bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Magnetic field dependent triplet-triplet annihilation in Alq3-based organic light emitting diodes at different temperatures
Authors: Liu R. , Zhang Y. , Lei Y. L. , Chen P. , Xiong Z. H.
Published: May 2009

The magnetic field dependent current and electroluminescence (EL) of aluminum tris-(8-hydroxyquinoline) (Alq3)-based organic light emitting diodes (OLEDs) have been measured at different temperatures. At low temperatures, the magnetic field effects consist of a rapid rising in EL in low field regime followed by a slow falling at high fields and a continuous increase in current for all applied magnetic fields. The high field decrease in the EL is weakened and even vanishes at higher temperatures, which is attributed to the field affected triplet-triplet annihilation process. Other possible mechanisms about the magnetic field effects on electronic processes in OLEDs are also discussed.
Ultimate limit and temperature dependency of light-emitting diode efficiency
Authors: Heikkilä Oskari , Oksanen Jani , Tulkki Jukka
Published: May 2009

We discuss the ultimate limit of performance of semiconductor light-emitting diodes (LEDs) and its dependence on temperature. It is known that in high quality semiconductor materials it is, in principle, possible to reach wall plug efficiencies exceeding unity, which allows electroluminescent cooling in addition of very high efficiency light emission. Our simulation results suggest a few fairly simple measures that may further improve the external quantum efficiency (EQE) of LEDs toward the electroluminescent cooling limit. These include reducing the current density, modifying the LED structure by making thicker active regions and barrier layers, and doping of the active material. Our calculations also indicate that, contrary to the present understanding, operating LEDs at relatively high temperatures of 400–600 K may, in fact, improve the performance.
Current-induced domain wall motion: Domain wall velocity fluctuations
Authors: Ryu Jisu , Lee Hyun-Woo
Published: May 2009

The spin transfer torque generated by a spin polarized current can generate the domain wall (DW) motion in a magnetic nanowire. We examine fluctuations of a DW velocity induced by uncontrolled edge roughness and defects. In the weak pinning regime (regime I), the fluctuation is small. In the intermediate pinning regime (regime II), the DW velocity fluctuates significantly as the density of pinning centers changes. Moreover the threshold current density for the finite density of pinning centers is found to be noticeably larger than the threshold current density for the escape from a single pinning center. Finally, in the strong pinning regime (regime III), the DW velocity fluctuates as the density of pinning centers changes. But the enhancement of the threshold current density does not occur. Thus the fluctuations of the DW velocity are different in the three pinning regimes.
Reversible nanoscale deformation in compositionally graded shape memory alloy films
Authors: Cole Daniel P. , Jin Helena , Lu Wei-Yang , Roytburd Alexander L. , Bruck Hugh A.
Published: May 2009

Reversible deformation through the thickness of a compositionally graded shape memory alloy (SMA) film was observed at the nanoscale. Recovery of deformation caused by nanoindentation was characterized at low temperature using atomic force microscopy with in situ heating and cooling. The film was indented at various depths so recovery due to martensite transformations through the thickness could be studied. Tests performed on a homogenous SMA film showed that the recovery exhibited a one-way shape memory effect. The compositionally graded SMA film exhibited a two-way shape memory effect resulting from the variation in the coexistence of the martensite and austenite phases.
Activation energies of sigmatropic shifts in propene and acetone enolate from the anti-Hermitian contracted Schrödinger equation
Authors: Foley Jonathan J. , Rothman Adam E. , Mazziotti David A.
Published: May 2009

The hydrogen [1,3]-sigmatropic shift in propene is predicted by the Woodward–Hoffman rules to occur by an antarafacial pathway, yet the lack of experimental evidence suggests that this pathway is not favorable. Two natural questions arise: (i) can the [1,3]-shift be made more favorable by a symmetry-forbidden multistep pathway, and (ii) can the energetics be influenced by a substituent on propene? As in many chemical reactions, describing the energetics of these reactions requires a balanced treatment of both single-reference and multireference electron correlations, and yet traditional wave function methods often excel in treating only one kind of correlation. An equitable description of correlation effects, however, can be achieved, at a cost similar to efficient single-reference methods, by computing the two-electron reduced density matrix (2-RDM) from the anti-Hermitian part of the contracted Schrödinger equation (ACSE) [D. A. Mazziotti, Phys. Rev. Lett. 97, 143002 (2006)]. As with the contracted Schrödinger equation, the indeterminacy of the ACSE is removed without the many-electron wave function by reconstructing the 3-RDM from the 2-RDM via cumulant theory [D. A. Mazziotti, Chem. Phys. Lett. 289, 419 (1998)]. In this paper we apply the ACSE to study sigmatropic shifts in both propene and acetone enolate while extending its formalism to treat doublet spin states. In the 6-311G∗∗ basis set the ACSE predicts the activation energy of the trimethylene-to-propene rearrangement to be 8.8 kcal/mol while multireference perturbation theory yields a smaller barrier of 2.2 kcal/mol and coupled cluster singles-doubles predicts a negative barrier. We further find that the [1,3]-shift in acetone enolate is more favorable by ≈30 kcal/mol than the [1,3]-shift in propene, which is consistent with a prior theoretical investigation as well as experimental observations of these shifts in 2-butanone enolate.
Tunable spin junction
Authors: Li Pengke , Dery Hanan
Published: May 2009

We present a theory of transport across a double barrier structure at the interface region of a hybrid semiconductor/ferromagnet system (e.g., GaAs/AlGaAs/GaAs/Fe). When electrons flow to the ferromagnet (forward bias), two peaks appear in the current-voltage (I-V) curve of such a structure. The first peak is due to a typical behavior in resonant tunneling diodes and the second peak is due to resonance conditions between localized states. The spin polarization of the current has opposite sign in the two peaks. In such a scheme, the bias controls the magnitude and sign of the spin current.
A Korteweg–de Vries Burgers-like equation for weakly nonlinear dust ion-acoustic waves in a charge-varying dusty plasma with nonthermal electrons
Authors: Berbri Abderrezak , Tribeche Mouloud
Published: May 2009

A weakly nonlinear analysis is carried out to derive a Korteweg–de Vries Burgers-like equation for small but finite amplitude dust ion-acoustic (DIA) waves in a charge varying dusty plasma with non thermally distributed electrons. The correct expression for the nonthermal electron charging current is used. Interestingly, it may be noted that due to electron nonthermality and finite equilibrium ion streaming velocity, the present dusty plasma model can admit compressive as well as rarefactive DIA solitary waves. Furthermore, there may exist DIA shocks which have either monotonic or oscillatory behavior and the properties of which depend sensitively on the number of fast nonthermal electrons. Our results should be useful to understand the properties of localized DIA waves that may occur in space dusty plasmas.
Millikelvin thermal and electrical performance of lossy transmission line filters
Authors: Slichter D. H. , Naaman O. , Siddiqi I.
Published: May 2009

We report on the scattering parameters and Johnson noise emission of low-pass stripline filters employing a magnetically loaded silicone dielectric down to 25 mK. The transmission characteristic of a device with f−3dB=1.3 GHz remains essentially unchanged upon cooling. Another device with f−3dB=0.4 GHz, measured in its stopband, exhibits a steady state noise power emission consistent with a temperature difference of a few millikelvin relative to a well-anchored cryogenic microwave attenuator at temperatures down to 25 mK, thus presenting a matched thermal load.
Carbon nanotubes terminated with hard magnetic FePt nanomagnets
Authors: Schäffel F. , Täschner C. , Rümmeli M. H. , Neu V. , Wolff U. , Queitsch U. , Pohl D. , Kaltofen R. , Leonhardt A. , Rellinghaus B. , Büchner B. , Schultz L.
Published: May 2009

The advancement in carbon nanotube (CNT) technology includes significant interest in their functionalization to modify their chemical and physical properties. In particular, the selective functionalization of the CNT ends opens exciting opportunities to design nanoscale architectures and networks. The realization of hard-magnetically terminated CNT via plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition from Fe–Pt thin films is reported. Although FePt is rarely used as a catalyst for CNT synthesis the said binary catalyst affords attractive hard magnetic properties when present in the chemically ordered L10 phase.
Strain-modulated valence band engineering for enhancement of surface emission in polar and nonpolar plane AlN films
Authors: Fu D. Y. , Zhang R. , Wang B. G. , Zhang Z. , Liu B. , Xie Z. L. , Xiu X. Q. , Lu H. , Zheng Y. D. , Edwards G.
Published: May 2009

The k⋅p perturbation theory is adopted to calculate the strain-modulated excitonic transition energies and their polarization properties in c- and m-plane AlN. The two topmost valence subbands exchange their band characteristics at the degenerate point where εzz=0.98% and εxx=εyy=−1.70%. The surface emission efficiency of c-plane AlN films can be dramatically enhanced with εzz>0.98% (εxx=εyy<−1.70%), where the lowest excitonic transition is predominantly z-polarized. Besides, nonpolar plane (m- or a-plane) AlN experiencing anisotropic in-plane strain can be chosen as a candidate for enhancing the surface emission efficiency by proper strain manipulation.
Mixing molecular junctions with carbon nanotube-polymer composites: A strategy to enhance the conductivity and the transparency
Authors: Kwon Gyemin , Shin Kwanwoo , Sung Bong June
Published: May 2009

The effect of carbon nanotube (CNT) molecular junctions on the percolation behavior of CNTs is studied using computer simulations. A CNT is modeled as a rigid rod comprised of hard spheres. Molecular junctions of CNTs are constructed by joining segments of CNTs. The equilibrated configurations of the mixture of CNTs and molecular junctions are obtained using Monte Carlo simulations and are used to locate the percolating clusters of connected molecules. When CNT molecular junctions are mixed with CNTs, the minimum concentration of CNTs for a finite electric conductivity is significantly decreased; thus increasing both the conductivity and the transparency.
Reduced divergence angle of photonic crystal vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser
Authors: Liu Anjin , Xing Mingxin , Qu Hongwei , Chen Wei , Zhou Wenjun , Zheng Wanhua
Published: May 2009

The reduced divergence angle of the photonic crystal vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (PC-VCSEL) was investigated in both theory and experiment. The photonic crystal waveguide possessed the weakly guiding waveguide characteristic, which accounted for the reduction of the divergence angle. The three-dimensional finite-difference time-domain method was used to simulate the designed PC-VCSEL, and a calculated divergence angle of 5.2° was obtained. The measured divergence angles of our fabricated PC-VCSEL were between 5.1° and 5.5° over the entire drive current range, consistent with the numerical results. This is the lowest divergence angle of the fabricated PC-VCSEL ever reported.
Rapid three-dimensional imaging of defect distributions using a high-intensity positron microbeam
Authors: Oshima N. , Suzuki R. , Ohdaira T. , Kinomura A. , Narumi T. , Uedono A. , Fujinami M.
Published: May 2009

An intense positron microbeam generated by an electron accelerator has been developed for obtaining three-dimensional positron lifetime mappings in a sample to permit visual evaluation of defect distributions. The beam diameter at the sample was 80–100 μm. The counting rate of the positron annihilation γ rays used to measure positron lifetime was as large as 3×103 s−1. Three-dimensional imaging was demonstrated of positron lifetimes in a SiO2 sample, which was irradiated with ion beams through a mesh mask. The time to obtain a single image (3500 pixels for an area of 2.5×3.5 mm2) was 0.5–1 h.
Direct measurement of magnetoelectric exchange in self-assembled epitaxial BiFeO3–CoFe2O4 nanocomposite thin films
Authors: Yan Li , Xing Zengping , Wang Zhiguang , Wang Tao , Lei Guangyin , Li Jiefang , Viehland D.
Published: May 2009

We report the direct measurement of a magnetoelectric (ME) exchange between magnetostrictive CoFe2O4 nanopillars in a piezoelectric BiFeO3 matrix for single-layer nanocomposite epitaxial thin films grown on (001) SrTiO3 substrates with SrRuO3 bottom electrodes. The ME coefficient was measured by a magnetic cantilever method and had a maximum value of ∼20 mV/cm Oe. The films possessed saturation polarization (60 μC/cm2) and magnetization (410 emu/cc) properties equivalent to bulk values, with typical hysteresis loops.
Mondrian, Eye Movements, and the Oblique Effect
Authors: Plumhoff Jordan E , Schirillo James A
Published: May 2009

Observers prefer Mondrian's paintings in their original orientation compared to when rotated—“the oblique effect” (Latto et al, 2000 Perception29 981–987). We tested whether eye movements could provide any insight into this aesthetic bias. While recording fixation duration and saccade length, we presented eight Mondrian paintings dated 1921–1944 on a CRT in either their original or seven rotated positions to ten observers who used a Likert scale to report how (dis)pleasing they found each image. We report on eye-movement patterns from nine pairs of images that had a significant orientation effect. During the 20 s scans, fixation durations increased linearly, more so for pleasing images than for non-pleasing images. Moreover, saccade distances oscillated over the viewing interval, with larger saccade-distance oscillations for the pleasing images than the non-pleasing images. Both of these findings agree with earlier work by Nodine et al (1993 Leonardo26 219–227), and confirm that as an abstract painting becomes more aesthetically pleasing, it shows both a greater amount of diversive/specific types of image exploration and balance. Thus, any increase in visual fluency in localizing vertical and horizontal versus oblique lines can lead to an increase in the aesthetic pleasure of viewing Mondrian's work.
Spatial Distortions Produced by Purely Dichoptic-Based Visual Motion
Authors: Hess Robert F , Huang Pi-Chun , Maehara Goro
Published: May 2009

It is known that local, monocular motion (short-range motion) can produce local distortions of visual space. We wanted to know if local monocular motion was both sufficient and necessary for producing motion-based spatial distortions. We used a previously reported dichoptic motion stimulus in which the directional motion signal is not present in either eye's input but is only present after binocular combination. We show that such a stimulus can also induce perceived changes in spatial position. This suggests that local, monocular motion while being sufficient is not necessary for the production of motion-based illusions. It suggests that one source of motion signals responsible for this illusion is from binocular motion mechanisms.
Young people and sexual risk-taking behaviour in Central England
Authors: Westwood Jo , Mullan Barbara
Published: May 2009

Background: Sexually transmissible infections and the rate of teenage pregnancy in the UK are among the highest in the industrialised world. Research has suggested that high rates of risk-taking behaviours may account for the concerning increase in the rates of sexually transmissible infections and higher rates of teenage pregnancy in the UK. Methods: This cross-sectional analysis investigated the sexual risk-taking behaviours of a group of sexually active 12–15-year-old school pupils from a single county in Central England (n = 493). Data were analysed to investigate the sexual risk activity of adolescents, urban/rural location, and gender. Results: In this sample, rural students were more likely than their urban counterparts to have used drugs or alcohol the first time they had sex. Female students were more likely than male students to report ever having had sex without contraception. Male students were more likely than female students to have ever had a one night stand. Conclusions: As expected there were differences in sexual risk-taking behaviour between pupils in urban and rural locations, and males and females. In most cases these differences were consistent with previous research on general trends, with a few exceptions that can be meaningfully interpreted using previous research in this area. In future, researchers may wish to investigate the underlying factors that determine these differences in risk-taking behaviour.
Audit and feedback: Effects on professional obstetrical practice and healthcare outcomes in a university hospital
Authors: COSTA MARIA L. , CECATTI JOSE G. , MILANEZ HELAINE M. , SOUZA JOAO P. , GÜLMEZOGLU METIN
Published: May 2009

Objective. To assess the effects of audit and feedback on the practice of professionals in obstetrics. Design. Before–after intervention study. Setting. Obstetric unit of a university hospital in Brazil. Methods. Before the intervention the prevalence rates of six evidence‐based interventions were assessed. Seminars and workshops were administered, with the baseline results and also the main contents from systematic reviews on the topics studied, followed by detailed discussion of each topic, based on the Reproductive Health Library. After four months, the same practices were measured again and compared with the pre‐intervention period. Main outcome measures. Selective episiotomy; continuous electronic fetal monitoring (EFM) during labor of low‐risk pregnant women; antibiotic prophylaxis in cesarean section; active management of third stage of labor; routine induction of labor at 41 weeks for uncomplicated pregnancies; and continuous support for women during childbirth. Results. Both periods showed a similar number and mode of deliveries. There was a significant reduction in episiotomies (RR = 0.84; 0.73–0.97) and an increase in continuous support for women during childbirth by a companion (RR = 1.42; 1.24–1.63). Although there was not a significant change in the use of oxytocin during the third stage of labor, there was a shift to the internationally recommended dosage of 10 IU (p<0.0001). There was no significant change in the use of antibiotic prophylaxis for cesarean section, continuous EFM, or routine induction of labor at 41 weeks for uncomplicated pregnancies. Conclusion. Audit and feedback can be used as a tool to improve obstetrical practice, at least for some interventions and when the medical staff is open and receptive to change.
David Sherwood: Invasive procedures
Authors: Short Ben
Published: May 2009

Sherwood uses a unique in vivo model to study how cells invade through extracellular barriers.
Introduction: Four Themes in Research on the Neurobiology of Memory
Authors: Eichenbaum Howard
Published: May 2009

This chapter introduces some of the philosophical and historical underpinnings of research on the biological bases of memory. It begins by presenting four central themes that have guided memory research for over a hundred years: connection, cognition, compartmentalization, and consolidation. Substantial preliminary evidence regarding each of these themes emerged during a “Golden Era” for neuroscience in the latter half of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century. A brief introduction to some of these accomplishments provides the background for a subsequent, more detailed summary of progress on each of the four central themes in the remainder of the book.
Locomotor and Exploratory Behavior
Authors: Golani Ilan , Benjamini Yoav , Dvorkin Anna , Lipkind Dina , Kafkafi Neri
Published: May 2009

Rat exploratory behavior includes motor, locomotor, motivational, and cognitive aspects; it consists of a stimulating combination of stochastic and lawful elements. As technology improves, it becomes increasingly more accessible for data acquisition and analysis. This chapter reviews studies relating to the animal's trajectory in the environment and relating to interlimb coordination. Each section starts from the stage of automated data acquisition and then proceeds through the isolation of patterns of movement to global regularities.
Sex
Authors: Jenkins William J. , Becker Jill B.
Published: May 2009

This chapter provides an overview of the reproductive systems and the neural systems that mediate sexual behavior, and discusses how to study sexual behavior in male and female rats. It shows that the male and female rat share many commonalities in terms of the anatomical substrates of sexual behavior. Another common feature in the sexual behavior of males and females is the role that the striatum and nucleus accumbens (NAcc) play in mediating sexual behavior and motivation.
Antipredator Defense
Authors: Blanchard D. Caroline , Blanchard Robert J.
Published: May 2009

This chapter discusses defensive behavior in rats. Topics covered include specific defensive behaviors (e.g., flight, hiding, freezing, alarm cries, defensive attack), stimuli that elicit defense, the role of “expediting” stimuli in controlling specific defenses, the role of threat intensity in controlling specific defenses, outcomes of defensive behaviors, and laboratory models of rat defensive behaviors.
Defensive Burying
Authors: Treit Dallas , Pinel John J. P.
Published: May 2009

This chapter discusses defensive burying behavior by rats. Topics covered include development of defensive burying paradigms, unconditioned defensive burying, characteristics and generality of defensive burying, burying as a defensive response in the wild, and conducting conditioned defensive burying experiments.
Dead Reckoning
Authors: Wallace Douglas G. , Whishaw Ian Q.
Published: May 2009

Rats may use at least two navigational strategies that aid in the recovery of resources and protection from predation: allothetic and idiothetic. Allothetic navigation involves the use of external cues (visual, auditory, or olfactory cues). Idiothetic navigation involves the use of uses cues generated by self-movement (proprioceptive and vestibular cues, sensory flow, or efferent copies of movement commands). A prominent form of idiothetic navigation is dead reckoning, in which a rat locates its present position in relation to a starting position, to which it can return. This chapter presents behavioral techniques used to investigate dead reckoning and describes a theoretical framework for dead reckoning.
Case History and Initial Findings
Authors: McCloskey Michael
Published: May 2009

This chapter provides a brief case history for AH and describes the preliminary results that led to a focus on her processing of visual location and orientation information. AH was an 18-year-old freshman at Johns Hopkins University when the study began in December 1991. When testing ended in May 1995, she was 21 years old and had just graduated from Johns Hopkins. Her neurological status, educational history, and impaired location and orientation processing are described. AH was strikingly impaired across a variety of direct-copy tasks with diverse stimulus materials. Despite the fact that the stimuli remained in view while she produced her copies, she made frequent and blatant errors even for very simple stimuli. AH's direct-copy errors systematically involved mislocation or misorientation of stimulus objects or their parts. Moreover, the location and orientation errors were not random but instead took the form of left-right or up-down reflections. These results clearly demonstrated that AH suffered from some form of impairment that affected her processing of location and orientation information.
Impaired Processing of Visual Location and Orientation Information
Authors: McCloskey Michael
Published: May 2009

This chapter provides additional evidence demonstrating that AH has a selective deficit in visual location and orientation perception. Tests show that AH's impairment in processing visual location and orientation information is not limited to direct-copy tasks. She presented with severely impaired performance across a broad range of tasks that differed widely in the form of the stimuli, the nature of the responses, and other task requirements. As in the direct-copy tasks, her errors were extremely systematic, taking the form of left-right and/or up-down reflections.
Spelling and the Visual Deficit
Authors: McCloskey Michael
Published: May 2009

This chapter discusses AH's spelling impairment, suggesting that AH's severely impaired spelling may be a nonobvious consequence of her perceptual deficit. Visual perception of location and orientation, although not required for performing a spelling task, is crucial for learning to spell: Experience with visually presented words plays a central role in acquisition of lexical-orthographic representations and sublexical sound-spelling correspondences. AH's deficit in visual location and orientation perception may therefore have disrupted her ability to acquire these forms of knowledge as a child and, hence, impaired her ability to spell as an adult.
Effects of Visual Variables
Authors: McCloskey Michael
Published: May 2009

This chapter presents evidence showing that AH's visual location and orientation perception are dramatically affected by several visual variables: motion, exposure duration, flicker, contrast, and eccentricity. In addition to buttressing the conclusion that AH's deficit has a visual-system locus, the results have implications for understanding the organization of the normal visual system.
A Paradox
Authors: McCloskey Michael
Published: May 2009

The results discussed in the preceding chapters lead to a paradox: On the one hand, data from a broad range of laboratory tasks implied that AH was severely impaired in perceiving the location and orientation of visual stimuli; yet, on the other hand, she was apparently leading a normal life, doing well in school and living independently with no special accommodations. This chapter attempts to resolve this paradox. In doing so, it develops three key points: First, AH is intact in extracting location and orientation information from certain forms of stimuli (e.g., moving visual stimuli), allowing her to succeed in many everyday tasks. Second, AH's performance in daily life is not, in fact, normal: Her self-reports and the results from laboratory tasks indicate that she encounters difficulty in a variety of circumstances. Third, compensatory processes help to reduce the impact of the deficit. These points, supported by AH's self-reports and data from several tasks, indicate that AH's performance in daily life can be reconciled with the laboratory evidence of a serious perceptual deficit.
Does AH's Deficit Affect Her Reading?
Authors: McCloskey Michael
Published: May 2009

This chapter describes a detailed study of AH's reading. It shows that contrary to appearances, AH's reading is far from normal: When tested with appropriately chosen tasks, she shows clear and dramatic impairment. It presents strong evidence that AH's impaired reading performance is caused by her deficit in visual location and orientation perception.
How Does AH Succeed at Reading?
Authors: McCloskey Michael
Published: May 2009

This chapter considers how AH is apparently able to read successfully in daily life and why she and others were unaware of her reading difficulties. It suggests that AH's reading processes rely heavily on knowledge of regularities at multiple levels in written language to constrain interpretation of the potentially inaccurate stimulus representations generated by her visual system. When the available constraints are strong, as in reading connected text, AH's reading processes may usually be able to “repair” the visual-system errors, resulting in good comprehension. However, when the constraints are weak, as with isolated words or sequences of unrelated words, recovery from visual errors may often not be possible. The use of knowledge-based constraints is not a conscious problem-solving process but rather proceeds without AH's awareness or control.
Related Cases
Authors: McCloskey Michael
Published: May 2009

This chapter discusses other reported deficits in processing visual location and orientation information. It highlights a recently reported case, involving a patient named PR, that bears a striking resemblance to that of AH. Both AH and PR were impaired in location and orientation perception, both made systematic left-right reflection errors, and both showed the same dramatic effects of exposure duration, motion, flicker, and eccentricity. The commonalities between the two cases strongly suggest that the underlying deficits are very similar and provide a basis for increased confidence in conclusions about the normal visual system drawn from AH's (or PR's) performance.
Orientation Representations and Frames of Reference: The COR Hypothesis
Authors: McCloskey Michael
Published: May 2009

This chapter presents the coordinate-system orientation representation (COR) hypothesis. It lays out the assumptions of the COR and then discusses the various forms of orientation errors that could arise in constructing or using the posited representations. The hypothesis provides something that has been lacking in cognitive research on orientation: a conceptual framework for thinking about how the orientation of objects might be represented. It also calls attention to nonobvious differences among forms of orientation error (e.g., tilt-direction errors, reflections across object axes, reflections across external axes) and suggests underlying causes for each error type. Most notably, the hypothesis provides specific interpretations for the various forms of mirror-reflection error.
Orientation Representations: Empirical Evidence
Authors: McCloskey Michael
Published: May 2009

This chapter interprets AH's orientation errors in light of the coordinate-system orientation representation (COR) hypothesis. It begins by discussing AH's performance on orientation perception tasks in light of the COR hypothesis, arguing that the hypothesis can account for her errors. It then describes three additional orientation studies that researchers have recently carried out, again arguing that the COR hypothesis can explain the results. The findings from all of the studies support the fundamental COR assumptions about representation of orientation.
Characteristics of Infectious Disease That Raise Distinctive Challenges for Bioethics
Authors: Battin Margaret P. , Francis Leslie P. , Jacobson Jay A. , Smith Charles B.
Published: May 2009

This chapter examines the characteristics of infectious disease that raise special medical and social ethical issues, and explores ways of integrating both current bioethics and classical public health ethics concerns. Many of the ethical issues raised by infectious disease are related to these diseases' powerful ability to engender fear in individuals and panic in populations. The chapter addresses the association of some infectious diseases with high morbidity and mortality rates, the sense that infectious diseases are caused by invasion or attack on humans by foreign microorganisms, the acute onset and rapid course of many infectious diseases, and, in particular, the communicability of infectious diseases. The individual fear and community panic associated with infectious diseases often leads to rapid, emotionally driven decision-making about public health policies needed to protect the community that may be in conflict with current bioethical principles regarding the care of individual patients. The discussion includes recent examples where dialogue between public health practitioners and bioethicists has helped resolve ethical issues that require us to consider the infected patient as both a victim with individual needs and rights, and as a potential vector of disease that is of concern to the community.
Embedded Autonomy and the “Way-Station Self”
Authors: Battin Margaret P. , Francis Leslie P. , Jacobson Jay A. , Smith Charles B.
Published: May 2009

Traditional liberal paradigms in bioethics have rested on a misleading picture of the self as a separate individual. This chapter develops a biologicized picture of the self as a “way station”: so to speak, a launching pad and breeding ground of biological organisms, some pathological and many benign, that are transmitted from one human individual to another. Understanding people as way-station selves embedded in a web of infectious disease requires rethinking some of the most basic concepts of bioethics: autonomy, the harm principle, and responsibility, among others. The autonomous agent cannot be seen as an isolated individual, but must be viewed as acting in biological relationships with others. The harm principle's basic idea that intervention is permissible only to prevent people from harming each other must be reshaped by the recognition that there is no easy way to separate actions that harm only the individual him/herself from actions that affect others. Responsibility must be rethought in light of the biological reality that people may infect others unknowingly, and may never know the sources of the infections they contract. Although people may be more or less aware of their susceptibility to infectious disease, there is always a sense in which each person stands in unknown relationships of potential contagion to others.
The Multiple Perspectives of thePatient as Victim and VectorView
Authors: Battin Margaret P. , Francis Leslie P. , Jacobson Jay A. , Smith Charles B.
Published: May 2009

This chapter presents the full exposition of the PVV view: that ethical problems in infectious disease should be analyzed, and clinical practices, research agendas, and public policies developed, which always take into account the possibility that a person with communicable infectious disease is both victim and vector. The PVV view works on three levels. First is ordinary life in which people are more or less aware of their actual circumstances of illness, health, and risk. Second is the population-wide view, in which patterns of disease, special risks for sub-populations, and progress or failure with respect to the overall burden of infectious disease can be observed. Third is the view of the “way-station self,” who is always in some sense at unknown and unknowable risk of disease. This third perspective is a naturalized version of the Rawlsian veil of ignorance: a thought-experiment that asks what choices and practices people would want with respect to infectious disease in light of the reality that they are always at unknown and unknowable risk of disease. These perspectives are difficult to hold in view at the same time, but each is essential to analysis of the ethical issues raised by infectious disease.
Vertical Transmission of Infectious Diseases and Genetic Disorders
Authors: Battin Margaret P. , Francis Leslie P. , Jacobson Jay A. , Smith Charles B.
Published: May 2009

Infectious diseases and genetic conditions are both transmitted “vertically” from a pregnant woman to the child she bears. Most U.S. states require routine screening of women for syphilis during pregnancy, and cases of congenital syphilis now number less than about 400 per year. In contrast, although a blood test can diagnose up to 90% of cystic fibrosis carriers and affected individuals, no states require premarital or prenatal screening for CF. These two vertically transmitted disorders are similar in potential incidence, detectability, and the absence of curative treatments after vertical transmission occurs. Past and present screening policies for syphilis can be characterized as preconception, prenatal, paternalistic, state mandated, universal, with presumed consent for tests and treatment, widely practiced, and effective. Screening policies for cystic fibrosis can, in contrast, be characterized as prenatal, postnatal, selective, and voluntary—except, most recently, for newborn testing. While differences between these policies may rest partly on historical or other factors, the chapter argues that there are moral differences, too. Recent emphasis on individual rights and choice may be more important in explaining different strategies than the fact that one type of vertical transmission is infectious and the other is genetic. Neither is “exceptional”; rather, both the historical and the ethical explanations of difference relate to other factors, particularly ready access to treatment and the availability of methods for preventing transmission.
Should Rapid Tests for Hiv Infection Now Be Mandatory During Pregnancy or In Labor?
Authors: Battin Margaret P. , Francis Leslie P. , Jacobson Jay A. , Smith Charles B.
Published: May 2009

Since testing for HIV became possible in 1985, the testing of pregnant women has been primarily voluntary, “opt-in,” but there have been repeated predictions that with the development of more reliable testing and more effective therapy, testing should become routine with “opt-out” provisions, or even mandatory. This chapter asks—in the light of new technologies for rapid testing such as OraQuick and the capacity to reduce maternal/fetal transmission rates to less than 2%—whether that time is now. Illustrating the argument with cases from the United States, Kenya, Peru, and an undocumented Mexican worker in the United States, this chapter shows that when testing is accompanied by assured multi-drug continuing treatment for HIV for the mother, the argument for mandatory testing of pregnant women is strong, but that it is problematic where testing is accompanied by adverse events such as spousal abuse, or by inadequate intrapartum or followup treatment—the latter a circumstance common where aggressive AIDS testing programs are being introduced in many areas of the world. The difference is not a “double standard,” but reflects the presence of conflicts between the health interests of the mother and the fetus—conflicts that would be abrogated by the assurance of therapy. In light of these conflicts where they still occur, as in much of the world, careful processes of informed consent are appropriate, rather than mandatory or “opt-out” testing.
Immunization and the Hpv Vaccine
Authors: Battin Margaret P. , Francis Leslie P. , Jacobson Jay A. , Smith Charles B.
Published: May 2009

The human papilloma virus (HPV) vaccine has the potential to significantly reduce the incidence of cervical cancer in women who receive the vaccine before they are sexually active and thus become at risk of becoming infected with HPV. This chapter explores the debate over mandating that girls aged 11-12 years receive the (HPV) vaccine as a requirement for school entry. The religious and principled objections posed to mandatory immunization practices are reviewed in general as well as the unique issues related to the fact that HPV is a sexually transmitted disease; also examined are the justice issues raised by the fact that the HPV vaccine is too expensive to be available to the large populations of women in developing countries, yet other methods of cervical cancer detection and prevention are not available. The PVV view suggests that, as with other immunizations, an opt-out option should be maintained, but only for the most strongly held religious or other personal beliefs. Any decision maker—a competent adult, the parent of an infant or an adolescent, an adolescent along with the parent, or a policy maker—must take into account the consequences for both victims and vectors of decisions that are made about disease that can be controlled by immunization.
A Thought Experiment
Authors: Battin Margaret P. , Francis Leslie P. , Jacobson Jay A. , Smith Charles B.
Published: May 2009

This chapter explores a thought-experiment imagining universal surveillance for all known communicable infectious disease, using rapid tests involving polymerase chain reactions and other methods that require twenty minutes or less for results, at airports. Imagine: as you check in at the departures desk, you supply a cheek swab or other sample that is automatically assayed by the time you reach the gate: if you're negative you can board the plane, if positive you're referred to the airport clinic or local hospital for immediate treatment. This thought experiment raises substantial issues of privacy, confidentiality, and other constraints; yet—especially if expanded to other places of public contact—appears to promise a real reduction in the transmission of infectious disease.
Behavioral Genetics: The Science of Antisocial Behavior
Authors: Baker Laura A. , Bezdjian Serena , Raine Adrian
Published: May 2009

This chapter discusses the methodologies and results of behavioral genetics studies, focusing on traits such as antisocial behavior, aggression, and behaviors associated with criminal conduct. It describes in detail the classic methods as well as more recent research designs of behavioral genetics studies, along with the various assumptions, strengths, and weaknesses of each approach. It surveys leading scientific research in antisocial personality disorder and explains the known biological and environmental contributions.
Genetics, Neuroscience, and Criminal Responsibility
Authors: Farahany Nita A. , Coleman, Jr. James E.
Published: May 2009

This chapter discusses practitioners' attempts to use behavioral genetics and neuroscience in U.S. criminal law cases, and explores the relationship between behavioral genetics, neuroscience, and criminal responsibility as it operates in the U.S. criminal justice system. It argues that irrespective of understanding the underlying contributions to human behavior, as a matter of criminal law theory, such evidence is unlikely to unhinge current assessments of criminal responsibility.
Addiction, Science, and Criminal Responsibility
Authors: Morse Stephen J.
Published: May 2009

This chapter has two simple underlying theses. The first is that it is impossible to understand the relation of any variable to criminal responsibility without having in place an account of criminal responsibility. The second is that discovery of genetic, neuroscientific, or any other physical or psychosocial cause of action raises no new issues concerning responsibility, and discovery of such causes does not per se create an excusing or mitigating condition for criminal conduct or any other type of behavior. The chapter begins in Part II with a brief description of the phenomenology of addiction, describing generally what is known about the behavioral aspects of addiction in addition to the basic criteria of craving, seeking, and using. Part III addresses the contrast between the legal and scientific images of behavior, using the disease concept of addiction, now fueled by discoveries of genetic predisposition and altered neural systems of reward, as prime examples of the contrast. Part IV offers a general model of criminal responsibility to guide the analysis of responsibility for addiction-related criminal behavior, offering the best positive account of the present system. Part V deals with persistent confusions about responsibility. Part VI describes those aspects of addiction, if any, for which persons might be held morally or legally responsible, concluding that only actions related to addiction are appropriate objects for ascribing criminal responsibility. Part VII addresses the causal role genetics and neural systems of reward play in explaining addiction. Finally, Part VIII considers individual and social responsibility for the addiction-related actions.
Genomics, Behavior, and Testimony at Criminal Trials
Authors: Bernet William , Alkhatib Anas
Published: May 2009

This chapter describes how testimony regarding behavioral genomics is currently used in legal settings and how it may be used in the future. It focuses on three ways in which a specific individual's genetic makeup may be relevant to his or her behavior. First, the person's genotype may exactly designate a psychiatric or medical diagnosis that clearly explains the person's abnormal behavior. Second, the person's genotype may support a psychiatric diagnosis that has been made on clinical grounds. Third, the person's genotype may help to explain his or her violent or criminal behavior.
Genetic Predictions of Future Dangerousness: Is there a Blueprint for Violence?
Authors: Beecher-Monas Erica , Garcia-Rill Edgar
Published: May 2009

This chapter begins with a discussion and critique of the courts' use of future dangerousness predictions in sentencing and postsentence commitment proceedings for capital murderers and sex offenders and in community notification requirements for sex offenders. It then addresses the growth of knowledge about the biology of violence and sexual violence and questions whether such information could be incorporated into actuarial instruments that might more reliably form the basis for sentencing and postsentencing determinations. It examines the problems of predicting violence based on genetic information. The chapter concludes that the courts' insistence on future dangerousness predictions is ill conceived for both legal and scientific reasons.
The Scarlet Gene: Behavioral Genetics, Criminal Law, and Racial and Ethnic Stigma
Authors: Rothenberg Karen , Wang Alice
Published: May 2009

This chapter contains six parts. Part I summarizes the Genes on Trial program and introduces the issues raised by it. Part II explains why behavioral genetics research tends to focus on discrete and insular populations that overlap with socially constructed racial or ethnic groups. Part III locates behavioral genetics research on a spectrum spanning from single-gene disorders to complex behavioral traits, positing that the behavioral end of the spectrum carries the most potential for stigma. Part IV explores how the blame-shifting mechanisms of genetic reductionism and genetic determinism affect the individual, family, community, and society when genetics research focuses on criminal or antisocial behavior. Part V analyzes how racial and ethnic stigma arise from behavioral genetics research and perpetuate inequality. Part VI concludes by considering the ethical dilemmas that geneticists face when choosing who and what to study.
CHAPTER 1 David Kaplan: The Man at Work
Authors: Almog Joseph
Published: May 2009

This chapter presents an introduction to David Kaplan. Topics covered include the influence of Church, Carnap, and Montague, from whom Kaplan got the eye for elegant formal codifications; Kaplan's admiration and adoption of the work of the German logician Gottlob Frege as the ground philosophical framework; his most influential work, Demonstratives, which presented his pioneering account of “direct reference” and what is essentially a two‐stage theory of meaning; and his separation of semantics and modal metaphysics.
CHAPTER 2 David Kaplan: Formal Aspects of His Work
Authors: Anderson C. Anthony
Published: May 2009

This chapter focuses on David Kaplan's work where formal logic plays an explicit or strongly implicit role. Topics covered include David's dissertation, which is squarely in the Frege‐Church tradition but takes into account the then‐novel ideas of Carnap on modal logic; his isolation and clarification of the idea of a standard name of something; and the paradox of Knower. It is argued that Kaplan's philosophical work often has a formal system or its semantics either in front of or in back of the discussion. There is, however, none of the flaunting of symbols that one learns early on can be used to intimidate those who are quantificationally challenged. The formalism is used for what it is good for—to crystallize ideas and to test their consequences, which is the true method of analytic philosophy.
CHAPTER 4 Higher‐Order Senses
Authors: Parsons Terence
Published: May 2009

This chapter discusses old‐fashioned intensional logic, a topic that David Kaplan worked on a very long time ago, and one in which he is still interested. It considers the development of theories of truth and meaning for natural language, focusing on the problems created by nonextensional contexts, such as that‐clauses.