Supercritical CO2-based solvents in next generation microelectronics processing

Large amount of chemicals and highly purified-water are needed in microelectronic manufacture. The ability of solutions to penetrate tiny spaces will become significantly more challenging as the feature size of semiconductor devices decreases to nanoscale dimensions and the functional complexity of integrated circuitries (ICs) ever increases. Supercritical fluids (SCFs) possess a unique combination of properties (no surface tension and gas-like viscosity) that can potentially be exploited for application in microelectronics manufacturing and processing in response to needs for material-compatible cleaning systems, small-dimension developing solvents, and low chemical-use processes. Recent microelec- tronics processes for cleaning and rinsing of patterned porous low-k dielectrics and drying of photo- resist in CO2-based solvents are the main focus of this review. Additional topics in supercritical fluid processing include spin coating of photoresists, development with nanoscale dimensions, metal deposition and silylation.     

Control,organization, and accounting: A genealogy of modern knowledge-power

Much social scientizing tends to be ahistorical, particularly with regard to its fundamental terms and constructs, which are implicitly defined atemporally as simply “being there,” the givens of discourse. The history of two such terms, “control” and “organization,” is investigated here. In an elaboration of Foucault's idea of power-knowledge relations, a two-stage history of the terms is set out linked to the historical emergence of accounting. In the first stage, the initial invention of the terms in the thirteenth century is aligned with the contemporaneous invention of the doubleentry system, with all these innovations embodying a new power of writing. However the constructs only develop their modern significance as forms of knowledge-power at a much later stage, following the establishment of a “disciplinary” power-knowledge nexus post-1800. Under this interpretation, accounting, control, and organization, far from being ahistorical givens of discourse, are constructs which help establish the modern world of “disciplinary,” that site where the power of expert knowledge must operate.     

Dance reveals symmetry especially in young men

Dance is believed to be important in the courtship of a variety of species, including humans, but nothing is known about what dance reveals about the underlying phenotypic--or genotypic--quality of the dancer. One measure of quality in evolutionary studies is the degree of bodily symmetry (fluctuating asymmetry, FA), because it measures developmental stability. Does dance quality reveal FA to the observer and is the effect stronger for male dancers than female? To answer these questions, we chose a population that has been measured twice for FA since 1996 (ref. 9) in a society (Jamaican) in which dancing is important in the lives of both sexes. Motion-capture cameras created controlled stimuli (in the form of videos) that isolated dance movements from all other aspects of visual appearance (including FA), and the same population evaluated these videos for dancing ability. Here we report that there are strong positive associations between symmetry and dancing ability, and these associations were stronger in men than in women. In addition, women rate dances by symmetrical men relatively more positively than do men, and more-symmetrical men value symmetry in women dancers more than do less-symmetrical men. In summary, dance in Jamaica seems to show evidence of sexual selection and to reveal important information about the dancer.     

Defective DNA single-strand break repair in spinocerebellar ataxia with axonal neuropathy-1

Spinocerebellar ataxia with axonal neuropathy-1 (SCAN1) is a neurodegenerative disease that results from mutation of tyrosyl phosphodiesterase 1 (TDP1). In lower eukaryotes, Tdp1 removes topoisomerase 1 (top1) peptide from DNA termini during the repair of double-strand breaks created by collision of replication forks with top1 cleavage complexes in proliferating cells. Although TDP1 most probably fulfils a similar function in human cells, this role is unlikely to account for the clinical phenotype of SCAN1, which is associated with progressive degeneration of post-mitotic neurons. In addition, this role is redundant in lower eukaryotes, and Tdp1 mutations alone confer little phenotype. Moreover, defects in processing or preventing double-strand breaks during DNA replication are most probably associated with increased genetic instability and cancer, phenotypes not observed in SCAN1 (ref. 8). Here we show that in human cells TDP1 is required for repair of chromosomal single-strand breaks arising independently of DNA replication from abortive top1 activity or oxidative stress. We report that TDP1 is sequestered into multi-protein single-strand break repair (SSBR) complexes by direct interaction with DNA ligase IIIalpha and that these complexes are catalytically inactive in SCAN1 cells. These data identify a defect in SSBR in a neurodegenerative disease, and implicate this process in the maintenance of genetic integrity in post-mitotic neurons.     

Association of the ADAM33 gene with asthma and bronchial hyperresponsiveness

Asthma is a common respiratory disorder characterized by recurrent episodes of coughing, wheezing and breathlessness. Although environmental factors such as allergen exposure are risk factors in the development of asthma, both twin and family studies point to a strong genetic component. To date, linkage studies have identified more than a dozen genomic regions linked to asthma. In this study, we performed a genome-wide scan on 460 Caucasian families and identified a locus on chromosome 20p13 that was linked to asthma (log(10) of the likelihood ratio (LOD), 2.94) and bronchial hyperresponsiveness (LOD, 3.93). A survey of 135 polymorphisms in 23 genes identified the ADAM33 gene as being significantly associated with asthma using case-control, transmission disequilibrium and haplotype analyses (P = 0.04 0.000003). ADAM proteins are membrane-anchored metalloproteases with diverse functions, which include the shedding of cell-surface proteins such as cytokines and cytokine receptors. The identification and characterization of ADAM33, a putative asthma susceptibility gene identified by positional cloning in an outbred population, should provide insights into the pathogenesis and natural history of this common disease.     

Effect of Splice Marking on Fabric Roll Planning

Minimising the fabric loss during spreading can reduce the total production costs of garment manufacturing. Although marker planning is a major determinant of material utilisation, considerable savings on materials also will be made from the area of spreading loss. In the spreading process, it is general to have variance on the fabric yardage between each fabric roll, and the number of splice markings on each cutting lay is also varied. This paper aim to study how the fabric roll planning and the number of splice marks of a cutting lay will affect the material usage in the spreading process. By using a genetic algorithm approach, the amount of fabric to be saved by optimising the fabric roll sequence was derived by comparing the best arrangement and the worst arrangement of the fabric roll sequences of a cutting lay. The result of the study showed that both fabric roll planning and the number of splice marking have effect on the fabric loss. The findings could help the apparel manufacturer to reduce the     

Hispid pocket mouse ( Chaetodipus hispidus ) in east-central and northeastern Nebraska

The hispid pocket mouse ( Chaetodipus hispidus ) occurs throughout the Great Plains, mainly west of the Missouri River. In Nebraska, this species likely occurs throughout the state, but records of occurrence were lacking for east-central and northeastern counties. During a survey in 2008 for the plains pocket mouse ( Perognathus flavescens ) in eastern Nebraska, we documented C. hispidus in 10 new counties, including a modest range expansion into northeastern Nebraska. Many individuals were captured on moderately compact soils consisting of silt, but some also were captured on sandy and other friable soils. Most individuals were captured in areas containing some exposed ground, but this may reflect our trap placement for P. flavescens. Individuals from northeastern and east-central Nebraska best resembled C. h. spilotus from southeastern Nebraska, with black coloration suffused on the dorsum, head, and dorsal side of the tail; however, our individuals generally lacked the characteristic bright ochraceous coloration along lateral lines and on the dorsum. Limited evidence supports a recent expansion in distribution within the region.