Varying Electron Cyclotron Resonance Heating on the Levitated Dipole Experiment

Plasmas in the Levitated Dipole Experiment (LDX) are formed and sustained currently via two electron cyclotron resonance heating (ECRH) sources: 2.5 kW at 2.45 GHz and 2.5 kW at 6.4 GHz. An important topic being investigated is how varying the ECRH affects the confinement and stability of the plasma. We report the results of using different operational combinations of our RF sources, such as varying the power composition, changing the power levels, and sequencing of the onset time.     

An S-shaped relationship between changes in appraisals and changes in emotions.

Previous research on appraisal theories of emotion has shown that emotions and appraisals are related but has not specified the nature of the relationships. This research examined the functional forms of appraisal-emotion relationships and demonstrated that for all seven appraisals studied, appraisals relate to emotions in an S-shaped (ogival) fashion: Changes in appraisals at extreme levels are associated with only small changes in emotions, but changes at moderate levels are associated with substantial changes in emotions. With a few exceptions, ogival relationships were found for the relationships between seven appraisals (Goal Achievement Expectancy, Agency, Control, Certainty, Fairness, Pleasantness, and Motive Congruence) and numerous relevant emotions across different sample-types, cultures, and methods. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Amae in Japan and the United States: An exploration of a "culturally unique" emotion.

The experience of an emotion considered to be culturally unique (i.e., Japanese Amae) was tested in the United States, where there is no word to describe the concept. North American and Japanese participants read scenarios in which a friend made an inappropriate request (Amae), made no request, or made the request to another friend. Both American and Japanese participants felt more positive emotion and perceived the requester as feeling closer to them in the Amae condition than in the other two conditions. However, Americans felt more in control when asked for a favor than when not asked, a pattern that did not emerge among the Japanese. Cultural specificity of hypocognized emotions is discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

New oral therapy for childhood asthma

The changes in the serum level of selenium in cases with pathologic pregnancies are still not clear. The aim of the present study was to determine whether serum selenium in cases with missed abortion differed from selenium concentration in serum during first trimester of normal pregnancy. Twenty-three women with missed abortion and 61 with normal pregnancy were included in the study. We found a statistically significant (p < 0.001) elevation of serum selenium level in cases with missed abortion (928 +/- 335 nmol/l) comparing with those with normal pregnancy (568 +/- 77 nmol/l). We discuss the possible mechanisms of the observed changes.     

Through the looking glass darkly? When self-doubts turn into relationship insecurities.

The authors argue that individuals regulate perceptions of their relationships in a self-protective way, finding virtue in their partners only when they feel confident that their partners also see virtues in them. In 4 experiments, the authors posed an acute threat to low and high self-esteem individuals' feelings of self-worth (e.g., guilt about a transgression, fears of being inconsiderate or intellectually inept). They then collected measures of confidence in the partner's positive regard and acceptance (i.e., reflected appraisals) and perceptions of the partner. The results revealed that low self-esteem individuals reacted to self-doubt with heightened doubts about their partners' regard, which then tarnished impressions of their partners. In contrast, high self-esteem individuals reacted to self-doubts by becoming more convinced of their partners' continued acceptance, using their relationships as a resource for self-affirmation. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

On our failure to disconfirm what nobody ever said.

Responds to criticisms (e.g., C. E. Izard, see record 1981-31548-001) of the present authors' (see record 1981-00499-001) article. The present authors provide additional methodological detail demonstrating that most of the methodological criticisms are mistaken or irrelevant to the hypothesis that they intended to test. (14 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Vocal learning in the grey parrot (Psittacus erithacus): Effects of species identity and number of trainers.

Grey parrots (Psittacus erithacus) learn referential English labels when they view and interact with 2 humans who model vocal labeling and who demonstrate referentiality and functionality of a label (I. M. Pepperberg, 1990a). To test if both trainers are necessary, the authors contrasted 2-trainer modeling with training by 1 human who presented targeted labels to a bird in concert with appropriate items, who asked questions, and who would reward attempts at the label with the item. The bird was also tutored by either 1 or 2 interactive humans in conjunction with a conspecific who already used referential labels. Referential labels were learned from multiple live tutors but not a single trainer. Presence of a conspecific enhanced learning compared with single-trainer sessions but did not affect acquisition in 2-human sessions. Specific aspects of paired tutoring seem critical for acquiring referential vocal labels. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Predictive mapping of reef fish species richness, diversity and biomass in Zanzibar using IKONOS imagery and machine-learning techniques

During the last three decades, the large spatial coverage of remote sensing data has been used in coral reef research to map dominant substrate types, geomorphologic zones, and bathymetry. During the same period, field studies have documented statistical relationships between variables quantifying aspects of the reef habitat and its fish community. Although the results of these studies are ambiguous, some habitat variables have frequently been found to correlate with one or more aspects of the fish community. Several of these habitat variables, including depth, the structural complexity of the substrate, and live coral cover, are possible to estimate with remote sensing data. In this study, we combine a set of statistical and machine-learning models with habitat variables derived from IKONOS data to produce spatially explicit predictions of the species richness, biomass, and diversity of the fish community around two reefs in Zanzibar. In the process, we assess the ability of IKONOS imagery to estimate live coral cover, structural complexity and habitat diversity, and we explore the importance of habitat variables, at a range of spatial scales, in the predictive models using a permutation-based technique. Our findings indicate that structural complexity at a fine spatial scale (∼ 5 to 10 m) is the most important habitat variable in predictive models of fish species richness and diversity, whereas other variables such as depth, habitat diversity, and structural complexity at coarser spatial scales contribute to predictions of biomass. In addition, our results demonstrate that complex model types such as tree-based ensemble techniques provide superior predictive performance compared to the more frequently used linear models, achieving a reduction of the cross-validated root-mean-squared prediction error of 3-11%. Although aerial photographs and airborne lidar instruments have recently been used to produce spatially explicit predictions of reef fish community variables, our study illustrates the possibility of doing so with satellite data. The ability to use satellite data may bring the cost of creating such maps within the reach of both spatial ecology researchers and the wide range of organizations involved in marine spatial planning.