Von Briefen in Keilschrift und schwarzweißen Lämmern

Mit seinem 2008 erschienenen Debütroman "Milostný dopis klínovým písmem (Liebesbrief in Keilschrift)" avancierte der 1966 geborene Tomáš Zmeškal quasi über Nacht zum neuen Hoffnungsträger der tschechischen Literatur. Sein Roman über die Angehörigen einer Prager Familie bestach vor allem durch seine ungewöhnliche Erzählweise, die allerlei fremde Gattungen wie Briefe, Tagebuchaufzeichnungen und Träume integrierte und sich auf kluge und sehr charmante Weise unzähliger Anleihen nicht aus der tschechischen Literatur bediente

Problematic mobile phone use of Swiss adolescents : is it linked with mental health or behaviour?

To investigate the associations between problematic mobile phone use and mental health and behavioural problems in 412 Swiss adolescents owning a mobile phone while controlling for amount of mobile phone use.; Problematic mobile phone use was determined by the MPPUS-10 (Mobile Phone Problem Use Scale) and related to health and behavioural problems by means of multivariable regression modelling.; MPPUS-10 was 4.7 (95 % CI 1.8, 7.6) units higher in girls than in boys, increased significantly with age and was significantly decreased with increasing educational level of the parents. Furthermore, problematic mobile phone use was associated with impaired psychological well-being, impaired parent and school relationships and more behavioural problems but was not related to peer support and social acceptance.; Our study indicates that problematic mobile phone use is associated with external factors such as worse home and school environment and internal factors such as impaired mental health and behavioural problems of the adolescents and thus problematic mobile phone use should be addressed, in particular when dealing with adolescents showing behavioural or emotional problems

Development of 3D cellular silicone structures using reactive inkjet printing approach for energy absorbing application

Silicone cellular foams are well suited for energy absorbing applications due to their ability to undertake large deformations and absorb significant quantities of energy. However traditional methods for fabrication of cellular silicone are long and difficult and with no possibility of varying the density of pores. Having a fabrication method that allows controlling the structure hence mechanical properties of the silicone features is essential for expanding their application. This work investigates a method based on reactive inkjet printing approach to produce 3D silicone structures of which mechanical properties can be tailored by varying the process parameters and structure’s design. Printing parameters such as pressure, temperature, and pulse shape were investigated to optimize the process for SE1700 silicone material. The vinyl terminated part of SE1700 silicone with the addition of different solvents (vinyl terminated polydimethylsiloxane, silicone oil 10cP and 100cP) were evaluated for printability using rheology. The mechanical properties of printed films were assessed using dynamic mechanical analysis and tensile testing. The TGA and swelling study were performed to understand the change in sample’s properties in relation to different formulations. Silicone structures with different porosities were printed and the storage modulus, loss modulus and damping properties were investigated. The results showed that despite the high viscosity of silicone fluids, it is possible to employ reactive inkjet printing approach in order to obtain silicone features. It was also demonstrated that the capability to alter mechanical properties of printed silicone structures could be achieved using different process parameters and also

Andreev reflection in ferrimagnetic CoFe2O4/SrRuO3 spin filters

We have performed point contact spectroscopy measurements on a sample constituted by a metallic ferromagnetic oxide (SrRuO_3) bottom electrode and a tunnel ferrimagnetic (CoFe_2O_4) barrier. Andreev reflection is observed across the tunnel barrier. From the comparison of Andreev reflection in SrRuO3 and across the CoFe_2O_4 barrier we infer that the ferrimagnetic barrier has a spin filter efficiency not larger than +13%. The observation of a moderate and positive spin filtering is discussed in the context of the microstructure of the barriers and symmetry-related spin filtering effects.Comment: 13 pages, 5 figures. To appear in Phys. Rev. B

A novel data dissemination model for organic data flows

The number of computing devices of the IoT are expected to grow exponentially. To address the communication needs of the IoT, research is being done to develop new networking architectures and to extend existing architectures. An area that lacks attention in these efforts is the emphasis on utilisation of omnipresent local data. There are a number of issues (e.g., underutilisation of local resources and dependence on cloud based data) that need to be addressed to exploit the benefits of utilising local data. We present a novel data dissemination model, called the Organic Data Dissemination (ODD) model to utilise the omni-present data around us, where devices deployed with the ODD model are able to operate even without the existence of networking infrastructure. The realisation of the ODD model requires innovations in many different area including the areas of opportunistic communications, naming of information, direct peer-to-peer communications and reinforcement learning. This paper focuses on highlighting the usage of the ODD model in real application scenarios and the details of the architectural components

Detection and Isolation of Viable Mouse IL-17-Secreting T Cells

The MACS Cytokine Secretion Assay technology allows detection of secreted cytokines on the single cell level and sensitive isolation of viable cytokine-secreting cells. In order to label IL-17-secreting cells, a single cell suspension of mouse splenocytes is prepared and stimulated at 37°C with PMA/ionomycin to induce cytokine secretion. To stop secretion cells are then placed on ice and are exposed to the IL-17 Catch Reagent a bi-specific antibody that binds to CD45 on the cell surface of leukocytes and to IL-17 as it is secreted and caught near the cell surface. Secretion is then re-started by increasing the temperature to 37°C and IL-17 is trapped by the Catch Reagent. Secretion is then stopped again, by placing cells on ice. To detect the trapped IL-17, cells are incubated with a second IL-17-specific antibody conjugated to biotin and an Anti-Biotin-PE antibody. Cells can now be directly analyzed by flow cytometry or prepared for isolation and enrichment by subsequent labeling with Anti-PE conjugated MicroBeads

Taking shortcuts: Cognitive conflict during motivated rule-breaking

Deliberate rule violations have typically been addressed from a motivational perspective that asked whether or not agents decide to violate rules based on contextual factors and moral considerations. Here we complement motivational approaches by providing a cognitive perspective on the processes that operate during the act of committing an unsolicited rule violation. Participants were tested in a task that allowed for violating traffic rules by exploiting forbidden shortcuts in a virtual city maze. Results yielded evidence for sustained cognitive conflict that affected performance from right before a violation throughout actually committing the violation. These findings open up a new theoretical perspective on violation behavior that focuses on processes occurring right at the moment a rule violation takes place

Taking shortcuts: Cognitive conflict during motivated rule-breaking

Deliberate rule violations have typically been addressed from a motivational perspective that asked whether or not agents decide to violate rules based on contextual factors and moral considerations. Here we complement motivational approaches by providing a cognitive perspective on the processes that operate during the act of committing an unsolicited rule violation. Participants were tested in a task that allowed for violating traffic rules by exploiting forbidden shortcuts in a virtual city maze. Results yielded evidence for sustained cognitive conflict that affected performance from right before a violation throughout actually committing the violation. These findings open up a new theoretical perspective on violation behavior that focuses on processes occurring right at the moment a rule violation takes place

Evaluation of seismic hazard for the assessment of historical elements at risk : description of input and selection of intensity measures

The assessment of historical elements at risk from earthquake loading presents a number of differences from the seismic evaluation of modern structures, for design or retrofitting purposes, which is covered by existing building codes, and for the development of fragility curves, procedures for which have been extensively developed in the past decade. This article briefly discusses: the hazard framework for historical assets, including a consideration of the appropriate return period to be used for such elements at risk; the intensity measures that could be used to describe earthquake shaking for the analysis of historical assets; and available approaches for their assessment. We then discuss various unique aspects of historical assets that mean the characterisation of earthquake loading must be different from that for modern structures. For example, historical buildings are often composed of heterogeneous materials (e.g., old masonry) and they are sometimes located where strong local site effects occur due to: steep topography (e.g., hilltops), basin effects or foundations built on the remains of previous structures. Standard seismic hazard assessment undertaken for modern structures and the majority of sites is generally not appropriate. Within the PERPETUATE project performance-based assessments, using nonlinear static and dynamic analyses for the evaluation of structural response of historical assets, were undertaken. The steps outlined in this article are important for input to these assessments

Tuning the N\'eel temperature in an antiferromagnet: the case of NixCo1-xO microstructures

We show that it is possible to tune the N\'eel temperature of nickel(II)-cobalt(II) oxide films by changing the Ni to Co ratio. We grow single crystalline micrometric triangular islands with tens of nanometers thickness on a Ru(0001) substrate using high temperature oxygen-assisted molecular beam epitaxy. Composition is controlled by adjusting the deposition rates of Co and Ni. The morphology, shape, crystal structure and composition are determined by low-energy electron microscopy and diffraction, and synchrotron-based x-ray absorption spectromicroscopy. The antiferromagnetic order is observed by x-ray magnetic linear dichroism. Antiferromagnetic domains up to micrometer width are observed