Bovine muscle shortening and protein degradation after electrical stimulation, excision and chilling

Electrical stimulation-dependent improvement in beef tenderness resulted from mechanisms other than avoidance of cold shortening in excised muscle chilled at a normal rate (10°C at 10h post-stimulation). At normal chilling rate, electrical stimulation enhanced degradation of the myofibrillar proteins, alpha actinin and troponin-T, and increased the amount of a 30 000 dalton protein, as assessed by gel electrophoresis, whereas sarcomere lengths were not different from unstimulated muscle. Under slightly accelerated chilling conditions (10°C at 5 h post stimulation), electrical stimulation prevented cold shortening but the meat was more tender than, and had the same sarcomere length as, unstimulated muscle chilled to 10°C in 10 h. Electrical stimulation did not improve the tenderness of beef chilled at a rapid rate (10°C at 2 h post stimulation), nor did it prevent cold shortening when muscles were chilled rapidly.     

Analyzing Nonindependent Outcomes in Couple Therapy Using the Actor-Partner Interdependence Model.

The nonindependent components of couple data require data-analytic strategies tailored to the interpersonal processes occurring between relationship partners. This article examines the benefits of a specifically dyadic analytic method, the actor-partner interdependence model (APIM), for evaluating interpartner influence across time. Both conceptual and methodological features of the APIM are exemplified by applying this model to observations of negative and positive affect and global distress in spouses participating in a randomized trial of couple therapy. In addition to elucidating specific advantages of the APIM relative to alternative data-analytic strategies, the current results shed new light on previous findings from a comparative treatment outcome study evaluating behavioral and insight-oriented approaches to couple therapy. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Prosocial Emotions and Helping: The Moderating Role of Group Membership.

In this article, the authors introduce and test a group-level perspective on the role of empathy and interpersonal attraction in helping. In line with our predictions, Study 1, a longitudinal field study of 166 AIDS volunteers, confirmed that empathy was a stronger predictor of helping when the recipient of assistance was an in-group member than when that person was an out-group member. Also as hypothesized, attraction was a stronger predictor of helping when the recipient was an out-group member than when that person was an in-group member. Study 2 replicated and further extended these results in a laboratory experiment on spontaneous helping of a person with hepatitis. Strengthening the validity of the findings, in both studies the effects of empathy and attraction held up even when the authors statistically controlled for potential alternative predictors of helping. The theoretical and practical implications of these findings for helping in intergroup contexts are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Ethnicity, Expressed Emotion, Attributions, and Course of Schizophrenia: Family Warmth Matters.

The authors examined the role of family factors and the course of schizophrenia by carrying out additional assessments and analyses in 2 previously published studies of Mexican American and Anglo American patients and families. The authors found partial support for an attributional model of relapse for families who are low in emotional overinvolvement. Attributions of control, criticism, and warmth together marginally predicted relapse. The data also indicated that for Mexican Americans, family warmth is a significant protective factor, whereas for Anglo Americans, family criticism is a significant risk factor. These findings suggest that the sociocultural context shapes the pathways by which family processes are related to the course of illness. Moreover, the warmth findings suggest that families may contribute to preventing relapse. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The Role of Melodic and Temporal Cues in Perceiving Musical Meter.

A number of different cues allow listeners to perceive musical meter. Three experiments examined effects of melodic and temporal accents on perceived meter in excerpts from folk songs scored in 6/8 or 3/4 meter. Participants matched excerpts with 1 of 2 metrical drum accompaniments. Melodic accents included contour change, melodic leaps, registral extreme, melodic repetition, and harmonic rhythm. Two experiments with isochronous melodies showed that contour change and melodic repetition predicted judgments. For longer melodies in the 2nd experiment, variables predicted judgments best at the beginning of excerpts. The final experiment, with rhythmically varied melodies, showed that temporal accents, tempo, and contour change were the strongest predictors of meter. The authors' findings suggest that listeners combine multiple melodic and temporal features to perceive musical meter. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Oxygen Reduction Reaction Performance of [MTBD][beti]‐Encapsulated Nanoporous NiPt Alloy Nanoparticles

Recent advances in oxygen reduction reaction catalysis for proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) include i) the use of electrochemical dealloying to produce high surface area and sometimes nanoporous catalysts with a Pt‐enriched outer surface, and ii) the observation that oxygen reduction in nanoporous materials can be potentially enhanced by confinement effects, particularly if the chemical environment within the pores can bias the reaction toward completion. Here, these advances are combined by incorporating a hydrophobic, protic ionic liquid, [MTBD][beti], into the pores of high surface‐area NiPt alloy nanoporous nanoparticles (np‐NiPt/C + [MTBD][beti]). The high O₂ solubility of the [MTBD][beti], in conjunction with the confined environment within the pores, biases reactant O₂ toward the catalytic surface, consistent with an increased residence time and enhanced attempt frequencies, resulting in improved reaction kinetics. Half‐cell measurements show the np‐NiPt/C+[MTBD][beti] encapsulated catalyst to be nearly an order of magnitude more active than commercial Pt/C, a result that is directly translated into operational PEMFCs.     

Microstructure and multifunctional properties of liquid + polymer bicomponent structural electrolytes: Epoxy gels and porous monoliths

Multifunctional structural batteries and supercapacitors have the potential to improve performance and efficiency in advanced lightweight systems. A critical requirement is a structural electrolyte with superior multifunctional performance. We present here structural electrolytes prepared by the integration of liquid electrolytes with structural epoxy networks. Two distinct approaches were investigated: direct blending of an epoxy resin with a poly(ethylene‐glycol) (PEG)‐ or propylene carbonate (PC)‐based liquid electrolyte followed by in‐situ cure of the resin; and formation of a porous neat epoxy sample followed by backfill with a PC‐based electrolyte. The results show that in situ cure of the electrolytes within the epoxy network does not lead to good multifunctional performance due to a combination of plasticization of the structural network and limited percolation of the liquid network. In contrast, addition of a liquid electrolyte to a porous monolith results in both good stiffness and high ionic conductivity that approach multifunctional goals. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2015 , 132, 42681.     

Structure–Property Relationships in Aligned Electrospun Barium Titanate Nanofibers

Barium titanate nanofibers were uniaxially aligned by electrospinning onto a rotating copper wire drum and alignment was maintained during calcination of the fibers. Two methods for maintaining alignment during calcination were tested, by either using carbon tape or a peeling off method to remove the aligned fibers from the mandrel followed by calcination. The carbon tape removal method led to the formation of shorter aligned nanowires while the peeling off method resulted in longer nanofibers. Additionally, the effects of calcination temperature and time on crystal structure were also examined. The degree of tetragonality in the barium titanate nanofibers increased at higher calcination temperatures and times. Piezoelectricity was confirmed in the nanofibers calcined using piezoeresponse force microscopy, yielding a d₃₃ value of 15.5 pm/V. Using the methods presented here, large quantities of aligned piezoelectric barium titanate and other ceramic fibers or wires can be produced to fulfill their demand in novel microelectronics.