When West meets East: Contributions of Eastern traditions to the future of psychotherapy.

Discusses 2 interrelated traditions as they are reflected in contemporary and traditional approaches to psychotherapy in Japan. One uses various meditational and self-focusing instructional sets whose common goal is to facilitate the slowing down, deepening, and clearer focusing of sensory and interpersonal awareness. The 2nd tradition focuses on physical self-regulation and autonomic self-control through exercises that foster enhanced voluntary control over physical states and processes. Eastern psychology offers a set of practices that help the individual overcome the inherent selfishness of his/her isolated experience. The goals of such work include recognition of gratitude to important people in the client's life, rediscovery of the joy of meaningful work, and the experience of a unifying cosmic consciousness. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Fe-Cr-Mn奥氏体合金的辐照体胀与诱起晶界偏析行为的研究SCIEI

本文采用电子束辐照,研究了Fe-15Cr-xMn合金以及添加W,V合金的孔洞体胀和诱起晶界偏析行为,并对包含晶界在内的辐照区进行成分分析。结果表明,在Fe-Cr-Mn系合金中孔洞体胀孕育期可以被强烈抑制,晶界偏析也减少。特别是,合金中添加W,V效果更加明显。用Mn代替Ni,通常要发生体胀和相的不稳定性,由于反Kirkendall效应导致Ni和Mn的扩散行为不同,使Fe富集在尾闾处,局部地区形成铁素体,有利于减少体胀和晶界偏析。     

Satellite data visualization system for education

It is important for environment protection to monitor changes in the environment by natural and human causes. It is also important to educate the next generation on the importance of the global environment issues. Recently, it has become possible to continually monitor the global environment using various satellite sensor data. But these satellite data are used for highly specialized analysis by experts in such fields, and the data cannot easily be used by non-experts. In this paper, we propose a satellite data visualization system for educational use. In the proposed system, a gray-scale 2-dimensional image is created from the satellite data. Next, a pseudo-color image is created from the gray-scale image to assist the comprehension of the data. A 3-dimensional data representation of the image is also created, to assist the comparison of the individual data. The aim of the created image is for educational use, and the image is created with emphasis on comprehension of the data, rather than presentation of data details. The aim of the proposed system is presenting the satellite data visually so that non-experts can easily understand. The target of this research is to apply the proposed system for natural science education and to improve the awareness of global environmental issues.     

Enhancement of etch rate for preparation of nano-sized ion-track membranes of poly(vinylidene fluoride): Effect of pretreatment and high-LET beam irradiation

We investigated how pretreatment and high-LET beam irradiation affected the ion-track dissolution rate in poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) films by SEM observations and conductometric analysis in order to develop the preparation methodology of nano-sized ion-track membranes. PVDF thin films irradiated with four types of ion beams were exposed to a 9 mol/dm³ KOH aqueous solution after their storage in air at 120 °C. This heating treatment was found to enhance the etch rate in the latent track, both in the inner core and outer halo regions, without changing that in the bulk, probably due to the formation of parasitic oxidation products facilitating the introduction of the etching agent to improve the etchability. Additionally, the irradiation of heavier higher-LET ions, causing each track to more activated sites (like radicals), was preferable for achieving effective etching.     

In vitro formation and thermal transition of novel hybrid fibrils from type I fish scale collagen and type I porcine collagen

Novel type I collagen hybrid fibrils were fabricated by neutralizing a mixture of type I fish scale collagen solution and type I porcine collagen solution with a phosphate buffer saline at 28 °C. Their structure was discussed in terms of the volume ratio of fish/porcine collagen solution. Scanning electron and atomic force micrographs showed that the diameter of collagen fibrils derived from the collagen mixture was larger than those derived from each collagen, and all resultant fibrils exhibited a typical D-periodic unit of ∼67 nm, irrespective of volume ratio of both collagens. Differential scanning calorimetry revealed only one endothermic peak for the fibrils derived from collagen mixture or from each collagen solution, indicating that the resultant collagen fibrils were hybrids of type I fish scale collagen and type I porcine collagen.     

p-Chlorostyrene oligomers. Preparation,structure, and stereochemistry

The dimer and trimer obtained by the pyrolysis of poly(p-chlorostyrene) were 2,4-di(p-chlorophenyl)-1-butene and 2,4,6-tri(p-chlorophenyl)-1-hexene, respectively, while those obtained by the cationic oligomerization of p-chlorostyrene were trans-1,3-di(p-chlorophenyl)-1-butene and a diastereomeric pair of trans-1,3,5-tri-(p-chlorophenyl)-1-hexene.     

Building more solid bridges between Buddhism and Western psychology.

Introducing the ways of cultivating mental balance, B. A. Wallace and S. L. Shapiro (see record 2006-12925-003) attempted to build bridges between Buddhism and psychology. Their systematic categorization of Buddhist teachings and extensive review of empirical support from Western psychology are valuable for future study. However, it remains a matter of concern that some more profound parts of Buddhist philosophy can be disregarded by focusing only on practical aspects of Buddhism within the context of mental health. In this comment, the authors briefly address four substantial themes to be considered: reality, identity, causality, and logicality. They suggest that the way to interpret Buddhism as techniques for well-being would certainly be viable in encouraging the study of Buddhist teachings in psychology. Yet, such attempts should not result in superficial imports and applications of Buddhist practices but give due weight to the deeper philosophical issues to build more solid bridges between Buddhism and psychology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

1.8-V 800-Mb/s/pin DDR2 and 2.5-V 400-Mb/s/pin DDR1 compatibly designed 1Gb SDRAM with dual-clock input-latch scheme and hybrid multi-oxide output buffer

This paper describes three circuit techniques for a DDR1/DDR2-compatible chip architecture designed for both high-speed and high-density DRAMs: 1) a dual-clock input-latch scheme, which reduces the excessive timing margin for random input commands by using a pair of latch circuits controlled by dual-phase one-shot clock signals, achieves a 0.9-ns reduction in cycle time from 3.05 to 2.15 ns; 2) a hybrid multi-oxide output buffer reduces the area penalty of the output buffer caused by compatible chip design from 1.35% to 0.3%; and 3) a quasi-shielded distributed data transfer scheme enables a 2.6-ns reduction in access time to 10.25 ns in both 2-b and 4-b prefetch operations. By using these techniques, we developed a 175.3-mm/sup 2/ 1-Gb SDRAM that operates as an 800-Mb/s/pin DDR2 or 400-Mb/s/pin DDR1.     

Pollution of montane soil with Cu, Zn, As, Sb, Pb, and nitrate in Kanto, Japan

Soil cores and rainwater were sampled under canopies of Cryptomeria japonica in four montane areas along an atmospheric depositional gradient in Kanto, Japan. Soil cores (30 cm in depth) were divided into 2-cm or 4-cm segments for analysis. Vertical distributions of elemental enrichment ratios in soils were calculated as follows: (X/Al)_i/(X/Al)_BG (where the numerator and denominator are concentration ratios of element-X and Al in the i- and bottom segments of soil cores, respectively). The upper 14-cm soil layer showed higher levels of Cu, Zn, As, Sb, and Pb than the lower (14-30 cm) soil layer. In the four areas, the average enrichment ratios in the upper 6-cm soil layer were as follows: Pb (4.93) ≥ Sb (4.06) ≥ As (3.04) > Zn (1.71) ≥ Cu (1.56). Exogenous elements (kg/ha) accumulated in the upper 14-cm soil layer were as follows: Zn (26.0) > Pb (12.4) > Cu (4.48) ≥ As (3.43) ≥ Sb (0.49). These rank orders were consistent with those of elements in anthropogenic aerosols and polluted (roadside) air, respectively, indicating that air pollutants probably caused enrichment of these elements in the soil surface layer. Approximately half of the total concentrations of As, Sb, and Pb in the upper 14-cm soil layer were derived from exogenous (anthropogenic) sources. Sb showed the highest enrichment factor in anthropogenic aerosols, and shows similar deposition behavior to NO₃⁻, which is a typical acidic air pollutant. There was a strong correlation between Sb and NO₃⁻ concentrations in rainfall (e.g., in the throughfall under C. japonica: [NO₃⁻] = 21.1 [dissolved Sb], r = 0.938, p < 0.0001, n = 182). Using this correlation, total (cumulative) inputs of NO₃⁻ were estimated from the accumulated amounts of exogenous Sb in soils, i.e., 16.7 t/ha at Mt. Kinsyo (most polluted), 8.6 t/ha at Mt. Tsukuba (moderately polluted), and 5.8 t/ha at the Taga mountain system (least polluted). There are no visible ecological effects of these accumulated elements in the Kanto region at present. However, the concentrations of some elements are within a harmful range, according to the Ecological Soil Screening Levels determined by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.     

Chlorine isotope fractionation during reductive dechlorination of chlorinated ethenes by anaerobic bacteria

Chlorine isotope fractionation during reductive dechlorination of trichloroethene (TCE) and tetrachloroethene (PCE) to cis-1,2-dichloroethene (cDCE) by anaerobic bacteria was investigated. The changes in the 37Cl/35Cl ratio observed during the one-step reaction (TCE to cDCE) can be explained by the regioselective elimination of chlorine accompanied by the Rayleigh fractionation. The fractionation factors (alpha) of the TCE dechlorination by three kinds of anaerobic cultures were approximately 0.994-0.995 at 30 degrees C. The enrichment of 37Cl in the organic chlorine during the two-step reaction (PCE to cDCE) can be explained by the random elimination of one chlorine atom in the PCE molecule followed by the regioselective elimination of one chlorine atom in the TCE molecule. The fractionation factors for the first step of the PCE dechlorination with three kinds of anaerobic cultures were estimated to be 0.987-0.991 at 30 degrees C using a mathematical model. Isotope fractionation during the first step would be the primary factor for the chlorine isotope fractionation during the PCE dechorination to cDCE. The developed models can be utilized to evaluate the fractionation factors of regioselective and multistep reactions.