Sociocultural Meanings of Nanotechnology: Research Methodologies

This article identifies six social-science research methodologies that will be useful for charting the sociocultural meaning of nanotechnology: web-based questionnaires, vignette experiments, analysis of web linkages, recommender systems, quantitative content analysis, and qualitative textual analysis. Data from a range of sources are used to illustrate how the methods can delineate the intellectual content and institutional structure of the emerging nanotechnology culture. Such methods will make it possible in future to test hypotheses such as that there are two competing definitions of nanotechnology – the technical-scientific and the science-fiction – that are influencing public perceptions by different routes and in different directions.     

Isocaespitol,a new halogenated sesquiterpene from Laurencia caespitosa

The halogenated sesquiterpene isocaespitol (1) has been isolated from the marine alga Laurencia caespitosa Lamx and its structure determined by X-ray crystallography.     

Cross-linked coatings for electrophoretic separations in poly(dimethylsiloxane) microchannels

We have developed a strategy using ultraviolet light to polymerize mixed monomer solutions onto the surface of a poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) microdevice. By including monomers with different chemical properties, electrophoretic separations were optimized for a test set of analytes. The properties of surfaces grafted with a single neutral monomer, a neutral and a negative monomer, or a neutral, negative, and cross-linking monomer were assessed. The highest quality separations were achieved in channels with cross-linked coatings. The separation efficiency for biologically relevant peptides (kinase substrates) on these surfaces was as high as 18 600 theoretical plates in a 2.5 cm channel. The test peptides were fluorescein-AEEEIYGEFEAKKKK, fluorescein-GRPRAATFAEG, fluorescein-GRPRAA(T-PO(3))FAEG, fluorescein-DLDVPIP GRFDRRVSVAAE, and fluorescein-DLDVPIPGRFDRRV(S-PO(3))VAAE. Separations between two different peptides occurred in as little as 400 ms after injection into the separation channel. The simultaneous separation of five kinase and phosphatase substrates was also demonstrated. By carefully selecting mixtures of monomers with the appropriate properties, it may be possible to tailor the surface of PDMS for a large number of different electrophoretic separations.     

Rotational energy transfer in collisions between CO(X 1Sigma+, v= 2 , J = 0, 1, 4, and 6) and He at temperatures from 294 to 15 K

Infrared-vacuum ultraviolet double resonance experiments have been implemented in the ultracold environment provided by a Cinetique de Reaction en Ecoulement Supersonique Uniforme apparatus. With this technique rate coefficients of two kinds have been measured for rotational energy transfer in collisions between CO and He: (a) those for total removal from the selected rotational states J = 0, 1, 4, and 6 in the vibronic state X 1Sigma+, v = 2, and (b) those for transfer between selected initial and specific final states. Using different Laval nozzles, results have been obtained at several different temperatures: 294, 149, 63, 27, and 15 K. The thermally averaged cross sections for total removal by collisions with He show only slight variations both with initial rotational state and with temperature. The variation of state-to-state rate coefficients with DeltaJ show several general features: (i) a decrease with increasing DeltaJ; (ii) a propensity to favor odd DeltaJ over even DeltaJ; and (iii) at lower temperatures, the distribution of rate coefficients against DeltaJ becomes narrower, and decreases in J are increasingly favored over increases in J, a preference which is most strongly seen for higher initial values of J. The results are shown to be in remarkably good agreement with those obtained in ab initio scattering calculations by Dalgarno and co-workers [Astrophys. J. 571, 1015 (2002)].     

Determination of psilocin and psilocybin using flow injection analysis with acidic potassium permanganate and tris(2,2'-bipyridyl)ruthenium(II) chemiluminescence detection respectively

A simple, rapid and sensitive method for the determination of psilocin and psilocybin is described. This is the first report on the determination of psilocin and psilocybin using flow injection analysis with acidic potassium permanganate and tris(2,2′-bipyridyl)ruthenium(II) chemiluminescence. The limits of detection (signal-to-noise ratio = 3) are 9 × 10⁻¹⁰ M and 3 × 10⁻¹⁰ M for psilocin and psilocybin, respectively.A concise synthetic route for psilocin in three steps from readily available starting materials is also described. The structures were elucidated on the basis of spectroscopic data.     

The total synthesis of (±) kawain via a hetero-diels-alder cycloaddition

The hetero-Diels-Alder reaction between 1,3-dimethoxy-1-trimethylsilyloxybutadiene $\text{4}$, and cinnamaldehyde$\text{5}$, produces (±) kawain in 75% and 84% yield respectively when catalyzed by Eu(fod)₃ or Yb(fod)₃. When Ag(fod) is employed as the catalyst a unique condensation reaction occurs which produces two acyclic diastereomers in 72% yield.     

Measuring and modeling the transport of fission products in unsaturated prairie soil

Summary In 1951, 6.7 liters of an aqueous acidic solution of irradiated uranium (360 GBq) leaked from a buried storage tank into unsaturated prairie soil, where it has remained, undisturbed. In October 2001, sonic drilling was conducted to recover core samples around and below the tank location. This paper describes the measurements and investigative approaches being pursued to determine the transport properties of the various fission and daughter products and actinides. Separate effects laboratory experiments are also being conducted involving both inert and radioactive samples in similar soil, to examine the effects on transport properties (diffusion and sorption) of temperature, recharge and discharge rates, concentration and soil porosity. Finally, transport modeling approaches are discussed.     

Tailoring the surface properties of poly(dimethylsiloxane) microfluidic devices

Poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) is an attractive material for microelectrophoretic applications because of its ease of fabrication, low cost, and optical transparency. However, its use remains limited compared to that of glass. A major reason is the difficulty of tailoring the surface properties of PDMS. We demonstrate UV grafting of co-mixed monomers to customize the surface properties of PDMS microfluidic channels in a simple one-step process. By co-mixing a neutral monomer with a charged monomer in different ratios, properties between those of the neutral monomer and those of the charged monomer could be selected. Mixtures of four different neutral monomers and two different charged monomers were grafted onto PDMS surfaces. Functional microchannels were fabricated from PDMS halves grafted with each of the different mixtures. By varying the concentration of the charged monomer, microchannels with electrophoretic mobilities between +4 x 10(-4) cm2/(V s) and -2 x 10(-4) cm2/(V s) were attainable. In addition, both the contact angle of the coated surfaces and the electrophoretic mobility of the coated microchannels were stable over time and upon exposure to air. By carefully selecting mixtures ofmonomers with the appropriate properties, it may be possible to tailor the surface of PDMS for a large number of different applications.     

The Primitive Ideals of some Étale Groupoid <Emphasis Type="Italic">C</Emphasis><Superscript>∗</Superscript>-Algebras

We consider the Deaconu–Renault groupoid of an action of a finitely generated free abelian monoid by local homeomorphisms of a locally compact Hausdorff space. We catalogue the primitive ideals of the associated groupoid C ^?-algebra. For a special class of actions we describe the Jacobson topology.