An integration of attachment theory and reinforcement sensitivity theory

This thesis examined how relationship experiences shape people's sensitivity to detect threat and reward in romantic relationships and substance use scenarios. Findings indicated that anxious individuals experienced difficulty in distinguishing between threat and reward. In contrast, avoidant individuals were quick to detect threat either fleeing or confronting the problem aggressively.

Forces measured between latex spheres in aqueous electrolyte : Non-DLVO behavior and sensitivity to dissolved gas

An atomic force microscope was used to measure the forces acting between two polystyrene latex spheres in aqueous media. The results show an electrostatic repulsion at large separations which is overtaken by an attractive “hook” that pulls the two spheres into contact from a considerable range (20−400 nm), much larger than could be expected for a van der Waals attraction. The range of operation of this attraction varies from one experiment to another and is not correlated with electrolyte concentration. However, the range is found to decrease significantly when the level of dissolved gas in the water is reduced.

Climate change sensitivity of comfort and energy performance criteria for offices

The climate change scenarios of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) predict a significant increase in temperatures over the next decades. Architecture and building occupants have to respond to this change, but little information is currently available in how far the predicted changes are likely to affect comfort and energy performance in buildings. This study therefore investigates the climate change sensitivity of the following parameters: adaptive thermal comfort according to Ashrae Standard 55 and EN 15251, energy consumption, heating and cooling loads, and length of heating and cooling periods. The study is based on parametric simulations of typical office room configurations in the context of Athens, Greece. They refer to different building design priorities and account for different occupant behaviour by using an ideal and worst case scenario. To evaluate the impact of the climate change, simulations are compared based on a common standard weather data set for Athens, and a generated climate change data set for the IPCC A2 scenario. The results show a significant impact of the climate change on all investigated parameters. They also indicate that in this context the optimisation of comfort and energy performance is likely to be related to finding the best possible balance between building (design) and occupant behaviour and other contextual influences, rather than a straightforward optimisation of separated single parameters.

Sensitivity of deformation twinning to grain size in titanium and magnesium

The impact of grain size on deformation twinning in commercial purity titanium and magnesium alloy Mg–3Al–1Zn (AZ31) is investigated. Tensile tests were carried out for the titanium samples; compression testing was employed for the magnesium specimens. Average values of the true twin length, true twin thickness and the number density of twins were determined using stereology. A key difference between these two materials is that twinning contributes little to the plastic strain in the titanium while it accounts for nearly all of the early plastic strain in the magnesium. In some respects (e.g. volume fraction and number density) the phenomenology of twinning differed between the two materials, while in others (e.g. twin shape and size) both materials showed a similar response. It is found that in both materials, twins span the entirety of their parent grains only for grain sizes less than ∼30 μm. Both the nucleation density per unit of nucleating interface (i.e. grain and twin boundaries) and the aspect ratio of twins scale with applied stress. The impact of grain size on twin volume fraction is modelled analytically.