Alcohol's Effect on Triggered Displaced Aggression.

The authors examined alcohol's effect on triggered displaced aggression, the hostile reaction to a second provoking person after provocation from a first. Participants consumed an alcoholic or a nonalcoholic beverage. Subsequently, one individual provoked all of them with moderate intensity. Then, 2 groups were studied: those who received or who failed to receive a second provocation of minimal intensity. Consistent with prior research, participants who received a second, minimal provocation displayed more aggression than those who did not. After participants drank alcohol, the magnitude of this difference was significantly greater, indicating that alcohol increases triggered displaced aggression. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Performance of Alcohol and Safer Sex Change Rulers Compared With Readiness to Change Questionnaires.

As part of a larger intervention study, the authors hypothesized that change rulers created for alcohol and safer sex would be equivalent to longer questionnaires. Ninety-six male college students completed rulers and questionnaires for assessing behavior change readiness. Participants' scores on the rulers significantly correlated with their scores on the questionnaires (r = .77 for alcohol; r = .77 for safer sex). In both domains, the rulers outperformed the questionnaires in predicting behavioral intentions, suggesting that the rulers had at least comparable concurrent criterion validity. This finding is the first of its kind in the safe sex literature and suggests that quick assessments of readiness to change are possible. Because the rulers are a continuous measure, the results are consistent with the idea that the change process is continuous rather than a series of discrete stages. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A fuzzy median‐of‐intercept straight‐line algorithm for use in noisy images

Recently, a crisp robust median‐of‐intercept (MI) straight‐line fitting algorithm was devised for use in image‐processing applications. The algorithm is specifically designed for use in noisy images when the input data is corrupted with both noise and outliers. In this article we describe a fuzzy MI algorithm whose performance is significantly better than the original crisp algorithm. In addition, the new algorithm is fast; its computational complexity being only marginally greater than the original MI algorithm. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Product family modeling for mass customization

With growing reliance on modeling in product development, it is imperative to describe product families in a cohesive way. In particular, mass customization calls for a close integration of product life cycle from customer recognition to delivery and services. This paper proposes a triple-view scheme for modeling product families. Technical challenges are discussed by comparing product family modeling with modeling single products. Individual modeling formalisms for different views are discussed. An example of product family modeling in power supply design is presented to illustrate the feasibility and potential of the proposed approach.     

Childhood Peer Rejection and Aggression as Predictors of Adolescent Girls' Externalizing and Health Risk Behaviors: A 6-Year Longitudinal Study.

This 6-year longitudinal study examined girls' peer-nominated social preference and aggression in childhood as predictors of self- and parent-reported externalizing symptoms, substance use (i.e.. cigarette, alcohol, and marijuana use), and sexual risk behavior in adolescence. Participants were 148 girls from diverse ethnic backgrounds, who were initially assessed in Grades 4-6 and again in Grades 10-12. Results supported a moderator model, indicating that social preference changed the nature of the association between childhood aggression and adolescent outcomes. When accompanied by peer rejection, aggressive behavior was moderately stable over time and significantly associated with adolescent girls' substance use and sexual risk behavior. However, under conditions of peer acceptance, no significant association between childhood aggression and adolescent outcomes emerged. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Experimental Study on the Aging of Sands

Aging effects in sand, such as increases in cone penetration resistance with time after deposition and/or densification, are known to occur in the field, but the causes of these effects are not fully understood. A laboratory testing program was designed to study mechanisms responsible for aging effects under controlled conditions. The testing program included measurements of the small strain shear modulus, electrical conductivity, pore fluid chemistry, and minicone penetration resistance after different periods of aging. Two different sands were tested, and aging effects were evaluated for different combinations of relative density, temperature, and pore fluid composition. Increases in the small strain shear modulus were observed throughout most of the tests, and chemical analyses suggest that precipitation of carbonate and silica occurred in two tests. Despite these changes, there was no corresponding increase in the minicone penetration resistance with time in any of the tests. It is unlikely that precipitation of carbonate or silica is responsible for aging effects in sands; other possible mechanisms include arching due to dissipation of blast gases and redistribution of stresses through the soil skeleton. An additional possibility is that the boundary conditions imposed by the laboratory tests obscure changes in penetration resistance that would be measured had the volume of sand tested been much larger. The implications of these findings in terms of other published field and laboratory studies are discussed.     

High-Modulus Columns for Liquefaction Mitigation

This paper presents the performance of a shopping complex in Turkey where the soils were improved with jet-grout columns and preload fills and subjected to the 1999 Kocaeli Earthquake (M = 7.4). Under construction at the time of the earthquake, the Carrefour Shopping Center covers an area of 55,000?m2 and is founded on shallow footings, mats, and slabs-on-grade that rest on soft, saturated alluvial sediments consisting of clays, silts, and sands. High-modulus columns constructed by jet grouting were installed at close-to-moderate spacings to reduce anticipated static settlements in the clays and mitigate liquefaction in the sands. The site was subjected to a peak acceleration of approximately 0.2g during the earthquake. Grouting had been completed for about two-thirds of the site when the earthquake struck. Following the event, a field reconnaissance found stark contrast between the performance of the improved and unimproved sections. The jet-grout-treated areas suffered no apparent damage, whereas the unimproved sections of the complex, along with nearby untreated building sites, commonly suffered liquefaction-related settlements of up to 10 cm. This is the only case history known to the authors that documents the field performance of high-modulus columns used in this manner for liquefaction mitigation and direct instrumented measurement of liquefaction-induced settlements.     

A correlation coefficient for intuitionistic fuzzy sets

Intuitionistic fuzzy sets are a generalization of the ordinary fuzzy sets in which we have both a membership function μ and a nonmembership function ν. In this article we consider the problem of defining a correlation coefficient between two intuitionistic fuzzy sets. We show that by interpreting an intuitionistic fuzzy set as an ensemble of ordinary fuzzy sets we are able to derive a simple, intuitively satisfying correlation coefficient between two intuitionistic fuzzy sets. We show the reasonableness of the results obtained by examining several test cases. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

A comparative evaluation of dental luting cements by fracture toughness tests and fractography

In recent years there has been a shift from traditional methods of investigating dental materials to a fracture mechanics approach. Fracture toughness (KIC) is an intrinsic material property which can be considered to be a measure of a material's resistance to crack propagation. Glass-ionomer cements are biocompatible and bioactive dental restorative materials, but they suffer from poor fracture toughness and are extremely susceptible to dehydration. The main objective of this study was to evaluate the fracture toughness of three types of commercially available dental cements (polyacid-modified composite resin, resin-modified and conventional glass ionomer) using a short-rod chevron-notch test and to investigate and interpret the results by means of fractography using scanning electron microscopy. Ten specimens of each cement were fabricated according to manufacturers' instructions, coated in varnish, and stored at ambient laboratory humidity, 100 per cent relative humidity, or in water at 37 degrees C for 7 days prior to preparation for testing. Results indicated that significant differences existed between each group of materials and that the fracture toughness ranged from 0.27 to 0.72 MN/m3/2. It was concluded that the resin-modified glass-ionomer cement demonstrated the highest resistance to crack propagation. Fractographs clearly showed areas of stable and unstable crack growth along the fractured surfaces for the three materials examined.