The conformational characteristics of Congo red, Evans blue and Trypan blue

The structures of the closely related bis-azo dyes Evans blue, Trypan blue and Congo red, which appeared to have different self-assembly properties and correspondingly different abilities to form complexes with amyloids and some other proteins, were compared in this work. Ab initio and semi-empirical methods were used to find the optimal structures and partial charge distributions of the dyes. The optimal structures were searched using different widely used programs. The structures of Congo red and evans blue were found to be planar, except for the torsion on the central diphenyl bond connecting the two halves of the dye. Both symmetrical parts of the molecules appeared very close to planarity. However, Trypan blue exhibits non planarity on the di-azo bonds, as well as on the central bond between the symmetrical parts of the dye. In a consequence, the non planarity of this molecule is higher than in the case of its isomer, Evans blue and Congo red as well. The extra rotation around the azo bonds extorted by the close proximity of the sulfonic groups may be the direct cause of its poor self-assembling and complexation properties versus Evans blue.     

The many meanings of UML 2 Sequence Diagrams: a survey

Scenario languages are widely used in software development. Typical usage scenarios, forbidden behaviors, test cases, and many more aspects can be depicted with graphical scenarios. Scenario languages were introduced into the Unified Modeling Language (UML) under the name of Sequence Diagrams. The 2.0 version of UML changed Sequence Diagrams significantly and the expressiveness of the language was highly increased. However, the complexity of the language (and the diversity of the goals Sequence Diagrams are used for) yields several possible choices in its semantics. This paper collects and categorizes the semantic choices in the language, surveys the formal semantics proposed for Sequence Diagrams, and presents how these approaches handle the various semantic choices.     

A new formula for speedup and its characterization

We address the task of measuring the relative speed (speedup) of two systems and for solving the same problem. For example, may be a parallel algorithm, parametrized by the number of processors used, whose running time has to be related to a serial standard algorithm . If and/or are randomized or if we are interested in their performance on a (discrete) probability distribution of problem instances, the running times are described by random variables and . The speedup of over is usually defined as where denotes the expected value. In many cases this definition is not appropriate for the user of or , because the summation in and hides information about the speedup of individual runs. We propose an alternative speedup definition of the form and present a set of intuitive functional equations, which any such function should fulfill. Finally, we prove that the weighted geometric mean is the only solution of these equations. Received: 1 July 1994 / 10 May 1996     

Automated Compositional Abstraction Refinement for Concurrent C Programs: A Two-Level Approach

The state space explosion problem in model checking remains the chief obstacle to the practical verification of real-world distributed systems. We attempt to address this problem in the context of verifying concurrent (message-passing) C programs against safety specifications. More specifically, we present a fully automated compositional framework which combines two orthogonal abstraction techniques (operating respectively on data and events) within a counterexample-guided abstraction refinement (CEGAR) scheme. In this way, our algorithm incrementally increases the granularity of the abstractions until the specification is either established or refuted. Our explicit use of compositionality delays the onset of state space explosion for as long as possible. To our knowledge, this is the first compositional use of CEGAR in the context of model checking concurrent C programs. We describe our approach in detail, and report on some very encouraging preliminary experimental results obtained with our tool MAGIC.     

Obituary: Leonard D. Eron.

Leonard D. Eron, Editor of Journal of Abnormal Psychology (1973-1980), died May 3, 2007, of complications of congestive heart failure, at the age of 87. He also served as associate editor of the American Psychologist (1986-90), and president of the Midwestern Psychological Association (1985-86) and of the International Society for Research on Aggression (1988-90). Dr. Eron's research focused on the causes of aggression, conducting an influential 40-year longitudinal study, as well as many collaborative cross-cultural studies with scholars in Europe. His research on the impact of media violence on children's behavior has been widely recognized. During his years as a professor at Yale University, the University of Iowa, the University of Illinois at Chicago, and the University of Michigan, he left his mark on countless students who carry on his tradition of merging research with the public policy applications of psychology. He was a Fulbright Scholar twice, and a member of many professional and governmental panels, including the National Research Council Panel on Understanding and Control of Violence and the American Psychological Association's Commission on Violence and Youth, of which he was the Chair. He was a diplomate of the American Board of Professional Psychology and a fellow of the Academy of Clinical Psychology, the American Psychological Association, the American Psychological Society, and the American Association for the Advancement of Science. In 1980 he was given the APA award for Distinguished Professional Contributions to Knowledge; in 1995 he received the American Psychological Foundation's Gold Medal Award for Lifetime Contributions to Psychology in the Public Interest; and in 2003 he received APA's award for Distinguished Lifetime Contributions to Media Psychology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Gold Medal Award for Life Achievement in the Practice of Psychology.

Announces the 2007 recipient of the Gold Medal Award for Life Achievement in the Practice of Psychology: Patricia M. Bricklin. A brief biography, highlighting areas of special focus in Bricklin's work, is provided. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Report of the Ethics Committee, 2006.

This report summarizes the primary activities of the American Psychological Association (APA) Ethics Committee, 2006. Ethics adjudication, ethics education and consultation, and special projects are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Summary report of journal operations, 2006.

Provides a summary report of American Psychological Association journal operations, 2006. This summary is compiled from the 2006 annual reports of the Council of Editors and from Central Office records. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Award for Distinguished Scientific Applications of Psychology.

Presents the citations and biographies of the 2007 recipients of the American Psychological Association's Award for Distinguished Scientific Applications of Psychology. Selected bibliographies and an article written by one of the recipients are also presented. The Award for Distinguished Scientific Applications of Psychology is presented to a person who, in the opinion of the Committee on Scientific Awards, has made distinguished theoretical or empirical advances leading to the understanding or amelioration of important practical problems. The 2007 recipients are Karl G. J?reskog and Peter M. Bentler (This award was shared; this was not an award for collaboration). (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Karl G. J?reskog: Award for Distinguished Scientific Applications of Psychology.

Presents the citation, biography, and selected bibliography for Karl G. J?reskog, one of the 2007 recipients of the American Psychological Association's Award for Distinguished Scientific Applications of Psychology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)