Individuals and dimensions in children's judgment of same and different.

Used the 2-choice transposition problem to examine children's judgments of "same" and "different." When instructed to choose "the same" object in the test phase, kindergartners (n = 24) chose the same dimensional value whereas 3rd graders (n = 24) chose the specific stimulus which had been positive during training. When instructed to choose "the different" or "a different" object, both groups chose on the basis of individual identity. Ontogenetic changes in children's use of individual identities and dimensional values, and the relation between linguistic and cognitive factors, are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A Protein‐Nanocellulose Paper for Sensing Copper Ions at the Nano‐ to Micromolar Level

Tracing heavy metals is a crucial issue in both environmental and medical samples. In this work, a sensing biomolecule, the cyanobacterial C‐phycocyanin (CPC), is integrated into a nanocellulose matrix, and with this, a biosensor for copper ions is developed. The assembly of CPC‐functionalized nanocellulose into a red‐fluorescent, copper‐sensitive hybrid film “CySense”, enhances protein stability and facilitates the reuse and the regeneration of the sensor for several cycles over 7 days. CySense is suitable for the analysis of complex medical samples such as human serum filtrate. The reported biosensor reliably detects copper ion contents with a lower detection limit of 200 × 10^?9m and an IC50 of 4.9 × 10^?6m as changes in fluorescence emission intensity that can be measured with a fluorimeter or a microarray laser scanner.     

Electrostatic and Conventional Spraying of Alginate-Based Edible Coating with Natural Antimicrobials for Preserving Fresh Strawberry Quality

Microbial contamination and mold growth are common causes of strawberry deterioration during storage. The growing need for extending shelf-life while enhancing the overall quality of perishable fruits has generated increasing interest in the development of novel preservation technologies. This study used electrostatic spraying (ES) technology as an innovative and efficient technique for the application of edible alginate coating enriched with carvacrol and methyl cinnamate (natural antimicrobials) on fresh strawberries. The efficiency of the electrostatic technology was compared to non-electrostatic (conventional) spray (NES) technology in terms of transfer efficiency and coating evenness. Furthermore, physicochemical and textural parameters (such as weight loss, visible decay, firmness, surface color, total soluble phenolic content, and antioxidant capacity) of ES and NES coated fruits were studied and compared to uncoated controls. ES technology demonstrated higher transfer efficiency and evenness than NES, which led to a significant reduction of visible decay over uncoated controls. The delay in microbial spoilage by ES (11 days) was greater than by NES (10 days) and uncoated strawberries (7 days). ES coating significantly inhibited strawberry decay with only 5.6 % of infected fruits, compared to 16.6 and 8.3 % for control and NES fruits after 13 days of storage, respectively. At the end of 13 days of storage, ES coating demonstrated superior performance on strawberry firmness, color retention, and weight loss reduction. Additionally, no differences were observed between uncoated and coated fruits with regard to their antioxidant and total soluble phenolics.     

What is a process model composed of?

Software and Systems Modeling - Business process modelling languages typically enable the representation of business process models by employing (graphical) symbols. These symbols can vary...     

Photocatalytic Composites of Silicone Nanofilaments and TiO2 Nanoparticles

Nanoscale TiO₂ photocatalysts are key materials for convenient wastewater treatment and other essential cleaning processes. Immobilization of TiO₂ nanoparticles (NPs) is thus indispensable for the facile handling and separation of nanocatalysts as well as for minimizing their potential health and environmental hazards. Silicone nanofilaments are introduced as a new flexible carrier type for titania NPs because they are compatible with a wide range of substrates and they display high chemical stability. TiO₂‐NPs are deposited on glass slides covered with thin carpets of silicone nanofilaments in a single reaction step starting from TiF₄ and optimized ethanol/water ratios. The resulting composites are characterized using a wide range of electron microscopy and other analytical techniques, and their photocatalytic activity in the decomposition of methylene blue (MB) is superior to immobilized TiO₂ references on plain substrates.     

Nasal Mucosal Swelling in Relation to Low Air Exchange Rate in Schools

Abstract Acoustic rhinometry and hygienic measurements of indoor air pollutants were applied in a field study on nasal congestion among 27 subjects working in two primary schools. One school had natural ventilation only and a low air exchange rate (0.6 ac/h); the other had balanced mechanical ventilation and a high air exchange rate (5.2 ac/h). The minimal cross-sectional area and volume of the nasal cavity were estimated with acoustic rhinometry. The degree of swelling of the nasal mucosa was measured as the increase of the cross-sectional area after standardized application of nasal spray containing a decongestive adrenergic substance. Reports on weekly symptoms of nasal congestion were similar (33%) in both schools. A significantly increased decongestive effect was noticed for the minimal cross-sectional area (MCA2) among personnel in the school with a low air exchange rate. The difference between the schools in decongestive effect on MCA2 was 23%, corresponding to a 3% increase of MCA2 for a difference in personal outdoor airflow of one litre. Indoor concentration of volatile organic compounds (VOC), respirable dust, bacteria, moulds and VOCs of possible microbial origin (MVOC) were 2–8 times higher in the naturally ventilated school. In conclusion, inadequate outdoor air supply in schools may lead to raised levels of indoor air pollutants, causing a sub-clinical swelling of the nasal mucosa. Our results indicate that acoustic rhinometry could be applied in field studies, and that objective measurement of nasal decongestion might be a more sensitive measure of biological effects of indoor air pollution than symptom reporting.     

Assessment and Evaluation of Mobilities for Diffusion in the bcc Cr-V-Fe System

Assessments of diffusion mobility parameters are performed for the bcc Cr-V-Fe alloy system by taking available literature data into account. The main focus is on the diffusion of V in the bcc phase where, in addition to all binaries, ternary interaction parameters are assessed. An experiment is performed in order to study the coarsening of V-rich MC carbide, where the diffusion of V is believed to be of major importance. The measured coarsening rate is compared with the rate calculated using DICTRA, and found to be in satisfactory agreement. The aspects of coarsening experiments as a method to evaluate diffusion mobility data are discussed.