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Thin film composites (TFCs) of poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (PHEMA) and poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) chain-tethered poly(vinylidene fluoride)-poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PVDF-PDMS) were prepared as a gas separation membrane. PDMS was coated on the PVDF support using a dip coating method. PHEMA and PMMA were then grafted on PVDF-PDMS substrate by atom transfer radical polymerization. The PVDF-PDMS-PHEMA and PVDF-PDMS-PMMA trilayer membranes were studied by attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, water contact angle measurement, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The results of separation tests indicated that the CO2/N2 selectivity of PVDF-PDMS-PHEMA and PVDF-PDMS-PMMA TFCs increased by ∼2 and ∼3 times, respectively, compared to the solvent-extracted PVDF-PDMS support.

Hydroxy groups were generated on a poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) surface using different methods. Attempts were made to prepare a homogeneous film on the PDMS surface and eliminate microwrinkles from the surface. Because the hydroxylation process changes the chemical composition of the PDMS surface, resulting in a cracked surface, selecting the best method for surface treatment with minimized surface microwrinkles and cracks was attempted. The results obtained from scanning electron microscopy showed that using the pulsed ultraviolet-ozone (UVO) radiation method with a controlled duration time, ozone treatment, continuous UVO treatment using a glass filter, and water media in UVO treatment was more effective than other methods evaluated in this study to prevent microwrinkles. The results obtained from contact angle measurements and attenuated total reflectance Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy revealed that the UVO treatment in the presence of a water medium created more hydroxy groups compared with other methods.

Significant predation of diaspidid scale insects occurs in unsprayed kiwifruit crops. Two predators, Forficula auricularia L. (Dermaptera: Forficulidae) and Halmus chalybeus (Boisduval) (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) are likely to be important. Most F. auricularia were found as late instars or adults in the canopy of kiwifruit vines in late spring and early summer. Adults of H. chalybeus were present throughout the year but at lower densities on kiwifruit vines than on other host plants. In the field predation of scale insects occurred mainly at night and preferentially on late-instar scale insects consistent with the feeding behaviour of F. auricularia, not H.chalybeus. The latter mainly fed on early instar insects during the day. Numbers of scale insect crawlers were not correlated with numbers of F. auricularia or of H. chalybeus in kiwifruit vine canopies.

The current manuscript experimentally investigates the mechanical and wears properties of three different phenolic polymer nanocomposites. Samples are made of 1, 2 and 3 wt.% of well-dispersed silica nanoparticles in a phenolic resin. Firstly, it was found that for the phenolic polymer, the Young’s modulus steadily increased as the weight percent of silica nanoparticles was increased except for 3 wt.% nanoparticle filled samples. For the phenolic polymer with 1 and 2 wt.% nano silica, Young’s modulus was increased 7% and 12.5%, respectively in comparison with the neat phenolic resin. However, for samples with 3% nanosilica this value showed a reduction about 13.5% and 2.7% in comparison to 2% nanoparticle filled samples and pure samples, respectively. Secondly, the presence of 2 wt.% nano silica particles increased the hardness of the phenolic polymer by 27.3% compared with the pure phenolic resin. Also, it was shown by the results of scratch tests that nano silica has almost no effect on the coefficient of the friction and wear rates.

Chorus cicada Amphipsalta zelandica (Boisduval) is an endemic species that is widespread in native and exotic forest and in some horticultural crops. Life-history data were collected in kiwifruit orchard blocks during 2004–2013 with the aim of informing future studies on the biology and management of chorus cicadas. Fifth instar nymphs constructed vertical pre-emergence burrows ending 45±20 mm (mean±one standard deviation) from the soil surface from mid-December to early January. Most adults emerged between early January and late February, with males emerging before females. Peak dates for emergence and oviposition varied with year from 13 January to 4 February and from 31 January to 17 February, respectively. Nearly all newly eclosed adult females had no developed oocytes. Potential fecundity based on counts of mature oocytes in females was 278.5±88.5. Hatching occurred between late May and mid-December, giving a wide range of egg development of 100–326 days. Nymphs were reared from newly hatched first i...

Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs), which degrade extracellular proteins as part of a variety of physiological processes, and their inhibitors have been implicated in the dental caries process. Here we investigated 28 genetic variants spanning the MMP10, MMP14, and MMP16 genes to detect association with dental caries experience in 13 age- and race-stratified (n = 3,587) samples from 6 parent studies. Analyses were performed separately for each sample, and results were combined across samples by meta-analysis. Two SNPs (rs2046315 and rs10429371) upstream of MMP16 were significantly associated with caries in an individual sample of white adults and via meta-analysis across 8 adult samples after gene-wise adjustment for multiple comparisons. Noteworthy is SNP rs2046315 (p = 8.14 × 10−8) association with caries in white adults. This SNP was originally nominated in a genome-wide-association study (GWAS) of dental caries in a sample of white adults and yielded associations in a subsequent GWAS of surface level caries in white adults as well. Therefore, in our study, we were able to recapture the association between rs2046315 and dental caries in white adults. Although we did not strengthen evidence that MMPs 10, 14, and 16 influence caries risk, MMP16 is still a likely candidate gene to pursue.

European earwigs are sensitive to the residues of broad-spectru m insecticides. More earwigs are found on organically-managed than on conventionally-managed kiwifruit orchards. Since 2007 there have been changes in insecticide use on kiwifruit orchards. In particular, the broad-spectrum insecticide diazinon was replaced by so-called "reduced-risk" insecticides. In the current study earwig numbers were measured in nine conventionally- managed and seven organically-managed orchards for 4 years (2006-07 to 2009-10). Numbers of earwigs on orchard blocks under organic management did not differ between years and were initially higher than on conventionally-managed orchard blocks. There was a trend for earwig numbers to increase on conventionally-managed orchard blocks. Earwig abundance decreased by approximately 60% with each spray application after allowing for differences between years.

The endemic cicada species Amphipsalta cingulata (Fabricius) and Amphipsalta zelandica (Boisduval) are pests of New Zealand kiwifruit. 2 We determined the abundance of A. cingulata and A. zelandica by counting final- instar exuviae in a block of 'Hayward' kiwifruit, the dominant cultivar, on each of 70 blocks on separate orchards in the Bay of Plenty, New Zealand. 3 We used a geographic information system and fragstats to generate predictive variables describing landscape structure in four nested landscapes ranging in size between 6.25 and 400 ha for each site. Other variables described the physical characteristics of the site and management practices. Data were analyzed by boosted regression trees, a method that combines the advantages of regression trees and machine learning. 4 The most influential variables differed for each species. Modified coastal landscapes with high densities of 'Hayward' kiwifruit were most favourable for A. cingulata. For A. zelandica, favourable landscapes contained significant areas of native forest. The 12 most influential variables accounted for 51% and 46% of the total influence of all variables measured for A. cingulata and A. zelandica, respectively. 5 Landscape structure was more influential than insecticide use and local site factors. Despite the apparent low vagility of cicadas, landscape structure at relatively large scales of ≥25 ha was influential for both A. cingulata and A. zelandica. The ability to use a wide range of hosts within the production landscape may account for this pattern. Key variables need to be confirmed by identifying the same patterns in other landscapes.

A laboratory bioassay is described for measuring the resistance of kiwifruit vines to armoured scale insects (Hemiberlesia lataniae Signoret and Hemiberlesia rapax Comstock) using excised canes. The method measures the area of the scale cap using a template and compares relative cap sizes between genotypes. The method was tested for two species of kiwifruit (Actinidia deliciosa [A. Chev.] C.F. Liang et A.R. Ferguson and Actinidia chinensis Planch.) using a range of experimental genotypes and two commercial varieties. Large differences in the susceptibility of the genotypes to H. lataniae were observed, but much smaller differences were observed for H. rapax. The bioassay method was tested by comparing results obtained with observations of armoured scale insects on kiwifruit vines in the field. Sampling of simulated scale populations showed that differences in population mean scale cap areas of 0.3–0.5 mm2 could be detected with sample sizes of 50–200. A bioassay of H. lataniae growth on an experi...

An investigation of the behavior of bare, unprocessed silicon wafers during their loading and transport in wafer cassettes is documented. Semiconductor process tools can generate sufficient vibration to cause the current 200-mm diameter wafers to vibrate inside the cassettes leading to particle generation, mechanical misalignment, and wafer walking. The cassettes feature chamfered slots into which the wafers are inserted. In the interest of minimizing particle generation in the cleanroom environment, the wafers slide loosely into the slots. As a result, the wafers show distinct pitching and rattling behavior under certain excitation conditions. A study of the wafer dynamics, when positioned in the cassette slots, shows that the wafers make a transition to instability under repeatable conditions of excitation frequency and amplitude. The development of two models of the wafer behavior is included, as well as an experimental verification of the model's results for 200-mm wafers. The model is expected to predict the behavior of future wafer sizes including the 300-mm wafers now under development.

The aim of the study was to ascertain some epidemiological factors such as sex and consanguinity that may be associated with cleft lip with or without cleft palate (CL +/- CP) in Kuwait as well as to conduct genetic segregation analysis of these families.A total of 113 families ascertained through 121 CL +/- CP and CP surgical probands in Kuwait. The frequencies of cleft types and the epidemiological variables were calculated using SPSS version 5.0 software. Chi-square for goodness-of-fit test was used to test the significance of the associated epidemiological variables to facial clefts. Genetic segregation analysis was performed on 76 families with extended pedigrees and included only those with non-syndromic CL +/- CP (NS CL +/- CP). Major locus segregation analysis was used to fit models to the observed family patterns under Class A regressive models as implemented by REGD routine in S.A.G.E. release 4.0. A test for heterogeneity was also conducted to complete data set in addition to two subsets: Arabs and nomads.Of the 121 patients, 34(28.1%) had CP, 30(24.8%) had CL and 57 (47.1%) had CL + CP. The male to female ratio was 0.89 for CP, 1.14 for CL, 1.35 for CL + CP and 1.2 for all the clefts. The percentage of consanguineous families among those with a positive family history (60%) was not significantly different from that of the general population (54.3%), whereas for all the families with clefts the percent consanguineous was significantly lower (38%). No evidence of heterogeneity in the results between the Arab and nomad subsets was observed. The results for the major locus segregation analysis were inconclusive.No definite association was observed between consanguinity and the occurrence of facial clefts in Kuwait. General transmission models in the full data set showed no evidence of heterogeneity in the results between the Arab and nomad subsets.

We performed segregation analysis on 495 nuclear families, ascertained for the father's substance abuse diagnosis, in an attempt to determine the role of genetic and other influences in determining the variability of DSM-III-R-defined attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). For our analyses, ADHD was treated as a quantitative variable, utilizing the semicontinuous scale provided by the 15-item symptom count within DSM-III-R. Analyses consisted of both class A and class D regressive models for which covariate effects (socioeconomic status) and sex dependence were estimated. Segregation analysis of the quantitative trait (ADHD symptom count) in the entire data set supported a transmissible non-Mendelian major effect. Models which were sex-dependent and included covariate effects provided the best fit to the data. In addition, similar analyses were performed on a 130-nuclear family subgroup of the data set in which at least one of the members of the nuclear family met DSM-III-R diagnostic criteria for ADHD. The sex-dependent Mendelian codominant model was best supported by the data, while other models could be rejected. Incorporating covariate effects did not provide a better fit for the data. Thus, this study is consistent with Mendelian transmission of ADHD symptom count in a clinically relevant population. Overall, our results support the presence of a heritable continuous trait of which ADHD represents an extreme.

It has long been known that carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning has a spectrum of effects on cognitive functioning, including memory, perception, and attention. The current study reports the investigation of the effects of CO poisoning on short-term verbal memory, both rote and context aided. Impairment was measured before and after hyperbaric oxygen (HBO) treatment. Twenty-six patients who had been admitted for emergency treatment after exposure to significant CO poisoning were tested using a measure of short-term recall for word lists with no or varying degrees of internal context-aided structure. Impairment of context-aided memory (but not rote memory) has been previously reported to be associated with low relative frontal volume in psychiatric patients. Carbon monoxide poisoning was significantly associated with impairment of context-aided memory, with the degree of pretreatment impairment predicting the number HBO treatments judged to be necessary on the basis of clinical monitoring of the patient. In patients with poisoning of moderate severity, pretreatment performance in context-aided memory improved after the first HBO treatment. The implications of these findings for the effects of CO poisoning on frontal area function are discussed. The memory measure used in this study appears to have considerable potential usefulness in the clinical assessment of the severity of CO poisoning in patients treated in an emergency setting.

The possible links between personality psychology and psychopathology are examined with the goal of understanding the constraints that set boundaries to the possible contributions of one to the other. The reciprocal nature of these contributions is described. The historical survey looks at the early concepts of the humors and temperament, at the concept of a general vulnerability to psychosis and deviance--represented by the 19th-century concept of degeneracy--and at later typologies arising from the work of Eysenck, Freud, Kretschmer, Pavlov, and Sheldon. The impact of current developments in neuropsychology and in cognitive psychology is discussed.

Characterization of both the source materials and the bottom sediments of an estuary by magnetic characters, on a particle size basis, allows the source of the bottom sediments to be determined and indicates a shift in sediment sources, corresponding to changing land-use patterns. The major source of the sediments in the lower part of cores from the middle of the estuary is eroding shorelines. Soil-derived particulates, from the uplands, dominate the upper part of the cores. This change in source occurred in the early part of the 19th century. The magnetic character of the most recent sediments suggests a progressive depletion, through time, of the upland soils in the finest fractions.

It is now generally accepted that a correlation exists between crosspolarization and mean wind speed. In a recent paper by Brussaard, an explanation was offered for preferred canting angle of raindrops based on the wind profile effect. Using this method a different effective mean canting angle may be obtained for each drop size from a knowledge of the mean wind speed and the type of terrain. However, the canting angles of all the drops are in the same quadrant. In this paper a theoretical model for wind gusting, based on detailed observations of storms, is presented. This model is used to provide an explanation for raindrop canting angle distribution other than the wind profile effect. The validity of the model was tested, firstly against the photographic measurements of Saunders and secondly predicted values of crosspolarization are compared with measurements made by Semplak.

A longitudinal twin study was conducted to determine whether personality traits with significant heritability in adolescence remain so in adulthood. A subsample of a group of twins who had been administered in Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory and the California Psychological Inventory in adolescence was readministered the same two inventories 12 years later. The subsample was found to be representative of the sample from which it was drawn. Different patterns of significantly heritability were found for the two ages studied: Several personality traits demonstrated evidence of significant heritability in either adolescence or adulthood, while others demonstrated evidence of significant heritability at both ages. In addition, genetic influences on the change from adolescence to adulthood were found for several personality traits. The results raise important questions for the interpretation of twin research and the understanding of genetic influences on personality development.

Prominent among the various categories of delusion is the belief that some outside agency is controlling the activities and feelings, and especially the language and thought of the patient. Delusions of control occupy a prominent place in the diagnostic catalogs for schizophrenia, and appear to be the most common form of delusion. The experience that affect, impulses or motor activity are being controlled from outside the body was numbered by Schneider amongst the first-rank symptoms of schizophrenia. Bleuler regarded schizophrenic delusions, including delusions of control, as secondary to the pathologies of affect, autism, ambivalence and associational disturbance — which he regarded as primary. Nonetheless he did perceive delusions as important components of the schizophrenic syndromes as they are manifested clinically. Freud, of course, regarded the content of all delusions, including delusions of control, as indicative of the motivational conflicts that he believed to be the pathogenesis of psychiatric disorders generally.

A field study was conducted on Victoria sandy clay loam at the Texas A&M Agricultural Research and Extension Center at Corpus Christi, Texas to determine the efficacy of Orthene 75S as a hopperbox seed treatment for control of early season cotton pests. Test plots were planted 24 Mar, with ‘Tamcot SP-21S’, a cotton fleahopper susceptible variety. The soil type was Victoria sandy clay loam. Treatments were replicated 4 times in plots 80 ft long by 12 rows wide (0.07 acre) in a randomized complete block design. The planting rate was approximately 20 lb seed/acre. Cotton seed and Orthene 75S for each treatment were mixed dry by shaking them together in a large plastic bag prior to filling the hopperboxes.

A field study was conducted at the Texas A&M Agricultural Research and Extension Center at Corpus Christi to determine the efficacy of acephate applied at different rates and formulations to control cotton fleahopper. Cotton was planted 6 Apr in 38-inch rows, one month later than normal to insure intense fleahopper pressure during squaring. Plots were 4 rows wide by 40 ft long with each treatment replicated 6 times in a randomized complete block design. The soil type was Victoria sandy clay loam. Shortly after planting, the 0.125 lb (AI)/acre and 0.25 lb (AI)/acre 10G slow release acephate granules, and 0.25 lb (AI)/acre 5G fast release acephate granules were applied in the bed 3-inches below the soil surface and 4 inches to the side of the seed row. On 30 May (6th true leaf, pinhead square), the foliar application of 0.25 lb (AI)/acre Orthene 75S was applied with a backpack sprayer calibrated to deliver four gal of solution/acre in a 20-inch wide band. Bollworms and fleahoppers were sampled on 22 and 30 May, 11 and 21 Jun, and 2 Jul. Blooms were counted daily in 6.8 ft of row per plot for 21 days starting on 10 Jun. Beneficial insects were sampled utilizing a D-Vac suction machine on a 20 ft2 area per plot. Seed cotton was hand-harvested from a desginated 26-ft section of row in each plot.

A field study was conducted on the Texas A&M Agricultural Research and Extension Center at Corpus Christi, TX, to determine the efficacy of Orthene 75S applied at different rates and formulations compared to Bidrin and an untreated check. The plot design was randomized complete block with 4 replications of 9 treatments. Plots were 8 rows wide by 40 ft and were planted on 28 Mar in beds spaced 38 inches apart. The soil type was Victoria sandy clay loam. The planting rate was 20 lb seed/acre. The plots of slurry treated seed received 0.075 lb (AI)/acre of Orthene 75S (based on 8 oz/100 lb seed). Foliar insecticides were applied with a backpack sprayer calibrated to deliver four gal of solution/acre in a band 20 inches wide on 16 May and 3 Jun. Aphids were sampled in the check and hopperbox treatments by examining 40 inches of row per plot, 36 Jays after planting. Fleahopper numbers and damage were determined weekly by visual examinations of 50 terminals per plot from 13 May to 6 jun.

A large plot field study was conducted on a commercial farm near Robstown, TX, to evaluate the effectiveness of Vydate for control of boll weevils and fleahoppers. Vydate and Guthion were compared in 6 acre plots of cotton planted 12 Mar on 30-inch rows. Treatments were replicated 3 times in a paired block design. Treatments were applied beginning at the matchhead square stage on 28 Apr, 3, 8, 14, and 18 May. The first application was made with a high-clearance spray machine, while the last 4 applications were done with an airplane. Efficacy of the insecticides was evaluated by inspecting: (1) 150 plant terminals in each plot for the presence of fleahoppers, (2) 150 whole plants in each plot, via the beat-bucket method, for the presence of beneficial arthropods and (3) 150 squares in each plot for the presence of boll weevil and bollworm damage. Seed cotton for yield analysis was hand-harvested from designated 6.8-ft sections of row in each plot.

A large-plot field test was conducted on the Kocurek Farm near Corpus Christi, TX, to evaluate the efficacy of Vydate for control of boll weevil. Cotton was planted the first week in Mar on rows spaced 38 inches apart. Field plots (8 acre/plot) were replicated 3 times in a completely randomized design. Applications were made in 5 gal total spray/acre with a John Deere high clearance ground machine on 20, 25, and 30 May. The entire test was oversprayed with Bidrin on 5 and 24 May at 0.1 lb (AI)/acre. Boll weevil damage was determined by collecting 3 samples of 50 squares (1/3 grown and larger) and 50 bolls (ca. 7-days old) per plot per sample date. The 3 samples were averaged to represent a replicate for statistical analysis. Bollworm larvae and damage were assessed by collecting 3 samples of 50 squares and bolls as above. Terminal counts of fleahoppers and blasted squares, and beat bucket samples for beneficials were determined by sampling 50 plants per plot. Fruiting counts, yields, earliness and fiber properties were determined by sampling ca. 6 ft of row at 4 sites per plot. An additional study on boll weevil survival study was conducted by caging female boll weevils on Guthion and Vydate (0.25 lb [AI]/acre) treated plants 5 days post-treatment. Following egg laying, females were removed and the cages left in place for 8 days. All punctured squares were counted and held in the laboratory for boll weevil emergence.

Fundal was evaluated in 2 different spray strategies, 4 applications vs. 6 applications, for effects on early season insect pest densities and subsequent cotton yields. The test field was located near Corpus Christi, TX. Test plots were 5.5 to 6 acres, ca. 32 rows wide and 2,450 ft long, planted 10 Mar in rows spaced 38 inches apart. Treatments were replicated 3 times in a completely randomized block design: (1) 6 weekly applications of Fundal in a 20 inch band at 0.125 lb (AI)/acre beginning at the first true leaf stage, (2) 4 weekly applications banded at 0.125 lb (AI)/acre beginning at the pinhead square stage (6th true leaf), and (3) an untreated check. Treatment (1) was initiated on 6 Apr and (2) on 27 Apr. All applications were made with a Hahn high-clearance spray machine calibrated to deliver 5.0 gal total spray/acre through 6-X hollow cone nozzles at 40 psi. All plots were oversprayed with Bidrin on 18 Apr and Vydate on 4 May to control fleahoppers and boll weevils. Data collected were counts of aphids, thrips, fleahoppers, boll weevils, and bollworms, and insect damage per 50 terminals or squares. These data were measured weekly, 3 days after each spray, until 5 weeks after first bloom. Stratified hand harvests of 41/1000 acre samples per plot were collected 17 and 24 Jul. Machine stripped harvests of ca. 0.35 acre/plot were taken 26 Jul.