Children's detection of pure-tone signals: informational masking with contralateral maskers

When normal-hearing adults and children are required to detect a 1000-Hz tone in a random-frequency multitone masker, masking is often observed in excess of that predicted by traditional auditory filter models. The excess masking is called informational masking. Though individual differences in the effect are large, the amount of informational masking is typically much greater in young children than in adults [Oh et al., J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 109, 2888-2895 (2001)]. One factor that reduces informational masking in adults is spatial separation of the target tone and masker. The present study was undertaken to determine whether or not a similar effect of spatial separation is observed in children. An extreme case of spatial separation was used in which the target tone was presented to one ear and the random multitone masker to the other ear. This condition resulted in nearly complete elimination of masking in adults. In young children, however, presenting the masker to the nontarget ear typically produced only a slight decrease in overall masking and no change in informational masking. The results for children are interpreted in terms of a model that gives equal weight to the auditory filter outputs from each ear.     

Tuning emissive states in electrogenerated chemiluminescence

Electrogenerated chemiluminescence (ECL) arising from the reaction of radical ions has previously be shown to arise from a variety of states including excited singlets, triplets, excimers, and exciplexes. In this work we describe two systems that form emissive states in ECL with different properties than those when formed with photoluminescence. The first system involves the reaction of the anthracene radical anion with the radical cation of 4,N,N-trimethylaniline. ECL from this system exhibited an exciplex whose energy and intensity relative to the emission from the anthracene singlet could be tuned by adjusting the solvent permittivity and ionic strength. Under conditions considered extreme for electrochemical experiments, no added electrolyte in dimethoxyethane, the relative intensity of the anthracene-related exciplex, formed from the encounter complex, was 8 times greater and red-shifted from that generated by photoluminescence in the same solution with 100-fold exciplex partner added. In the second system examined, the benzophenone radical anion reacted with the radical cation of either phenoxathiin or 4-methoxythioanisole; the ECL emission was from the benzophenone triplet state and an excimer. The excimer, a species not seen with photoluminescence, predominated as the benzophenone concentration was elevated into the low millimolar range. The results from these two simple systems clearly demonstrate that the radical ion annihilation pathway of ECL can generate different emissive states than those formed following photoexcitation.     

Synthesis of a novel bicyclic nucleoside restricted to an S-type conformation and initial evaluation of its hybridization properties when incorporated into oligodeoxynucleotides.

The phosphoramidite (1S,3R,4S)-3-(2-cyanoethoxy(diisopropylamino)phosphinoxymethyl)-5-N-(4-monomethoxytrityl)-1-(uracil-1-yl)-5-aza-2-oxabicyclo[2.2.1]heptane 18 of a novel bicyclic nucleoside structure was synthesized from the known 1-(3'-deoxy-beta-D-psicofuranosyl)uracil 3. Conformational analysis of its structure verified its expected S-type furanose conformation, and the secondary amino group in the 4'-position allowed for incorporation into oligonucleotides using 5' --> 3' directed oligonucleotide synthesis as previously described for phosphoramidates. Thermal denaturation studies showed rather large decreases in duplex stabilities of -4.3 and -2.7 degrees C per modification toward complementary DNA and RNA, respectively.     

Routine analysis by high precision gas chromatography/mass selective detector/isotope ratio mass spectrometry to 0.1 parts per mil

Stable isotope methods are potentially quite useful for validating natural or enhanced mineral degradation of contaminants. For this reason, a continuous flow gas chromatograph (GC), isotope ratio mass spectrometer (IRMS) has been coupled with a quadrupole mass selective detector (MSD) to allow simultaneous mass spectral and stable carbon isotope ratio data to be obtained from a single chromatographic analysis. This allows the target contaminant and any extra-cellular degradation intermediates to be both qualified and quantified. Previously acceptable limits of precision (0.3 parts per mil) are undesirable given the small fractionation observed during aerobic degradation. To further understand the fate of organic contaminants and to gain information about the metabolic degradative pathway employed by a microorganism, routine isotopic analyses on a range of analytes have been performed. Quantities of sample producing mass-44 ion beam signal (I(44)) of 2 x 10(-10) to 1 x 10(-8) A were analysed. When the IRMS was tuned for high sensitivity, ion source nonlinearities were overcome by peak height correction from an algorithm that was produced using known isotopic standards of varying concentrations. This led to sample accuracy of <0.01 per thousand and sample precision of 0.1 per thousand. Copyright 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Frequency scan for the analysis of high mass ions generated by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization in a paul trap

An ion trap has been modified for the analysis of high mass ions generated by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization. Samples are deposited on a probe tip and introduced directly onto the hyperbolically shaped surface of one endcap. All three electrodes - both the endcaps and the ring electrode - are insulated so that the radio frequency (Rf) voltage may be applied to the center ring electrode and the inverted Rf voltage to the endcaps. By using low frequencies (below 100 kHz) and low amplitudes (below 200 V), high mass singly charged ions may be trapped and analyzed by a frequency sweep at constant amplitude. In the high mass range (60-160 kDa), this instrument showed good sensitivity, signal-to-noise ratios, and mass resolution. Copyright 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Trinitrobenzenesulfonic acid: a chromophore,electrophore and pre-column derivatizing agent for high-performance liquid chromatography of alkylamines

Trinitrobenzenesulfonic acid is shown to be an ideal pre-column derivatizing agent for high-performance liquid chromatography of alkylamines. The reaction is quantitative and the trinitrophenyl derivatives are amenable to ultra-violet and electrochemical detection. Electrochemical detection with either a glassy carbon or pressure-annealed pyrolytic graphite working electrode provides lower detection limits than ultraviolet detection and thus is preferable for trace determinations.     

Assignment of ring size in isopropylidene acetals by 13C N.M.R.

Cyclic isopropylidene acetals containing 5,6 and 7-membered rings can be distinguished by measurement of the ¹³C chemical shifts of the acetal carbon and the methyl groups.