Can squirrel monkeys (Saimiri sciureus) plan for the future? Studies of temporal myopia in food choice

In seven experiments, 2 squirrel monkeys were given choices between arrays of food that varied in the quantity offered. In Experiments 1-5, the monkeys were offered choices between quantities of the same food that varied in a 2:1 ratio. The squirrel monkeys failed to show the temporal myopia effect or a decrease in preference for the larger quantity as the absolute number of food items offered increased. Even when given choices of 8 versus 16 peanuts and 10 versus 20 peanuts, both monkeys significantly preferred the larger quantity. An examination of the monkeys' rates of consumption indicated that 20 peanuts were consumed over a 1- to 2-h period, with eating bouts separated by periods of nonconsumption. In Experiments 6A, 6B, and 7, food was either pilfered or replenished 15 min after an initial choice, so that choice of the smaller quantity led to more total food in the long run. These manipulations caused both monkeys to reduce choice of the larger quantity, relative to baseline choice. The results suggest that squirrel monkeys anticipated the future consequences of their choices.     

Kinetics study on biomass pyrolysis for fuel gas production

Kinetic knowledge is of great importance in achieving good control of the pyrolysis and gasification process and optimising system design. An overall kinetic pyrolysis scheme is therefore addressed here. The kinetic modelling incorporates the following basic steps: the degradation of the virgin biomass materials into primary products (tar, gas and semi-char), the decomposition of primary tar into secondary products and the continuous interaction between primary gas and char. The last step is disregarded completely by models in the literature. Analysis and comparison of predicted results from different kinetic schemes and experimental data on our fixed bed pyrolyser yielded very positive evidence to support our kinetic scheme. Project (No. 2001CB409600) Supported by the National Key Basic Research Program (973) of China     

Kinetics study on biomass pyrolysis for fuel gas production

INTRODUCTIONSincebiomassisanabundant,inexpensiveandrenewableresource ,itsconversiontosyn theticfuelsandchemicalproductsappearsat tractive.Amongallkindsofbiomassconversionroutes,pyrolysisisbeinggivenincreasingatten tionsincetheprocessissimpleandmaybeopti m…     

Gender effects in children's beliefs about school performance: a cross-cultural study

Do young boys and girls understand what leads to academic success (e.g., talent, effort, good teaching, luck) in the same way? Do young girls and boys have equivalent perceptions of their academic competence? Are these beliefs engendered in the same way across sociocultural contexts? In a cross-cultural study of over 3,000 children in grades 2 to 6, ages 7.2 to 13.6, we discovered that boys and girls around the world have very similar ideas about what generally leads to academic success. Moreover, in the few contexts where boys' and girls' academic performances were equal, their beliefs were also equal. However, when girls outperformed boys, their beliefs in their own talent were no greater than boys' beliefs, even though they did have stronger beliefs than boys in other facets of their achievement potential (e.g., putting forth effort, being lucky, getting their teacher's help). Our findings support the generally close correspondence between children's achievement and their competence-related beliefs, with the exception that young girls appear to specifically discount their talent. The effects held regardless of the children's achievement, intelligence, or age (approximately 8 to 13 years). Girls were more biased in some contexts than in others, however, suggesting that competence-related biases are rooted in culture-specific aspects of school settings.     

Parental reactions to children's negative emotions: longitudinal relations to quality of children's social functioning

Relations between self-reported parental reactions to children's negative emotions (PNRs) and children's socially appropriate/problem behavior and negative emotionality were examined longitudinally. Evidence was consistent with the conclusion that relations between children's externalizing (but not internalizing) emotion and parental punitive reactions to children's negative emotions are bidirectional. Reports of PNRs generally were correlated with low quality of social functioning. In structural models, mother-reported problem behavior at ages 10-12 was at least marginally predicted from mother-reported problem behavior, children's regulation, and parental punitive or distress reactions. Moreover, parental distress and punitive reactions at ages 6-8 predicted reports of children's regulation at ages 8-10, and regulation predicted parental punitive reactions at ages 10-12. Father reports of problem behavior at ages 10-12 were predicted by earlier problem behavior and parental distress or punitive reactions; some of the relations between regulation and parental reactions were similar to those in the models for mother-reported problem behavior. Parental perceptions of their reactions were substantially correlated over 6 years. Some nonsupportive reactions declined in the early to mid-school years, but all increased into late childhood/early adolescence.     

The relationship between instructional and assessment accommodations in an inclusive state accountability system

We investigated the kinds of instructional and assessment accommodations students with disabilities receive, and the extent to which instructional accommodations match assessment accommodations. Most students who had IEPs in specific content areas received instructional accommodations in those areas, and there were no differences by disability type. We provide data on the specific types of accommodations used. Overall, students' assessment accommodations matched their instructional accommodations, though many students received testing accommodations that had not been received in instruction. Implications are discussed for IEP teams who make decisions about instructional and assessment accommodations.     

用DREF-Ⅲ摩擦纺多组分纬纱织造的织物风格特征

织物风格特征是由织物组织结构和纱的特性决定的，新型纱线结构的不断出现和发展对织物性能和质量提出了更高的要求。研究表明：通过改变纺纱工艺可以获得不同的纱线结构，从而改变织物的风格特征。DREF-Ⅲ型摩擦纺包芯纱具有典型的皮芯结构，可以是双组分也可以是多组分，而且组分的不同会对织物性能产生不同的影响，纱的性能也会由于芯皮之间压力、摩擦力大小的不同而改变。以前的研究主要集中在包芯纱的拉伸性能上，而对空心纱几乎没有什么新的研究和讨论。     

BIM在建设工程项目中的创新价值初探

对BIM国际前沿文献进行跟踪研究,梳理BIM在建设工程项目中的主要应用模式。在分析建设工程创新特性的基础上,指出BIM为建设工程项目各参与组织构建了合作创新的工作环境。依据建设工程创新类别,分析BIM应用模式的创新定位,探索BIM在建设工程创新中的价值。