Operating experience from the ehecatl wind turbines

This paper presents a summary of the mechanical features and the medium term operating experience from three small horizontal axis wind energy conversion systems covering a range of 500 to 5000 Watt, intented for rural and isolated communities. These turbines have a new regulator which reduces gyroscopic loads, is easy to adjust and could be manufactured stronger and in smaller sizes than the conventional tail vanes. It is concluded that is feasible to build cheaps and reliable wind turbine generators with an acceptable efficiency employing common-use elements, but is needed a careful and optimized design.     

Emotional and behavioral responses to aversive interpersonal behaviors.

In a conceptual replication of A. Biglan et al (see record 1989-39898-001), 288 Ss rated their emotional and behavioral responses to aggressive, distressed, and neutral behaviors. The stimulus behaviors occurred in the context of casual relationships and were portrayed by male and female actors. Consistent with Biglan et al, it was found that aggressive behaviors evoked angry emotions and negative behavioral responses; distressed behaviors evoked both angry and concerned emotions and supportive behavioral responses. However, in contrast to the original results, evidence was also found of negative (primarily avoidant) behavioral responses to distressed behavior. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Assessing the Assessments: Case Study of an Emergency Action Plan for the Control of Water Hyacinth in Lake Victoria

This study evaluates the impact assessment methodologies used by Uganda's Water Hyacinth Control Programme in Lake Victoria, a domestic project with transboundary implications. The Control Programme sought to reduce infestations of water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes), an aquatic weed native to South America, through the use of integrated chemical, mechanical and biological methods. The environmental impact assessment for the project was conducted by Aquatics Unlimited, with support from the United States Agency for International Development. Although the case study involves a domestic impact assessment, it raised transboundary concerns. One of the major outcomes of the assessment was recognition of the need for informed involvement of the other riparian countries, Kenya and Tanzania, in the assessment process to ensure a regional effort among all three East African Community Partner States to control water hyacinth and other invasive weeds in Lake Victoria.     

Predictors of outcome in LAAM, buprenorphine, and methadone treatment for opioid dependence.

This study examined (1) predictors of treatment outcome for opioid-dependent participants in a single-site controlled trial comparing methadone, buprenorphine, and LAAM treatments and (2) the extent to which various subpopulations of patients may have more successful outcomes with each medication. The relationships between patient demographics, drug use history, and psychological status and outcome measures of treatment retention, opiate use, and cocaine use were assessed. We believe this study to be the first to demonstrate that predictors of treatment success appear to be largely similar in LAAM, buprenorphine, and methadone treatment for opioid dependence. We did not find any factors that would strongly guide selection of one medication over others. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A Profile of Psychologists' Views of Critical Risk Factors for Completed Suicide in Older Adults.

The ability to accurately and reliably predict whether an older adult will commit suicide has eluded clinicians and researchers. A random national sample of psychologists who work with older adults was surveyed regarding their perception of 36 risk factors for completed suicide and indirect self-destructive behavior in older adults. This study produced a profile of psychologists' assessment and treatment practices when working with suicidal older adults. Determining what psychologists consider to be the most salient risk factors for completed suicide is important in identifying a minimum standard that clinicians should follow when assessing older adults. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

An intelligent decision theoretic approach to producibility optimization in conceptual design

Product optimization involves selecting design, manufacturing, and support attributes that can produce the best system. Producibility or manufacturability is the term often used to describe the relative ease of manufacturing a product. In complex systems, productibility optimization is a very difficult process, particularly when the values of many attributes are restricted by constraints. One challenge is to develop more universal producibility metrics for the conceptual design phase when design information is limited and drawings are nondimensional. This paper develops a new method for producibility optimization in conceptual design based on a combination of both decision theoretic and expert system techniques. Decision theoretic techniques provide the means to model the design for producibility problem in a manner that can deal with risk, uncertainty, and user (or corporate) preferences, and can effectively integrate diverse factors to provide a measure of the overall worth of a design. The particular decision theoretic approach employed is based on multi-attribute utility theory. An illustrative example of the methodology is applied to the conceptual design of a structural composite part.     

Neuropsychological and psychosocial effects of the FMR-1 full mutation: Case report of monozygotic twins discordant for the fragile X syndrome.

An extensive evaluation was conducted with 16-yr-old monozygotic twins concordant for the fragile X full mutation but discordant for mental retardation. The clearly affected twin had an IQ score of 47; 77% of her neuropsychological z scores were at least 2 SDs below average. Her sister had an IQ score of 105 and average neuropsychological performance. However, each girl demonstrated relative verbal strengths and visual-spatial weaknesses. Their parents rated each girl as having significant problems with attention, conduct, anxiety-withdrawal, and hyperactivity. The girls did not rate themselves as having significant anxiety. These findings are consistent with group data on females with fragile X and demonstrate the wide range of effects associated with the fragile X full mutation. This case report implicates the importance of a psychosocial phenotype of fragile X independent of cognitive ability level. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

How infants perceive a simple causal event.

Four experiments examined 10-mo-old infants' causal event perception. Exp 1 replicated previous studies except that the specific objects used as agent and recipient varied from trial to trial. Under these conditions infants did not process the causality. Instead they keyed on specific temporal and spatial differences among the events. Exp 2 showed that infants notice a change in the particular agent performing either a causal or noncausal action. Exp 3 showed that infants do not notice a change in the type of action done to a particular recipient. Exp 4 demonstrated that infants do not pay attention to the object used as a recipient. As a whole, the results indicate that 10-mo-old infants perceive the causality of simple events by associating a specific agent with the causal action. These results provide more support for an information-processing view than for the view that infants have a causal module. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)