Affective incoherence: when affective concepts and embodied reactions clash.

In five studies, the authors examined the effects on cognitive performance of coherence and incoherence between conceptual and experiential sources of affective information. The studies crossed the priming of happy and sad concepts with affective experiences. In different experiments, these included approach or avoidance actions, happy or sad feelings, and happy or sad expressive behaviors. In all studies, coherence between affective concepts and affective experiences led to better recall of a story than did affective incoherence. The authors suggest that the experience of such experiential affective cues serves as evidence of the appropriateness of affective concepts that come to mind. The results suggest that affective coherence has epistemic benefits and that incoherence is costly in terms of cognitive performance

Multibeam Laser Altimeter for Planetary Topographic Mapping

Laser altimetry provides an active, high-resolution, high-accuracy method for measurement of planetary and asteroid surface topography. The basis of the measurement is the timing of the roundtrip propagation of short-duration pulses of laser radiation between a spacecraft and the surface. Vertical, or elevation, resolution of the altimetry measurement is determined primarily by laser pulse width, surface-induced spreading in time of the reflected pulse, and the timing precision of the altimeter electronics. With conventional gain-switched pulses from solid-state lasers and nanosecond resolution timing electronics, submeter vertical range resolution is possible anywhere from orbital altitudes of approximately 1 km to altitudes of several hundred kilometers. Horizontal resolution is a function of laser beam footprint size at the surface and the spacing between successive laser pulses. Laser divergence angle and altimeter platform height above the surface determine the laser footprint size at the surface, while laser pulse repetition rate, laser transmitter beam configuration, and altimeter platform velocity determine the spacing between successive laser pulses. Multiple laser transmitters in a single laser altimeter instrument that is orbiting above a planetary or asteroid surface could provide across-track as well as along-track coverage that can be used to construct a range image (i.e., topographic map) of the surface. We are developing a pushbroom laser altimeter instrument concept that utilizes a linear array of laser transmitters to provide contiguous across-track and along-track data. The laser technology is based on the emerging monolithic combination of individual, 1-sq cm diode-pumped Nd:YAG laser pulse emitters. Details of the multi-emitter laser transmitter technology, the instrument configuration, and performance calculations for a realistic Discovery-class mission will be presented

Food Preservation by Freezing

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Transient gravitational waves from pulsar post-glitch recoveries

This work explores whether gravitational waves (GWs) from neutron star (NS) mountains can be detected with current 2nd-generation and future 3rd-generation GW detectors. In particular, we focus on a scenario where transient mountains are formed immediately after a NS glitch. In a glitch, a NS's spin frequency abruptly increases and then often exponentially recovers back to, but never quite reaches, the spin frequency prior to the glitch. If the recovery is ascribed to an additional torque due to a transient mountain, we find that GWs from that mountain are marginally-detectable with Advanced LIGO at design sensitivity and is very likely to be detectable for 3rd-generation detectors such as the Einstein Telescope. Using this model, we are able to find analytical expressions for the GW amplitude and its duration in terms of observables.Comment: 16 pages, 3 figures. Small changes made in response to referee comments. Accepted for publication in MNRA

Genetic Linkage Between Isozyme, Morphological, and DNA Markers in Tepary Bean

A genetic map of tepary bean (Phaseolus acutitolius A. Gray) may be useful to plant breeders attempting to transfer desirable genes from this species to other Phaseolus species. In order to expand the genetic information available for tepary bean, the inheritance of and linkage relationships among 23 morphological, isozyme, and RFLP markers were determined. All but one of the characters segregated in a monogenic fashion, and low levels of segregation distortion were observed. New two-locus linkages Identified included Aat-2/Gpi-c2, Aco-2/Dia-3, and Dia-3/ldh-x. Nine of the 23 loci exhibited linkage to other loci analyzed and could be assigned to one of three district linkage groups. Two tepary bean linkage groups (Adh-1/Aat-2, Aco-2/Dia-3) appear to be conserved in common bean, although the linkage estimates for Adh-1Aat-2 are dramatically different in these species. The Adh-1/Aat-2 linkage also appears to be conserved in lentil and pea. Additionally, the Gpi-c1/Pgd-3 linkage has a possible counterpart in soybean, and the Fdh-1/Gpi-c1 linkage in tepary bean is maintained In chickpe

Activity of glycolytic enzymes in the gut of Hormogaster elisae (Oligochaeta, Hormogastridae)

The glycolytic enzymatic activities in the gut of the endogeic earthworm #Hormogaster elisae from El Molar (Madrid, Spain) were studied in order to determine its digestive capacity and to assess its alimentary regime. Most endogeic earthworms have weak enzymatic complement and they usually establish mutualistic relationships with soil microflora to digest some organic compounds. Therefore, the intestinal wall tissues were cultured in vitro to assess the origin of the glycolytic enzymes found in the gut and enzymatic activities were measured in both cultured tissues and culture media. #H. elisae had a wide but not very strong enzyme complement, since all substrates were degraded but most of them at a low rate. This species cannot produce cellulase and mannamase, so for the digestion of these substrates it probably uses the digestive enzymatic capabilities of the ingested microflora. (Résumé d'auteur

Martian surface physical properties to be derived by radar altimeter on the Mars observer spacecraft

The potential is described of a candidate Mars Observer altimeter for determining dielectric properties of Mars regolith. It is pointed out that it is straightforward to use the time between altimeter pulse trains for passive radiometry (hence dielectric properties) and roughness can be derived. Given the mission plan the whole surface can be mapped at least three times, yielding data on seasonal variability

Pagetʼs Disease (Osteitis Deformans) in Archaeological Remains: A Radiographic Differential

Paget’s disease of bone is a metabolic bone disease of unknown etiology and is the most likely disease to cause secondary bone cancer; a prevalence that increases with age[1]. With the increasing age of modern populations, the importance of better understanding this disease will likewise increase. While in vivo tests for the disease cannot be performed in skeletal samples, radiographic views of archaeological remains can provide insight into the origins and natural history of the disease

Another Hole in the Head? Brain Treatment in Ancient Egyptian Mummies

Perhaps the most sensational and best-known feature of Egyptian mummification, the removal of the brain, is commonly attributed to the New Kingdom onward (e.g. [1]). Variability both within and between excerebration techniques, however, is poorly appreciated in the literature [2], and reporting of excerebration is often inconsistent, greatly simplified, or simply absent in descriptions of mummified remains, making detailed comparative studies difficult if not impossible. The goals of this study were to demonstrate: variability in mummy excerebration techniques temporal and status trends in brain treatment the limitations of the literature for large studies This study focuses on computed tomography (CT), as a non-destructive gold standard for mummies studies, in the examination of three primary treatments of the brain in mummification: transnasal craniotomy (TNC) transforaminal craniotomy (TFC) the absence of excerebration in relation to their radiological indications and their variations with time and status