Factorial invariance of the Dyadic Adjustment Scale across gender.

The Dyadic Adjustment Scale (DAS; G. B. Spanier, 1976) is the most widely used inventory of relationship satisfaction in the social sciences, yet the question of whether it is measuring the same concept in men and women has never been addressed. In the current study, the authors examined the factor structure of the DAS in a sample of 900 currently married couples who participated in the Minnesota Twin Family Study. Confirmatory factor analysis was applied to a second-order factor solution with Spanier’s four factors (Dyadic Consensus, Dyadic Satisfaction, Dyadic Cohesion, Affectional Expression) loading on one higher order factor (Relationship Adjustment), to test for measurement invariance across gender. The second-order solution was relatively invariant across gender, even when taking into account the nonindependent nature of the data. This suggests that the best conceptualization of the DAS is one of a gender-invariant measure of marital adjustment with four distinct subfactors and that differences between men and women on any of these constructs can be interpreted by both clinicians and researchers as true mean differences rather than measurement bias. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Phase Development and Electrical Properties of Pb(Yb 1/2 Nb 1/2 )O 3 -PbTiO 3 Epitaxial Films

The growth and electrical properties of Pb(Yb 1/2 Nb 1/2 )O 3 -PbTiO 3 (PYbN-PT) epitaxial films were investigated. PYbN-PT epitaxial films with SrRuO 3 bottom electrodes were grown by pulsed laser deposition. Optimization of the growth conditions for the PYbN-PT epitaxial films was carried out on (100) SrRuO 3 /(100) LaAlO 3 substrates using the (50/50) composition target. It was found that formation of pyrochlore phase could be caused not only by low growth temperatures or lead deficiency, but also by poor surface condition of the SrRuO 3 bottom electrodes. (001) PYbN-PT epitaxial films with good crystalline quality were obtained for a range of deposition rates (60-100 nm/min) and temperatures (620-680 °C) after vacuum annealing the SrRuO 3 bottom electrodes. The ferroelectric and piezoelectric properties of 1 w m-thick PYbN-PT epitaxial films with (50/50) and (60/40) compositions and with (001) and (111) orientations were investigated using (100) LaAlO 3 , (100) SrTiO 3 , and (111) SrTiO 3 substrates with SrRuO 3 bottom electrodes. The highest remanent polarization (29 w C/cm 2 ) and effective piezoelectric coefficient e 31.f ( m 14 C/m 2 ) were observed in the (001) PYbN-PT (50/50) film. The transition temperature of the (001) PYbN-PT (50/50) film was about 380 °C. Because of the degradation of the target during the deposition, a 3 w m-thick film was prepared by three depositions (1 w m each layer). The 3 w m-thick film exhibited a higher e 31.f coefficient of m 19 C/m 2.     

Plasticization effects of dihydroxyl soybean oil improve flexibilities of epoxy‐based films for coating applications

Novel bio‐based coating materials were developed through cationic ring‐opening photopolymerization of dihydroxyl soybean oil (DSO) with commercial epoxy monomers [i.e., epoxidized soybean oil (ESO) and 3,4‐epoxycyclohexylmethyl‐3,4‐epoxycyclohexanecarboxylate (ECHM). The ether cross‐linking and post‐polymerization of the polymeric network were observed using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. Thermal properties of the bio‐based coating materials and their copolymerization behaviors were examined using differential scanning calorimetry and a thermogravimetric analyzer. Cross‐link density and molecular weight between cross‐link were obtained from dynamic mechanical analysis. ECHM/DSO (1 : 1.43 weight ratio) films showed the highest elongation at break (49.2%) with a tensile strength of 13.7 MPa. After 2 months of storage, the elongation at break and tensile strength of films were 32% and 15.1 MPa, respectively. ESO/DSO films (w/w ratios of 1 : 0.1, 1 : 0.15, and 1 : 0.2) exhibited stable flexibility of 11–13% of elongation at break without significant reductions in tensile strength (2.5–4.4 MPa) during a 2‐month shelf life. Optical transparencies of the films were comparable to commercial glass and polymers, and water uptake properties (0.72% and 2.83%) were significantly low. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2015 , 132, 41773.     

One‐Part Geopolymers Based on Thermally Treated Red Mud/NaOH Blends

In this study, one‐part “just add water” geopolymer binders are synthesized through the alkali‐thermal activation of the red mud which is relatively rich in both alumina and calcium. Calcination of the red mud with sodium hydroxide pellets at 800°C leads to decomposition of the original silicate and aluminosilicate phases present in the red mud, which promotes the formation of new compounds with hydraulic character, including a partially ordered peralkaline aluminosilicate phase and the calcium‐rich phases C₃A and α‐C₂S. The hydration of the “one‐part geopolymer” leads to the formation of zeolites and a disordered binder gel as the main reaction products, and the consequent development of compressive strengths of up to 10 MPa after 7 d of curing. These results demonstrate that red mud is an effective precursor to produce one‐part geopolymer binders, via thermal and alkali‐activation processes.     

Correlation between Physical Properties and Shear Adhesion Strength of Enzymatically Modified Soy Protein-Based Adhesives

This work was to correlate physical properties with adhesion properties of soy protein‐based adhesives. By building such a correlation, the adhesion properties can be predicted by measuring physical properties of soy protein‐based adhesives. In this context, three important physical properties, viscosity, tacky force, and water resistance, were selected to correlate with adhesion strength of enzymatically modified soy protein‐based adhesives (ESP). Response surface methodology, specifically central composite design, was used with three independent variables to prepare ESP: trypsin concentration (X₁), incubation time (X₂), and glutaraldehyde (GA) concentration (X₃). The three physical properties measured were all greatly affected by our three independent variables with significance at the 95 % confidence level. The responses were then correlated with the adhesion properties of ESP. In conclusion, viscosity can be used to predict the dry adhesion strength of ESP based on the coefficient of determination (R²) of 0.8558. In addition, tacky force and water resistance can be used to represent wet adhesion strength of ESP based on R² of 0.7082 and 0.6930, respectively (P < 0.05). This work preliminarily identified the significant physical properties that can predict the adhesion strength of the ESP system crosslinked with GA, but the results need to be further confirmed by another protein modification system to give a generic conclusion.     

Domain Wall Motion Across Various Grain Boundaries in Ferroelectric Thin Films

Domain wall movement at and near engineered 10°, 15°, and 24° tilt and 10° and 30° twist grain boundaries was measured by band excitation piezoresponse force microscopy for Pb(Zr,Ti)O₃ films with Zr/Ti ratio of 45/55 and 52/48. A minimum in nonlinear response was observed at the grain boundary for the highest angle twist and tilt grain boundaries, while a maximum in nonlinear response was observed at the 10° tilt grain boundaries. The observed nonlinear response was correlated with the domain configurations imaged in cross section by transmission electron microscopy.     

Strategies for overlapping dependent design activities

Overlapping activities that are traditionally performed in a sequential manner can significantly reduce project delivery times. Overlapping, however, should be approached in a systematic manner to reduce the costs and risks. Information gathered from sector‐based case studies and from the manufacturing domain suggest a formalised framework for identifying overlapping opportunities and strategies can be successfully implemented for infrastructure projects. This framework considers activity characteristics, such as evolution of upstream information and sensitivity of downstream activities to changes in upstream information, to identify appropriate overlapping strategies. Overlapping strategies, such as early freezing of design criteria, overdesign, and early release of preliminary information, are selected based on activity characteristics. These strategies operate either by speeding up the evolution of upstream information or by reducing the sensitivity of downstream activities. By aligning overlapping strategies with activity characteristics, project managers can make better decisions on when and how much to overlap sequential activities to reduce overall project delivery time.     

Local Control as Social Reform: Planning for Big Cities in the Seventies

Decentralization of planning can provide disadvantaged groups with greater access to bureaucratic decision making, incentives to community development, and enhanced democratic participation. In recent years community control has become less of a racial issue and therefore more acceptable to white community leaders. Surveys of community leaders in New York City indicate a high level of support among all racial groups for increased local control, although minority leaders still favor a higher level of community input than do whites. Support for community control is highly correlated with negative evaluations of city services.

Decentralization of administrative programs is also favored by many city officials, although with limitations on community input. The New York Office of Neighborhood Government experiment received highly laudatory endorsements from the bureaucrats who served in district service cabinets. The Housing and Development Administration has relied on local groups to implement the Neighborhood Preservation Program for housing rehabilitation. In both cases, however, community participation was eventually stymied.

Implementation of decentralization is made difficult because of contradictions between class and locational interests. Meaningful local participation is often either co-opted or suppressed. Nevertheless, urban decentralization continues as one path of moderate but viable reform.     

My Career as a Planner

In this essay, the author traces her development from a political scientist to an urban planner. Looking back on more than 40 years as a scholar and professor of planning, Fainstein deems issues of inequality derived from class, ethnicity, and gender to have been the focus of her teaching and scholarship. At first, she approached these questions through empirical investigations of citizen participation and theoretical exploration of the neo-Marxist literature and her early research focused on the politics of planning in American cities, the contributions of community groups, and the roles played by business interests. Later, she examined redevelopment and housing programs in London and Amsterdam to contrast these more welfare-oriented European cities to the American model and examined the relationship between gender and planning. Eventually, she brought together her empirical and theoretical research to develop a theory of urban justice and to suggest policies at the local level that were in line with these principles.