bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Lasing on the D lines of sodium pumped by free→free transitions of Na-Xe collision pairs
Authors: Hewitt J. D. , Eden J. G.
Published: December 2012

Lasing on the D1 and D2 lines of Na (589.6 and 589.0 nm, respectively) has been generated simultaneously by photoexciting free→free transitions of thermal Na-Xe collision pairs. Pumping the blue satellite of the Na D2 line in Na/Xe mixtures (λ ≈ 560 nm) selectively interacts with Na-Xe pairs having an instantaneous internuclear separation of ∼5 Å and culminates in the population of both Na (32PJ) fine structure levels. The spectral width of the laser excitation spectrum is 1.3 nm (centered at 560.1 nm) and the 32P3/2→32S1/2 (D2) laser linewidth was measured to be 9.2 ± 0.6 GHz, which is consistent with a coefficient of 18.4 MHz/Torr for broadening of the D2 589.0 nm transition by Xe.
Reductive surface synthesis of gold nanoparticles on silicate glass and their biochemical sensor applications
Authors: Li M. , Kim D.-P. , Jeong G.-Y. , Seo D.-K. , Park C.-P.
Published: December 2012

Gold nanoparticles (Au NPs) were directly synthesized on the surface of polyvinylsilazane (PVSZ, -[(vinyl)SiH-NH2]-) without use of extra reductive additives. The reductive Si-H functional groups on the surface of cured PVSZ acted as surface bound reducing agents to form gold metal when contacted with an aqueous Au precursor (HAuCl4) solution, leading to formation of Au NPs adhered to silicate glass surface. The Au NPs-silicate platforms were preliminarily tested to detect Rhodamine B (1 μM) by surface enhanced Raman scattering. Furthermore, gold microelectrode obtained by post-chemical plating was used as an integrated amperometric detection element in the polydimethylsilane-glass hybrid microfluidic chip.
Experimental characterisation of a novel viscoelastic rectifier design
Authors: Ejlebjerg Jensen Kristian , Szabo Peter , Okkels Fridolin , Alves M. A.
Published: December 2012

A planar microfluidic system with contractions and obstacles is characterized in terms of anisotropic flow resistance due to viscoelastic effects. The working mechanism is illustrated using streak photography, while the diodicity performance is quantified by pressure drop measurements. The point of maximum performance is found to occur at relatively low elasticity levels, with diodicity around 3.5. Based on a previously published numerical work [Ejlebjerg et al., Appl. Phys. Lett. 100, 234102 (2012)], 2D simulations of the FENE-CR differential constitutive model are also presented, but limited reproducibility and uncertainties of the experimental data prevent a direct comparison at low elasticity, where the flow is essentially two-dimensional.
Insensitivity of the error of the minimally empirical hybrid functional revTPSSh to its parameters
Authors: Haunschild Robin , Perdew John P. , Scuseria Gustavo E.
Published: December 2012

We investigate the parameter dependence of the error of the hybrid of the revised Tao-Perdew-Staroverov-Scuseria (revTPSSh) density functional for the exchange-correlation energy within popular molecular test sets. In particular, we allow for satisfaction of a possibly tighter Lieb-Oxford lower bound on the exchange-correlation energy. We are able to improve over the original revTPSSh on average, but in total the variation of the performance of revTPSSh seems to be low when its parameters are changed. We recommend to continue using the original revTPSSh variant rather than our fitted versions, because we expect a broader applicability from the original parameter set.
Rapid thermal annealing of graphene-metal contact
Authors: Balci Osman , Kocabas Coskun
Published: December 2012

High quality graphene-metal contacts are desirable for high-performance graphene based electronics. Process related factors result large variation in the contact resistance. A post-processing method is needed to improve graphene-metal contacts. In this letter, we studied rapid thermal annealing (RTA) of graphene-metal contacts. We present results of a systematic investigation of device scaling before and after RTA for various metals. The results reveal that RTA provides a convenient technique to reduce contact resistance, thus to obtain reproducible device operation.
Effects of oxygen thermal annealing treatment on formation of ohmic contacts to n-GaN
Authors: Hou Wenting , Detchprohm Theeradetch , Wetzel Christian
Published: December 2012

A contact scheme to undoped and n-type GaN was identified that does not require a post deposition anneal. As-deposited Ti/Al/Ti/Au usually forms a Schottky contact. However, we find that by means of an oxygen rapid thermal annealing prior to metal deposition, the contact will develop an ohmic behavior with a specific contact resistance of 3.8 × 10−5 Ω cm2. In X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, we find that the Ga 3 d electron binding energy increases with this pre-treatment, indicating a shift of the Fermi level closer to the conduction band. This sequence reversion of high temperature processing steps allows important gain in device fabrication flexibility.
Observation of 200th harmonic with fractional linewidth of 10−10 in a microwave frequency comb generated in a tunneling junction
Authors: Hagmann Mark J. , Taylor Antoinette J. , Yarotski Dmitry A.
Published: December 2012

A microwave frequency comb with up to 200th harmonic of a laser repetition rate is generated by nonlinear intermodal mixing of 15 fs laser pulses in the junction of a scanning tunneling microscope. The highest harmonic has an output power of −146 dBm at 14.85 GHz with a signal/noise ratio of 20 dB and a measured linewidth of 1.2 Hz, which is still larger than the actual linewidth due to phase noise of the spectrum analyzer. Theory suggests that the harmonics have comparable magnitude up to terahertz frequencies, while the observed roll-off is caused by a shunting capacitance in detection circuitry.
Length dependence of frontier orbital alignment in aromatic molecular junctions
Authors: Tan Aaron , Balachandran Janakiraman , Dunietz Barry D. , Jang Sung-Yeon , Gavini Vikram , Reddy Pramod
Published: December 2012

We report on experiments and computations performed on a series of aromatic monothiol molecular junctions (AMMJs) to ascertain both the identity of the frontier molecular orbitals (FMOs) and their approximate energetic separation from the chemical potential. Joint transition voltage spectroscopy and thermoelectric measurements unambiguously show that the FMOs in all the studied junctions are the highest occupied molecular orbitals and that the energetic separation decreases with increasing molecular length. Our computational studies of energetic separations and Seebeck coefficients of these AMMJs are in agreement with the experimentally obtained values and elucidate the electronic structure origins of the observed length dependence.
Three-dimensional imaging of dislocations by X-ray diffraction laminography
Authors: Hänschke D. , Helfen L. , Altapova V. , Danilewsky A. , Baumbach T.
Published: December 2012

Synchrotron radiation laminography with X-ray diffraction contrast enables three-dimensional imaging of dislocations in monocrystalline wafers. We outline the principle of the technique, the required experimental conditions, and the reconstruction procedure. The feasibility and the potential of the method are demonstrated by three-dimensional imaging of dislocation loops in an indent-damaged and annealed silicon wafer.
Vorticity alignment of rigid fibers in an oscillatory shear flow: Role of confinement
Authors: Snook Braden , Guazzelli Elisabeth , Butler Jason E.
Published: December 2012

Rigid fibers suspended in a viscous, Newtonian fluid at high concentrations can be aligned in the direction perpendicular to the flow-gradient plane (vorticity direction) by applying an oscillatory shear flow. A simple model, which considers only excluded volume and self-mobilities, can accurately predict the orientation distributions measured in experiments by Franceschini et al. [“Transverse alignment of fibers in a periodically sheared suspension: An absorbing phase transition with a slowly varying control parameter,” Phys. Rev. Lett. 107, 250603 (2011)10.1103/PhysRevLett.107.250603]. Furthermore, simulations reveal that the alignment of the fibers in the vorticity direction depends strongly on the presence of the bounding walls.
Digging up bulk band dispersion buried under a passivation layer
Authors: Kobayashi Masaki , Muneta Iriya , Schmitt Thorsten , Patthey Luc , Ohya Sinobu , Tanaka Masaaki , Oshima Masaharu , Strocov Vladimir N.
Published: December 2012

We report angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES) on a GaAs thin film protected by an amorphous As layer with thickness exceeding the typical probing depths of vacuum-ultraviolet rays up to ∼100 eV. Increasing the probing depth by increasing photon energy into the soft x-ray (SX) region of several hundred eV clearly exposes the bulk band dispersion of the GaAs underlayer without any surface treatment. Our results demonstrate that the use of SX-ARPES enables access to the three-dimensional band dispersion of buried underlayer through an amorphous overlayer. This opens frontiers in diagnostics of authentic momentum-resolved electronic structure of protected thin-film heterostructures.
Ferromagnetic enhancement and magnetic anisotropy in nonpolar-oriented (Mn, Na)-codoped ZnO thin films
Authors: Lu B. , Zhang L. Q. , Lu Y. H. , Ye Z. Z. , Lu J. G. , Pan X. H. , Huang J. Y.
Published: December 2012

High-resistive Zn0.95Mn0.05O and weak p-type nonpolar-oriented Zn0.94Mn0.05Na0.01O thins films were grown on quartz by pulsed laser deposition. Both samples exhibit room temperature ferromagnetism while with Mn-Na codoping, the saturation magnetic moment is greatly enhanced. It is revealed that the doped Mn impurities are substitutionally incorporated into the ZnO host. Magnetic anisotropy was also observed in the Zn0.94Mn0.05Na0.01O film, which is the indication for intrinsic ferromagnetism. The first-principles calculations reveal that codoping of Na in Zn0.94Mn0.05Na0.01O changes the antiferromagnetic interaction to ferromagnetic due to the hybridization between spin-split delocalized Mn 3d and shallow acceptor states of Na 2p, thereby enhancing the ferromagnetism.
Interlayer exchange coupling between [Pd/Co] multilayers and CoFeB/MgO layers with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy
Authors: Jung J. H. , Lim S. H. , Lee S. R.
Published: December 2012

Interlayer exchange coupling between [Pd/Co] multilayers and CoFeB/MgO layers with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy (PMA) is investigated as functions of the thicknesses of the Ru spacer and CoFeB layer. The dependence of the coupling behavior on the Ru thickness is similar to that of in-plane anisotropy systems. However, one feature is that the PMA is strengthened through interlayer exchange coupling, as indicated by the fact that PMA of the interface-based CoFeB/MgO structure forms for a thick magnetic layer (1.4 nm). Another observation is the conversion from perpendicular to in-plane anisotropy with thick Ru spacers with almost zero exchange coupling strength.
Drift-diffusion model for single layer transition metal dichalcogenide field-effect transistors
Authors: Jiménez David
Published: December 2012

A physics-based model for the surface potential and drain current for monolayer transition metal dichalcogenide (TMD) field-effect transistor is presented. Taking into account the two-dimensional (2D) density-of-states of the atomic layer thick TMD and its impact on the quantum capacitance, a model for the surface potential is presented. Next, considering a drift-diffusion mechanism for the carrier transport along the monolayer TMD, an explicit expression for the drain current has been derived. The model has been benchmarked with a measured prototype transistor. Based on the proposed model, the device design window targeting low-power applications is discussed.
Optical Tamm states enhanced broad-band absorption of organic solar cells
Authors: Zhang Xu-Lin , Song Jun-Feng , Li Xian-Bin , Feng Jing , Sun Hong-Bo
Published: December 2012

We present a design concept of thin-film organic solar cells using a photonic crystal as the electrode. Through the excitation of optical Tamm states (OTSs), the proposed photonic crystal based organic solar cells (PC-OSCs) exhibit a broad-band absorption enhancement owing to the abnormal refractive index variation of the active layer. The overall absorptivity can be increased by ∼35% compared with that of the optimized conventional planar OSC. Remarkably, our easily manufactured planar PC-OSC exhibits almost the same overall absorptivity as the optimized conventional corrugated OSC. The excellent performance comes from the achievement of OTS for both transverse-magnetic and transverse-electric polarized enhanced absorption.
Giant magnetocaloric effects near room temperature in Mn1 − xCuxCoGe
Authors: Samanta Tapas , Dubenko Igor , Quetz Abdiel , Stadler Shane , Ali Naushad
Published: December 2012

Magnetic and structural transitions were found to coincide by substituting Cu for Mn in Mn1−xCuxCoGe, leading to a giant magnetocaloric effects associated with the first-order magnetostructural phase transition from the ferromagnetic to paramagnetic state. Maximum magnetic entropy changes of −ΔSM = 52.5 and 53.3 J/kg K for a magnetic field change of ΔH = 5 T have been observed at 302 and 316 K, for x = 0.080 and 0.085, respectively. The giant magnetocaloric effects with tunable phase transition temperatures through subtle variations in composition make this system promising for room-temperature magnetic cooling applications.
Direct observation on the behaviour of emulsion droplets and formation of oil pool under point contact
Authors: Ma Liran , Zhang Chenhui , Luo Jianbin
Published: December 2012

Behaviour of emulsion droplets under point contact were studied by a direct observation. A continuous oily pool was found to form around the contact area. The study revealed that the oily pool provided the contacted surfaces with lubrication storage. Two kinds of droplets—merging droplets and bypassing droplets—were identified. The droplets were captured at the entrance of the contact area, and this was followed by the formation of the oily pool.
Optical properties of metal-dielectric based epsilon near zero metamaterials
Authors: Subramania G. , Fischer A. J. , Luk T. S.
Published: December 2012

We demonstrate epsilon near zero (ENZ) metamaterials operating at visible wavelengths near 660 nm. The structure consists of a multilayer stack composite of alternating layers of Ag and TiO2, 16 nm and 54 nm thick, respectively. We found that a high refractive index material like TiO2 (n ∼ 2.3) is preferable to a lower index material to achieve good “mixing” resulting in a composite that better approximates a homogenous effective medium. Optical spectroscopy shows that transmission and absorption responses are consistent with ENZ behavior and match well with simulations. The transmission reduces with increasing number of multilayer pairs due to metal absorption. We have proposed an ENZ grating structure to boost the optical transmission at the ENZ frequencies. The grating structures have openings that enable potential introduction of gain media to combat losses or nanoscale emitters for light emission control.
Non-contact acceleration and deceleration of flying micro droplets
Authors: Ishiwata Tomoki , Sakai Keiji
Published: December 2012

We developed a noncontact technique to accelerate and decelerate in-flight microdroplets emitted by inkjet technology. The technique involves the application of a localized dielectrophoretic force to the droplets, and the momentum applied to a droplet is as large as 10−12 N s, which is adequate for accelerating a droplet of 10 μm radius such that its velocity increases by 0.3 m/s. Highly selective control of the continuously emitted droplets was achieved with a temporally modulated electric field. The method is effective for insulating liquid droplets and is applicable for the microfabrication processes in the air.
Space-charge-limited currents in polyimide films
Authors: Diaham Sombel , Locatelli Marie-Laure
Published: December 2012

Space-charge-limited currents have been identified in thin polyimide film capacitor structures as the main conduction process in the very high temperature range from 320 °C to 400 °C before the breakdown. The transition field between the trap-filled-limit conduction and the trap-free conduction is reported versus temperature. Assuming an exponential distribution of the traps in the forbidden gap, both the characteristic temperature and trap energy are obtained at 446 °C and 62 meV, respectively. The total trap density is accurately estimated at 1.5 × 1017 cm−3 using the Kumar approximation [Kumar et al., J. Appl. Phys. 94, 1283 (2003)]. Finally, the mobility temperature dependence of free charges is reported between 1.6 × 10−6 and 2.3 × 10−6 cm2 V−1 s−1 in the range from 340 °C to 400 °C.
Observations of multimode perturbation decay at non-accelerating, soft x-ray driven ablation fronts
Authors: Loomis E. N. , Braun D. , Batha S. H. , Landen O. L.
Published: December 2012

Minimizing the growth of hydrodynamic instabilities is a fundamental design issue facing the achievement of thermonuclear ignition and burn with Inertial Confinement Fusion (ICF). The thin capsules and extreme accelerations found in ICF make it an inherently unstable system primarily to Rayleigh-Taylor (RT) occurring at the ablation front. A potential mechanism by which perturbations at the outer capsule surface can be reduced lies in the already present ablative Richtmyer-Meshkov (RM) effect, which operates during the first shock transit of the ablator. At present, the available Equation of State (EOS) models predict a wide range of behavior for the ablative RM oscillations of multimode isolated defects on plastic (CH) capsules. To resolve these differences, we conducted experiments at the OMEGA Laser Facility [T. R. Boehly et al., Optics Comm. 133 (1997)] that measured the evolution of gaussian-shaped bumps driven by soft x-ray ablation from a halfraum. Shock speeds in the CH target were measured to reach 15 μm/ns for halfraum radiation temperatures of 70 eV lasting for up to 7 ns. The evolution of gaussian-shaped bumps of different widths and heights were measured using on-axis x-ray radiography at up to 37× magnification. Bumps with initial widths of 34 and 44 μm FWHM were found to grow by 3× their initial areal density and then saturate out to 6 ns due to lateral compression of the bump characteristic of the formation of a rippled shock front propagating into the solid target. Narrower 17 μm FWHM bumps, on the other hand, grew by roughly 2× followed immediately by a decrease back to initial values of areal density out to 7 ns, which largely agrees with both LEOS 5310 and SESAME 7592 EOS predictions. The difference in observed behavior suggests that high spatial frequency modes found in narrower bumps are needed to significantly affect the ablation front profile on shorter time scales.
Wear, durability, and lubricating oil performance of a straight vegetable oil (Karanja) blend fueled direct injection compression ignition engine
Authors: Kumar Agarwal Avinash , Dhar Atul
Published: December 2012

Depletion of fossil fuel resources and resulting associated environmental degradation has motivated search for alternative transportation fuels. Blending small quantity of Karanja oil (straight vegetable oil) with mineral diesel is one of the simplest available alternatives, which can be put into application immediately. Two identical direct injection compression ignition (DICI) engines were subjected to long-term endurance test for comparing long-term durability performance of 10% blend of Karanja oil with mineral diesel (K10) vis-à-vis mineral diesel. Carbon deposits, wear of vital engine components, and effect of new fuel (Karanja oil blend) on lubricating oil were analyzed in a long-term endurance test spanning over 512 h engine operation. Wear of liner, piston, piston rings, valves, gudgeon pin, crank pin, bearings, etc., of K10 fueled engine was found to be comparable to mineral diesel fueled engine. Iron, lead, chromium, zinc metal debris in the lubricating oil were found to be lower for K10 fueled engine compared to diesel fueled engine, however, aluminum content in the lubricating oil of K10 engine was slightly higher than diesel fueled engine. Karanja oil proved to be potential partial substitute for mineral diesel in DICI engine without substantial hardware modifications.
Exposure to mono-n-butyl phthalate disrupts the development of preimplantation embryos
Authors: Chu Da-Peng , Tian Shi , Sun Da-Guang , Hao Chan-Juan , Xia Hong-Fei , Ma Xu
Published: December 2012

Dibutyl phthalate (DBP), a widely used phthalate, is known to cause many serious diseases, especially in the reproductive system. However, little is known about the effects of its metabolite, mono-n-butyl phthalate (MBP), on preimplantation embryo development. In the present study, we found that treatment of embryos with 10–3 M MBP impaired developmental competency, whereas exposure to 10–4 M MBP delayed the progression of preimplantation embryos to the blastocyst stage. Furthermore, reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels in embryos were significantly increased following treatment with 10–3 M MBP. In addition, 10–3 M MBP increased apoptosis via the release of cytochrome c, whereas immunofluorescent analysis revealed that exposure of preimplantation embryos to MBP concentration-dependently (10–5, 10–4 and 10–3 M) decreased DNA methylation. Together, the results indicate a possible relationship between MBP exposure and developmental failure in preimplantation embryos.
Sex-specific embryonic origin of postnatal phenotypic variability
Authors: Laguna-Barraza R. , Bermejo-Álvarez P. , Ramos-Ibeas P. , de Frutos C. , López-Cardona A. P. , Calle A. , Fernandez-Gonzalez R. , Pericuesta E. , Ramírez M. A. , Gutierrez-Adan A.
Published: December 2012

Preimplantation developmental plasticity has evolved in order to offer the best chances of survival under changing environments. Conversely, environmental conditions experienced in early life can dramatically influence neonatal and adult biology, which may result in detrimental long-term effects. Several studies have shown that small size at birth, which is associated with a greater risk of metabolic syndrome, is largely determined before the formation of the blastocysts because 70%–80% of variation in bodyweight at birth has neither a genetic nor environmental component. In addition, it has been reported that adult bodyweight is programmed by energy-dependent process during the pronuclear stage in the mouse. Although the early embryo has a high developmental plasticity and adapts and survives to adverse environmental conditions, this adaptation may have adverse consequences and there is strong evidence that in vitro culture can be a risk factor for abnormal fetal outcomes in animals systems, with growing data suggesting that a similar link may be apparent for humans. In this context, male and female preimplantation embryos display sex-specific transcriptional and epigenetic regulation, which, in the case of bovine blastocysts, expands to one-third of the transcripts detected through microarray analysis. This sex-specific bias may convert the otherwise buffered stochastic variability in developmental networks in a sex-determined response to the environmental hazard. It has been widely reported that environment can affect preimplantation development in a sex-specific manner, resulting in either a short-term sex ratio adjustment or in long-term sex-specific effects on adult health. The present article reviews current knowledge about the natural phenotypic variation caused by epigenetic mechanisms and the mechanisms modulating sex-specific changes in phenotype during early embryo development resulting in sex ratio adjustments or detrimental sex-specific consequences for adult health. Understanding the natural embryo sexual dimorphism for programming trajectories will help understand the early mechanisms of response to environmental insults.
On the relationships between forest fires and weather conditions in Greece from long-term national observations (1894–2010)
Authors: Koutsias Nikos , Xanthopoulos Gavriil , Founda Dimitra , Xystrakis Fotios , Nioti Foula , Pleniou Magdalini , Mallinis Giorgos , Arianoutsou Margarita
Published: December 2012

Historical fire records and meteorological observations, spanning more than 1 century (1894–2010), were gathered and assembled in a database, to provide long-term fire–weather associations. We investigated the relationships between forest fire activity and meteorological parameters and sought to find temporal patterns and trends in these historical records and to identify any linkages between meteorological parameters and fire occurrence in the eastern Mediterranean region. Trend analysis of the time series revealed a statistically significant increase in the number of fires and air temperature, particularly after the mid-1970s. Fire occurrence, expressed as the annual number of fires and total burnt area, was strongly correlated with the mean maximum and the absolute maximum air temperature which, in turn, was related to the occurrence of summer heat waves. Total burnt area was also strongly negatively correlated with fire-season precipitation, and positively correlated with 2-year-lagged annual and summer precipitation, underlying the effect of precipitation in controlling fuel production and moisture. These findings support the argument that although annually lagged precipitation totals may have a marginal effect on fire risk by influencing biomass production and accumulation, the lag0 weather parameters are the main drivers of fire spread by directly controlling fuel moisture.
The owners’ assessment of “everyday dog memory”
Authors: Pongrácz Péter , Benedek Veronika , Enz Sybille , Miklósi Ádám
Published: December 2012

In a questionnaire study we surveyed the owners of 113 companion dogs. Owners had to mark on a four-grade scale how long their dog remembered particular memory items (persons, other animals, events, objects). Additionally we collected descriptive data on the demographical characteristics of the dog and the keeping conditions.A principal component analysis on the memory items resulted in five components. From these, two were connected to people (‘Family’ and ‘Intruders’), three other components contained individual items of memory of objects and events (‘Going out’, Playing’ and ‘Doing something’). Analyses of variance revealed that the dog-owner relationship, the keeping conditions, age and breed of the dog affect the dogs’ memory as described by the owner. The amount of time spent together or the education of the owner had no or minimal effect on these components.Our study showed that owners form stable opinions about their dogs’ episodic memory capacity. Nevertheless, the results can be biased by such factors that affect either the owners’ opinions about their dog-companions, or the dogs’ access to particular stimuli, which can modify the formation of memory traces. In the future, these results can serve as a starting point for empirical testing of family dogs’ memory. Keywords:﻿﻿ dogs; dog owners; memory; questionnaire
What is the appropriate speech rate for a communication robot?
Authors: Shimada Michihiro , Kanda Takayuki
Published: December 2012

This study investigates the influence of a robot’s speech rate. In human communication, slow speech is considered boring, speech at normal speed is perceived as credible, and fast speech is perceived as competent. To seek the appropriate speech rate for robots, we test whether these tendencies are replicated in human-robot interaction by conducting an experiment with four rates of speech: fast, normal, moderately slow, and slow. Our experimental results reveal a rather surprising trend. Participants prefer normal and moderately slow speech to fast speech. A robot that provides normal or moderately slow speech is perceived as competent. We further study how context affects this perception. In a situation where the robot and participants talk while walking, we found that slow speech was the most comprehensible. In addition, slow speech is subjectively perceived as good as moderately slow and normal speech. Keywords:﻿﻿ Human-robot interaction; speech rate
You never get a second chance to make a first impression
Authors: Crutzen Rik , de Kruif Linda , de Vries Nanne K.
Published: December 2012

Websites (e.g. intervention websites targeting health risk behaviors) can be effective in achieving their goals if they are used. The actual use, however, is often very low. This study aimed to assess the effect of visual complexity on intention to use websites, by using within-subjects manipulations of visual complexity and cognitive load (1097 trials, N = 93). The results indicate that high visual complexity has a negative effect on intention to use websites (F(1, 1095) = 14.81, p < .001), but this is fully mediated through attitude towards the website based on the first impression (F(1, 1094) = 13.41, p < .001). This clearly demonstrates the powerfulness of a first impression before interacting with a website and stresses the need for evidence-based insight into how this first impression is constituted. Keywords:﻿﻿ visual complexity; websites; intention to use
Aménagement linguistique, éducation et cohésion sociale en contexte multiculturel
Authors: Duchêne Nadia
Published: December 2012

Le débat sur la langue française au Québec demeure un sujet d’actualité. En effet, la question linguistique occupe toujours une place prépondérante dans les esprits du peuple québécois. La promulgation en octobre 2010 de la loi 115 relative aux écoles passerelles à la suite du jugement de la Cour suprême du 22 octobre 2009 a réactivé le débat sur la question linguistique. Notre propos souligne dans un premier temps les difficultés que rencontre l’État au Canada et au Québec quand il intervient en matière de législation linguistique. Nous abordons ensuite les antécédents de la loi 115 et les modifications qu’elle apporte. Finalement, nous analysons ses enjeux dans le cadre de l’éducation et de l’identité québécoise.
André Martinet (1908–1999)
Authors: Klare Johannes
Published: December 2012

André Martinet holds an important position in the history of linguistics in the twentieth century. For more than six decades he decisively influenced the development of linguistics in France and in the world. He is one of the spokespersons for French linguistic structuralism, the structuralisme fonctionnel. The article focuses on a description and critical appreciation of the interlinguistic part of Martinet’s work. The issue of auxiliary languages and hence interlinguistics had interested Martinet greatly from his youth and provoked him to examine the matter actively. From 1946 onwards he worked in New York as a professor at Columbia University and a research director of the International Auxiliary Language Association (IALA). From 1934 he was in contact with the Danish linguist and interlinguist Otto Jespersen (1860–1943). Martinet, who went back to Paris in 1955 to work as a professor at the École Pratique des Hautes Études (Sorbonne), increasingly developed into an expert in planned languages; for his whole life, he was committed to the world-wide use of a foreign language that can be learned equally easily by members of all ethnic groups; Esperanto, functioning since 1887, seemed a good option to him.
The mental representation of derived words
Authors: Clahsen Harald , Ikemoto Yu
Published: December 2012

Deadjectival nominals with –sa and –mi in Japanese are both phonologically transparent and morphologically decomposable. However, whilst –sa essentially serves to form nouns out of adjectives, –mi forms function as semantic labels with specific meanings. We examined –sa and –mi nominals in three experiments, an eye-movement experiment presenting –sa and –mi forms in sentence contexts and in two word recognition experiments using (primed and unprimed) lexical decision, to investigate the nature of their form-level representations. Whilst the word recognition experiments produced the same pattern of results for –sa and –mi forms, the eye-movement experiment demonstrated clear differences: –mi forms elicited longer reading times compared to –sa forms, except when the particular meanings of –mi forms were contextually licensed. These results show how different semantic properties affect the performance of derived words that have the same type of word level representation.
Danger and usefulness effects as a function of concept ancientness
Authors: Witherell Devon , Wurm Lee H. , Seaman Sean R. , Brugnone Nikki A. , Fulford Evan T.
Published: December 2012

Danger and Usefulness affect word recognition (e.g., Wurm & Vakoch, 2000), and a related construct affects memory (e.g., Nairne, Thompson, & Pandeirada, 2007). We tested hypotheses about differential effects of these dimensions, based on the relevance of concepts relative to the time perceptual systems underwent selection pressures. In two experiments participants made auditory and visual lexical decisions for nouns rated on Danger, Usefulness, and “Ancientness.” Danger interacted with Ancientness in both auditory and visual processing. Increasing Danger led to faster RTs and better accuracy only for words judged to have ancient relevance. Interactions with participant gender were seen in both auditory and visual analyses. Consistent with Wurm, Whitman, Seaman, Hill, and Ulstad (2007), men’s but not women’s auditory performance improved with increasing Danger. The beneficial effect of Usefulness on accuracy was greater for women than for men in both experiments. Danger and Usefulness effects seem to reflect a general principle underlying human cognition.
P3
Authors: Libben Gary , Weber Silke , Miwa Koji
Published: December 2012

By combining lexical recognition paradigms and written production it is possible to efficiently investigate the roles of perception, production, and participant properties in lexical processing. We report on an approach to experimentation that generates a rich set of dependent variables associated with naming stimuli aloud and with writing. Crucially, this approach allows for experimentation in which participants perform experiments in pairs. The first member of the pair sees a word and says it aloud. This oral production serves as input to the second member of the participant pair who writes the word down. We discuss the kinds of dependent variables generated by this experimental technique and the manner in which the components of the technique can be isolated in a system of control conditions. Finally, we report on an example of its use in the investigation of semantic transparency in the processing of English compound words.
Hochschild (co-)homology of schemes with tilting object
Authors: Buchweitz Ragnar-Olaf , Hille Lutz
Published: December 2012

Given akk–schemeXXthat admits a tilting objectTT, we prove that the Hochschild (co-)homology ofXXis isomorphic to that ofA=EndX⁡(T)A=\operatorname {End}_{X}(T). We treat more generally the relative case whenXXis flat over an affine schemeY=Spec⁡RY=\operatorname {Spec} R, and the tilting object satisfies an appropriate Tor-independence condition overRR. Among applications, Hochschild homology ofXXoverYYis seen to vanish in negative degrees, smoothness ofXXoverYYis shown to be equivalent to that ofAAoverRR, and forXXa smooth projective scheme we obtain that Hochschild homology is concentrated in degree zero. Using the Hodge decomposition of Hochschild homology in characteristic zero, forXXsmooth overYYthe Hodge groupsHq(X,ΩX/Yp)H^{q}(X,\Omega _{X/Y}^{p})vanish forp>qp > q, while in the absolute case they even vanish forp≠qp\neq q.

We illustrate the results for crepant resolutions of quotient singularities, in particular for the total space of the canonical bundle on projective space.
ADAPT-NMR Enhancer: complete package for reduced dimensionality in protein NMR spectroscopy
Authors: Lee Woonghee , Bahrami Arash , Markley John L.
Published: December 2012

Summary: ADAPT-nuclear magnetic resonance (ADAPT-NMR) offers an automated approach to the concurrent acquisition and processing of protein NMR data with the goal of complete backbone and side chain assignments. What the approach lacks is a useful graphical interface for reviewing results and for searching for missing peaks that may have prevented assignments or led to incorrect assignments. Because most of the data ADAPT-NMR collects are 2D tilted planes used to find peaks in 3D spectra, it would be helpful to have a tool that reconstructs the 3D spectra. The software package reported here, ADAPT-NMR Enhancer, supports the visualization of both 2D tilted planes and reconstructed 3D peaks on each tilted plane. ADAPT-NMR Enhancer can be used interactively with ADAPT-NMR to automatically assign selected peaks, or it can be used to produce PINE-SPARKY-like graphical dialogs that support atom-by-atom and peak-by-peak assignment strategies. Results can be exported in various formats, including XEASY proton file (.prot), PINE pre-assignment file (.str), PINE probabilistic output file, SPARKY peak list file (.list) and TALOS+ input file (.tab). As an example, we show how ADAPT-NMR Enhancer was used to extend the automated data collection and assignment results for the protein Aedes aegypti sterol carrier protein 2.

Availability: The program, in the form of binary code along with tutorials and reference manuals, is available at http://pine.nmrfam.wisc.edu/adapt-nmr-enhancer.

Contact:  whlee@nmrfam.wisc.edu or markley@nmrfam.wisc.edu
Effect of bucindolol on heart failure outcomes and heart rate response in patients with reduced ejection fraction heart failure and atrial fibrillation
Authors: Kao David P. , Davis Gordon , Aleong Ryan , O'Connor Christopher M. , Fiuzat Mona , Carson Peter E. , Anand Inder S. , Plehn Jonathan F. , Gottlieb Stephen S. , Silver Marc A. , Lindenfeld JoAnn , Miller Alan B. , White Michel , Murphy Guinevere A. , Sauer Will , Bristow Michael R.
Published: December 2012

Aims

There is little evidence of beta‐blocker treatment benefit in patients with heart failure and reduced left ventricular ejection fraction (HFREF) and atrial fibrillation (AF). We investigated the effects of bucindolol in HFREF patients with AF enrolled in the Beta‐blocker Evaluation of Survival Trial (BEST).

Methods and results

A post‐hoc analysis of patients in BEST with and without AF was performed to estimate the effect of bucindolol on mortality and hospitalization. Patients were also evaluated for treatment effects on heart rate and the influence of beta1‐adrenergic receptor position 389 (β1389) arginine (Arg) vs. glycine (Gly) genotypes. In the 303/2708 patients in AF, patients receiving bucindolol were more likely to achieve a resting heart rate ≤80 b.p.m. at 3 months (P < 0.005) in the absence of treatment‐limiting bradycardia. In AF patients and sinus rhythm (SR) patients who achieved a resting heart rate ≤80 b.p.m., there were beneficial treatment effects on cardiovascular mortality/cardiovascular hospitalization [hazard ratio (HR) 0.61, P = 0.025, and 0.79, P = 0.002]. Without achieving a resting heart rate ≤80 b.p.m., there were no treatment effects on events in either group. β1389‐Arg/Arg AF patients had nominally significant reductions in all‐cause mortality/HF hospitalization and cardiovascular mortality/hospitalization with bucindolol (HR 0.23, P = 0.037 and 0.28, P = 0.039), whereas Gly carriers did not. There was no evidence of diminished heart rate response in β1389‐Arg homozygotes.

Conclusion

In HFREF patients with AF, bucindolol was associated with reductions in composite HF endpoints in those who achieved a resting heart rate ≤80 b.p.m. and nominally in those with the β1389‐Arg homozygous genotype.
Urinary kidney injury molecule 1 and incidence of heart failure in elderly men
Authors: Carlsson Axel C. , Larsson Anders , Helmersson‐Karlqvist Johanna , Lind Lars , Ingelsson Erik , Larsson Tobias E. , Sundström Johan , Ärnlöv Johan
Published: December 2012

Aims

There is growing recognition of the clinical importance of cardiorenal syndrome—the bidirectional interplay between kidney and cardiac dysfunction. Yet, the role of kidney tubular damage in the development of heart failure is less studied. The objective of this study was to investigate whether urinary kidney injury molecule (KIM)‐1, a specific marker of tubular damage, predisposes to an increased heart failure risk.

Methods and results

This was a community‐based cohort study [Uppsala Longitudinal study of Adult Men (ULSAM)] of 565, 77‐year‐old men free from heart failure at baseline. Heart failure hospitalizations were used as outcome. During follow‐up (median 8.0 years), 73 participants were hospitalized for heart failure. In models adjusted for cardiovascular risk factors (age, systolic blood pressure, diabetes, smoking, body mass index, LDL/HDL ratio, antihypertensive treatment, lipid‐lowering treatment, aspirin treatment, LV hypertrophy, and prevalent cardiovascular disease) and markers of kidney dysfunction and damage [cystatin C‐based glomerular filtration rate (GFR) and urinary albumin/creatinine ratio], a higher urinary KIM‐1/creatinine ratio was associated with higher risk for heart failure (hazard ratio upper vs. lower tertile, 1.81; 95% confidence interval 1.01–3.29; P < 0.05). Participants with a combination of low GFR (<60 mL/min/1.72 m2) and high KIM‐1/creatinine (>128 ng/mmol) had a 3‐fold increase in heart failure risk compared with participants with normal GFR and KIM‐1 (P < 0.001).

Conclusion

Our findings suggest that kidney tubular damage predisposes to an increased risk for heart failure in the community. Further studies are needed to clarify the causal role of KIM‐1 in the development of heart failure, and to evaluate the clinical utility of urinary KIM‐1 measurements.
Review of integrated size-structured models for stock assessment of hard-to-age crustacean and mollusc species
Authors: Punt Andre E. , Huang TzuChuan , Maunder Mark N.
Published: December 2012

Punt, A. E., Huang, T., and Maunder, M. N. 2013. Review of integrated size-structured models for stock assessment of hard-to-age crustacean and mollusc species. – ICES Journal of Marine Science, 70:16–33. Crustaceans and molluscs such as crabs, rock lobsters, prawns, abalone, and oysters constitute large and valuable fisheries. However, assessments of these species are hampered because they cannot be production aged, in contrast to many teleosts. The major data sources for these species, in addition to catch and abundance index data, are the size compositions of the catches and of any fishery-independent indices. Assessments of such species have been conducted using age-based methods of stock assessment, as well as surplus production models. However, size-structured methods are now preferred because they can make full use of size-composition data, are able to integrate multiple sources of data, and produce the types of outputs which are needed for management purposes. An advantage of size-based models over age-based models is that all processes can be size-based, and these processes can modify the (unmodelled) size-at-age distribution. We review these methods, highlighting the choices that need to be made when developing integrated size-structured stock assessments, the data sources which are typically available and how they are used for parameter estimation, and contrast a number of such assessments worldwide.
Flexible services for the support of research
Authors: Turilli Matteo , Wallom David , Williams Chris , Gough Steve , Curran Neal , Tarrant Richard , Bretherton Dan , Powell Andy , Johnson Matt , Harmer Terry , Wright Peter , Gordon John
Published: December 2012

Cloud computing has been increasingly adopted by users and providers to promote a flexible, scalable and tailored access to computing resources. Nonetheless, the consolidation of this paradigm has uncovered some of its limitations. Initially devised by corporations with direct control over large amounts of computational resources, cloud computing is now being endorsed by organizations with limited resources or with a more articulated, less direct control over these resources. The challenge for these organizations is to leverage the benefits of cloud computing while dealing with limited and often widely distributed computing resources. This study focuses on the adoption of cloud computing by higher education institutions and addresses two main issues: flexible and on-demand access to a large amount of storage resources, and scalability across a heterogeneous set of cloud infrastructures. The proposed solutions leverage a federated approach to cloud resources in which users access multiple and largely independent cloud infrastructures through a highly customizable broker layer. This approach allows for a uniform authentication and authorization infrastructure, a fine-grained policy specification and the aggregation of accounting and monitoring. Within a loosely coupled federation of cloud infrastructures, users can access vast amount of data without copying them across cloud infrastructures and can scale their resource provisions when the local cloud resources become insufficient.
Developing cloud applications using the e-Science Central platform
Authors: Hiden Hugo , Woodman Simon , Watson Paul , Cala Jacek
Published: December 2012

This paper describes the e-Science Central (e-SC) cloud data processing system and its application to a number of e-Science projects. e-SC provides both software as a service (SaaS) and platform as a service for scientific data management, analysis and collaboration. It is a portable system and can be deployed on both private (e.g. Eucalyptus) and public clouds (Amazon AWS and Microsoft Windows Azure). The SaaS application allows scientists to upload data, edit and run workflows and share results in the cloud, using only a Web browser. It is underpinned by a scalable cloud platform consisting of a set of components designed to support the needs of scientists. The platform is exposed to developers so that they can easily upload their own analysis services into the system and make these available to other users. A representational state transfer-based application programming interface (API) is also provided so that external applications can leverage the platform's functionality, making it easier to build scalable, secure cloud-based applications. This paper describes the design of e-SC, its API and its use in three different case studies: spectral data visualization, medical data capture and analysis, and chemical property prediction.
Processing LHC data in the UK
Authors: Colling D. , Britton D. , Gordon J. , Lloyd S. , Doyle A. , Gronbech P. , Coles J. , Sansum A. , Patrick G. , Jones R. , Middleton R. , Kelsey D. , Cass A. , Geddes N. , Clark P. , Barnby L.
Published: December 2012

The Large Hadron Collider (LHC) is one of the greatest scientific endeavours to date. The construction of the collider itself and the experiments that collect data from it represent a huge investment, both financially and in terms of human effort, in our hope to understand the way the Universe works at a deeper level. Yet the volumes of data produced are so large that they cannot be analysed at any single computing centre. Instead, the experiments have all adopted distributed computing models based on the LHC Computing Grid. Without the correct functioning of this grid infrastructure the experiments would not be able to understand the data that they have collected. Within the UK, the Grid infrastructure needed by the experiments is provided by the GridPP project. We report on the operations, performance and contributions made to the experiments by the GridPP project during the years of 2010 and 2011—the first two significant years of the running of the LHC.