Assessment of test user qualifications: A research-based measurement procedure.

The qualifications of test purchasers have been a concern of the American Psychological Association since 1950, when ethical standards for test distribution, on the basis of a 3-level classification of tests, were developed. The standards relied on professional credentials and on occupational titles to screen test purchasers. In response to widespread recognition that credentials and titles were inadequate to screen test purchasers, the Test User Qualifications Working Group used 2 job analysis methods to determine test user competencies. This article describes the results of that research that can be applied to improving testing practices, including (a) 86 test user competencies and 7 factors accounting for much test misuse, (b) a test classification system based on critical incidents of test misuse, and (c) empirically based test purchaser qualification forms. These products are designed to help achieve responsible test use. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

An object-oriented system for ergonomic risk assessment

Abstract: During the last decade, cumulative trauma disorders have become a major concern both to occupational health and safety professionals and manufacturing industries. This paper will present the development of a knowledge-based system for predicting the potential of developing strain injuries among employees exposed to repetitive and forceful activities. This potential is identified through the use of an expert system incorporating a fuzzy set algorithm. Recommendations for the prevention of the resulting CTDs are then provided by the system. The system executes on a microcomputer platform, and was constructed utilising a commercial object-oriented expert system shell.     

ETHANOL FROM SOUTHERN HARDWOODS: THE ROLE OF PRESULFONATION IN THE ACID HYDROLYSIS PROCESS

A two-stage acid hydrolysis process is currently used in the production of ethanol from hardwoods. In this process, dilute sulfuric acid in water at high pressure and short residence times hydrolyzes the wood and first stage substrate. The chemical action is particularly impeded in the second stage by the presence of acid condensed lignin.

Presulfonation followed by delignification is proposed using a sulfur dioxide/water sulfuric acid/ethanol treatment step in place of the first stage acid hydrolysis step to alleviate this problem.

Results presented include the effects caused by varying treatment time, sulfur dioxide concentration, temperature and ethanol concentration on the degree of delignification, and, on the recovery of C₅ and C₆ sugars in the hydrolysates. A preliminary economic feasibility analysis is made to determine the impact of improved ethanol yields and lignin by-product values in the production of ethanol from hardwoods.     

A control and management network for wireless ATM systems

This paper describes the design of a control and management network (orderwire) for a mobile wireless Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) network. This mobile wireless ATM network is part of the Rapidly Deployable Radio Network (RDRN). The orderwire system consists of a packet radio network which overlays the mobile wireless ATM network. Each network element in this network uses Global Positioning System (GPS) information to control a beamforming antenna subsystem which provides for spatial reuse. This paper also proposes a novel Virtual Network Configuration (VNC) algorithm for predictive network configuration. A mobile ATM Private Network–Network Interface (PNNI) based on VNC is also discussed. Finally, as a prelude to the system implementation, results of a Maisie simulation of the orderwire system are discussed. This revised version was published online in June 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Psychopathy in instrumental and reactive violent offenders.

Can violent offenders who commit acts of instrumental aggression for goal-oriented purposes such as robbery be distinguished from those who commit acts of reactive (or hostile) aggression in response to provocation? Because violent offenders often have a history of both instrumental and reactive aggression, this study distinguished between offenders with a history of at least 1 instrumental violent offense and offenders with a history of reactive violent offenses. Two studies tested the hypothesis that instrumental offenders would score higher than reactive offenders and nonviolent offenders on R. D. Hare's (1991) Psychopathy Checklist. The first study sample consisted of 106 violent and nonviolent offenders recruited from a medium-security correctional facility. The second study sample consisted of 50 violent offenders referred for pretrial forensic evaluation. In both samples, instrumental offenders could be reliably distinguished from reactive offenders on the basis of violent crime behavior and level of psychopathy. Group differences could not be attributed to participant age, race, length of incarceration, or extent of prior criminal record. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Differential effects of selective immunotoxic lesions of medial septal cholinergic cells on spatial working and reference memory.

The effect of injection into the medial septum of a toxin selective for cholinergic neurons, 192 IgG-saporin, was examined in rats trained to perform 2 versions of the radial 8-arm maze task. Rats were first trained to perform a task with varying delays (0, 1, 2 min) imposed between the 4th correct arm choice and access to all 8 arms. Lesioned rats made significantly more errors in the first 4 choices compared with controls and significantly more errors after delays; however, this effect was not delay dependent. Rats were then trained on a different version of this 8-arm maze task in which they learned to avoid 2 arms that were never baited. There was no treatment effect on acquisition of this task. These data are consistent with the hypothesis that the cholinergic projection to the hippocampus facilitates the acquisition of information into the system responsible for short-term memory for locations visited (spatial working memory) but is not involved in retention of this information. It also appears to play no role in either the acquisition or retention of place-nonreward associations (spatial reference memory). (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Bombesin and cholecystokinin differentially affect ingestive microstructural variables whether given alone or in combination.

The ability of dose combinations of cholecystokinin (CCK) and bombesin to inhibit liquid glucose (0.125 gm/ml) intake and affect microstructural components of ingestive behavior in rats was examined. Five min before access to the glucose solution, rats were injected with dose pairs of CCK and bombesin. Both CCK and bombesin inhibited intake in a dose-related fashion. The magnitude of the inhibition produced by dose combinations was never greater than the sum of the inhibitions produced by the individual doses. CCK and bombesin affected different microstructural components of ingestion. CCK reduced burst size and cluster size, whereas bombesin reduced burst number and cluster number. These effects of the 2 peptides were not altered by the presence of the other peptide. These results suggest that different mechanisms of action underlie the feeding inhibitory actions of the 2 peptides. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)