This study searched for sociodemographic influences on visual memory and visuoconstructive ability in healthy and clinical samples evaluated with Benton Visual Retention Test (BVRT) in two studies. In Study 1, we searched for changes related to age in children, adolescents, adults and elderly on the performance of the BVRT. In Study 2, we investigated the relations among age, years of education and intellectual quotient (IQ) on the performance of the BVRT using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). Participants were 624 individuals aged between six and 89 years old (M = 25.40; SD = 22.34) from the normatization and evidence validity studies at Brazil. We used a sociodemographic questionnaire, BVRT and IQ measure was estimated. Study 1 has shown a performance similar to the developmental graphics with a U-inverted pattern in relation to age: An increase of the visual memory ability in the children and adolescent groups as age increases, a tendency of a decrease in the performance in the adult group that intensifies in the elderly group. Study 2 found that the model for the BVRT performance tested by SEM denoted satisfactory goodness-of-fit indexes, χ2/gl = 2.67, p < .001; CFI = .92; TLI = .93; RMSEA = .004, 90% CI = [.03, .05];WLSMV = 1.79, and corroborated the theoretical assumption. The SEM model confirmed in this study highlight the strong role of years of education in the prediction of BVRT scores.

Air target recognition is a critical step in the radar processing chain and reliable features are necessary to make a decision. The number and position of jet engines are useful features to perform a pre-classification and give a list of possible targets. To extract these features, a sparse decomposition framework for inverse synthetic aperture radar (ISAR) images is presented. With this framework different components of the target can be detected, if signal models for these parts are available. To use it for the detection of jet engines, a review of a signal model for air intakes, which was developed by Borden, is given. This model is based on the common assumption that the propagation of electromagnetic waves inside jet engines has the same dispersive behavior as inside waveguides. With this model a decomposition of a real ISAR image, measured with the tracking and imaging radar system of Fraunhofer FHR, into point-like scattering centers and jet engines is presented.

Geochemical and related studies have been made of near-surface sediments from the River Clyde estuary and adjoining areas, extending from Glasgow to the N, and W as far as the Holy Loch on the W coast of Scotland, UK. Multibeam echosounder, sidescan sonar and shallow seismic data, taken with core information, indicate that a shallow layer of modern sediment, often less than a metre thick, rests on earlier glacial and post-glacial sediments. The offshore Quaternary history can be aligned with onshore sequences, with the recognition of buried drumlins, settlement of muds from quieter water, probably behind an ice dam, and later tidal delta deposits. The geochemistry of contaminants within the cores also indicates shallow contaminated sediments, often resting on pristine pre-industrial deposits at depths less than 1m. The distribution of different contaminants with depth in the sediment, such as Pb (and Pb isotopes), organics and radionuclides, allow chronologies of contamination from different sources to be suggested. Dating was also attempted using microfossils, radiocarbon and 210Pb, but with limited success. Some of the spatial distribution of contaminants in the surface sediments can be related to grain-size variations. Contaminants are highest, both in absolute terms and in enrichment relative to the natural background, in the urban and inner estuary and in the Holy Loch, reflecting the concentration of industrial activity.

The graphics processing unit has become an integral part of astronomical instrumentation, enabling high-performance online data reduction and accelerated online signal processing. In this paper, we describe a wide-band reconfigurable spectrometer built using an off-the-shelf graphics processing unit card. This spectrometer, when configured as a polyphase filter bank, supports a dual-polarisation bandwidth of up to 1.1 GHz (or a single-polarisation bandwidth of up to 2.2 GHz) on the latest generation of graphics processing units. On the other hand, when configured as a direct fast Fourier transform, the spectrometer supports a dual-polarisation bandwidth of up to 1.4 GHz (or a single-polarisation bandwidth of up to 2.8 GHz).

Debates about decentralization raise cultural questions of identity and economic questions of redistribution and efficiency. Therefore the preferences of statewide parties regarding decentralization are related to their positions on the economic and cultural ideological dimensions. A statistical analysis using data from thirty-one countries confirms this: parties on the economic right are more supportive of decentralization than parties on the economic left, while culturally liberal parties favour decentralization more than culturally conservative parties. However, country context – specifically the degree of regional self-rule, the extent of regional economic disparity and the ideology of regionalist parties – determines whether and how decentralization is linked to the two dimensions. These findings have implications for our understanding of the politics of decentralization by showing how ideology, rooted in a specific country context, shapes the ‘mindset’ of agents responsible for determining the territorial distribution of power.

The mixed-conducting perovskite oxide Ba0.5Sr0.5Co0.8Fe0.2O3-δ (BSCF), given its outstanding oxygen ionic and electronic transport properties, is considered a promising material composition for oxygen transport membranes (OTM) operated at high temperatures.

Its long-term stability under operating conditions is, however, still an important issue. Although the incompatibility of BSCF with CO2-containing atmospheres can be avoided by appropriate means (oxyfuel processes in the absence of carbon dioxide), the thermal as well as the chemical stability of BSCF itself are still under thorough investigation.

This work is focused on the stability of BSCF in the targeted temperature range for OTM applications (700…900 °C) and in atmospheres with low oxygen contents. Previous studies in literature suggest limited chemical stability below oxygen partial pressures pO2 of around 10-6 bar.

By using a coulometric titration method based on a zirconia “oxygen pump” setup, precise control of the oxygen partial pressure pO2 between 1 bar and 10-18 bar was facilitated. Combining electrical measurements on dense ceramic bulk samples performed as a function of pO2 with an XRD phase composition study of single phase BSCF powders subjected to various pO2 treatments, an assessment of the chemical stability of BSCF is facilitated as a function of oxygen partial pressure. It could thus be shown that the pO2 stability limit is considerably lower than previously assumed in literature.

Background: Deposition of amyloid β in senile plaques and in cerebral blood vessels is one hallmark of the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease (AD). The ability of several matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) to degrade amyloid precursor protein leading to aggregation of amyloid β, as well as the increased expression of MMPs in post mortem brain tissue of Alzheimer's patients, indicate that MMPs play an important role in the pathogenesis of AD.

Methods: We investigated levels of MMP-2,-3,-9 and -10 in plasma and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of AD patients (n = 14) by gelatin and casein zymography. Comparisons between AD patients and controls relative to levels of MMP-2, MMP-3, MMP-9, and MMP-10 were made with Wilcoxon rank statistics. Pearson correlations were computed as measures of association.

Results: MMP-3 in AD was significantly elevated in plasma (p = 0.006) and there was a trend towards increase in CSF (p = 0.05). MMP-2 in CSF of AD patients was significantly decreased (p = 0.02) while levels in plasma remained unchanged. MMP-9 and MMP-10 could not be detected in CSF; MMP-10 was unchanged in plasma, but MMP-9 was significantly decreased (p = 0.02).

Conclusions: These findings constitute further evidence for the important role of MMPs in the pathogenesis of AD.

A patent arterial duct in pre-term neonates is frequent. Systemic complications consecutive to left-to-right shunting are well known but fatal myocardial ischaemia has not been described till now. The presented premature baby died from catecholamine refractory cardiogenic shock. Autoptic examination revealed acute ischaemic changes predominantly in the inner third of myocardium, speaking of coronary hypoperfusion due to a steal phenomenon secondary to the patent arterial duct.

The presence of glacial sediments across the Rauer Group indicates that the East Antarctic ice sheet formerly covered the entire archipelago and has since retreated at least 15 km from its maximum extent. The degree of weathering of these glacial sediments suggests that ice retreat from this maximum position occurred sometime during the latter half of the last glacial cycle. Following this phase of retreat, the ice sheet margin has not expanded more than ∼ 1 km seaward of its present position. This pattern of ice sheet change matches that recorded in Vestfold Hills, providing further evidence that the diminutive Marine Isotope Stage 2 ice sheet advance in the nearby Larsemann Hills may have been influenced by local factors rather than a regional ice-sheet response to climate and sea-level change.

The purpose of this study is twofold: (a) to examine whether English finite morphology has the potential to differentiate children with and without language impairment (LI) from Spanish-speaking backgrounds and different levels of English proficiency in comparison to Hispanic English speakers and (b) to investigate the extent to which children who are bilingual exhibit differences in their grammatical performance because of cross-linguistic influence from their first language. Seventy-one children between the ages of 4 years, 5 months and 6 years, 5 months were distributed into the following five groups: English as a first language (EL1) speakers with typical language development (TLD), EL1 speakers with LI, Spanish–English bilinguals with TLD, Spanish–English bilinguals with LI, and English as a second language (EL2) learners with TLD were compared on regular verb finiteness and nominative subject use using spontaneous narrative samples. The EL1 children with LI had significantly lower verb accuracy rates than the EL1 controls with TLD. Verb finiteness marking was also a significant discriminator for the bilinguals with LI. There was no evidence of cross-linguistic influence, however. The analysis indicated no significant differences between EL1 and bilingual children on subject or verb use. The EL2 group only presented difficulties with finite verb use. The typological differences between English and Spanish for overt subject use did not seem to affect the performance of either typical or atypical bilingual learners. The findings underscore the need for addressing language dominance in future bilingual studies.

Dietary patterns have been identified in adults, but less is known about children and adolescents. For the first time, we have investigated lifestyle patterns combining diet and physical activity in 12-year-old French preadolescents and examined their association with sociodemographic factors. Physical activity, sedentary activities and dietary habits were assessed by questionnaires given to 2724 students in 2001. Family income tax and parents' educational level, as indicators of socio-economic status, and the size of the residence commune were obtained from parents. After adjusting for socio-economic status, physical activity was positively associated with a consumption of frui/egetable/ruit juice on more than four occasions in the previous 24h (P<0·001). Sedentary activities were positively associated with the consumption of French fries or potato chips (P<0·001), with sweetened drink as the most usual drink (P<0·001) and with nibbling while watching television (P<0·001), and inversely associated with a high consumption of frui/egetable/ruit juice (P=0·04). Multiple correspondence analysis identified two independent axes and specific combinations of behaviour: one axis characterised by sedentary activity, sweetened drink as the most usual drink, the consumption of French fries or potato chips and nibbling while watching television; a second one associating physical activity and the consumption of frui/egetable/ruit juice. Both socio-economic proxies were associated with the former axis (P<0·001). The size of the residence commune was associated with the latter (P<0·1). Combinations of diet and physical activity habits were identified in adolescents, indicating that prevention programmes targeting both behaviours may have an enhanced outcome.