Self-control and tool use in tufted capuchin monkeys (Cebus apella).

Self-control is defined as forgoing immediate gratification to obtain a greater reward. Tool use may relate to self-control because both behaviors may require foresight and deliberate control over one's actions. The authors assessed 20 capuchin monkeys (Cebus apella) for the ability to delay gratification in a tool task. Subjects were given rod-shaped food items that could either be consumed immediately or be carried to an apparatus and used to extract a more preferred food. The authors found that some monkeys were able to exhibit self-control. Monkeys with relatively more tool use experience demonstrated the greatest levels of self-control. These results indicate that capuchins are capable of delaying gratification when a higher quality reinforcer is present and that tool experience can influence levels of self-control in this task. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

High-Order Compact Schemes with Filters on Multi-block Domains

This paper presents the results of using high-order compact schemes with a high-order filter on multi-block domains. The Linearized Euler Equations (LEE) are solved on a uniform mesh for benchmark problems in one and two dimensions. Also a two dimensional mixing layer is solved by using Large-Eddy Simulation (LES). Three different boundary schemes are compared. The results compare well with the exact solutions and single-block domain results. The effect of the number of points of overlap among the subdomains is investigated. Having four points of overlap is chosen as a compromise between accuracy and efficiency.     

Epo-induced hemoglobinization of SKT6 cells is mediated by minimal cytoplasmic domains of the Epo or prolactin receptors without modulation of GATA-1 or EKLF

The characteristics of GABAergic inhibitory modulation of respiratory bulbospinal neuronal activity and short-term potentiation (STP) of phrenic motoneuronal activity were studied. Extracellular unit recording and picoejection techniques in anesthetized dogs showed that both the spontaneous rhythmic and reflexly induced discharge patterns of inspiratory (I) and expiratory (E) premotor neurons were proportionately amplified by the localized application of picomole amounts of bicuculline (Bic), a competitive GABAA antagonist. Intracellular recording and paired-pulse stimulation techniques in anesthetized rats demonstrated an STP of phrenic motor output that appears to be mediated by NMDA receptors and is associated with facilitation of EPSPs and prolonged depolarization of individual phrenic motoneurons. We speculate that both GABAergic gain modulation of premotor neuronal activity and NMDA-mediated STP of phrenic activity may be neural substrates which are involved with the optimization of respiratory and non-respiratory behaviors, via adaptive and/or differential control of breathing.     

Radiological safety aspects of utilizing coal ashes for production of lightweight concrete

The present paper reports the results of experiments to develop environmentally and economically friendly structural lightweight concretes utilizing coal ashes and other waste materials. The product complies with national and international regulations setting limits on the activity concentration of natural radioisotopes in building products. The utilization of coal ashes in the building industry carries (in addition to its economic advantages) a fringe environmental benefit. This utilization reduces the potential damage to the environment caused by the radioactivity in the combustion by-products (the ashes) stored in piles and ponds near the power stations prior to their disposal. The study deals with the radiological characteristics of coal ashes and lightweight concretes based on these ashes. The ashes are generated at Israel’s power stations from coal supplied from different sources in South Africa, Columbia and Indonesia.     

Time perception and time processing as an aspect of the therapeutic process.

Examines the subtle and paradoxical issues surrounding clients' perceptions and processing of time. This paper illustrates that, though time perception and time processing are uniquely individual tasks with widespread variation, it is the diversity of these processes that enriches therapy and can provide both client and therapist with a deeper understanding of adaptability and coping. Five guidelines and accompanying techniques are identified that offer specific methods of addressing and altering temporal processing related to distress. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A further test of the general monitoring skill hypothesis.

This study tested the general monitoring skill hypothesis, which states that skilled adult learners monitor their comprehension using domain-general metacognitive knowledge in addition to domain-specific knowledge. College students completed 8 tests of fluid and crystallized ability. The 8 tests yielded 3 performance components, whereas measures of monitoring yielded 2 principal components. These findings supported 2 main conclusions: Monitoring scores are correlated across multiple domains, and individuals may possess separate general monitoring skills for fluid and crystallized tasks. The authors also examined the degree to which modular, information-encapsulation, and domain-general theories of cognition accommodated these findings. Domain-general theories, such as the general monitoring skill hypothesis, provided the best explanation of the data. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The Evolutionary Process during Pyrolytic Transformation of Poly(N-methylsilazane) from a Preceramic Polymer into an Amorphous Silicon Nitride/Carbon Composite

The pyrolytic evolution of poly(N-methylsilazane), –[H₂SiN-Me] _x –, from preceramic polymer to ceramic product is followed by heating samples of the partially cross-linked polymer, in 200°C increments, from ambient temperature to 1400°C. The intermediate products are characterized by chemical analysis, diffuse reflectance Fourier transform IR spectroscopy (DRIFTS), Raman spectroscopy, and ²⁹Si and ¹³C magic-angle spinning (MAS) solid-state NMR. Spectro-scopic characterization indicates that the 1400°C pyrolysis products are amorphous silicon nitride mixed with amorphous and graphitic carbon (as determined by Raman spectroscopy), rather than silicon carbide nitride, as expected based on the presence of up to 20 mol% retained carbon. Efforts to crystallize the silicon nitride through heat treatments up to 1400°C do not lead to any crystalline phases, as established by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and small-area electron diffraction (SAD). It appears that the presence of free carbon, along with the absence of oxygen, strongly inhibits crystallization of amorphous silicon nitride. These results contrast with the isostructural poly-(Si-methylsilazane), –[MeHSiNH] _x –, which is reported to form silicon carbide nitride on pyrolysis.     

Robotics and manufacturing education and research— the New Mexico initiatives

Since the early 1980s, the University of New Mexico (UNM) has been increasingly active in the area of manufacturing engineering and robotics research and education. Six robotics and manufacturing laboratories devoted to research and instruction have been established. Many PhD and master's students use these facilities in their research, and instructional programs have been established at the undergraduate and graduate level in both the Mechanical Engineering and Electrical and Computer Engineering Departments.Notably, a master's level program was established in 1987 with participation from two universities, UNM and New Mexico State University. Active collaboration is the mode of operation between the College of Engineering and the Robert O. Anderson Schools of Management at UNM in the manufacturing program, a program in total quality management, and in the establishment of a computer-integrated manufacturing program and laboratory through IBM's CIM in Higher Education Alliance.This paper describes these programs in detail, and discusses some approaches and future plans.     

Psychological separation and adjustment to college.

We examined the relationship between psychological separation and adjustment to college in freshmen (N?=?130) and upperclassmen (N?=?123) samples. Psychological separation was measured with the Psychological Separation Inventory. Adjustment to college was assessed with the College Adjustment Inventory. Freshmen tended to show more psychological dependencies on mother and father, and poorer social and personal-emotional adjustment to college than did upperclassmen. A pervasive relationship was found between separation and adjustment, although separation did not predict adjustment across the board. Separation appears more strongly related to personal-emotional adjustment, particularly functional and emotional independence from mother and conflictual independence from father. Sex effects also emerged, with women showing more psychological dependencies than men. Finally, our results show that advances in separation across the four dimensions are not uniform. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Television use by the elderly.

Notes that television is the mass media most widely used by people over 60 yrs old and describes recent research on how and why the elderly use television. Discussion focuses on the amount and time of television viewing, the motives for viewing, program preferences, and research issues (television and program availability, the role of television in everyday life, and elderly viewers as consumers). (French abstract) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)