Wednesday 19 December 2012

The Mental Lives of Zombies

Philosophical Perspectives
Volume 26, Issue 1, pages 343–372, 19 December 2012
DOI: 10.1111/phpe.12013

Declan Smithies
The Ohio State University

A zombie is a creature that is just like a conscious subject in all relevant physical, functional or behavioral respects, except that it has no conscious states – there is nothing it is like to be a zombie. Zombies have figured prominently in metaphysical debates about the nature of consciousness, but they can also be usefully employed in raising questions about the relationship between consciousness and cognition. Could there be a cognitive zombie – that is, a creature with the capacity for cognition but with no capacity for consciousness? By definition, zombies cannot have conscious states, but can they nevertheless have cognitive states, such as beliefs, and cognitive processes, such as reasoning and other forms of rational belief revision?

In this paper, I am primarily concerned with conceptual questions about the relationship between consciousness and cognition. As  far as possible, I want to remain neutral on empirical questions about the functional role of consciousness and metaphysical questions about the nature of consciousness and its place in the physical world. So, when I ask whether there could be cognitive zombies, the relevant modality is conceptual possibility, rather than physical possibility or metaphysical possibility. The question is whether cognitive zombies are conceptually possible or impossible – that is, whether they can be coherently conceived or whether this involves some kind of inherent conceptual confusion.

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/phpe.12013/abstract

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Wednesday 18 July 2012

Humans Running in Place on Water at Simulated Reduced Gravity

PLoS ONE 7(7): e37300
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0037300
Received: August 1, 2011; Accepted: April 19, 2012; Published: July 18, 2012

Alberto E. Minetti
Department of Human Physiology, University of Milan, Milan, Italy

Yuri P. Ivanenko, Germana Cappellini, Nadia Dominici, Francesco Lacquaniti
Laboratory of Neuromotor Physiology, IRCCS Santa Lucia Foundation, Rome, Italy

Nadia Dominici, Francesco Lacquaniti
Center of Space BioMedicine, University of Rome
Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy

Francesco Lacquaniti
Department of Systems Medicine, Neuroscience Section, University of Rome
Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy


Background

On Earth only a few legged species, such as water strider insects, some aquatic birds and lizards, can run on water. For most other species, including humans, this is precluded by body size and proportions, lack of appropriate appendages, and limited muscle power. However, if gravity is reduced to less than Earth’s gravity, running on water should require less muscle power. Here we use a hydrodynamic model to predict the gravity levels at which humans should be able to run on water. We test these predictions in the laboratory using a reduced gravity simulator.

Methodology/Principal Findings

We adapted a model equation, previously used by Glasheen and McMahon to explain the dynamics of Basilisk lizard, to predict the body mass, stride frequency and gravity necessary for a person to run on water. Progressive body-weight unloading of a person running in place on a wading pool confirmed the theoretical predictions that a person could run on water, at lunar (or lower) gravity levels using relatively small rigid fins. Three-dimensional motion capture of reflective markers on major joint centers showed that humans, similarly to the Basilisk Lizard and to the Western Grebe, keep the head-trunk segment at a nearly constant height, despite the high stride frequency and the intensive locomotor effort. Trunk stabilization at a nearly constant height differentiates running on water from other, more usual human gaits.

Conclusions/Significance

The results showed that a hydrodynamic model of lizards running on water can also be applied to humans, despite the enormous difference in body size and morphology.

http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0037300

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Friday 1 June 2012

Considerations on a Gentleman’s Posterior

Fashion Theory: The Journal of Dress, Body & Culture
Volume 16, Number 2, June 2012 , pp. 211-234(24)
Publication date: June 1, 2012
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.2752/175174112X13274987924131

Cole, Shaun

Abstract

In discussing J.C. Leyendecker’s 1911 painting Man on a Bag used to advertise S.T. Cooper and Sons’ Kenosha Klosed Krotch union suit, Richard Martin noted that the positioning of the male figure had to be careful to avoid raising concerns about anal anxiety, reflecting Freudian theories of sexual development. For this new revolutionary back opening for men’s underwear it was essential to depict a rear view of the male figure wearing the garment. However, as Martin noted, there was a certain discomfort around the idea of considering the male rear end. The association of sodomy and homosexuality led to this insecurity about the display of the male posterior. Men’s behinds have, however, periodically been put on display throughout the twentieth and twenty-first centuries through changing fashions and this article will address key moments when male fashion has concentrated and highlighted the male behind such as the adoption of shrink-to-fit blue jeans by teenagers in the 1950s and close-fitting Italian-style trousers worn beneath “bum freezer” jackets that revealed a shapely male behind. It will also consider the depiction of the male behind in underwear advertising and the use of padded underwear to enhance this “asset,” and conclude with a reflection on the mass adoption of the hip-hop-inspired low-slung jean.

http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/bloomsbury/jdbc/2012/00000016/00000002/art00005

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The nurses' role in the prevention of Solanum infection: dealing with a zombie epidemic

Journal of Clinical Nursing
Volume 21, Issue 11-12, pages 1606–1613, June 2012
DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2702.2011.03920.x

David Stanley, MSc, RN, RM, Associate Professor

University of Western Australia
35 Stirling Highway
Crawley, 6009 WA
Australia

Keywords:
disaster; emergency; infection; nurses; nursing; solanum; zombies

Aims
To outline the background and nursing interventions for Solanum infection in the event of a zombie epidemic.

Background
Literature and feature film evidence supports the theoretical probability for an outbreak of a Solanum infection which could result in a zombie epidemic. This paper discusses the causative agent, history of zombiism, signs and symptoms, diagnosis and nursing interventions.

Design
Review.

Methods
Academic and general literature and web sites were searched up to February 2011 for the key words, ‘zombie’, ‘zombie nurses’, ‘zombie epidemic’ and ‘zombie nursing interventions’. Limited academic literature was sourced pointing to a serious knowledge deficit in this area.

Results
If nurses are to respond successfully to a potential Solanum epidemic they need to be prepared and able to recognise Solanum infection, prevent its spread and care appropriately for sufferers and victims of a zombie attack. Advice is offered on prevention, initial nursing management and secondary nursing interventions including dealing with reanimation, palliative care and psychological support.

Conclusion
History offers numerous examples of the sudden appearance of a serious disease that has impacted on man kind’s survival. While difficult to conceive, a zombie epidemic is theoretically possible and nurses have a responsibility to be as prepared as possible to support and care for victims.

Relevance to clinical practice
Nurses are likely to be the front line staff faced with initiating most primary and secondary care interventions, including isolation and infection control, wound care, pain relief, documentation observations, support for activities of daily living, nutrition and fluid support, medication administration and other interventions.

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1365-2702.2011.03920.x/abstract

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A priori physicalism, lonely ghosts and cartesian doubt

Consciousness and Cognition
Volume 21, Issue 2, June 2012, Pages 742–746
doi: 10.1016/j.concog.2011.02.007

Philip Goff

University of Hertfordshire, Department of Philosophy, de Havilland Campus, Hatfield AL 10 9AB, United Kingdom

Abstract

A zombie is a physical duplicates of a human being which lacks consciousness. A ghost is a phenomenal duplicate of a human being whose nature is exhausted by consciousness. Discussion of zombie arguments, that is anti-physicalist arguments which appeal to the conceivability of zombies, is familiar in the philosophy of mind literature, whilst ghostly arguments, that is, anti-physicalist arguments which appeal to the conceivability of ghosts, are somewhat neglected. In this paper I argue that ghostly arguments have a number of dialectical advantages over zombie arguments. I go onto explain how the conceivability of ghosts is inconsistent with two kinds of a priori physicalism: analytic functionalism and the Australian physicalism of Armstrong and Lewis.

Keywords

Consciousness; Zombies; Ghosts; Hard problem; Physicalism; Conceivability arguments

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S105381001100033X

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Thursday 26 April 2012

Walking with coffee: Why does it spill?

Phys. Rev. E 85, 046117
volume 85, issue 4, pages 046117
Published 26 April 2012
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevE.85.046117

H. C. Mayer and R. Krechetnikov

Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of California, Santa Barbara, California 93106, USA

Abstract

In our busy lives, almost all of us have to walk with a cup of coffee. While often we spill the drink, this familiar phenomenon has never been explored systematically. Here we report on the results of an experimental study of the conditions under which coffee spills for various walking speeds and initial liquid levels in the cup. These observations are analyzed from the dynamical systems and fluid mechanics viewpoints as well as with the help of a model developed here. Particularities of the common cup sizes, the coffee properties, and the biomechanics of walking proved to be responsible for the spilling phenomenon. The studied problem represents an example of the interplay between the complex motion of a cup, due to the biomechanics of a walking individual, and the low-viscosity-liquid dynamics in it.

http://journals.aps.org/pre/abstract/10.1103/PhysRevE.85.046117

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Friday 20 April 2012

Your Two Weeks of Fame and Your Grandmother's

arXiv: 1204.4346 [cs.DL]
April 20, 2012

James Cook, UC Berkeley
Atish Das Sarma, eBay Research Labs
Alex Fabrikant, Google Research
Andrew Tomkins, Google Research

Abstract

Did celebrity last longer in 1929, 1992 or 2009? We investigate the phenomenon of fame by mining a collection of news articles that spans the twentieth century, and also perform a side study on a collection of blog posts from the last 10 years. By analyzing mentions of personal names, we measure each person's time in the spotlight, using two simple metrics that evaluate, roughly, the duration of a single news story about a person, and the overall duration of public interest in a person. We watched the distribution evolve from 1895 to 2010, expecting to find significantly shortening fame durations, per the much popularly bemoaned shortening of society's attention spans and quickening of media's news cycles. Instead, we conclusively demonstrate that, through many decades of rapid technological and societal change, through the appearance of Twitter, communication satellites, and the Internet, fame durations did not decrease, neither for the typical case nor for the extremely famous, with the last statistically significant fame duration decreases coming in the early 20th century, perhaps from the spread of telegraphy and telephony. Furthermore, while median fame durations stayed persistently constant, for the most famous of the famous, as measured by either volume or duration of media attention, fame durations have actually trended gently upward since the 1940s, with statistically significant increases on 40-year timescales. Similar studies have been done with much shorter timescales specifically in the context of information spreading on Twitter and similar social networking sites. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first massive scale study of this nature that spans over a century of archived data, thereby allowing us to track changes across decades.

http://arxiv.org/abs/1204.4346

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Friday 13 April 2012

Dressed for Sex: Red as a Female Sexual Signal in Humans

PLoS One. 2012; 7(4): e34607
Published online Apr 13, 2012
doi:  10.1371/journal.pone.0034607

Andrew J. Elliot and Adam D. Pazda

Department of Clinical & Social Sciences in Psychology, University of Rochester, Rochester, New York, United States of America

Background

In many non-human primate species, a display of red by a female serves as a sexual signal to attract male conspecifics. Red is associated with sex and romance in humans, and women convey their sexual interest to men through a variety of verbal, postural, and behavioral means. In the present research, we investigate whether female red ornamentation in non-human primates has a human analog, whereby women use a behavioral display of red to signal their sexual interest to men.

Methodology/Principal Findings

Three studies tested the hypothesis that women use red clothing to communicate sexual interest to men in profile pictures on dating websites. In Study 1, women who imagined being interested in casual sex were more likely to display red (but not other colors) on their anticipated web profile picture. In Study 2, women who indicated interest in casual sex were more likely to prominently display red (but not other colors) on their actual web profile picture. In Study 3, women on a website dedicated to facilitating casual sexual relationships were more likely to prominently exhibit red (but not other colors) than women on a website dedicated to facilitating marital relationships.

Conclusions/Significance

These results establish a provocative parallel between women and non-human female primates in red signal coloration in the mating game. This research shows, for the first time, a functional use of color in women's sexual self-presentation, and highlights the need to extend research on color beyond physics, physiology, and preference to psychological functioning.

Acknowledgments

We extend our appreciation to members of the approach-avoidance motivation lab at the University of Rochester for their competent and conscientious work on these studies.

http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0034607

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Wednesday 4 April 2012

Increased photon emission from the head while imagining light in the dark is correlated with changes in electroencephalographic power: Support for BĂłkkon's biophoton hypothesis

Neuroscience Letters
Volume 513, Issue 2, 4 April 2012, Pages 151–154
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.neulet.2012.02.021

B.T. Dotta [a,c], K.S. Saroka [a,b], M.A. Persinger [a,b,c]

[a] Behavioural Neuroscience Program, Laurentian University, Sudbury, Ontario, Canada P3E 2C6
[b] Human Studies Program, Laurentian University, Sudbury, Ontario, Canada P3E 2C6
[c] Biomolecular Sciences Program, Laurentian University, Sudbury, Ontario, Canada P3E 2C6

Abstract

BĂłkkon's hypothesis that photons released from chemical processes within the brain produce biophysical pictures during visual imagery has been supported experimentally. In the present study measurements by a photomultiplier tube also demonstrated significant increases in ultraweak photon emissions (UPEs) or biophotons equivalent to about 5 × 10−11 W/m2 from the right sides of volunteer's heads when they imagined light in a very dark environment compared to when they did not. Simultaneous variations in regional quantitative electroencephalographic spectral power (ÎĽV2/Hz) and total energy in the range of ∼10−12 J from concurrent biophoton emissions were strongly correlated (r = 0.95). The calculated energy was equivalent to that associated with action potentials from about 107 cerebral cortical neurons. We suggest these results support BĂłkkon's hypothesis that specific visual imagery is strongly correlated with ultraweak photon emission coupled to brain activity.

Highlights

► Cerebral photon emission increases with imagery.
► EEG power time-coupled to cerebral photon emissions.
► Power densities of EEG and brain photons match.
► Thinking is coupled to cerebral light emission.
► Imagery photon density increase is ∼10–11 W/m2.

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S030439401200208X

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Sunday 1 April 2012

Do Female Sex Fantasies Reflect Adaptations for Sperm Competition?

Annales Zoologici Fennici
Apr 2012 : Volume 49 Issue 1-2:93-102

Petri Nummi & Jani Pellikka

Department of Forest Sciences, P.O. Box 27, FI-00014 University of Helsinki, Finland

Researchers have suggested that female strategies for sexual selection in humans include the promotion of sperm competition. Sperm competition entails the simultaneous presence of fertile sperm from at least two males in the female's reproductive organ competing for the opportunity to fertilise the ovum. Certain behaviour patterns near ovulation may enable such competition. In this paper, we describe relative preferences for female sexual fantasy types and explore the idea that these preferences may help us understand the settings and mechanisms that promote sperm competition, and discourage interfemale competition. To expand this exploration, we also examine whether preferences vary with respect to the menstrual cycle. Our preliminary findings indicate notable preferences among females for multiple male-partner fantasies over multiple female-partner fantasies or fantasies that include multiple male and female partners. This suggests that females find multipartner settings as arousing as males do, but the psychological mechanism relating to settings that include the presence of same sex competitors may differ from that of males. We also discovered some indications that the female preference for promoting sperm competition and avoiding interfemale competition is the highest and strongest near ovulation.

http://www.bioone.org/doi/abs/10.5735/086.049.0109

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Friday 23 March 2012

Auditory stimulation of opera music induced prolongation of murine cardiac allograft survival and maintained generation of regulatory CD4+CD25+ cells

Journal of Cardiothoracic Surgery
March 23 2012, 7:26
doi:10.1186/1749-8090-7-26

Masateru Uchiyama [1,2,3], Xiangyuan Jin [2,4], Qi Zhang [2], Toshihito Hirai [5], Atsushi Amano [1], Hisashi Bashuda [3] and Masanori Niimi [2]   

[1] Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Juntendo University Hospital, 2-1-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8421, Japan
[2] Department of Surgery, Teikyo University, 2-11-1 Kaga, Itabashi-ku, Tokyo 173-8605, Japan
[3] Department of Immunology, Juntendo University Hospital, 2-1-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8421, Japan
[4] Department of Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery, The 4th Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, 37 Yiyuan Street, Nangang District, Harbin, Heilongjiang Province, China
[5] Department of Urology, Tokyo Women's Medical University, 8-1 Kawata-cho, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 162-8666, Japan

BACKGROUND:

Interactions between the immune response and brain functions such as olfactory, auditory, and visual sensations are likely. This study investigated the effect of sounds on alloimmune responses in a murine model of cardiac allograft transplantation.

METHODS:

NaĂŻve CBA mice (H2k) underwent transplantation of a C57BL/6 (B6, H2b) heart and were exposed to one of three types of music--opera (La Traviata), classical (Mozart), and New Age (Enya)--or one of six different single sound frequencies, for 7 days. Additionally, we prepared two groups of CBA recipients with tympanic membrane perforation exposed to opera for 7 days and CBA recipients exposed to opera for 7 days before transplantation (pre-treatment). An adoptive transfer study was performed to determine whether regulatory cells were generated in allograft recipients. Immunohistochemical, cell-proliferation, cytokine, and flow cytometry assessments were also performed.

RESULTS:

CBA recipients of a B6 cardiac graft that were exposed to opera music and Mozart had significantly prolonged allograft survival (median survival times [MSTs], 26.5 and 20 days, respectively), whereas those exposed to a single sound frequency (100, 500, 1000, 5000, 10,000, or 20,000 Hz) or Enya did not (MSTs, 7.5, 8, 9, 8, 7.5, 8.5 and 11 days, respectively). Untreated, CBA mice with tympanic membrane perforations and CBA recipients exposed to opera for 7 days before transplantation (pre-treatment) rejected B6 cardiac grafts acutely (MSTs, 7, 8 and 8 days, respectively). Adoptive transfer of whole splenocytes, CD4+ cells, or CD4+CD25+ cells from opera-exposed primary allograft recipients resulted in significantly prolonged allograft survival in naive secondary recipients (MSTs, 36, 68, and > 100 days, respectively). Proliferation of splenocytes, interleukin (IL)-2 and interferon (IFN)-Îł production was suppressed in opera-exposed mice, and production of IL-4 and IL-10 from opera-exposed transplant recipients increased compared to that from splenocytes of untreated recipients. Flow cytometry studies showed an increased CD4+CD25+ Forkhead box P3 (Foxp3)+ cell population in splenocytes from those mice.

CONCLUSION:

Our findings indicate that exposure to opera music, such as La traviata, could affect such aspects of the peripheral immune response as generation of regulatory CD4+CD25+ cells and up-regulation of anti-inflammatory cytokines, resulting in prolonged allograft survival.

http://www.cardiothoracicsurgery.org/content/7/1/26

http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186%2F1749-8090-7-26/fulltext.html

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3338095/

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Thursday 1 March 2012

Holy water of hospital chapels as a possible source for nosocomical infections

Hygiene & Medizin 2012; 37 [3]: 72–76

Hubert WeiĂź

The ongoing discussion about effective preventive measures against nosocomical infections concentrates very much on activities of hygiene management and on the search for all possible ways of introduction of germs into the clinical area. This analysis investigates whether holy water in hospital chapels may provide a possible reservoir for a contamination of patients in the clinical area as well as hospital equipment. The microbial count and the spectrum of bacteria detected in holy water lead to the conclusion that holy water should be integrated into the monitoring and the hygiene management of hospitals as a critical control point. This paper develops suggestions for the expansion of hygiene management and for the reduction of microbial counts in holy water fonts. Finally, liability issues will be discussed.

http://www.mhp-verlag.de/en/search/1749-Holy-water-of-hospital-chapels-as-a-possible-source-for-nosocomical-infections/

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Float, explode or sink: postmortem fate of lung-breathing marine vertebrates

Palaeobiodiversity and Palaeoenvironments
March 2012, Volume 92, Issue 1, pp 67-81
Cover Date 2012-03-01
DOI 10.1007/s12549-011-0067-z

Achim G. Reisdorf (1), Roman Bux (2), Daniel Wyler (3), Mark Benecke (4), Christian Klug (5), Michael W. Maisch (6), Peter Fornaro (7), Andreas Wetzel (1)

1. Geologisch-Paläontologisches Institut, Universität Basel, Bernoullistrasse 32, 4056, Basel, Switzerland
2. Institut für Rechtsmedizin und Verkehrsmedizin, Universitätsklinikum Heidelberg, Voßstrasse 2, Gebäude 4420, 69115, Heidelberg, Germany
3. Pathologie und Rechtsmedizin, Kantonsspital, Loëstrasse 170, 7000, Chur, Switzerland
4. Internatinal Forensic Research & Consulting, Postfach 250411, 50520, Köln, Germany
5. Paläontologisches Institut und Museum, Universität Zürich, Karl Schmid-Strasse 4, 8006, Zürich, Switzerland
6. Institut für Geowissenschaften, Eberhard Karls-Universität Tübingen, Hölderlinstr. 12, 72074, Tübingen, Germany
7. Imaging and Media Lab, Universität Basel, Bernoullistrasse 32, 4056, Basel, Switzerland

Abstract

What happens after the death of a marine tetrapod in seawater? Palaeontologists and neontologists have claimed that large lung-breathing marine tetrapods such as ichthyosaurs had a lower density than seawater, implying that their carcasses floated at the surface after death and sank subsequently after leakage of putrefaction gases (or ‘‘carcass explosions’’). Such explosions would thus account for the skeletal disarticulation observed frequently in the fossil record. We examined the taphonomy and sedimentary environment of numerous ichthyosaur skeletons and compared them to living marine tetrapods, principally cetaceans, and measured abdominal pressures in human carcasses. Our data and a review of the literature demonstrate that carcasses sink and do not explode (and spread skeletal elements). We argue that the normally slightly negatively buoyant carcasses of ichthyosaurs would have sunk to the sea floor and risen to the surface only when they remained in shallow water above a certain temperature and at a low scavenging rate. Once surfaced, prolonged floating may have occurred and a carcass have decomposed gradually. Our conclusions are of significance to the understanding of the inclusion of carcasses of lung-breathing vertebrates in marine nutrient recycling. The postmortem fate has essential implications for the interpretation of vertebrate fossil preservation (the existence of complete, disarticulated fossil skeletons is not explained by previous hypotheses), palaeobathymetry, the physiology of modern marine lung-breathing tetrapods and their conservation, and the recovery of human bodies from seawater.

http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs12549-011-0067-z/fulltext.html

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Thursday 16 February 2012

Poultry Harness Diaper

United States Patent and Trademark Office
Publication number US20120037094 A1
Application number US 13/207,708
Publication date Feb 16, 2012

Tobi Kosanke

Crazy K Farm Pet And Poultry Products, LLC
28384 Mellman Road
Hempstead, Texas 77445

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0004] Birds, such as chickens, ducks, geese, guinea fowl, turkeys and others, like many other animals, drop their bodily waste onto the ground beneath them. This waste is messy, sometimes has a foul odor, and contains bacteria. When a large number of birds are in a confined area and, especially, when birds are in an area that is shared by humans, dropping waste onto the ground is repugnant.

[0005] Several attempts have been made to attach a diaper-like structure to a bird. However, the prior-art attempts at bird diapers have failed to consider and accommodate a bird's natural desire to rest against a perch while perching or to lie with their stomachs touching the ground. If a bird were to do such activities with currently-known diaper devices, the bird would compress the captured waste against the bird's body.

[0006] In addition, many people enjoy birds as pets. These bird owners desire to not only have the bird's company at home, but in other locations as well. To help achieve these two goals, there exists several known leash devices that allow a pet owner to move about while keeping the bird tethered to them. These devices share many similarities with well-known dog leashes. However, there are no known devices that are comfortable to the bird.

[0007] Therefore, a need exists to overcome the problems with the prior art as discussed above.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0008] Briefly, in accordance with the present invention, disclosed is a diaper assembly for use on a bird. The assembly includes an upper-body portion having at least one first part of at least one couple assembly attached thereto. At least one shoulder strap has a first end coupled to the upper-body portion and a second end opposite the first end. The assembly further includes a waste receiver having a waste-catching pouch at least partially defined by: a front-facing portion coupled to the second end of the at least one shoulder strap; and a rear-facing portion having at least one second part of the at least one couple assembly. Each second part of the at least one couple assembly is operable to releasably secure at least the rear-facing portion of the waste receiver to the upper-body portion.

http://appft1.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO1&Sect2=HITOFF&d=PG01&p=1&u=/netahtml/PTO/srchnum.html&r=1&f=G&l=50&s1=20120037094.PGNR.

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Monday 13 February 2012

Shape of a Ponytail and the Statistical Physics of Hair Fiber Bundles

Phys. Rev. Lett. 108, 078101
volume 108, issue 7, pages 078101
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.108.078101
Published 13 February 2012

Raymond E. Goldstein [1], Patrick B. Warren [2], and Robin C. Ball [3]

[1] Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics, University of Cambridge, Wilberforce Road, Cambridge CB3 0WA, United Kingdom
[2] Unilever R&D Port Sunlight, Quarry Road East, Bebington, Wirral, CH63 3JW, United Kingdom
[3] Department of Physics, University of Warwick, Coventry, CV4 7AL, United Kingdom

Abstract

A general continuum theory for the distribution of hairs in a bundle is developed, treating individual fibers as elastic filaments with random intrinsic curvatures. Applying this formalism to the iconic problem of the ponytail, the combined effects of bending elasticity, gravity, and orientational disorder are recast as a differential equation for the envelope of the bundle, in which the compressibility enters through an “equation of state.” From this, we identify the balance of forces in various regions of the ponytail, extract a remarkably simple equation of state from laboratory measurements of human ponytails, and relate the pressure to the measured random curvatures of individual hairs.

http://journals.aps.org/prl/abstract/10.1103/PhysRevLett.108.078101

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Monday 30 January 2012

Up and beyond: Building a mountain in the Netherlands

In M.A.A. Boon (Ed.)
Conference Paper:
Proceedings of the 84th European Study Group Mathematics with Industry (SWI 2012)
Eindhoven, The Netherlands
January 30-February 3, 2012
pp. 104-125

Paulo J. De Andrade Serra (Eindhoven University of Technology), Tasnim Fatima (Eindhoven University of Technology), Andrea Fernandez (University of Bath), Tim Hulshof (Eindhoven University of Technology), Tagi Khaniyev (Middle East Technical University), Patrick J.P. van Meurs (Eindhoven University of Technology), Jan-Jaap Oosterwijk (Eindhoven University of Technology), Stefanie Postma (Leiden University), Vivi Rottschäfer (Leiden University), Lotte Sewalt (Leiden University), Frits Veerman (Leiden University)

Abstract

We discuss the idea of building a 2 km high mountain in the Netherlands. In this paper, we give suggestions on three important areas for the completion of this project. Issues like location, structure and sustainability are investigated and discussed in detail.

Keywords

building a mountain, high structure, the Netherlands

Introduction

The Netherlands does not have any tall mountains. Indeed, its name even derives from the fact that it is essentially flat. According to Thijs Zonneveld, a journalist and former professional cyclist, this is a serious shortcoming of his country. As a possible remedy, he proposed building a 2 kilometer high mountain in the Netherlands. The response was immense. Immediately, there was a lot of excitement at the prospect of building a mountain, but also a fair amount of skepticism about whether it can actually be done (see [11]). In this report we aim to address some of the obstacles and opportunities that may arise in the construction of such a mountain.

The idea of building a massive structure is not new. In the past, numerous plans have been proposed for extremely tall buildings and structures. However, what all these plans have in common is that they never left the drawing board.

The Dutch, however, are renowned for their large-scale engineering works such as the dikes, polders, and the Delta Works. Still, it is not hard to see that building a mountain would dwarf these accomplishments by comparison. Consider that currently, at a height of 828 meters, the Burj Khalifa in Dubai is the tallest building in the world – truly a marvel of modern engineering. Imagine then the extremely special care and consideration, the vast amount of work and the incredible ingenuity that is required to achieve a structure that is more than double that height. After Thijs Zonneveld proposed building a mountain, a group of companies joined forces in the organization ‘Die Berg komt er!’

[...]

http://www.tue.nl/publicatie/ep/p/d/ep-uid/282446/

http://repository.tue.nl/752008

http://purl.tue.nl/935863028769923.pdf

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Sunday 8 January 2012

It was as big as my head, I swear!: Biased spider size estimation in spider phobia

Journal of Anxiety Disorders
Volume 26, Issue 1, January 2012, Pages 20–24
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.janxdis.2011.08.009

Michael W. Vasey, Michael R. Vilensky, Jacqueline H. Heath, Casaundra N. Harbaugh, Adam G. Buffington, Russell H. Fazio

Department of Psychology, The Ohio State University, 1835 Neil Avenue, Columbus, OH 43210-1222

Abstract

The current study tested the association between fear and perception in spider phobic individuals (n = 57) within the context of a treatment outcome study. Participants completed 5 post-treatment Behavioral Approach Tasks (BATs) in which they encountered a live spider and were asked to provide spider size estimates. Consistent with predictions, results indicated that high levels of fear were associated with magnified perception of phobic stimuli. Specifically, we found a significant positive correlation between size estimates and self-reported fear while encountering spiders. Together with previous findings, these results further support the notion that fear is involved in the encoding and processing of perceptual information.

Highlights

► Test of association between fear and perception in spider phobics.
► Phobics encountered 5 spiders, reported fear, and estimated size of spiders.
► Significant correlation between size estimates and self-reported fear.
► High levels of fear associated with magnified perception of spiders.

Keywords

Phobias; Cognitive bias; Perceptual distortion

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0887618511001447

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Sunday 1 January 2012

When backyard fun turns to trauma: risk assessment of blunt ballistic impact trauma due to potato cannons

International Journal of Legal Medicine
January 2012, Volume 126, Issue 1, pp 13-18
Cover Date 2012-01-01
DOI 10.1007/s00414-011-0552-y

Matthias Frank (1,2), Oliver Jobski (3), Britta Bockholdt (4), Rico Grossjohann (1), Dirk Stengel (1,2), Axel Ekkernkamp (1,2), Peter Hinz (2)

1. Department of Trauma and Orthopedic Surgery, Ernst-Moritz-Arndt-University Greifswald, Sauerbruchstrasse, 17475, Greifswald, Germany
2. Department of Trauma and Orthopedic Surgery, Unfallkrankenhaus Berlin, Berlin, Germany
3. Landeskriminalamt (LKA) Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Rampe, Germany
4. Department of Legal Medicine, Ernst-Moritz-Arndt-University Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany

Abstract

Although potato cannons are an area of great interest among internet users, they are almost completely unknown in the medical community. These simple ballistic devices are made from plastic plumbing pipes and are powered with propellant gas from aerosol cans. By combustion of the gas–oxygen mixture, a high pressure is produced which propels the potato chunks through the barrel. It is the aim of this study to investigate the hazardous potential of these shooting devices. Test shots were performed using three illegally manufactured potato cannons that were confiscated by police authorities. Velocity, impulse, kinetic energy, and energy density were calculated. The risk of head and chest injuries was investigated by using Sturdivan's Blunt Criterion (BC), an energy based five parametric trauma model assessing the vulnerability to blunt weapons, projectile impacts, and behind-body-armor exposures. The probability of lethality due to blunt impact trauma to the chest was assessed using Sturdivan's lethality model. For potential head impacts, all test shots far exceeded the critical BC (head) value which corresponds to a 50% risk of skull fracture. The risk of injury with regard to chest impacts was similar. All but two test shots far exceeded the critical BC (chest) value corresponding to a 50% risk of sustaining a thoracic skeletal injury of Abbreviated Injury Scale 2 or 3. The probability of a lethal injury due to blunt chest impact was as high as 20%. To conclude, this work demonstrates that potato cannons should be considered dangerous weapons rather than as toys used by adventurous adolescents.

Ethical standards

Ethical approval was not required for this experimental investigation.

http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs00414-011-0552-y

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