Visual process analyser

Droplet size distributions of the emulsions were determined by visual process analysis, ViPA (Visual Process Analyser, JORIN, UK). A small sub-sample of the stable emulsion was diluted in toluene and analyzed immediately to avoid changes of the droplet distribution. Droplets were selected according to a specific range of the shape factor, to avoid counting droplet flocculates as single droplets. The shape factor was defined as (471 x area)/perimeter with a possible range from 0 to 1, where the shape factor of a perfect circle was one. About 50 000 droplet counts produced the reported distribution functions. 

A growing number of studies have begun to examine whether early visual processing deficits are endophenotypes of schizophrenia (See DeLisi this volume). Endophenotypes are biological markers of the disease are familial (e.g., are seen in first degree relatives of patients with schizophrenia) and can be used as phenotypes in genetic analyses. 

A natural extension of analytical automation is some means of data processing all the results that are generated. This usually takes the form of a central computer which accepts information from different analysers for presentation in a useful manner. The identification of a sample and the tests performed are typed in using a keyboard and the computer collates all the data on each sample. As well as collecting information, computing and statistically assessing results, an important facility of the computer lies in its ability to store information for future recall via a visual display unit. 

Excel does not provide functions for the factor analysis of matrices. Further, Excel does not support iterative processes. Consequently, there are no Excel examples in Chapter 5, Model-Free Analyses. There are vast numbers of free add-ins available on the internet, e.g. for the Singular Value Decomposition. Alternatively, it is possible to write Visual Basic programs for the task and link them to Excel. We strongly believe that such algorithms are much better written in Matlab and decided not to include such options in our Excel collection. 

Gel electrophoresis provides a simple method for separating complex protein mixtures. Because proteins are visualized using stains that may not be linearly incorporated in the gel, the intensity of the stained bands may be poorly correlated with the amount of protein. For this reason, gel electrophoresis is at best a semiquantitative technique capable of generating relative purity results. In CE, separations are commonly performed in free solution, i.e., in the absence of any support such as gel matrices. This allows the replacement of the capillary s content in between analyses and therefore the automation of the process. The use of UV-transparent fused-silica capillaries enables direct on-line optical detection of focused protein zones, eliminating the requirement for sample staining. The detection systems available to CE provide true quantitative capabilities. 

When large numbers of chromatograms are analyzed visually from chart paper or tabular data, it is difficult to detect minor (or perhaps major) significant differences that may be present in samples from different locations or differences that could be attributed to changing physiochemical processes. A typical gas chromatogram of a PCB mixture (Figure 2) represents a 1 1 1 1 mixture of Aroclors 1242, 1248, 1254, and 1260. It contains more than 100 component peaks, of which 69 were selected for use in these analyses. 

Problems of classification of 18th century painted-printed Chinese and Western silk textiles are discussed with emphasis on how nondestructive X-ray fluorescent (XRF) analyses of pigment-dye pastes and paints can be combined with visually observable physical characteristics, painterly techniques, and art historical research to separate Chinese silks from Western ones. This unique documentation process is the result of our joint, 2-year study and shows how textile connoisseurship can be reinforced with scientific data. Thirty painted-printed 18th century silks from the textile and costume collections of the Cooper-Hewitt Museum The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York Musee Historique des Tissus in Lyon, France National Museum of American History Philadelphia Museum of Art Rhode Island Historical Society and The Henry Francis du Pont Winterthur Museum were examined and analyzed by XRF for this study. 

The radiographic study eliminated the most important arguments used against the authenticity of the horse. However the fact that the horse was proven to be cast with the lost-wax process did not automatically reestablish its authenticity. Careful visual examinations, elemental analyses, studies on corrosion products, metallurgical investigations, and various other technical studies were necessary to demonstrate that all physical characteristics of the bronze were entirely consistent... 

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