Reading mutilated text.

Conducted 2 experiments, one with 12 6th graders considered to be good readers and one with 12 junior high and high school students who had normal IQs but were 2 yrs behind on standardized reading scores. Ss read passages of text which had been mutilated by changing the shape of the words and/or the initial, medial, or final letter of words. When the shape had been maintained by replacing letters with letters that shared distinctive features and were visually confusable with them, less reading time was taken and fewer errors were made than when the shape had been altered by replacing letters with letters that were not visually confusable with them. In addition, mutilations to the beginning of a word were considerably more disruptive than mutilations to the middle or end of a word. Good readers and poor readers showed highly similar data patterns. (15 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Synthesis of amorphous niobium-nickel alloys by vapor quenching

Thin film samples (10–15 μm thick) of niobium-nickel alloys in the composition range Nb-5 to 95 at. % Ni were vapor quenched bu r.f. sputtering onto fused quartz substrates held at a temperature of 180°C. It was found that fully glassy alloys were synthesized in the composition range Nb-30 to 85 at. % Ni, which is 2.5 times larger than that reported for splat-quenched alloys. Crystallization temperatures exhibited a maximum near the deepest eutectic in this alloys system and are comparable with those of splat-quenched materials. Nearest neighbor distances are in agreement with results for splat-quenched materials while “effective particle sizes” are consistently smaller. These results are discussed relative to the mechanism by which glassy alloys are synthesized during vapor quenching and the structure of the glassy state.     

Effects of methylphenidate (ritalin) on paired-associate learning and porteus maze performance in emotionally disturbed children.

The stimulant drug methylphenidate was administered in a double-blind, placebo controlled study over a 10-day period to 81 children in 2 institutions. The children were deprived or emotionally disturbed, but none was known to be psychotic, brain damaged, or mentally retarded. Following tests, it was found that 2 children's anxiety scales and an impulsivity scale were unrelated to learning, and individual differences on these scales did not appear to be related to improvement on the drug. There was some indication that the greatest improvement on the mazes occurred for the children with lowest IQ. The results were interpreted as reflecting increased delay of impulsive discharge. Further research on the role of attention mechanisms in response to this drug is suggested. (30 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Continuous purification and acidulation of vegetable oil soapstock

Summary In summary, the results from full-scale continuous production indicate that all types of cottonseed soapstocks are sufficiently upgraded by treatment with strong caustic and graining and washing to permit subsequent acidulation. At 175°–195°F., in the presence of a dispersing agent with spent mineral acid at about 4% H₂SO₄, acidulation of purified soapstock yields a clean, brown, fast-breaking fatty acid phase with acid value about 188, unsaponifiables about 3%, and an Oxidized Acids content of 3–5%. In laboratory distillations, still residues are usually in the range of 18–23% with a 24-hr. Gardner color of about 2 on the color cut.     

The energy balance of an exterior window surface, Inuvik, N.W.T., Canada

This paper examines the energy loss of an exterior window surface during the month of January, 1975, in Inuvik, N.W.T., Canada. Radiative exchanges (L^*) were measured and the energy loss through the window was calculated (Q_F). Since an energy balance exist at the exterior window surface, a heat transfer coefficient (h) was determined by residual: h=(Q_F−L^*)/(T_s−T_a). Calculated values for the heat transfer coefficient compare favourably with those of other studies. The atmospheric controls (i.e. wind speed and cloud cover) on radiative and convective heat losses and their influence on urban climate are discussed with respect to the observational data.     

The Utility of Signal-Detection Theory in the Analysis of Industrial Inspector Accuracy

In an experimental study of inspector accuracy utilizing industrial electronics inspectors as subjects, a visual, subject-paced task requiring a “yes-no” response was used. The results are thought to be generally applicable to visual inspection tasks, but may not be applicable in an inspection task requiring measurement, as in machine parts inspection. The major conclusion of the research is that signal-detection measures are more useful in performance evaluation than are other available measures, because they not only relate performance to payoff, but indicate the magnitude and direction of improvement required.     

Differences in the perception of an authority figure and a nonauthority figure by Navy recruits.

"As predicted from previous work in fearevoking objects and resistance to perceptual distortion, Navy recruits viewing persons through aniseikonic lenses showed higher distortion thresholds when viewing an authority figure than when viewing a nonauthority figure." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Relationship of two process measurement systems for group therapy.

10-min audiosegments from 42 group therapy sessions were rated using 4 Hill interaction matrix variables (W. F. Hill, 1971) and the Truax-Carkhuff (C. B. Truax and R. R. Carkhuff, 1966) variables of empathy, immediacy, self-exploration, and confrontation. Canonical correlation analysis suggested that the 2 systems converged along a dimension labeled Initiating Skills. Factor analysis suggested 3 underlying factors of group process labeled Initiating Skills, Responding Skills, and Discussion Skills. Factors 1 and 3 suggest a multidimensional structure of immediacy clarified by the Hill variables. Factor 2, with high loadings on empathy and self-exploration, identified a qualitative dimension of group process not tapped by the Hill matrix. (6 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Social class bias in clinical judgment.

Reexamined the findings of S. D. Lee (1968 doctoral dissertation) on the tendency of psychiatric residents to ascribe more severe psychopathology to lower-class patients. 15 clinical psychologists and 32 undergraduates were asked to rate a series of paragraphs which described stimulus persons who were either (a) lower or middle class, as indicated by their occupations; (b) normal, neurotic, or psychotic, as indicated by behavioral statements; and (c) neutral or depressed in emotional state. Results show a significant effect of social class on judgments of likelihood of need for professional help for an emotional problem, but in the opposite direction from Lee's findings. Middle-class persons in the present study were generally rated more likely to need help. The social class effect was expecially marked when the ratings were done by laymen, when the stimulus person was normal in behavior, or when he was neutral in mood. (17 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Formation of coke during thermal hydrocracking of Athabasca bitumen

The formation of two structurally different cokes during thermal hydrocracking of Athabasca bitumen is attributed to differences in coking properties of the asphaltenes and the deasphalted heavy oils. The grain-mosaic coke structure formed from the asphaltenes may be ascribed to the presence of crosslinkage groups derived from the phenolic character of this fraction of the bitumen. Carbonization of the deasphalted heavy oils of the bitumen results in a flow-type coke structure. These two cokes appear to form independently of each other and can therefore be readily identified in samples collected from the reactor.