Binaral Rivalry in the Presence of Visual Perceptual and Semantic Influences

When two different odorants are presented simultaneously to the two nostrils, we experience alternations in olfactory percepts, a phenomenon called binaral rivalry. Little is known about the nature of such alternations. Here we investigate this issue by subjecting unstable and stable olfactory percepts to the influences of visual perceptual or semantic cues as participants engage in simultaneous samplings of either two different odorants (binaral) or a single odorant and water (mononaral), one to each nostril. We show that alternations of olfactory percepts in the binaral setting persist in the presence of visual perceptual and semantic modulations. We also show that perceptual cues have a stronger effect than semantic cues in the binaral case, whereas their effects are comparable in the mononaral setting. Our findings provide evidence that an inherent, stimulus-driven process underlies binaral rivalry despite its general susceptibility to top-down influences

Nostril-Specific Olfactory Modulation of Visual Perception in Binocular Rivalry

It is known that olfaction and vision can work in tandem to represent object identities. What is yet unclear is the stage of the sensory processing hierarchy at which the two types of inputs converge. Here we study this issue through a well established visual phenomenon termed binocular rivalry. We show that smelling an odor from one nostril significantly enhances the dominance time of the congruent visual image in the contralateral visual field, relative to that in the ipsilateral visual field. Moreover, such lateralization-based enhancement extends to category selective regions so that when two images of words and human body, respectively, are engaged in rivalry in the central visual field, smelling natural human body odor from the right nostril increases the dominance time of the body image compared with smelling it from the left nostril. Semantic congruency alone failed to produce this effect in a similar setting. These results, taking advantage of the anatomical and functional lateralizations in the olfactory and visual systems, highlight the functional dissociation of the two nostrils and provide strong evidence for an object-based early convergence of olfactory and visual inputs in sensory representations

Dual cloud point extraction coupled with hydrodynamic-electrokinetic two-step injection followed by micellar electrokinetic chromatography for simultaneous determination of trace phenolic estrogens in water samples

A dual cloud point extraction (dCPE) off-line enrichment procedure coupled with a hydrodynamic-electrokinetic two-step injection online enrichment technique was successfully developed for simultaneous preconcentration of trace phenolic estrogens (hexestrol, dienestrol, and diethylstilbestrol) in water samples followed by micellar electrokinetic chromatography (MEKC) analysis. Several parameters affecting the extraction and online injection conditions were optimized. Under optimal dCPE-two-step injection-MEKC conditions, detection limits of 7.9-8.9 ng/mL and good linearity in the range from 0.05 to 5 mu g/mL with correlation coefficients R (2) a parts per thousand yenaEuro parts per thousand 0.9990 were achieved. Satisfactory recoveries ranging from 83 to 108 % were obtained with lake and tap water spiked at 0.1 and 0.5 mu g/mL, respectively, with relative standard deviations (n = 6) of 1.3-3.1 %. This method was demonstrated to be convenient, rapid, cost-effective, and environmentally benign, and could be used as an alternative to existing methods for analyzing trace residues of phenolic estrogens in water samples.A dual cloud point extraction (dCPE) off-line enrichment procedure coupled with a hydrodynamic-electrokinetic two-step injection online enrichment technique was successfully developed for simultaneous preconcentration of trace phenolic estrogens (hexestrol, dienestrol, and diethylstilbestrol) in water samples followed by micellar electrokinetic chromatography (MEKC) analysis. Several parameters affecting the extraction and online injection conditions were optimized. Under optimal dCPE-two-step injection-MEKC conditions, detection limits of 7.9-8.9 ng/mL and good linearity in the range from 0.05 to 5 mu g/mL with correlation coefficients R (2) a parts per thousand yenaEuro parts per thousand 0.9990 were achieved. Satisfactory recoveries ranging from 83 to 108 % were obtained with lake and tap water spiked at 0.1 and 0.5 mu g/mL, respectively, with relative standard deviations (n = 6) of 1.3-3.1 %. This method was demonstrated to be convenient, rapid, cost-effective, and environmentally benign, and could be used as an alternative to existing methods for analyzing trace residues of phenolic estrogens in water samples

Safe Lives: Dealing with Earthquakes by open space in Taipei, Taiwan\u2028

Taiwan is located in the Circum-Pacific Seismic Zone; therefore, this island nation is destined to encounter recurrent cataclysmic earthquakes as what has been witnessed in the previous centuries. Taipei City, which is recognized as the most populous and densest city of Taiwan, has a series of push factors which lead herself standing with massive quakes. Besides, with old buildings, disordered urban pattern and lack of open space not only makes the city expose in an extremely dangerous situation but an uncomfortable living environment. Based on the descriptions above, the research objective of this thesis is focused on the following main question: “What are the landscape interventions that can create a safe and livable city?” As a result, in this thesis, it is mainly developed into two layers, emergency and living quality layers, and then combine them as a complete landscape design in Taipei for a safer and better living quality environment.Flowscapes StudioArchitecture, Urbanism and Building Sciences | Landscape Architectur

To Redefine, Not Reinforce: A Spatial Decision Support System with Generative Design Model for Exploring Optimal Improvements to Existing Street Networks for Enhancing Equity of Accessibility

Transport decision-making determines people’s level of accessibility and deeply influences an individual’s access to social and economic opportunities and the quality of life. Socially vulnerable populations are highly dependent on yet often more likely to have less access to transport services and experience lower accessibility. This creates and reinforces social and spatial inequalities by trapping people in disconnected neighborhoods and segregated areas that continue to be deprived of access to opportunities. This research aims to develop a Spatial Decision Support System (SDSS) to explore how re-purposing existing streets for walking and biking could influence the accessibility of vulnerable neighborhoods to support decision-making in enhancing equity of accessibility. In the SDSS, equity of accessibility is formulated as a generative design (GD) problem, named the Street Allocation Decision Problem (SADP), a single-objective optimization problem that searches for generated designs with the maximum weighted improvement in accessibility per unit of its cost. A GD model is built to solve SADP. Lastly, an operational framework is developed to guide prospective users in tuning and operating the SDSS for their specific context, problem, and objective. The SDSS is tested on a toy problem, a 0.09km2 area in The Hague, The Netherlands. The toy problem is small in scale, easy and fast to implement and useful for initial testing of the model. Preliminary results have demonstrated the feasibility of the model. This is the first and humble attempt at developing an SDSS for enhancing equity of accessibility with a GD model. However, there are shortcomings in methodology and result quality, which compromise the practicality of the model and the interpretability of results. Although, only a proof of concept at the moment, the SDSS is a valuable starting point due to its advantages, such as transparency, modularity, humane-ness, and flexibility. This SDSS is built to involve decision-makers in the design process, which could serve as a useful learning experience for questioning and understanding what is the problem, what is considered equitable, and what are possible solutions. The SDSS has the potential to facilitate learning during transport decision-making in experimental settings or as explorative aids in early design stages.Industrial Ecolog

[[alternative]]The Career Decision-making and Needs of Career Guidance for Unformal Vocational Senior High School Students in Taipei

[[abstract]]本研究之目的在瞭解台北市高職補校學生之生涯決定程度、生涯輔導需求 ，及其兩者之相關。為達此目的，本研究主採問卷調查法，以研究者修訂 之「台北市高職補校學生生涯決定量表」及編訂之「台北市高職補校學生 生涯輔導需求問卷」為研究工具，針對台北市八十二學年度就讀之高職補 校學生進行查問卷抽樣調查，共得有效樣本1022人。調查所得資料經次數 分配、百分比、平均數、ｔ考驗、單因子變異數分析、皮爾森積差相關等 統計程序分析後，獲得下列結論：１．台北市高職補校學生有33％為職業 選擇不確定者，有40％為教育選擇 @ 不肯定者。學生在「生涯決定量 表」上的得分以中度不確定者最多（ 62％），高度不確者次之（22％） 。而在生涯不確定原因各層面上， 以「缺乏生涯資料」層面的得分最 高，其次為「外在或個人限制 」」、及「雙趨衝突」，最低為「缺乏自 我瞭解與信心」。２．學生的生涯決定程度因其性別、年齡、類科別、工 作狀況、對目前就 @ 讀科別不同滿意狀況之不同，而有顯著差異，但 不因其年級不同而有 @ 顯著差異。３．學生對生涯輔導需求強度絕大 部分為中度至高度，尤以高度需求的人 @ 數近半。而從生涯輔導需求 各層面來看，以「工作適應輔導」的需求最高，其次依序為「瞭解自我」 、「生涯規劃」、「瞭解工作世界」、最低為「進路輔導」。４．學生生 涯輔導需求因其對就讀科別不同滿意狀況而有顯著差異，但並 @ 不因 性別、年齡、年級、類科別、工作狀況之不同而有顯著差異。５．學生之 生涯不確定程度與生涯輔導需求呈顯著正相關，亦即生涯愈不 @ 確定 者，其生涯輔導需求愈高。而依據上述研究結論，研究者分別針對台北市 高職補校推動生涯輔導及後續研究等方面，提出了數點建議。

屈作神話研究

[[abstract]]《楚辭》一書包含了屈原、宋玉及漢代以後文人的作品，其中尤以屈原的作品因大量鎔鑄神話，表現積極浪漫主義精神而受人矚目。展讀屈原之作，處處可見神話素材，彷彿入神異之鄉，令人陶醉神往。因此本文以屈原的作品為主，針對其中所運用的神話素材進行研究。 第一章 緒論。說明本文之研究動機，並在瞭解前人於《楚辭》神話、楚神話，以及屈作神話之研究成果後，確立本文之研究範圍與研究方法。 第二章 屈作多用神話的背景因素。分別從時代、地理、作者、文學等四方面主客觀條件的考察，探討屈原於作品中多用神話素材的背景因素。 第三章 屈作神話分類探賾。本章以統計的方式，全面整理屈原作品中所運用的神話素材，並將其歸納為宇宙神話、自然神話、神怪神話、社會神話、幽冥神話，以及其他神異神話六大類。希望透過分類歸納的方式，呈現屈原作品中神話素材的出現頻率，並進一步探討各類神話在屈原作品中所發揮的藝術作用及所呈現的藝術效果。 第四章 屈作神話中神的形象與人神關係。首先結合屈原的藝術構思及創作手法，分析屈原對於〈九歌〉中各類神祇，以及其他著墨較多之英雄傳說人物的形象塑造。其次藉由屈原所塑造出的這些神話人物形象，探討屈作神話中的人神關係。 第五章 屈作神話的運用及特色。由抒情敘事以及文章情韻構思等創作需要，探討屈原運用神話的方式。並進一步分析經過屈原巧思運用後的屈作神話所呈現出來的特色 第六章 結論。對第二至第五章的研究作一綜合論述，總結本文的研究成果，並提出檢討、省視與未來展望。

明清庶民社會人際網絡中的日用帖啟與關禁契約

[[abstract]]本文寫作的動機，是希望藉著明清時期庶民所用的日常交際文書中，看當時人際網絡的複雜性，與社會交際之各種面向，以觀察明清時期庶民生活中，人際互動的樣貌。明清時期的社會中，庶民與官紳士子之間有很大雅俗區別，庶民社會交際的文化上，也會呈現出自己的特色，庶民之間的往來並非全無章法。就社會應世的禮俗規範而言，中國傳統的士大夫繼承中國禮學正統，以大戴小戴禮記、儀禮等禮經作為參考的對象。而明清時期的庶民，在應世時所參考的則是由鄉里儒生所編寫，自朱子《家禮》以後到民間日用類書等的一套民間禮俗系統。廣大的四民大眾為了生活所需，也常需要使用交際文書與身邊的人應酬交際，只是限於所受知識，庶民日常所用的交際文書都是以實用、好記、方便運用為主，不觸及高深的學術義理，最主要是能求在生活上的實際運用。在以這些實用禮書、民間禮俗參考書、民間日用類書為資料的前提下，本文希望能藉此探討明清庶民交際的內容，從各式各樣的應用文書中，探討庶民生活中社會網絡關係中的複雜性與多變性。並從人際往來必須立即反應的應對稱呼，以及書信、帖式、契約等交際文書等四部分加以探討。研究發現，這類日用社會交際參考書，在明清庶民社會中普遍流通，並廣為參考，常有長時間大量翻印及重覆傳抄的情形，表現出庶民社會往來的酬世需求；從這些民間實際使用的日用參考資料中，也可看見當時的交際方法，如何寫信、使用帖式或寫關書禁文及各式契約等。其中各式「活套」的使用，更表現出庶民重視實用的特色。人與人之間各式各樣的交際形式，和複雜的社會網絡關係，也皆在這類民用參考書中，有更真實的呈現。

[[alternative]]Studies of the consideration of the lesbians to participate in sports, identity, volition to come out and the willingness to participate in sports

[[abstract]]This research aimed to explore the present situation and the consideration of the lesbians to participate in sports, their identity, their volition to come out and the willingness to participate in sport.. Data collected through the use of a specially designed paper and internet questionnaire of 282 lesbians, and in depth interviews from 11 of them, were analyzed by means of descriptive statistics, one-way ANOVA, F-test, scheffe, Pearson's correlation, and stepwise regression, and concluded from the results of the contents of the statistic data and the interview : 1. The sports environment in Taiwan was considerably friendly to lesbians, and lesbians were rather active in sports fields. The salary per month, record of normal schooling, sports skill level, and frequency of sports-taking of these lesbians is sports were also comparably higher than females and other lesbians in Taiwan in general. Lesbians of different sex belongings present life styles in great variety in sports. 2. Two major factors of the lesbians participating in sports were "sports demands" and "identity and activity of the lesbian ". They thought participation in sports had a positive influence on their identity of the lesbians. They had the most willingness to come out in sports gatherings, however, had the least willingness to come out in usual sports occasions. 3. This study confirmed the positive correlations among the consideration to participate in sports, identity, and the occasions to come out. These three factors also affect the willingness and behaviors of the lesbians to participate in sports. The most predictive factors of the willingness of the lesbians to participate in sports were "sports demands", "identity and activity of lesbians", "social identity", and "the situation for the lesbians to come out in sports gatherings".

中國傳統短篇愛情小說的衝突結構

[[abstract]]本論文旨在藉由六朝以迄清初的小說抽樣對象，利用統計分析及科際整合的觀含，由 「衝突」角度切入，透過對文學表層現象的情節分析，及社會文化等深層因素的影響 探討，加以歸納綜觀，以期整理出傳統短篇愛情小說的結構面貌． 全文共分四章，首章「緒論」，係就論文主題所牽涉到的若干外詞的範圍及意義做一 探討，以為分析時的依據．並就本論文的研究動機、方去、局限、展望等問題做一陳 述． 第二章為「衝突結構的表層現象」，乃以抽樣的一百多篇小說為對象，透過對其情節 分析柔強度統計，以說明出現于愛情小說結構上的若干普遍現象． 第三章為「衝突結構的深層因素」，係以前章的表象分析為基礎，分別由心理學、人 類學等角探討前者的形成因素，以見傳統短篇愛情小說衝突結構實係－立體的、兼具 表層形式及深層結構的結構體． 第四章為「結論」，主要係就前二章的分析及探討結果加以整合，以見傳統短篇愛情 小說的實質內涵，並為其價值意義尋求一新的定位．