THE INNER ALCHEMY OF BUDDHIST TANTRIC MEDITATION: A QEEG CASE STUDY USING Low RESOLUTION ELECTROMAGNETIC TOMOGRAPHY (LORETA)

Indo-Tibetan Buddhist T~mtric practice employs struClured self-healing meditations aimed at awakening emotional and spitiruai qualities or energies whose seed already resides within us. This profound transfi)rmative pranice. with wrirren records dating back to at least 400 c.E., is investigated from several diverse orienrations: depth psychology. neuropsychology, and neurophysiology. from a Jungian perspecrive. the psychological process of this pracrice involves the re-collection and development of these energies to engender emotional and spirirual growth. Using a phenomenological task analysis. the various nemocognitive processes involved in such practice are identitied. Finally. we analyze the qU3mitative electroencephalographic (QEEG) characreristics of a Buddhisr ex-monk during various aspects of a self-healing meditation practice. The QEEG was recorded with a Lexicor Neuroseatch 24 ,md data analyzed using NeuroRep, NeuroGuidc. LORETA-KEY and EureKa!3 software. EEG rderence database, as well low resolution electromagnetic tomography (LORETA), Staristical comparison of baseline and meditation conditions using LORETA revealed areas of brain activation consistent with those reponed in previolls neuroimaging studies. The QEEG results are discussed in the context of the phenomenological processes involved in the differenr types of meditation as well as with results of previolls srudies

Andean poison frog

23 p. : ill. ; 26 cm.Includes bibliographical references (p. 23)."Dendrobates bombetes, new species, is a small, red-striped frog inhabiting the western Andes near Cali, Colombia. Nearest relatives are the Ecuadoran D. abditus and the northern Colombian D. opisthomelas; these three Andean species are considered a monophyletic unit of the 'minutus group' because of a larval synapomorphy. The name D. reticulatus is resurrected from the synonymy of D. quinquevittatus in Amazonian Peru. Dendrobates bombetes was found in two forest types at localities separated by 30 km. distance and 800 m. elevation. Differences in population structure suggest the possibility that either reproductive success or juvenile survivorship may be inversely density dependent. Cool montane forest islands supported dense, presumably stable populations having few juveniles and a high proportion of large (old?) adults. Marginal habitat in relatively xeric gallery forest supported a small population having significantly more juveniles and smaller (younger?) adults, suggesting rapid turnover in a precarious habitat. One or two tadpoles were carried by male nurse frogs, but free-living larvae were not found. The call is a short, surprisingly loud and far-carrying, insect-like buzz influenced by ambient temperature. Rising temperature causes pulse rate to increase and call length to decrease; the second effect probably reinforces the first, since there seems to be an independent tendency for short calls to be pulsed faster than long ones. The call of a related species, Dendrobates opisthomelas, differs even at the same temperature in duration, pulse rate, and dominant frequency. Defensive skin secretions of Dendrobates bombetes contained 22 piperidine alkaloids in the two sampled populations, with 15 or 17 compounds each. Interpopulational variation is partly due to minor differences in degree of saturation of some compounds, and the gas chromatographic profiles are therefore much alike even though the shared-alkaloid value is low (67%). Three new alkaloids form at least a natural subgroup in the pumiliotoxin-A class, to which they are tentatively assigned in spite of anomalous mass spectra; a fourth new alkaloid is placed in the pumiliotoxin-C class"--P. [1]

Poison-dart frogs

p. 175-262, 2 leaves of plates : ill. (some col.), maps ; 26 cm.Includes bibliographical references (p. 259-262)."Studies in progress reveal at least three novel classes of toxic alkaloids in skin secretions of Neotropical dendrobatid frogs. Batrachotoxins are characterized by a steroidal ring structure; those batrachotoxins having a pyrrole carboxylate substituent are among the most toxic of nonprotein poisons. Pumiliotoxins are less toxic and poorly known, but pumiliotoxins A and B appear to have a bicyclic ring system with differing side chains; pumiliotoxin C is a simple cis-decahydroquinoline. Histrionicotoxins have an unusual spiro-ring system and both 4-carbon and 5-carbon side chains, on the cyclohexane and piperidine rings, respectively. Structures are uncertain for other alkaloids of lower molecular weight, but some appear structurally related to pumiliotoxins and others to histrionicotoxins. Methods of study include thin-layer chromatography, gas chromatography, electron impact and chemical ionization mass spectrometry, and quantitative mass spectrometry. Combined gas chromatography-mass spectrometry gives reproducible results for small-sample taxonomic comparisons of frogs containing pumiliotoxins, histrionicotoxins, and similar alkaloids. Limitations of molecular data in taxonomic and evolutionary studies are considered. Biochemical and other variation are analyzed in Dendrobates histrionicus, a rain-forest frog of western Colombia and northwestern Ecuador. Sexual dimorphism is slight, and geographic variation in body size appears correlated with climate. There are geographic differences in relative tibia length and in escape behavior. Interpopulational differences in color and color pattern are extreme, and intrapopulational variation also may be considerable. Most colorations are thought to be aposematic, but highly variable frogs of one population seem cryptically colored. Dendrobates histrionicus elaborates histrionicotoxins and lower molecular-weight alkaloids; one population sample had trace amounts of a higher molecular-weight compound, tentatively identified as pumiliotoxin B. Southern populations produce large amounts of histrionicotoxins and lesser amounts of lower weight alkaloids, a situation reversed in most northern populations. Individual populations have 8-10 of 19 alkaloids detected by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Alkaloid similarity comparisons show that most populations share more compounds with near than with distant populations; a geographically intermediate population shares as many or more alkaloids with distant as with neighboring populations. Analysis of geographic variation in skin toxins supports the notion of conspecificity of most histrionicus-like frogs, but different spectra of toxins revealed two additional sibling species. These new species resemble D. histrionicus in morphology (including absence of omosternum), vocalizations, and type of male aggressiveness; and their color patterns, although distinctive, are approached in the variation of histrionicus. Dendrobates lehmanni, new species, lacks histrionicotoxins and produces pumiliotoxins and other alkaloids not detected in histrionicus; it is a black frog with crossbands of vivid orange or orange-red. Dendrobates lehmanni was known for years only from specimens sold in the animal trade, but its habitat is traced to a restricted area of montane forest in the Río Anchicayá drainage of the western Andes, Department of Valle, Colombia. Dendrobates occultator, new species, shows greater biochemical resemblance to histrionicus, but shared alkaloid similarity values are relatively low, and it produces significant amounts of pumiliotoxins and only two kinds of histrionicotoxins (5-7 kinds in populations of histrionicus). Dendrobates occultator is a red-backed frog with yellow lateral spots; it occurs in the Pacific lowlands, in the upper Río Saija drainage, Department of Cauca, Colombia, where it is sympatric with a population of histrionicus. Both lehmanni and occultator may have speciated from geographical isolates of histrionicus; it is suggested that some character divergence might have occurred after the range of occultator was rejoined with the parent species. Dendrobates viridis, new species, is also described, as it occurs sympatrically with the other two new species and evidently has an extensive range in Pacific-side Colombia, along the western flank of the Andes. It is a miniature, uniformly green frog, whose skin secretions include pumiliotoxins. Species of Dendrobates in Central America and northwestern South America seem characterized by either of two kinds of vocalizations, which correlate with calling behavior and type of aggressiveness. Buzz calls are a nearly uniform series of pulses, which are produced too fast for resolution by the human ear but which can be directly visualized on sound spectrograms made with a wide-band filter. Buzz calls are given by D. auratus and D. minutus (and 'Phyllobates' espinosai), species that call relatively infrequently and which seem relatively unaggressive. Chirp calls are trains of harsh, poorly modulated notes, in which pulses are produced too fast for resolution on wide-band sound spectrograms. Chirp calls are given by D. granuliferus, D. histrionicus, D. lehmanni, D. occultator, D. pumilio, and D. speciosus -- all of which are characterized by nearly incessant calling from perches, and by pronounced male aggressiveness related to territorial defense. Geographic variation in normal and aggressive calls suggests that D. pumilio may actually be a composite of two species, but biochemical and other variation have yet to be investigated"--P. 177-178

Poison frog

24 p. : ill. ; 26 cm.Includes bibliographical references (p. 23-24)."Dendrobates silverstonei, new species, is a distinctive orange-and-black or red-and-black frog discovered in the 1940s, as a consequence of road construction across the Cordillera Azul on the Amazonian flank of the Peruvian Andes. A colored photograph of a nurse frog, engaged in the dendrobatid trait of tadpole carrying, was widely promulgated in the multilingual editions of Cochran's Living amphibians of the world, as well as in other popular works. The species is now removed from consideration with Phyllobates bicolor, the only frog with which it has been previously confused or seriously compared. The newly named silverstonei belongs to a group containing the type species of Dendrobates rather than to the demonstrably monophyletic group containing the type species (bicolor) of Phyllobates. The color pattern of D. silverstonei is a convergent autapomorphy showing only the most superficial resemblance to that of P. bicolor, and silverstonei lacks the potent batrachotoxin alkaloids of Phyllobates. Skin secretions contain small amounts of alkaloids, mainly of the pumiliotoxin-A class. Dendrobates siliverstonei is placed tentatively in a species group containing D. trivittatus, because of similarities in morphology and natural history. The highland Dendrobates silverstonei (above 1300 m. elevation) shares various biological attributes with the widespread lowland D. trivittatus (below 800 m.), and their nearly identical songs are described as retarded trill calls, the fourth class of dendrobatid vocalizations to be defined. Both species are wary and usually quick to hide, and both seem to have some preference for edge situations. Similar-sized clutches of eggs of each species have been found in dead leaves on the forest floor, with male frogs in attendance. Tadpoles are carried to terrestrial water by the male nurse frog. There is interpopulational variation in the color pattern of D. silverstonei, and perhaps also in the ontogenetic development of the pattern. Geographic variation is likely to be extensive if the species proves to occupy a large range in the montane forest of Cordillera Azul"--P. [1]

Poison frog

20 p. : ill. ; 26 cm.Includes bibliographical references (p. 20)."Dendrobates arboreus, new species, is a small arboreal frog with a dorsal and ventral pattern of vivid yellow spots on a brown or black field. It is abundant at 1100-1300 m. above sea level on a low section of the continental divide in western Panama, where, in undisturbed cloud forest, virtually the entire population resdies high aboveground on trees laden with bromeliads and other epiphytes. A few specimens also come from a locality in the adjacent Caribbean lowlands. The pale-spotted color pattern of Dendrobates arboreus is similar to that of the enigmatic D. maculatus, also from western Panama, but these two species differ significantly in morphology and are not closely related. Dendrobates arboreus is assigned to the histrionicus species group, which includes two species occurring macrosympatrically with arboreus, D. speciosus (highlands) and D. pumilio (lowlands). The monophyly of the histrionicus group is indicated by very similar-sounding chirp calls - given as long trains of harsh notes that differ among species in rate of note repetition, note duration, and dominant frequency. New spectrographic analysis of pulse rates compels a restatement of Myers and Daly's original distinction between chirp calls and buzz calls, two important classes of dendrobatid vocalization. Courtship and egg laying of Dendrobates arboreus, and cannibalism of eggs by an adult female, were observed in captivity. There is no amplexus during mating, although typical cephalic amplexus (primitive within the Dendrobatidae) is retained in the behavioral repertory, possibly in an aggressive context. Courtship includes tactile signals by both sexes prior to their assuming a vent-to-vent position for egg laying and fertilization. An instance of mate piracy was observed when a second male successfully intruded at a late stage of courtship, bypassing the preliminary tactile signaling of the original pair. Defensive skin secretions of Dendrobates arboreus contained 14 piperidine alkaloids, including members of the pumiliotoxin-A class and its allopumiliotoxin-A subclass. Remaining alkaloids, including two new compounds, are left unclassified. Histrionicotoxins were not detected"--P. [1]-2

Effect of Daily Fluctuations from Flaming Gorge Dam on Ice Processes in the Green River

This report provides results and conclusions of a detailed investigation of ice processes in the main channel of the reach of the Green River between the downstream end of Split Mountain (River Mile [RM1] 320) and the Ouray, Utah Bridge (R.M248). The objective of the study was to examine the influence of daily fluctuations in water releases from Flaming Gorge Damon river ice processes in this reach, which serves as an overwintering area for endangered Colorado pikeminnow and razorback sucker. The objective of the study was met through examination of historical records of winter water and air temperatures, flow measurements, and ice observations; through measurements of differences in ice conditions under steady and fluctuating flow regimes; and through calibration and use of an ice process model to compare hydraulic and ice conditions expected under steady and fluctuating flow regimes

Exploring Mars at the nanoscale: applications of transmission electron microscopy and atom probe tomography in planetary exploration

The upcoming Mars Sample Return (MSR) mission aims to deliver small quantities of Martian rocks to the Earth. Investigating these precious samples requires the development and application of techniques that can extract the greatest amount of high quality data from the minimum sample volume, thereby maximising science return from MSR. Atom probe tomography (APT) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) are two complementary techniques that can obtain nanoscale structural, geochemical and, in the case of atom probe, isotopic information from small sample volumes. Here we describe how both techniques operate, as well as review recent developments in sample preparation protocols. We also outline how APT has been successfully applied to extraterrestrial materials in the recent past. Finally, we describe how we have studied Martian meteorites using TEM and APT in close coordination in order to characterise the products of water/rock interactions in t h e cru st of Ma r s – a k ey sc ie n ce goal of MSR. Our results provide new insights into the Martian hydrosphere and the mechanisms of anhydrous-hydrous mineral replacement. In light of the unique results provided by these tools, APT and TEM should form a crucial part at the culmination of a correlative analytical pipeline for MSR mission materials

Estimation of value of travel-time savings using mixed logit models

In this paper, we discuss some of the issues that arise with the computation of the implied value of travel-time savings in the case of discrete choice models allowing for random taste heterogeneity. We specifically look at the case of models producing a non-zero probability of positive travel-time coefficients, and discuss the consistency of such estimates with theories of rational economic behaviour. We then describe how the presence of unobserved travel-experience attributes or conjoint activities can bias the estimation of the travel-time coefficient, and can lead to false conclusions with regards to the existence of negative valuations of travel-time savings. We note that while it is important not to interpret such estimates as travel-time coefficients per se, it is nevertheless similarly important to allow such effects to manifest themselves; as such, the use of distributions with fixed bounds is inappropriate. On the other hand, the use of unbounded distributions can lead to further problems, as their shape (especially in the case of symmetrical distributions) can falsely imply the presence of positive estimates. We note that a preferable solution is to use bounded distributions where the bounds are estimated from the data during model calibration. This allows for the effects of data impurities or model misspecifications to manifest themselves, while reducing the risk of bias as a result of the shape of the distribution. To conclude, a brief application is conducted to support the theoretical claims made in the paper

Occupant Dynamics in Rollover Crashes: Influence of Roof Deformation and Seat Belt Performance on Probable Spinal Column Injury

Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death in the United States for people ages 3–33, and rollover crashes have a higher fatality rate than any other crash mode. At the request and under the sponsorship of Ford Motor Company, Autoliv conducted a series of dynamic rollover tests on Ford Explorer sport utility vehicles (SUV) during 1998 and 1999. Data from those tests were made available to the public and were analyzed in this study to investigate the magnitude of and the temporal relationship between roof deformation, lap–shoulder seat belt loads, and restrained anthropometric test dummy (ATD) neck loads