Similarity between shock and safe areas during acquisition, transfer, and extinction of escape behavior in rats.

Demonstrated, in 3 experiments with a total of 128 female hooded rats, that performance in escape training was impaired when shock- and safe-box stimuli were similar rather than dissimilar to each other. Prior training with similar shock and safe boxes impaired responding during subsequent training or extinction under the dissimilar shock and safe condition. Prior training under the dissimilar condition did not reliably influence subsequent training or extinction under the similar shock-safe condition. Resistance to extinction under the dissimilar condition was reliably better following training with random presentations to both similar and dissimilar conditions than following training with the dissimilar condition alone. Exp III showed that impairment of escape behavior during training was attributable to response-contingent similarity between shock and safe boxes. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

An emulsion method for the sensory evaluation of edible oils

The flavor intensity of soybean oils was evaluated in emulsions stabilized with gum acacia. A 10-point scale was used with a blank to establish the bland end of the scale and a standard diacetyl solution to establish a point near midscale. Tasting oils in emulsion gave significantly different scores than tasting oil directly. Evaluation in emulsion decreased panel error for poor quality oils but not for very bland oils. At least six samples could be tasted in emulsion without casusing panel fatigue or reducing accuracy. The concentration of oil in the emulsion could be adjusted to increase sensitivity to weak flavors or improve the evaluation of intensely flavored oils. Soybean oils containing various amounts of linolenic acid were evaluated by the emulsion method, and those with lesser amounts of linolenic acid were shown to be more stable. A gas Chromatographic total volatile method was shown to correlate fairly well with sensory evaluation of oils tasted in emulsions under conditions where both flavors scores and total volatiles changed significantly with time. Journal Paper no. J-10442 of the Iowa Agriculture and Home Economics Experiment Station, Ames. Project no. 2143.     

Assessing the psychometric properties of psychodiagnostic systems: How do the Research Diagnostic Criteria measure up?

The Research Diagnostic Criteria (RDC) were developed to meet the researcher's need for a standardized diagnostic system possessing desirable psychometric qualities. Although the RDC constitute an important step in the right direction, a review of the literature indicates that additional research on their validity is needed. Modifications of the existing classifications may be required before the RDC can be considered a finished product. (71 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Statistical Prediction Model for EMC. Analysis of Out-of-Band Phased Array Antennas

A statistical model was developed for predicting and describing the out-of-band pattern characteristics of phased arrays containing ferrite phase shifters. Statistical analysis techniques are necessary because experimental investigations showed that the propagation of higher-order modes at out-of-band frequencies cause phased arrays containing ferrite phase shifters not only to respond differently at out-of-band frequencies but also to exhibit random behavior. Equations were derived which relate the out-of-band pattern scanning properties, relative gain levels, median gain, and standard deviation to the in-band scan angle and the ferrite phase shifter statistics. Computer algorithms were written to both compute and graphically display the out-of-band antenna patterns. Experimentally derived phase-shift data were used as inputs to the model. The results of these investigations show that statistical analysis techniques are potentially very useful in an EMC context for characterizing out-of-band responses of phased array antennas     

Risk-based approach to evaluate the public health benefit of additional wastewater treatment

The City of Stockton, CA operates a wastewater treatment facility that discharges tertiary treated effluent during the summer and secondary treated effluent during the winter to the San Joaquin River. Investigations were carried out between 1996 and 2002 to provide insight regarding the potential public health benefit that may be provided by year-round tertiary treatment. A hydraulic model of the San Joaquin River and a dynamic disease transmission model integrated a wide array of disparate data to estimate the level of viral gastroenteritis in the population under the two treatment scenarios. The results of the investigation suggest that risk of viral gastroenteritis attributable to the treatment facility under the existing treatment scheme is several orders of magnitude below the 8-14 illnesses per 1000 recreation events considered tolerable by U.S. EPA, and winter tertiary treatment would further reduce the existing risk by approximately 15-50%. The methodologies employed herein are applicable to other watersheds where additional water treatment is being considered to address public health concerns from recreation in receiving waters.     

User customisation of medical devices: the reality and the possibilities

While studies of office environments have treated the customisation of technology by users as a positive response to the situated nature of work, customisation of devices in the medical domain, and other safety-critical domains, when acknowledged, has been treated understandably as a violation and a threat to safety. This paper looks at the customisation of medical devices by nursing staff, based on an observational study carried out in three Scottish intensive care units. Drawing on the insights of ethnomethodology, this paper proposes an alternative approach to the study of user customisation and its organisation. An attempt has been made to go beyond the simple categorisation of types of customisation to explicate the detail of how customisation is carried out. Drawing on concerns in human-computer interaction and arguments in medicine surrounding the use of protocols, the potential for supporting customisation in the medical domain is discussed.     

Car insurance and the risk of car crash injury

Despite speculation about the role of vehicle insurance in road traffic accidents, there is little research estimating the direction or extent of the risk relationship. Data from the Auckland Car Crash Injury Study (1998–1999) were used to examine the association between driving an uninsured motor vehicle and car crash injury. Cases were all cars involved in crashes in which at least one occupant was hospitalized or killed anywhere in the Auckland region. Controls were 588 drivers of randomly selected cars on Auckland roads. Participants completed a structured interview. Uninsured drivers had significantly greater odds of car crash injury compared to insured drivers after adjustment for age, sex, level of education, and driving exposure (odds ratio 4.77, 95% confidence interval 2.94–7.75). The causal mechanism for insurance and car crash injury is not easily determined. Although we examined the effects of multiple potential confounders in our analysis including socioeconomic status and risk-taking behaviours, both of which have been previously observed to be associated with both insurance status and car crash injury, residual confounding may partly explain this association. The estimated proportion of drivers who are uninsured is between 5 and 15% in developed countries, representing a significant public health problem worthy of further investigation.     

Microbubble-enhanced cavitation for noninvasive ultrasound surgery

Experiments were conducted to explore the potential of stabilized microbubbles for aiding tissue ablation during ultrasound therapy. Surgically exteriorized canine kidneys were irradiated in situ using single exposures of focused ultrasound. In each experiment, tip to eight separate exposures were placed in the left kidney. The right kidney was then similarly exposed, but while an ultrasound contrast agent was continually infused. Kidneys were sectioned and examined for gross observable tissue damage. Tissue damage was produced more frequently, by lower intensity and shorter duration exposures, in kidneys irradiated with the contrast agent present. Using 250-ms exposures, the minimum intensity that produced damage was lower in kidneys with microbubbles than those without (controls) in 10 of 11 (91%) animals. In a separate study using /spl sim/3200 W/cm/sup 2/ exposures, the minimum duration that produced damage was shorter after microbubbles were introduced in 11 of 12 (92%) animals. With microbubbles, gross observable tissue damage was produced with exposure intensity /spl ges//spl sim/800 W/cm/sup 2/ and exposure duration /spl ges/10 /spl mu/s. The overall intensity and duration tissue damage thresholds were reduced by /spl sim/2/spl times/ and /spl sim/100/spl times/, respectively. Results indicate that acoustic cavitation is a primary damage mechanism. Lowering in vivo tissue damage thresholds with stabilized microbubbles acting as cavitation nuclei may make acoustic cavitation a more predictable, and thus practical, mechanism for noninvasive ultrasound surgery.     

Discontinuities and senior management: assessing the role of recognition in pharmaceutical firm response to biotechnology

Despite an increasing emphasis on the role of senior managementcognition in shaping organizational action, there have beenfew attempts to link top management mental models to strategicchoice in the face of discontinuous innovation. This paper uses23 years of data covering 15 major pharmaceutical firms to explorethe degree to which each firm's response to the revolution inbiotechnology was shaped by the senior team's recognition ofbiotechnology's importance. Controlling for a number of importantalternative explanations, we show that recognition may be animportant predictor of action, suggesting that cognition atthe most senior level can play a critical role in shaping establishedfirms' response to discontinuities.     

Let’s Get Physical! In, Out and Around the Gaming Circle of Physical Gaming at Home

Physical gaming is a genre of computer games that has recently been made available for the home. But what does it mean to bring games home that were originally designed for play in the arcade? This paper describes an empirical study that looks at physical gaming and how it finds its place in the home. We discuss the findings from this study by organizing them around four topics: the adoption of the game, its unique spatial needs, the tension between visibility and availability of the game, and what it means to play among what we describe as the gaming circle, or players and non-players alike. Finally, we discuss how physical gaming in the home surfaces questions and issues for householders and researchers around adoption, gender and both space and place.