Effects of context on the immediate interpretation of unambiguous nouns.

Effects of prior sentential context on the interpretation of unambiguous nouns were investigated in 2 cross-modal priming experiments. Exp 1 showed that a prior priming context affects word interpretation during lexical access by facilitating the recovery of contextually relevant aspects of meaning and inhibiting the recovery of irrelevant aspects. Exp 2 showed that lexical decision on a visual word related to an aspect of meaning of an unambiguous noun is facilitated only by a sentential context containing the noun and priming that aspect. Such facilitation occurs neither when the unambiguous noun is replaced by a substitute noun in the same sentential context, nor when the unambiguous noun occurs in a sentence priming an aspect of its meaning unrelated to the visual word. Furthermore, neither of these 2 conditions produced effects on lexical decision reliably different either from each other or from a sentential context completely unrelated to the visual word. Findings argue against the context-independent model of lexical access and support the hypothesis that lexical access may be affected by prior sentential context. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Reasoning by model: The case of multiple quantification.

A theory of deductive reasoning is presented for a major class of inferences that has not been investigated by psychologists: inferences that depend on multiply-quantified premises (e.g., "None of the Princeton letters is in the same place as any of the Dublin letters"). It is argued that reasoners construct mental models based on their knowledge of the meanings of quantifiers (and other terms, including relational expressions). Three experiments corroborate the model theory's prediction that inferences that require the construction of only 1 model will be easier than those that require more than 1 model. The model theory assumes that the logical properties of quantifiers emerge from their meanings and are not mentally represented in rules of inference. How such a semantic process can occur compositionally (i.e., guided by the syntactic analysis of sentences) is described. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Genome renewal: A new phenomenon revealed from a genetic study of 43 strains of Saccharomyces cerevisiae derived from natural fermentation of grape musts

We have analyzed by genetic means 43 strains of Saccharomyces that had been isolated from fermenting grape musts in Italy. Twenty eight of these strains were isolated from 28 cellars in the Region of Emilia Romagna. The other 15 strains came from 5 fermentations at four cellars near the city of Arpino, which is located south and east of Rome. We found that 20 of the 28 strains from Emilia Romagna were heterozygous at from one to seven loci. The balance were, within the limits of our detection, completely homozygous. All these strains appeared to be diploid and most were homozygous for the homothallism gene (HO/HO). Spore viability varied greatly between the different strains and showed an inverse relation with the degree of heterozygosity. Several of the strains, and in particular those from Arpino, yielded asci that came from genetically different cells. These different cells could be interpreted to have arisen from a heterozygote that had sporulated and, because of the HO gene, yielded homozygous diploid spore clones. We propose that natural wine yeast strains can undergo such changes and thereby change a multiple heterozygote into completely homozygous diploids, some of which may replace the original heterozygous diploid. We call this process ‘genome renewal’.     

Biotechnological H2S gas treatment with Thiobacillus ferrooxidans

In this paper a novel process for biotechnological abatement of hydrogen sulphide is presented which details the fundamentals of chemical and biological phenomena involved. The process is based on the combination of two steps to form a closed cycle which has special enviornmental advantages. The chemical step corresponds to the abatement reaction itself with absorption of the gas in a ferric solution. The biological step is related to the regeneration of the absorbing solution by means of specific bacterial strains. Particular interest is devoted to the biological kinetics of the regeneration stage, where several inhibition phenomena appear, and are also related to parameters such as temperature and pH. Results of experimental runs of gas absorption in a laboratory scale plant are also described.     

Experience over time: evaluating the experience of use of a squeezable interface in the medium term

The paper presents the user experience evaluation of Squeeze Me, an interactive cover for tablet and smartphone that enables continuous and expressive interaction with electronic devices. The cover has been used to implement ”Squeeze to zoom”, a mobile application to zoom in and out while taking a photograph from a tablet. The experience of use was evaluated in the short and medium term, comparing the Squeeze Me interaction modality with classic modalities for zooming in and out commonly available on tablets and smartphones. The evaluation process was conducted using AttrakDiff [3] a questionnaire that measures hedonic stimulation and identity, as well as pragmatic qualities and attractiveness of software products. Participants were asked to try out different interaction modalities for comparison in the short-term (67 people) and over 4 weeks (8 people). Results obtained in the short-term evaluation reveal that “Squeeze to zoom” was awarded higher values than the classic “Slide to zoom” in the hedonic quality-stimulation and attractiveness dimensions, whilst it obtained lower values in the pragmatic quality and hedonic quality-identity. However, the experience of use changed over time. During the longitudinal study, the usability of “Squeeze to zoom” improved whilst the attractiveness of “Slide to zoom” decreases significantly. Furthermore results reveal that “Squeeze to zoom” is significantly more appreciated for its hedonic qualities and the effect is maintained over time. This study highlights the importance of evaluating the experience of use over time, a practice that is almost ignored in the literature on Experience Design.     

Low-Temperature Synthesis and Properties of LaMnO3±d and La0.67R0.33MnO3±d (R = Ca, Sr, Ba) from Citrate Precursors

LaMn_{1− y} ³⁺Mn _y ⁴⁺O_3±d and La_0.67R_0.33Mn_{1− y} ³⁺Mn _y ⁴⁺O_3±d (R = Ca, Sr, Ba) phases were synthesized at 350°C by using very reactive, amorphous precursors obtained from the stoichiometric citrate solutions. The chemical process was optimized with respect to the solution concentration, pH, and additives. The precursor reactions were investigated as a function of the cation stoichiometry and the additive by simultaneous thermal and thermogravimetric analysis and X-ray diffraction. The reaction pathway was found to be independent of the cation stoichiometry, but related to the acid or base additive. The annealing temperature was systematically increased in the 350–1200°C interval and the La_0.67Sr_0.33MnO_3±d properties (i.e., crystal sizes, Mn average valence, Curie temperature, magnetization, magnetic susceptibility) were measured and found to vary consistently as a function of it.