Modified bubble level senses pitch and roll angles over wide range

Bubble level sensor with fiber-optic field flattener is simple, rugged, small, and impervious to temperature and vibration effects. Pitch angles from -15 deg to +40 deg and roll angles of +30 deg are determined within 0.5 deg

The use of neighbourhood intensity comparisons, morphological gradients and Fourier analysis for automated precipitate counting & Pendell¨osung fringe analysis in X-ray topography

Crystal distortions modify the propagation of X-rays in single crystal materials, and X-ray topography can be used to record these modifications on a film thus providing images of the distributions and nature of defects, dislocations, strains, precipitates, etc. in semiconductors. Small variations of contrast, which often need to be analysed can be rendered invisible. Furthermore, artefacts in the films must be removed. This study examines the use of advanced image analysis techniques applied to a selection of X-ray topographs in section transmission mode: (i) the automated counting of oxygen-related precipitates and (ii) the enhancement of Pendell¨osung fringes. The technique also succeeds in removing unwanted features in the original x-ray topographs such as vertical streaking due to collimating slit phase contrast and strain features near the surface due to the presence of integrated circuit process strains

No Rise in Incidence but Geographical Heterogeneity in the Occurrence of Primary Biliary Cirrhosis in North East England

In this study, we examined temporal changes in the incidence of primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC) and investigated associations between PBC incidence and sociodemographic factors and spatial clustering. We included 982 patients aged ≥40 years from North East England with incident PBC diagnosed during 1987–2003. Age-standardized incidence rates with 95% confidence intervals were calculated. Negative binomial regression was used to analyze incidence and socioeconomic deprivation. Clustering analysis was performed using point process methods, testing the null hypothesis that disease risk does not vary spatially and that PBC cases occur independently. The age-standardized incidence rate was 53.50 per million persons per year (95% confidence interval: 48.65, 58.35) in 1987–1994 and 45.09 per million persons per year (95% confidence interval: 41.10, 49.07) in 1995–2003. Risk of PBC increased in areas with higher levels of socioeconomic deprivation (P = 0.035). More specifically, risk increased in areas with higher levels of overcrowded homes (P = 0.040), higher levels of households without cars (P < 0.001), and higher levels of non-owner-occupied homes (P < 0.001). Overall, there was evidence of spatial clustering (P = 0.001). The findings confirm that overall incidence of PBC did not rise over time, but sociodemographic variations suggest that certain aspects of deprivation are involved in its etiology

Plasma modeling for a nonsymmetric capacitive discharge driven by a nonsinusoidal radio frequency current

An analytical solution for the sheath dynamics of an asymmetrically driven capacitively coupled plasma is obtained under the assumptions of time-independent, collisionless ion motion, inertialess electrons, and uniform current density. Modeling is performed considering that the plasma is driven by a nonsinusoidal radio frequency (rf) current which can be resolved into a finite number of harmonic components. Together with different sheath parameters the equation for the bulk plasma impedance is also obtained to calculate the overall plasma impedance and the overall rf voltage. Assuming equal plate areas the solution for a symmetric discharge is also obtainable from this model. We have found that the even harmonic components of rf voltage and impedance are always present, even in a symmetric discharge. Experimental results are shown to be in qualitative agreement with the theoretical model. The values of normalized rf voltage and impedance harmonics assume lower values as the asymmetry of the plasma chamber decreases

Analysis of the impact of dislocation distribution on the breakdown voltage of GaAs-based power varactor diodes

A synchrotron x-ray topography analysis of the impact of the distribution of defects/dislocations on the electrical performance of GaAs power varactor diodes was carried out. Diodes fabricated on or near Liquid Encapsulated Czochralski cellular dislocation networks in the substrate, which are also known to be rich in As precipitates near these cell walls, were observed to have reduced breakdown voltages (VBR). This is consistent with the possibility that the presence of space-charge cylinders surrounding these dislocations gives rise to reduced VBR if they thread a p-n junction; it is also in accord with the possibility that the As precipitates themselves can act as sites for local field enhancement, thus promoting premature avalanche breakdown

A cognitive pathway to punishment insensitivity

Individuals differ in their sensitivity to the adverse consequences of their actions, leading some to persist in maladaptive behaviors. Two pathways have been identified for this insensitivity: a motivational pathway based on excessive reward valuation and a behavioral pathway based on autonomous stimulus–response mechanisms. Here, we identify a third, cognitive pathway based on differences in punishment knowledge and use of that knowledge to suppress behavior. We show that distinct phenotypes of punishment sensitivity emerge from differences in what people learn about their actions. Exposed to identical punishment contingencies, some people (sensitive phenotype) form correct causal beliefs that they use to guide their behavior, successfully obtaining rewards and avoiding punishment, whereas others form incorrect but internally coherent causal beliefs that lead them to earn punishment they do not like. Incorrect causal beliefs were not inherently problematic because we show that many individuals benefit from information about why they are being punished, revaluing their actions and changing their behavior to avoid further punishment (unaware phenotype). However, one condition where incorrect causal beliefs were problematic was when punishment is infrequent. Under this condition, more individuals show punishment insensitivity and detrimental patterns of behavior that resist experience and information-driven updating, even when punishment is severe (compulsive phenotype). For these individuals, rare punishment acted as a “trap,” inoculating maladaptive behavioral preferences against cognitive and behavioral updating

In-service Initial Teacher Education in the Learning and Skills Sector in England: Integrating Course and Workplace Learning

The aim of the paper is to advance understanding of in-service learning and skills sector trainee teachers’ learning and propose ways of improving their learning. A conceptual framework is developed by extending Billett’s (International Journal of Educational Research 47:232–240, 2008) conceptualisation of workplace learning, as a relationally interdependent process between the opportunities workplaces afford for activities and interactions and how individuals engage with these, to a third base of participation, the affordances of the initial teacher education course. Hager and Hodkinson’s (British Educational Research Journal 35:619–638, 2009) metaphor of ‘learning as becoming’ is used to conceptualise the ways trainees reconstruct learning in a continuous transactional process of boundary crossing between course and workplace. The findings of six longitudinal case studies of trainees’ development, and evidence from other studies, illustrate the complex interrelationships between LSS workplace affordances, course affordances and trainee characteristics and the ways in which trainees reconstruct learning in each setting. The experience of teaching and interacting with learners, interactions with colleagues, and access to workplace resources and training are important workplace affordances for learning. However, some trainees have limited access to these affordances. Teaching observations, course activities and experiences as a learner are significant course affordances. Trainees’ beliefs, prior experiences and dispositions vary and significantly influence their engagement with course and workplace affordances. It is proposed that better integration of course and workplace learning through guided participation in an intentional workplace curriculum and attention to the ways trainees choose to engage with this, together with the use of practical theorising has the potential to improve trainee learning

Comparison of cloud products within IASI footprints for the assimilation of cloudy radiances

This article compares different methods of deriving cloud properties in the footprint of the Infrared Atmospheric Sounding Interferometer (IASI), onboard the European MetOp satellite. Cloud properties produced by ten operational schemes are assessed and an intercomparison of the products for a 12 h global acquisition is presented. Clouds cover a large part of the Earth, contaminating most of the radiance data. The estimation of cloud top height and effective amount within the sounder footprint is an important step towards the direct assimilation of cloud-affected radiances. This study first examines the capability of all the schemes to detect and characterize the clouds for all complex situations and provides some indications of confidence in the data. Then the dataset is restricted to thick overcast single layers and the comparison shows a significant agreement between all the schemes. The impact of the retrieved cloud properties on the residuals between calculated cloudy radiances and observations is estimated in the long-wave part of the spectrum

Structural investigation of MOVPE-Grown GaAs on Ge by X-ray techniques

The selection of appropriate characterisation methodologies is vital for analysing and comprehending the sources of defects and their influence on the properties of heteroepitaxially grown III-V layers. In this work we investigate the structural properties of GaAs layers grown by Metal-Organic Vapour Phase Epitaxy (MOVPE) on Ge substrates – (100) with 6⁰ offset towards – under various growth conditions. Synchrotron X-ray topography (SXRT) is employed to investigate the nature of extended linear defects formed in GaAs epilayers. Other X-ray techniques, such as reciprocal space mapping (RSM) and triple axis ω-scans of (00l)-reflections (l = 2, 4, 6) are used to quantify the degree of relaxation and presence of antiphase domains (APDs) in the GaAs crystals. The surface roughness is found to be closely related to the size of APDs formed at the GaAs/Ge heterointerface, as confirmed by X-ray diffraction (XRD), as well as atomic force microscopy (AFM), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM)