We report results of glass transition (T(g)) measurements for polymer thin films using atomic force microscopy (AFM). The AFM mode, shear modulation force microscopy (SMFM), involves measuring the temperature-dependent shear force on a tip modulated parallel to the sample surface. Using this method we have measured the surface T(g) of thin (17-500 nm) polymer films and found that T(g) is indepe...

Activities with high spinal loads should be avoided by patients with back problems. Awareness about these activities and knowledge of the associated loads are important for the proper design and pre-clinical testing of spinal implants. The loads on an instrumented vertebral body replacement have been telemetrically measured for approximately 1000 combinations of activities and parameters in 5 p...

In this paper, the problem of an oscillator traversing an elastically supported continuum is studied. The flexibility in the boundaries of the continuum is modeled by linear, transverse springs. The response of the continuum and the dynamic interaction force between the moving oscillator and the continuum are evaluated by an eigenfunction expansion series. To circumvent convergence difficulties...

A new machining process model that explicitly includes the effects of the edge hone is presented. A force balance is conducted on the lower boundary of the deformation zone leading to a machining force model. The machining force components are an explicit function of the edge radius and shear angle. An increase in edge radius leads to not only increased ploughing forces but also an increase in ...

The development of technologies that could be used by the U.S. beef packing industry to accurately characterize beef for tenderness has been a major focus of this laboratory. Because longissimus comprises a higher proportion of total carcass value than any other muscle and there is more carcassto-carcass tenderness variation in longissimus than any other major beef muscle (Shackelford et al., 1...

Near-infrared reflectance spectra (1,100 to 2,498 nm) were collected on beef longissimus thoracis steaks for the purpose of establishing the feasibility of predicting meat tenderness by spectroscopy. Partial least squares (PLS) analysis (up to 20 factors) and multiple linear regression (MLR) were used to predict cooked longissimus Warner-Bratzler shear (WBS) force values from spectra of steaks ...

Purveyors are concerned about the potential food safety risk of nonintact meat products and are seeking strategies to ensure adequate meat tenderness without blade tenderization. This study was conducted to determine the effects of blade tenderization and time and temperature of aging on beef longissimus lumborum (LL) and gluteus medius (GM) tenderness. Beef strip loins (n = 300) and top sirloi...