In the blink of an eye: reading mental states from briefly presented eye regions

Faces provide not only cues to an individual’s identity, age, gender, and ethnicity but also insight into their mental states. The aim was to investigate the temporal aspects of processing of facial expressions of complex mental states for very short presentation times ranging from 12.5 to 100 ms in a four-alternative forced choice paradigm based on Reading the Mind in the Eyes test. Results show that participants are able to recognise very subtle differences between facial expressions; performance is better than chance, even for the shortest presentation time. Importantly, we show for the first time that observers can recognise these expressions based on information contained in the eye region only. These results support the hypothesis that the eye region plays a particularly important role in social interactions and that the expressions in the eyes are a rich source of information about other peoples’ mental states. When asked to what extent the observers guessed during the task, they significantly underestimated their ability to make correct decisions, yet perform better than chance, even for very brief presentation times. These results are particularly relevant in the light of the current COVID-19 pandemic and the associated wearing of face coverings. </jats:p

Abundance estimation of Ixodes ticks (Acari: Ixodidae) on roe deer (Capreolus capreolus)

Despite the importance of roe deer as a host for Ixodes ticks in central Europe, estimates of total tick burden on roe deer are not available to date. We aimed at providing (1) estimates of life stage and sex specific (larvae, nymphs, males and females, hereafter referred to as tick life stages) total Ixodes burden and (2) equations which can be used to predict the total life stage burden by counting the life stage on a selected body area. Within a period of 1½ years, we conducted whole body counts of ticks from 80 hunter-killed roe deer originating from a beech dominated forest area in central Germany. Averaged over the entire study period (winter 2007–summer 2009), the mean tick burden per roe deer was 64.5 (SE ± 10.6). Nymphs were the most numerous tick life stage per roe deer (23.9 ± 3.2), followed by females (21.4 ± 3.5), larvae (10.8 ± 4.2) and males (8.4 ± 1.5). The individual tick burden was highly aggregated (k = 0.46); levels of aggregation were highest in larvae (k = 0.08), followed by males (k = 0.40), females (k = 0.49) and nymphs (k = 0.71). To predict total life stage specific burdens based on counts on selected body parts, we provide linear equations. For estimating larvae abundance on the entire roe deer, counts can be restricted to the front legs. Tick counts restricted to the head are sufficient to estimate total nymph burden and counts on the neck are appropriate for estimating adult ticks (females and males). In order to estimate the combined tick burden, tick counts on the head can be used for extrapolation. The presented linear models are highly significant and explain 84.1, 77.3, 90.5, 91.3, and 65.3% (adjusted R2) of the observed variance, respectively. Thus, these models offer a robust basis for rapid tick abundance assessment. This can be useful for studies aiming at estimating effects of abiotic and biotic factors on tick abundance, modelling tick population dynamics, modelling tick-borne pathogen transmission dynamics or assessing the efficacy of acaricides

Calix[4]pyrroles: new solid phase HPLC supports for the separation of anions

A new type of solid support for HPLC separation of nucleotides, oligonucleotides, N-protected amino acids, and perfluorinated biphenyls is revealed in the form of two distinct calix[4]pyrrole-modified silica gels

Crystal structure of a zwitterionic azaallyl zirconiumamide complex bearing a Zr+-μ-CH3—B− moiety and one equivalent of n-hexane as a solvent

The zirconiumamide complex [(cyclohex-1-enyl)cyclohexylamido]bis(dicyclohexylamido)[methyltris(pentafluorophenyl)borato]zirconium(IV) hexane monosolvate, [Zr{N(C6H11)2}2{N(C6H11)(C6H9)}{BCH3(C6F5)3}]·C6H14, is zwitterionic and bears a Zr+—μ-CH3—B− moiety. The reaction of tris(dicyclohexylamido)methylzirconium with the strong Lewis acid tris(pentafluorophenyl)borane results in the formation of an azaallyl zirconium motif by the loss of H2 in one dicyclohexylamido ligand, as shown by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. The ZrIV cation is coordinated to the N atoms of two dicyclohexylamido ligands, the π-system of one azaallyl ligand, and to the μ-CH3—B unit, resulting in a distorted tetrahedral coordination environment. The Zr—N distance to the azaallyl ligand is elongated, whereas the Zr—C distance to this moiety is found to be shortened in comparison with those to the two Cy2N groups (Cy is C6H11)

Influencing the size of giant rings by manipulating their curvatures: Na-6[Mo120O366(H2O)(48)H-12{Pr(H2O)(5)}(6)]center dot(similar to 200H(2)O) with open shell metal centers at the cluster surface

Müller A, Beugholt C, Bögge H, Schmidtmann M. Influencing the size of giant rings by manipulating their curvatures: Na-6[Mo120O366(H2O)(48)H-12{Pr(H2O)(5)}(6)]center dot(similar to 200H(2)O) with open shell metal centers at the cluster surface. INORGANIC CHEMISTRY. 2000;39(15):3112-3113.A new type of giant-wheel-shaped anion (see title) is obtained during the formation of the "classical" tetradecameric molybdenum-blue-type species [{Mo-2){Mo-8}{Mo-1}](14) in the presence of Pr3+. The Pr3+ cations substitute {Mo-2} units and thereby increase the curvature of each ring, which leads to destruction and smaller ring sizes

Orogastric tube insertion using the new gastric tube guide : first experiences from a manikin study

Abstract Background Orogastric tube placement is a common procedure routinely used in clinical anesthesiology and intensive care medicine. Nevertheless high failure rates and severe complications have been reported. We conducted this study to evaluate if the usage of the new gastric tube guide would speed up the placement of orogastric tubes and ease the procedure. Methods Thirty one professionals were given a hands-on-training in orogastric tube placement in a simulation manikin without and with the gastric tube guide. Afterwards they performed both methods in randomized order. We recorded the placement time, counted the required attempts and asked the participants to rate their experience with both methods. Results The median placement time using the gastric tube guide was 14 s compared to 25 s without the device. In addition all participants were able to place the orogastric tube when using the gastric tube guide compared to 26/31 (84%) without it. Furthermore 26/31 (84%) users preferred the gastric tube guide over the standard method. Conclusion Our results show that using the gastric tube guide to place orogastric tubes in a manikin led to a significant shorter placement time and a higher overall success rate

Exchanged ligands on the surface of a giant cluster: [(MoO3)(176)(H2O)(63)(CH3OH)(17)H-n]((32-n)-)

Müller A, Koop M, Bögge H, Schmidtmann M, Beugholt C. Exchanged ligands on the surface of a giant cluster: [(MoO3)(176)(H2O)(63)(CH3OH)(17)H-n]((32-n)-). CHEMICAL COMMUNICATIONS. 1998;(15):1501-1502.The synthesis of 1a.(32 - n)Na+.ca. 600 H2O.ca. 30 CH3OH 1 containing the ring-shaped, mixed-valence (Mo-V/Mo-VI) cluster [(MoO3)(176)(H2O)(63)(CH3OH)(17)H-n]((32 - n)-) 1a as a discrete unit in the crystal lattice is reported, which for the first time yields a compound of this type via a facile synthetic method and without amorphous reaction products; remarkably, H2O ligands can be replaced by CH3OH on the surface of a giant metal-oxide based cluster which has a nanometer sized cavity and, in contrast to zeolites, reducing properties

Zwitterionic d⁰ Metal Complexes [(Cy₂N)₃M]⁺[(μ-Me)B(C₆F₅)₃]⁻ (M = Ti, Zr, Hf) Derived from Tris(dicyclohexylamido)methyl Metal Precursors

The synthesis and characterization of tris­(dicyclohexyl)­amido hafnium complexes ClHf­(NCy₂)₃ (<b>1-Hf</b>) and MeHf­(NCy₂)₃ (<b>2-Hf</b>) are presented. The reactions of the group 4 derivatives of this compound class (MeM­(NCy₂)₃; M = Ti (<b>2-Ti</b>), Zr (<b>2-Zr</b>), Hf (<b>2-Hf</b>)) with B­(C₆F₅)₃ are investigated. Their reactions with strong Lewis acids lead to the first examples of zwitterionic group 4 complexes employing three amido ligands at the electrophilic metal center ([(Cy₂N)₃M]⁺[(μ-Me)­B­(C₆F₅)₃]⁻). The solid-state structures of all of the betaines (<b>3-Ti</b>, <b>3-Zr</b>, <b>3-Hf</b>) are presented and compared. In all homologues the methyl group is abstracted by the Lewis acid but remains in interaction with the electron-deficient metal center, resulting in a linearly bridging methyl group. The M···C distances of <b>3-M</b> are elongated by 0.25 Å (av) in comparison to <b>2-M</b>