Modern consumer socialization: The influence of peers, family, and online social networking usage

Online social networking (SNS) usage has been a revolutionary topic of interest for researchers and consumers since online social networking websites’ popularity spiked. Online social networking utilized by an individual engages family members, friends, and retailers. Since SNS have integrated into many individuals’ daily lives, consumer socialization patterns previously observed have undoubtedly changed. Although the influence of SNS usage on attitudes and purchase intentions toward product reviews have rarely been researched, preceding studies have found socialization agents such as peers, family, and media to be influential on the socialization of consumers (Nelson & McLeod, 2005)

Fast physical models for Si LDMOS power transistor characterization

A new nonlinear, process-oriented, quasi-two-dimensional (Q2D) model is described for microwave laterally diffused MOS (LDMOS) power transistors. A set of one-dimensional energy transport equations are solved across a two-dimensional cross-section in a “current-driven” form. The model accounts for avalanche breakdown and gate conduction, and accurately predicts DC and microwave characteristics at execution speeds sufficiently fast for circuit simulation applications

Utilizing Teslasuit to Analyze Changes in Joint Angles and Galvanic Skin Responses During Slips (A Stress-Inducing Task)

When experiencing dangerous situations, humans have two different responses: fight or flight. During these moments, the sympathetic nervous system takes over and causes the body to work overtime to give the person the best chance at survival. Although the average person doesn’t face a life-or-death experience every day, slips are fairly common and can trigger this fight-or-flight response. Exploring what happens during a slip and quantifying a body’s response can be difficult. Still, with the help of motion capture suits and biometric sensors, there is a unique opportunity to learn more about the kinematics and physiological responses of the human body. In this study, the Teslasuit, which consists of 14 Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) Sensors, and 34 reflective markers were placed on the bony processes to collect motion capture data. Participants also wore the Empatica E4 watch to record stress levels and heart rate. The Galvanic Skin Response (GSR) was used to record stress levels by measuring the skin conductance as it differs before and after the slip activity. Data was collected from 7 females and 5 males. Subjects were asked to complete a 5-minute walking trial followed by a 10-minute blind slip trial, where they were expecting to slip in both trials. The slip occurred unexpectedly (at randomized time frames) during the ten-minute trial. This experiment analyzes GSR and joint angle measurements when the participant undergoes an unexpected slip. Along with studying the stress response, the accuracy of the Teslasuit in capturing motion data will also be tested for future experiments. We hypothesize that joint angles and stress levels will decrease during repeated slips because the participant will begin adapting (learning effect) to the test with each additional slip

Biochemical Properties of a Decoy Oligodeoxynucleotide Inhibitor of STAT3 Transcription Factor.

Cyclic STAT3 decoy (CS3D) is a second-generation, double-stranded oligodeoxynucleotide (ODN) that mimics a genomic response element for signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3), an oncogenic transcription factor. CS3D competitively inhibits STAT3 binding to target gene promoters, resulting in decreased expression of proteins that promote cellular proliferation and survival. Previous studies have demonstrated antitumor activity of CS3D in preclinical models of solid tumors. However, prior to entering human clinical trials, the efficiency of generating the CS3D molecule and its stability in biological fluids should be determined. CS3D is synthesized as a single-stranded ODN and must have its free ends ligated to generate the final cyclic form. In this study, we report a ligation efficiency of nearly 95 percent. The ligated CS3D demonstrated a half-life of 7.9 h in human serum, indicating adequate stability for intravenous delivery. These results provide requisite biochemical characterization of CS3D that will inform upcoming clinical trials

Reconstructive problems in canine liver homotransplantation with special reference to the postoperative role of hepatic venous flow

The homologous canine liver has been transplanted to recipient animals in which total hepatectomy and splenectomy have been performed. The longest survival after placement of the liver homograft was 20 1/2 days. Protection from hepatic ischemia for as long as 2 hours was obtained by cooling the donor liver to 10 to 20 degrees C. The arterial supply was restored through a hepatic artery-aortic pedicle which was removed in continuity with the liver and anastomosed to the descending aorta of the recipient. Internal biliary drainage was established. The volume of venous flow transmitted to the transplanted liver has been shown to be an important determinant of success. When this was excessive, as when both the portal and inferior caval flows were directed through the liver, hepatic and splanchnic beds. When the portal flow was normal or reduced, outflow block rarely occurred. An attempt has been made to relate the development of outflow block as it occurred in the transplanted liver to other circumstances, including hemorrhagic shock, in which similar phenomena have been observed

Entraining and copying of temporal correlations in dissociated cultured neurons

Here we used multi-electrode array technology to examine the encoding of temporal information in dissociated hippocampal networks. We demonstrate that two connected populations of neurons can be trained to encode a defined time interval, and this memory trace persists for several hours. We also investigate whether the spontaneous firing activity of a trained network, can act as a template for copying the encoded time interval to a naive network. Such findings are of general significance for understanding fundamental principles of information storage and replicatio

Understanding hydraulic fracture mechanisms: From the laboratory to numerical modelling

The development of fracture networks associated with hydraulic fracturing operations are extremely complex multiphysics processes and there is still no accepted methodology for mapping or realistic recreating such fracture networks. This is an issue especially for modeling purposes, as, ideally, an accurate numerical representation, and subsequent numerical model, should be able to honor the trajectory, type, connectivity, and geometric properties of the complex fracture network generated. This research proposes a novel framework capable of conducting fluid flow numerical simulations based on mapped fracture networks induced during hydraulic fracturing laboratory experiments where a shale sample, under true triaxial reservoir stress conditions, is subjected to fluid injection to mimic a single stage open-hole in-situ hydraulic fracture operation. The resulting post-test fracture network of the shale sample is filled with fluorescent dyed epoxy and subsequently imaged. The images are segmented, and individual fractures are classified based on their geometrical characteristics, as parted bedding planes, opened natural fractures, and newly generated hydraulic fractures. The digital fracture network is numerically represented for fluid flow simulation using a dual-porosity model within the finite volume method. In the numerical reconstruction, fractures are implicitly represented in a set of cells with virtual fracture aperture. The properties of each grid cell are assigned based on fracture classification, and flow between grid cells is explicitly assigned based on the connectivity of the grid cells. Findings show faster fluid drainage parallel to bedding planes (horizontal) than in the vertical direction, indicating strong fluid flow anisotropy.Cited as: Abdelaziz, A., Ha, J., Li, M., Magsipoc, E., Sun, L., Grasselli, G. Understanding hydraulic fracture mechanisms: From the laboratory to numerical modelling. Advances in Geo-Energy Research, 2023, 7(1): 66-68. https://doi.org/10.46690/ager.2023.01.0

Scale invariance and universality of force networks in static granular matter

Force networks form the skeleton of static granular matter. They are the key ingredient to mechanical properties, such as stability, elasticity and sound transmission, which are of utmost importance for civil engineering and industrial processing. Previous studies have focused on the global structure of external forces (the boundary condition), and on the probability distribution of individual contact forces. The disordered spatial structure of the force network, however, has remained elusive so far. Here we report evidence for scale invariance of clusters of particles that interact via relatively strong forces. We analyzed granular packings generated by molecular dynamics simulations mimicking real granular matter; despite the visual variation, force networks for various values of the confining pressure and other parameters have identical scaling exponents and scaling function, and thus determine a universality class. Remarkably, the flat ensemble of force configurations--a simple generalization of equilibrium statistical mechanics--belongs to the same universality class, while some widely studied simplified models do not.Comment: 15 pages, 4 figures; to appear in Natur

Direct electronic measurement of the spin Hall effect

The generation, manipulation and detection of spin-polarized electrons in nanostructures define the main challenges of spin-based electronics[1]. Amongst the different approaches for spin generation and manipulation, spin-orbit coupling, which couples the spin of an electron to its momentum, is attracting considerable interest. In a spin-orbit-coupled system, a nonzero spin-current is predicted in a direction perpendicular to the applied electric field, giving rise to a "spin Hall effect"[2-4]. Consistent with this effect, electrically-induced spin polarization was recently detected by optical techniques at the edges of a semiconductor channel[5] and in two-dimensional electron gases in semiconductor heterostructures[6,7]. Here we report electrical measurements of the spin-Hall effect in a diffusive metallic conductor, using a ferromagnetic electrode in combination with a tunnel barrier to inject a spin-polarized current. In our devices, we observe an induced voltage that results exclusively from the conversion of the injected spin current into charge imbalance through the spin Hall effect. Such a voltage is proportional to the component of the injected spins that is perpendicular to the plane defined by the spin current direction and the voltage probes. These experiments reveal opportunities for efficient spin detection without the need for magnetic materials, which could lead to useful spintronics devices that integrate information processing and data storage.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures. Accepted for publication in Nature (pending format approval

Thermodynamics for Fractional Exclusion Statistics

We discuss the thermodynamics of a gas of free particles obeying Haldane's exclusion statistics, deriving low temperature and low density expansions. For gases with a constant density of states, we derive an exact equation of state and find that temperature-dependent quantities are independent of the statistics parameter.Comment: 9 pages, Revtex, no figures. References correcte