Response Selection in Visual Search: The Influence of Response Compatibility of Nontargets.

The authors used visual search tasks in which components of the classic flanker task (B. A. Eriksen & C. W. Eriksen, 1974) were introduced. In several experiments the authors obtained evidence of parallel search for a target among distractor elements. Therefore, 2-stage models of visual search predict no effect of the identity of those distractors. However, clear compatibility effects of the distractors were obtained: Responses were faster when the distractors were compatible with the response than when they were incompatible. These results show that even in parallel search tasks identity information is extracted from the distractors. In addition, alternative interpretations of the results in terms of the occasional identification of a distractor before or after the target was identified could be ruled out. The results showed that flat search slopes obtained in visual search experiments provide no benchmark for preattentive processing. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Water management in the Flemish steel industry: the Arcelor Gent case

Steel production is an energy- and water-intensive process: large quantities of water are used for cooling, process and environmental-technical applications. In the mid-1990s, Arcelor Gent, a large integrated carbon steel producing company in Flanders (Belgium), started a number of water-related projects: the existing water infrastructure was adapted: the water from the coke plant was biologically treated; canal water was demineralised using reverse osmosis; waste water from the blast furnaces was neutralised with alkaline water from the steel plant. As a result of these projects, the quantity of discharged waste water was reduced by a factor of 2 (water recycling doubled from a factor of 10 to a factor of 20), and the discharge of pollutants decreased. Also resource consumption decreased: lime used in the steel plant, could be recovered to precipitate Zn in the waste water of the blast furnaces. Arcelor Gent obtained for these projects several Environmental Awards.     

Network topologies: inference, modeling, and generation

Accurate measurement, inference and modeling techniques are fundamental to Internet topology research. Spatial analysis of the Internet is needed to develop network planning, optimal routing algorithms, and failure detection measures. A first step toward achieving such goals is the availability of network topologies at different levels of granularity, facilitating realistic simulations of new Internet systems. The main objective of this survey is to familiarize the reader with research on network topology over the past decade. We study techniques for inference, modeling, and generation of the Internet topology at both the router and administrative levels. We also compare the mathematical models assigned to various topologies and the generation tools based on them. We conclude with a look at emerging areas of research and potential future research directions.     

Evaluation of the results of cleft lip and palate surgical treatment: preliminary report

We have analysed randomized controlled studies which reported the incidence of postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) after propofol anaesthesia compared with other anaesthetics (control). Cumulative data of early (0-6 h) and late (0-48 h) PONV were recorded as occurrence or non-occurrence of nausea or vomiting. Combined odds ratio and number-needed-to-treat were calculated for propofol as an induction or maintenance regimen, early or late outcomes, and different emetic events. This was performed for all control event rates and within a range of 20-60% control event rates. We analysed 84 studies involving 6069 patients. The effect of propofol on PONV was dependent mainly on the method of administration, time of measurement and range of control event rates. When all studies were included the number-needed-to-treat to prevent PONV with propofol was more than 9 when used for induction of anaesthesia and at best 6 when used for maintenance. Within the 20-60% control event rate range, best results were achieved with propofol maintenance to prevent early PONV: the number-needed-to-treat to prevent early nausea was 4.7 (95% confidence interval 3.8-6.3), vomiting 4.9 (4-6.1) and any emetic event 4.9 (3.7-7.1). Within the 20-60% control event rate, of five patients treated with propofol for maintenance of anaesthesia, one will not vomit or be nauseated in the immediate postoperative period who would otherwise have vomited or been nauseated. This may be clinically relevant. In all other situations the difference between propofol and control may have reached statistical significance but was of doubtful clinical relevance. Treatment efficacy should be established within a defined range of control event rates for meaningful estimates of efficacy and for comparisons.     

Mutations in the EXT1 and EXT2 genes in hereditary multiple exostoses

In an in-vitro preparation of gastric mucosae of Rana pipiens, the effect of adding melittin to a concentration of 5x10-6 M in the secretory solution on the transepithelial potential difference (PD), resistance (R) and short-circuit current (Isc) was studied. In 20 min, melittin decreased the PD by 9.3 mV and R by 148 ohm cm2. These changes can be explained by a decrease in the resistance, RP, of the paracellular pathway. To determine whether specific-ion pathways were responsible for the decrease in R, the effect of melittin on the partial conductances of Cl-, K+ and Na+ was also studied using the ion substitution method. Melittin decreased the PD response to changes in nutrient Na+, K+ and Cl- and the PD response to changes in secretory Cl-, but did not affect PD responses to changes in secretory Na+ or K+. Therefore, melittin decreased the nutrient membrane partial conductances of Cl-, K+ and Na+ and secretory membrane partial conductance of Cl-, without affecting the secretory partial conductances of Na+ or K+. Initially, melittin increased Isc in regular and Cl--free but not in Na+-free solutions. There was a delayed decrease in Isc. The results indicate that melittin decreases RP, increases the Na+ conductance of the secretory membrane and inhibits, eventually, the Na+/K+-ATPase pump.     

Development and validation of a liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry assay for the quantification of docetaxel and paclitaxel in human plasma and oral fluid

A quantitative method for the simultaneous determination of docetaxel (Taxotere), paclitaxel (Taxol), 6alpha-hydroxypaclitaxel, and p-3'-hydroxypaclitaxel in human plasma and oral fluid is developed and validated. Oral fluid (this term is now preferred to saliva) was sampled with a Salivette collection device. The procedure used a simple liquid/liquid extraction with methyl tert-butyl ether followed by LC-ESI-MS/MS. Gradient elution was applied and provided increased robustness to ion suppression by the drug formulation vehicle (polysorbate 80 and Cremophor EL). Adduct ion formation with sodium and potassium was noticed and controlled by mobile-phase optimization. The protonated analytes generated in the positive ion mode were monitored through multiple reaction monitoring. Calibration was performed by internal standardization with cephalomannine, and regression curves were constructed ranging between 2 and 1000 ng/mL in plasma and 0.125 and 62.5 ng/mL in oral fluid, using a weighing factor of 1/x2. The regression curves were quadratic for paclitaxel and docetaxel and linear for the paclitaxel metabolites. Accuracy varied from 91.3 to 103.6%, and imprecision did not exceed 12.7% for all analytes in plasma and oral fluid. In conclusion, a sensitive and robust method was obtained, which fulfilled all validation criteria.     

Effect of Yb concentration on optical properties of Yb:CaF2 transparent ceramics

In Yb:CaF₂, the coordination of Yb³⁺ in the CaF₂ lattice determines the spectroscopic properties that make Yb:CaF₂ a good candidate for high power laser applications. In this work, we measure the optical absorption, emission, and fluorescence lifetime of 0.1, 1, 5, and 10 at% Yb:CaF₂ ceramics to determine whether Yb³⁺ substitutes as hexamer clusters giving rise to the tenability and long fluorescent lifetime observed in Yb:CaF₂ single crystals. Absorption and emission spectra show that the concentration of Yb³⁺ present in hexamer clusters, as opposed to isolated ions, increases with increasing Yb³⁺ content. Fluorescence lifetime also increases with increasing Yb³⁺ content. Laser testing on a 1 at% Yb:CaF₂ transparent ceramic demonstrates that these materials are viable laser gain media.     

Oxidation of solid gold in chloroform solutions of cetyltrimethylammonium bromide

Oxidation of solid gold was studied in chloroform solutions of cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB). We observed that, upon sonication, solid gold is oxidized and cetyltrimethylammonium tetrabromo aurate is formed. The Br⁻ ions act as a nucleophile that lowers the reduction potential of gold and molecular oxygen from the air acts as an oxidant. Addition of hydrazine to the sonicated solution leads to the formation of gold nanoparticles dispersed in chloroform.     

Reduction of a single granule drying model: An essential step in preparation of a population balance model with a continuous growth term

The development of a Population Balance Model (PBM) for a pharmaceutical granule drying process requires a continuous growth term; the latter actually represents the drying process as the moisture content is the internal coordinate of the PBM. To establish such a PBM, a complex drying model for a single granule needs reduction in complexity. The starting point is a detailed model that describes the drying behavior of single pharmaceutical granules. A Global Sensitivity Analysis (GSA) was performed to detect the most sensitive degrees of freedom in the model as these need to be retained in the reduced model. Simulations of the complex drying model were, in a next phase, used to develop the reduced model, which describes the decrease of the moisture content in function of the gas temperature. The developed reduced model was then included in a Population Balance Equation (PBE) to describe the drying behavior of a population of granules. © 2012 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 59: 1127–1138, 2013