Problem-Solving Skills and Affective Expressions as Predictors of Change in Marital Satisfaction.

Specific skills and affective expressions coded from the problem-solving interactions of 172 newlywed couples were examined in relation to 8-wave, 4-year trajectories of marital satisfaction. Effects varied as a function of whether husbands' versus wives' topics were under discussion and whether husbands' versus wives' satisfaction was predicted, but results indicate that skills, affect, and their statistical interaction account for unique variance in rates of change in marital satisfaction. The interaction between positive affect and negative skills was particularly robust, indicating that (a) low levels of positive affect and high levels of negative skills foreshadowed particularly rapid rates of deterioration and that (b) high levels of positive affect buffered the effects of high levels of negative skills. Findings suggest specific targets for intervention in programs for developing marriages. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The “green book” twenty years on: A new look at the research program of Isard and Liossatos's “spatial dynamics and optimal space-time development”

The publication in 1979 of Isard and Liossatos's \textit{Spatial Dynamics and Optimal Space-Time Development} marked the culmination of a progression of papers in which the authors explored parallels between processes modeled in theoretical physics and the spatial development of social systems. While providing a rigorous, incisive and exhaustive treatment of the subject, the book has begotten little secondary scholarship. This research note revisits the research program of what the senior author called his “green book”, assesses it from the present perspective, and considers how it might be continued in the light of recent theoretical, methodological and computational developments. Received: 29 August 2000/Accepted: 15 October 2001 RID="*" ID="*"This note was originally prepared for the North American Meetings of the Regional Science Association International, Montreal, Quebec, Canada, November 11–14, 1999, in honor of Walter Isard's 80th birthday. The author would like to thank editor Jean-Claude Thill and two anonymous referees for helpful comments and constructive criticisms.     

Using kNN model for automatic text categorization

An investigation is conducted on two well-known similarity-based learning approaches to text categorization: the k-nearest neighbors (kNN) classifier and the Rocchio classifier. After identifying the weakness and strength of each technique, a new classifier called the kNN model-based classifier (kNN Model) is proposed. It combines the strength of both kNN and Rocchio. A text categorization prototype, which implements kNN Model along with kNN and Rocchio, is described. An experimental evaluation of different methods is carried out on two common document corpora: the 20-newsgroup collection and the ModApte version of the Reuters-21578 collection of news stories. The experimental results show that the proposed kNN model-based method outperforms the kNN and Rocchio classifiers, and is therefore a good alternative for kNN and Rocchio in some application areas. This work was partly supported by the European Commission project ICONS, project no. IST-2001-32429.     

Evaluation of growth/no growth interface of Listeria monocytogenes growing on stainless steel surfaces, detached from biofilms or in suspension, in response to pH and NaCl

The present study aimed to describe the growth/no growth interface of Listeria monocytogenes at three potential states of growth in industrial environments, namely attached, (Att), detached (Det) from a biofilm, or in a planktonic state (suspended; Plan). A 3-strain composite of L. monocytogenes cells was left to colonize stainless steel (SS) surfaces in tryptic soy broth supplemented with 0.6% yeast extract (TSBYE) at 20 °C for 72 h and then transferred to TSBYE at 30 different pH and NaCl concentrations, which were renewed every two days during incubation at 10 °C. Survival of attached population was observed at optimal conditions (pH 7.2, a(w) 0.996), whereas at 4.5-8.0% salt and/or pH<6.0, reduction of attached population on SS surfaces was observed. PFGE patterns showed that 91% of the cells colonizing the SS coupons after 30 days, at any pH and a(w) conditions, belonged to a single strain. Furthermore, the change in the probability of a single cell to initiate growth (P(in)) over time, as well as the number of cells needed (CN) for growth initiation of planktonically growing Plan and Det L. monocytogenes cells were evaluated based on MPN Tables. An ordinary logistic regression model was also used to describe the growth/no growth interface of varying inoculation levels (from <10 to 10(4)CFU/ml) of Plan and Det cells in response to pH and a(w). Although both cell types demonstrated similar growth limits at populations of 10(2)-10(4)CFU/ml, higher numbers of Det than Plan cells were needed (CN) in order to initiate growth at low a(w) and pH. Individual Plan cells reached higher maximum levels of probability of growth initiation (P(max)) and had shorter times to reach P(max)/2 (t(au)), compared to their Det counterparts. Data on growth potential of cells in suspension, attached or detached status, may assist in ranking the risk from different sources of contamination. In addition, they may establish the link between the behavior of L. monocytogenes in foods and its origin from the processing plant. The latter link is important component of biotraceability.     

Measurement of the lens optical transfer function using a tartan pattern

We present a method for measuring the optical transfer function (OTF) of a camera lens using a tartan test pattern containing sinusoidal functions with multiple frequencies and orientations. The method is designed to optimize measurement accuracy for an adjustable set of sparse spatial frequencies and be reliable and fast in a wide range of measurement conditions. We describe the pattern design and the algorithm for estimating the OTF accurately from a captured image. Simulations show the tartan method is significantly more accurate than the International Organization for Standardization 12233 standard slanted-edge method. Experimental results from the tartan method were reproducible to 0.01 root mean square and in reasonable agreement with the slanted-edge method.     

走向伦理化的美学

作者提出建筑师是负有伦理义务的,并在文中对一种新的伦理化的美学给予了定义。在这一美学下,建筑与环境的整体性关系不仅是伦理的需要,同时也是美学的对象。     

Treatment and rehabilitation of mild and moderate head trauma.

Discusses recent trends toward the application of neuropsychology in the treatment and rehabilitation of patients with mild to moderate closed-head trauma (CHT). Neuropsychological examinations of these patients should assess basic areas of problem solving, information processing, learning and memory, mental speed and tracking, manual dexterity, cognitive fluency, and attention and concentration. Formal personality assessment should be included. Such assessment can aid in identifying and diagnosing deficits, patient education, formulating rehabilitation goals and treatment, reducing stress, providing coping skills training, and initiating prevention. Since sequelae in mild CHT are subtle, a necessary intervention is the recognition and legitimization of true sequelae, which should be followed by enlisting the family as a tool for structuring a maximizing environment and encouraging the patient to gradually resume former activities. A case study is given. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Plant cell suspension cultures: some engineering considerations

Higher plants are the source of a vast array of biochemicals which are used as drugs, pesticides, flavourings and fragrances. For some of these compounds, plant cell culture can provide a potential production alternative to traditional cultivation methods or chemical synthesis routes. Many systems have been patented and the last 20 years have seen considerable industrial and academic interest in the development of large scale cultures to produce pharmaceutically active, high value substances. However, the industrial application of plant cell suspension cultures has, to date, been limited. Commercialisation has essentially been impeded by economic feasibility, arising from both biological and engineering considerations. This paper reviews the commercial development of the technology to date and focuses on the impact of specific engineering-related factors, in particular, the shear sensitivity of plant cell suspension cultures. Evidence of sensitivity to hydrodynamic shear in bioreactors has generally been attributed to the physical characteristics of the suspended cells. Recent studies indicate that shear sensitivity may not be as important, in some cases, as initially anticipated.     

Tuning and enhancing enantioselective quenching of calixarene hosts by chiral guest amines.

The synthesis of a propranolol amide derivative of p-allylcalix[4]arene is described, which has been designed to behave as a molecular sensor capable of distinguishing chiral amines on the basis of their shape and chirality. This molecule can discriminate between the enantiomers of phenylalaninol through the quenching of the fluorescence emission in methanol in contrast to an (S)-dinaphthylprolinol calix[4]arene derivative, which can discriminate between the enantiomers of phenylglycinol, but not phenylalaninol. The separation between the naphthyl fluorophores and the hydrogen-bonding sites within the chiral cavity can be tuned to recognize guest amines with similar separation between aryl groups and hydrogen-bonding sites. The formation of metal ion complexes of the p-allylcalix[4]arene propranolol amide derivative is shown to induce a more regular and rigid cone conformation in the calix[4]arene macrocycle, which generates a significant enhancement in the observed enantiomeric discrimination.