bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A Strategic Model of Economic Performance and Democratization in South Korea and Taiwan
Authors: Yap O. Fiona
Published: August 2011

A debate, fanned by the experiences of South Korea and Taiwan, persists over how economic growth leads to democratization. This article provides a theoretical model showing that economic downturns lead to democratization and evaluates the conclusion systematically with data from South Korea and Taiwan. The model and results corroborate the hypothesis that economic downturns motivate government and non-government actors to pursue political reforms and democratization and highlight several contributions. They show democratization as the outcome of strategic responses pursued under weak economic conditions. Further, the findings are robust to alternative specifications of democratization. The results also bring empirics into line with theoretical expectations about democratization while simultaneously revealing that it is not a panacea for lack of support.
How does infant behaviour relate to weight gain and adiposity?
Authors: Wright Charlotte M. , Cox Katherine Marie , Le Couteur Ann
Published: August 2011

An understanding of how infant eating behaviour relates to later obesity is required if interventions in infancy are to be attempted. The aim of this paper is to review findings from the Gateshead Millennium Study to describe (i) what we have already established about the relationship between infant feeding transitions, infancy weight gain and eating behaviour and (ii) describe new analyses that examine how infant eating behaviour and temperament relate to infancy weight gain and childhood adiposity. The Gateshead Millennium Study recruited 1029 infants at birth and parents completed questionnaires five times in the first year. We have already described how starting solids and ceasing breast-feeding seems to be a response to rapid early weight gain, rather than a cause, and that parents identify and respond to the individual appetite characteristics of their child. A number of questions about eating behaviour at 12 months were used to construct an infancy eating avidity score that was positively associated with height at age 7–8 years, but not with an adiposity index constructed using bioelectrical impedance, waist and skinfolds. Infancy eating avidity score was associated with greater fussiness and lower satiety responsivity on the Child Eating Behaviour Questionnaire at age 6–8 years. Temperament measured at age 6 weeks and 8 months showed no consistent associations with either infancy weight gain or adiposity at 6–8 years. While infancy may seem a logical time to intervene with children at risk of future obesity, the collective findings from this substantial population-based study largely suggest otherwise.
Deficient emotional self-regulation and pediatric attention deficit hyperactivity disorder: a family risk analysis
Authors: Biederman J. , Spencer T. , Lomedico A. , Day H. , Petty C. R. , Faraone S. V.
Published: August 2011

Background

Although deficient emotional self-regulation (DESR) is associated with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), little research investigates this association and little is known about its etiology. Family studies provide a method of clarifying the co-occurrence of clinical features, but no family studies have yet addressed ADHD and DESR in children.

Method

Subjects were 242 children with ADHD and 224 children without ADHD. DESR was operationalized using an aggregate score ⩾180 and <210 in the anxious/depressed, attention and aggression scales (AAA profile) of the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL), termed the CBCL-DESR profile. The CBCL-bipolar (CBCL-BP) profile was defined as ⩾210 on the CBCL-AAA scale. We examined the familial transmission of ADHD and the CBCL-AAA scale in families selected through probands with and without these conditions.

Results

We found a linear increase in the prevalence of CBCL-DESR in siblings as indexed by the Control, ADHD, ADHD+CBCL-DESR and ADHD+CBCL-BP proband groups. While the ADHD siblings were at elevated risk for both the CBCL-DESR and CBCL-BP compared with non-ADHD siblings, a significantly higher rate of CBCL-BP in the siblings of ADHD+CBCL-BP probands was found compared with siblings of the Control probands.

Conclusions

ADHD shows the same degree of familial transmission in the presence or absence of DESR. CBCL-DESR and CBCL-BP are familial, but further work is needed to determine if these definitions are distinctly familial or represent a continuum of the same psychopathology.
Learning to teach online or learning to become an online teacher: an exploration of teachers’ experiences in a blended learning course
Authors: Comas-Quinn Anna
Published: September 2011

A key role in the successful implementation of any learning approach is played by teachers, so how well blended learning works will depend largely on how well teachers make the transition from their traditional face-to-face classroom roles to the wider more complex role that blended learning requires. The additional skills and the forging of a new professional identity might not come easily to all practitioners.

This paper evaluates the impact that the introduction of blended learning in a distance language learning course has had on teachers. It presents and discusses findings from a small-scale evaluation study which compared quantitative and qualitative data gathered through a survey and a small number of interviews with participant observations from the researcher and the institutional end-of-course debriefing report.

The paper argues that whilst technological challenges and the sheer amount of change that teachers were faced with were largely responsible for some of the negative attitudes reflected in teachers’ opinions about the course, a less obvious, broader explanation for the difficulties that teachers encountered might be found in the way that learning, teaching and training are conceptualised by both teachers and the institution.

It is proposed that a transmission of knowledge approach to training fails to acknowledge and properly support the transformation of teachers’ identity that results from moving from traditional classroom-based teaching to online teaching. The shift goes beyond the acquisition of ICT skills and requires a pedagogical understanding of the affordances of the new medium and an acceptance by the teacher of his or her new role and identity.
Value of Case Studies in Disaster Assessment?
Authors: Grynszpan Delphine , Murray Virginia , Llosa Silvia
Published: September 2011

Case studies can be useful in assessing and learning lessons from emergency situations. In this paper, different uses for disaster case studies, are explored with identification of potential pitfalls that should be avoided. In addition, ways to improve the rigor and significance of case studies are suggested. Case studies can be used as examples or as a research tool. If conducted properly, they can provide robust and compelling results. It is argued that sharing a common guide to conducting and writing case studies among all disaster risk reduction professionals could improve the quality of case study reports and thereby strengthen their value in advancing the prevention, preparedness, and management of disasters and emergencies.
WHOLE ATMOSPHERE MODELING: CONNECTING TERRESTRIAL AND SPACE WEATHER
Authors: Akmaev R. A.
Published: August 2011

At the turn of the century R. G. Roble advanced an ambitious program of developing an atmospheric general circulation model (GCM) extending from the surface to the exosphere. He outlined several areas of research and application to potentially benefit from what is now commonly called whole atmosphere modeling. The purpose of this article is to introduce this new field to a broader geophysical community and document its progress over the last decade. Vertically extended models are commonly built from existing weather and climate GCM codes incorporating a number of approximations, which may no longer be valid. Promising directions of further model development, potential applications, and challenges are outlined. One application is space weather or day‐to‐day and seasonal variability in the ionosphere and thermosphere driven by meteorological processes from below. Various modes of connection between the lower and upper atmosphere had been known before, but new and sometimes unexpected observational evidence has emerged over the last decade. Persistent “nonmigrating” wavy structures in plasma and neutral densities and a dramatic response of the equatorial ionosphere to sudden warmings in the polar winter stratosphere are just two examples. Because large‐scale meteorological processes are predictable several days in advance, whole atmosphere weather prediction models open an opportunity for developing a real forecast capability for space weather.
Experimental Intracerebral Hemorrhage: Avoiding Pitfalls in Translational Research
Authors: Kirkman Matthew A , Allan Stuart M , Parry-Jones Adrian R
Published: August 2011

Intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) has the highest mortality of all stroke subtypes, yet treatments are mainly limited to supportive management, and surgery remains controversial. Despite significant advances in our understanding of ICH pathophysiology, we still lack preclinical models that accurately replicate the underlying mechanisms of injury. Current experimental ICH models (including autologous blood and collagenase injection) simulate different aspects of ICH-mediated injury but lack some features of the clinical condition. Newly developed models, notably hypertension- and oral anticoagulant therapy-associated ICH models, offer added benefits but further study is needed to fully validate them. Here, we describe and discuss current approaches to experimental ICH, with suggestions for changes in how this condition is studied in the laboratory. Although advances in imaging over the past few decades have allowed greater insight into clinical ICH, there remains an important role for experimental models in furthering our understanding of the basic pathophysiologic processes underlying ICH, provided limitations of animal models are borne in mind. Owing to differences in existing models and the failed translation of benefits in experimental ICH to clinical practice, putative neuroprotectants should be trialed in multiple models using both histological and functional outcomes until a more accurate model of ICH is developed.
Low Frequency Stimulation of the Perforant Pathway Generates Anesthesia-Specific Variations in Neural Activity and BOLD Responses in the Rat Dentate Gyrus
Authors: Krautwald Karla , Angenstein Frank
Published: August 2011

To study how various anesthetics affect the relationship between stimulus frequency and generated functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) signals in the rat dentate gyrus, the perforant pathway was electrically stimulated with repetitive low frequency (i.e., 0.625, 1.25, 2.5, 5, and 10 Hz) stimulation trains under isoflurane/N2O, isoflurane, medetomidine, and α-chloralose. During stimulation, the blood oxygen level-dependent signal intensity (BOLD response) and local field potentials in the dentate gyrus were simultaneously recorded to prove whether the present anesthetic controls the generation of a BOLD response via targeting general hemodynamic parameters, by affecting mechanisms of neurovascular coupling, or by disrupting local signal processing. Using this combined electrophysiological/fMRI approach, we found that the threshold frequency (i.e., the minimal frequency required to trigger significant BOLD responses), the optimal frequency (i.e., the frequency that elicit the strongest BOLD response), and the spatial distribution of generated BOLD responses are specific for each anesthetic used. Concurrent with anesthetic-dependent characteristics of the BOLD response, we found the pattern of stimulus-induced neuronal activity in the dentate gyrus is also specific for each anesthetic. Consequently, the anesthetic-specific influence on local signaling processes is the underlying cause for the observation that an identical stimulus elicits different BOLD responses under various anesthetics.
Biopax and Semantics
Authors: Navas-Delgado Ismael , García-Godoy Maria Jesús , Roldán-García Maria del Mar , Aldana-Montes José F.
Published: September 2011

Biopax community is producing sets of data in RDF files, but most of them are not available through query interfaces. The publication of SPARQL endpoints is feasible with current sets of data, but the use of reasoning in these interfaces is unfeasible in many cases. The use of large scale reasoners is a need to take advantage of these data sets.
Differential Associations Between Sensory Response Patterns and Language, Social, and Communication Measures in Children With Autism or Other Developmental Disabilities
Authors: Watson Linda R. , Patten Elena , Baranek Grace T. , Poe Michele , Boyd Brian A. , Freuler Ashley , Lorenzi Jill
Published: August 2011

Purpose

To examine patterns of sensory responsiveness (i.e., hyperresponsiveness, hyporesponsiveness, and sensory seeking) as factors that may account for variability in social-communicative symptoms of autism and variability in language, social, and communication skill development in children with autism or other developmental disabilities (DDs).

Method

Children with autistic disorder (AD;n= 72, mean age = 52.3 months) and other DDs (n= 44, mean age = 48.1 months) participated in a protocol measuring sensory response patterns; social-communicative symptoms of autism; and language, social, and communication skills.

Results

Hyporesponsiveness was positively associated with social-communicative symptom severity, with no significant group difference in the association. Hyperresponsiveness was not significantly associated with social-communicative symptom severity. A group difference emerged for sensory seeking and social-communicative symptom severity, with a positive association for the AD group only. For the 2 groups of children combined, hyporesponsiveness was negatively associated with language skills and social adaptive skills. Sensory seeking also was negatively associated with language skills. These associations did not differ between the 2 groups.

Conclusions

Aberrant sensory processing may play an important role in the pathogenesis of autism and other DDs as well as in the rate of acquisition of language, social, and communication skills.
A MEG Investigation of Single-Word Auditory Comprehension in Aphasia
Authors: Zipse Lauryn , Kearns Kevin , Nicholas Marjorie , Marantz Alec
Published: August 2011

Purpose

To explore whether individuals with aphasia exhibit differences in the M350, an electrophysiological marker of lexical activation, compared with healthy controls.

Method

Seven people with aphasia, 9 age-matched controls, and 10 younger controls completed an auditory lexical decision task while cortical activity was recorded with magnetoencephalography. There were 2 stimulus conditions of interest: identity primed (i.e., a word preceded by itself) and semantic primed (i.e., a word preceded by a semantically related word). Latency and amplitude of the M350 response as well as reaction time were measured.

Results

Consistent with the age-matched control group, the group with aphasia showed both identity and semantic priming behaviorally. In contrast to the control groups, the group with aphasia did not show either semantic or identity priming of the M350 response. This group also demonstrated longer M350 latencies than either control group. Furthermore, within this group, M350 latency was positively correlated with a measure of semantic impairment.

Conclusions

These findings highlight the usefulness of temporally sensitive measures when studying aphasia and demonstrate that the latency of electrophysiological markers is of interest in this population. In particular, increased M350 latency appears to be indicative of a semantic processing impairment.
Substrate/semiconductor interface effects on the emission efficiency of luminescent polymers
Authors: Therézio Eralci M. , Piovesan Erick , Anni Marco , Silva R. A. , Oliveira Osvaldo N. , Marletta Alexandre
Published: August 2011

The importance of interface effects for organic devices has long been recognized, but getting detailed knowledge of the extent of such effects remains a major challenge because of the difficulty in distinguishing from bulk effects. This paper addresses the interface effects on the emission efficiency of poly(p-phenylene vinylene) (PPV), by producing layer-by-layer (LBL) films of PPV alternated with dodecylbenzenesulfonate. Films with thickness varying from ∼15 to 225 nm had the structural defects controlled empirically by converting the films at two temperatures, 110 and 230 °C, while the optical properties were characterized by using optical absorption, photoluminescence (PL), and photoluminescence excitation spectra. Blueshifts in the absorption and PL spectra for LBL films with less than 25 bilayers (<40–50 nm) pointed to a larger number of PPV segments with low conjugation degree, regardless of the conversion temperature. For these thin films, the mean free-path for diffusion of photoexcited carriers decreased, and energy transfer may have been hampered owing to the low mobility of the excited carriers. The emission efficiency was then found to depend on the concentration of structural defects, i.e., on the conversion temperature. For thick films with more than 25 bilayers, on the other hand, the PL signal did not depend on the PPV conversion temperature. We also checked that the interface effects were not caused by waveguiding properties of the excited light. Overall, the electronic states at the interface were more localized, and this applied to film thickness of up to 40–50 nm. Because this is a typical film thickness in devices, the implication from the findings here is that interface phenomena should be a primary concern for the design of any organic device.
Analytic energy gradients for the spin-free exact two-component theory using an exact block diagonalization for the one-electron Dirac Hamiltonian
Authors: Cheng Lan , Gauss Jürgen
Published: August 2011

We report the implementation of analytic energy gradients for the evaluation of first-order electrical properties and nuclear forces within the framework of the spin-free (SF) exact two-component (X2c) theory. In the scheme presented here, referred to in the following as SFX2c-1e, the decoupling of electronic and positronic solutions is performed for the one-electron Dirac Hamiltonian in its matrix representation using a single unitary transformation. The resulting two-component one-electron matrix Hamiltonian is combined with untransformed two-electron interactions for subsequent self-consistent-field and electron-correlated calculations. The “picture-change” effect in the calculation of properties is taken into account by considering the full derivative of the two-component Hamiltonian matrix with respect to the external perturbation. The applicability of the analytic-gradient scheme presented here is demonstrated in benchmark calculations. SFX2c-1e results for the dipole moments and electric-field gradients of the hydrogen halides are compared with those obtained from nonrelativistic, SF high-order Douglas-Kroll-Hess, and SF Dirac-Coulomb calculations. It is shown that the use of untransformed two-electron interactions introduces rather small errors for these properties. As a first application of the analytic geometrical gradient, we report the equilibrium geometry of methylcopper (CuCH3) determined at various levels of theory.
Relativistic second harmonic generation from an S-polarized laser in over-dense plasma
Authors: Adusumilli K. , Goyal D. , Tripathi V. K.
Published: August 2011

A relativistic S-polarized short pulse laser impinged obliquely on an overdense plasma thin foil is shown to produce very significant second harmonic in the direction of specular reflection. The second harmonic is P-polarized and is driven by the second harmonic ponderomotive force on electrons in the skin layer. The treatment incorporates the electron density modification by the static ponderomotive force and mass modification due to relativistic effects. The second harmonic reflected amplitude is greatest for an optimum value of the angle of incidence. The conversion efficiency of the second harmonic is greater for higher values of incident laser amplitude and lower values of electron density in the foil. The equivalence between the total ponderomotive force and the radiation pressure force is also demonstrated.
The deformed Lie algebra of differential operators of order at most one
Authors: Gao Shoulan , Liu Dong , Pei Yufeng
Published: August 2011

In this paper, we study the algebraic properties of the deformed Lie algebra \documentclass[12pt]{minimal}\begin{document}${\mathcal L}$\end{document}L of differential operators of order at most one. We determine all the derivations, central extensions, and automorphism group of \documentclass[12pt]{minimal}\begin{document}${\mathcal L}$\end{document}L. Furthermore, the reducibility criterion for the Verma modules of the universal central extension of \documentclass[12pt]{minimal}\begin{document}${\mathcal L}$\end{document}L is achieved through a study of the Shapovalov form.
Electrical transport and optical emission of MnxZr1-xO2(≤x≤.5) thin films
Authors: Zippel J. , Lorenz M. , Lenzner J. , Grundmann M. , Hammer T. , Jacquot A. , Böttner H.
Published: August 2011

Mn x Zr 1 - x O 2 (MnZO) thin films were grown by pulsed-laser deposition on single crystalline yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) and a-plane sapphire substrates with manganese contents from 0 up to about 50 at.%. A fully stabilized cubic structure occurs for Mn contents x equal or larger than 20 at. % on YSZ substrates. For x ≈0.5, phase separation of Mn-oxides occurs. Below 11 at. %, only the monoclinic phase is observed. The thin films are electrically insulating up to x = 0.3. By further increasing the Mn content or by reducing the structural quality, the resistivity ρ decreases from 3×109Ωcm down to 3×104Ωcm. For MnZO thin films on a-plane sapphire substrates, Seebeck-effect measurements verify a transition from p-type conductivity to n-type conductivity around 500 K with increasing temperature, which is probably governed by an enhanced ionic conduction. Cathodoluminescence measurements clearly show a Mn-related emission at about 2.8 eV, correlated to an Mn-induced electronic state in the bandgap of MnZO. From electron paramagnetic resonance measurements and x ray photoelectron spectroscopy, we conclude that both Mn3+ and Mn4+ is present in our MnZO thin films.
Predicted photonic band gaps in diamond-lattice crystals built from silicon truncated tetrahedrons
Authors: Woldering Léon A. , Abelmann Leon , Elwenspoek Miko C.
Published: August 2011

Recently, a silicon micromachining method to produce tetrahedral silicon particles was discovered. In this report we determine, using band structure calculations, the optical properties of diamond-lattice photonic crystals when assembled from such particles. We show that crystal structures built from silicon tetrahedra are expected to display small stop gaps. Wide photonic band gaps appear when truncated tetrahedral particles are used to build the photonic crystals. With truncated tetrahedral particles, a bandgap with a width of 23.6% can be achieved, which is more than twice as wide compared to band gaps in self-assembled diamond-lattices of hard-spheres. The width of the bandgap is insensitive to small deviations from the optimal amount of truncation. This work paves the way to a novel class of silicon diamond-lattice bandgap crystals that can be obtained through self-assembly. Such a self-assembly approach would allow for easy integration of these highly photonic crystals in existing silicon microfluidic and -electronic systems.
Study of uniaxial magnetism and enhanced magnetostriction in magnetic-annealed polycrystalline CoFe2O4
Authors: Zheng Y. X. , Cao Q. Q. , Zhang C. L. , Xuan H. C. , Wang L. Y. , Wang D. H. , Du Y. W.
Published: August 2011

Magnetic and magnetostrictive properties of magnetic-annealed polycrystalline CoFe2O4 were investigated. The magnetic hysteresis loops showed obvious uniaxiality with an induced easy direction parallel to the annealing field. Magnetic force microscopy study revealed that the domains were fixed by magnetic annealing. The uniaxial behavior was also observed in the magnetostrictive measurement, which showed a significantly enhanced magnetostriction of − 273 PPM when the external field was applied perpendicular to the annealing field direction. A physical mechanism for the effect of magnetic annealing on polycrystalline CoFe2O4 is developed, in which the induced uniaxiality is ascribed to the realignment of easy axes in polycrystals. The uniaxial behavior of magnetism and enhanced magnetostriction could be well explained by this model.
Monte Carlo simulation of the subsurface growth mode during pulsed laser deposition
Authors: Rashidian Vaziri M. R. , Hajiesmaeilbaigi F. , Maleki M. H.
Published: August 2011

The pulsed laser deposition (PLD) growth of aluminum (Al) metal in the presence of noble background gases is studied using a Monte Carlo model constructed on the basis of srim 2010 calculations. It is shown that Al ions are deposited with a high kinetic energy of about 100 eV. These high kinetic incident energies lead to the implantation of ions into the existing film and resputtering from its surface. The consequent film growth is in the subsurface or subplantation growth mode, in which the material does not grow on top of the already deposited film. It is proved that by considering the role of resputtering, which is neglected in other theoretical models of PLD, experimentally observed deviations from the stoichiometric growth of multicomponent materials and dips in thickness profiles of elemental materials at the film center can be explained. The calculated implantation depths are also consistent with the reported measured ones. Taking into account the role of sputtering yield in calculating the deposition rate of the material, and evaluating the mean number of produced vacancies inside the growing film, two different approaches are proposed for the optimal growth of materials in PLD. To obtain high quality thin films, one should use a noble gas that ensures higher mass ratios (the ratio of the ablated ion to the gas atomic masses) at higher pressures; however, to achieve the highest growth speeds, higher mass ratios at lower pressures are recommended.
Effects of surface interactions on peptide aggregate morphology
Authors: Morriss-Andrews Alex , Bellesia Giovanni , Shea Joan-Emma
Published: August 2011

The formation of peptide aggregates mediated by an attractive surface is investigated using replica exchange molecular dynamics simulations with a coarse-grained peptide representation. In the absence of a surface, the peptides exhibit a range of aggregate morphologies, including amorphous aggregates, β-barrels and multi-layered fibrils, depending on the chiral stiffness of the chain (a measure of its β-sheet propensity). In contrast, aggregate morphology in the presence of an attractive surface depends more on surface attraction than on peptide chain stiffness, with the surface favoring fibrillar structures. Peptide-peptide interactions couple to peptide-surface interactions cooperatively to affect the assembly process both qualitatively (in terms of aggregate morphology) and quantitatively (in terms of transition temperature and transition sharpness). The frequency of ordered fibrillar aggregates, the surface binding transition temperature, and the sharpness of the binding transition all increase with both surface attraction and chain stiffness.
Magnetic and mechanical properties of rolled-up Au/Co/Au nanomembranes with multiple windings
Authors: Müller C. , de Souza G. B. , Mikowski A. , Schmidt O. G. , Lepienski C. M. , Mosca D. H.
Published: September 2011

Rolled-up Au/Co/Au microtubes with up to three windings were fabricated by the combination of strain engineering, conventional photolithography, and electron beam deposition. First, magnetization properties of the initial 2D film arrays and the corresponding tube arrays were studied and strong influences of magnetostrictive and shape anisotropy are observed. Second, the mechanical deformation was examined by an instrumented indentation technique at the nanoscale and analyzed by contact mechanics theory. The loading curve fitting in the elastic regime by the Hertz model provides a first approximation of the nanomembrane radial elastic modulus of about 135 GPa.
Least constraint approach to the extraction of internal motions from molecular dynamics trajectories of flexible macromolecules
Authors: Chevrot Guillaume , Calligari Paolo , Hinsen Konrad , Kneller Gerald R.
Published: August 2011

We propose a rigorous method for removing rigid-body motions from a given molecular dynamics trajectory of a flexible macromolecule. The method becomes exact in the limit of an infinitesimally small sampling step for the input trajectory. In a recent paper [G. Kneller, J. Chem. Phys. 128, 194101 (2008)]10.1063/1.2902290, one of us showed that virtual internal atomic displacements for small time increments can be derived from Gauss’ principle of least constraint, which leads to a rotational superposition problem for the atomic coordinates in two consecutive time frames of the input trajectory. Here, we demonstrate that the accumulation of these displacements in a molecular-fixed frame, which evolves in time according to the virtual rigid-body motions, leads to the desired trajectory for internal motions. The atomic coordinates in the input and output trajectory are related by a roto-translation, which guarantees that the internal energy of the molecule is left invariant. We present a convenient implementation of our method, in which the accumulation of the internal displacements is performed implicitly. Two numerical examples illustrate the difference to the classical approach for removing macromolecular rigid-body motions, which consists of aligning its configurations in the input trajectory with a fixed reference structure.
Calculation of multiple initial state selected reaction probabilities from Chebyshev flux-flux correlation functions: Influence of reactant internal excitations on H + H2O → OH + H2
Authors: Jiang Bin , Xie Daiqian , Guo Hua
Published: August 2011

A Chebyshev-based flux-flux correlation function approach is introduced for calculating multiple initial state selected reaction probabilities for bimolecular reactions. Based on the quantum transition-state theory, this approach propagates, with the exact Chebyshev propagator, transition-state wave packets towards the reactant asymptote. It is accurate and efficient if many initial state selected reaction probabilities are needed. This approach is applied to the title reaction to elucidate the influence of the H2O ro-vibrational states on its reactivity. Results from several potential energy surfaces are compared.
Note: Extraction of hydrogen bond thermodynamic properties of water from dielectric constant and relaxation time data
Authors: Rastogi Abhishek , Yadav Siddharth , Suresh S. J.
Published: August 2011

We recently proposed a theory [Suresh, J. Chem. Phys. 113, 9727 (2000)]10.1063/1.1320822, based on the principles of statistical mechanics, for describing the temperature variation of static dielectric constant of water and the average number of H-bonds per molecule in the liquid phase. The theoretical model contains three parameters; two of them pertain to the energy and entropy changes accompanying bond-formation, and the third (ε∞) represents the dielectric constant at a frequency that is sufficiently low for atomic and electronic polarization, but sufficiently high for intermolecular relaxation processes involving the movement of permanent dipole moments to be inoperative. In the absence of a consensus in the literature for the value of ε∞ to be used in dielectric constant calculations, it was arbitrarily set to a commonly accepted value of 1.77 (corresponding to refractive index of 1.33). Values for H-bond parameters were then estimated by best fitting model calculations to experimental data for dielectric constant across temperatures ranging from melting to the critical point of water. It is the purpose of the present Note to eliminate the ambiguity on the choice of ε∞ and propose refined values for the H-bond parameters.
Note: Fabrication of tapered fibre tip using mechanical polishing method
Authors: Cheong Y. K. , Lim K. S. , Lim W. H. , Chong W. Y. , Zakaria R. , Ahmad H.
Published: August 2011

Tapered fibre tips fabricated using mechanical polishing method is studied. The fibre tips are formed by sequential polishing flat-ended single mode fibres with decreasing aluminium oxide polishing film grit size. Based on the proposed technique, tapered fibre tips with cone angle ranging from 30° to 130° are fabricated by controlling the polishing angle. Besides the variety of cone angle, considerable smoothness of the fibre tip surface may assist in good metal coating and hence a well-defined aperture can be obtained. In addition, this paper presents a two-step hybrid fabrication method combining the proposed polishing method with chemical etching method to increase the possible fibre tip cone angles achievable by chemical etching method.
Efficient bulk heterojunction photovoltaic cells with a pre-organized poly(3-hexylthiophene) phase
Authors: Moerman D. , Lazzaroni R. , Douhéret O.
Published: September 2011

This paper presents the controlled generation of nanostructured poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) from solution to fully fibrillate solid-state films. The fibrillate morphology of P3HT is further maintained when the deposition is carried out from a mixed solution with the acceptor material ([6,6]-phenyl-C61-butyric acid methyl ester, PCBM). This enables the fabrication of active layers for bulk heterojunction organic photovoltaic devices with a controlled morphology. The contribution of these nanostructures to the photovoltaic performances is evidenced. High-resolution electrical characterization with conductive atomic force microscopy (C-AFM) confirms an improved charge transport throughout the fibrillate P3HT matrix. A local hole mobility value of 0.9 × 10−4 cm2/V s is derived from the C-AFM measurements.
Anomalous complete opaqueness in a sparse array of gold nanoparticle chains
Authors: Bai Benfeng , Li Xiaowei , Vartiainen Ismo , Lehmuskero Anni , Kang Guoguo , Turunen Jari , Kuittinen Markku , Vahimaa Pasi
Published: August 2011

We report on an anomalous polarization-switching extinction effect in a sparse array of gold nanoparticle chains: under normal incidence of light, the array is almost transparent for one polarization; whereas it is fully opaque (with nearly zero transmittance) for the orthogonal polarization within a narrow band, even though the nanoparticles cover only a tiny fraction (say, 3.5%) of the transparent substrate surface. We reveal that the strong polarization-dependent short-range dipolar coupling and long-range radiative coupling of gold nanoparticles in this highly asymmetric array is responsible for this extraordinary effect.
Electro-chemical deposition of zinc oxide nanostructures by using two electrodes
Authors: Taleatu B. A. , Fasasi A. Y. , Di Santo G. , Bernstorff S. , Goldoni A. , Fanetti M. , Floreano L. , Borghetti P. , Casalis L. , Sanavio B. , Castellarin-Cudia C.
Published: August 2011

One of the most viable ways to grow nanostructures is electro deposition. However, most electrodeposited samples are obtained by three-electrode electrochemical cell. We successfully use a much simpler two-electrode cell to grow different ZnO nanostructures from common chemical reagents. Concentration, pH of the electrolytes and growth parameters like potentials at the electrodes, are tailored to allow fast growth without complexity. Morphology and surface roughness are investigated by Scanning Electron and Air Force Microscopy (SEM and AFM) respectively, crystal structure by X-Ray Diffraction measurements (XRD) and ZnO stoichiometry by core level photoemission spectroscopy (XPS).
Young people in aged care: progress of the current national program
Authors: Winkler Dianne F. , Farnworth Louise J. , Sloan Sue M. , Brown Ted
Published: August 2011

Objective.
The aim of this paper is to examine the progress and effect of the current 5-year $244 million national Young People in Residential Aged Care program on the reduction of young people in aged care.

Method.
Semi-structured telephone interviews with 20 service providers, 10 advocacy organisations and 6 public servants across Australia actively involved in the implementation of the program.

Results.
The development of new accommodation options has been slow. The 5-year program aims to move 689 young people out of nursing homes; in the first 4 years of the initiative only 139 people had moved out. The lives of those who have been helped by the program have been enormously improved.

Conclusions.
This study highlights the challenges of achieving a long-term reduction in the number of young people in residential aged care, including the challenge of achieving systemic change to prevent new admissions.

Implications.
The accommodation options currently being developed for this target group will soon be at capacity. Without sustained investment in developing alternative accommodation options and resources to implement systemic change ~250 people under 50 are likely to continue to be admitted to aged care each year in Australia.

What is known about the topic?
Prior to the current 5-year, $244 million, national Young People in Residential Aged Care program there were more than 1000 Australians under 50 years of age who lived in aged care facilities. Aged care is not designed or resourced to facilitate the active involvement of young people with high clinical needs in everyday activities or support their continued participation in the life of their community.

What does this paper add?
In the first 4 years of the national program only 139 people moved out of aged care. The lives of those who have been helped by the program have been enormously improved. The program is unlikely to result in a long-term reduction in the number of young people in aged care.

What are the implications for practitioners?
Systemic change and sustained investment in accommodation options is required to resolve the issue of young people in aged care.
Effect of K+ on Na - Ca exchange and the SAR-ESP relationship
Authors: Laurenson S. , Smith E. , Bolan N. S. , McCarthy M.
Published: August 2011

In Australia, application of winery wastewater to land is increasingly being viewed as the most environmentally sound and cost-effective means of disposal. This wastewater contains high concentrations of both sodium (Na+) and potassium (K+), which have the potential to accumulate in the profile of irrigated soils and adversely alter physical properties such as aggregate stability and hydraulic conductivity. Cation exchange equilibria in soil of mixed illite and kaolinite mineralogy have been investigated in binary Ca–Na and Ca–K systems and in a ternary Ca–Na–K system. In the respective binary systems, resulting exchangeable potassium percentage was nearly twice the corresponding exchangeable sodium percentage (ESP), indicating a high binding affinity of K+ in this soil.
In a ternary system, soils were equilibrated with solutions of differing sodium adsorption ratio (SAR) and potassium adsorption ratio (PAR) within ranges typical of winery wastewater. The presence of K+ had a significant effect on the relationship between SAR and ESP, whereby ESP decreased with increasing PAR. Resulting ESP in the ternary system was consistently lower than in the binary system. Cation selectivity between solid and solution phases in the ternary system was calculated from the Vanselow and K-selectivity coefficients and showed a decreasing selectivity for Na+ with increasing K+ in solution. It is expected that, due to the high K+ content of winery wastewater (i.e. >400 mg/L), adsorption of Na+, and subsequent ESP, will be less than in wastewaters of comparable Na+ concentration yet absent K+.
Summary of the magnetic confinement theory and modelling activity presented at the 23rd IAEA Fusion Energy Conference
Authors: Garbet X.
Published: September 2011

This paper presents a summary of the papers presented at the 23rd IAEA Fusion Energy Conference (Daejeon, October 2010) on magnetic confinement theory and modelling.
Recent results of the T-10 tokamak
Authors: Vershkov V.A. , Andreev V.F. , Borschegovskiy A.A. , Chistyakov V.V. , Dremin M.M. , Eliseev L.G. , Gorbunov E.P. , Grashin S.A. , Khmara A.V. , Kislov A.Ya. , Kislov D.A. , Komarov A.D. , Kozachek A.S. , Krupin V.A. , Krupnik L.I. , Krylov S.V. , Lysenko S.E. , Maltsev S.G. , Mavrin V.A. , Melnikov A.V. , Notkin G.E. , Novikov A.Yu. , Pavlov Yu.D. , Perfilov S.V. , Piterskij V.V. , Ploskirev G.N. , Poznyak V.I. , Razumova K.A. , Roy I.N. , Ryzhakov D.V. , Savrukhin P.V. , Shestakov E.A. , Shelukhin D.A. , Skosyrev Yu.A. , Shurygin R.V. , Tilinin G.N. , Trukhina E.V. , Trukhin V.M.
Published: September 2011

Poloidal asymmetry and radial correlation lengths of turbulence were investigated in T-10 at low field side and high field side by correlation reflectometry. Correlation of plasma confinement with the turbulence type was observed. Improvements in heavy ion beam probe diagnostic enabled us to measure the plasma potential during electron cyclotron resonance heating (ECRH) in a wide range of radial positions and operational regimes. The turbulence appeared to rotate close to E × B velocity. The concept of electron internal transport barrier (e-ITB) formation at low-order rational surfaces under conditions of low density of the rational surfaces was proved by the observation of e-ITB formation near the q = 1.5 surface in discharges with non-central ECRH and current ramp-up. The kinetic phenomena were investigated by means of electron cyclotron emission (ECE) under the strong on-axis ECRH. Lithium gettering of the limiter and the wall allowed us to significantly reduce the impurity level and obtain a recycling coefficient as low as 0.3. The rates of carbon film deposition were measured in the working and cleaning discharges. Second harmonic EC assisted start-up was investigated. ECRH allowed us to control the generation of runaway electrons and the current decay rate after the energy quench at the density limit disruption.
MiR-637 maintains the balance between adipocytes and osteoblasts by directly targeting Osterix
Authors: Zhang Jin-fang , Fu Wei-ming , He Ming-liang , Wang Hua , Wang Wei-mao , Yu Shi-cang , Bian Xiu-Wu , Zhou Jin , Lin Marie C. M. , Lu Gang , Poon Wai-sang , Kung Hsiang-fu
Published: September 2011

Bone development is dynamically regulated by homeostasis, in which a balance between adipocytes and osteoblasts is maintained. Disruption of this differentiation balance leads to various bone-related metabolic diseases, including osteoporosis. In the present study, a primate-specific microRNA (miR-637) was found to be involved in the differentiation of human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs). Our preliminary data indicated that miR-637 suppressed the growth of hMSCs and induced S-phase arrest. Expression of miR-637 was increased during adipocyte differentiation (AD), whereas it was decreased during osteoblast differentiation (OS), which suggests miR-637 could act as a mediator of adipoosteogenic differentiation. Osterix (Osx), a significant transcription factor of osteoblasts, was shown to be a direct target of miR-637, which significantly enhanced AD and suppressed OS in hMSCs through direct suppression of Osx expression. Furthermore, miR-637 also significantly enhanced de novo adipogenesis in nude mice. In conclusion, our data indicated that the expression of miR-637 was indispensable for maintaining the balance of adipocytes and osteoblasts. Disruption of miR-637 expression patterns leads to irreversible damage to the balance of differentiation in bone marrow.
Whole-Genome Expression Profiling of Bradyrhizobium japonicum in Response to Hydrogen Peroxide
Authors: Jeon Jeong-Min , Lee Hae-In , Donati Andrew J. , So Jae-Seong , Emerich David W. , Chang Woo-Suk
Published: August 2011

Bradyrhizobium japonicum, a nitrogen-fixing bacterium in soil, establishes a symbiotic relationship with the leguminous soybean plant. Despite a mutualistic association between the two partners, the host plant produces an oxidative burst to protect itself from the invasion of rhizobial cells. We investigated the effects of H2O2-mediated oxidative stress on B. japonicum gene expression in both prolonged exposure (PE) and fulminant shock (FS) conditions. In total, 439 and 650 genes were differentially expressed for the PE and FS conditions, respectively, at a twofold cut-off with q < 0.05. A number of genes within the transport and binding proteins category were upregulated during PE and a majority of those genes are involved in ABC transporter systems. Many genes encoding σ factors, global stress response proteins, the FixK2 transcription factor, and its regulatory targets were found to be upregulated in the FS condition. Surprisingly, catalase and peroxidase genes which are typically expressed in other bacteria under oxidative stress were not differentially expressed in either condition. The isocitrate lyase gene (aceA) was induced by fulminant H2O2 shock, as was evident at both the transcriptional and translational levels. Interestingly, there was no significant effect of H2O2 on exopolysaccharide production at the given experimental conditions.
PhotosyntheticBradyrhizobiumSp. Strain ORS285 Synthesizes 2-O-Methylfucosylated Lipochitooligosaccharides fornodGene–Dependent Interaction withAeschynomenePlants
Authors: Renier Adeline , Maillet Fabienne , Fardoux Joel , Poinsot Véréna , Giraud Eric , Nouwen Nico
Published: August 2011

Bradyrhizobium sp. strain ORS285 is a photosynthetic bacterium that forms nitrogen-fixing nodules on the roots and stems of tropical aquatic legumes of the Aeschynomene genus. The symbiotic interaction of Bradyrhizobium sp. strain ORS285 with certain Aeschynomene spp. depends on the presence of nodulation (nod) genes whereas the interaction with other species is nod gene independent. To study the nod gene-dependent molecular dialogue between Bradyrhizobium sp. strain ORS285 and Aeschynomene spp., we used a nodB-lacZ reporter strain to monitor the nod gene expression with various flavonoids. The flavanones liquiritigenin and naringenin were found to be the strongest inducers of nod gene expression. Chemical analysis of the culture supernatant of cells grown in the presence of naringenin showed that the major Nod factor produced by Bradyrhizobium sp. strain ORS285 is a modified chitin pentasaccharide molecule with a terminal N-C18:1-glucosamine and with a 2-O-methyl fucose linked to C-6 of the reducing glucosamine. In this respect, the Bradyrhizobium sp. strain ORS285 Nod factor is the same as the major Nod factor produced by the nonphotosynthetic Bradyrhizobium japonicum USDA110 that nodulates the roots of soybean. This suggests a classic nod gene-dependent molecular dialogue between Bradyrhizobium sp. strain ORS285 and certain Aeschynomene spp. This is supported by the fact that B. japonicum USDA110 is able to form N2-fixing nodules on both the roots and stems of Aeschynomene afraspera.