Human responses to high levels of carbon dioxide and air temperature

In this study, 30 subjects were exposed to different combinations of air temperature (T_a: 24, 27, and 30°C) and CO₂ level (8000, 10 000, and 12 000 ppm) in a high-humidity (RH: 85%) underground climate chamber. Subjective assessments, physiological responses, and cognitive performance were investigated. The results showed that as compared with exposure to T_a = 24°C, exposure to 30°C at all CO₂ levels caused subjects to feel uncomfortably warm and experience stronger odor intensity, while increased mental effort and greater intensity of acute health symptoms were reported. However, no significant effects of T_a on task performance or physiological responses were found. This indicated that subjects had to exert more effort to maintain their performance in an uncomfortably warm environment. Increasing CO₂ from 8000 to 12 000 ppm at all T_a caused subjects to report higher rates of headache, fatigue, agitation, and feeling depressed, although the results were statistically significant only at 24 and 27°C. The text typing performance and systolic blood pressure (SBP) decreased significantly at this exposure, whereas diastolic blood pressure (DBP) and thermal discomfort increased significantly. These effects suggest higher arousal/stress. No significant interaction effect of T_a and CO₂ concentration on human responses was identified.     

Encapsulated sodium supplementation of 4 weeks does not alter salt taste preferences in a controlled low sodium and low potassium diet

Preference for saltiness is learned by oral exposure to salt taste; however, some data suggest a role for bodily sodium and potassium levels on salt taste preferences as well. The objective was to investigate whether encapsulated sodium and potassium supplementation lead to altered salt taste responses among adults with high blood pressure on a low sodium and low potassium diet. Twenty-six participants with untreated upper-range prehypertension or stage 1 hypertension were on a fully controlled low sodium and low potassium diet (both targeted at 2 g/day) for 13 weeks. Participants received capsules with sodium (3 g/d), potassium (3 g/d), or placebo, for 4 weeks each, in randomized order in a double blind crossover design. Sensory evaluation was done before and after each supplementation period and involved ratings of pleasantness and intensity in different salt (NaCl) concentrations in food and water, desire-to-eat salty food, and detection threshold for NaCl. Neither sodium supplementation nor potassium supplementation led to alterations in salt taste responses in food and water, and did not affect detection threshold (P = 0.59). There was no clear role for sodium or potassium supplementation on desire-to-eat salty food. In addition, we did not find effects of reduced oral exposure to salt over weeks, through the sodium-reduced diet, on salt taste preferences, in contrast to earlier studies. In conclusion, the results of this study suggest preference for saltiness is independent of changes in bodily sodium or potassium levels.     

Improving storability,physiological disorders,and antioxidant properties of ‘Bartlett’ and ‘d’Anjou’ pears (Pyrus communis L.) by pre-harvest 1-methylcyclopropene spraying

Ethylene continues to be a major factor influencing quality of European pears during storage. Although research has been done on the effect of pre-harvest 1-methylcyclopropene (1-MCP) on physiological characteristics in pears, a full understanding of cultivar response and antioxidant metabolism remains elusive. Spraying 1-MCP on ‘Bartlett’ and ‘d’Anjou’ pears was studied with respect to physiology, storage and eating quality, disorders, and antioxidant properties at two harvest date (H1 and H2) during storage and ripening. Treatment with 1-MCP extended the harvest window of ‘Bartlett’ and ‘d’Anjou’ pears 3 and 4 days, respectively, without reducing storage or eating quality. Treatment with 1-MCP reduced ethylene production (EPR) and respiration rates (RR), maintained fruit firmness and green colour during storage and retarded development of desirable melting texture in both cultivars. Additionally, 1-MCP lowered the incidence of disorders by alleviating membrane lipid peroxidation, retaining high total flavonoids (TF) and antioxidant capacity, and enhancing superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT) and ascorbate peroxidase (APX) activity in both cultivars. Overall, pre-harvest 1-MCP applications could extend storage time of ‘Bartlett’ and ‘d’Anjou’ pears to 5 and 6 months, respectively, at −1.1 ± 0.5 °C, by reducing ethylene synthesis and enhancing antioxidant metabolism.     

应用激光活化饵料藻种的研究

应用Nd:YAG激光(波长1.06μm,功率5w,照射时间0.5-3 min)和Ar+激光(波长488nm,功率70mw,照射时间5-15min)对长期保存的不同保存形式的塔胞藻(Pyramidomonassp.)进行辐照处理。研究了不同剂量激光辐照对藻体生长和叶绿素含量的影响。实验结果表明:照射剂量为60s的Nd:YAG激光及剂量为15min的Ar+激光对液体保存形式的藻种有较明显的促长效果,接种后这两种激光处理组的比生长速率分别较对照提高达53.33%和28.89%,叶绿素含量分别增加73.33%和65.69%。两种激光对液体保存藻种的活化效果均好于固体保存种。     

The validity of psychophysiological detection of information with the Guilty Knowledge Test: A meta-analytic review.

The authors performed a meta-analysis based on 169 conditions, gathered from 80 laboratory studies, to estimate the validity of the Guilty Knowledge Test (GKT) with the electrodermal measure. The over-all average effect size was 1.55, but there were considerable variations among studies. In particular, mock-crime studies produced the highest average effect size (2.09). Three additional moderators, were identified: Motivational instructions, deceptive ("no") verbal responses, and the use of at least 5 questions were associated with enhanced validity. Finally, a set of 10 studies that best approximated applications of the GKT under optimal conditions produced an average effect size of 3.12. The authors discuss factors that might limit the generalizability of these results and recommend further research of the GKT in realistic setups. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

大蒜活性成分阿霍烯的研究概况

阿霍烯作为源自于大蒜的一种活性成分，较之蒜素更加稳定且不具有令人难以接受的蒜辣蒜臭气味，具有抗血栓形成，诱导肿瘤细胞调亡及抗菌消炎等特别的生理功效，是一种天然高效的活性成分。本文综述了近年来有关阿霍烯的生理功效，结构组成及形成机制等的研究概况。     

Interaction bounds in multivariable control systems

Time-domain limitations due to right half-plane zeros and poles in linear multivariable control systems are studied. Lower bounds on the interaction are derived. They show not only how the location of zeros and poles are critical in multivariable systems, but also how the zero and pole directions influence the performance. The results are illustrated on the quadruple-tank process, which is a new multivariable laboratory process.     

Robustness analysis of responses of vibration control structures with uncertain parameters using interval algorithm

Variations in system parameters due to uncertainties may result in system performance deterioration. Uncertainties in modeling of structures are often considered to ensure that control system is robust with respect to response errors. Hence, the uncertain concept plays an important role in vibration control of the engineering structures. The paper discusses the robustness of responses of vibration control systems with the uncertain parameters. The vibration control problem of an uncertain system is approximated by a deterministic one. The uncertain parameters are described by interval variables. The uncertain state matrix is constructed directly using system physical parameters and avoided to use bounds in Euclidean norm. The feedback gain matrix is determined based on the deterministic systems, and then it is applied to the actual uncertain systems. A method to calculate the upper and lower bounds of responses of the closed-loop system with uncertain parameters is presented. The upper bounds of responses can be used to estimate the robustness of responses of the controlled system with uncertain parameters. Two numerical examples are given to illustrate the applications of the present approach.     

Still No Evidence for Perfect Timesharing With Two Ideomotor-Compatible Tasks: A Reply to Greenwald (2003).

For 30 years, A. G. Greenwald and H. G. Shulman's (1973) psychological refractory period (PRP) study has been cited as evidence for perfect timesharing with ideomotor (IM)-compatible tasks. Recently, M.-C. Lien, R. W. Proctor, and P. A. Allen (2002) failed to replicate these results and concluded that IM compatibility is neither necessary nor sufficient to eliminate the PRP effect. A. G. Greenwald (2003) attributed Lien et al.'s nonreplication to the use of (a) a non-IM-compatible task, (b) varied trial spacing, and/or (c) inappropriate instructions. The authors of the present article argue that the first 2 factors are not critical and that instructions merely affect the criterion for speed versus accuracy. In each of Greenwald's experiments, dual-task costs were evident on response time or error rates. Furthermore, the small dual-task costs in his study are consistent with a bottleneck model. Thus, Greenwald (2003) does not provide evidence that IM-compatible tasks enable perfect timesharing. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Neural components of social evaluation.

Evaluative responses appear to involve 2 seemingly distinct sets of processes: those that are automatically activated and others that are more consciously controlled. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging, the authors investigated the brain systems associated with automatic and controlled evaluative processing. Participants made either evaluative (good-bad) or nonevaluative (past-present) judgments about famous names. Greater amygdala activity was observed for names rated as "bad" relative to those rated as "good," regardless of whether the task directly involved an evaluative judgment (good-bad) or not (past-present). Good-bad judgments resulted in greater medial and ventrolateral prefrontal cortex (PFC) activity than past-present judgments. Furthermore, there was greater ventrolateral PFC activity in good-bad judgments marked by greater ambivalence. Together, these findings indicate a neural distinction between processes engaged for automatic and controlled evaluation. Whereas automatic processes are sensitive to simple valence, controlled processes are sensitive to attitudinal complexity. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)