Two Kinds of Creativity – But Which Ones?

It is argued that Kirton's theory of styles of creativity is conceptually and methodologically unsound. A solution to the conceptual and methodological dilemmas is offered by way of making a clear‐cut distinction between novelty on the stimulus and novelty on the response side. This distinction is used as a platform for the development of a new taxonomy of different kinds of creativity and intelligent behaviour. A major feature of this new model is the distinction made between proactive and reactive creativity. The implications of this distinction for opening new avenues for a more differentiated assessment of creativity, as well as for the development of a conceptually firmer and more differentiated platform for developing new practical training programmes in creativity are suggested.     

Critical Role for the Protons in FRTL-5 Thyroid Cells: Nuclear Sphingomyelinase Induced-Damage

Proliferating thyroid cells are more sensitive to UV-C radiations than quiescent cells. The effect is mediated by nuclear phosphatidylcholine and sphingomyelin metabolism. It was demonstrated that proton beams arrest cell growth and stimulate apoptosis but until now there have been no indications in the literature about their possible mechanism of action. Here we studied the effect of protons on FRTL-5 cells in culture. We showed that proton beams stimulate slightly nuclear neutral sphingomyelinase activity and inhibit nuclear sphingomyelin-synthase activity in quiescent cells whereas stimulate strongly nuclear neutral sphingomyelinase activity and do not change nuclear sphingomyelin-synthase activity in proliferating cells. The study of neutral sphingomyelinase/sphingomyelin-synthase ratio, a marker of functional state of the cells, indicated that proton beams induce FRTL-5 cells in a proapoptotic state if the cells are quiescent and in an initial apoptotic state if the cells are proliferating. The changes of cell life are accompanied by a decrease of nuclear sphingomyelin and increase of bax protein.     

A simple frequency‐domain method for stress analysis of stall‐regulated wind turbines

A simple method, based in the frequency domain, was developed for calculating the dynamic response of a stall‐regulated wind turbine. Emphasis is placed on two aspects of the method, which are necessary in order to obtain a reasonable linearization of behavior when the blades are stalled. First, the tangential (in‐plane) component of turbulence is included, in addition to the axial component. Second, the linearized relationship between lift coefficient and angle‐of‐attack is adjusted to account for the effects of dynamic stall: separate linearizations are used for excitation and damping of vibration. A thorough comparison is made between linear and non‐linear dynamic‐stall methods, with the conclusion that the accuracy of the linear method depends upon the frequency and amplitude of oscillation. The linear dynamic‐stall method is accurate at blade vibrational frequencies, but it can be inaccurate at frequencies in the vicinity of 1P or below, when the angle‐of‐attack oscillates with an amplitude of 3° or more. Load spectra of a Nordtank 500 turbine, calculated using the frequency‐domain method, are compared with measurements. The frequency‐domain method provides estimates of load spectra and aerodynamic damping (stability) that are useful for preliminary design and optimization, but the method lacks sufficient accuracy and generality to be used for certification. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

“Do You See What I Hear?”: Designing for Collocated Patient–Practitioner Collaboration in Audiological Consultations

Patient-centered care encourages active involvement of patients in their own treatment and a collaborative perspective on the relationship between patient and practitioner. However, to achieve constructive patient–practitioner collaboration in medical consultations the partakers need to successfully interact across conceptual boundaries that can impede intersubjectivity, i.e., the construction of shared meanings and understandings in communicative activities. We present a synthesis of a user-centered approach to designing interactive technology supporting collaboration in face-to-face consultations related to audiological (hearing) rehabilitation. Specifically, we focus on the case of hearing aid tuning, and on the design and utility assessment of a prototype sound environment simulator intended to support the process by helping the patient and the practitioner build a joint understanding of the individual patient’s hearing problem and perceived effects of treatment actions. We describe an empirical and qualitative investigation that calls specific attention to the multi-dimensional boundaries involved in collocated patient–practitioner interactions, and to the explorative and situated nature of the consultation as a collaborative problem-solving process. Here, various micro-practices play a key role in gradually forming a better understanding of the problem at hand and in identifying appropriate treatment steps. Our findings suggest that patient–practitioner collaboration can benefit from interactive technology, which is sufficiently flexible or open-ended in terms of use to accommodate, or be appropriated, to the immediate needs of the situation. We argue that designing technology with the aim of enhancing existing practices of intersubjectivity, rather than doing away with them, improves the chances of enriching collocated patient–practitioner interaction and reduces risk of obstructing it. The main research contribution is an increased understanding of the medical consultation as an instance of collocated collaborative work and learning, and the challenges and opportunities that lie in co-designing interactive solutions that can help the patient take an active and contributing part in the situation.     

How important is tryptophan in human health?

Tryptophan (Trp) is an amino acid and an essential component of the human diet. It plays a crucial role in many metabolic functions. Clinicians can use Trp levels in the course of diagnosing various metabolic disorders and the symptoms associated with those diseases. Furthermore, supplementation with this amino acid is considered in the treatment of depression and sleep disorders, mainly due to the Trp relationship with the synthesis of serotonin (5-HT) and melatonin. It is also used in helping to resolve cognitive disorders, anxiety, or neurodegenerative diseases. Reduced secretion of serotonin is associated with autism spectrum disorder, obesity, anorexia and bulimia nervosa, and other diseases presenting peripherals symptoms. The literature strongly suggests that Trp has a significant role in the correct functionality of the brain-gut axis and immunology. This information leads to the consideration of Trp as an essential dietary component due to its role in the serotonin pathway. A reduced availability of Trp in diet and nutraceutical supplementation should be considered with greater concern than one might expect. This paper constitutes a review of the more salient aspects gleaned from the current knowledge base about the role of Trp in diseases, associated nutritional disorders, and food science, in general.     

Industrial aspects and literature survey: Combined inventory management and routing

This paper describes industrial aspects of combined inventory management and routing in maritime and road-based transportation, and gives a classification and comprehensive literature review of the current state of the research.The literature is contrasted with aspects of industrial applications from a constructive, but critical, viewpoint. Based on the status and trends within the field, future research is suggested with regard to both further development of the research area and industrial needs. By highlighting the industrial aspects, practitioners will hopefully see the benefit of using advanced decision support systems in complex situations related to combined inventory management and routing in their business. In addition, a classification and presentation of the research should help and motivate researchers to further focus on inventory management and routing challenges.     

Real-time automated risk assessment in protected core networking

Protected Core Networking (PCN) is an approach to creating a secure and flexible network and communications infrastructure that supports network enabled capability (NEC) operations. The real-time automated risk assessment (R-TARA) provides a theoretically and practically sound method for risk assessment in the Protected Core. The purpose of the R-TARA is multifold. On the one hand it provides a global metric, which could be used by the network operator to assess the overall security level of the network and its evolution over time. On the other hand, the results of R-TARA can be used in order to achieve dynamic accreditation. Finally, R-TARA local risk metrics, e.g. susceptibility to DoS attacks, can be used for dynamic routing decisions. We propose use of Bayesian networks, known from operational risk assessment, for PCN risk assessment and we provide analytical and simulative evaluation of R-TARA mechanisms.     

Realization of a New Inverter Circuit for Direct Photovoltaic Energy Feedback into the Public Grid

A new regulated utility interactive inverter for direct photovoltaic energy feedback to the mains has been realized. A modulated buck converter converts the photovoltaic dc current to a rectified 50-Hz sine wave current, and the following self-commutated half-bridge generates a 50-Hz sine wave current, which is fed into one phase of the public power grid. This nonclassical inverter needs only three power transistor switches and isolates the grid and the photovoltaic array using a commercial 50-Hz transformer. It acts as a current source, and due to pulsewidth modulation its output is a sine wave current with very low total harmonic distortion of one percent. The overall efficiency of the 1-kW prototype is at least 88 percent between 250 and 1000 W, and the projected efficiency is over 90 percent for 1-20 kW. Furthermore, a circuit which tracks the maximum power available from the photovoltaic generator has been developed. This circuit regulates the input power to its maximum by detecting the phase angle between the voltage and power ripples at the inverter input.     

Benefits of Residual Aluminum in Ductile Iron

Two main chemistry systems of micro-inclusions can be identified in ductile iron: Ca-S-X and Mg-Si-O-X with the majority of the inclusions regardless of treatment type and location being of the second type, silicates. Laboratory investigations have shown that simple silicates were present in the matrix, while more complex silicates were present in conjunction with graphite, probably acting as graphite nucleation sites. In these more complex silicates, elevated levels of Al, Ca, Ce and La were typical. Comparing micro-particles embedded in iron matrix and graphite nodules of iron treated with pure Mg-metal and iron treated with MgFeSi alloy showed a higher amount of complex silicates with elevated Al-levels in the iron treated with MgFeSi. Further laboratory investigation was undertaken to explore which source of Al and which range of residual Al would have a favorable impact on the graphite nucleation in ductile iron. The work showed that a residual aluminum of 0.005 to 0.020 wt.% appears to be beneficial for improving ductile iron solidification characteristics without the incidence of pinholes. Greatest benefits were achieved when introducing the Al into the iron via an inoculant late during processing or via a pre-conditioner to the base iron. Al added via the MgFeSi provided less benefit. Some case studies illustrating the effect of Al in ductile iron are also presented, as Al-containing pre-conditioner or/and Al-bearing, FeSi inoculant application.