Isolation and characteristics of a protein-polysaccharide complex, secreted by Bifidobacterium adolescentis

Although self-help/mutual-help groups, like Alcoholics Anonymous, are important factors in the recovery of many chemically dependent individuals, the large dropout rates from such groups and the awareness that many who drop out do not return to dependent behavior raises interesting questions about other paths to sustained abstinence and recovery. Current emphasis on treatment outcome studies provides a means for researching factors in both those who recover with and without the assistance of self-help/mutual-help groups. The authors suggest some questions which might be investigated.     

New technological solutions to protect the lining of blast-furnace hearths

The use of schungite as a partial replacement for coke is practiced in Russia at a number of metallurgical plants, both in the production of foundry iron (its primary use) and in making conversion pig iron. The largest amount of coke is replaced when foundry iron is being made, the replacement coefficient in this case having a value within the range 0.8–1.3. Studies that included continuous monitoring of the temperature of the carbon blocks in blast furnaces with volumes of 1719, 3200, and 5580 m³ unambiguously demonstrate that the thickness of the slag crust in blast furnaces increases with the use of schungite. Protecting the lining of the hearth through the use of schungite is also accompanied by a decrease in coke consumption. __________ Translated from Metallurg, No. 8, pp. 53–57, August, 2007.     

Field evaporation of carbidized tungsten

The field evaporation of carbidized tungsten (ribbed crystals) was studied by the atom probe method at various temperatures of the sample in the regions of cryogenic, room, and elevated (1300–1600 K) temperatures. For a high pulsed (not less than 40%) component in the evaporating field, the room-temperature field evaporation mass spectra correctly reflect the surface composition of the evaporated sample. The mass spectra reveal a large number of molecular and polymerized (cluster) ions. Data from field ion desorption microscopy indicate that high-temperature field evaporation of a ribbed crystal proceeds via ion emission from walking and merging thermal-field microroughnesses.     

Dynamics of the magnetic field transport in a plasma opening switch

It is shown that the process of magnetic field penetration into the plasma bridge in a plasma opening switch is determined by the field diffusion near the magnetic piston, followed by the convective transport of magnetic field in the bridge. This transport is due to the field being “frozen in” to the flow of plasma behind the front of a shock wave, which is formed in the plasma accelerated by the magnetic field pressure.     

Mathematical simulation of the viscous properties of concentrated suspensions

A mathematical model for calculating the viscous properties of concentrated suspensions characterized by particle sizes of 30 to 800 µm), solids volume fractions of 1 to 70 vol %, different particle-size distributions, and a shear-rate range of 0.16 to 437 s^?1, which can describe the time evolution of the properties, is proposed. The model can be applied to calculating the viscous properties of catalyst oxide pastes, particulate-filled polymeric pastes, and the like.     

Factors affecting contrasting results between self-reported and performance-based levels of physical limitation

Molecular electrostatic potential (MEP) maps of certain 3-methoxy flavone derivatives having different anti-picornavirus activities have been studied. Geometries of the molecules were optimised and charge distributions computed using the AM1 molecular orbital method. Hybridization displacement charges (HDC) were combined with the L?wdin charge distributions to compute the MEP maps. Reliability of the method of computing MEP maps was tested by studying certain other molecules for which ab initio MEP results are available. The anti-picornavirus activities of the flavones have been shown to be related with negative MEP values in two regions, one near the 3-methoxy group and another in a diagonally opposite region near the substituent attached to the C7 atom of the molecules.