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We used protons with incident energy of 3.30 MeV to irradiate a carbon nanotube thin-film transistor (CNTTFT) to study its electrical response in air environment. The drain current (ID) was monitor...

In this work, we have fabricated lead selenide (PbSe) thin films by the pulsed laser deposition method on Si/SiO2 substrates and investigated the effect of oxygen annealing (sensitization) in these...

LaO0.5F0.5BiS2 nanosheets were produced by ultrasonification. A slightly reddish colloidal suspension was obtained by ultrasonification of LaO0.5F0.5BiS2 powder in ethanol. Transmission electron microscope (TEM) images of the dried suspension indicated the nanosheet morphology of LaO0.5F0.5BiS2, and the electron diffraction spots indicated 4-fold symmetry. The thickness of the sheets was 2–6 nm, which corresponded to 2–4 unit cells of the c-axis of LaO0.5F0.5BiS2.

Rice paddy soil has been shown to have strong denitrifying activity. However, the microbial populations responsible for the denitrification in various rice paddy soils are not well known. In the present study, key denitrifiers were identified in six rice paddy soils by comparing the bacterial community structures in soils with strong denitrifying activity with those in soils without the activity. The effect of crop rotation on the denitrifier populations was also examined. Our study revealed three notable findings: (1) community structures of total bacteria were similar among the six rice paddy soils with different soil characteristics, (2) the populations that responded to denitrification-inducing conditions differed with soil type (Andosol, Gley soil or Gray lowland soil), (3) the populations that responded to denitrification-inducing conditions were similar within each type of soil, regardless of the cropping system (e.g. continuous or rotation).

This study seeks to pursue three scholarly purposes concerning Asian communication ethics epitomised by fundamental Buddhist ethical dogmas. First, it critically reviews and reconfirms the rising essentiality of studying religious ethics in communication, especially intercultural communication, studies. Second, it attempts to religio-ethically conceptualise the four primary doctrinal ethics and precepts of traditional Buddhism: (1) the Twelve-Linked Chain of Causation; (2) the Fourfold Noble Truth; (3) the Eightfold Noble Path; and (4) the Ten Precepts. Third, the study proposes a new research paradigm by introducing the Buddhist ethics of not only harmony-oriented human-to-human communication but also non-anthropocentric and ‘deep-ecological’ human-to-nature relationships.

In conducting an in vitro screening of ethanol extracts from various natural foods using a human colon cancer cell line (CoLoTC cells), an extract of buckwheat sprouts (ExtBS) was found to express significant anti-inflammatory activity. The anti-inflammatory activity of ExtBS was confirmed by oral administration of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) to mice. Inflammatory cytokines (interleukin 6 and tumor necrosis factor alpha) were markedly up-regulated in the spleen and liver from LPS-administrated mice, and combinatory treatment with LPS and ExtBS decreased up-regulation of them in both cytokines. Both serum cytokine levels corresponded to their gene expressions in tissues, but no anti-inflammatry effect in mice was observed when ExtBS was treated intraperitoneally. ExtBS oral administration also showed protective activity as to hepatic injury induced by galactosamine/LPS treatment. Based on these data, we suggest that ExtBS contains anti-inflammatory compounds.

Mutants with reduced membrane-bound ATPase activities were isolated from Lactococcus lactis subsp. lactis C2 as spontaneous neomycin-resistant mutants. Characteristics of the representative mutant, No. 1016–51, were compared with the parental strain in cultures using a jar fermentor with the pH controlled at various values. At pH 6.5, the fermentation patterns, i.e., glucose consumption, growth, and lactic acid production, of both strains appeared identical. At pH 4.5, however, the levels of growth, lactic acid production, and the amounts of lactic acid produced per cell after the culture for 24 h decreased to 60, 36, and 60% of the parental strain, respectively. During the cultures at pH 6.5, no differences were found in viabilities between both strains even after 80 h. On the other hand, at pH 4.0, the viable count of the strain No. 1016–51 in a 72-h culture decreased to less than 1% of that of the zero time, while the parental strain maintained its original viability. Therefore, it was concluded that t...

This essay is an attempt to investigate and discuss the significance and validity of researching Buddhist preaching as the main undercurrent of Japanese rhetorical communication practices. The argument first points out contemporary rhetoricians' weaknesses in research, and proceeds to discuss the importance of viewing preaching as a form of rhetorical communication. It then describes historical backgrounds of Japanese Buddhist preaching, and finally analyzes the preaching principles in comparison with the five canons of Western rhetoric, stressing the value of studying Buddhist preaching from the rhetorical perspective.

The Gilgen & Cho (1979a) Questionnaire to Measure Eastern and Western Thought was administered to 240 Japanese and 163 American respondents. Results indicate that significant differences exist between the two cultures. The Japanese reflect an Eastern thought mode while the Americans favor a Western one. Also, results indicate gender differences between cultures and within the American culture. American females are more Eastern thought inclined than are the males.

Social style is investigated in terms of its two dimensions—assertiveness and responsiveness. Using the Assertiveness‐Responsiveness Scale, populations in Japan and the United States are compared t...

The Japanese allegedly are disinclined to argue. This study supports that allegation. Japanese university students were compared to American students using the Infante/ Rancer Argumentativeness Scale. The scale measures tendencies to approach arguments and to avoid them. Additionally it indicates the general argumentativeness trait of respondents. The Japanese were significantly less inclined to approach argument situations and had a significantly weaker argumentativeness trait than the Americans. No significant difference appeared for avoiding arguments.

This investigation compared 162 Japanese and 202 American university students whom completed the affect orientation scale. American males scored higher than Japanese males, and American females scored higher than Japanese females on affect orientation. American females also scored higher than American males. Other comparisons were statistically nonsignificant.

(1990). TEFL in Japan: From grammar‐translation to international/intercultural communication. Text and Performance Quarterly: Vol. 10, No. 4, pp. 316-317.