Effects of upholstery materials on the burning behavior of real‐scale residential upholstered furniture mock‐ups

Fire spread and growth on real‐scale four cushion mock‐ups of residential upholstered furniture (RUF) were investigated with the goal of identifying whether changes in five classes of materials (barrier, flexible polyurethane foam, polyester fiber wrap, upholstery fabric, and sewing thread), referred to as factors, resulted in statistically significant changes in burning behavior. A fractional factorial experimental design plus practical considerations yielded a test matrix with 20 material combinations. Experiments were repeated a minimum of two times. Measurements included fire spread rates derived from video recordings and heat release rates (HRRs). A total of 13 experimental parameters (3 based on the videos and 10 on the HRR results), referred to as responses, characterized the measurements. Statistical analyses based on Main Effects Plots (main effects) and Block Plots (main effects and factor interactions) were used. The results showed that three of the factors resulted in statistically significant effects on varying numbers of the 13 responses. The Barrier and Fabric factors had the strongest main effects with roughly comparable magnitudes. Foam was statistically significant for fewer of the responses and its overall strength was weaker than for Barrier and Fabric. No statistically significant main effects were identified for Wrap or Thread. Multiple two‐term interactions between factors were identified as being statistically significant. The Barrier*Fabric interaction resulted in the highest number of and strongest statistically significant effects. The existence of two‐term interactions means that it will be necessary to consider their effects in approaches designed to predict the burning behavior of RUF.     

Explosive chemistry: Simulating the chemistry of energetic materials at extreme conditions

In this article, we review recent atomistic computational techniques to study the electronic structure aspects and chemistry of energetic materials at high-pressure and/or high temperature. While several mechanisms have been proposed for the initial events of energetic materials at high-pressure, we explore the validity of a proposed shear-induced local metallization via molecular bond bending in the insensitive explosive TATB. We study the effect of high-stress (both uniform and uniaxial) on the electronic energy band-gap and the first chemical event of a prototypical energetic material, that of nitromethane. We also determine chemical reactions rate laws and decomposition mechanisms from a quantum-based molecular dynamics simulation of HMX, a widely used explosive material, at conditions of high density and temperature similar to that encounter under detonation. Finally, we review a new multi-scale computational tool recently developed to model the shock-induced chemistry of energetic materials at the atomistic level, and report its applicability to shocked solid nitromethane. This revised version was published online in June 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Learning about tools in infancy.

These experiments explored the role of prior experience in 12- to 18-month-old infants' tool-directed actions. In Experiment 1, infants' use of a familiar tool (spoon) to accomplish a novel task (turning on lights inside a box) was examined. Infants tended to grasp the spoon by its handle even when doing so made solving the task impossible (the bowl did not fit through the hole in the box, but the handle did) and even though the experimenter demonstrated a bowl-grasp. In contrast, infants used a novel tool flexibly and grasped both sides equally often. In Experiment 2, infants received training using the novel tool for a particular function; 3 groups of infants were trained to use the tool differently. Later, infants' performance was facilitated on tasks that required infants to grasp the part of the tool they were trained to grasp. The results suggest that (a) infants' prior experiences with tools are important to understanding subsequent tool use, and (b) rather than learning about tool function (e.g., hammering), infants learn about which part of the tool is meant to be held, at least early in their exposure to a novel tool. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

High levels of interleukin-12 in the aqueous humor and vitreous of patients with uveitis

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to investigate the role of interleukin-12 (IL-12) and interleukin-10 (IL-10) in initiation and maintenance of intraocular inflammation. DESIGN: Case series. PARTICIPANTS: Aqueous humor and vitreous levels of IL-12 and IL-10 were measured in 22 patients with uveitis undergoing cataract surgery, paracentesis of the anterior chamber, and/or vitrectomy for diagnostic reasons, and in 4 patients with cataract only. INTERVENTION: Aqueous humor and vitreous levels of IL-12 and IL-10 were measured with specific enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Disease activity was correlated to IL-12 levels in the aqueous humor and the vitreous of patients with uveitis. RESULTS: Cytokine levels found in the anterior chamber and the vitreous are presented in picogram/milliliter (medium; range). The highest IL-12 levels were found in patients with active uveitis (108.5 pg/ml; 72-293 pg/ml). Interleukin-12 in patients with moderate uveitis or with their disease in remission was lower (32 pg/ml; 15-94 pg/ml) than in patients with active disease (P > 0.001) but higher than in the control group (10.5 pg/ml; 9-14 pg/ml). Interleukin-10 was detectable in only 3 of 22 patients with uveitis (12 pg/ml; 9-23 pg/ml). CONCLUSION: The authors found statistically significant differences of IL-12 levels in the various patient groups (active vs. inactive vs. control). These results support the idea that these uveitis cases represent type 1 (Th1)-T lymphocyte-mediated diseases in which IL-12 plays a pivotal role in the initiation and maintenance of the intraocular inflammation. The high levels of IL-12 in the vitreous and/or aqueous humor of the patients with uveitis suggest that susceptibility or resistance to ocular autoimmunity may be connected to a genetic predisposition to an elevated Th1 response.     

Forming the optimal union of multiple databases

Many organizations, best illustrated by libraries, have access to hundreds of databases possessing varying degrees of complimentary and overlapping records. While users may receive positive marginal benefits from data duplications, all databases and their services cannot be supported because of resource limitations. This paper attempts to conceptualize the problem of database collection in an environment of multiple databases, with differential content and performance characteristics, diverse users, and limited resources. It defines the database collection problem as a constrained zero-one integer programming problem and solves for the optimal combination or union of databases. Several extensions are shown, where special conditions are imposed on the relationships between databases and/or their availability.     

Predicting oxide stability in high-temperature water vapor

The importance of understanding and predicting the interactions of oxides with water vapor at high temperatures is demonstrated in this article. Methods for observing volatilization phenomena and identifying the chemical formulae for volatile metal hydroxides are discussed. In addition, techniques for obtaining accurate thermodynamic data for gaseous metal hydroxide species are described. Detailed examples of the stability of the principle structural and/or protective oxides chromia (Cr₂O₃), silica (SiO₂), and alumina (Al₂O₃) in high-temperature water vapor are included.     

Biologically active secondary metabolites of barley. IV. Hordenine production by different barley lines

Forty-three lines of barley, including ancestral (wild), landraces, Middle Eastern lines, and modern cultivars, were grown under two different sets of environmental conditions. Hordenine production in barley roots was determined at the one-leaf stage by HPLC analysis and, in two lines only, over a period of 35 days. Forty-two of the 43 lines produced significant amounts of hordenine, although there was no variation among groups. Middle Eastern lines had the highest production with 327 µg/g on a dry weight basis. Production was, however, determined more by environmental conditions during growth than by genetic factors. Hordenine production was up to seven times higher in plants grown under lower light intensities.     

Usher Syndrome in the Inner Ear: Etiologies and Advances in Gene Therapy

Hearing loss is the most common sensory disorder with ~466 million people worldwide affected, representing about 5% of the population. A substantial portion of hearing loss is genetic. Hearing loss can either be non-syndromic, if hearing loss is the only clinical manifestation, or syndromic, if the hearing loss is accompanied by a collage of other clinical manifestations. Usher syndrome is a syndromic form of genetic hearing loss that is accompanied by impaired vision associated with retinitis pigmentosa and, in many cases, vestibular dysfunction. It is the most common cause of deaf-blindness. Currently cochlear implantation or hearing aids are the only treatments for Usher-related hearing loss. However, gene therapy has shown promise in treating Usher-related retinitis pigmentosa. Here we review how the etiologies of Usher-related hearing loss make it a good candidate for gene therapy and discuss how various forms of gene therapy could be applied to Usher-related hearing loss.     

Microstructure Evolution and Tensile Properties of a Selectively Laser Melted CoNi-Base Superalloy

Metallurgical and Materials Transactions A - A high $$\gamma ^{\prime }$$ volume fraction CoNi-base superalloy with roughly equal amounts of cobalt and nickel was successfully processed through...     

Continuous-time norm-constrained Kalman filtering

This paper considers continuous-time state estimation when part of the state estimate or the entire state estimate is norm-constrained. In the former case continuous-time state estimation is considered by posing a constrained optimization problem. The optimization problem can be broken up into two separate optimization problems, one which solves for the optimal observer gain associated with the unconstrained state estimates, while the other solves for the optimal observer gain associated with the constrained state estimates. The optimal constrained state estimate is found by projecting the time derivative of an unconstrained estimate onto the tangent space associated with the norm constraint. The special case where the entire state estimate is norm-constrained is briefly discussed. The utility of the filtering results developed are highlighted through a spacecraft attitude estimation example. Numerical simulation results are included.