Going for Gold? Implementing the RCUK policy on access to research outputs

This presentation was given by Mark Thorley, NERC Data Management Coordinator, and Chair of the RCUK Research Outputs Network. The event was hosted at Brunel University on the 27th February 2013

Thermal Diffusivities of Functionalized Pentacene Semiconductors

We have measured the interlayer and in-plane (needle axis) thermal diffusivities of 6,13-bis(triisopropylsilylethynyl) pentacene (TIPS-Pn). The needle axis value is comparable to the phonon thermal conductivities of quasi-one dimensional organic metals with excellent pi-orbital overlap, and its value suggests that a significant fraction of heat is carried by optical phonons. Furthermore, the interlayer (c-axis) thermal diffusivity is at least an order of magnitude larger, and this unusual anisotropy implies very strong dispersion of optical modes in the interlayer direction, presumably due to interactions between the silyl-containing side groups. Similar values for both in-plane and interlayer diffusivities have been observed for several other functionalized pentacene semiconductors with related structures.Comment: 9 pages, including 4 figures; submitted to Applied Physics Letter

Mood-congruent false memories persist over time

In this study we examined the role of mood-congruency and retention interval on the false recognition of emotion laden items using the Deese/Roediger-McDermott (DRM) paradigm. Previous research has shown a mood-congruent false memory enhancement during immediate recognition tasks. The present study examined the persistence of this effect following a one-week delay. Participants were placed in a negative or neutral mood, presented with negative-emotion and neutral-emotion DRM word lists, and administered with both immediate and delayed recognition tests. Results showed that a negative mood state increased remember judgments for negative-emotion critical lures, in comparison to neutral-emotion critical lures, on both immediate and delayed testing. These findings are discussed in relation to theories of spreading activation and emotion enhanced memory, with consideration of the applied forensic implications of such findings

Healthcare needs and risk in police custody

Police custody is an area of scholarly research that has previously been overlooked. Whilst the research and literature regarding this topic begins to grow, there still remains a wide variety of aspects to be considered. Chapter One presents a general introduction to the topic. Chapter Two presents a literature review following a systematic approach regarding the healthcare needs of those detained in police custody. The findings revealed that there is a considerable presence of mental health, substance misuse, and physical health care needs amongst police custody detainees. Chapter Three presents a critique of an impulsivity measure, the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale (BIS-11). The concluding remarks reported that further research is essential in examining the psychometric properties amongst forensic populations. The indications regarding reliability and validity are supportive, although further evidence considering the effectiveness of this tool for decision-making would be beneficial. Chapter Four, an empirical study, examined the prevalence of impulsivity, self-harm, and situational aggression amongst detainees. In addition, the predictive validity of one of the National Strategy for Police Information Systems (NSPIS) risk assessment was reviewed. This study identified that impulsivity traits are highly prevalent amongst detainees (for the non-planning impulsiveness subtrait); for self-harmers, their function of this behaviour was identified as ‘self-punishment’; and 40% engaged in some form of aggressive behaviour throughout their detention. The NSPIS risk assessment has significant predictive value, although with the additional of one Dynamic Appraisal of Situational Aggression (DASA) assessment and the BIS-11 total score, the predictability increases by 21%. A single case study in Chapter Five considers the effectiveness of Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT)-informed skills training in the community. This individual displayed borderline personality disorder traits and exhibited self-harming behaviours. The difficulties associated with working with such a client group have been discussed. In Chapter Six, a discussion concludes the thesis

Leak detection using cepstrum of cross-correlation of transient pressure wave signals

A new leak detection method is proposed here which is based on the cepstrum of the cross-correlation of the pressure signals from two transducers. Computational simulations of leaks with different properties, size, position and shape, in a straight pipe and a T-Junction network were studied. The proposed method was successful in estimating leakages and the pipeline features with a high precision. For the results with a straight pipe, this method is considerably more accurate than using the cross-correlation leak detection method or the cepstrum method alone. However, the results obtained by cepstrum and cepstrum of cross-correlation for the T-Junction case were quite accurate, while cepstrum alone showed a slightly better precision

Pipeline network features and leak detection by cross-correlation analysis of reflected waves

This paper describes progress on a new technique to detect pipeline features and leaks using signal processing of a pressure wave measurement. Previous work (by the present authors) has shown that the analysis of pressure wave reflections in fluid pipe networks can be used to identify specific pipeline features such as open ends, closed ends, valves, junctions, and certain types of bends. It was demonstrated that by using an extension of cross-correlation analysis, the identification of features can be achieved using fewer sensors than are traditionally employed. The key to the effectiveness of the technique lies in the artificial generation of pressure waves using a solenoid valve, rather than relying upon natural sources of fluid excitation. This paper uses an enhanced signal processing technique to improve the detection of leaks. It is shown experimentally that features and leaks can be detected around a sharp bend and up to seven reflections from features/ leaks can be detected, by which time the wave has traveled over 95 m. The testing determined the position of a leak to within an accuracy of 5%, even when the location of the reflection from a leak is itself dispersed over a certain distance and, therefore, does not cause an exact reflection of the wave