John E. Exner Jr. (1928-2006).

Presents an obituary for John E. Exner Jr. Many psychologists bounce around a bit before they lock in on the specialty that becomes the focus of their professional life. That was not the case with John Exner. He first laid hands on a set of blots from the Rorschach Inkblot Test in 1953, and his fascination with the instrument anchored his career from then on. Through five decades, 14 books, more than 60 journal articles, and countless workshop and conference presentations, John Exner and the Rorschach became synonymous. John Exner died on February 20, 2006, at age 77, after a courageous fight with leukemia. He is survived by his wife of 55 years, Doris, five children, and 10 grandchildren. Doris was the administrator of Rorschach Workshops since its inception. John chronicled their lifelong love in a series of poems in the dedication section for many of his books. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Reactivity Toward Phenol of Lignin from the Hydrolysis of Sweetgum Wood with Concentrated Sulfuric Acid

Sweetgum wood was hydrolyzed at 20°C and 50°C for different time periods with 68% sulfuric acid. The lignin residues obtained were subjected to a phenolation reaction. For lignin prepared at the lower temperature the maximum phenol uptake was 9.5%, and at the higher temperature only 5–6%. When wood prehydrolyzed with dilute acid was used the phenol uptake rose to 12.5%. However, all the sulfuric acid hydrolysis lignins showed much lower reactivity toward phenol than the 20% phenol uptake exhibited by lignin isolated using concentrated hydrochloric acid.     

High-temperature langasite SAW oxygen sensor

High-temperature langasite SAW oxygen sensors using sputtered ZnO as a resistive gas-sensing layer were fabricated and tested. Sensitivity to oxygen gas was observed between 500°C to 700°C, with a sensitivity peak at about 625°C, consistent with the theoretical predictions of the acoustoelectric effect.     

In-situ burning of oil in coastal marshes. 2. Oil spill cleanup efficiency as a function of oil type, marsh type, and water depth

In-situ burning of spilled oil, which receives considerable attention in marine conditions, could be an effective way to cleanup wetland oil spills. An experimental in-situ burn was conducted to study the effects of oil type, marsh type, and water depth on oil chemistry and oil removal efficiency from the water surface and sediment. In-situ burning decreased the totaltargeted alkanes and total targeted polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in the burn residues as compared to the pre-burn diesel and crude oils. Removal was even more effective for short-chain alkanes and low ring-number PAHs. Removal efficiencies for alkanes and PAHs were >98% in terms of mass balance although concentrations of some long-chain alkanes and high ring-number PAHs increased in the burn residue as compared to the pre-burn oils. Thus, in-situ burning potentially prevents floating oil from drifting into and contaminating adjacent habitats and penetrating the sediment. In addition, in-situ burning significantly removed diesel oil that had penetrated the sediment for all water depths. Furthermore, in-situ burning at a water depth 2 cm below the soil surface significantly removed crude oil that had penetrated the sediment. As a result, in-situ burning may reduce the long-term impacts of oil on benthic organisms.     

Analyzing spatial variations in farm income distributions—a multivariate approach

Many studies have explored the size distribution of income, but empirical analysis has usually involved the examination of statistics which, in effect, summarize characteristics of the distribution, or the relation of a statistic (usually average income) to a set of explanatory variables.The present study differs from previous empirical work by relating observations in specified income intervals to a set of explanatory variables. This multiple equation model appears to be an innovation in income distribution studies.Census data on family unit income distributions by county were taken as observations on a set of dependent variables. Each income class interval is associated with a corresponding dependent variable. The dependent variable consists of the proportionate number or frequency of income units measured in percentage terms. For each dependent variable, then, there will be as many observations as counties reported.Each of the dependent variables is related to a given set of independent variables using multivariate analysis. Observations on these variables are the same for all cases; that is, each dependent variable is related to the same set of independent variables.The multivariate approach employed here allows an investigation of the behavior of a coefficient in each income class in turn. A good deal of additional information (relative to work with income class averages and economic development) is thereby generated. The model was estimated for two time points on California data. The paper includes an interpretation of the results for several independent variables including education and location, and also some comparisons of the results over time.     

Raman microprobe analysis of elastic strain and fracture in electrophoretically deposited CdSe nanocrystal films

The mechanical stability of nanocrystal films is critical for applications, yet largely unexplored. Raman microprobe analysis used here to probe the nanocrystal cores of thick, fractured electrophoretically deposited films of 3.2 nm diameter CdSe nanocrystals measures approximately 2.5% in-plane tensile strain in cores of unfractured films. The crack dimensions determine the overall in-plane film strain, approximately 11.7%, and the film biaxial modulus, approximately 13.8 GPa, from which the biaxial modulus of the trioctylphosphine oxide ligand matrix is inferred, approximately 5.1 GPa.     

Challenges and alternatives for unmanned underwater vehicular research in the Amazon basin: Towards a more sustainable management of water resources and the environment

The Amazon basin is one of the largest hydrographic systems in the world, possessing a great diversity of natural resources in need of more sustainable water and environmental management. However, as much of what lies beneath the surface of Amazonian waters is still unexplored, underwater exploration technologies are seen as a means of research and monitoring. The present work therefore aims to answer two research questions: What are the current technologies that could be implemented for unmanned underwater research in the Amazon waters? What are the main limitations and existing alternatives for using unmanned underwater vehicles in the rivers of this region to provide more sustainable water and environment management? Our results demonstrate that remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) and autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) are possible options in the short and long terms, respectively. The main challenges in implementing these technologies are related to the variations in hydraulic geometry, current velocities and turbidity of the rivers, as well as the preservation of the region's biodiversity. This research can be taken as a starting point for planners and decision makers seeking more sustainable underwater and environmental exploration of the Amazon river system.     

Sterically Enhanced Control of Enzyme-Assisted DNA Assembly**

Traditional methods for the assembly of functionalised DNA structures, involving enzyme restriction and modification, present difficulties when working with small DNA fragments (<100 bp), in part due to a lack of control over enzymatic action during the DNA modification process. This limits the design flexibility and range of accessible DNA structures. Here, we show that these limitations can be overcome by introducing chemical modifications into the DNA that spatially restrict enzymatic activity. This approach, sterically controlled nuclease enhanced (SCoNE) DNA assembly, thereby circumvents the size limitations of conventional Gibson assembly (GA) and allows the preparation of well-defined, functionalised DNA structures with multiple probes for specific analytes, such as IL-6, procalcitonin (PCT), and a biotin reporter group. Notably, when using the same starting materials, conventional GA under typical conditions fails. We demonstrate successful analyte capture based on standard and modified sandwich ELISA and also show how the inclusion of biotin probes provides additional functionality for product isolation.