Impact of computers on professional practice: A survey of current practices and attitudes.

Surveyed 227 practicing psychologists to explore the impact of computers on the everyday practice of psychology and practitioners' attitudes toward specific uses of computers. Whereas more than half of the respondents reported using computers in their practices, most restricted their use to clerical applications. Few practitioners used their computer for more clinical applications. Reasons most frequently reported for not using computers related to lacking the necessary skills and experience and to financial considerations. Overall, practitioners had positive attitudes toward a variety of specific applications of computers. Implications of these findings for facilitating the appropriate use of computers by practitioners are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Photoluminescence of copper ion exchange BK7 glass planar waveguides

Copper–alkali ion exchange technology was used to prepare BK7 glass planar waveguides. The photoluminescence spectra of the waveguides were studied with fluorescence spectrophotometer. It was observed that there were strong emission peaks at around 520 nm, which were strongly influenced by the ion-exchange times. Besides the time, the ion-exchange temperature was important factor as well, the higher ion-exchange temperature was found to bring a blue shift of emission spectra. The blue–green emission band originates from different transition mechanism of energy level. The spectroscopy features of copper within the glass host were also affected by the excitation wavelength, which resulted in a shift of the emission band peaks.     

Functional organization of chromaffin cells and cholinergic synaptic transmission in rat adrenal medulla

Optical recordings of membrane depolarization and whole-cell patch-clamp recordings of membrane potentials and currents were obtained from chromaffin cells in slices of rat adrenal medulla. The stimulation of splanchnic nerve fibers caused a discontinuous spread of electrical activity across the slice. Cells in clusters with diameters of about 80 microns were excited simultaneously, suggesting that the adrenal medulla is organized into descrete cell complexes with common innervation. The electrical properties of chromaffin cells in situ were in agreement with previous reports on cultured cells. A fraction of the recorded cells displayed excitatory postsynaptic currents (EPSCs) of 0.2-1 nA upon the stimulation of presynaptic nerve fibers. The EPSC was blocked by hexamethonium, suggesting that nicotinic ACh receptors were involved. The decay phase of the EPSC was well fit by the sum of two exponentials with time constants of 6.3 and 57.3 ms. The relative amplitude of the fast component was 84.1%. These two exponentials may reflect activation of both fast and slow time-constant ACh receptor channels by presynaptic release of ACh. There were multiple peaks in the EPSC amplitude histograms in low-[Ca2+] saline, the first peak was at 37 pA. To resolve the quantal size, miniature EPSCs were recorded in a tetrodotoxin-containing high-[K+] solution. The miniature EPSC amplitude histograms were also multimodal with the first peak at 25 pA, which probably represents the quantal size of the synapse. The second and third peaks were at the integer multiples of the first one.     

The cost of sex revisited: effects of male gamete output of hermaphrodites that are asexual in their female capacity

The genetic cost of sexual reproduction has been attributed to two causes in mathematical formulations: male function or genome dilution. We develop and analyse a genetic model that shows that both costs occur, depending upon the conditions. The model differs from previous formulations in that the level of output and fertilization success of male gametes produced by hermaphrodites that are asexual in their female function (henceforth "parthenogenetic hermaphrodites") are treated as variables, rather than constants fixed at 0 or 1, as has previously been the case. By expressing the cost of sex in terms of per capita egg loss of sexual individuals and parthenogenetic hermaphrodites, we partition the cost into components due to male function and genome dilution. Which component dominates the cost of sex depends upon the relative male gamete output of the parthenogenetic hermaphrodites. The cost of sex is observed to increase, or remain unchanged in some marginal cases, with increases in (i) frequency of parthenogenetic hermaphrodites, (ii) fertilization success of male gametes produced by parthenogenetic hermaphrodites and (iii) potential eggs lost by diverting resources to male gamete production. In certain situations, parthenogenetic hermaphrodites with an intermediate level of male gamete output have the greatest fitness advantage over sexual individuals. If heritable variation for levels of male gamete output exists among parthenogenetic hermaphrodites, this raises the possibility of the evolution of optimal levels of male gamete production by parthenogenetic hermaphrodites through natural selection, in situations of recurring invasion of asexual populations by propagules from sexual populations, a scenario that is increasingly being appreciated as potentially fairly likely to occur in nature.     

Convolutional codes for multi-level modems

The letter is concerned with predicting the performance of forward error correcting systems using binary convolutional codes for multilevel modulation schemes. The code comparison is based on the first few terms of the truncated generator function of the codes, where the distance between the code words is expressed in terms of the geometric Euclidean distance of the signal constellation. A table showing the results of a systematic search for the best codes is presented, and some performance simulation curves are also given. It is shown that optimum code selection depends not only on dfree, but also on additional weight and structure properties, which are very conveniently determined by the truncated generator function.     

Novel p.s.k. tanlock loop

A new loop for coherent demodulation of suppressed carrier phase-shift-keyed (p.s.k.) signals is presented. The p.s.k. tanlock loop (p.s.k.-t.l.l.) has a wider tracking range and faster phase acquisition than the Costas or squaring loops usually used for p.s.k. suppressed carrier tracking, but it has a greater tendency to false lock.     

Inability to detect Chlamyodomonas microtubule assembly in vitro: possible implications to the in vivo regulation of microtubule assembly

It has been demonstrated that the in vitro assembly of microtubules from Chlamydomonas preparations does not occur under a wide range of conditions, including those efficacious for mammalian brain tubulin. This incompetence of Chlamydomonas extracts to form microtubules is independent of the tubulin concentration, the presence of added nucleotides or an added seed, temperature, or the concentration of divalent cation. However, an amorphous aggregate was observed under certain conditions, who composition was mainly tubulin. The in vitro reassembly of microtubules in gerbil brain extracts is inhibited by Chlamydomonas preparations. Fractionation of the Chlamydomonas extracts by column chromatography suggests that the inhibitory component is Chlamydomonas tubulin itself. The mechanism of this inhibition is unknown, but reassembly experiments indicate that the 2 types of tubulins cannot copolymerize. We suggest that the Chlamydomonas tubulin, derived from a cytoplasmic pool, requires to be activated prior to its in vivo polymerization into microtubules.     

Assessment of total body stores of vitamin A in Guatemalan elderly by the deuterated-retinol-dilution method

BACKGROUND: Deuterated retinol dilution (DRD) gives quantitative estimates of total body stores of vitamin A. OBJECTIVES: In elderly people, we studied 1) the time when an oral dose of deuterated vitamin A equilibrates with body stores, 2) whether serum ratios of deuterated to nondeuterated retinol (D:H) at 3 or 6 d postdosing predicted body stores, and 3) the ability of DRD to detect changes in the size of the body vitamin A pool. DESIGN: A 10-mg oral dose of [2H4]retinyl acetate was administered to 60-81-y-old Guatemalans (n = 47); percentage enrichment of serum retinol with deuterated retinol was determined at 1-3 time points per subject at 3, 6, 7, 14, 20, 21, and 54 d. In subjects from whom blood was obtained at 3 and 21 d (n = 15) and at 6 and 20 d (n = 9), total body stores were calculated by using the formula of Furr et al (Am J Clin Nutr 1989;49:713-6) with 21- or 20-d data and correlated with serum D:H at 3 or 6 d postdosing. Nine subjects received diets containing 982+/-20 microg RE (x+/-SEM) plus 800 microg RE as retinyl acetate supplements for 32 d. DRD, serum retinol, and relative dose response were used to assess vitamin A status before and after the intervention. RESULTS: Deuterated retinol equilibrated with the body pool by 20 d postdosing. Vitamin A supplementation for 32 d increased body stores, although unexplained exaggerated increases were seen in some subjects. An inverse linear relation was found between estimates of body stores and serum D:H at 3 d postdosing (r = -0.75, P = 0.002); at 6 d postdosing, the correlation was weaker. CONCLUSIONS: DRD can detect changes in total body stores of vitamin A, although factors affecting serum D:H need to be elucidated. Serum D:H 3 d postdosing might be used as an early indicator of total body stores of vitamin A, although a predictive equation will need to be developed.     

GIRK4 confers appropriate processing and cell surface localization to G-protein-gated potassium channels

GIRK1 and GIRK4 subunits combine to form the heterotetrameric acetylcholine-activated potassium current (IKACh) channel in pacemaker cells of the heart. The channel is activated by direct binding of G-protein Gbetagamma subunits. The GIRK1 subunit is atypical in the GIRK family in having a unique ( approximately 125-amino acid) domain in its distal C terminus. GIRK1 cannot form functional channels by itself but must combine with another GIRK family member (GIRK2, GIRK3, or GIRK4), which are themselves capable of forming functional homotetramers. Here we show, using an extracellularly Flag-tagged GIRK1 subunit, that GIRK1 requires association with GIRK4 for cell surface localization. Furthermore, GIRK1 homomultimers reside in core-glycosylated and nonglycosylated states. Coexpression of GIRK4 caused the appearance of the mature glycosylated form of GIRK1. [35S]Methionine pulse-labeling experiments demonstrated that GIRK4 associates with GIRK1 either during or shortly after subunit synthesis. Mutant and chimeric channel subunits were utilized to identify domains responsible for GIRK1 localization. Truncation of the unique C-terminal domain of Delta374-501 resulted in an intracellular GIRK1 subunit that produced normal IKACh-like channels when coexpressed with GIRK4. Chimeras containing the C-terminal domain of GIRK1 from amino acid 194 to 501 were intracellularly localized, whereas chimeras containing the C terminus of GIRK4 localized to the cell surface. Deletion analysis of the GIRK4 C terminus identified a 25-amino acid region required for cell surface targeting of GIRK1/GIRK4 heterotetramers and a 25-amino acid region required for cell surface localization of GIRK4 homotetramers. GIRK1 appeared intracellular in atrial myocytes isolated from GIRK4 knockout mice and was not maturely glycosylated, supporting an essential role for GIRK4 in the processing and cell surface localization of IKACh in vivo.