New Computational Models for Electrostatics of Macromolecules in Solvents

Electrostatic fields of macromolecules (e.g., protein molecules) in solvents are often described by the Poisson-Boltzmann equation. This paper introduces two substantial amendments to the electrostatic model: first, the effective dielectric permittivity of the aqueous solvent layer on the molecular surface is drastically different from its bulk value of ~80 and, second, the recently developed flexible local approximation methods produce different schemes with much higher accuracy than the classical ones     

Three-Dimensional Dynamic Problems for an Elastic Body Containing a Shallow Crack

By combining the methods of boundary integral equations and small parameter, we solve a three-dimensional problem of low-frequency harmonic loading of the surfaces of a shallow crack in an infinite elastic body. The functions of crack opening displacements and the stress intensity factors are obtained in the form of double convergent power series in the wave number and in a geometric parameter characterizing the curvature of the crack. We study the influence of inertial terms on the level of stresses in the vicinity of spheroidal cracks with various values of eccentricity under the action of uniform dynamic pressure with constant amplitude.     

Hybridization of acoustic waves in piezoelectric plates

The conditions for hybridization of the zero-order and high-order acoustic waves propagating in a piezoelectric crystal plate have been studied. The dependence of the phase velocity of the hybrid waves on the parameter hf (h is the plate thickness and f is the wave frequency) is established for the potassium niobate and lithium niobate plates possessing various crystallographic orientations and conductivities. It is found that hybridization takes place when the conductivity of a thin surface layer exceeds a certain critical value, which can vary within broad limits depending on the plate material and orientation. The degree of dispersive repulsion of the coupled modes grows with increasing electromechanical coupling coefficient.     

Production of Functional Nanocrystalline Materials in Hydrogen

On the example of KS25 and KS37 samarium–cobalt-base commercial alloys and LaNi_4.5Al_0.5 alloy, we show the possibility, in principle, of obtaining functional materials in the nanocrystalline state with the help of a planetary mill in hydrogen medium. Milling with a rotational speed of 600 rpm during 24 h leads to the disproportionation of KS25 and KS37 alloys into samarium hydride and iron–cobalt (cobalt) and of LaNi_4.5Al_0.5 into Ni₃Al and amorphous products. After vacuum annealing up to 1181 K, the main phases of samarium–cobalt materials are recombined. The crystallite sizes after annealing are 58–72 and 70 nm for KS25 and KS37, respectively. We established that LaNi_4.5Al_0.5 alloy is not recombined in vacuum, and the nanocrystalline state in it can be reached by milling up to 30 min. The crystallite sizes constitute 45–78 nm.     

Family-Responsive Interventions, Perceived Organizational and Supervisor Support, Work-Family Conflict, and Psychological Strain.

This study examined organizational family-responsive policies, perceptions of the organization as family supportive, and supervisor support as issues that may be salient to the experience of conflict between paid employment (work) and family roles. Data were collected from 355 managerial personnel in New Zealand. Although work-family conflict and psychological strain were strongly linked, the availability of organizational policies had no significant association with levels of conflict or strain, whereas policy usage was related only to work-to-family interference and not to family-to-work interference. On the other hand, perceptions of the organization as family supportive and supervisor support for work-family balance displayed significant relationships with key variables, highlighting the importance of these variables for interventions designed to ameliorate the negative impact of work-family conflict on managerial well-being. Implications for the effective implementation of family-responsive interventions are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

静压下ZnS：Te中Te等电子陷阱的发光

研究了4块ZnS：Te薄膜样品(Te组分从0．5％到3．1％)的光致发光谱在常压下的温度特性．对于Te组分较小的2块样品观察到2个发光峰，分别来自Te1和Te2等电子陷阱；而对Te组分较大的2块样品则只观察到1个来自Te2等电子陷阱的发光．我们还研究了这些发光峰在低温1．5K下的流体静压压力行为．观察到与Te1有关的发光峰压力系数比ZnS带边的要大很多，而与Te2有关的发光峰压力系数则比带边小．根据Koster-Slater模型，价带态密度半宽随压力的增加是Te1中心有较大压力系数的主要原因，而Te1和Te2中心的不同压力行为则是由于压力对两者缺陷势增强的不同效果引起的．     

Allocation of Scarce Water Resources Using Deficit Irrigation in Rotational Systems

On irrigation schemes with rotational irrigation systems in semiarid tropics, the existing rules for water allocation are based on applying a fixed depth of water with every irrigation irrespective of the crops, their growth stages, and soils on which these crops are grown. However, when water resources are scarce, it is necessary to allocate water optimally to different crops grown in the irrigation scheme taking account of different soils in the command area. Allocating water optimally may lead to applying less water to crops than is needed to obtain the maximum yield. In this paper, a three stage approach is proposed for allocating water from a reservoir optimally based on a deficit irrigation approach, using a simulation-optimization model. The allocation results with a deficit irrigation approach are compared for a single crop (wheat) in an irrigation scheme in India, first with full irrigation (irrigation to fill the root zone to field capacity) and second with the existing rule. The full irrigation with a small irrigation interval was equivalent to adequate irrigation (no stress to the crop). It is found that practicing deficit irrigation enables the irrigated area and the total crop production in the irrigation scheme used for the case study to be increased by about 30–45% and 20–40%, respectively, over the existing rule and by 50 and 45%, respectively, over the adequate irrigation. Allocation of resources also varied with soil types.