Multitasking on a Single Device: Arousal and the Frequency,Anticipation, and Prediction of Switching Between Media Content on a Computer

This study measured arousal responses to multitasking by recording switches between content on personal computers over a day. Results showed that switches occurred every 19 seconds, more often than has been reported in previous research. Arousal was highest at the point of a switch with declines in skin conductance afterward. Switches were also preceded by a 12‐second period of increasing skin conductance. 2 new methods were used, one an original application that recorded screen shots, and another that measured changes in skin conductance during the day using a wrist sensor. Results are discussed in light of increasing use of single devices displaying multiple types of content, rather than multitasking that occurs when attention is divided between content on multiple devices.     

Does devoutness delay death? Psychological investment in religion and its association with longevity in the Terman sample.

Religious people tend to live slightly longer lives (M. E. McCullough, W. T. Hoyt, D. B. Larson, H. G. Koenig, & C. E. Thoresen, 2000). On the basis of the principle of social investment (J. Lodi-Smith & B. W. Roberts, 2007), the authors sought to clarify this phenomenon with a study of religion and longevity that (a) incorporated measures of psychological religious commitment; (b) considered religious change over the life course; and (c) examined 19 measures of personality traits, social ties, health behaviors, and mental and physical health that might help to explain the religion–longevity association. Discrete-time survival growth mixture models revealed that women (but not men) with the lowest degrees of religiousness through adulthood had shorter lives than did women who were more religious. Survival differences were largely attributable to cross-sectional and prospective between-class differences in personality traits, social ties, health behaviors, and mental and physical health. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Tetrabutyl-tetraphenyl-diindenoperylene derivatives as alternative green donor in bulk heterojunction organic solar cells

We present the material 2,3,10,11-tetrabutyl-1,4,9,12-tetraphenyl-diindeno[1,2,3-cd:1′,2′,3′-lm] perylene (Bu4-Ph4-DIP) as alternative green donor for bulk heterojunction small molecule organic solar cells (SMOSC). It is shown that Bu4-Ph4-DIP exhibits suitable absorption characteristics to be a potential material to fill the absorption gap between the commonly used standard absorbers ZnPc and C₆₀.Devices with bulk heterojunctions of Bu4-Ph4-DIP:C₆₀ display very high open circuit voltages of 0.99 V, high fill factors of up to 57%, and experiments yield promising efficiencies of η>2%. Such green-blue absorbing SMOSC are characterized by current voltage and external quantum efficiency measurements, and material properties are studied. It is shown that the devices are responsive to substrate heating, and that different donor-acceptor mixing ratios can increase device performance. Possible influences of mixing ratio and heating on device morphology and electrical properties are discussed.     

Urban crash-related child pedestrian injury incidence and characteristics associated with injury severity

Objective

Describe age-based urban pedestrian versus auto crash characteristics and identify crash characteristics associated with injury severity.

Materials and methods

Secondary analysis of the 2004–2010 National Highway and Traffic Safety Administration database for Illinois. All persons in Chicago crashes with age data who were listed as pedestrians (n = 7175 child age ≤19 yo, n = 16,398 adult age ≥20 yo) were included. Incidence and crash characteristics were analyzed by age groups and year. Main outcome measures were incidence, crash setting, and injury severity. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed to estimate injury severity by crash characteristics.

Results

Overall incidence was higher for child (146.6 per 100,000) versus adult (117.3 per 100,000) pedestrians but case fatality rate was lower (0.7% for children, 1.7% for adults). Child but not adult pedestrian injury incidence declined over time (trend test p < 0.0001 for <5 yo, 5–9 yo, and 10–14 yo; p < 0.05 for 15–19 yo, p = 0.96 for ≥20 yo). Most crashes for both children and adults took place during optimal driving conditions. Injuries were more frequent during warmer months for younger age groups compared to older (χ²p < 0.001). Midblock crashes increased as age decreased (p < 0.0001 for trend). Most crashes occurred at sites with sub-optimal traffic controls but varied by age (p < 0.0001 for trend). Crashes were more likely to be during daylight on dry roads in clear weather conditions for younger age groups compared to older (χ²p < 0.001). Daylight was associated with less severe injury (child OR 0.93, 95% CI 0.87–0.98; adult OR 0.90, 95% CI 0.87–0.93).

Conclusion

The incidence of urban pedestrian crashes declined over time for child subgroups but not for adults. The setting of pedestrian crashes in Chicago today varies by age but is similar to that seen in other urban locales previously. Injuries for all age groups tend to be less severe during daylight conditions. Age-based prevention efforts may prove beneficial.     

Urban Renewal in European Countries

Urban renewal is rapidly gaining ground in the more advanced European countries. At present, national programs going beyond the conventional slum-clearance schemes exist in only a few nations but are being prepared in others. Many projects are executed and planned in advance of national renewal legislation. They are typically occasioned by traffic improvements, especially the installation or extension of mass transit facilities, and by the expansion of existing city centers and the creation of new ones. If economic recovery and prosperity continue, urban renewal activity will expand at a rapid pace.     

Exploring scenarios for the future of energy management in UK property

The most appropriate responses to the energy management of buildings from now until 2050 are investigated through a process of scenario planning. A qualitative, explorative approach was undertaken to develop four 2050 scenario end-states resulting from an axis of two critical uncertainties not closely correlated: the attitudes of society towards sustainability; and the availability of energy. These scenarios were applied to the property industry through expert workshops, from which trends and themes were identified. The findings are that the property industry should prepare for a transitional period with an uncertain outlook. Therefore, it would be prudent for this industry to focus on resilient performance under a diverse set of futures, and plausible shock events, rather than optimizing for today's conditions. This could be challenging in a sector that works on relatively long time scales. Aspects that should be incorporated into property industry strategy are suggested: responding to the potential effects of climate change; understanding what drives communities and investing in buildings that are significant to the community's functions; considering transport links as key to successful property investments; adopting the latest technological innovations; and becoming more ‘full service’ and interdisciplinary. A need for a paradigm shift in the industries' practices was also identified.

Les réponses les plus appropriées à la gestion énergétique des bâtiments d'ici 2050 sont étudiées en ayant recours à un processus de planification par scénarios. Une approche qualitative exploratrice a été adoptée afin de développer quatre conclusions de scénario pour 2050, résultant d'un axe formé par deux incertitudes cruciales qui ne sont pas étroitement corrélées: les attitudes de la société envers la durabilité et la disponibilité de l'énergie. Ces scénarios ont été appliqués à l'industrie de l'immobilier par l'intermédiaire d'ateliers d'experts, grâce auxquels des tendances et des thèmes ont été identifiés. Il en ressort que l'industrie de l'immobilier devrait se préparer à une période de transition offrant des perspectives incertaines. En conséquence, il serait prudent que cette industrie concentre ses efforts sur le maintien de solides performances face à différents avenirs possibles, et à des évènements chocs plausibles, plutôt que sur une optimisation par rapport aux conditions d'aujourd'hui. Ceci pourrait être difficile dans un secteur qui travaille sur des échelles de temps relativement longues. Il est suggéré des aspects qui devraient être intégrés à la stratégie de l'industrie de l'immobilier: répondre aux effets potentiels du changement climatique; comprendre ce qui constitue le moteur des collectivités et investir dans des bâtiments qui soient significatifs pour les fonctions de la collectivité; considérer les liaisons de transport comme essentielles pour des investissements immobiliers réussis; adopter les dernières innovations technologiques; et devenir davantage « un service complet » et interdisciplinaire. A également été identifiée la nécessité d'un changement de paradigme dans les pratiques des industries.

bâtiments, gestion énergétique, planification future, secteur de l'immobilier, résilience, scénarios, incertitude     

Investigation on DC/RF Performance of LG = 19 nm Heterogeneous Integrated Ga0.15In0.85As/InAs/Ga0.15In0.85As Composite Channel InP HEMT on Silicon Substrate for Future Beyond 5G and Quantum Computing Applications

Silicon - The RF/DC performances of LG = 19&nbsp;nm heterogeneous integrated Ga0.15In0.85As/InAs/Ga0.15In0.85As composite channel based InP HEMT (high electron mobility transistor)...     

Characterization of tandem organic solar cells comprising subcells of identical absorber material

Recently organic tandem solar cells with record efficiency had been shown comprising identical absorber materials in both subcells. Such structures pose new challenges for characterization. The standard test methods for measuring spectral response of tandem solar cells can not be applied. The standard procedures demand for different bias illumination during measuring spectral response allowing to select the subcell being current limiting. With subcells comprising identical absorber materials, thus having identical absorption spectra, such a selection is not trivial. In this paper, we show that with the help of detailed optical simulations of such tandem organic solar cells, their characterization is possible, and we apply the proposed method to a sample structure. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The performance of a distributed combat simulation with the time warp operating system

This paper analyzes the performance of a discrete-event combat simulation executed on a parallel processor under control of the Time Warp Operating System. Time Warp is in a class of distributed simulation methods called Optimistic methods which have proven to be useful over a wide range of simulations. The combat simulation used for this performance study, called STB88, is a division-corps model incorporating a number of different types of computations. The speed-up for three versions of this model on the Caltech/JPL Mark III Hypercube and the BBN Butterfly parallel processors was measured relative to an efficient sequential execution of the same model on the same hardware. The results indicate that STB88 version 1 achieves a speed-up of 28.6 on 60 Mark III processors, while STB88 version 2 achieves a speed-up of 36.8 on 100 Butterfly processors. Version 3 of STB88 achieved a speed-up of 38.5 on 128 Mark III processors. The versions differed only in their interface to Time Warp. On the Butterfly, the sequential execution completed in 2 hours, while the 100 processor execution completed in 3.2 minutes.