MoSi2 diffusion barrier for the passivation of copper at elevated temperatures

Sputter deposited MoSi₂ coatings (200 and 400 nm thick) on copper have been studied in an attempt to prevent or at least reduce the oxidation of copper. Samples were exposed to an air ambient at temperatures ranging from 600–850 °C for up to 15 min. Sputter-deposited MoSi₂ was amorphous upon deposition and crystallized on annealing. Silicon from the MoSi₂ was found to diffuse into the copper causing the MoSi₂ to transform to lower suicides. The primary oxidation product for MoSi₂-coated samples was CuO (with small amounts of Cu₂O), which is in contrast to uncoated copper where Cu₂O is the main oxidation product. The amount of copper consumed by oxidation, for a 200 nm MoSi₂ barrier relative to uncoated copper, was reduced by 140 times at 600 °C and 30 times at 800 °C. A 400 nm MoSi₂ coating yielded an improvement of 420 times at 600°C, and 200 times at 850 °C. For the 400 nm barrier exposed to air for 15 min, this corresponds to a 35 nm CuO layer at 600°C and a 300 nm thick oxide layer at 850 °C.     

Universal-based prevention of syndromal and subsyndromal social anxiety: A randomized controlled study.

This article reports results from a universal preventive program aimed at (a) reducing social anxiety and (b) preventing the development of syndromal social anxiety among a population-based sample of older children and young adolescents during a 1-year period. Pupils (N = 1,748) from 2 counties were cluster randomized to either an intervention or a control condition. In the intervention condition, the Norwegian Universal Preventive Program for Social Anxiety (NUPP-SA)—which educates pupils, parents/guardians, teachers/school staff, and county health workers—was administered. The results indicate that NUPP-SA had a significant specific intervention effect for reducing social anxiety in the total sample as well as among the syndromal subjects. Further, significantly fewer subjects from the intervention county developed syndromal social anxiety during the 1-year period, thus showing a prevention effect. The results demonstrate the value of an intervention specifically aimed at reducing social anxiety and preventing the development of syndromal social anxiety among young people. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Building a meaning bridge: Therapeutic progress from problem formulation to understanding.

Qualitative analyses of 2 clients' psychotherapies (client centered and process-experiential) investigated the developmental progression from formulating a problem to achieving an understanding of it. The results elaborated one segment in the 8-stage Assimilation of Problematic Experiences Sequence (APES), through which problematic parts of a person (described as voices to emphasize their active, agentic qualities) are thought to pass during successful psychotherapy, as they become assimilated into the self (described as a community of voices). The transition between APES Stage 3 (problem statement/clarification) and APES Stage 4 (understanding/insight) was described as a series of substages. The results highlighted the construction of meaning bridges-semiotic links by which the problematic voice could understand and be understood by voices of the community. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

QuikSCAT geophysical model function for tropical cyclones andapplication to Hurricane Floyd

The QuikSCAT radar measurements of several tropical cyclones in 1999 have been studied to develop the geophysical model function (GMF) of Ku-band radar σ₀ values (normalized radar cross section) for extreme high wind conditions. To account for the effects of precipitation, the authors analyze the co-located rain rates from the Special Sensor Microwave/Imager (SSM/I) and propose the rain rate as a parameter of the GMF. The analysis indicates the deficiency of the NSCAT2 GMF developed for the NASA scatterometer, which overestimates the ocean σ₀ for tropical cyclones and ignores the influence of rain. It is suggested that the QuikSCAT σ₀ is sensitive to the wind speed of up to about 40-50 m s^-1. The authors introduce modifications to the NSCAT2 GMF and apply the modified GMF to the QuikSCAT observations of Hurricane Floyd. The QuikSCAT wind estimates for Hurricane Floyd in 1999 was improved with the maximum wind speed reaching above 60 m s^-1. The authors perform an error analysis by comparing the QuikSCAT winds with the analyses fields from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Hurricane Research Division (HRD). The reasonable agreement between the improved QuikSCAT winds and the HRD analyses supports the applications of scatterometer wind retrievals for hurricanes     

Hydrodynamic focusing for vacuum-pumped microfluidics

Hydrodynamic focusing has proven to be a useful microfluidics technique for the study of systems under rapid mixing conditions. Most studies to date have used a push configuration, requiring multiple pumps or pressure sources that complicate implementation and limit applications in point-of-care environments. Here, we demonstrate a simplified hydrodynamic focusing approach, in which a single pump pulling at the device outlet can be used to drive hydrodynamic focusing with not only excellent control over the focus width and stream velocity, but also with minimal sample consumption. In this technique, flow can be either mechanically driven or induced simply through capillarity.     

Molecular basis for subtype-specific desensitization of inhibitory adenosine receptors. Analysis of a chimeric A1-A3 adenosine receptor

The differing effects of short-term agonist exposure on the two inhibitory adenosine receptor (AR) subtypes have been examined using Chinese hamster ovary cells stably expressing the hemagglutinin epitope-tagged human A1AR and rat A3AR. Under conditions in which exposure of transfected cells to 5 microM (-)-(R)-N6-(phenylisopropyl)adenosine resulted in the functional desensitization and phosphorylation of the A3AR, neither property was exhibited by the A1AR. However, a stably expressed chimeric A1-A3AR, termed A1CT3AR, in which the C-terminal domain of the A1AR distal to its predicted palmitoylation site was replaced by the corresponding region of the A3AR, was able to undergo functional desensitization and agonist-stimulated phosphorylation in a manner similar to that exhibited by the A3AR. Moreover, purified G-protein-coupled receptor kinases 2, 3, and 5 were each capable of enhancing the agonist-dependent phosphorylation of the A3AR and A1CT3AR in vitro. Taken together, these data demonstrate that the C-terminal domain of the A3AR distal to its predicted palmitoylation site is responsible for this receptor's ability to undergo a rapid agonist-dependent desensitization and are consistent with a model in which phosphorylation of the A3AR within this domain by one or more G-protein-coupled receptor kinases initiates the desensitization process.     

Pulmonary blastoma

Two cases of pulmonary blastoma are reported. One occurred in a 29-year-old man 31 months after a cyst had been excised from the same pericardial-pleural area. The cyst appeared to be of mesothelial origin and, although supported by a cellular stroma, was originally considered to be benign. The morphologic features, location, and possible relationship to a mesothelial lesion suggest an embryonal-mesothelial origin of the tumor. The patient died of recurrent and metastatic disease 9 years after the first resection. The second case is that of a now 74-year-old woman who, over a period of 19 years, has had six separate small peripheral lung tumors excised. They originally resembled fibrous hamartomas but included embryonal-type immature areas and became increasingly more cellular and sarcomatous. The fine structure of the recurrent tumors is that of primitive stroma with few fibrils but no other differentiating features.     

Diet-induced atherosclerosis in the domestic cat

The domestic cat has not been used in studies of atherosclerosis, with the exception of a single study published in 1970. We have further evaluated the susceptibility of the domestic cat to diet-induced atherosclerosis, the ultimate intent being to discern the atherogenic risk due to lipoprotein lipase deficiency in an affected feline kindred with a phenotype very similar to that of the human form of this condition. We subjected a group of normal domestic cats to a moderately high-fat, cholesterol-enriched diet (30% fat and 3% cholesterol) for a period of 2 to 8 months. Plasma lipid levels were monitored monthly. At the time of killing, all organs and the entire vascular tree were removed, sectioned, processed, and stained with hematoxylin and eosin. The entire vascular tree was also stained with Movat's pentachrome and oil red O (ORO) and assessed semiquantitatively (0 to 5+/5+) and quantitatively (mean intimal area and ORO positivity, mm2). Both blood lipid measurements (total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol, triglycerides, and low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol) and vessel wall lesion assessment (intimal area, mm2) were statistically elevated (p < 0.05) in the cholesterol-fed cats as compared to those on a normal diet. The highest correlations obtained between blood lipid components and vessel wall measures were the percent increase in triglyceride from base line versus the ORO measurement or foam cell grade (r = 0.86), and percent increase in triglycerides versus the intimal area in the lower abdominal aorta (r = 0.91). Similar relationships were found when the intimal area in the brachiocephalic/subclavian vessels was correlated with the absolute triglyceride values (r = 0.85) or with the percent increase in triglycerides (r = 0.83). Thus, we produced atherosclerotic lesions in the cat within 2 to 4 months on a cholesterol-enriched diet; blood lipid levels were highly correlated with lesional measurements in the vessel wall. This study will provide the basis for evaluation of the susceptibility of New Zealand lipoprotein lipase-deficient cats to diet-induced atherosclerosis.     

Interactions of depressed college students with their roommates: Not necessarily negative.

Coyne's (1976b) interactional theory of the social environment's role in maintaining depression suggests that depressed people create negative affect in others. This leads to a pattern of interactions between depressed individuals and others that is aversive to both parties and becomes a vicious circle. We examined interactions of 15 depressed and 15 nondepressed college students with their roommates. On questionnaires, roommates did indicate more rejection, dislike, and avoidance of the depressed students than of the nondepressed students, consistent with Coyne's theory, and depressed-student–roommate interactions were more personally involved (higher percentage of self-disclosure) and less positive than nondepressed-student–roommate interactions. The moods of both depressed students and their roommates were worse than those of controls before the interaction but, contrary to expectation, improved over the course of the interaction, whereas the moods of nondepressed students and their roommates did not change significantly. Implications of these results for Coyne's theory are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Primary therapist response modes: Comparison of six rating systems.

Six therapist response-mode rating systems were compared in order to delineate a set of primary modes that would best summarize the domain of therapist actions. Ratings of seven diverse therapy sessions showed that, in spite of differences in measurement assumptions and rater characteristics, interrater reliabilities generally were similar. When categories in different rating systems were collapsed to the same level of specificity, moderate to strong convergence was found for the six modes rated in all systems: question, information, advisement, reflection, interpretation, and self-disclosure. These modes discriminated among the seven contrasting therapeutic approaches. Each therapist was characterized by a unique pattern of response modes that differed significantly from the others. Researchers interested in assessing therapist in-session behaviors should consider incorporating measures that include these six modes. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)