC) systems account for more than 15% of the total energy consumption in the US. In order to improve the energy efficiency of HVAC systems, researchers have developed hundreds of algorithms to automatically analyze their performance. However, the complex information, such as configurations of HVAC systems, layouts and materials of building elements and dynamic data from the control systems, required by these algorithms inhibits the process of deploying them in real-world facilities. To address this challenge, we envision a framework that automatically integrates the required information items and provides them to the performance analysis algorithms for HVAC systems. This paper presents an approach to identify and document the information requirements from the publications that describe these algorithms. We extend the Information Delivery Manual (IDM) approach so that the identified information requirements can be mapped to multiple information sources that use various formats and schemas. This paper presents the extensions to the IDM approach and the results of using it to identify information requirements for performance analysis algorithms of HVAC systems.     

Pregnancy outcomes are not improved by administering gonadotropin-releasing hormone at initiation of a 5-day CIDR-Cosynch resynchronization protocol for lactating dairy cows

Using a 5-d controlled internal drug-release (CIDR)-Cosynch resynchronization protocol, the objective of this study was to determine the effect of the initial GnRH injection on pregnancy per artificial insemination (P/AI) to the second artificial insemination in lactating Holstein dairy cows. On 37 ± 3 d (mean ± standard deviation) after the first artificial insemination, and upon nonpregnancy diagnosis (d 0 of the experiment), lactating cows eligible for a second artificial insemination (n = 429) were enrolled in a 5-d CIDR-Cosynch protocol. On d 0, all cows received a CIDR insert and were assigned randomly to receive the initial GnRH injection (GnRH; n = 226) of the protocol or no-GnRH (n = 203). Blood samples were collected from a sub-group of cows (n = 184) on d 0 and analyzed for progesterone (P4) concentration. On d 5, CIDR inserts were removed, and all cows received 1 injection of PGF_2α. On d 6 and 7, cows were observed once daily by employees for tail-chalk removal, and cows detected in estrus on d 6 or 7 received artificial insemination that day (EDAI), and did not receive the final GnRH injection. The remaining cows not detected in estrus by d 8 received GnRH and timed artificial insemination (TAI). Pregnancy status was confirmed by transrectal palpation of uterine contents at 37 ± 3 d (mean ± standard deviation) after the second artificial insemination. Eliminating the initial GnRH injection had no effect on P/AI compared with cows receiving GnRH (27 vs. 21%), respectively. Similarly, method of insemination (EDAI vs. TAI) and its interaction with treatment had no effect on P/AI. Primiparous cows had greater P/AI than multiparous cows (31 vs. 21%). Mean P4 concentrations (n = 184) at the initiation of the protocol did not differ between treatments (4.51 ± 0.35 ng/mL no-GnRH vs. 3.96 ± 0.34 ng/mL of GnRH). When P4 concentrations were categorized as high (≥1 ng/mL) or low (<1 ng/mL), P/AI tended to be greater for high P4 concentrations (n = 136) compared with low (n = 48) P4 concentrations (26 vs. 16%, respectively). No differences were observed in the proportion of cows with high or low P4 between treatments. Collectively, these results provide evidence that eliminating the initial GnRH in a 5-d CIDR-Cosynch resynchronization protocol for lactating dairy cows did not reduce P/AI in this study.     

Electrokinetic flow in connected channels: a comparison of two circuit models

We apply the recently developed ‘ion current model’ (ICM) to investigate mixed pressure-driven/electro-osmotic flow in electrokinetic series circuits. Under the ICM, the local geometric mean ion concentration varies throughout a microfluidic circuit as a consequence of ion conservation. ICM predictions are used to assess the accuracy of the earlier ‘total current model’ (TCM), which is instead based upon the simplifying assumption that the geometric mean ion concentration is uniform in all channels within a circuit. The model comparison is performed over an experimentally relevant range of physical parameters and channel dimensions. When the ratio of total current to flow rate is small, or when the inlet concentration is very low or very high, the ICM and TCM give similar predictions of the total pressure and potential differences across simple three-channel contraction–expansion networks. Otherwise, the errors introduced using the TCM may be very large. Our results demonstrate that the common assumption that the electrolyte concentration throughout a device is equal to the concentration of fluid supplied to the device is not always valid, even if there is little or no electric double layer overlap.     

Investigation of the mechanical and thermal fatigue properties of hybrid sol–gel coatings applied to AA2024 substrates

This research article reports on the response of various hybrid sol–gel materials when applied as coatings to pre-treated bare AA2024 substrates, to mechanical indentation and cyclic thermal stimuli, in order to determine their usefulness in aeronautical applications. Three groups of hybrid sol–gel-coated samples were prepared using various organosilanes and transition metal oxides. The characterization of the materials revealed that the presence of the organic functionalities, especially the methacrylate group, has a noticeable effect on the mechanical response of the hybrid coatings, in particular their flexibility. The presence of methacrylate group in the cured material gives it ability to flex which influenced the thermal fatigue characteristics of the coatings which are able to withstand the cyclic temperature regimes of 82 ± 3 to ?37 ± 3°C over 25 2 h cycles. This capability to maintain substrate protection is reflected in the corrosion resistance of the coatings as measured using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and accelerated exposure testing. This result is important, as it shows that hybrid sol–gel materials can be used in applications where protecting a metal or ally substrate is paramount, especially in thermally volatile environments.     

Sub-1 V band-gap based and MOS threshold-voltage based voltage references in 0.13 µm CMOS

Portable and implantable device applications require low supply voltage reference circuits due to increasing trend for lower power requirements. Voltage references have been proposed for operation below 1 V for CMOS and a comprehensive analysis of the behavior of the different topologies is needed for ultra-low power designs, in order to select the right circuit topology for a given requirement. This work compares two major classes of voltage reference topologies: threshold voltage (V_T0)-based and (V_G0) bandgap voltage-based reference circuits. Four different topologies of voltage-reference designs with 1-V supply were designed and fabricated in 130 nm CMOS process. Monte Carlo analysis shows the variability of the references and of their temperature coefficients (TC), and the results are compared to measured samples. Simulations and measurements show that the threshold voltage-based references are more susceptible to the variations in the CMOS fabrication process.