Processing high-density, fine-grained Ba2YCu3O7 superconductors

The techniques for processing Ba₂YCu₃O₇ fine-grained, high-density superconductors are described. Densification and microstructure are found to be strongly dependent on the choice of the barium precursor. The resulting microstructures are characterized using transmission electron microscopy.     

A reliability analysis of the electrostatic discharge sensitivity of CMOS devices

Statistical samples of quad 2-input NAND gates (CMOS) were submitted to electrostatic discharge (ESD) according to MIL specifications. The tests were performed at five levels of ESD. Failure thresholds for the devices were measured, and using reliability models such as the Normal, the Two-Parameter Exponential and the lognormal, reliability and hazard rate plots have been generated as functions of absorbed power. An ESD adjacent circuit sensitivity analysis was also performed.     

Perfection and the Bomb: Nuclear Weapons, Teleology, and Motives

Using Burke's theory of perfection, this essay explores the vocabularies of nuclear weapons in US. public discourse and bow "the Bomb" as a God term "bas gained imbalanced ascendancy in centers of power."     

Absolute frequency identification and stabilisation of DFB lasers in 1.5 mu m region

Using a scanning Fabry-Perot interferometer and a reference laser locked to an ammonia absorption line, the wavelengths of four 1.5 mu m DFB lasers were simultaneously identified with an absolute accuracy of +or-0.002 nm (+or-250 MHz). The lasers were then stabilised to arbitrarily specified wavelengths with the same accuracy.<>     

Ultrasound Doppler Probing of Flows Transverse with Respect to Beam Axis

It is an accepted fact that transverse Doppler effects of the first order in v/c are nonexistent for all physical wave phenomena, including acoustics, i.e., the Doppler effect is zero for radiation normal to the direction of motion. However, this statement assumes that the incident field is a plane wave, which is not true in general for finite aperture sources. Consequently, the probing of flows transverse to the axis of finite diameter beams, particularly focused beams, is feasible. This geometry will be advantageous in many applications where the classical orientation of the sound beam, oblique to the flow, is not possible. With this motivation in mind, the theory and experimental feasibility of measuring Doppler spectra in transverse geometries is presently investigated.     

A study of the synergism of poly(vinyl chloride)/polyether-ester blends

The synergism between blends of poly(vinyl chloride), PVC, and a polyether-ester elastomer, COPE, was investigated. Previous research indicated that blends of these two polymers produced synergistic results in the melt index and Izod impact properties of the system. This research confirmed the increased flow properties of the blends using melt index, capillary rheometer, and dynamic mechanical analysis. The synergism was found to be shear rate dependent and an additive relationship was approached at high shear rates. Differential scanning calorimetry showed that the blends were immiscible. This suggested that phase separation was the cause of the synergism in the flow properties and that elongation of the COPE domains most likely produced the shear rate dependency of the blend synergism. The phase separation would also have produced the improvement in the Izod impact properties of the blends.     

Sambar deer (Cervus unicolor) x red deer (C. elaphus) interspecies hybrids

The artificial insemination of 400 red deer hinds with sambar deer semen resulted in 31 pregnancies at day 40 (24 at day 100) and the birth of four calves. Only one female calf was born alive. The artificial insemination of 10 sambar deer hinds with red deer semen resulted in five pregnancies at day 40, of which none went to term. Gel electrophoresis of three blood proteins confirmed the live calf as the first documented sambar deer x red deer hydrid. G-banded karyotypes were consistent with the calf (2n = 62; six unpaired and one paired metacentric autosomes) being the offspring of a red deer dam (2n = 68; single pair of metacentric autosomes) and a sambar deer sire (2n = 56; seven pairs of metacentric autosomes).     

Continuing education activities of Connecticut psychologists.

Responses to a questionnaire survey of continuing education practices were obtained from 85 members of the Connecticut Psychological Association (CPA). With the exception that a high percentage (71%) reported dual occupational affiliations, the sample accurately reflected the demographic composition of both the CPA and Division 12. Respondents indicated that on the average they read 9.9 books, subscribed to 3.8 professional journals, and attended 2.5 specialty workshops and 2.2 conventions annually. A substantial proportion (84%) reported meeting with other professionals on a regular basis. On multiple dimensions, personal contacts and books were valued more highly than journals, workshops, and large-scale conventions. Such contacts were an especially important source of personal support for younger and for female psychologists. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Use of Thin-Film Substrates to Study Enhanced Solid-State Phase Transformations

A thin-film substrate geometry is described for the study of enhanced solid-state phase transformations. A thin film of the seed material is grown on a suitable bulk substrate forming the thin-film substrate. A sol of the material for which seeding is to be studied is then deposited and the sample heated. Cross sections are prepared to study both the extent of the transformation and its crystallography, using electron microscopy. The special feature of this approach is that the position of the original seed/coating interface is known precisely and the thickness of the transformed layer can be measured directly at different stages of the transformation. As an example of this approach, thin films of hematite have been used as substrates for the study of the seeded phase transformation of a boehmite-derived transition-alumina to α-Al₂O₃     

Studies on the fungicidal properties of some organo-tin compounds

The results of an investigation into the fungicidal properties of some bi-functional organo-tin compounds containing mono- and dithiocarbamate ligands are reported. These experiments were conducted against a number of soil and plant pathogenic fungi. While all the compounds examined proved to be powerful fungicides, differences at the concentration levels tested were not sufficiently significant to relate degree of toxicity to ligand structure. Comparison between the fungicidal activity of the di-and triphenyl-tin compounds is in agreement with earlier observations that the latter are more toxic than the former.