High Performance Steel: Research Front—Historical Account of Research Activities

This paper provides a summary of the major research studies conducted or being conducted in the U.S., to address design issues related to use of high performance steel (HPS) in bridge construction. Emphasis of the paper is on the work related to HPS-485W steel, which has specified minimum yield strength of 485 MPa (70 ksi). Design issues that are addressed in this paper include (1) flexural capacity of compact and noncompact HPS sections in negative bending; (2) issues related to ductility of HPS composite girders in the positive sections (this section presents a simplified ductility check for composite plate girders); (3) tensile ductility of HPS plates; (4) shear capacity of the hybrid steel plate girders; (5) live load deflections; and (6) brief overview of the work that is underway to develop innovative bridge configurations capable of incorporating the advantages of HPS.     

No pain, no gain: The conditions under which upward comparisons lead to better performance.

In 3 studies, the authors explored the relation between threatening upward social comparisons and performance. In an initial study, participants were exposed to comparison targets who either threatened or boosted self-evaluations and then completed a performance task. Participants exposed to the threatening target performed better than those in a control group, whereas those exposed to the nonthreatening target performed worse. In Study 2, self-affirmation prior to comparison with threatening targets eliminated performance improvements. In Study 3, performance improvements were found only when the performance domain was different from the domain of success of the comparison target. These boundary conditions suggest that increases in performance following social comparison arise from individuals' motivations to maintain and repair self-evaluations. Implications for the study of the behavioral consequences of social comparison are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Stimulation of Specific Regions of the Parabrachial Nucleus Elicits Ingestive Oromotor Behaviors in Conscious Rats.

The "waist" area and external subnuclei of the parabrachial nucleus (PBN) have been implicated in the processing of gustatory information, yet their behavioral roles are not clearly defined. In the current study, areas within and surrounding the PBN were stimulated while oromotor behaviors were monitored in conscious rats. Electrical and chemical (100 mM glutamate) stimulation of the waist area increased ingestive oromotor behaviors over baseline (p     

Prédiction de l'intention créatrice à l'aide du modèle du comportement plainifié d'Ajzen.

Employed I. Ajzen's (1988) planned behavior model to predict creative intent. 291 undergraduates filled out questionnaires regarding 3 prototypical creative behaviors: writing and directing a play, building furniture from waste materials, and developing an individual style of interpreting music. Intent, attitude, subjective standards, and perception of control were measured for each behavior. Hierarchical multiple regression analysis result show that all of the predictor variables, except attitude toward theater behavior, contributed significantly to the prediction of intent. In considering basic impacts, perception of control plays the most significant role of prediction of intent. Perception of control also interacts either with standards or with attitude to increase explained variance of intent by 1–3%. Results support the relevance of the planned behavior model in the prediction of intent to endorse prototypical creative behavior. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effect of sunflower-seed oil and linseed oil on tissue lipid metabolism, gene expression, and milk fatty acid secretion in Alpine goats fed maize silage–based diets

Lipid in the diet is known to enhance milk fat secretion and alter milk fatty acid composition in lactating goats. In the current experiment, the contribution of peripheral tissue and mammary gland lipid metabolism to changes in milk fat composition from plant oils was examined. Fourteen Alpine goats in midlactation were used in a 3 × 3 Latin square design with 28-d experimental periods. Treatments comprised maize silage–based diets containing no additional oil (M), sunflower-seed oil (MSO; 6.1% of diet DM), or linseed oil (MLO; 6.2% of diet DM). Compared with the control, milk yield was greater in goats fed MSO (3.37 and 3.62 kg/d, respectively), whereas MLO enhanced milk fat content (+3.9 g/kg), resulting in a 14% increase in milk fat secretion. Both MSO and MLO increased milk lactose secretion by 12 and 8%, respectively, compared with M. Relative to the control, plant oils decreased C10 to C16 secretion (32 and 24%, respectively, for MSO and MLO) and enhanced C18 output in milk (ca. 110%). Diets MSO and MLO increased cis-9 18:1 secretion in milk by 25 and 31%, respectively, compared with M. The outputs of trans-11 18:1 and cis-9, trans-11 18:2 in milk were increased 8.34- and 6.02-fold for MSO and 5.58- and 3.71-fold for MLO compared with M, and MSO increased trans-10 18:1 and trans-10, cis-12 18:2 secretion. Plant oils decreased milk fat cis-9 14:1/14:0; cis-9 16:1/16:0; cis-9 18:1/18:0; and cis-9, trans-11 18:2/trans-11 18:1 concentration ratios but had no effect on mammary stearoyl-CoA desaturase mRNA or activity. Furthermore, changes in milk fatty acid secretion were not associated with alterations in mammary acetyl-CoA carboxylase mRNA and activity, abundance of mRNA encoding for lipoprotein lipase and fatty acid synthase, or malic enzyme and glycerol-3-phosphate dehydrogenase activity in mammary tissue. Mammary lipoprotein lipase activity was increased with MSO relative to MLO. Treatments had no effect on glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase, malic enzyme, glycerol-3-phosphate dehydrogenase activity, or mRNA abundance and/or activity of lipoprotein lipase, acetyl-CoA carboxylase, fatty acid synthase, and stearoyl-CoA desaturase in liver or adipose tissue. In conclusion, inclusion of sunflower-seed oil and linseed oil in maize silage–based diets alters milk fatty acid secretion in goats via mechanisms independent of changes in mammary, hepatic, or adipose tissue lipogenic gene expression. Furthermore, data provided indications that the regulation of mammary lipogenic responses to plant oils on starch-rich diets differs between the caprine and bovine.     

The magneto-electric effect in molten salts—III. Measurement of the thermomagneto-electric effect in molten potassium nitrate

The joint action of two rectangular direct and constant fields (electric and magnetic) on molten potassium nitrate, produces local temperature variations in the Lorentz force direction. This thermal effect is studied as a function of the magneto-electric stress and also of the temperature of the molten electrolyte. The results are different depending on the initial thermal conditions; they are compared with the previous magneto-electric voltage measurements.     

Is an attributional analysis of the learned helplessness phenomenon viable? A critique of the Abramson-Seligman-Teasdale reformulation.

Considers that the reformulation of the learned helplessness model by L. Y. Abramson et al (see record 1979-00305-001) overcomes many of the shortcomings inherent in the original model and raises questions for future research on helplessness and depression. A critique is made of the various components of the reformulated model: (a) Some questions are raised about the importance of attributions in predicting reactions to uncontrollable outcomes, including whether people make attributions and whether there is a relationship between attributions and behavior. (b) It is questioned whether the dimensions of attribution selected by Abramson et al are the most significant ones in predicting the nature and magnitude of behavioral deficits. (c) The possibility is raised that factors other than attributions and expectations for future control may influence reactions to uncontrollable outcomes. Certain characteristics of the outcome, such as whether it is expected and whether people are able to find meaning in it, may be important. (d) The account of the cognitive, motivational, and affective responses to lack of control is examined. The present authors feel that 2 basic questions are left unanswered: What is the relationship between the various deficits that are proposed, and when does exposure to lack of control result in deficits, and when does it result in facilitated performance? (e) The reformulated learned helplessness model of depression is examined. The model is seen to raise questions about the direction of causality between attributions, expectations, and depression. (53 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Distinguishing optimism from pessimism: Relations to fundamental dimensions of mood and personality.

Contrary to unidimensional conceptions of optimism and pessimism, factor analysis of 2 widely used instruments revealed that optimism and pessimism are empirically differentiable, but related, constructs. Moreover, consistent with expectations, optimism and pessimism were differentially linked with fundamental dimensions of mood and personality. Pessimism was principally associated with neuroticism and negative affect. Optimism was primarily associated with extraversion an positive affect. Findings are discussed with reference to current conceptual and measurement models of optimism and pessimism and their relations to broad dimensions of mood and personality. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Obituary: Philip Brickman (1943-1982).

Presents an obituary for Philip Brickman, whose distinguished career in social psychology focused on issues such as justice, happiness, pain, inequality, helping, and coping. From 1968 to 1978, he was a faculty member in the psychology department at Northwestern University. In 1979, he went to the University of Michigan, where he joined the faculty as professor in the Psychology Department and director of the Research Center for Group Dynamics at the Institute for Social Research. By the time of his death, Brickman had published over 50 articles and book chapters, many of them very well known and widely cited. In addition to his published work, he enriched the field through his participation in several professional societies. He had served on the Council of APA's Division 9 (The Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues; SPSSI) and on the Executive Committee of Division 8 (Personality and Social Psychology), where he provided valuable leadership during the crisis in research funding that occurred during the early years of the first Reagan administration. Brickman passed away in 1982. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)