Expectancy versus absorption in the prediction of hypnotic responding.

Administered the absorption scale of the Differential Personality Questionnaire, a measure of imaginative involvement, to 64 undergraduates in the context of a hypnosis experiment and to an additional 64 Ss in a context unrelated to hypnosis. Expectancies of responding to hypnotic suggestions were assessed both before trance induction and after trance induction but before administration of hypnotic test suggestions. Hypnotic depth was assessed on a self-report scale (SRS) before the administration of test suggestions and on an inventory of hypnotic depth (IHD) after the hypnosis session. Absorption was correlated with hypnotic responsivity and expectancy, but only when assessed in the hypnotic context. Completing the Absorption scale in a hypnotic context appeared to affect hypnotic responsiveness by altering Ss' expectancies. Only postinduction expectancies were uniquely predictive of response to hypnotic test suggestions, and all variables except the SRS were predictive of IHD scores. Path analysis supported the hypothesis that trance inductions alter expectancies for responding to hypnotic suggestions and that these altered expectancies determine subsequent hypnotic behavior. (51 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Assessment of the relative sensitivity of milk ELISA for detection of Mycobacterium avium ssp. paratuberculosis infectious dairy cows

Milk ELISA are commonly used for detection of Mycobacterium avium ssp. paratuberculosis (MAP) antibodies in dairy cows, due to low cost and quick processing for large numbers of samples. However, low sensitivity and variations from host and environmental factors can impede detection of MAP antibodies at early disease stages. The objectives of our study were to assess the sensitivity of milk ELISA in comparison with fecal tests and to evaluate how detectable antibody concentrations in milk vary with changes in fecal shedding of MAP, cow age, cow parity, days in milk, and time of year. To compare the sensitivity of a commercial milk ELISA with solid and broth fecal culture and with fecal real-time PCR, a longitudinal study was performed for the identification of MAP-infectious animals as determined by prior fecal testing for MAP shedding. In addition, associations between variation in milk MAP ELISA score and changes in fecal MAP shedding, host age, days in milk, and season were evaluated. Monthly milk and fecal samples were collected over 1 yr from 46 cows that were previously shedding MAP in their feces. Sensitivity of milk ELISA was 29.9% (95% CI: 24.8 to 35.1%), compared with 46.7% (40.7 to 52.7%) for fecal solid culture, 55.0% (49.3 to 60.7%) for fecal broth culture, and 78.4% (73.3 to 83.1%) for fecal direct real-time PCR. The effect of stage of lactation could not be separated from the effect of season, with increased milk ELISA scores at greater days in milk in winter. However, unpredictable monthly variations in results were observed among the 3 assays for individual cow testing, which highlights the importance of identifying patterns in pathogen and antibody detection over time in MAP-positive herds.     

Thrombosis of the cerebral vessels following closed cranial trauma (author's transl)

The case histories are presented of 6 patients, 5 of whom developed carotid artery thrombosis (the left vessel being affected in 4 cases and the right only in 1 case) following closed cranio-cerebral trauma; the 6th patient developed thrombosis of the posterior cerebral artery, as confirmed at autopsy. The factors involved in the aetiology of these events are discussed on the basis of the case reports.     

International real-time streaming of 4K digital cinema

This paper describes the world’s first real-time, international transmission of 4K digital cinema and 4K Super High Definition (SHD) digital video at iGrid 2005, hosted at the California Institute of Telecommunications and Information Technology (Calit2) at the University of California, San Diego. Nearly six hours of live and pre-recorded 4K motion picture and audio content was streamed to iGrid in San Diego from the Research Institute for Digital Media and Content (DMC) at Keio University in Tokyo.

To implement this demonstration, several new technologies were introduced, including a prototype high-performance 4K compressed multicasting system called “JPEG 2000 Flexcast”, and “Soundscape”, a practical scheme for synchronizing audio and video transmitted from different locations over IP networks.

These iGrid 2005 demonstrations proved that it is now feasible to implement networked professional audio/video applications–production, post-production and distribution–even at 4K quality over IP networks up to 15,000 km long. The demonstrations also showed the new 4K motion picture technology being introduced for digital cinema can be usefully applied to other network applications such as remote telepresence, distance learning and scientific visualization.     

Formation and catalytic activity of partially oxidized Pd nanoparticles

Combining multi molecular beam (MB) experiments and in-situ time-resolved infrared reflection absorption spectroscopy (TR-IRAS), we have studied the formation and catalytic activity of Pd oxide species on a well-defined Fe₃O₄ supported Pd model catalyst. It was found that for oxidation temperatures up to 450 K oxygen predominantly chemisorbs on metallic Pd whereas at 500 K and above (~10⁻⁶ mbar effective oxygen pressure) large amounts of Pd oxide are formed. These Pd oxide species preferentially form a thin layer at the particle/support interface. Their formation and reduction is fully reversible. As a consequence, the Pd interface oxide layer acts as an oxygen reservoir providing oxygen for catalytic surface reactions. In addition to the Pd interface oxide, the formation of surface oxides was also observed for temperatures above 500 K. The extent of surface oxide formation critically depends on the oxidation temperature resulting in partially oxidized Pd particles between 500 and 600 K. It is shown that the catalytic activity of the model catalyst for CO oxidation decreases significantly with increasing surface oxide coverage independent of the composition of the reactants. We address this deactivation of the catalyst to the weak CO adsorption on Pd surface oxides, leading to a very low reaction probability.     

Inequality, discrimination, and the power of the status quo: Direct evidence for a motivation to see the way things are as the way they should be.

How powerful is the status quo in determining people’s social ideals? The authors propose (a) that people engage in injunctification, that is, a motivated tendency to construe the current status quo as the most desirable and reasonable state of affairs (i.e., as the most representative of how things should be); (b) that this tendency is driven, at least in part, by people’s desire to justify their sociopolitical systems; and (c) that injunctification has profound implications for the maintenance of inequality and societal change. Four studies, across a variety of domains, provided supportive evidence. When the motivation to justify the sociopolitical system was experimentally heightened, participants injunctified extant (a) political power (Study 1), (b) public funding policies (Study 2), and (c) unequal gender demographics in the political and business spheres (Studies 3 and 4, respectively). It was also demonstrated that this motivated phenomenon increased derogation of those who act counter to the status quo (Study 4). Theoretical implications for system justification theory, stereotype formation, affirmative action, and the maintenance of inequality are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Integrated active antenna array using unidirectional dielectricradiators

In this paper, design considerations and experimental investigations of an integrated active antenna for space power combining that makes use of unidirectional dielectric radiators (UDRs) are presented and discussed. Attractive electrical performance stemming from proprieties of nonradiating dielectric waveguide structures is used to design a prototype at a frequency of 14 GHz. A UDR feed circuit is implemented by microstrip lines and aperture-coupling is studied experimentally for arrays of two, four and eight radiators. Measurements show high coupling and radiation efficiencies of the proposed excitation method. A power-combining efficiency of 89% was measured and a gain of 23.1 dBi was achieved for an antenna with eight radiators and four amplifiers. It is also shown that such a circuit configuration allows the combination of planar Ku-band monolithic hybrid microwave integrated circuit and UDR components in flexible design of active array antennas     

受压荷载作用下的层合板结构：材料和结构的屈曲分析

为了提高组合结构设计的可靠性，需要对层合板失效进行更有效的描述。近期的国际组织已经明确肯定，目前的方法过高地估计了压缩荷载下复合材料的强度。为了改进这一点可以采用一种更为完善的方法。首先，提出研究材料的多尺度失效方法，可以预测在较大荷载范围内不同铺层方式的失效。当最后的破坏只取决于材料特性时，此模型能够准确地描述层合板的失效情况。第二，考虑屈曲状态的结构性分析，提高了模型在压缩荷载下的预测精度。提出了一种简单的方法用来预测屈曲应力和屈曲后状态，甚至在很高的非线性材料状态下也能预测。对比模型和试验结果，十分吻合。     

On the prediction of digital circuit susceptibility to radiated EMI

The effects of radiated radio-frequency interference (RFI) on the operation of digital systems are studied by simulating the response of simple logic circuits to incident plane waves. The simulation is accomplished by combining a linear electromagnetic moment-method model of the wire structure with a nonlinear circuit model of the solid-state components. The complete model is analyzed in the linear and nonlinear regimes as an example. It is shown how a circuit simulator, such as SPICE, can be used in the analysis of an arbitrary wire network loaded with logic circuits, by the process of representing the linear wire network as a lumped-element N-port π network and interfacing it to the nonlinear circuit simulator. Examples are given that demonstrate the occurrence of both static and dynamic failures under various RFI-field excitations and wire structure geometries. The prediction methods presented in this paper, can be used by EMC engineers to assess the likelihood of failures in RFI-exposed digital systems,     

Prosthetic replacement of the anterior cruciate ligament in dogs

Prosthetic cruciate ligaments are now used clinically. Long-term results are not yet available and for that reason an attempt has been made to reproduce the clnical situation in dogs. Post-traumatic osteoarthritis was inevitably noted following simple excision of the anterior cruciate ligament in a control group of 10 animals. Different prosthetic materials were used and their breaking point was compared with that of normal anterior cruciate ligaments. The longest follow-up period was 6 months. Although some animals had no clinically demonstrable instability, at autopsy all prosthetic ligaments were noted to have failed. The degree of post-traumatic osteoarthritis was directly related to the duration of follow-up. The causes of failure of the prosthetic ligament do not appear to be related to the method of anchorage to bone but rather to the type of prosthetic material used. Although the tensile strength may occasionally have been sufficient, the materials did not have the required elastic characteristics to meet the physiologic demands of a normal cruciate ligament.