Development of the Hybrid Weight Assessment System for Multiple Quality Attributes

When designing a product or process, a design engineer is often faced with a number of quality attributes and hence prioritizing the quality attributes is an inevitable task. Development of an adequate weight assessment system for multiple attributes in the early stage of design is crucial, since the choice of paths to quality enhancement depends heavily upon the type of weight assessment system used. Although several weight assessment methods are available in the literature, there is room for improvement. Most weight assessment methods reported in the research community have been developed from the perspective of either customers or a design engineer. This article proposes a hybrid weight assessment system by combining the perspectives of both parties, the customer and a design engineer, in such a way that uncertainty of human perceptions can be modeled using the concepts of fuzzy sets and Monte Carlo simulation. A model is presented and a numerical example is discussed.     

Simulations of a thin sampling calorimeter with GEANT/FLUKA

The Advanced Cosmic-ray Composition Experiment for the Space Station (ACCESS) will investigate the origin, composition and acceleration mechanism of cosmic rays by measuring the elemental composition of the cosmic rays up to 10¹⁵ eV. These measurements will be made with a thin ionization calorimeter and a transition radiation detector. This paper reports studies of a thin sampling calorimeter concept for the ACCESS thin ionization calorimeter. For the past year, a Monte Carlo simulation study of a thin sampling calorimeter (TSC) design has been conducted to predict the detector performance and to design the system for achieving the ACCESS scientific objectives. Simulation results show that the detector energy resolution function resembles a Gaussian distribution and the energy resolution of TSC is about 40%. In addition, simulations of the detector's response to an assumed broken power law cosmic ray spectrum in the region where the ‘knee’ of the cosmic ray spectrum is believed to occur have been conducted and clearly show that a thin sampling calorimeter can provide sufficiently accurate estimates of the spectral parameters to meet the science requirements of ACCESS.     

Age-related decrement in auditory selective attention.

Young (n?=?30), middle-aged (n?=?32), and old (n?=?28) adults repeated (shadowed) words presented to the left ear at 60 words per minute with and without distracter words presented to the other ear. Dichotic shadowing error rate increased with age. An attempt to eliminate the age effect by adjusting for age differences in monaural shadowing errors, fluid intelligence, and pure-tone hearing loss did not succeed. When the analyses were confined to Ss who made no monaural shadowing errors, dichotic shadowing errors still increased linearly with age. These results showed that there are selective-attention deficits in older adults that cannot be accounted for by the uncertainty of the target location. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Changes in energy balance following smoking cessation and resumption of smoking in women.

Caloric intake, resting metabolic rate (RMR), leisure-time physical activity, and sensitivity and preference for sweet taste were prospectively examined in 7 female smokers across 3 weeks during periods of normal smoking (Week 1), complete cessation (Week 2), and resumption of smoking (Week 3). Energy balance changed significantly across weeks, as caloric intake increased (largely as a result of alcohol consumption) and RMR decreased during cessation, followed by decreased caloric intake and increased RMR with resumption of smoking. Activity and taste sensitivity and preference remained unchanged. Smoking cessation may thus cause rapid change in energy balance, which is quickly reversed on resumption of smoking. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Nonhuman primate neuroimaging and cocaine medication development.

Given the important role of the dopamine transporter (DAT) in the addictive properties of cocaine, the development and use of compounds that target the DAT represents a reasonable approach for the pharmacological treatment of cocaine abuse. The present report describes a series of studies conducted in nonhuman primates that evaluated the effectiveness of DAT inhibitors in reducing cocaine self-administration. In addition, drug substitution studies evaluated the abuse liability of the DAT inhibitors. Positron emission tomography neuroimaging studies quantified DAT occupancy at behaviorally relevant doses, characterized the time-course of drug uptake in brain, and documented drug-induced changes in cerebral blood flow as a model of brain activation. Selective DAT inhibitors were effective in reducing cocaine use but high (>70%) levels of DAT occupancy were associated with significant reductions in cocaine self-administration. The selective DAT inhibitors were reliably self-administered but rates of responding were lower than those maintained by cocaine even at higher levels of DAT occupancy. A profile of slow rate of drug uptake in brain accompanied by a gradual increase in extracellular dopamine may account for the more limited reinforcing effectiveness of the DAT inhibitors. Selective serotonin transporter (SERT) inhibitors were also effective in reducing cocaine use and blocked cocaine-induced brain activation and increases in extracellular dopamine. Coadministration of SERT inhibitors with a selective DAT inhibitor was more effective than the DAT inhibitor administered alone, even at comparable levels of DAT occupancy. The results indicate that combined inhibition of DAT and SERT may be a viable approach to treat cocaine addiction. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Melodrama and film noir on today's big screen: How modern audiences experience yesterday's classics.

In the 1940s and 50s, melodrama was described as "the lady's film," whereas men were the supposed fans of film noir. No empirical studies were conducted with filmgoers of that era to validate such claims. This study examined responses of modern-day audiences comprising 16 females and 16 males to these classic genres. An experimental montage technique was developed to compare problem and solution scenes excerpted from 4 melodrama and 4 film noir movies. Participants rated each scene on fifteen 5-point scales related to cognitive and emotional responses and interpreted the meaning of each scene open-endedly. Quantitative analyses indicated that subjects were more sensitive to the character's emotions in melodrama, found this genre to be more complex, and were more apt to experience personal memories. Qualitative analyses revealed that subjects were more aware of the character's emotions and were more likely to identify with the character in melodramas. Interactions showed that participants judged the solution scenes in film noirs to be unrealistic and criticized the main character's actions. Male and female participants did not differentially respond to the two genres. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Issues in preparing an edited volume in psychology.

Discusses the factors that should be considered when preparing to edit a high-quality, scholarly psychology book. The issues discussed include the book editor–publisher relationship, the book editor–chapter contributor relationship, and what makes a good final product. Three laws of editing are offered: (1) conceptualize clearly; (2) edit fiercely; and (3) edit for the reader, not the writer. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Microstructural Analysis and Transport Properties of Thermally Sprayed Multiple-Layer Ceramic Coatings

Multilayer, graded ceramic/metal coatings were prepared by an air plasma spray method on Ti-6Al-4V, 4140 steel and graphite substrates. The coatings were designed to provide thermal barriers for diesel engine pistons to operate at higher temperatures with improved thermal efficiency and cleaner emissions. A systematic, progressive variation in the mixture of yttria-stabilized zirconia and bondcoat alloys (NiCoCrAlYHfSi) was designed to provide better thermal expansion match with the substrate and to improve thermal shock resistance and cycle life. Heat transfer through the layers was evaluated by a flash diffusivity technique based on a model of one-dimensional heat flow. The aging effect of the as-sprayed coatings was captured during diffusivity measurements, which included one heating and cooling cycle. The hysteresis of thermal diffusivity due to aging was not observed after 100-h annealing at 800 °C. The measurements of coatings on substrate and freestanding coatings allowed the influence of interface resistance to be evaluated. The microstructure of the multilayer coating was examined using scanning electron microscope and electron probe microanalysis.     

Hunters are a fundamental component of northern bobwhite quail conservation

Hunters have been a fundamental component of northern bobwhite quail conservation for most of the past century. Bobwhite quail hunters funded the first modern comprehensive life history study of a wild vertebrate in the 1920s to understand causes responsible for population declines. This investigation identified a causal link between frequent applications of prescribed fire and persistence of bobwhite quail populations in the Southeastern United States, and provided the foundation for contemporary fire ecology science. Since then, hunters in the Southeastern and Midwestern United States have funded numerous other bobwhite quail research and conservation efforts. Research and conservation efforts funded by quail hunters in Texas continue to be especially notable. Non-governmental organizations, and academia, as well as state and federal wildlife agencies have been the conduits for efforts to sustain bobwhite quail populations because predominant land uses no longer support bobwhite quail.