Repeated Price Search

Consumers check few sites in online purchases. Previous research and experiments we perform demonstrate that consumers can not calculate the optimal strategy for price search. They use heuristics whose performance is better than random and less than optimal. To investigate online price search performance we survey student online textbook purchases. Students achieve good performance because they start with a good strategy and online market organization of marketplace and meta-search sites. An important factor is that algorithms at sites searched perform calculations that reduce the computational complexity of the search.     

Fringe—A Java-based finite fringe analysis package

A package for analysing two-dimensional finite fringe interferograms is described. Through a combination of automatic and interactive routines, an interferogram can be processed to extract the phase shift imparted on the recording light by a transparent object. The package consists of routines to condition and pad the original image for Fourier transform analysis, to filter the image and obtain the phase, to unwrap the phase, and to remove the background phase ramp. A sample image recorded using holographic interferometry is successfully analysed.Program summaryProgram title: FRINGECatalogue identifier: AEMM_v1_0Program summary URL: http://cpc.cs.qub.ac.uk/summaries/AEMM_v1_0.htmlProgram obtainable from: CPC Program Library, Queen’s University, Belfast, N. IrelandLicensing provisions: Standard CPC licence, http://cpc.cs.qub.ac.uk/licence/licence.htmlNo. of lines in distributed program, including test data, etc.: 134006No. of bytes in distributed program, including test data, etc.: 4029801Distribution format: tar.gzProgramming language: Java.Computer: Personal Computers.Operating system: Mac OS X, Windows XP, Linux and any other system that can run Java Jar files.RAM: 1GB recommendedClassification: 18.Nature of problem: A standalone multi-platform program to perform analysis of finite fringe interferograms.Solution method: Fourier filtering approach with phase unwrapping and background subtraction.Restrictions: Designed to analyse square images.Running time: Interactive processing takes several minutes. Minimal cpu time.     

The stress dependence of the subgrain size in aluminium

Etch-pit (EP) technique and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) have been used to investigate the subgrain size, , as a function of applied shear stress, , during high-temperature creep of aluminium. Examination of thin foils, prepared from deformed specimens, in the electron microscope shows the presence of very large equiaxed sub-grains that approximate those observed in etch-pit photographs. By measuring the average subgrain size from transmission micrographs of representative areas of the foils, two observations are made. First, the average subgrain size is smaller than that determined from etch-pit procedure, but exhibits the same stress dependence: /b (/G)^– where b is the Burgers vector and G is the shear modulus. Second, the TEM subgrain size data of aluminium and those of other metals and alloys, when plotted in the normalized form of /Gb against /Gb on a logarithmic scale, where is the stacking-fault energy of the material, fall within a narrow, horizontal band, confirming earlier reports that the subgrain size is insensitive to stacking-fault energy.     

Rational Approach to Shear Design in Fiber-Reinforced Polymer-Prestressed Concrete Structures

The use of plasticity-based shear design methods for fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) reinforced and prestressed concrete, as they are used at present, is inappropriate in the long term. In particular, the use of a plasticity-based truss model for shear behavior seems to be unsound, as reliance is placed on a predominantly elastic zone to redistribute stresses. A better approach to shear design would be to employ a model incorporating force equilibrium and compatibility of strains so that the elastic properties of the FRP could be included rationally. This would help to develop a real understanding and form a basis on which new guides and codes could be founded. In tandem with a more rational analytical approach, new configurations and types of FRP reinforcement need to be developed and researched so that these materials can be used more efficiently. An analytical approach to investigate the shear response of FRP-reinforced and -prestressed concrete has been developed, based on equilibrium and compatibility across a shear discontinuity. The analytical model presented here was developed in conjunction with an experimental program. Correlation between the analytical and experimental results is good and more accurate than the current guideline provisions for concrete beams containing FRP reinforcement.     

Multivariate Modeling of Age and Retest in Longitudinal Studies of Cognitive Abilities.

Longitudinal multivariate mixed models were used to examine the correlates of change between memory and processing speed and the contribution of age and retest to such change correlates. Various age- and occasion-mixed models were fitted to 2 longitudinal data sets of adult individuals (N > 1,200). For both data sets, the results indicated that the correlation between the age slopes of memory and processing speed decreased when retest effects were included in the model. If retest effects existed in the data but were not modeled, the correlation between the age slopes was positively biased. The authors suggest that although the changes in memory and processing speed may be correlated over time, age alone does not capture such a covariation. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Thermal stability of hafnium silicate dielectric films deposited by a dual source liquid injection MOCVD

The hafnium and silicon precursors, Hf(NMe₂)₄ and Bu^tMe₂SiOH, have been investigated for the MOCVD of high-κ hafnium silicate, (HfO₂)_1–x –(SiO₂) _x films for gate dielectric applications. Control of the silica concentration in the hafnium silicate can be achieved by varying the relative precursor ratios up to a saturation level of 35–40% SiO₂. The thermal stability of the resulting hafnium silicate films in air has been investigated using medium energy ion scattering. Internal oxidation of the underlying silicon substrate is discernable when the films are annealed in dry air for 15 min over the temperature range 800–1000 °C.     

Intelligence and Leadership: A Quantitative Review and Test of Theoretical Propositions.

Meta-analysis was used to aggregate results from studies examining the relationship between intelligence and leadership. One hundred fifty-one independent samples in 96 sources met the criteria for inclusion in the meta-analysis. Results indicated that the corrected correlation between intelligence and leadership is .21 (uncorrected for range restriction) and .27 (corrected for range restriction). Perceptual measures of intelligence showed stronger correlations with leadership than did paper-and-pencil measures of intelligence. Intelligence correlated equally well with objective and perceptual measures of leadership. Additionally, the leader's stress level and the leader's directiveness moderated the intelligence-leadership relationship. Overall, results suggest that the relationship between intelligence and leadership is considerably lower than previously thought. The results also provide meta-analytic support for both implicit leadership theory and cognitive resource theory. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Alcohol, Tobacco, and Drug Use Disorders and Personality Disorder Symptoms.

In a nonclinical sample of 395 young adults, the authors evaluated the relations between major personality traits, Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (4th ed.; DSM-IV; American Psychiatric Association, 1994) personality disorder symptoms, and DSM-IV alcohol use disorders (AUDs). Consistent with previous findings, traits related to disinhibition and negative affectivity were consistently associated with AUDs, as were Cluster B personality disorder symptoms (especially antisocial and borderline disorder symptoms). Multivariate analyses revealed that Cluster B symptoms were significantly associated with AUDs above and beyond what was accounted for by personality traits. Further, the authors found differential patterns of relations between other substance use disorders (SUDs; i.e., tobacco dependence and drug use diagnoses) and personality disorder symptoms. Overall, these results suggest that personality disorder symptoms predict unique variance in SUDs that reflect maladaptive aspects of personality traits. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)