Metallic Adhesive Layers for Ag‐Based First Surface Mirrors

Metallic thin films have been evaluated as adhesive layers for first surface mirrors. Thin films (0.5–4 nm thick) of Cr, Cu, Ge, Sn, and Ni, capped with an over layer of 100 nm of Ag have been deposited by means of ion assisted electron beam evaporation onto glass substrates. The specular reflectance, conductivity, morphology, adhesion, and abrasion resistance of the mirrors have been assessed and compared. This work demonstrates the superior Ni and Ge adhesion and abrasion resistance to Ag thin films, while Cr and again Ni are the best candidates in terms of reflectance enhancement. In particular, 4 nm of Ni increases the Ag reflectance from 95.7% to 96.7%, exhibits the strongest adhesion as determined by the cross hatch tape test and the lowest loss of material after the different abrasion tests is just 50% in comparison to 100% for Ag‐coated glass substrates.

     

The associations among self-awareness, emotional well-being, and employment outcome following acquired brain injury: A 12-month longitudinal study.

Objective: To investigate self-awareness and emotional well-being according to change in employment outcome in people with acquired brain injury (ABI). Design: A 12-month longitudinal study. Participants and Setting: Fifty adults with ABI attending outpatient rehabilitation (n = 17) or vocational rehabilitation services (n = 33). Time since injury ranged from 6 months to 12 years (M = 4.3 years, SD = 4.1). Main Outcome Measures: Self Awareness of Deficits Interview, Self-Regulation Skills Interview, Hospital Anxiety Depression Scale, and employment outcome (stable employment, improved employment, and stable unemployment). Results: At the initial assessment, level of awareness for the improved employment group was significantly lower than that for the stable employment group (p = .017), whereas no between-groups differences were found at the 12-month follow-up assessment. Employment outcome was not significantly associated with changes in self-monitoring or emotional well-being (p = .017). Demographic and injury-related variables were generally not related to employment outcome. Conclusions: The findings empirically support the theoretical view that an increase in self-awareness is associated with improved employment status, although the direction of this relation is unclear. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Antimutagenic and antiradical properties of flavones from the roots of Scutellaria baicalensis georgi

The four flavonoids baicalin, baicalein, wogonoside, and wogonin have been isolated from Scutellaria baicalensis (Lamiaceae) root extract as main bioactive components. We evaluated their antimutagenic activity as potential chemopreventive natural substances using the Ames test. Free radical scavenging properties have also been measured with the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) assay. Both crude extract and isolated flavone glycosides and aglycones have antimutagenic and free radical scavenging properties. The lipophilic flavone baicalein has been confirmed to be the most powerful antimutagen among the compounds tested.     

Isolated photosystem I reaction centers on a functionalized gated high electron mobility transistor

In oxygenic plants, photons are captured with high quantum efficiency by two specialized reaction centers (RC) called Photosystem I (PS I) and Photosystem II (PS II). The captured photon triggers rapid charge separation and the photon energy is converted into an electrostatic potential across the nanometer-scale (~6 nm) reaction centers. The exogenous photovoltages from a single PS I RC have been previously measured using the technique of Kelvin force probe microscopy (KFM). However, biomolecular photovoltaic applications require two-terminal devices. This paper presents for the first time, a micro-device for detection and characterization of isolated PS I RCs. The device is based on an AlGaN/GaN high electron mobility transistor (HEMT) structure. AlGaN/GaN HEMTs show high current throughputs and greater sensitivity to surface charges compared to other field-effect devices. PS I complexes immobilized on the floating gate of AlGaN/GaN HEMTs resulted in significant changes in the device characteristics under illumination. An analytical model has been developed to estimate the RCs of a major orientation on the functionalized gate surface of the HEMTs.     

The relations between observer-rating and self-report of depressive symptomatology.

Sources of discrepancy between the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HRSD) and the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) were investigated in 114 depressed inpatients treated with ECT. Three previously reported observations were found to occur within the same sample: (1) There was only a moderate baseline correlation between the measures; (2) this correlation improved markedly at later assessment; (3) the HRSD had a greater effect size for change. The modest baseline correlation was largely due to patients who rated themselves as substantially less depressed than clinicians had rated them. Improvement in the correlation with repeated assessment was due to the representation of clinical responders. The larger effect size with the HRSD was mainly attributable to a small subgroup that showed marked deterioration on the BDI, a phenomenon not observed with clinical evaluation. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)