An investigation of hot corrosion morphology by color X-ray distribution imaging

The structure of corrosion layers on nickel-base alloys resulting from reaction with sulfur dioxide and sodium sulfate at elevated temperatures (hot corrosion) has been studied by the method of color X-ray distribution imaging. This technique involves the preparation of color composite prints by superimposing primary color images of the individual element X-ray distributions on a single sheet of color film. By a proper choise of primary tints, the distribution of reaction products and other features of thé corrosion morphology can be clearly defined as a result of color mixing in the composite micrograph. The distribution of corrosion products in the surface layers of Ni-Cr and Ni-Al alloys and an IN 738 specimen following sulfidation was investigated using this technique.     

Confessions of a textbook writer.

Describes the genesis of the author's introductory psychology text, Understanding Human Behavior. His first mentor, Karl Dallenbach, emphasized the importance of "humanizing" the introductory course by telling the students anecdotes about psychology and psychologists. Many of these stories appear in the text. Other colleagues taught the author how to make "the facts" of psychology memorable through careful organization, integration, and clearly defined terms. The author suggests such pedagogical devices are necessary for efficient learning—in part because the 2 brain hemispheres may process information in different ways. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Least weight structures for threshold frequencies in a seismic environment

Conventional component seismic design procedures fall into two categories: a table of component forces (which often result in grossly conservative or grossly underdesigned structures); or sophisticated computer analyses using detailed models which undergo dynamic time-history force simulations. Aerospace engineers have designed many component structures to a minimal-fundamental, or “threshold” frequency specification. Although it does not appear as generally applicable for ground-supported “base structures”, the design of substructures for earthquake induced forces can similarly adopt such specifications. For example, radio towers, water tanks, electrical gear, etc., which are supported by larger structures will be subjected to the filtered natural frequencies of the “base structure” regardless of the earthquake spectrum. By knowing approximate amplification factors for the principal contributing frequencies (and corresponding base-excitation levels) of its “base structure”, a substructure specification for the (1) dynamic amplification factor, (2) arbitrary safety-factor and (3) threshold design frequency can be determined. This paper describes adjustment of a structure's fundamental frequency to a prescribed minimum level by a modified Rayleigh method which simultaneously converges to the fundamental mode while being proportioned accordingly to a fully-stressed optimum design.     

Isolation of erythropoietin receptor agonist peptides using evolved phage libraries

Cyclic peptides capable of activating the erythropoietin receptor (EPOR) were isolated from phage display libraries by screening with a novel EPOR-IgG fusion protein reagent. A parental clone ERB1 (EPO Receptor Binder 1) was first isolated from a phage display library displaying 38 random amino acids as an N-terminal fusion with the M13 minor capsid protein, pill. An evolved library was then produced from the parental sequence using an oligonucleotide saturation mutagenesis strategy which yielded EPOR binding sequences with 20 times the relative affinity of ERB1. Two synthetic peptides were constructed from these sequences both of which bind the EPO receptor in specific ELISA, and act as full agonists in EPO dependent cell proliferation assays. These peptides are 18 amino acids in length, disulfide-bonded, and have a minimum consensus sequence of CXXGWVGXCXXW, where X represents positions tolerant of several amino acids.     

Seat position and the risk of serious thoracoabdominal injury in lateral motor vehicle crashes

CONTEXT: Previous studies have suggested that motor vehicle occupants seated on the near-side of a lateral impact have a higher proportion of thoracoabdominal injuries. However, due to limitations in previous studies, the true association between seat position, side of lateral impact, and thoracoabdominal injury is unclear. OBJECTIVE: To assess the relationship between seat position (i.e., near-side, middle-seat, and far-side, regardless of row), side of lateral motor vehicle crash (MVC), and serious thoracoabdominal injury after adjusting for important crash factors. DESIGN: National population-based cohort of adult subjects involved in MVCs and included in the National Automotive Sampling System Crashworthiness Data System database (NASS CDS) from 1995 to 2003. PATIENTS: Occupants aged > or =16 years involved in MVCs where the highest external deformation of the vehicle was located on the right or left side (i.e., lateral). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Serious thoracic or abdominal injury, defined as an Abbreviated Injury Scale (AIS) > or =3 in the thoracic or abdominal body region. RESULTS: Fifteen thousand, one hundred and sixty persons involved in primary lateral MVCs were represented in the NASS CDS database during the 9-year period. There were 1867 (2%) persons with serious thoracic injuries and 507 persons (0.5%) with serious abdominal injuries. In multivariable logistic regression models that adjusted for important crash factors and the NASS CDS sampling design, seat position was a strong effect modifier of the association between side of lateral impact and serious thoracic (p<0.0001) and abdominal (p=0.0009) injury, with the risk of serious thoracic and abdominal injury highest for occupants seated on the near-side of the crash. The mean probability of injury was higher for near-side and middle-seat occupants compared to far-side occupants, and the probability of thoracic injury was approximately four times higher than that of abdominal injury for all seat positions. CONCLUSIONS: There is a strong, synergistic relationship between seat position and side of lateral MVC in assessing risk of serious thoracic and abdominal injury among adult occupants. The probability of serious thoracoabdominal injury increases with increasing proximity of seat position to side of the crash and the risk of thoracic injury is higher than abdominal injury for all seat positions.     

Chromatographic studies on oxidative and thermal fatty acid dimers

A chromatographic study was carried out to investigate the nature of polymeric products in edible oils. Dimers from low-temp oxidation of methyl linoleate were compared with thermal dimers from high-temp polymerization of conjugated methyl linoleate. The distilled dimers were subjected to liquid-partition chromatographic separations on silicic acid columns as methyl esters, as free acids, and as methyl esters prepared by saponification and reesterification. Chromatographically isolated dimer fractions were also rechromatographed before and after each treatment. When thermal dimer esters are saponified and reesterified, chromatographic recoveries are quantitative, and the expected changes in polarity result; whereas, with oxidative dimer esters, gross changes in polarity occur. Chromatographic separations of dimer esters or their acids fractionate into distinct areas of increasing polarity. Presented at the AOCS Meeting, New Orleans, 1964. Honorable Mention, Bond Award Competition. A laboratory of the No. Utiliz. Res. & Dev. Div., ARS, USDA.     

Partial hydrogenation and winterization of soybean oil

Soybean oil was hydrogenated under selective and nonselective conditions to give products with iodine values (I.V.) ranging from 85-115. The products were crystallized at 8C and examined for yield, stability, and fatty acid composition of the winterized oil. Changes in fatty acid composition, formation oftrans acids, and yield of winterized oil are approximately linear with the degree of hydrogenation. Stearine fractions, which are 15-20 I.V. units lower than winterized oil, were further crystallized in solvents to yield liquid oils and hard stearines. Presented at AOCS meeting, Toronto, Canada, October 1962 A laboratory of the No. Utiliz. Res. and Dev. Div., ARS, USDA     

On-line and memory-based aspects of individual and group target judgments.

Ss were given instruction sets to induce either on-line or memory-based processing while reading behavioral statements about individual and group targets. Impression-set instructions induced on-line judgments, and comprehensibility-set (comp) instructions induced memory-based judgments regardless of target type. More important, with nondirective instructions (memory set), natural differences in processing information about individuals and groups were observed, with more on-line judgments for individuals. As expected, illusory correlations between minority targets and infrequent behaviors (a memory-based product) emerged with comp instructions (which induced memory-based judgments for both target types) and in the memory-set condition for group targets only. These data provide insights into the differences in impression formation for groups and individuals and furnish direct evidence of the processes responsible for illusory correlations. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Targeted Synthesis of Complex Spiro[3H-indole-3,2′-pyrrolidin]-2(1H)-ones by Intramolecular Cyclization of Azomethine Ylides: Highly Potent MDM2–p53 Inhibitors

Mouse double minute 2 (MDM2) is a main and direct inhibitor of the crucial tumor suppressor p53. Reports from initial clinical trials showed that blocking this interaction with a small-molecule inhibitor can have great value in the treatment of cancer for patients with p53 wild-type tumors; however, it also revealed dose-limiting hematological toxicities and drug-induced resistance as main issues. To overcome the former, an inhibitor with superior potency and pharmacokinetic properties to ultimately achieve full efficacy with less-frequent dosing schedules is required. Toward this aim, we optimized our recently reported spiro-oxindole inhibitors by focusing on the crucial interaction with the amino acid side chain of His96_MDM2. The designed molecules required the targeted synthesis of structurally complex spiro[indole-3,2′-pyrrolo[2,3-c]pyrrole]-2,4′-diones for which we developed an unprecedented intramolecular azomethine ylide cycloaddition and investigated the results by computational methods. One of the new compounds showed superior cellular potency over previously reported BI-0252. This finding is a significant step toward an inhibitor suitable to potentially mitigate hematological on-target adverse effects.     

Structure of unsaturated vegetable oil glycerides: Direct calculation from fatty acid composition

Composition and structure of unsaturated glycerides of vegetable oils can be calculated directly from the fatty acid composition of the oil. Fatty acid distribution on the 2 position as normally determined by lipase hydrolysis is calculated from the composition of the whole oil by applying the following three rules in their respective order: Saturated fatty acids and those with chain length greater than 18 carbons are first distributed equally and randomly on the 1 and 3 position of the glycerol moiety; oleic and linolenic acids are treated equally, or as a unit, and distributed equally and randomly on all three glyceride positions with any excess from the 1 and 3 position being added to the 2 position; and all remaining positions are filled by linoleic acid. Remarkably good agreement between the calculated and experimentally determined fatty acid distributions is shown for soybean, linseed, safflower and many other vegetable oils whose compositions are reported in the literature. An association between oleic and linolenic acid within the glyceride structure of some vegetable oils is evident. Presented in part at the T. P. Hilditch Symposium Annual Meeting AOCS, Houston, Texas, 1965. No. Utiliz. Res. Dev. Div., ARS, USDA.