On a Proper Meta-Analytic Model for Correlations

Combining statistical information across studies is a standard research tool in applied psychology. The most common approach in applied psychology is the fixed effects model. The fixed-effects approach assumes that individual study characteristics such as treatment conditions, study context, or individual differences do not influence study effect sizes. That is, that the majority of the differences between the effect sizes of different studies can be explained by sampling error alone. We critique the fixed-effects methodology for correlations and propose an advancement, the random-effects model, that ameliorates problems imposed by fixed-effects models. The random-effects approach explicitly incorporates between-study differences in data analysis and provides estimates of how those study characteristics influence the relationships among constructs of interest. Because they can model the influence of study characteristics, we assert that random-effects models have advantages for psychological research. Parameter estimates of both models are compared and evidence in favor of the random-effects approach is presented

Environmental, social, morphological, and behavioral constraints on opportunistic multiple paternity

Peer reviewedPostprin

Structure determination of disordered materials from diffraction data

We show that the information gained in spectroscopic experiments regarding the number and distribution of atomic environments can be used as a valuable constraint in the refinement of the atomic-scale structures of nanostructured or amorphous materials from pair distribution function (PDF) data. We illustrate the effectiveness of this approach for three paradigmatic disordered systems: molecular C60, a-Si, and a-SiO2 . Much improved atomistic models are attained in each case without any a-priori assumptions regarding coordination number or local geometry. We propose that this approach may form the basis for a generalised methodology for structure "solution" from PDF data applicable to network, nanostructured and molecular systems alike.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures, set out as for PR

Synaptic nanomodules underlie the organization and plasticity of spine synapses.

Experience results in long-lasting changes in dendritic spine size, yet how the molecular architecture of the synapse responds to plasticity remains poorly understood. Here a combined approach of multicolor stimulated emission depletion microscopy (STED) and confocal imaging in rat and mouse demonstrates that structural plasticity is linked to the addition of unitary synaptic nanomodules to spines. Spine synapses in vivo and in vitro contain discrete and aligned subdiffraction modules of pre- and postsynaptic proteins whose number scales linearly with spine size. Live-cell time-lapse super-resolution imaging reveals that NMDA receptor-dependent increases in spine size are accompanied both by enhanced mobility of pre- and postsynaptic modules that remain aligned with each other and by a coordinated increase in the number of nanomodules. These findings suggest a simplified model for experience-dependent structural plasticity relying on an unexpectedly modular nanomolecular architecture of synaptic proteins

Development of boldness and docility in yellow-bellied marmots

Peer reviewedPostprin

Using a Cubic Equation of State to Identify Optimal Working Fluids for an ORC Operating with Two-Phase Expansion Using a Twin-Screw Expander

For waste-heat recovery applications, operating an organic Rankine cycle (ORC) with two-phase expansion has been shown to increase the utilisation of the waste-heat stream, leading to a higher power output compared to a conventional ORC with single-phase expansion. However, unlike the conventional ORC, working-fluid selection for an ORC operating with two-phase expansion has not been explored in detail within the literature. Therefore, the aim of this paper is to explore which working-fluid parameters make a particular working fluid suitable for this type of cycle. This is conducted by coupling a thermodynamic model of the cycle with the Peng-Robinson cubic equation of state. Moreover, the effect of the expander volumetric ratio on the expander isentropic efficiency is accounted for using a performance model for a twin-screw expander. Ultimately, the adopted approach allows the effect of the working-fluid parameters, namely the critical temperature and ideal specific-heat capacity, on both the expander performance and the cycle to be evaluated in a generalised way. For the investigation, 15 theoretical working fluids are defined, covering five different critical temperatures, with a negatively-sloped, vertical and positively-sloped saturated vapour line respectively. The 15 working fluids are selected as they represent the feasible design space occupied by existing ORC working fluids. For each fluid, a cycle optimisation is completed for different heat-source temperatures ranging between 80 and 200 °C. The objective is to identify the optimal cycle operating conditions that result in maximum power output from the system. By analysing the results, the optimal characteristics of a working fluid are obtained, and this information can be used to identify physical working fluids which are good candidates for a particular heat-source temperature. In the final part of this paper, the cycle optimisation is repeated for the physical working fluids identified, thus validating the suitability of the approach developed. Ultimately, the results can help to narrow down the search space when considering working fluids for an ORC operating with two-phase expansion

TEXES Observations of Pure Rotational H_2 Emission from AB Aurigae

We present observations of pure rotational molecular hydrogen emission from the Herbig Ae star, AB Aur. Our observations were made using the Texas Echelon Cross Echelle Spectrograph (TEXES) at the NASA Infrared Telescope Facility and the Gemini North Observatory. We searched for H_2 emission in the S(1), S(2), and S(4) lines at high spectral resolution and detected all three. By fitting a simple model for the emission in the three transitions, we derive T = 670 ± 40 K and M = 0.52 ± 0.15 M_⊙ for the emitting gas. On the basis of the 8.5 km s^(-1) FWHM of the S(2) line, assuming the emission comes from the circumstellar disk, and with an inclination estimate of the AB Aur system taken from the literature, we place the location for the emission near 18 AU. Comparison of our derived temperature to a disk structure model suggests that UV and X-ray heating are important in heating the disk atmosphere