Polyimide processing additives

A process for preparing polyimides having enhanced melt flow properties is described. The process consists of heating a mixture of a high molecular weight poly-(amic acid) or polyimide with a low molecular weight amic acid or imide additive in the range of 0.05 to 15 percent by weight of additive. The polyimide powders so obtained show improved processability, as evidenced by lower melt viscosity by capillary rheometry. Likewise, films prepared from mixtures of polymers with additives show improved processability with earlier onset of stretching by TMA

Moral panic and social theory: Beyond the heuristic

Copyright @ 2011 by International Sociological Association.Critcher has recently conceptualized moral panic as a heuristic device, or 'ideal type'. While he argues that one still has to look beyond the heuristic, despite a few exceptional studies there has been little utilization of recent developments in social theory in order to look 'beyond moral panic'. Explicating two current critical contributions - the first, drawing from the sociologies of governance and risk; the second, from the process/figurational sociology of Norbert Elias - this article highlights the necessity for the continuous theoretical development of the moral panic concept and illustrates how such development is essential to overcome some of the substantial problems with moral panic research: normativity, temporality and (un) intentionality

The actinobacterial transcription factor RbpA binds to the principal sigma subunit of RNA polymerase

RbpA is a small non-DNA-binding transcription factor that associates with RNA polymerase holoenzyme and stimulates transcription in actinobacteria, including Streptomyces coelicolor and Mycobacterium tuberculosis. RbpA seems to show specificity for the vegetative form of RNA polymerase as opposed to alternative forms of the enzyme. Here, we explain the basis of this specificity by showing that RbpA binds directly to the principal σ subunit in these organisms, but not to more diverged alternative σ factors. Nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy revealed that, although differing in their requirement for structural zinc, the RbpA orthologues from S. coelicolor and M. tuberculosis share a common structural core domain, with extensive, apparently disordered, N- and C-terminal regions. The RbpA-σ interaction is mediated by the C-terminal region of RbpA and σ domain 2, and S. coelicolor RbpA mutants that are defective in binding σ are unable to stimulate transcription in vitro and are inactive in vivo. Given that RbpA is essential in M. tuberculosis and critical for growth in S. coelicolor, these data support a model in which RbpA plays a key role in the σ cycle in actinobacteria

Opportunities to implement a sustainable genomic medicine program: lessons learned from the IGNITE Network

PURPOSE: While there is growing scientific evidence for and significant advances in the use of genomic technologies in medicine, there is a significant lag in the clinical adoption and sustainability of genomic medicine. Here we describe the findings from the National Human Genome Research Institute's (NHGRI) Implementing GeNomics In pracTicE (IGNITE) Network in identifying key constructs, opportunities, and challenges associated with driving sustainability of genomic medicine in clinical practice. METHODS: Network members and affiliates were surveyed to identify key drivers associated with implementing and sustaining a genomic medicine program. Tallied results were used to develop and weigh key constructs/drivers required to support sustainability of genomic medicine programs. RESULTS: The top three driver-stakeholder dyads were (1) genomic training for providers, (2) genomic clinical decision support (CDS) tools embedded in the electronic health record (EHR), and (3) third party reimbursement for genomic testing. CONCLUSION: Priorities may differ depending on healthcare systems when comparing the current state of key drivers versus projected needs for supporting genomic medicine sustainability. Thus we provide gap-filling guidance based on IGNITE members' experiences. Although results are limited to findings from the IGNITE network, their implementation, scientific, and clinical experience may be used as a road map by others considering implementing genomic medicine programs

Living on the edge: forest edge effects on microclimate and terrestrial mammal activity in disturbed lowland forest in Sumatra, Indonesia

Species–environment relationships are often studied at large spatial scales, but effective conservation requires an understanding of local-scale environmental drivers and pressures. Widespread degradation and fragmentation of forests have increased the proportion of tropical mammal habitat that is affected by edge effects. Edge effects include greater exposure to anthropogenic disturbance and abiotic changes that synergistically influence how well populations can cope with climate change. We investigated relationships between distance to the forest edge, forest structure, microclimate and terrestrial mammal detections in a selectively logged forest at the boundary of Gunung Leuser National Park in Sumatra, Indonesia. We collected mammal detection data from motion-activated camera traps, microclimate data from automated climate data loggers and forest structure data from vegetation plots. Daily mean and maximum temperatures significantly decreased with distance from the forest edge, whereas tree height and minimum temperature increased. Mammal diversity was lower at the forest edge compared to the interior. Mammals were detected less frequently at the forest edge, although this relationship varied between mammal orders. Mammal detections were best explained by temperature, tree height and tree diameter at breast height. These results demonstrate that abiotic changes in forests brought on by edge effects have negative impacts on mammals, but these effects vary between mammal taxa because of differing sensitivities to human disturbance. Our findings highlight the importance of considering local-scale environmental drivers in determining species–environment relationships to identify key habitat features such as microclimate refuges that should be prioritized in ecosystem management

Transformative Autoethnography: An Examination of Cultural Identity and its Implications for Learners

The cultural experiences of minority learners are often omitted from the formal curriculum leading to exclusion and a sense of cultural loss. In this study, the researcher’s lived experience serves as the basis to develop a novel research strategy: transformative autoethnography. The researcher uses the method of autoethnography to more deeply understand his roles as Chickasaw and adult educator, amplified by his unique role as the developer of a tribal learning community situated at a research university. This immersive experience serves as the context for self-reflection, which includes an educational history marred by my perceptions of Whiteness and lack of cultural connectedness. Transformative learning theory serves as the theoretical framework by which the author comes to appreciate the intersection of culture, identity, and meaning. The research context is triangulated with the experiences of other Chickasaws, including learning community participants, providing an autoethnography steeped in phenomenological thought. This credible qualitative account serves as a roadmap for the educational journeys of Native Americans and other minority adult learners and the educators, advisors, and program developers who strive to support them.Yeshttps://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/manuscript-submission-guideline

Heuristics-based detection to improve text/graphics segmentation in complex engineering drawings.

The demand for digitisation of complex engineering drawings becomes increasingly important for the industry given the pressure to improve the efficiency and time effectiveness of operational processes. There have been numerous attempts to solve this problem, either by proposing a general form of document interpretation or by establishing an application dependant framework. Moreover, text/graphics segmentation has been presented as a particular form of addressing document digitisation problem, with the main aim of splitting text and graphics into different layers. Given the challenging characteristics of complex engineering drawings, this paper presents a novel sequential heuristics-based methodology which is aimed at localising and detecting the most representative symbols of the drawing. This implementation enables the subsequent application of a text/graphics segmentation method in a more effective form. The experimental framework is composed of two parts: first we show the performance of the symbol detection system and then we present an evaluation of three different state of the art text/graphic segmentation techniques to find text on the remaining image