Perseveration in congenitally blind children: Effects of luminous and acoustic targets on a modified A-not-B task

The purpose of this study was to determine whether or not blind children perseverate during a modified Piagetian A-not-B reaching task, with conditions that employ luminous AB targets and acoustic AB targets. Ten congenitally blind children, ages 1-4 years, with residual vision for light, took part in this study. Behavioral and kinematic data were computed for participants' reaches, performed in six A trials and in two B trials, in both stimulus conditions. All of the children perseverated in the luminous condition, and none of them perseverated in the condition using acoustic targets. The children tilted their heads in the direction of the target as they reached towards it. However, this coupling action (head-reaching) occurred predominantly in the A trials in the acoustic condition. In the luminous condition, in contrast to the acoustic condition, the children took longer times to initiate the reaching movement. Also, in the luminous condition, the children explored the target surroundings, unlike the acoustic condition, in which they reached straight ahead. For these blind children, sound was more relevant to reaching than was the luminous stimulus. The luminous input caused perseveration in congenitally blind children in a similar way that has been reported in the literature for typically-developing, sighted infants, ages 8-12 months, performing A-not-B tasks with visual inputs. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Effects of the medicinal plants Curcuma zedoaria and Camellia sinensis on halitosis control

Volatile sulphur compounds (VSC) are the gases mainly responsible for halitosis (bad breath). The aim of this research was to evaluate the effects of medicinal plants on halitosis control. Two commonly used plants were tested: Curcuma zedoaria and Camellia sinensis (green tea). These plants were prepared as an aqueous solution and used as mouthwashes, compared with a standard mouthwash of 0.12% chlorhexidine gluconate and a placebo (water). The experiment was conducted with 30 volunteers from the School of Dentistry of Sao Jose dos Campos, Univ. Estadual Paulista - UNESP, SP, Brazil. Each volunteer tested the four mouthwashes. The Cysteine Challenge Method, modified for this study, was used for initial breath standardization. Four breath assessments were conducted after volunteers rinsed orally with acetylcysteine: one before the test mouthwash was used; the second, one minute after its use; a third 90 minutes later; and the last 180 minutes later. The results showed that chlorhexidine gluconate lowered VSC production immediately, and that this effect lasted up to 3 hours, while the tested plants had immediate inhibitory effects but no residual inhibitory effects on VSC. We concluded that Curcuma zedoaria and Camellia sinensis, prepared as infusions and used as mouthwashes, did not have a residual neutralizing effect on VSC.

Effects of thickness coating on the electrochemical behaviour of thermal spray Cr3C2-NiCr coatings

Thermally sprayed HVOF coatings are increasingly being used in industrial applications where high wear and corrosion resistance are needed [1,2]. In this paper, electrochemical ac and de experiments were used in order to obtain the corrosion resistance of coated steel with different numbers of Cr3C2-NiCr layers. This work has been performed in order to determine the role of coating thickness in the corrosion behaviour of a steel protected with cermet thermally sprayed coatings. It is known that a thicker layer protects better against corrosion when a metallic coating is evaluated. But cermet coatings, such as Cr3C2-NiCr, contain higher levels of porosity and residual stresses than metallic coatings, which really could influence the corrosion resistance of the deposited layer. Electrochemical measurements, such as Open-Circuit Potential (E-Osubset of), Polarisation Resistance (RP) and Cyclic Voltammetry (CV), were performed in an aerated 3.4 NaCI media (%wt.). Electrochemical Impedance Measurements (EIS) were also done in order to obtain a mechanism that explains the corrosion process. Structural Characterisation was carried out by means of Optical and Scanning Electron Microscopes (OM, SEM) with an Energy Dispersive Spectrometry analyser (EDS). Results show that the corrosion resistance of the complete system is mainly influenced by the substrate behaviour. The application of a higher number of deposited layers did not substantially increase their anticorrosive properties. Stress generation during the spraying deposition process plays an important role in the behaviour of the coated steel against corrosion phenomena. (C) 2002 Elsevier B.V. B.V All rights reserved.

Modelos de regressão aleatória com diferentes estruturas de variância residual para descrever o tamanho da leitegada

Objetivou-se comparar modelos de regressão aleatória com diferentes estruturas de variância residual, a fim de se buscar a melhor modelagem para a característica tamanho da leitegada ao nascer (TLN). Utilizaram-se 1.701 registros de TLN, que foram analisados por meio de modelo animal, unicaracterística, de regressão aleatória. As regressões fixa e aleatórias foram representadas por funções contínuas sobre a ordem de parto, ajustadas por polinômios ortogonais de Legendre de ordem 3. Para averiguar a melhor modelagem para a variância residual, considerou-se a heterogeneidade de variância por meio de 1 a 7 classes de variância residual. O modelo geral de análise incluiu grupo de contemporâneo como efeito fixo; os coeficientes de regressão fixa para modelar a trajetória média da população; os coeficientes de regressão aleatória do efeito genético aditivo-direto, do comum-de-leitegada e do de ambiente permanente de animal; e o efeito aleatório residual. O teste da razão de verossimilhança, o critério de informação de Akaike e o critério de informação bayesiano de Schwarz apontaram o modelo que considerou homogeneidade de variância como o que proporcionou melhor ajuste aos dados utilizados. As herdabilidades obtidas foram próximas a zero (0,002 a 0,006). O efeito de ambiente permanente foi crescente da 1ª (0,06) à 5ª (0,28) ordem, mas decrescente desse ponto até a 7ª ordem (0,18). O comum-de-leitegada apresentou valores baixos (0,01 a 0,02). A utilização de homogeneidade de variância residual foi mais adequada para modelar as variâncias associadas à característica tamanho da leitegada ao nascer nesse conjunto de dado.

Mortalidade do ácaro predador Neoseiulus californicus (Acari: Phytoseiidae) em testes de toxicidade residual de inseticidas e acaricidas usuais em pomáceas

Os ácaros fitoseídeos, especialmente Neoseiulus californicus (McGregor), são importantes agentes de controle biológico de ácaros tetraniquídeos-praga nas culturas de pomáceas no Alto Valle del Río Negro y Neuquén, Argentina. Neste trabalho, avaliou-se a mortalidade de N. californicus quando exposto a resíduos dos inseticidas azimphos-methyl, carbaryl e cyfluthrin, e dos acaricidas cyhexatin e propargite. Os produtos foram aplicados às concentrações recomendadas em plantas de pereira. Um, três, seis e dez dias após a aplicação (DAA), folhas tratadas foram retiradas das plantas para a preparação de unidades experimentais. Cinco adultos de N. californicus, provenientes de criação-estoque, foram transferidos para cada unidade, onde pólen de taboa foi fornecido como alimento. As unidades foram mantidas a 25 ± 2 ºC, 60 ± 10% de umidade relativa e fotoperíodo de 14 h. A mortalidade do ácaro foi avaliada 24 h após o confinamento. As médias de mortalidade foram comparadas pelo teste de Dunnett, a 5% de probabilidade. A progressão do declínio do efeito dos produtos testados foi submetida à análise de regressão. Nas duas primeiras datas de avaliação, todos os produtos apresentaram valores de mortalidade significativamente diferentes da testemunha tratada com água. Seis dias após a aplicação, propargite, cyhexatin e cyfluthrin apresentaram mortalidade de aproximadamente 30%, enquanto a mortalidade nos tratamentos azimphos-methyl e carbaryl apresentou níveis estatisticamente similares aos da testemunha. Dez dias após a aplicação, a mortalidade em todos os tratamentos não diferiu significativamente da testemunha. O efeito de todos os produtos apresentou declínio progressivo ao longo do período de observação, sendo significativa a 1% de probabilidade a regressão linear negativa para os valores obtidos. Os maiores efeitos negativos sobre a sobrevivência de N. californicus corresponderam aos acaricidas testados. Azimphos-methyl foi o produto que menos afetou a sobrevivência do ácaro predador. Os inseticidas testados, usados na região do Alto Valle del Río Negro y Neuquén para o controle de Cydia pomonella, praga-chave das culturas de pomáceas, apresentaram baixa toxicidade sobre N. californicus.

Performance of UASB reactors in two stages under different HRT and OLR treating residual waters of swine farming

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Effects of extraction methods on yam (Dioscorea alata) starch characteristics

Starch extraction from roots and tubers uses grating with water and sieves to separate the starch slurry from residual mass. The starch is recovered by decantation or centrifugation. The yam starch extraction is difficult due to high viscosity of the slurry caused by non-starch polysaccharides (NSP). The establishment of an efficient extraction process may turn yam into a competitive raw material. In this paper Dioscorea alata starch extracted by four methods was characterized in order to establish the impact of treatments. When the tubers were digested with an aqueous oxalic acid/ammonium oxalate (OA/AO) 1/1 solution, it was easier to separate the starch slurry from residual mass, because viscosity was reduced. For all the others methods tested, the viscosity remained almost the same. The nitrogen present in yam tubers was removed during the different extractions to a different extent. The largest nitrogen reduction was observed with ONAO followed by the control (water). The spectrum of starch granules sizes obtained also varied according to the treatment. Results proved that NSP carries small starch granules over to the waste water. The smaller starch granules diameter varied from 1.9 mu m (OA/AO extraction) to 13.5 mu m (water and pectinase extractions). The larger diameter varied from 41.0 mu m (NaOH treatment) to 67.7 mu m (ONAO). All starches extracted showed a RVA behavior in agreement with literature for yam starch, but with small differences due to the influence of methods. ONAO extraction showed the best recovery (18 g of starch/100 g tuber yam) and granular variation but it interfered with the rheological behavior of starch.

Residual and annual potassic fertilization for soybeans

There is a lack of long-term research on potassium fertilization for soybean in the tropical and subtropical soils of Brazil and the residual effect of the fertilizer has generally not been considered. An experiment was conducted in plots that had been fertilized with 0, 40, 80, 160 and 240 kg ha(-1) of K2O for 3 years on a Dark Red Latosol, loamy sand (Acrortox). The effects of annual or residual fertilization with those rates of K were studied for three additional years. Potassium was supplied as potassium chloride or potassium sulphate. Soil and leaf samples were taken annually. There was a residual effect of the nutrient, which provided for high yields up to the 3rd year with the highest rate of K. In order to maintain the K contents of the soil in the medium range and obtain at least 90% of the maximum grain yield, an annual application of 80 kg ha(-1) of K2O was necessary, irrespectively of the source. The highest soybean yields were always associated with K levels above 15 mg kg(-1) in the leaves and 1.2 mmol(c) dm(-3) in the soil.

Study of the effects of exposure to ionizing irradiation on the materials used for dental restoration

A quantitative study was made about the effects caused by ionizing irradiation on materials used for dental restoration (amalgams, compound resins and compomere), aiming to alleviate in bearers of head and neck cancer, the possible harmful effects of radiotherapy perceived when the repaired teething is within the radiation field. Research also encourages further studies for new alternative materials to be used in dental repair of patients submitted to radiotherapy for head and neck cancer. Test samples were submitted to a gamma radiation beam coming from a cobalt-therapy source and analyzed according to the X-ray fluorescence technique, comparing the chemical composition of the samples before and after irradiation. Radiation detectors such as an ionization chamber and a Geiger-Muller were used to measure the rate of residual dose. Gamma spectrometry with Nal detectors was also performed on the same samples. Results showed that there was no significant change in the chemical composition and that at post-irradiation, samples did not exhibit radiation emission, that is to say they had not become radioactive.

Degradation of tetracycline by photo-Fenton process - Solar irradiation and matrix effects

The degradation of the antibiotic tetracycline (TC) by the photo-Fenton process was evaluated under black-light and solar irradiation. The influences of iron source (Fe(NO3)(3) or ferrioxalate), hydrogen peroxide and matrix (pure water, surface water and a sewage treatment plant effluent-STP) were evaluated. Under black-light irradiation, TC degradation was favored in the presence of Fe(NO3)(3), achieving total degradation after 1 min irradiation, while under solar light the use of ferrioxalate favors the degradation. Nevertheless, no significant difference in total organic carbon removal was observed between these two iron sources, achieving a residual concentration of around 5 mg L-1 under black-light and 2 mg L-1 under solar light irradiation. No decrease of the degradation efficiency relative to pure water was observed when TC was irradiated in a sample of surface water, under either black-light or solar irradiation. However, lower efficiency was obtained under black-light when TC was present in a sample of STP effluent, indicating the interference of the constituents of this sample on the overall efficiency of the process. on the other hand, under solar irradiation in the presence of ferrioxalate, no influence of the matrix was observed, even in the sample of STP effluent, achieving total degradation of TC in 1.5 min. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Meta-análise de parâmetros genéticos relacionados ao consumo alimentar residual e a suas características componentes em bovinos

The objective of this work was to estimate, by meta-analysis, the heritability (h(2)) and the genetic (r(g)) and phenotypic (r(f)) correlations of residual feed intake (RFI), and of its component traits in beef cattle from 19 breeds or genetic groups. Twenty-two scientific papers published from 1963 to 2011, from eight countries, totaling 52,637 cattle of ages from 28 days up to slaughter, were evaluated. The estimates of RFI, dry matter intake (DMI), average daily gain (ADG) and metabolic weight (BW0.75) were weighted by the inverse of sample variance. The variation between studies of h(2) for each trait was analyzed by weighted least squares. The effects of sex, country and breed were significant for h(2) of RFI, explaining 67% of variation between studies. For DMI, country and breed effects were significant and explained 96% of variation. Pooled estimates of h(2) were: 0.255+/-0.008, 0.278+/-0.012, 0.321+/-0.015, and 0.397+/-0.032 for RFI, DMI, ADG and BW0.75, respectively. Pooled estimates of genetic and phenotypic correlations were low between RFI and ADG and between RFI and BW0.75 (from -0.021+/-0.034 to 0.025+/-0.035), and moderate between RFI and DMI (0.636+/-0.035 and 0.698+/-0.041) and between DMI, ADG and BW0.75 (0.441+/-0.062 to 0.688+/-0.032). The trait RFI has lower heritability estimates than its components.

An investigation of electrolytic surface damages and electroplated crhomium effects on fatigue behavior of high strength steel

Fatigue crack initiation occurs at the surface, although sub surface nucleation has also been reported. Localized imperfections like inclusions close to surface and surface small pits can result in crack sources. Coatings are not always beneficial by fatigue point of view too. Mechanical properties of the covering material can change considerably the fatigue behavior of base metal due to residual surface stresses, to micro cracks or to hydrogen embrittlement. This paper is concerned with analysis of electrolytic etch on the fatigue resistance of a 35NCD16 high strength steel in a mechanical condition of (1760 - 1960) MPa, and analysis of electroplated hard chromium effects on the fatigue resistance in a strength condition of 989 MPa. Hardness impression was used as a reference parameter in case of electrolytic etch. In both cases, experimental data showed that fatigue strength of 35NCD16 steel was considerably reduced. Copyright © 2001 Society of Automotive Engineers, Inc.

Effects of electroplated zinc-nickel alloy coatings on the fatigue strength of AISI 4340 high strength steel

It is well known that fatigue behaviour is an important parameter to be considered in mechanical components subjected to constant and variable amplitude loadings. In combination with corrosion phenomenon, fatigue effects were responsible for proximally 64% of fails that occur in metallic parts of aeronautical accidents in the last 30 years. Recovered substrates have been extensively used in the aerospace field. Cadmium electroplating has been widely applied to promote protective coatings in aeronautical components, resulting in excellent corrosion protection combined with a good performance in cyclic loading. Ecological considerations allied to the increasing demands for corrosion resistance, resulted in the search for possible alternatives. Zinc-nickel alloys received considerable interest recently, since these coatings showed some advantages such as a good resistance to white and red rust, high plating rates and acceptation in the market. In this study the effects of zinc-nickel coatings electroplated on AISI 4340 high strength steel were analysed on rotating bending and axial fatigue strength, corrosion and adhesion resistance. Compressive residual stress field was measured by a X-ray tensometry prior to fatigue tests. Optical microscopy images showed coating thicknesses, adhesion and the existence of an uniform coverage of nearly all substrates. The fractured fatigue specimens were investigated using a scanning electron microscope. Three different zinc-nickel coating thicknesses were tested and comparison with rotating bending fatigue data from specimens cadmium electroplated and heat treated at 190°C for 3, 8 and 24 hours to avoid the diffusion of hydrogen in the substrate, was performed. Experimental results showed effect of coatings on the AISI 4340 steel behaviour when submitted to fatigue testing and the existence of coating thickness influence on the fatigue strength.

An effective wavelet method to detect and mitigate low-frequency multipath effects

To ensure high accuracy results from GPS relative positioning, the multipath effects have to be mitigated. Although the careful selection of antenna site and the use of especial antennas and receivers can minimize multipath, it cannot always be eliminated and frequently the residual multipath disturbance remains as the major error in GPS results. The high-frequency multipath from large delays can be attenuated by double difference (DD) denoising methods. But the low-frequency multipath from short delays is very difficult to be reduced or modeled. In this paper, it is proposed a method based on wavelet regression (WR), which can effectively detect and reduce the low-frequency multipath. The wavelet technique is firstly applied to decompose the DD residuals into the low-frequency bias and high-frequency noise components. The extracted bias components by WR are then directly applied to the DD observations to correct them from the trend. The remaining terms, largely characterized by the high-frequency measurement noise, are expected to give the best linear unbiased solutions from a least-squares (LS) adjustment. An experiment was carried out using objects placed close to the receiver antenna to cause, mainly, low-frequency multipath. The data were collected for two days to verify the multipath repeatability. The ground truth coordinates were computed with data collected in the absence of the reflector objects. The coordinates and ambiguity solution were compared with and without the multipath mitigation using WR. After mitigating the multipath, ambiguity resolution became more reliable and the coordinates were more accurate.

Effectiveness of six different disinfectants on removing five microbial species and effects on the topographic characteristics of acrylic resin

Purpose: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of disinfectant solutions (1% sodium hypochlorite, 2% chlorhexidine digluconate, 2% glutaraldehyde, 100% vinegar, tabs of sodium perborate-based denture cleanser, and 3.8% sodium perborate) in the disinfection of acrylic resin specimens (n = 10/group) contaminated in vitro by Candida albicans, Streptococcus mutans, S. aureus, Escherichia coli, or Bacillus subtilis as measured by residual colony-forming unit (CFU). In a separate experiment, acrylic resin was treated with disinfectants to monitor potential effects on surface roughness, Ra (μm), which might facilitate microbial adherence. Materials and Methods: Three hundred fifty acrylic resin specimens contaminated in vitro with 1×10 6 cells/ml suspensions of standard strains of the cited microorganisms were immersed in the disinfectants for 10 minutes; the control group was not submitted to any disinfection process. Final counts of microorganisms per ml were performed by plating method for the evaluation of microbial level reduction. Results were compared statistically by ANOVA and Tukey's test (p ≤ 0.05). In a parallel study aiming to evaluate the effect of the tested disinfectant on resin surface, 60 specimens were analyzed in a digital rugosimeter before and after ten cycles of 10-minute immersion in the disinfectants. Measurements of superficial roughness, Ra (μm), were compared statistically by paired t-test (p ≤ 0.05). Results: The results showed that 1% sodium hypochlorite, 2% glutaraldehyde, and 2% chlorhexidine digluconate were most effective against the analyzed microorganisms, followed by 100% vinegar, 3.8% sodium perborate, and tabs of sodium perborate-based denture cleanser. Superficial roughness of the specimens was higher after disinfection cycles with 3.8% sodium perborate (p = 0.03) and lower after the cycles with 2% chlorhexidine digluconate (p = 0.04). Conclusion: Within the limits of this experiment, it could be concluded that 1% sodium hypochlorite, 2% glutaraldehyde, 2% chlorexidine, 100% vinegar, and 3.8% sodium perborate are valid alternatives for the disinfection of acrylic resin. © 2008 by The American College of Prosthodontists.