Age-related differences in absolute but not relative metamemory accuracy.

In 3 experiments, the effects of age on different kinds of metacognitive prediction accuracy were assessed. Participants made global memory predictions and item-by-item memory predictions in a single experimental task. Metacognitive accuracy was evaluated with correlational and more traditional difference-score measures. Difference-score measures were found, in some cases, to be sensitive to level of recall performance. Correlational techniques revealed that older adults monitored learning effectively. Relative to younger adults, they showed equally accurate immediate judgments of learning (JOLs), produced an equivalent delayed-JOL effect, and showed equivalent upgrading in the accuracy of their global prediction from before to after study of test materials. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Soy foods have low glycemic and insulin response indices in normal weight subjects

Background  

Foods with a low glycemic index (GI) may provide a variety of health benefits. The objective of the present study was to measure the GI and insulin index (II) of select soy foods.     

An Automatic Recognition of the Frontal Sinus in X-Ray Images of Skull

In the present paper, a procedure is developed for fully automatic recognition of the frontal sinus in cranial radiographs. An X-ray image of a whole skull is required at the input of the procedure, which consists of three subsequent steps: the selection of a rectangular region of interest, containing the sinus; detection of the line of brow ridges; and fronto-nasal suture, detection of the borders of the frontal sinus. The recognition algorithm is based on a method of connectivity-preserving thresholding, introduced in the present study, and on watersheds from markers. Totally, 50 X-ray images have been analyzed. The frontal sinus borders were recognized correctly in 41 cases.     

Numerical investigation and visualization of polymer behavior within a capillary die

Numerical analysis of the flow regime within a capillary rheometer has been studied. The vector-based Remmelgas-Harrison-Leal (RHL), analogous to reptation-based polymer models, has been used to model the polymer dynamics. A series of computational methods for visualizing the flow characteristics of the whole region of the capillary rheometer are made including the area directly in front of the piston. Model predictions provide qualitative analysis of pressure drops observed at the entrance of the die, necessitating the use of the Bagley ends correction in practical rheology measurements. The results of the numerical code help reveal the complex flow kinematics that are involved in the entrance region to the capillary die as well as the barrel region in front of the rheometer piston. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 47:1688–1694, 2007. © 2007 Society of Plastics Engineers     

The effect of temperature and environment on the friction of some well characterized refractory surfaces

This paper describes a study of the frictional behaviour of a hard slider traversing the clean surface of molybdenum, tungsten and vanadium carbide crystals in ultra high vacuum. The effect of adding very low pressures of oxygen or hydrogen sulphide was investigated. The surfaces involved were characterized by means of a high energy electron gun incorporated in the system to allow glancing incidence diffraction studies throughout the friction experiments.At all temperatures the coefficient of friction (μ) of molybdenum and tungsten surfaces is isotropic. At high temperatures molybdenum surfaces show frictional behaviour which is heavily dependent on the nature of the slider. Thus with polycrystalline molybdenum sliders the friction rises with temperature but with sapphire sliders it falls. This effect is also seen on tungsten surfaces but is less pronounced.In the presence of an active gas a number of unexpected phenomena are observed. The (110) surface of tungsten gives low values of μ in high pressures of oxygen and at room temperature but the (100) surface does not. At higher temperatures both surfaces of tungsten are protected by oxygen. On molybdenum surfaces hysteresis effects are seen. Thus cooling a (100) molybdenum surface in oxygen from 1000°C leads to a higher friction than that shown while heating. The same effect is seen on both tungsten and molybdenum surfaces in the presence of traces of H₂S. This leads to the singular observation that over a range of conditions adding traces of oxygen or hydrogen sulphide causes an increase in μ.On vanadium carbide surfaces the frictional behaviour is typical of a very brittle solid. It is shown that the fall in friction on adding oxygen is due to the chemisorbed oxygen rather than any crystalline oxide formed.     

Talking heads

My colleagues and I are developing a system that emulates these popular everyday communication styles. Through the UCI's (University of California at Irvine) Technology Outreach Program, this project is producing a system that not only observes and listens to the talking head of the operator, but also provides a talking head on-screen for the user to hear and watch. Our project specifically uses multimedia to address an immediate and practical goal-better speech recognition. Although implementing “natural” multimedia is a key goal of this project, comfortable use in itself is important, even if only as a motivating or marketing attribute. However, where increased efficiency does not result from using more natural and comfortable procedures, the situation may still improve if the computer begins to act more like a human team-mate     

Deletion mutations in the speED operon: spermidine is not essential for the growth of Escherichia coli

Null mutants of Escherichia coli were constructed that cannot synthesize spermidine, because of deletions in the gene encoding S-adenosylmethionine decarboxylase. These mutants are still able to grow at near normal rates in purified media deficient in polyamines. These results in E. coli differ from recent findings that null mutants of Saccharomyces cerevisiae and of Neurospora crassa have an absolute growth requirement for spermidine.