Titanate-based high-entropy perovskite oxides relaxor ferroelectrics.

Different combinations of monovalent and trivalent A-cations in high-entropy perovskite oxides (HEPOs) were investigated. The multicomponent (A'A″BaSrCa)TiO (A' = Na, K, A″ = Bi, La) perovskite compounds were successfully synthesized by solid-state reaction method persisting average cubic perovskite phase. The trivalent cation exhibited distinct effects on local structure, dielectric properties and relaxor ferroelectric behavior.

Application of the van der Pauw method for electrical conductivity measurements at high temperatures using an insulating compressing ring.

High quality data on the high temperature electrical properties of ceramics, particularly oxides, is of great value for material selection, design, and modeling for a broad range of emerging applications. Utilizing the mismatch in the coefficient of thermal expansion between two materials, a purely mechanical method for establishing electrical contact in the van der Pauw geometry to measure the bulk resistivity of ceramic disks at high temperatures is presented. Measurements of a reference material, 20 mol.

The implementation of random survival forests in conflict management data: An examination of power sharing and third party mediation in post-conflict countries.

Time-to-event analysis is a common occurrence in political science. In recent years, there has been an increased usage of machine learning methods in quantitative political science research. This article advocates for the implementation of machine learning duration models to assist in a sound model selection process.

Sarcasm detection in native English and English as a second language speakers.

Sarcastic speech is ubiquitous in most languages, though understanding sarcasm is highly dependent upon cultural and social contextual factors (Campbell & Katz, Discourse Processes, 2012, 49, 459). It is therefore surprising that little research has examined the ability of nonnative speakers to understand the sarcastic cues of a second language. In the current study, native English speakers and English as a second language (ESL) speakers were tested in each of four different conditions.

Dielectric Properties of x BiInO₃-(1-x) Pb(Zr₀.₅₂Ti₀.₄₈)O₃ Solid Solutions.

This study focused on the synthesis and electrical property measurements of the lead zirconate titanate (PZT)-bismuth indate (BI) perovskite solid solution system. As the PZT binary system is a very well-developed and integrated materials system, identifying new ternary systems based on PZT would allow for a new dimension of control into the exploration and improvement of its electrical properties, which could enable enhancements in the performance of current technology and devices. Here, the solid solution of BiInO-PbZrO-PbTiO ( x BI-(1- x ) PZT 52/48) was explored.

Agroecological Advantages of Early-Sown Winter Wheat in Semi-Arid Environments: A Comparative Case Study From Southern Australia and Pacific Northwest United States.

Wheat ( L.) is the most widely-grown crop in the Mediterranean semi-arid (150-400 mm) cropping zones of both southern Australia and the inland Pacific Northwest (PNW) of the United States of America (United States). Low precipitation, low winter temperatures and heat and drought conditions during late spring and summer limit wheat yields in both regions.

Neutron Total Scattering Studies of Group II Titanates (ATiO, A = Mg, Ca, Sr, Ba).

Neutron total scattering measurements were conducted on MgTiO, CaTiO, SrTiO, and BaTiO to simultaneously investigate the local and average structure of these materials. The local structures of MgTiO, CaTiO, and SrTiO were well modelled using the refined average structural models: trigonal R[Formula: see text], orthorhombic Pbnm, and cubic Pm[Formula: see text]m respectively. However the local structure for BaTiO, at both temperatures where the average structure is orthorhombic Amm2 and tetragonal P4mm, was best described by the rhombohedral R3m model.

Arab Threat and Social Control: An Exploration of the Relationship Between Ethnic Attitudes and Punitiveness Among Israeli Jews.

Numerous studies in the United States, as well as a smaller number of studies in other Westernized countries, have linked racial and ethnic attitudes to support for more punitive forms of crime control. The current study explores this relationship in Israel by assessing whether the degree to which Israeli Jews typify crime as an Israeli Arab phenomenon and/or resent Israeli Arabs is related to support for punitive criminal justice policies. The findings suggest that ethnic typification and resentment are related to general punitive attitudes, whereas ethnic apathy and resentment are related to greater support for the death penalty.

Historical and Current Trends in HIV Criminalization in South Carolina: Implications for the Southern HIV Epidemic.

In the 1980s, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) criminalization laws became widespread across the United States. Today, such laws continue to be used to prosecute people living with HIV for a variety of behaviors though there is limited evidence that doing so curbs HIV transmission. HIV criminalization remains understudied, especially in the Deep South.

Patient Decision-Making About Emergency and Planned Stoma Surgery for IBD: A Qualitative Exploration of Patient and Clinician Perspectives.

Background: Many inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) patients worry about stoma-forming surgery (SFS), sometimes enduring poor bowel-related quality of life to avoid it. Anticipation of SFS and whether expectations match experience is underreported. This qualitative study explored influences on patients' SFS decision-making and compared preoperative concerns with postoperative outcomes.

Sexting by High School Students.

In the last 8 years, several studies have documented that many adolescents acknowledge having exchanged sexually explicit cell phone pictures of themselves, a behavior termed sexting. Differences across studies in how sexting was defined, recruitment strategies, and cohort have resulted in sometimes significant differences in as basic a metric as what percentage of adolescents have sent, received, or forwarded such sexts. The psychosocial and even legal risks associated with sexting by minors are significantly serious that accurate estimates of its prevalence, including over time, are important to ascertain.

Simultaneous resonant x-ray diffraction measurement of polarization inversion and lattice strain in polycrystalline ferroelectrics.

Structure-property relationships in ferroelectrics extend over several length scales from the individual unit cell to the macroscopic device, and with dynamics spanning a broad temporal domain. Characterizing the multi-scale structural origin of electric field-induced polarization reversal and strain in ferroelectrics is an ongoing challenge that so far has obscured its fundamental behaviour. By utilizing small intensity differences between Friedel pairs due to resonant scattering, we demonstrate a time-resolved X-ray diffraction technique for directly and simultaneously measuring both lattice strain and, for the first time, polarization reversal during in-situ electrical perturbation.

Corticosteroid therapy in critical illness due to seasonal and pandemic influenza.

Background: Survey data suggest that Canadian intensivists administer corticosteroids to critically ill patients primarily in response to airway obstruction, perceived risk for adrenal insufficiency and hemodynamic instability.

Objective: To describe variables independently associated with systemic corticosteroid therapy during an influenza outbreak.

Methods: The present analysis was retrospective cohort study involving critically ill patients with influenza in two Canadian cities.

Beholder and Beheld: A Multilevel Model of Perceived Sexual Appeal.

When individuals (observers) assess how appealing they find sexual stimuli (targets), which factors matter and to whom? The present study examined how observer and target characteristics interact and impact perceived sexual appeal. Participants were 302 men (206 heterosexual, 96 gay) and 289 women (196 heterosexual, 93 lesbian) between the ages of 18 and 67 years, who viewed 34 photographs of targets of their preferred gender and rated each target for sexual appeal, masculinity-femininity, and estimated age. Participants also rated their own masculinity-femininity.

Effects of NiO nanoparticles on the magnetic properties and diffuse phase transition of BZT/NiO composites.

A new composite system, Ba(Zr0.07Ti0.93)O3 (BZT93) ceramic/NiO nanoparticles, was fabricated to investigate the effect of NiO nanoparticles on the properties of these composites.

High-K (Ba0.8Bi0.2)(Zn0.1Ti0.9)O3 ceramics for high-temperature capacitor applications.

Solid solutions of BaTiO(3)-Bi(Zn(1/2)Ti(1/2))O(3) were investigated for high-temperature capacitor applications. Compositions close to 0.8BaTiO(3)-0.

Piezoelectric properties and unipolar fatigue behavior of KNN-based Pb-free piezoceramics.

Single-phase perovskite ceramics were synthesized using a Pb-free (K(0.44)Na(0.52)Li(0.

False recall in the Deese-Roediger-McDermott paradigm: The roles of gist and associative strength.

Theories of false memories, particularly in the Deese-Roediger-McDermott (DRM) paradigm, focus on word association strength and gist. Backward associative strength (BAS) is a strong predictor of false recall in this paradigm. However, other than being defined as a measure of association between studied list words and falsely recalled nonpresented critical words, there is little understanding of this variable.

Structure and ferroelectric properties of Bi(Zn(1/2)Ti(1/2))O3-(Bi(1/2)K(1/2))TiO3 perovskite solid solutions.

Lead-free piezoelectric ceramics based on chiBi(Zn(1/2)Ti(1/2))O3-(1-chi)(Bi(1/2)K(1/2))TiO3 were obtained via solid state processing techniques. A single perovskite phase with tetragonal symmetry was obtained for Bi(Zn(1/2)Ti(1/2))O3 (BZT) substitutions up to 20 mol%. The maximum density was 97.

Acute hypotension in a patient undergoing posttraumatic cervical spine fusion with somatosensory and motor-evoked potential monitoring while under total intravenous anesthesia: a case report.

Hypotension should be vigilantly prevented in patients with spinal cord injury. Recent advances in neurological, intraoperative monitoring techniques have allowed Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists to assess the effects of spinal cord ischemia and compression as they occur. This case report describes a young, healthy man who sustained a cervical spine fracture and was scheduled for anterior spinal fusion with somatosensory and motor-evoked potential (MEP) monitoring while under total intravenous anesthesia.

Comparison of two treatment approaches for prostate cancer: intensity-modulated radiation therapy combined with 125I seed-implant brachytherapy or 125I seed-implant brachytherapy alone.

The purpose of the present study was to assess the results of two different treatment approaches for clinically localized prostate cancer: intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) followed by 125I seed-implant brachytherapy and 125I seed-implant brachytherapy alone. We studied our 30 most recent consecutive patients. The sample population consisted of 15 cases treated with IMRT (50.

Inter-modality variation in gross tumor volume delineation in 18FDG-PET guided IMRT treatment planning for lung cancer.

Rapid advances in 18FDG-PET/CT technology and novel co-registration algorithms have created a strong interest in 18FDG-PET/CT's application in intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) and image-guided radiation therapy (IGRT). Accurate target volume delineation, particularly identification of pathologically positive lymph nodes, could translate into favorable treatment outcome. However, gross tumor volume (GTV) delineation on both CT and 18FDG-PET is very sensitive to observer variation.

Response kinetics of doped CuO/ZnO heterocontacts.

In this work, the effects of doping on hydrogen sensitivity and sensor response of CuO/ZnO heterocontacts were examined. Both current-voltage and current-time measurements were utilized in hydrogen/air and hydrogen/nitrogen atmospheres at 400 degrees C. The addition of Ni to p-type CuO and Ga to n-type ZnO were observed to enhance the sensor properties.

Airflow dispersion in unsaturated soil.

Dispersion data is abundant for water flow in the saturated zone but is lacking for airflow in unsaturated soil. However, for remediation processes such as soil vapour extraction, characterization of airflow dispersion is necessary for improved modelling and prediction capabilities. Accordingly, gas-phase tracer experiments were conducted in five soils ranging from uniform sand to clay at air-dried and wetted conditions.