Modeling the Stationarity and Gaussianity of Spontaneous Electroencephalographic Activity

Considerable motivation exists for the development of an adequate statistical model for spontaneous electroencephalographic (EEG) activity. At present, almost all methods of time-domain and frequency-domain EEG analysis are based on implicit assumptions regarding the statistical characteristics of the underlying random process, particularly with respect to the extent of stationarity and Gaussianity of the process. However, the actual characteristics of specific EEG ensembles have not been extensively investigated. In this paper, a technique is proposed for estimating the degree of wide-sense stationarity and the degree of Gaussianity of an ensemble of EEG records. Results which have been obtained by applying this technique to three relatively large ensembles of multichannel EEG data are also described. In addition, the comparative advantages of employing alternate methods of EEG analysis are discussed in relation to the estimated degree of stationarity and Gaussianity of the particular EEG ensembles under consideration.     

Annealing behavior of electroplated permalloy thin films. II

The isochronal and isothermal annealing behavior of electroplated Ni-Fe thin films in the temperature range 373°–773°K has been investigated through measurements of electrical resistivity, coercivity, and relative permeability. Analysis of the experimental data indicates that the resistivity decrease is characterized by an activation energy of about 0.70 eV for temperatures up to 550 ° K, and by an activation energy of about 1.82 eV above this temperature. The coercivity initially decreases with an activation energy of about 0.71 eV, and then increases with activation energies up to 1.81 eV. The relative permeability decreases with an activation energy of 1.01 eV. The significance of these activation energies is discussed in terms of structural changes, and the results are compared with the annealing behavior of vapor deposited Ni-Fe thin films.     

Evaluation of a surfactant mixture C31G as a teat dip by a modified excised teat model

A mixture of amphoteric surfactants with antimicrobial properties, C31G, was evaluated as a teat dip by a modified excised teat model. The model was modified to avoid misinterpretation of results from indigenous bacterial microflora on teats. In three experiments, bacterial numbers recovered from teats dipped in .75, 1.5, and 3.0% solutions of C31G were compared with bacteria recovered from undipped teats (negative controls) and teats dipped with 1.0% iodophor (an effective teat dip). Mean log reductions of teat end concentrations of Staphylococcus, aureus, Streptococcus fecalis, and Escherichia coli were determined in each experiment. Efficacy was greatest for the 3.0% solution of C31G with mean log reductions (Log reduction = Log 10 of controls - Log 10 of dipped teats) 3.53 for Staphylococcus aureus, 2.89 for Streptococcus fecalis, and 3.16 for Escherichia coli. Iodophor (1%) yielded mean log reductions of 3.26 for Staphylococcus aureus, 2.16 for Streptococcus fecalis, and 2.83 for Escherichia coli. For all three organisms, number of viable organisms decreased with increasing concentrations of C31G. The efficacy of C31G should be evaluated in vivo.     

Inhaled and oral bronchodilator therapy in exercise induced asthma

Measurements of peak expiratory flow rate during serial exercise tests were used to assess the efficacy of the beta adrenergic stimulants oral terbutaline (5 mg) and fenoterol aerosol (400 micrograms), in preventing post-exercise bronchoconstriction in 18 asthmatic subjects. While both compounds significantly elevated resting levels of peak expiratory flow rate for at least four hours, there were qualitative and quantitative differences in the effects of the two drugs on exercise induced bronchoconstriction. Oral terbulation did not significantly alter the pattern of response to exercise. However, the peak expiratory flow rates before during and after exercise were significantly higher compared with placebo at two, four and six hours after the drug. The importance of examination of actual values for peak expiratory flow rates as well as percentage changes when testing oral bronchodilators is emphasised. Aerosol fenoterol completely blocked post-exercise bronchoconstriction immediately after inhalation and for up to four hours in most subjects. Bronchodilatation occurred in all subjects during exercise in the presence of both the active and placebo drugs. It is postulated that the superiority of the aerosol in blocking exercise induced bronchoconstriction may be function of its activity at the surface of the bronchial mucosa.     

Analytical techniques for cell fractions. XXIII. A stable thermal gradient device for heat denaturation studies on proteins

The ISO-DALT two-dimensional electrophoretic system (1,2), based on the method of O'Farrell (3), is capable of performing large numbers of analysis on complex mixtures of proteins. However, both separations employed are carried out under dissociating or denaturing conditions and no enzyme activities are readily observable in the analyzed proteins. In order to identify the spots corresponding to particular enzymes, it is therefore necessary to employ some nondestructive resolving technique first and as a second step to perform both enzyme and two-dimensional electrophoretic analyses on the fractions generated. By correlating enzyme activity with intensity of various spots on the two-dimensional gels throughout the series of initial fractions, identifications, can be made. This approach, unlike the more direct immunoprecipitation methods (4), requires the running of large numbers of enzyme analyses and two-dimensional gels and some convenient initial resolving procedure. Convenient and rapid techniques for the analyses (5,6) and gels (1,2) have been described previously in this series and elsewhere. This paper deals with the use of selective denaturation in a temperature gradient as an initial resolving procedure and describes a simple thermal gradient device for generating such a gradient.     

Role expectation and role performance in distressed and normal couples.

To determine the relative importance of role expectations vs role performances in differentiating distressed from nondistressed couples, the Kelly-Tharp Marital Role Questionnaire was administered to 26 couples seeking psychiatric services and to 26 matched control couples. Distressed and nondistressed Ss were found to reflect very similar responses on expectation items and highly dissimilar responses on corresponding enactment items—findings that were particularly striking for items within the Sexuality and Solidarity scales. Methodological and theoretical considerations relevant to these findings are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Validity and utility of the attributional style construct at a moderate level of specificity.

The validity and utility of attributional style has been questioned in recent years. Major criticisms are that attributional style is not cross-situationally consistent, is not measured appropriately, has little construct validity, and contributes little to the prediction of important social behaviors. This article examines these issues with data primarily related to the several different attributional style measures found in Anderson's Attributional Style Assessment Tests. We examined previously published and new data. The results show evidence of convergent and discriminant validity for attributional styles assessed at an intermediate level of specificity. Also, attributional style effects were as large as parallel attribution manipulations in complex social settings. We concluded that both the extreme pessimism of some recent researchers and the broad, sweepingly optimistic claims of some proponents are unwarranted, and that further work on specifying the appropriate level of assessment for attributional style would be useful. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Correction to Anderson, Horowitz, and French.

In the article, "Attributional Style of Lonely and Depressed People," by Craig A. Anderson, Leonard M. Horowitz, and Rita deSales French (Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 1983, Vol. 45, No. 1, pp. 127-136), there were errors consisting of several reversed signs on the ability attributional style correlations with loneliness and depression. Corrections are published here. (The following abstract of this article originally appeared in record 1984-06765-001). Compared the attributional styles of lonely and nonlonely people and of depressed and nondepressed people in 2 studies. A questionnaire was formed, consisting of 20 hypothetical situations. Half of the situations were interpersonal, and half were not; half described successful outcomes, and half described failures. S selected an attributional alternative that best explained the outcome. The questionnaire was administered to 304 college students, along with the Beck Depression Inventory and the UCLA Loneliness Scale. Results show that lonely and depressed people ascribe interpersonal failures to unchangeable characterological defects in themselves (e.g., a lack of ability). Because the prototype of a lonely person is more singularly interpersonal than is the prototype of a depressed person, it was hypothesized that loneliness would show higher correlations with the attributional style. This hypothesis was confirmed in Study 2 with approximately 200 college students. Findings were replicated using a modified version of the questionnaire. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)