An amateur on TV.

"If there is a 'secret of success' for the amateur performer on television it is the old admonition 'be yourself.' " A few important rules to help the amateur in giving a creditable account of himself are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The motivational bases of attitude change.

In describing the motivational forces which determine attitude formation and change, the authors focus upon three basic variables: reward and punishment, reality testing, and ego defensiveness. Methodological approaches which seem to lead to appropriate tests of hypotheses generated by the discussion are presented. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Changes in religious interest: A retest after 15 years.

84 men who had been tested with the Allport-Vernon Study of Values in 1939-40 at Dartmouth College were retested in 1955-56. A significant increase in the religious value scores was found after the 15-year interval. Item analysis showed that the theological items increased more than the philosophical ones. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Thermosonic Wire Bonding Process Simulation and Bond Pad Over Active Stress Analysis

In this paper, a transient nonlinear dynamic finite element framework is developed, which integrates the wire bonding process and the silicon devices under bond pad. Two major areas are addressed: one is the impact of assembly 1st wire bonding process and another one is the impact of device layout below the bond pad. Simulation includes the ultrasonic transient dynamic bonding process and the stress wave transferred to bond pad device and silicon in the 1st bond. The Pierce strain rate dependent model is introduced to model the impact stain hardening effect. Ultrasonic amplitude and frequency are studied and discussed for the bonding process. In addition, different layouts of device metallization under bond pad are analyzed and discussed for the efforts to reduce the dynamic impact response of the bond pad over active design. Modeling discloses the stress and deformation impacts to both wire bonding and pad below device with strain rate, different ultrasonic amplitudes and frequencies, different friction coefficients, as well as different bond pad thickness and device layout under pad. The residual stress, after cooling down to a lower temperature, is discussed for the impact of substrate temperature.     

Exposure assessment of carcass disposal options in the event of a notifiable exotic animal disease: application to avian influenza virus

We present a generalized exposure assessment of 28 disposal options for poultry carcasses in the event of a highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) outbreak. The analysis supports a hereto unverified disposal hierarchy for animal carcasses, placing waste processing (e.g., incineration and rendering) above controlled disposal (e.g., landfill), above uncontrolled disposal (e.g., burial on-farm). We illustrate that early stages of the disposal chain (on-farm) pose greater opportunities for exposure to hazardous agents than later stages, where agents are generally contained, wastes are treated, and residues are managed by regulated processes. In selecting carcass disposal options, practitioners are advised to consider the full range of hazards rather than focusing solely on the HPAI agent, and to give preference to technologies that (i) offer high destruction efficiencies for target pathogens; (ii) do not give rise to significant releases of other pathogenic organisms; and (iii) do not release unacceptable concentrations of toxic chemicals. The approach offers an exposure assessment perspective for carcass disposal, thus providing a risk-informed basis for contingency planning and operational intervention. The authors recognize that relevant legislation, public perception, available capacity, and cost also need to be considered when selecting disposal options in the event of HPAI.     

Role of polyacrylate starch copolymer in water sorption

Water sorbence by saponified polyacrylonitrile-grafted polysaccharides was studied in relation to practical end uses. Graft copolymers prepared from wheat flour, corn flour, cotton wool, and rayon fibers swelled to a gel, exhibiting a 10- to 20-fold increase in sorbency over the starting materials. A further enhanced water capacity was obtained when homopolymer was not removed. Soaking the wheat flour copolymer in salts or dilute mineral acid nullified the enhanced water sorbence, which could be reversible restored by neutralization of acrylic acid functions with alkali. Swelling the copolymer in aqueous D-glucose did not impair its water capacity. The mechanism of swelling to a gel appears to involve electrolyte osmotic pressure generated by a Donnan equilibrium. Grafting starch elevated its heat of water vaporization above that of pure water, and increased its capacity to absorb water from ethanol-water vapor at 40° above that of native starch. At higher temperatures, however, the dehydrating capacity decreased to that of native flour.     

Particle sizing with a fast polar nephelometer

We reported previously the design of a polar nephelometer that uses a rotational confocal imaging setup to enable fast scanning of the scattering phase function within a field of view of 55 degrees . The full dynamic range of the detection system can be used by increasing the signal-to-noise ratio by means of averaging successive scans. The calibration of the angular response of the instrument is achieved by obtaining the transfer function of the optical detection system using Rayleigh scatterers. Accurate particle sizing of individual polystyrene spheres (ranging from 1.5 to 9 micro m in diameter) in aqueous suspension is achieved by maximizing a correlation coefficient between precalculated tables of Mie phase functions and data obtained from the polar nephelometer. Good correlation is achieved between experimental and theoretical data, proving the functioning of the instrument as a fast and convenient particle sizer.     

Dissociative identity disorder and the sociocognitive model: Recalling the lessons of the past.

In a recent article in this journal, D. H. Gleaves (1996; see record 1996-01403-003) criticized the sociocognitive model (SCM; N. P. Spanos, 1994) of dissociative identity disorder (DID) and argued in favor of a posttraumatic model (PTM) in which DID is conceptualized as a consequence of childhood abuse and other traumatic events. The present authors demonstrate that (a) many of Gleaves's arguments were predicated on misunderstandings of the SCM, (b) scrutiny of the evidence regarding the psychopathology and assessment of DID raises questions concerning the PIM's conceptual and empirical underpinnings, (c) the treatment literature suggests that iatrogenic factors play an important role in the etiology of DID, and (d) the evidence linking child abuse to DID is more problematic than implied by Gleaves. The present authors conclude that Gleaves's analysis underemphasized the cultural manifestations of multiple role enactments and that the history of DID imparts a valuable lesson to contemporary psychotherapists. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effect of Active Lengthening and Shortening on Small-Angle X-ray Reflections in Skinned Skeletal Muscle Fibres

Our purpose was to use small-angle X-ray diffraction to investigate the structural changes within sarcomeres at steady-state isometric contraction following active lengthening and shortening, compared to purely isometric contractions performed at the same final lengths. We examined force, stiffness, and the 1,0 and 1,1 equatorial and M3 and M6 meridional reflections in skinned rabbit psoas bundles, at steady-state isometric contraction following active lengthening to a sarcomere length of 3.0 µm (15.4% initial bundle length at 7.7% bundle length/s), and active shortening to a sarcomere length of 2.6 µm (15.4% bundle length at 7.7% bundle length/s), and during purely isometric reference contractions at the corresponding sarcomere lengths. Compared to the reference contraction, the isometric contraction after active lengthening was associated with an increase in force (i.e., residual force enhancement) and M3 spacing, no change in stiffness and the intensity ratio I_1,1/I_1,0, and decreased lattice spacing and M3 intensity. Compared to the reference contraction, the isometric contraction after active shortening resulted in decreased force, stiffness, I_1,1/I_1,0, M3 and M6 spacings, and M3 intensity. This suggests that residual force enhancement is achieved without an increase in the proportion of attached cross-bridges, and that force depression is accompanied by a decrease in the proportion of attached cross-bridges. Furthermore, the steady-state isometric contraction following active lengthening and shortening is accompanied by an increase in cross-bridge dispersion and/or a change in the cross-bridge conformation compared to the reference contractions.