Alpha-Decay Half-Lives of Superheavy Nuclei

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Budaca, A. I.; Silisteanu, I.; Silisteanu, A. O.; Anghel, C. I.

2010-01-01

Half-lives given by self-consistent models for the α-clustering and resonance scattering are calculated and compared with data and empirical estimates. The major influence of the pairing, deformed shell closures and screening corrections is evidenced in the systematics of half-lives and provides a convenient basis for the interpretation of observed trends of the data and for prediction of new results. The very small widths of α-resonances observed experimentally in fusion-evaporation reactions, are interpreted as resonance levels of radioactive products, and such a correlation contributes directly to the study of the nuclear structure on the basis of decay data.

Half-lives of 132La and 135La

Science.gov (United States)

Abel, E. P.; Clause, H. K.; Fonslet, J.; Nickles, R. J.; Severin, G. W.

2018-03-01

The half-lives of 135La and 132La were determined via serial gamma spectroscopy, and the half-life of 135La was further determined by a high-precision ionization-chamber measurement. The results are 18.91(2) hr for 135La and 4.59(4) hr for 132La compared with the previously compiled values of 19.5(2) hr and 4.8(2) hr, respectively. These lanthanum isotopes comprise a medically interesting system with positron emitter 132La and Auger-electron emitter 135La forming a theranostic pair for internal diagnostics and therapeutics. The precise half-lives are necessary for proper evaluation of their value in medicine and for a more representative tabulation of nuclear data.

Beta-decay half-lives at the N=28 shell closure

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Grevy, S.; Angelique, J.C.; Baumann, P.; Borcea, C.; Buta, A.; Canchel, G.; Catford, W.N.; Courtin, S.; Daugas, J.M.; Oliveira, F. de; Dessagne, P.; Dlouhy, Z.; Knipper, A.; Kratz, K.L.; Lecolley, F.R.; Lecouey, J.L.; Lehrsenneau, G.; Lewitowicz, M.; Lienard, E.; Lukyanov, S.; Marechal, F.; Miehe, C.; Mrazek, J.; Negoita, F.; Orr, N.A.; Pantelica, D.; Penionzhkevich, Y.; Peter, J.; Pfeiffer, B.; Pietri, S.; Poirier, E.; Sorlin, O.; Stanoiu, M.; Stefan, I.; Stodel, C.; Timis, C

2004-08-05

Measurements of the beta-decay half-lives of neutron-rich nuclei (Mg-Ar) in the vicinity of the N=28 shell closure are reported. Some 22 half-lives have been determined, 12 of which for the first time. Particular emphasis is placed on the results for the Si isotopes, the half-lives of which have been extended from N=25 to 28. Comparison with QRPA calculations suggests that {sup 42}Si is strongly deformed. This is discussed in the light of a possible weakening of the spin-orbit potential.

The half-lives of biological activity of some pesticides in water

OpenAIRE

Kyaw Myint Oo,

2001-01-01

In the absence of analytical methods, the half-lives of biological activity of pesticides can be estimated by bioassays. To determine the half-lives of biological acivity of pesticides to fish, static bioassays were conducted in the laboratory with ten different formulations of pesticides using Labeo rohita as a bio-indicator. The half-lives of biological activity for ten different pesticides in soft water at pH 7.5 and 27░C, ranged from 4.6 days to 11.8 days. The half-life of biological acti...

Biologically effective dose (BED) for interstitial seed implants containing a mixture of radionuclides with different half-lives

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen Zhe; Nath, Ravinder

2003-01-01

Purpose: To develop a tool for evaluating interstitial seed implants that contain a mixture of radionuclides with different half-lives and to demonstrate its utility by examining the clinical implications of prescribing to an isodose surface for such an implant. Methods and Materials: A linear-quadratic model for continuous low dose rate irradiation was developed for permanent implants containing a mixture of radionuclides. Using a generalized equation for the biologically effective dose (BED), the effects of cell proliferation and sublethal damage repair were examined systematically for implants containing a mixture of radionuclides. A head-and-neck permanent seed implant that contained a mixture of 125 I and 103 Pd seeds was used to demonstrate the utility of the generalized BED. Results: An equation of BED for implants containing a mixture of radionuclides with different half-lives was obtained. In such an implant, the effective cell kill was shown to depend strongly on the relative dose contributions from each radionuclide type; dose delivered by radionuclides with shorter half-life always resulted in more cell kill for any given sublethal damage repair and cell proliferation rates. Application of the BED formula to an implant containing a mixture of 125 I and 103 Pd seeds demonstrates that the conventional dose prescription to an isodose surface is not unique for such an implant. When the prescription dose was based on existing clinical experience of using 125 I seeds alone, mixing 103 Pd seeds with 125 I seeds would increase the cell kill. On the other hand, if the prescription dose were based on existing clinical experience of using 103 Pd seeds alone, mixing 125 I seeds with 103 Pd seeds in the same implant would create radiobiologically 'cold' spots (i.e., an increase in cell survival) at locations where a major portion of the prescription dose is contributed by the 125 I seeds. For fast-growing tumors, these 'cold' spots can become significant

Interplay of quasiparticle-vibration coupling and pairing correlations on β-decay half-lives

Science.gov (United States)

Niu, Y. F.; Niu, Z. M.; Colò, G.; Vigezzi, E.

2018-05-01

The nuclear β-decay half-lives of Ni and Sn isotopes, around the closed shell nuclei 78Ni and 132Sn, are investigated by computing the distribution of the Gamow-Teller strength using the Quasiparticle Random Phase Approximation (QRPA) with quasiparticle-vibration coupling (QPVC), based on ground-state properties obtained by Hartree-Fock-Bogoliubov (HFB) calculations. We employ the effective interaction SkM* and a zero-range effective pairing force. The half-lives are strongly reduced by including the QPVC. We study in detail the effects of isovector (IV) and isoscalar (IS) pairing. Increasing the IV strength tends to increase the lifetime for nuclei in the proximity of, but lighter than, the closed-shell ones in QRPA calculations, while the effect is significantly reduced by taking into account the QPVC. On the contrary, the IS pairing mainly plays a role for nuclei after the shell closure. Increasing its strength decreases the half-lives, and the effect at QRPA and QRPA+QPVC level is comparable. The effect of IS pairing is particularly pronounced in the case of the Sn isotopes, where it turns out to be instrumental to obtain good agreement with experimental data.

Variability of Pesticide Dissipation Half-Lives in Plants

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Fantke, Peter; Juraske, Ronnie

2013-01-01

on the variability across substances, plant species and harvested plant components and finally discuss different substance, plant and environmental aspects influencing pesticide dissipation. Measured half-lives in harvested plant materials range from around 1 hour for pyrethrins in leaves of tomato and pepper fruit...... to 918 days for pyriproxyfen in pepper fruits under cold storage conditions. Ninety-five percent of all half-lives fall within the range between 0.6 and 29 days. Our results emphasize that future experiments are required to analyze pesticide–plant species combinations that have so far not been covered...

Spontaneous-fission half-lives for even nuclei with Z> or =92

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Randrup, J.; Larsson, S.E.; Moller, P.; Nilsson, S.G.; Pomorski, K.; Sobiczewski, A.

1976-01-01

The spontaneous-fission process for doubly even nuclei with Z> or =92 is studied in a semiempirical WKB framework. One-dimensional fission barrier potentials are established from theoretical deformation-energy surfaces based on the droplet model and the modified-oscillator model. The effects of axial asymmetry as well as reflection asymmetry have been taken into account. Macroscopic (irrotational flow) inertial-mass functions and, alternatively, microscopic (cranking model) inertial mass parameters have been employed for the calculation of the fission half-lives. With one over-all normalization parameter it is possible to fit the experimental half-lives to within a factor of 20 on the average. The resulting effective inertial-mass functions are used to estimate the stability of the transactinide elements. Only minor differences with previous estimates for the r process and superheavy nuclei are encountered

Urban reconciliation ecology: the potential of living roofs and walls.

Science.gov (United States)

Francis, Robert A; Lorimer, Jamie

2011-06-01

Reconciling human and non-human use of urban regions to support biological conservation represents a major challenge for the 21st century. The concept of reconciliation ecology, by which the anthropogenic environment may be modified to encourage non-human use and biodiversity preservation without compromising societal utilization, potentially represents an appropriate paradigm for urban conservation given the generally poor opportunities that exist for reserve establishment and ecological restoration in urban areas. Two habitat improvement techniques with great potential for reconciliation ecology in urban areas are the installation of living roofs and walls, which have been shown to support a range of taxa at local scales. This paper evaluates the reconciliation potential of living roofs and walls, in particular highlighting both ecological and societal limitations that need to be overcome for application at the landscape scale. We further consider that successful utilization of living roofs and walls for urban reconciliation ecology will rely heavily on the participation of urban citizens, and that a 'citizen science' model is needed to facilitate public participation and support and to create an evidence base to determine their effectiveness. Living roofs and walls are just one aspect of urban reconciliation ecology, but are particularly important 'bottom-up' techniques for improving urban biodiversity that can be performed directly by the citizenry. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Mass Measurement of Very Short Half-Lived Nuclei

CERN Document Server

Duma, M; Iacob, V E; Thibault, C

2002-01-01

The MISTRAL (Mass measurements at ISolde with a Transmission RAdiofrequency spectrometer on-Line) experiment exploits a rapid measurement technique to make accurate mass determinations of very short-lived nuclei. The physics goals are to elucidate new nuclear structure effects and constrain nuclear mass models in regions of interest to nuclear astrophysics.\\\\ \\\\The spectrometer, installed in May 97, performed as promised in the proposal with mass resolution exceeding 100,000. In its first experiment in July 1998, neutron-rich Na isotopes having half-lives as short as 31 ms were measured. A second experiment in November 1998 enabled us to improve the measurement precision of the isotopes $^{26-30}$Na to about 20 keV. The measurement program continues as experiment IS 373.

Ecological half-lives in the Faeroe Islands' and in Danish agricultural ecosystems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aarkrog, A.

1992-01-01

It is important to be conversant with the ecological halving times when determining doses from radioactive pollution of the environment. This subject is elaborated and dose calculations and transfer factors are dealt with. It is stated that Sr-90 shows a longer ecological halving time then Cs-137. Cs-137 from global fallout has a longer halving time than that originating from the Chernobyl accident. Unexpectedly, global fallout in Danish food products has a longer ecological halving time than is found in products from the Faroe Islands. These factors are discussed further. (AB)

Theoretical studies on the decay half-lives of hyper and normal ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

K P SANTHOSH

2018-02-10

Feb 10, 2018 ... half-lives from hypernuclei, similar formalisms as the normal nuclei can be used. Here we have used the well- established Coulomb and proximity potential model. (CPPM) with the inclusion of lambda-nucleus potential for calculating the α decay half-lives of hypernuclei. In CPPM, the interacting potential ...

Uranium half-lives: a critical review

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Holden, N.E.

1981-01-01

The experimental data are evaluated and values for the spontaneous fission half-life of 238 U and the total half-lives for 232 U, 233 U, 234 U, 235 U, 236 U, and 238 U are recommended. Also the variation of the isotopic abundance of 234 U in nature and the error involved in the assumption of secular equilibrium between 234 U and 238 U in the determination of the specific activity of natural uranium samples are discussed. The recommended half-life values and 95% confidence limits are: 238 U spontaneous fission: 8.09 +- 0.26 x 10 15 years; 232 U total: 69.8 +- 1.0 years; 233 U total: 1.592 +- 0.002 x 10 5 years; 234 U total: 2.454 +- 0.006 x 10 5 years; 235 U total: 7.037 +- 0.011 x 10 8 years; 236 U total: 2.342 +- 0.003 x 10 7 years 238 U total: 4.468 +- 0.005 x 10 9 years

Estimating Half-Lives for Pesticide Dissipation from Plants

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Fantke, Peter; Gillespie, Brenda W.; Juraske, Ronnie

2014-01-01

Pesticide risk and impact assessment models critically rely on and are sensitive to information describing dissipation from plants. Despite recent progress, experimental data are not available for all relevant pesticide−plant combinations, and currently no model predicting plant dissipation...... accounts for the influence of substance properties, plant characteristics, temperature, and study conditions. In this study, we propose models to estimate half-lives for pesticide dissipation from plants and provide recommendations for how to use our results. On the basis of fitting experimental...... under field conditions. Half-lives range from 0.2 days for pyrethrins to 31 days for dalapon. Parameter estimates are provided to correct for specific plant species, temperatures, and study conditions. Finally, we propose a predictive regression model for pesticides without available measured...

Theoretical studies on the α decay half-lives of hyper and normal ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

The α decay half-lives of hyper and normal isotopes of Po nuclei are studied in the present work. The inclusion of Λ – N interaction changes the half-life for α decay. The theoretical predictions on the α decay half-lives of normal Po isotopes are compared with experimental results and are seen to be matching well with each ...

Ecological half-time of radiocaesium from the Chernobyl accident and from nuclear weapons fallout as measured in a South Swedish population

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Raeaef, C.L.; Hemdal, B.; Mattsson, S.

2000-01-01

From 1960 to 1980 and between 1987 and 1994 the whole-body content of 137 Cs, and when possible also 134 Cs, was measured in a south Swedish population living in the city of Lund (55.7degN, 13.2degE), the so-called Lund reference group. The results have now been analysed in order to estimate the effective ecological half-time of fallout radiocaesium in that area, which was subjected to a total deposition of about 2 kBq m -2 of pre-Chernobyl 137 Cs from nuclear weapons testing and 2 kBq m -2 of 137 Cs from Chernobyl fallout in May 1986. The contribution of radiocaesium in man from the nuclear weapons tests in the 1960s and 70s still gave a significant contribution to the total 137 Cs levels in the post-Chernobyl study period (1987-1994) of about 0.4 Bq per kg body weight, which was about 10% of the peak post-Chernobyl concentration level of 137 Cs (3.5-4 Bq kg -1 ). The effective ecological half-time for 137 Cs from Chernobyl was found to be 2.4±0.2 years. The aggregated transfer factor, T ag , was estimated to be 1.7 Bq kg -1 /kBq m -2 . These values may be compared with a short-term effective ecological half-time of 1.3 years found in the reference group in the sixties, and an aggregated transfer factor of 9.8 Bq kg -1 /kBq m -2 . The average committed individual effective dose from ingested 137 Cs from Chernobyl fallout was estimated to be 0.02 mSv and from the nuclear weapons fallout to 0.25 mSv. The ten times higher dose contribution from the latter source is attributed to a higher transfer of cesium through the food chain to man when the radionuclide is deposited continuously on ground during the growing seasons than compared with thc single deposit event of Chernobyl, which occurred before the Swedish growing season. (author)

Study of ^{14}C Cluster Decay Half-Lives of Heavy Deformed Nuclei

Science.gov (United States)

Shamami, S. Rahimi; Pahlavani, M. R.

2018-01-01

A theoretical model based on deformed Woods-Saxon, Coulomb and centrifugal terms are constructed to evaluate the half-lives for the cluster radioactivity of various super heavy nuclei. Deformation have been applied on all parts of their potential containing nuclear barrier for cluster decay. Also, both parent and daughter nuclei are considered to be deformed. The calculated results of ^{14}C cluster radioactivity half-lives are compared with available experimental data. A satisfactory agreement between theoretical and measured data is achieved. Also, obtained half-lives for each decay family is agreed with Geiger-Nuttall law.

Half-lives of some radionuclides

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lagoutine, F.; Legrand, J.; Bac, C.

1978-01-01

The half-lives of nine radionuclides have been determined, and the results are as follows: 56 Co:77.12 +- 0.20 days: 67 Ga: 78.33 +- 0.10 hr; 90 Sr: 28.15 +- 0.10 years; sup(103m)Rh: 56.112 +- 0.028mn; 111 In: 2.802 +- 0.003 days; sup(125m)Te: 57.40 +- 0.15 days; 131 I: 8.020 +- 0.003 days; 139 Ce: 137.59 +- 0.12 days; 152 Eu: 13.10 +- 0.15 years. The results are compared with the most recent values in the literature. (author)

Measurements of half-lives of short-lived nuclides

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Elmali, A.

2001-01-01

In this work 19 F(n,p) 19 O (26.94 sec.), 76 Ge(n,2n) 75m Ge(47.73 sec.), 23 Na(n,p) 23 Ne (37.24 sec.) 23 Na(n,α) 20 F (11.12 sec.), 68 Zn(n,p) 68g Cu (31.11 sec.), 46 Ti(n,P) 46m Sc (18.70 sec.), 19 F(n,α) 16 N (7.13 sec.) and 92 Mo(n,2n) 91m Mo (65.40 sec.) half lives were determined. The half life measurements were performed utilizing the Sames T-400 neutron generator at the Physics Department of Cekmece Nuclear Research and Training Center, Istanbul. Fast neutrons (∼ 14 MeV) were produced via T(d,n)He reaction in a TIT target which was bombarded by 300 KeV deuterons. The samples bombarded with 14 MeV neutrons were transferred with a fast sample transport system from neutron source to the HPGe detector were the gamma measurements are performed. The time elapsed during the transport of the sample between the two stations were about 0.5 sec. in the experimental data, corrections were made for coincidence summing, pules pile up, dead time and background elimination. In order to test the accuracy and the sensitivity of the half-life measurement system used in this work, the 19 O half life form the 19 F(n,p) 19 O reaction were measured first and compared with the data given in a recently published JAERI report

Systematic study of α half-lives of superheavy nuclei

Science.gov (United States)

Budaca, A. I.; Silisteanu, I.

2014-03-01

Two different descriptions of the α-decay process, namely, the shell model rate theory and phenomenological description are emphasized to investigate the α-decay properties of SHN. These descriptions are shortly presented and illustrated by their results. Special attention is given to the shell structure and resonance scattering effects due to which they exist and decay. A first systematics of α-decay properties of SHN was performed by studying the half-life vs. energy correlations in terms of atomic number and mass number. Such a systematics shows that the transitions between even-even nuclei are favored, while all other transitions with odd nucleons are prohibited. The accuracy of experimental and calculated α-half-lives is illustrated by the systematics of these results.

Decay Curves and Half-Lives of Gamma-Emitting States from a Study of Prompt Fission Gamma Radiation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Albinsson, H [Chalmers Univ. of Technology, Goeteborg (SE)

1971-04-15

Measurements were made on the time distributions of the prompt gamma radiation emitted from fragments in the thermal-neutron induced fission of 235U. The gamma radiation emitted during different time intervals after the fission event was studied with the help of a collimator, the position of which was changed along the path of the fragments. In this way decay curves were obtained from which half-lives could be estimated. Time components with half-lives of 7.5, 18 and 60 ps were found and their relative intensities were calculated. Half-lives and associated intensities are in good agreement with earlier data from uranium and californium fission. Problems involved in this type of study are discussed. The collimator technique has proved to be effective for determination of half lives down to less than 10 ps

Long-lived heavy mass elements half-lives (A > 125)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Holden, N.E.

1985-01-01

Reported values of half-lives of intermediate mass and heavy elements are evaluated. The evaluation analysis estimates the systematic error the resulting standard deviation. Recommended values are then presented for 128 Te, 130 Te, 129 I, 138 La, 144 Nd, 145 Nd, /sup 146,147,148/Sm, 152 Gd, 154 Dy, 176 Lu, 174 Hf, 180 Ta, 187 Re, 186 Os, 190 Pt, /sup 204,205/Pb, and /sup 230,232/Th. 103 refs., 21 tabs

Noncharacteristic half-lives in radioactive decay

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Corral, Alvaro; Font, Francesc; Camacho, Juan

2011-01-01

Half-lives of radionuclides span more than 50 orders of magnitude. We characterize the probability distribution of this broad-range data set at the same time that we explore a method for fitting power laws and testing goodness-of-fit. It is found that the procedure proposed recently by Clauset et al.[SIAM Rev. 51, 661 (2009)] does not perform well as it rejects the power-law hypothesis even for power-law synthetic data. In contrast, we establish the existence of a power-law exponent with a value around 1.1 for the half-life density, which can be explained by the sharp relationship between decay rate and released energy, for different disintegration types. For the case of alpha emission, this relationship constitutes an original mechanism of power-law generation.

Evaluation of the 32P effective and biological half-lives in APIS MELLIFERA L. var. ADANSONI (hymenoptera, apidae)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nascimento Filho, V.F.; Wiendl, F.M.; Sgrillo, R.B.

1980-01-01

It is important in radioisotopes insect labelling to know the influence of the labelling technique on the counting rate variability between the insects of a population and the effective and biological half-lives. If was noted that the labelling of bees can be done with a single feeding of sucrose solution containing 32 P on a 0.02 μCi/bee basis. The bee colony labelled by this method showed coefficient of variation of approximately 10% in the decimal logarihm of counting rate of 100 bees. The feed containing 32 P when given to the bees in two or three portions, did not change the variability. The effective half-life was not different with respect to feeding mode, and it was estimated as 5.37 +- 1.25 days, whereas the biological half-life was 8.62 +- 2.34 (mean and confidence interval of the mean, at 95% probability level). (Author) [pt

Realistic fission models, new beta-decay half-lives and the r-process in neutron star mergers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shibagaki, S.; Kajino, T.; Chiba, S.; Lorusso, G.; Nishimura, S.; Mathews, G. J.

2014-01-01

Almost half of heavy nuclei beyond iron are considered to be produced by rapid neutron capture process (r-process). This process occurs in the neutron-rich environment such as core-collapse supernovae or neutron star mergers, but the main production site is still unknown. In the r-process of neutron star mergers, nuclear fission reactions play an important role. Also beta-decay half-lives of magic nuclei are crucial for the r-process. We have carried out r-process nucleosynthesis calculations based upon new theoretical estimates of fission fragment distributions and new beta-decay half-lives for N=82 nuclei measured at RIBF-RIKEN. We investigate the effect of nuclear fission on abundance patterns in the matter ejected from neutron star mergers with two different fission fragment mass distributions. We also discuss how the new experimental beta-decay half-lives affect the r-process

Comparison of semiempirical formulae for alpha decay half-lives

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Poenaru, D.N.; Ivascu, M.; Sandulesku, A.

1983-01-01

The semiempirical relationships given by Froeman, Wapstra et al., Viola and Seaborg, Hornshoj et al., Taagepera and Nurmia, Keller and Munzel for alpha decay half-lives are compared with experimental results and with a new formula derived by the authors form the fission theory of alpha decay in even-even, odd-even, even-odd and odd-odd nuclei. By taking into consideration the shell effects, the new formula allows one to obtain a better agreement with experimental data, even in the neighbourhood of the magic numbers

Discrepancies in the half-lives of 90Sr, 137Cs and 252Cf

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rajput, M.U.; Mac Mahon, T.D.

1990-01-01

Recent reports have pointed out that significant discrepancies exist in published half-life data for 90 Sr, 137 Cs and 252 Cr, amongst others. These discrepancies make the estimation of evaluated half-lives for these isotopes difficult and contentious. This paper reviews the current situation, takes into account recently available data and attempts to derive recommended half-lives and associated uncertainties for the three isotopes. 37 refs, 3 tabs

Review of Russian language studies on radionuclide behaviour in agricultural animals: biological half-lives

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fesenko, S.; Isamov, N.; Barnett, C.L.; Beresford, N.A.; Howard, B.J.; Sanzharova, N.; Fesenko, E.

2015-01-01

Extensive studies on transfer of radionuclides to animals were carried out in the USSR from the 1950s. Few of these studies were published in the international refereed literature or taken into account in international reviews. This paper continues a series of reviews of Russian language literature on radionuclide transfer to animals, providing information on biological half-lives of radionuclides in various animal tissues. The data are compared, where possible, with those reported in other countries. The data are normally quantified using a single or double exponential accounting for different proportions of the loss. For some products, such as milk, biological half-lives tend to be rapid at 1–3 d for most radionuclides and largely described by a single exponential. However, for other animal products biological half-lives can vary widely as they are influenced by many factors such as the age and size of the animal. Experimental protocols, such as the duration of the study, radionuclide administration and/or sample collection protocol also influence the value of biological half-lives estimated. - Highlights: • The data on biological half-lives from Russian language literature were reviewed. • Radionuclides with the shortest half-lives in animals are those which accumulate in soft tissues. • Short term behaviour is affected by the form in which radionuclides are administered. • There is a tendency for more rapid radionuclide turnover in younger animals

Topology and Oligomerization of Mono- and Oligomeric Proteins Regulate Their Half-Lives in the Cell.

Science.gov (United States)

Mallik, Saurav; Kundu, Sudip

2018-06-05

To find additional structural constraints (besides disordered segments) that regulate protein half-life in the cell, we herein assess the influence of native topology of monomeric and sequestration of oligomeric proteins into multimeric complexes in yeast, human, and mouse. Native topology acts as a molecular marker of globular protein's mechanical resistance and consequently captures their half-life variations on genome scale. Sequestration into multimeric complexes elongates oligomeric protein half-life in the cell, presumably by burying ubiquitinoylation sites and disordered segments required for proteasomal recognition. The latter effect is stronger for proteins associated with multiple complexes and for those binding early during complex self-assembly, including proteins that oligomerize with large proportions of surface buried. After gene duplication, diversification of topology and sequestration into non-identical sets of complexes alter half-lives of paralogous proteins during the course of evolution. Thus, native topology and sequestration into multimeric complexes reflect designing principles of proteins to regulate their half-lives. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Isotope-dilution mass spectrometry in the measurement of plutonium isotope half-lives

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Abernathey, R.M.; Marsh, S.F.

1981-01-01

Isotope-dilution mass spectrometry has been used at Los Alamos to measure the half-lives of 239 Pu, 240 Pu, and 241 Pu. The latter was determined by measuring the rate of decrease of the 241 Pu/ 242 Pu ratio in an appropriate isotopic mixture over a period of several years. The half-lives of the two lighter isotopes are too long to be determined in this manner. They were determined by measuring the rate of production of the uranium daughter relative to a known added 233 U spike. Experimental procedures were designed to control sources of error and to permit a detailed statistical treatment which included all known sources of error and accounted for all covariances. The uncertainties, at the 95% confidence level, associated with the measured half-lives were less than 0.4% for 241 Pu and less than 0.2% for 239 Pu and 240 Pu

Transport of short lived radioactive contaminants with prologed half-lives of daughters through river water

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Metwally, S.M.; Prohl, G.

2005-01-01

One of the main pathways for transporting contaminants to other parts in the environment, are rivers. This work is devoted for deriving and assessment the concentration of soluble radio contaminants along a river at any time after discharge, including the short-lived radionuclides in comparison with the discharge time interval, and prolonged half-life of the produced daughter nuclei. The assumed boundary conditions and deduced formulas can be applied either in case of accidental release or discharge under authority control. The formulas determining the produced daughter nuclei concentration require inequality of the parent and daughter nuclei half-lives. Because of the regional variation of river morphology, the assumed constancy of the flow velocity and dispersion coefficient requires dividing the river path into zones of similar hydrologic characteristics

Measuring radioactive half-lives via statistical sampling in practice

Science.gov (United States)

Lorusso, G.; Collins, S. M.; Jagan, K.; Hitt, G. W.; Sadek, A. M.; Aitken-Smith, P. M.; Bridi, D.; Keightley, J. D.

2017-10-01

The statistical sampling method for the measurement of radioactive decay half-lives exhibits intriguing features such as that the half-life is approximately the median of a distribution closely resembling a Cauchy distribution. Whilst initial theoretical considerations suggested that in certain cases the method could have significant advantages, accurate measurements by statistical sampling have proven difficult, for they require an exercise in non-standard statistical analysis. As a consequence, no half-life measurement using this method has yet been reported and no comparison with traditional methods has ever been made. We used a Monte Carlo approach to address these analysis difficulties, and present the first experimental measurement of a radioisotope half-life (211Pb) by statistical sampling in good agreement with the literature recommended value. Our work also focused on the comparison between statistical sampling and exponential regression analysis, and concluded that exponential regression achieves generally the highest accuracy.

Half-lives of long-lived isotopes of transactinium elements from 228Th to 257Fm

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Surin, V.M.; Fomushkin, Eh.F.

1983-09-01

The experimental measurements and critical evaluation results of the long-lived isotope half-decay periods of transactinium elements (from 228 Th to 257 Fm) are given on July 1981 to be published in open literature and related to the natural radioactive decay. From the massif of the known half-decay periods the most reliable data were selected, received or evaluated and recommended for practical use; the calculations of isotope specific activities were performed on this data. (author)

Review of Russian language studies on radionuclide behaviour in agricultural animals: biological half-lives.

Science.gov (United States)

Fesenko, S; Isamov, N; Barnett, C L; Beresford, N A; Howard, B J; Sanzharova, N; Fesenko, E

2015-04-01

Extensive studies on transfer of radionuclides to animals were carried out in the USSR from the 1950s. Few of these studies were published in the international refereed literature or taken into account in international reviews. This paper continues a series of reviews of Russian language literature on radionuclide transfer to animals, providing information on biological half-lives of radionuclides in various animal tissues. The data are compared, where possible, with those reported in other countries. The data are normally quantified using a single or double exponential accounting for different proportions of the loss. For some products, such as milk, biological half-lives tend to be rapid at 1-3 d for most radionuclides and largely described by a single exponential. However, for other animal products biological half-lives can vary widely as they are influenced by many factors such as the age and size of the animal. Experimental protocols, such as the duration of the study, radionuclide administration and/or sample collection protocol also influence the value of biological half-lives estimated. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The predictive accuracy of analytical formulas and semiclassical approaches for α decay half-lives of superheavy nuclei

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, T. L.; Bao, X. J.; Guo, S. Q.

2018-02-01

Systematic calculations on the α decay half-lives are performed by using three analytical formulas and two semiclassical approaches. For the three analytical formulas, the experimental α decay half-lives and {Q}α values of the 66 reference nuclei have been used to obtain the coefficients. We get only four adjustable parameters to describe α decay half-lives for even-even, odd-A, and odd-odd nuclei. By comparison between the calculated values from ten analytical formulas and experimental data, it is shown that the new universal decay law (NUDL) foumula is the most accurate one to reproduce the experimental α decay half-lives of the superheavy nuclei (SHN). Meanwhile it is found that the experimental α decay half-lives of SHN are well reproduced by the Royer formula although many parameters are contained. The results show that the NUDL formula and the generalized liquid drop model (GLDM2) with consideration of the preformation factor can give fairly equivalent results for the superheavy nuclei.

Differences in the ecological half-time of radiocaesium from the Chernobyl accident and from nuclear weapons fallout as measured in a south Swedish population

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Raeaef, C.L.; Hemdal, B.; Mattsson, S.

1999-01-01

Between 1964 and 1994 the whole-body content of 134 Cs and 137 Cs was measured in a south-Swedish population living in the city of Lund, the so-called Lund reference group, in order to investigate the effective ecological half-time of 137 Cs in that area and to assess the committed effective dose. The Lund area was subjected to a total deposition of about 2 kBq/m 2 of 137 Cs from the nuclear weapons fallout during the 1950s and 60s and an additional deposition of 2 kBq/m 2 of 137 Cs from Chernobyl in May 1986. The effective ecological half-time for Chernobyl 137 Cs was found to be 1.8 ± 0.2 years, which would correspond to an approximate average individual committed effective dose of 0.033 mSv. The time pattern of pre-Chernobyl 137 Cs was however best described by a double exponential function, with a short term effective ecological half-time of 1.3 years between 1965 and 1970, and a corresponding long term component of about 10 to 20 years. The committed internal effective dose to an average individual from pre-Chernobyl 137 Cs in the Lund reference group was calculated to be 0.20 mSv. The aggregate transfer factor, T ag , was estimated to be 2.5 Bq kg -1 /kBq m -2 , compared to a value of 10 Bq kg -1 /kBq m -2 in 1965 at the time when peak activity concentration values were observed in the Lund reference group. An alternative way of describing the aggregate transfer of 137 Cs to man, is by time integration of both the average whole-body burden and the deposition level during a certain time span. Integrating over a 50 y time span, it was found that pre-Chernobyl radiocaesium was transferred to man at least ten time more efficiently than Chernobyl caesium in the Lund region. Since the global fall-out in the sixties and seventies was more or less continuously deposited during the years, the uptake of the substance in agricultural crops during the growth season led to a more efficient transfer of 137 Cs through foodstuff to man than the deposition from Chernobyl

Evaluation method of nuclear data: half-lives, gamma-ray intensities etc

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yoshizawa, Yasukazu; Miyatake, Osamu; Toyama, Masao

1998-03-01

The evaluation method has been studied. The basic problem is how to estimate and treat the systematic error. Nuclear decay data were evaluated. Eight practical examples of half-lives are shown in this report. (author)

Effective half-lives of 137Cs from persimmon tree tissue parts in Japan after Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Power Plant accident

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tagami, Keiko; Uchida, Shigeo

2015-01-01

To estimate the radiocesium decreasing rates from persimmon trees during a period of about 3 y following the accident at Tokyo Electric Power Company's Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Power Plant (FDNPP), we conducted measurements of tree tissue parts collected in 2011–2013. The sampling was carried out in Chiba, 220 km south of FDNPP; radioactive fallouts discharged from FDNPP had mainly been observed in March–April 2011 on the sampling site. We measured 137 Cs concentrations in the tree tissue parts, i.e., fruits (flesh, skin and seeds), leaves and newly emerged branches, and then the effective half-lives (T eff ) of 137 Cs were calculated. Leaf samples were classified into two types by sampling months according to the growing stages, that is, immature (April–May) and mature (June–November) leaves. All these parts showed exponential declines in 137 Cs concentration with good adjusted contribution ratios of higher than ca. 0.7. The calculated T eff values from all tissue parts were similar with the average of 229 d (range: 216–243 d). From these results, we concluded that each tree tissue was representative for the calculation of T eff . For comparison to these observation results, open source food monitoring data from 2011 to 2013 including 137 Cs data for persimmon fruits collected in Fukushima Prefecture were used to calculate T eff for persimmon trees. Values of T eff were obtained for persimmon fruits grown in each local government area in Fukushima Prefecture and they ranged from 303 to 475 d. - Highlights: • 137 Cs decreased exponentially from persimmon trees in Chiba after the Fukushima accident. • The effective half-lives (T eff ) of 137 Cs from fruit, leaf and new branch tissues were similar. • The Food monitoring data were used to calculate effective half-lives for persimmon trees in Fukushima. • The average of T eff in Chiba was ca. 230 d while that in Fukushima was ca. 400 d

Total and spontaneous fission half-lives of the americium and curium nuclides

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Holden, N.E.

1984-01-01

The total half-life and the half-life for spontaneous fission are evaluated for the various long-lived nuclides of interest. Recommended values are presented for 241 Am, /sup 242m/Am, 243 Am, 242 Cm, 243 Cm, 244 Cm, 245 Cm, 246 Cm, 247 Cm, 248 Cm, and 250 Cm. The uncertainties are provided at the 95% confidence limit for each of the recommended values

Theoretical studies on the alpha α decay half-lives of hyper and normal isotopes of Po

Science.gov (United States)

Santhosh, K. P.; Nithya, C.

2018-03-01

The α decay half-lives of hyper and normal isotopes of Po nuclei are studied in the present work. The inclusion of Λ - N interaction changes the half-life for α decay. The theoretical predictions on the α decay half-lives of normal Po isotopes are compared with experimental results and are seen to be matching well with each other. The neutron shell closure at N = 126 is found to be the same for both normal and hypernuclei. The Geiger-Nuttal (G-N) law for α decay is unaltered in the case of hypernuclei. The hypernuclei will decay into normal nuclei by mesonic or non-mesonic decay modes. Since the half-lives of normal Po nuclei are well within the experimental limits, our theoretical results suggest experimental verification of the α emission from hyper Po nuclei in a cascade process.

Systematic study of α-decay half-lives using Royer and related formula

Science.gov (United States)

Akrawy, Dashty T.; Hassanabadi, H.; Hosseini, S. S.; Santhosh, K. P.

2018-03-01

The alpha decay half-lives of 356 isotopes were studied using the Royer and related Formula and are compared with experimental data. The study shows that the predicted half-lives match well with experimental data over a wide range for each (Z , N) parity of the parent nuclei. We have calculated the standard deviation of log10 ⁡Tα (s), for each formula and our study indicate that, for alpha decay studies, generally, analytical ℓ-dependent formula proposed by Royer, with σRB = 0.4373, is the best model followed by the formula proposed by Denisov and Khudenko (DK), σDK = 0.4743 for all 356 nuclei. We hope the present study is a clear indicator of the predictive power of Royer and related formula.

Systematics of half-lives for proton radioactivity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Medeiros, E.L.; Rodrigues, M.M.N.; Duarte, S.B.; Tavares, O.A.P.

2007-01-01

Half-life measurements for both ground-state and isomeric transitions in proton radioactivity are systematized by using a semiempirical, one-parameter model based on tunneling through a potential barrier, where the centrifugal and overlapping effects are taken into account within the spherical nucleus approximation. This approach, which has been successfully applied to alpha decay cases covering ∼ 30 orders of magnitude in half-life, has shown, in addition, very adequate at fitting all existing data on partial half-life, T 1/2p , of proton emission from nuclei. Nearly 70 measured half-life values have been analysed, and the data could be described by two straight lines relating the pure Coulomb contribution to half life with the quantity Z d (μ 0 /Q p ) 1/2 (Z d is the atomic number of the daughter nucleus, μ 0 is the reduced mass, and Q p is the total nuclear energy available for decay). These straight lines are shown to correspond to different degrees of deformation, namely, very prolate (δ> approx. 0.1), and other shaped (delta < approx. 0.1) parent nuclei. The goodness in reproducing the data attained in the present systematics allows for half-life predictions for a few possible cases of proton radioactivity not yet experimentally accessed. (author)

Cluster decay half-lives of trans-lead nuclei based on a finite-range nucleon–nucleon interaction

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Adel, A., E-mail: aa.ahmed@mu.edu.sa [Physics Department, Faculty of Science, Cairo University, Giza (Egypt); Physics Department, College of Science, Majmaah University, Zulfi (Saudi Arabia); Alharbi, T. [Physics Department, College of Science, Majmaah University, Zulfi (Saudi Arabia)

2017-02-15

Nuclear cluster radioactivity is investigated using microscopic potentials in the framework of the Wentzel–Kramers–Brillouin approximation of quantum tunneling by considering the Bohr–Sommerfeld quantization condition. The microscopic cluster–daughter potential is numerically constructed in the well-established double-folding model. A realistic M3Y-Paris NN interaction with the finite-range exchange part as well as the ordinary zero-range exchange NN force is considered in the present work. The influence of nuclear deformations on the cluster decay half-lives is investigated. Based on the available experimental data, the cluster preformation factors are extracted from the calculated and the measured half lives of cluster radioactivity. Some useful predictions of cluster emission half-lives are made for emissions of known clusters from possible candidates, which may guide future experiments.

New technique to determine beta half-lives in complex background conditions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kurtukian-Nieto, T.; Benlliure, J.; Casarejos, E.; Cortina-Gil, D.; Fernandez-Ordonez, M.; Pereira, J.; Schmidt, K.H.; Becker, F.; Henzlova, D.; Yordanov, O.; Audouin, L.; Blank, B.; Giovinazzo, J.; Jurado, B.; Rejmund, F.

2008-01-01

Very neutron-rich nuclei near the A = 195 r-process waiting point were produced as projectile fragments from a 208 Pb primary beam at GSI, Darmstadt, by cold fragmentation. After in-flight separation, the fragments were implanted in an active catcher, and time correlations to the subsequent beta-decay were established. Due to the periodic operation cycles of the synchrotron, providing the primary beam, the background shows a complex time structure, which prevents applying well established analytical methods to extract the half-life information. A new mathematical analysis method has been developed, which is based on a Monte Carlo code, simulating the time sequence of implantation and beta detection according to the experimental conditions, leaving the beta lifetimes and the beta detection efficiency as free parameters. In addition, both the analysis of the experimental data and the simulation were performed in time-reversed sequence. The ratio of forward/backward time spectra contains the information of the 'true' fragment-beta correlations. Half-lives were obtained from two-dimensional fits of the measured and simulated ratios of time correlations in forward- and backward-time direction by the least-squares method, being the lifetime and the beta-detection efficiency the two fitting parameters. Half-lives of 8 heavy neutron-rich nuclei approaching the r-process waiting point A = 195 have been determined. (authors)

Half-lives of radionuclides used in nuclear geochronology and cosmochronology (evaluated data)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chechev, V.P.

2002-01-01

Evaluated half-life values are given for the radionuclides 26 Al, 40 K, 53 Mn, 60 Fe, 87 Rb, 93 Zr, 98 Tc, 107 Pd, 129 I, 135 Cs, 146 Sm, 176 Lu, 182 Hf, 187 Re, 205 Pb, 232 Th, 235 U, 238 U, 244 Pu and 247 Cm. These were obtained from an analysis of published information up to 2001. These half-lives are used in geochronology and cosmochronology to determine different radiometric ages in the history of the earth, solar system and galaxy. (author)

Half-lives of PAHs and temporal microbiota changes in commonly used urban landscaping materials

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marja I. Roslund

2018-03-01

Full Text Available Background Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs accumulate in urban soils, and PAH contamination can change soil microbial community composition. Environmental microbiota is associated with human commensal microbiota, immune system and health. Therefore, studies investigating the degradation of PAHs, and the consequences of soil pollution on microbial communities in urban landscaping materials, are crucial. Methods Four landscaping materials (organic matter 1, 2, 13 and 56% were contaminated with PAHs commonly found at urban sites (phenanthrene, fluoranthene, pyrene, chrysene and benzo(bfluoranthene in PAH concentrations that reflect urban soils in Finland (2.4 µg g -1 soil dry weight. PAHs were analyzed initially and after 2, 4, 8 and 12 weeks by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Half-lives of PAHs were determined based on 12-weeks degradation. Bacterial communities were analyzed at 1 and 12 weeks after contamination using Illumina MiSeq 16S rRNA gene metabarcoding. Results Half-lives ranged from 1.5 to 4.4 weeks for PAHs with relatively low molecular weights (phenanthrene, fluoranthene and pyrene in landscaping materials containing 1–2% organic matter. In contrast, in materials containing 13% and 56% organic matter, the half-lives ranged from 2.5 to 52 weeks. Shorter half-lives of phenanthrene and fluoranthene were thus associated with low organic matter content. The half-life of pyrene was inversely related to the relative abundance of Beta-, Delta- and Gammaproteobacteria, and diversity of Bacteroidetes and Betaprotebacteria. Compounds with higher molecular weights followed compound-specific patterns. Benzo(bfluoranthene was resistant to degradation and half-life of chrysene was shorter when the relative abundance of Betaproteobacteria was high. Temporal microbiota changes involved increase in the relative abundance of Deltaproteobacteria and decrease in genera Flavobacterium and Rhodanobacter. Exposure to PAHs seems to adjust

Sustainability: Living within One’s Own Ecological Means

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lee Liu

2009-12-01

Full Text Available This paper provides a critical review of sustainability, including its definitions, dimensions, measurements, and practices, as well as approaches to achieve sustainability. It raises questions about conventional definitions and argues for taking into account the geographic dimension of sustainability for better understanding of the regional differences in sustainability and transition to sustainability. The paper proposes that sustainability should be defined as "living within one’s own ecological means." This definition pays attention to regional disparities in biocapacity and ecological footprint. It realizes that not all people’s present and future needs may be met in all regions of the world.

Cs-137 in freshwater fish in Finland, Norway and Faroe Islands with examples of ecological half-times

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Saxen, R. [STUK (Finland); Liland, A.; Thoerring, H. [NRPA (Norway); Joensen, H.P. [Frodskaparsetur Foeroya (Faroe Islands)

2005-07-01

The deposition from Chernobyl in spring 1986 was most unevenly distributed in Finland and elevated the {sup 137}Cs contents of freshwater fishes significantly. Finland can be divided into five categories on the basis of the average deposition of {sup 137}Cs in each municipality. High activity concentrations of {sup 137}Cs still occur in fish in certain Finnish lakes in the areas of the highest deposition. The observed ecological half-times of {sup 137}Cs in perch in certain Finnish lakes varied by a factor of about three. The longest halftime of {sup 137}Cs in perch was approximately 9 years and the shortest approximately 3 years, determined for the time period of 1988-2002. The Norwegian lakes differ also from each other with respect to the decrease rates of {sup 137}Cs in fish. In some cases there were clearly two components in the reduction of {sup 137}Cs. Ecological half-times of {sup 137}Cs in trout and Arctic char varied from 1.4 y to 4.7 y in 1988-1994. There is an indication of somewhat more rapid reduction of {sup 137}Cs in fish in certain Norwegian lakes compared to Finnish ones, although ecological half-times for the Norwegian and for the Finnish lakes were estimated for different time intervals in the examples, and are thus not directly comparable. (au)

Ecological half-life of 137Cs in mosses and lichens in the Ordu province, Turkey by Cevik and Celik

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cevik, Ugur; Celik, Necati

2009-01-01

Twenty-one years after the Chernobyl accident, lichen and moss samples were collected from the Ordu province, which was already chosen for a related study some years ago. It was observed that 137 Cs activity concentration ranged from 31 to 469 Bq kg -1 in the moss and from 132 to 1508 Bq kg -1 in the lichen samples. The decrease of the activity concentrations in the present measurements (2007) relative to those in 1997 (over a period of 10 y) indicated ecological half-lives between 1.8 and 10.4 y for the moss and between 2.1 and 13.7 y for the lichen samples. It was observed that 137 Cs was still eminent in the area studied. Moreover, 40 K activity concentrations and K element concentrations were measured and their relationships were discussed

Functional ecology of free-living nitrogen fixation: A contemporary perspective

Science.gov (United States)

Reed, Sasha C.; Cleveland, Cory C.; Townsend, Alan R.

2011-01-01

Nitrogen (N) availability is thought to frequently limit terrestrial ecosystem processes, and explicit consideration of N biogeochemistry, including biological N2 fixation, is central to understanding ecosystem responses to environmental change. Yet, the importance of free-living N2 fixation—a process that occurs on a wide variety of substrates, is nearly ubiquitous in terrestrial ecosystems, and may often represent the dominant pathway for acquiring newly available N—is often underappreciated. Here, we draw from studies that investigate free-living N2 fixation from functional, physiological, genetic, and ecological perspectives. We show that recent research and analytical advances have generated a wealth of new information that provides novel insight into the ecology of N2 fixation as well as raises new questions and priorities for future work. These priorities include a need to better integrate free-living N2 fixation into conceptual and analytical evaluations of the N cycle's role in a variety of global change scenarios.

Ecological half-life of radiocesium in reindeer after the Chernobyl accident

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aahman, B.

1992-01-01

After the Chernobyl accident in April, 1986, a large part of the reindeer herding area of Sweden was contaminated with radioactive cesium. Radiocesium levels in four Saami communities have been studied from 1986-1992. Levels vary throughout the year with low values in summer and high in winter. Long-term half-lives were determined as being in most cases between the range of 2.5 - 4 years which is much shorter than that found after nuclear weapon tests (i.e. 7 years). (AB)

Relationship among aqueous copper half-lives and responses of Pimephales promelas to a series of copper sulfate pentahydrate concentrations.

Science.gov (United States)

Calomeni, Alyssa J; Kinley, Ciera M; Geer, Tyler D; Iwinski, Kyla J; Hendrikse, Maas; Rodgers, John H

2018-04-01

Copper algaecide exposures in situ are often of shorter duration than exposures for static toxicity experiments because aqueous concentrations in situ dissipate as a function of site-specific fate processes. Consequently, responses of organisms to static copper exposures may overestimate effects following in situ exposures. To understand the role of exposure duration for altering responses, Pimephales promelas survival was compared following static (96 h) and pulse (1.5, 4, 8, and 15 h half-lives) exposures of CuSO 4 •5H 2 O. Copper concentrations sorbed by fry indicated a consequence of different exposures. Responses of P. promelas to static exposures resulted in 96 h LC 50 s of 166 µgCu/L (95% confidence interval [CI], 142-189 µgCu/L) as soluble copper and 162 µgCu/L (CI, 140-183 µgCu/L) as acid soluble copper. Relative to static 96 h LC 50 s, exposures with half-lives of 1.5, 4 and 8 h resulted in LC 50 s 10, 3 and 2 times greater, respectively, for responses measured 96 h after exposure initiation. Copper concentrations extracted from fry exposed for 1.5, 4 and 8 h half-lives were less than the static experiment. However, copper sorbed by fry in the 15 h half-life experiment was not different than the static experiment. The relationship between 96 h LC 50 and 1/half-life was expressed using the equations y = 116 + 1360 × (R 2  = 0.97) for soluble copper and y = 147 + 1620 × (R 2  = 0.98) for acid soluble copper. Incorporation of exposure duration for predictions of P. promelas responses to copper pulse exposures increases prediction accuracy by an order of magnitude.

Half-lives for proton emission, alpha decay, cluster radioactivity, and cold fission processes calculated in a unified theoretical framework

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Duarte, S.B.; Tavares, O.A.P.; Guzman, F.; Dimarco, A.; Garcia, F.; Goncalves, M.

2002-01-01

Half-life values of spontaneous nuclear decay processes are presented in the framework of the Effective Liquid Drop Model (ELDM) using the combination of varying mass asymmetry shape description for the mass transfer with Werner-Wheeler's inertia coefficient V MAS /WW. The calculated half-lives of ground-state to ground-state transitions for the proton emission, alpha decay, cluster radioactivity, and cold fission processes are compared with experimental data. Results have shown that the ELDM is a very efficient model to describe these different decay processes in a same, unified theoretical framework. A Table listing the predicted half-life values, τ c is presented for all possible cases of spontaneous nuclear break-up such that -7.30 10 τ c [S] 10 (τ/τ c ) > -17.0, where τ is the total half-life of the parent nucleus. (author)

Nesting and acoustic ecology, but not phylogeny, influence passerine urban tolerance.

Science.gov (United States)

Cardoso, Gonçalo C

2014-03-01

Urbanization is one of the most extensive and ecologically significant changes happening to terrestrial environments, as it strongly affects the distribution of biodiversity. It is well established that native species richness is reduced in urban and suburban areas, but the species traits that predict tolerance to urbanization are yet little understood. In birds, one of the most studied groups in this respect, evidence is appearing that acoustic traits influence urban living, but it remains unknown how this compares to the effects of more obvious ecological traits that facilitate urban living. Therefore, it remains unclear whether acoustic communication is an important predictor of urban tolerance among species. Here, with a comparative study across 140 European and North American passerines, I show that high song frequency, which is less masked by the low-frequency anthropogenic noise, is associated with urban tolerance, with an effect size over half that of the most important ecological trait studied: off-ground nesting. Other nesting and foraging traits accepted to facilitate urban living did not differ for species occurring in urban environments. Thus, the contribution of acoustic traits for passerine urban tolerance approximates that of more obvious ecological traits. Nonetheless, effect sizes of the biological predictors of urban tolerance were low and the phylogenetic signal for urban tolerance was null, both of which suggest that factors other than phenotypic traits have major effects on urban tolerance. A simple possibility is exposure to urbanization, as there was a higher proportion of urban-tolerant species in Europe, which is more urbanized than North America. © 2013 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

[Ecology and ecologies].

Science.gov (United States)

Valera, Luca

2011-01-01

Ecology (from the Greek words οιχοσ, "house" and λογια "study of") is the science of the "house", since it studies the environments where we live. There are three main ways of thinking about Ecology: Ecology as the study of interactions (between humans and the environment, between humans and living beings, between all living beings, etc.), Ecology as the statistical study of interactions, Ecology as a faith, or rather as a science that requires a metaphysical view. The history of Ecology shows us how this view was released by the label of "folk sense" to gain the epistemological status of science, a science that strives to be interdisciplinary. So, the aim of Ecology is to study, through a scientific methodology, the whole natural world, answering to very different questions, that arise from several fields (Economics, Biology, Sociology, Philosophy, etc.). The plurality of issues that Ecology has to face led, during the Twentieth-century, to branch off in several different "ecologies". As a result, each one of these new approaches chose as its own field a more limited and specific portion of reality.

A review of ecological effects and environmental fate of illicit drugs in aquatic ecosystems.

Science.gov (United States)

Rosi-Marshall, E J; Snow, D; Bartelt-Hunt, S L; Paspalof, A; Tank, J L

2015-01-23

Although illicit drugs are detected in surface waters throughout the world, their environmental fate and ecological effects are not well understood. Many illicit drugs and their breakdown products have been detected in surface waters and temporal and spatial variability in use translates into "hot spots and hot moments" of occurrence. Illicit drug occurrence in regions of production and use and areas with insufficient wastewater treatment are not well studied and should be targeted for further study. Evidence suggests that illicit drugs may not be persistent, as their half-lives are relatively short, but may exhibit "pseudo-persistence" wherein continual use results in persistent occurrence. We reviewed the literature on the ecological effects of these compounds on aquatic organisms and although research is limited, a wide array of aquatic organisms, including bacteria, algae, invertebrates, and fishes, have receptors that make them potentially sensitive to these compounds. In summary, illicit drugs occur in surface waters and aquatic organisms may be affected by these compounds; research is needed that focuses on concentrations of illicit drugs in areas of production and high use, environmental fate of these compounds, and effects of these compounds on aquatic ecosystems at the concentrations that typically occur in the environment. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Half-lives for proton emission, alpha decay, cluster radioactivity, and cold fission processes calculated in a unified theoretical framework

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Duarte, S.B.; Tavares, O.A.P.; Guzman, F.; Dimarco, A. [Centro Brasileiro de Pesquisas Fisicas (CBPF), Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil); Garcia, F. [Sao Paulo Univ., SP (Brazil). Inst. de Fisica; Universidade Estadual de Santa Cruz, Ilheus, BA (Brazil). Dept. de Ciencias Exatas e Tecnologicas; Rodriguez, O. [Sao Paulo Univ., SP (Brazil). Inst. de Fisica; Instituto Superior de Ciencias e Tecnologia Nucleares, La Habana (Cuba); Goncalves, M. [Instituto de Radioprotecao e Dosimetria (IRD), Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil)

2002-01-01

Half-life values of spontaneous nuclear decay processes are presented in the framework of the Effective Liquid Drop Model (ELDM) using the combination of varying mass asymmetry shape description for the mass transfer with Werner-Wheeler's inertia coefficient V{sub MAS}/WW. The calculated half-lives of ground-state to ground-state transitions for the proton emission, alpha decay, cluster radioactivity, and cold fission processes are compared with experimental data. Results have shown that the ELDM is a very efficient model to describe these different decay processes in a same, unified theoretical framework. A Table listing the predicted half-life values, {tau}{sub c} is presented for all possible cases of spontaneous nuclear break-up such that -7.30 <{approx_equal} log{sub 10} {tau}{sub c} [S] <{approx_equal} 27.50 and log {sub 10}({tau}/{tau}{sub c}) > -17.0, where {tau} is the total half-life of the parent nucleus. (author)

The analysis of predictability of α-decay half-life formulae and the α partial half-lives of some exotic nuclei

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dasgupta-Schubert, N.; Reyes, M.A.; Tamez, V.A.

2009-01-01

The predictabilities of the three α-decay half-life formulae, the Royer GLDM, the Viola-Seaborg and the Sobiczewski-Parkhomenko formulae, have been evaluated by developing a method based on the ansatz of standard experimental benchmarking. The coefficients of each formula were re-derived using the reliable data of the α -standards nuclei. The modified formulae that resulted were used to evaluate the accuracies of the formulae towards the prediction of half-lives of a set of nuclides with well-studied α spectroscopic data as well as a set of exotic α emitters. Further, a simple linear optimisation of the modified formulae allowed adjustments for the insufficient statistics of the primary data set without changing the modified formulae. While the three modified formulae showed equivalent results for all the medium heavy nuclei except the odd-odd, the modified GLDM showed relatively the best figures of merit for the odd-odd and superheavy nuclides. (orig.)

β-decay half-lives of neutron-rich isotopes of Fe, Co, Ni involved in the beginning of the r-process

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Czajkowski, S.; Bernas, M.; Brissot, R.

1992-01-01

The very neutron-rich Fe- to Ni-isotopes are of interest since they are located at the very beginning of the astrophysical r-process path. The β-decay half-lives of several isotopes, identified in thermal fission of 235 U or 239 Pu, have been measured at the ILL high-flux reactor using the Lohengrin spectrometer. Half-lives have been determined from time-correlations analysis between the fragment implantation and the detection of the subsequent β-particles in the same detector. With the fragment separator FRS , at GSI, the projectile fragments of 86 Kr have been separated. The β-decay half-life of 65 Fe has been measured. Received: (from VMMAIL[FRSAC11 for XIN[IAEA1 via NJE)

The hidden half: ecology and evolution of cryptobenthic fishes on coral reefs.

Science.gov (United States)

Brandl, Simon J; Goatley, Christopher H R; Bellwood, David R; Tornabene, Luke

2018-05-07

Teleost fishes are the most diverse group of vertebrates on Earth. On tropical coral reefs, their species richness exceeds 6000 species; one tenth of total vertebrate biodiversity. A large proportion of this diversity is composed of cryptobenthic reef fishes (CRFs): bottom-dwelling, morphologically or behaviourally cryptic species typically less than 50 mm in length. Yet, despite their diversity and abundance, these fishes are both poorly defined and understood. Herein we provide a new quantitative definition and synthesise current knowledge on the diversity, distribution and life history of CRFs. First, we use size distributions within families to define 17 core CRF families as characterised by the high prevalence (>10%) of small-bodied species (fishes, in which virtually no small-bodied species have evolved. We posit that small body size has allowed CRFs to diversify at extremely high rates, primarily by allowing for fine partitioning of microhabitats and facilitation of allopatric reproductive isolation; yet, we are far from understanding and documenting the biodiversity of CRFs. Using rates of description since 1758, we predict that approximately 30 new species of cryptobenthic species will be described per year until 2050 (approximately twice the annual rate compared to large fishes). Furthermore, we predict that by the year 2031, more than half of the described coral reef fish biodiversity will consist of CRFs. These fishes are the 'hidden half' of vertebrate biodiversity on coral reefs. Notably, global geographic coverage and spatial resolution of quantitative data on CRF communities is uniformly poor, which further emphasises the remarkable reservoir of biodiversity that is yet to be discovered. Although small body size may have enabled extensive diversification within CRF families, small size also comes with a suite of ecological challenges that affect fishes' capacities to feed, survive and reproduce; we identify a range of life-history adaptations that

94 β-Decay Half-Lives of Neutron-Rich _{55}Cs to _{67}Ho: Experimental Feedback and Evaluation of the r-Process Rare-Earth Peak Formation.

Science.gov (United States)

Wu, J; Nishimura, S; Lorusso, G; Möller, P; Ideguchi, E; Regan, P-H; Simpson, G S; Söderström, P-A; Walker, P M; Watanabe, H; Xu, Z Y; Baba, H; Browne, F; Daido, R; Doornenbal, P; Fang, Y F; Gey, G; Isobe, T; Lee, P S; Liu, J J; Li, Z; Korkulu, Z; Patel, Z; Phong, V; Rice, S; Sakurai, H; Sinclair, L; Sumikama, T; Tanaka, M; Yagi, A; Ye, Y L; Yokoyama, R; Zhang, G X; Alharbi, T; Aoi, N; Bello Garrote, F L; Benzoni, G; Bruce, A M; Carroll, R J; Chae, K Y; Dombradi, Z; Estrade, A; Gottardo, A; Griffin, C J; Kanaoka, H; Kojouharov, I; Kondev, F G; Kubono, S; Kurz, N; Kuti, I; Lalkovski, S; Lane, G J; Lee, E J; Lokotko, T; Lotay, G; Moon, C-B; Nishibata, H; Nishizuka, I; Nita, C R; Odahara, A; Podolyák, Zs; Roberts, O J; Schaffner, H; Shand, C; Taprogge, J; Terashima, S; Vajta, Z; Yoshida, S

2017-02-17

The β-decay half-lives of 94 neutron-rich nuclei ^{144-151}Cs, ^{146-154}Ba, ^{148-156}La, ^{150-158}Ce, ^{153-160}Pr, ^{156-162}Nd, ^{159-163}Pm, ^{160-166}Sm, ^{161-168}Eu, ^{165-170}Gd, ^{166-172}Tb, ^{169-173}Dy, ^{172-175}Ho, and two isomeric states ^{174m}Er, ^{172m}Dy were measured at the Radioactive Isotope Beam Factory, providing a new experimental basis to test theoretical models. Strikingly large drops of β-decay half-lives are observed at neutron-number N=97 for _{58}Ce, _{59}Pr, _{60}Nd, and _{62}Sm, and N=105 for _{63}Eu, _{64}Gd, _{65}Tb, and _{66}Dy. Features in the data mirror the interplay between pairing effects and microscopic structure. r-process network calculations performed for a range of mass models and astrophysical conditions show that the 57 half-lives measured for the first time play an important role in shaping the abundance pattern of rare-earth elements in the solar system.

Women and political struggles: achievements and limitations lived in the second half of twentieth century

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Flávia Fernandes de Carvalhaes

2016-06-01

Full Text Available The second half of the twentieth century was a period marked by important achievements and setbacks in the struggle for women's rights field. This study mapped out and described part of speeches, images and movements undertaken in that historical period and its effects on people's lives. Adopting a perspective of historical and theoretical analysis, the description looked up, first, the struggles carried out in some countries of Europe and the United States, highlighting its main challenges and difficulties. Then, the struggles undertaken are mapped in Brazil, with the analysis axis facing women inequality. Finally, it is considered that the political struggles carried out in the analyzed period had as greatest merits the disruption and exploitation of gender boundaries.

Molecular dynamics calculation of half-lives for thermal decay of Lennard-Jones clusters

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Smith, R.W.

1991-01-01

Molecular dynamics has been used with a Lenard-Jones (6-12) potential in order to study the decay behavior of neutral Argon clusters containing between 12 and 14 atoms. The clusters were heated to temperatures well above their melting points and then tracked in time via molecular dynamics until evaporation of one or more atoms was observed. In each simulation, the mode of evaporation, energy released during evaporation, and cluster lifetime were recorded. Results from roughly 2000 simulation histories were combined in order to compute statistically significant values of cluster half-lives and decay energies. It was found that cluster half-life decreases with increasing energy and that for a given value of excess energy (defined as E=(E tot -E gnd )/n), the 13 atom cluster is more stable against decay than clusters containing either 12 or 14 atoms. The dominant decay mechanism for all clusters was determined to be single atom emission. (orig.)

A new barrier potential and alpha-decay half-lives of even–even nuclei in the 82⩽Z⩽92 regime

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hassanabadi, Hasan [Physics Department, Shahrood University of Technology, Shahrood (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Javadimanesh, ELham, E-mail: elham_javadimanesh89@yahoo.com [Department of Basic Sciences, Shahrood Branch, Islamic Azad University, Shahrood (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Zarrinkamar, Saber [Department of Basic Sciences, Garmsar Branch, Islamic Azad University, Garmsar (Iran, Islamic Republic of)

2013-05-15

The alpha-decay half-life in a nuclear reaction is mainly affected by the penetration probability, which itself depends on the choice of the barrier potential. Here, we propose a new barrier potential to investigate the alpha-decay half-lives in the even–even nuclei from {sup 178}Po to {sup 238}U. The obtained results are motivating.

Measurement of millisecond half-lives of isomeric levels in some nuclei

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Garg, K C; Khurana, C S [Punjabi Univ., Patiala (India). Nuclear Science Labs.

1976-09-01

Half-lives of 2.7, 14.5, 17, 20, 20.4, 44 and 2230 msec, of isomeric levels in /sup 208/Bi, /sup 88/Y, /sup 75/As, /sup 24/Na, /sup 71/Ge, /sup 114/In and /sup 167/Er respectively have been measured, employing on-line irradiation system. These millisecond isomeric levels are produced by 14.7 MeV neutrons through (n,p), (n,..cap alpha..), (n,n') and (n,2n) reactions on natural target samples. A ..gamma..-ray scintillation detector coupled with NTA-512B, 1024 channel analyzer has been used to follow the decay of the millisecond activities. Deflected deuteron beam bursts have been used to reduce the long-time background to initial count ratios in the decay curves to achieve a better accuracy of measurements.

Terminal elimination half-lives of the brominated flame retardants TBBPA, HBCD, and lower brominated PBDEs in humans

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Geyer, H.J.; Schramm, K.W.; Feicht, E.A.; Fried, K.W.; Henkelmann, B.; Lenoir, D. [GSF-National Research Center, Institute of Ecological Chemistry, Neuherberg (Germany); Darnerud, P.O.; Aune, M. [Swedish National Food Administration, Uppsala (Sweden); Schmid, P. [Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Testing and Research, Laboratory of Organic Chemistry, EMPA Duebendorf (Switzerland); McDonald, T.A. [Office of Environmental Health Assessment, California EPA, Oakland, CA (United States)

2004-09-15

Brominated flame retardants (BFRs) are widely used in polymers and textiles and applied in electronic equipment, construction materials, and furniture for the purpose of fire prevention. BFRs with the highest production volume are tetrabromobisphenol A (TBBPA), 1,2,5,6,9,10- hexabromocyclododecanes (HBCDs: {alpha}-HBCD + {beta}-HBCD + {gamma}-HBCD), and polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs). Several BFRs are highly lipophilic persistent organic pollutants (POPs) which have been identified in the aquatic and terrestrial environment including wildlife and humans. In exposed organisms including humans toxic effects, bioaccumulation, metabolism, and pharmacokinetics (especially half-life t{sub 1/2}) are important criterions in the hazard assessment. The aim of the present study was to estimate the terminal elimination half-lives (t{sub 1/2H}) of the main BFRs from the whole body (also named body-burden half-life) and/or from the adipose tissue (fat) of adult humans. The t{sub 1/2H} data for the following BFRs were evaluated: TBBPA, HBCD, 2,2',4,4'- tetrabromodiphenyl ether (BDE-47), 2,2',4,4',5-pentaBDE (BDE-99), 2,2',4,4',6-pentaBDE (BDE- 100), 2,2',4,4',5,5'-hexaBDE (BDE-153), and 2,2',4,4',5,6-hexaBDE (BDE-154).

School Effectiveness in Ecological Perspective.

Science.gov (United States)

Bronfenbrenner, Urie; Hamilton, Stephen F.

This report focuses on the learning and development of primary and secondary school children, employing an "ecology of human development" model. This model is defined as involving the scientific study of the accommodation between growing human beings and the changing immediate settings in which they live and learn. The conceptual framework for the…

Basic study on neutron activation analysis measuring short-lived nuclides (half-lives 0.7 to 100 s) using JRR-3M NAA facility

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yonezawa, Chushiro; Ichimura, Shigeju; Matsue, Hideaki; Kurosawa, Tatsuya

1998-11-01

Analytical basis for neutron activation analysis (NAA) measuring nuclides of second order half-life produced by (n, γ) reaction has been studied using a neutron activation analysis facility of JRR-3M. Basic experimental conditions such as high count rate gamma-ray measurement, effects of irradiation capsule material and stability of neutron flux were examined. The analytical sensitivities and detection limits for 20 elements of which activated radionuclides have half-lives from 0.7 to 100 s were obtained. Scandium, Hf, Dy and In were elements having the highest analytical sensitivity, with detection limits down to 4.2 to 14 ng. Fluorine, of which determination by other methods is difficult, can be detected in more than 530 ng. Determination of ppm levels of F in silicon nitride powder using a single and cyclic activation methods were performed. Accuracy and precision for F determination were verified by analyzing reference materials of Opal Glass (NIST SRM91) and Oyster Tissue (NIST SRM1566a). The relationship between the detection limit of F and Al contents was also clarified. Analytical applications of high sensitive elements such as Se, Sc, Hf, In and Dy in various materials, including reference materials, were also examined and the accuracy, precision and detection limits of the present method were evaluated. (author)

α-decay half-lives of some nuclei from ground state to ground state using different nuclear potential

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Akrawy Dashty T.

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Theoretical α-decay half-lives of some nuclei from ground state to ground state are calculated using different nuclear potential model including Coulomb proximity potential (CPPM, Royer proximity potential and Broglia and Winther 1991. The calculated values comparing with experimental data, it is observed that the CPPM model is in good agreement with the experimental data.

Ecology and social system of northern gibbons living in cold seasonal forests.

Science.gov (United States)

Guan, Zhen-Hua; Ma, Chang-Yong; Fei, Han-Lan; Huang, Bei; Ning, Wen-He; Ni, Qing-Yong; Jiang, Xue-Long; Fan, Peng-Fei

2018-07-18

Gibbons in China represent the northernmost margin of present day gibbon species distribution (around N25°). Compared to tropical habitats, northern gibbon habitats are characterized by low temperatures and remarkable seasonal variation in fruit abundance. How gibbons adapt to their cold and seasonal habitats and what ecological factors affect their sociality are key questions for understanding their ecology and social system evolution, the elucidation of which will contribute to the conservation of these special populations/species. According to preliminary short-term studies, northern gibbons consume more leaves and use larger home ranges than tropical gibbons. Interestingly, some Nomascus groups consist of more than one adult female. However, these preliminary results are not well understood or incorporated into current socio-ecological theories regarding gibbon species. To better understand northern gibbons, our team has systematically studied three habituated groups of Nomascus concolor, three groups of N. nasutus, and two habituated groups of Hoolock tianxing since 2002. In this paper, we stress the challenges facing gibbons living in northern habitats and summarize their behavioral adaptations to their harsh environments. We also describe the northern gibbon social system and discuss the potential relationships between their ecology and sociality. Finally, we highlight future research questions related to northern gibbons in China.

Ecology and social system of northern gibbons living in cold seasonal forests

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zhen-Hua Guan

2018-07-01

Full Text Available Gibbons in China represent the northernmost margin of present day gibbon species distribution (around N25°. Compared to tropical habitats, northern gibbon habitats are characterized by low temperatures and remarkable seasonal variation in fruit abundance. How gibbons adapt to their cold and seasonal habitats and what ecological factors affect their sociality are key questions for understanding their ecology and social system evolution, the elucidation of which will contribute to the conservation of these special populations/species. According to preliminary short-term studies, northern gibbons consume more leaves and use larger home ranges than tropical gibbons. Interestingly, some Nomascus groups consist of more than one adult female. However, these preliminary results are not well understood or incorporated into current socio-ecological theories regarding gibbon species. To better understand northern gibbons, our team has systematically studied three habituated groups of Nomascus concolor, three groups of N. nasutus, and two habituated groups of Hoolock tianxing since 2002. In this paper, we stress the challenges facing gibbons living in northern habitats and summarize their behavioral adaptations to their harsh environments. We also describe the northern gibbon social system and discuss the potential relationships between their ecology and sociality. Finally, we highlight future research questions related to northern gibbons in China.

A tetraethylene glycol coat gives gold nanoparticles long in vivo half-lives with minimal increase in size

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Willett JDS

2017-03-01

Full Text Available Julian DS Willett, Marlon G Lawrence, Jennifer C Wilder, Oliver Smithies† Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA †Dr Oliver Smithies passed away on January 10, 2017 Abstract: In this study, we describe the experiments determining whether coating gold nanoparticles with tetraethylene glycol (TEG provides pharmacologically relevant advantages, such as increased serum half-life and resistance to protein adsorption. Monodisperse TEG-coated, NaBH4-reduced gold nanoparticles with a hydrodynamic size comparable to albumin were synthesized by reducing gold chloride with NaBH4 under alkaline conditions in the presence of TEG-SH. The particles were characterized by gel electrophoresis, column chromatography, and transmission electron microscopy. The nanoparticles were subsequently injected intravenously into mice, and their half-lives and final destinations were determined via photometric analysis, light microscopy (LM, and transmission electron microscopy. The TEG particles had a long half-life (~400 minutes that was not influenced by splenectomy. After 500 minutes of injection, TEG particles were found in kidney proximal tubule cell vesicles and in spleen red and white pulp. The particles induced apoptosis in the spleen red pulp but not in white pulp or the kidney. Some of the TEG particles appeared to have undergone ligand exchange reactions that increased their charge. The TEG particles were shown to be resistant to nonspecific protein adsorption, as judged by gel electrophoresis and column chromatography. These results demonstrate that naturally monodisperse, small-sized gold nanoparticles coated with TEG have long in vivo plasma half-lives, are minimally toxic, and are resistant to protein adsorption. This suggests that a TEG coating should be considered as an alternative to a polyethylene glycol coating, which is polydisperse and of much larger size. Keywords

Reliability of published data on radionuclide half lives - relevance to the use of reference sources for checking instrument performance

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Waldock, P.M.

1999-01-01

Long-lived calibrated radioisotopes are frequently used for checking of instrumentation used in the measurement of radiation; examples include: radioisotope assay meters, radiation monitors and sample counting equipment. In 1986 we purchased a radioisotope calibrator (Capintec CRC120) which was supplied with a number of long-lived check sources by the manufacturer, one of which was barium-133. The source came with its own calibration certificate and a quoted half life of 10.74 years ± 0.05 years, traceable to the National Bureau of Standards in the USA, and is consistent with data published by the National Nuclear Data Center, Brookhaven National Laboratory in 1985 (Tuli 1985). However, we noted at the time that this is significantly different to the value of 7.2 years quoted in the Radiochemical Manual (Wilson 1966) published by the Radiochemical Centre, Amersham (now Nycomed-Amersham), and more recently we have noted that it is significantly different to the value of 10.53 years currently quoted on various Internet sites including the University of Sheffield Chemistry Department (Winter 1999). Further investigation showed similar or worse variations of published half lives with time for several radioisotopes. Letter-to-the-editor

The beauty of sensory ecology.

Science.gov (United States)

Otálora-Luna, Fernando; Aldana, Elis

2017-08-10

Sensory ecology is a discipline that focuses on how living creatures use information to survive, but not to live. By trans-defining the orthodox concept of sensory ecology, a serious heterodox question arises: how do organisms use their senses to live, i.e. to enjoy or suffer life? To respond to such a query the objective (time-independent) and emotional (non-rational) meaning of symbols must be revealed. Our program is distinct from both the neo-Darwinian and the classical ecological perspective because it does not focus on survival values of phenotypes and their functions, but asks for the aesthetic effect of biological structures and their symbolism. Our message recognizes that sensing apart from having a survival value also has a beauty value. Thus, we offer a provoking and inspiring new view on the sensory relations of 'living things' and their surroundings, where the innovating power of feelings have more weight than the privative power of reason.

Influence of ethacrynic acid on glutathione S-transferase pi transcript and protein half-lives in human colon cancer cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Shen, H; Ranganathan, S; Kuzmich, S; Tew, K D

1995-10-12

Ethacrynic acid (EA) is a plant phenolic acid that is both an inhibitor and an inducer of glutathione S-transferase (GST) activity. To determine contributory factors in the increased GST activity caused by EA treatment, human colon carcinoma HT29 cells were compared with a cloned EA-resistant population (HT6-8) maintained in medium containing 72 microM EA. Several factors are involved in the increased expression of GST pi in HT6-8. For example, nuclear run-on experiments showed an approximately 2-fold increase in the rate of transcription of GST pi. In addition, the half-life of GST pi transcript was increased from 4.1 (wild type, HT29, HT4-1) to 8.4 hr. The half-life of GST pi protein was 1-2 hr in HT4-1 cells versus 8-9 hr in HT6-8 cells. When either human ovarian carcinoma cells (SKOV3) or human prostatic carcinoma cells (DU145) were treated with EA, the half-life of the GST pi transcript was also increased. The transcript half-lives of another thiol-metabolism enzyme, gamma-glutamylcysteine synthetase (gamma-GCS), and a phase II detoxification enzyme, dihydrodiol dehydrogenase (DDH), were also increased in HT6-8, SKOV3 and DU145 cells treated with EA. However, the half-lives of transcripts from "housekeeping genes," such as glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase (G3PDH), beta-actin and beta-tubulin, were not changed in these cell lines following EA. Apparently, a number of coordinated factors are involved in EA-enhanced expression of GST pi and other detoxification enzymes.

Beta-decay half-lives and level ordering of sup 1 sup 0 sup 2 sup m sup , sup g Rh

CERN Document Server

Shibata, M; Itoh, S; Itoh, S; Yamamoto, H; Kawade, K; Kasugai, Y; Ikeda, Y

1998-01-01

Beta-decay half-lives of the ground state and an isomer of sup 1 sup 0 sup 2 Rh have been determined 207.3(17) d and 3.742(10) y, respectively, by gamma-ray decay curves following each beta-decay. It has been found that a state (2 sup -) which has a shorter half-life (207.3 d) is the ground state from the result that the half-life of the 41.9 keV isomeric gamma-transition was equal to 3.742 y. It has also been confirmed that the 41.9 keV transition is certainly an isomeric transition with X-gamma coincidence measurement.

Sexual objectification in women's daily lives: A smartphone ecological momentary assessment study.

Science.gov (United States)

Holland, Elise; Koval, Peter; Stratemeyer, Michelle; Thomson, Fiona; Haslam, Nick

2017-06-01

Sexual objectification, particularly of young women, is highly prevalent in modern industrialized societies. Although there is plenty of experimental and cross-sectional research on objectification, prospective studies investigating the prevalence and psychological impact of objectifying events in daily life are scarce. We used ecological momentary assessment to track the occurrence of objectifying events over 1 week in the daily lives of young women (N = 81). Participants reported being targeted by a sexually objectifying event - most often the objectifying gaze - approximately once every 2 days and reported witnessing sexual objectification of others approximately 1.35 times per day. Further, multilevel linear regression analyses showed that being targeted by sexual objectification was associated with a substantial increase in state self-objectification. Overall, individual differences had little impact in moderating these effects. © 2016 The British Psychological Society.

Social Ecology, Deep Ecology and the Future of Green Political Thought.

Science.gov (United States)

Tokar, Brian

1988-01-01

Describes the differences which divide the social ecology movement and the Deep Ecology Movement. Discusses how each views population ecology, politics, natural resources, and ecological living. Calls for a unified ecological movement. (CW)

Radiobiological half-lives for carbon-14 and hydrogen-3 leucine in man

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Classic, K.L.; Schwenk, W.F.; Haymond, M.W.

1986-01-01

In vivo estimates of protein metabolism in many are often made by oral or intravenous administration of leucine or its ∼-ketoacid, ∼-ketoisocaproate, labeled with 14 C or 3 H. Previous estimates of radiation dose from such tracers have been based on the measurement of 14 CO 2 in breath. Using measurements of the decay of 3 H or 14 C leucine from plasma proteins, longer biological half-lives for these compounds were obtained. The estimated total-body radiation absorbed dose is 0.97 mrad/uCi for [1- 14 C]KIC (or [1- 14 C]leucine) and 0.11 mrad/ + Ci for ]4,5- 3 H]leucine (or [ 3 H]KIC). Assuming administered doses of 100 μCi each, the total-body radiation absorbed dose is still well within the limits set by the FDA for Radioactive Drug Research Committees. 12 references, 3 figures, 3 tables

Conceptions of Landscape-Ecological Relevance Emerged in the Czech Botany during the Second Half of Twentieth Century

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kovář Pavel

2015-12-01

Full Text Available This paper summarizes those substantial theoretical concepts or methods for applications within interdisciplinary or practical uses published by Czech autors (geobotanists = ecological botanists, plant ecologists and ecophysiologists during the second half of the 20th century, that were internationally cited. All selected thematical clusters are of landscape-ecological relevance through various contexts. Examples include the concepts of (potential reconstructed vegetation in maps (R. Neuhäusl, Z. Neuhäuslová, linear vegetation features (corridors in landscape and deductive classification of vegetation (K. Kopecký, analysis of soil seed bank (Z. Kropáč, dependency of macrophyte plant stands on ecodynamics (S. Hejný, dynamic periodicity in segetal vegetation (Z. Kropáč, E. Hadač, S. Hejný, anemo-orographic system explaining species richness in mountain regions (J. Jeník, productivity in grassland ecosystems (M. Rychnovská, J. Květ, elementary landscape units based on homogenity and potential vegetation (E. Hadač, landscape dispensation phenomena (V. Ložek, afforestation of coastal sandy dunes – the Netherlands, and polluted areas - the Czech Republic (J. Fanta, invasive plants and invasions into landscapes (M. Rejmánek.

Half-lives of isomeric levels of 107mAg, 109mAg and 103mRh photoactivated by 60Co γ-ray irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yoshida, Eiji; Kobayashi, Takashige; Kojima, Yasuaki; Shizuma, Kiyoshi

2000-01-01

Photoactivation by γ-rays from 60 Co of 10 kCi has been performed for isomers of 107m Ag, 109m Ag and 103m Rh and half-lives of these isomers were determined. Gamma-rays emitted from 107m Ag and 109m Ag were measured with a low-background Ge detector and internal conversion electrons from 103m Rh were measured with a 2π gas flow counter. The half-lives obtained are: 107m Ag: 44.5±0.8 s, 109m Ag: 38.0±1.2 s and 103m Rh: 54.8±3.8 min. The results are in agreement with previous values obtained by different excitation methods

HALO--a Java framework for precise transcript half-life determination.

Science.gov (United States)

Friedel, Caroline C; Kaufmann, Stefanie; Dölken, Lars; Zimmer, Ralf

2010-05-01

Recent improvements in experimental technologies now allow measurements of de novo transcription and/or RNA decay at whole transcriptome level and determination of precise transcript half-lives. Such transcript half-lives provide important insights into the regulation of biological processes and the relative contributions of RNA decay and de novo transcription to differential gene expression. In this article, we present HALO (Half-life Organizer), the first software for the precise determination of transcript half-lives from measurements of RNA de novo transcription or decay determined with microarrays or RNA-seq. In addition, methods for quality control, filtering and normalization are supplied. HALO provides a graphical user interface, command-line tools and a well-documented Java application programming interface (API). Thus, it can be used both by biologists to determine transcript half-lives fast and reliably with the provided user interfaces as well as software developers integrating transcript half-life analysis into other gene expression profiling pipelines. Source code, executables and documentation are available at http://www.bio.ifi.lmu.de/software/halo.

Styles of making a living and ecological change on the Fon and Adja plateaux in South Bénin, ca. 1600-1990

OpenAIRE

Wartena, D.

2006-01-01

This study is a comparative analysis of the joint development of the Fon and Adja styles of making a living as well as the ecological changes between the two adjacent plateaux in South Bénin on which they live. The period of analysis is between ca. 1600 and 1990. The South Béninese plateaux are usually described as a homogeneous category. However, popular opinion also holds that the Fon plateau is ecologically more degraded than the other plateaux, and that the Fon are socially more organised...

Ecological half-life of 137Cs in plants associated with a contaminated stream

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Peles, John D.; Smith, Michael H.; Lehr Brisbin, I.

2002-01-01

Ecological half-life (T e ) is a useful measure for studying the long-term decline of contaminants, such as radionuclides, in natural systems. The current investigation determined levels of radiocesium ( 137 Cs) in two aquatic (Polygonum punctatum, Sagittaria latifolia) and three terrestrial (Alnus serrulata, Myrica cerifera, Salix nigra) plant species from a contaminated stream and floodplain on the U.S. Department of Energy's Savannah River Site. Current 137 Cs levels in plants were used in conjunction with historical data to determine T e of 137 Cs in each species. Median concentrations of 137 Cs were highest in S. latifolia (0.84 Bq g -1 ) and lowest in M. cerifera (0.10 Bq g -1 ). T e 's ranged from 4.85 yr in M. cerifera to 8.35 yr in S. nigra, both terrestrial species. T e 's for all aquatic (6.30 yr) and all terrestrial (5.87) species combined were very similar. The T e 's of the two aquatic primary producers (P. punctatum and S. latifolia) in the Steel Creek ecosystem were somewhat longer than T e values previously reported for some consumers from this ecosystem

Half-life predictions for decay modes of superheavy nuclei

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Duarte, S.B.; Tavares, O.A.P.; Goncalves, M.; Rodriguez, O.; Guzman, F.; Barbosa, T.N.; Garcia, F.; Dimarco, A.

2004-09-01

We applied the Effective Liquid Drop Model (ELDM) to predict the alpha-decay, cluster emission and cold fission half-life-values of nuclei in the region of Superheavy Elements (SHE). The present calculations have been made in the region of the ZN-plane defined by 155 <=N <=220 and 110<=Z<=135. Shell effects are included via the Q-value of the corresponding decay case. We report the results of a systematic calculation of the half-life for the three nuclear decay modes in a region of the ZN-plane where superheavy elements are expected to be found. Results have shown that, among the decay modes investigated here, the alpha decay is the dominant one. i.e, the decay mode of smallest half-lives. Half-life predictions for alpha decay, cluster emission and cold fission for the isotopic family of the most recent SHE detected of Z=115 and for the isotopic family of the already consolidated SHE of Z=111 are presented. (author)

Long term health effects in Sweden from the Chernobyl accident

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Falk, R.; Mellander, H.; Moberg, L.; Edvardson, K.; Nyblom, L.

1997-01-01

The morning of 28 April 1986 was the beginning of an intensive period of radiation protection work in Sweden. During that morning the Chernobyl accident became known in the western world through the detection of radioactive contamination in Sweden and at the Forsmark nuclear power plant in particular. The environmental consequences of the fallout have been studied in various research projects. The effects on agriculture in Sweden was mainly limited to the first year after the accident. The long term effects are instead seen in products from the semi-natural ecosystems: in moose, roedeer, reindeer, mushrooms and fish from lakes in areas with a high deposition of radioactive caesium. High concentrations of 137 Cs in reindeer meat in combination with an estimated effective ecological half-life of about 4 years, will cause problems for reindeer husbandry in the most contaminated parts for many years to come. In moose, roedeer and mushrooms, the ecological half-lives are very long and in some compartments seem to approach the physical half-life of 137 Cs. 22 refs, 3 figs

Long term health effects in Sweden from the Chernobyl accident

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Falk, R; Mellander, H; Moberg, L; Edvardson, K; Nyblom, L [Swedish Radiation Protection Inst., Stockholm (Sweden)

1997-09-01

The morning of 28 April 1986 was the beginning of an intensive period of radiation protection work in Sweden. During that morning the Chernobyl accident became known in the western world through the detection of radioactive contamination in Sweden and at the Forsmark nuclear power plant in particular. The environmental consequences of the fallout have been studied in various research projects. The effects on agriculture in Sweden was mainly limited to the first year after the accident. The long term effects are instead seen in products from the semi-natural ecosystems: in moose, roedeer, reindeer, mushrooms and fish from lakes in areas with a high deposition of radioactive caesium. High concentrations of {sup 137}Cs in reindeer meat in combination with an estimated effective ecological half-life of about 4 years, will cause problems for reindeer husbandry in the most contaminated parts for many years to come. In moose, roedeer and mushrooms, the ecological half-lives are very long and in some compartments seem to approach the physical half-life of {sup 137}Cs. 22 refs, 3 figs.

Preparation of desiccation-resistant aquatic-living Nostoc flagelliforme (Cyanophyceae) for potential ecological application

Science.gov (United States)

Gao, Xiang; Yang, Yi-Wen; Cui, Li-Juan; Zhou, De-Bao; Qiu, Bao-Sheng

2015-01-01

Nostoc flagelliforme is a terrestrial edible cyanobacterium that grows in arid and semi-arid steppes. The continued over-exploitation in the last century has led to a sharp decline of this resource and a severe deterioration of the steppe ecology. Liquid-cultured N. flagelliforme serves as promising algal ‘seeds’ for resource restoration. In this study, macroscopic (or visible) aquatic-living colonies (MaACs) of N. flagelliforme were developed under weak light and high nitrogen conditions. In a 24 day shake-flask culture, MaACs were propagated by about 4.5-fold in biomass without loss of their macro-morphology; at the same time, the addition of weak UV-B treatment resulted in slightly bigger MaACs. Polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) k30, a water-soluble polymer, was used to generate the coating around MaACs, and after full desiccation, the coated MaACs could recover their photosynthetic physiological activity when rehydrated, with 4% PVP k30 for coating being most effective. In contrast, PVP k30-coated microscopic aquatic-living colonies of N. flagelliforme and non-coated MaACs showed no resistance to full desiccation. The macroscopic morphology or structure of MaACs should be crucial for the formation of protection by PVP k30 coating. PVP k30-coated MaACs were more approaching to actual application for resource restoration. PMID:25847617

Ecology and living conditions of groundwater fauna

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Thulin, Barbara [Geo Innova AB (Sweden); Hahn, Hans Juergen [Arbeitsgruppe Grundwasseroekologie, Univ. of Koblenz-Landau (Germany)

2008-09-15

This report presents the current state of ecological knowledge and applied research relating to groundwater. A conceptual picture is given of groundwater fauna occurrence in regard to Swedish environmental conditions. Interpretation features for groundwater fauna and applications are outlined. Groundwater is one of the largest and oldest limnic habitats populated by a rich and diverse fauna. Both very old species and species occurring naturally in brackish or salt water can be found in groundwater. Groundwater ecosystems are heterotrophic; the fauna depends on imports from the surface. Most species are meiofauna, 0.3-1 mm. The food chain of groundwater fauna is the same as for relatives in surface water and salt water. Smaller animals graze biofilms and detritus, larger animals act facutatively as predators. A difference is that stygobiotic fauna has become highly adapted to its living space and tolerates very long periods without food. Oxygen is a limiting factor, but groundwater fauna tolerates periods with low oxygen concentrations, even anoxic conditions. For longer periods of time a minimum oxygen requirement of 1 mg/l should be fulfilled. Geographic features such as Quaternary glaciation and very old Pliocene river systems are important for distribution patterns on a large spatial scale, but aquifer characteristics are important on a landscape scale. Area diversity is often comparable to surface water diversity. However, site diversity is low in groundwater. Site specific hydrological exchange on a geological facies level inside the aquifer, e.g. porous, fractured and karstic aquifers as well as the hyporheic zone, controls distribution patterns of groundwater fauna. For a better understanding of controlling factors indicator values are suggested. Different adequate sampling methods are available. They are representative for the aquifer, but a suitable number of monitoring wells is required. The existence of groundwater fauna in Sweden is considered as very

Ecology and living conditions of groundwater fauna

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Thulin, Barbara; Hahn, Hans Juergen

2008-09-01

This report presents the current state of ecological knowledge and applied research relating to groundwater. A conceptual picture is given of groundwater fauna occurrence in regard to Swedish environmental conditions. Interpretation features for groundwater fauna and applications are outlined. Groundwater is one of the largest and oldest limnic habitats populated by a rich and diverse fauna. Both very old species and species occurring naturally in brackish or salt water can be found in groundwater. Groundwater ecosystems are heterotrophic; the fauna depends on imports from the surface. Most species are meiofauna, 0.3-1 mm. The food chain of groundwater fauna is the same as for relatives in surface water and salt water. Smaller animals graze biofilms and detritus, larger animals act facutatively as predators. A difference is that stygobiotic fauna has become highly adapted to its living space and tolerates very long periods without food. Oxygen is a limiting factor, but groundwater fauna tolerates periods with low oxygen concentrations, even anoxic conditions. For longer periods of time a minimum oxygen requirement of 1 mg/l should be fulfilled. Geographic features such as Quaternary glaciation and very old Pliocene river systems are important for distribution patterns on a large spatial scale, but aquifer characteristics are important on a landscape scale. Area diversity is often comparable to surface water diversity. However, site diversity is low in groundwater. Site specific hydrological exchange on a geological facies level inside the aquifer, e.g. porous, fractured and karstic aquifers as well as the hyporheic zone, controls distribution patterns of groundwater fauna. For a better understanding of controlling factors indicator values are suggested. Different adequate sampling methods are available. They are representative for the aquifer, but a suitable number of monitoring wells is required. The existence of groundwater fauna in Sweden is considered as very

Rayleigh wave effects in an elastic half-space.

Science.gov (United States)

Aggarwal, H. R.

1972-01-01

Consideration of Rayleigh wave effects in a homogeneous isotropic linearly elastic half-space subject to an impulsive uniform disk pressure loading. An approximate formula is obtained for the Rayleigh wave effects. It is shown that the Rayleigh waves near the center of loading arise from the portion of the dilatational and shear waves moving toward the axis, after they originate at the edge of the load disk. A study is made of the vertical displacement due to Rayleigh waves at points on the axis near the surface of the elastic half-space.

Half-life of each dioxin and PCB congener in the human body

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ogura, Isamura [National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology, Tsukuba (Japan)

2004-09-15

It is well known that dioxin and PCB congeners accumulate in the human body. For assessing their toxicological risk, it is important to know the half-life of each congener in the human body. This study summarizes the overall half-lives of congeners in humans as reported in the literature, and compares them with the half-lives due to fecal and sebum excretions, as estimated by data on the concentrations of congeners in feces and sebum in the literature. In addition, the overall half-lives of congeners for the general Japanese population were estimated from the data on dietary intakes and concentrations in the human body reported by the municipalities.

New semi-empirical formula for α-decay half-lives of the heavy and superheavy nuclei

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Manjunatha, H.C. [Government College for Women, Department of Physics, Kolar, Karnataka (India); Sridhar, K.N. [Government First Grade College, Department of Physics, Kolar, Karnataka (India)

2017-07-15

We have succesfully formulated the semi-empirical formula for α-decay half-lives of heavy and superheavy nuclei for different isotopes of the wide atomic-number range 94 < Z < 136. We have considered 2627 isotopes of heavy and superheavy nuclei for the fitting. The value produced by the present formula is compared with that of experiments and other eleven models, i.e. ImSahu, Sahu, Royer10, VS2, UNIV2, SemFIS2, WKB. Sahu16, Densov, VSS and Royer formula. This formula is exclusively for heavy and superheavy nuclei. α-decay is one of the dominant decay mode of superheavy nucleus. By identifying the α-decay mode superheavy nuclei can be detected. This formula helps in predicting the α-decay chains of superheavy nuclei. (orig.)

New systematics of cluster- and alpha-decay half lives

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Poenaru, D.N.; Greiner, W.

1994-01-01

Available as short communication only. The cluster (or 'exotic') radioactivities belong to a rich variety of nuclear decay modes which are phenomena intermediate between fission and alpha decay. In this contribution a single universal curve for the logarithm of the partial half-life for each kind of cluster radioactivity of even-even parent nuclei is presented. This handy relationship reproduces well the up to now 14 even-even half-life measurements within a ratio of 3.86 or rms=0.587 orders of magnitude. Its universality consists in the fact that instead of having different lines for various parent nuclei, like in the 'classical' systematics (Geiger-Nuttall plot) one can get practically only one line for each decay mode. (Author) 1 Fig., 2 Refs

Styles of making a living and ecological change on the Fon and Adja plateaux in South Bénin, ca. 1600-1990

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Wartena, D.

2006-01-01

This study is a comparative analysis of the joint development of the Fon and Adja styles of making a living as well as the ecological changes between the two adjacent plateaux in South Bénin on which they live. The period of analysis is between ca. 1600 and 1990. The South Béninese plateaux are

A comparative analysis of alpha-decay half-lives for even-even 178Pb to 234U isotopes

Science.gov (United States)

Hosseini, S. S.; Hassanabadi, H.; Zarrinkamar, S.

2018-02-01

The feasibility for the alpha decay from the even-even transitions of 178Pb to 234U isotopes has been studied within the Coulomb and proximity potential model (CPPM). The alpha decay half-lives are considered from different theoretical approaches using Semi-empirical formula of Poenaru et al. (SemFIS), the Universal Decay law (UDL) of Qi et al., Akrawy-Dorin formula of Akrawy and Poenaru (ADF), the Scaling law of Brown (SLB) and the Scaling Law of Horoi et al. (SLH). The numerical results obtained by the CPPM and compared with other method as well the experimental data.

Indirect Effects of Global Change: From Physiological and Behavioral Mechanisms to Ecological Consequences.

Science.gov (United States)

Gunderson, Alex R; Tsukimura, Brian; Stillman, Jonathon H

2017-07-01

A major focus of current ecological research is to understand how global change makes species vulnerable to extirpation. To date, mechanistic ecophysiological analyses of global change vulnerability have focused primarily on the direct effects of changing abiotic conditions on whole-organism physiological traits, such as metabolic rate, locomotor performance, cardiac function, and critical thermal limits. However, species do not live in isolation within their physical environments, and direct effects of climate change are likely to be compounded by indirect effects that result from altered interactions with other species, such as competitors and predators. The Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology 2017 Symposium "Indirect Effects of Global Change: From Physiological and Behavioral Mechanisms to Ecological Consequences" was designed to synthesize multiple approaches to investigating the indirect effects of global change by bringing together researchers that study the indirect effects of global change from multiple perspectives across habitat, type of anthropogenic change, and level of biological organization. Our goal in bringing together researchers from different backgrounds was to foster cross-disciplinary insights into the mechanistic bases and higher-order ecological consequences of indirect effects of global change, and to promote collaboration among fields. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology. All rights reserved. For permissions please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Neutron activation analyses and half-life measurements at the usgs triga reactor

Science.gov (United States)

Larson, Robert E.

Neutron activation of materials followed by gamma spectroscopy using high-purity germanium detectors is an effective method for making measurements of nuclear beta decay half-lives and for detecting trace amounts of elements present in materials. This research explores applications of neutron activation analysis (NAA) in two parts. Part 1. High Precision Methods for Measuring Decay Half-Lives, Chapters 1 through 8 Part one develops research methods and data analysis techniques for making high precision measurements of nuclear beta decay half-lives. The change in the electron capture half-life of 51Cr in pure chromium versus chromium mixed in a gold lattice structure is explored, and the 97Ru electron capture decay half-life are compared for ruthenium in a pure crystal versus ruthenium in a rutile oxide state, RuO2. In addition, the beta-minus decay half-life of 71mZn is measured and compared with new high precision findings. Density Functional Theory is used to explain the measured magnitude of changes in electron capture half-life from changes in the surrounding lattice electron configuration. Part 2. Debris Collection Nuclear Diagnostic at the National Ignition Facility, Chapters 9 through 11 Part two explores the design and development of a solid debris collector for use as a diagnostic tool at the National Ignition Facility (NIF). NAA measurements are performed on NIF post-shot debris collected on witness plates in the NIF chamber. In this application NAA is used to detect and quantify the amount of trace amounts of gold from the hohlraum and germanium from the pellet present in the debris collected after a NIF shot. The design of a solid debris collector based on material x-ray ablation properties is given, and calculations are done to predict performance and results for the collection and measurements of trace amounts of gold and germanium from dissociated hohlraum debris.

Preparation of desiccation-resistant aquatic-living Nostoc flagelliforme (Cyanophyceae) for potential ecological application.

Science.gov (United States)

Gao, Xiang; Yang, Yi-Wen; Cui, Li-Juan; Zhou, De-Bao; Qiu, Bao-Sheng

2015-11-01

Nostoc flagelliforme is a terrestrial edible cyanobacterium that grows in arid and semi-arid steppes. The continued over-exploitation in the last century has led to a sharp decline of this resource and a severe deterioration of the steppe ecology. Liquid-cultured N. flagelliforme serves as promising algal 'seeds' for resource restoration. In this study, macroscopic (or visible) aquatic-living colonies (MaACs) of N. flagelliforme were developed under weak light and high nitrogen conditions. In a 24 day shake-flask culture, MaACs were propagated by about 4.5-fold in biomass without loss of their macro-morphology; at the same time, the addition of weak UV-B treatment resulted in slightly bigger MaACs. Polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) k30, a water-soluble polymer, was used to generate the coating around MaACs, and after full desiccation, the coated MaACs could recover their photosynthetic physiological activity when rehydrated, with 4% PVP k30 for coating being most effective. In contrast, PVP k30-coated microscopic aquatic-living colonies of N. flagelliforme and non-coated MaACs showed no resistance to full desiccation. The macroscopic morphology or structure of MaACs should be crucial for the formation of protection by PVP k30 coating. PVP k30-coated MaACs were more approaching to actual application for resource restoration. © 2015 The Authors. Microbial Biotechnology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd and Society for Applied Microbiology.

The Use of Gene Ontology Term and KEGG Pathway Enrichment for Analysis of Drug Half-Life.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yu-Hang Zhang

Full Text Available A drug's biological half-life is defined as the time required for the human body to metabolize or eliminate 50% of the initial drug dosage. Correctly measuring the half-life of a given drug is helpful for the safe and accurate usage of the drug. In this study, we investigated which gene ontology (GO terms and biological pathways were highly related to the determination of drug half-life. The investigated drugs, with known half-lives, were analyzed based on their enrichment scores for associated GO terms and KEGG pathways. These scores indicate which GO terms or KEGG pathways the drug targets. The feature selection method, minimum redundancy maximum relevance, was used to analyze these GO terms and KEGG pathways and to identify important GO terms and pathways, such as sodium-independent organic anion transmembrane transporter activity (GO:0015347, monoamine transmembrane transporter activity (GO:0008504, negative regulation of synaptic transmission (GO:0050805, neuroactive ligand-receptor interaction (hsa04080, serotonergic synapse (hsa04726, and linoleic acid metabolism (hsa00591, among others. This analysis confirmed our results and may show evidence for a new method in studying drug half-lives and building effective computational methods for the prediction of drug half-lives.

Changes in ambient dose equivalent rates around roads at Kawamata town after the Fukushima accident

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kinase, Sakae; Sato, Satoshi; Yamamoto, Hideaki; Saito, Kimiaki; Sakamoto, Ryuichi

2015-01-01

Changes in ambient dose equivalent rates noted through vehicle-borne surveys have elucidated ecological half-lives of radioactive caesium in the environment. To confirm that the ecological half-lives are appropriate for predicting ambient dose equivalent rates within living areas, it is important to ascertain ambient dose equivalent rates on/around roads. In this study, radiation monitoring on/around roads at Kawamata town, located about 37 km northwest of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, was performed using monitoring vehicles and survey meters. It was found that the ambient dose equivalent rates around roads were higher than those on roads as of October 2012. And withal the ecological half-lives on roads were essentially consistent with those around roads. With dose predictions using ecological half-lives on roads, it is necessary to make corrections to ambient dose equivalent rates through the vehicle-borne surveys against those within living areas. (authors)

Half-life of 90Sr - measurement and critical review

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Woods, M.J.; Lucas, S.E.M.

1996-01-01

Recent evaluations of the half-life of 90 Sr have demonstrated the variable quality of the available experimental data which has prevented the estimation and adoption of a value that commands confidence. In an attempt to reduce the uncertainty in the half-life to an acceptable level, the decay of a 90 Sr source has been followed for over six years at NPL. The equipment comprised matching, re-entrant, high-pressure ionization chambers and a long-lived reference source to reduce non-random effects. The experimental technique is described together with the statistical procedure used to analyse the measured data. A half-life value was determined together with an estimate of the associated uncertainties. A new evaluation of the 90 Sr half-life has been made, taking account of the new NPL data and other recent measurements. Particular attention has been paid to the experimental techniques used to produce the data and the uncertainties attributed to them. An objective evaluation has been conducted to produce a new recommended half-life value of 10 516 ± 21 days. (orig.)

Biological half-lives and organ distribution of tritiated 8-lysine-vasopressin and 1-deamino-8-D-arginine-vasopressin in Brattleboro rats

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Janaky, T.; Laczi, F.; Laszlo, F.A.

1982-01-01

The biological half-lives and organ distribution of tritiated 8-lysine-vasopressin and 1-deamino-8-D-arginine-vasopressin were determined in R-Amsterdam rats and in homozygous and heterozygous Brattleboro rats with hereditary central diabetes insipidus. It was found that the biological half-lives of [ 3 H]LVP and [ 3 H]dDAVP in the Brattleboro rats did not differ significantly from that found in the control R-Amsterdam rats. The half-life of [ 3 H]dDAVP proved longer than that of [ 3 H]LVP in all three groups of animals. In the case of [ 3 H]LVP the highest radioactivities were observed in the neurohypophyses, adenohypophyses, and kidneys of both the R-Amsterdam and Brattleboro rats. The accumulation of tritiated material was higher in the small intestine of the Brattleboro rats than in that of the R-Amsterdam animals. In all three groups of rats, [ 3 H]dDAVP was accumulated to the greatest extent in the kidney and the small intestine. The kidney and small intestine contained less radioactivity in homozygous Brattleboro rats than in the controls. There was only a slight radioactivity accumulation in the adenohypophysis and neurohypophysis. From the results it was concluded that the decrease in the rate of enzymatic decomposition may play a role in the increased duration of antidiuretic action of dDAVP. The results have led to the conclusion that the accelerated elimination of vasopressin and its pathologic organ accumulation are probably not involved in the water metabolism disturbance of Brattleboro rats with hereditary diabetes insipidus

The half-life of 227Th by direct and indirect measurements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Collins, S.M.; Pommé, S.; Jerome, S.M.; Ferreira, K.M.; Regan, P.H.; Pearce, A.K.

2015-01-01

Utilising a chemically purified solution the radioactive half-life of 227 Th has been determined indirectly by observation of the ingrowth of 223 Ra using an ionisation chamber (IC) and for the first time by direct observation of the change in activity with time using a high-purity germanium (HPGe) γ-ray spectrometer. The radioactive decay was observed for ~104 days (~5.6 half-lives) by γ-ray spectrometry and approximately 63 days and 72 days (~3.4 and ~3.9 half-lives) using an ionisation chamber (IC). The resulting half-life values – 18.695 (4) days (IC) and 18.683 (20) days (HPGe) – are consistent and detailed uncertainty budgets are presented for the two measurement techniques. A weighted mean of our results of 18.695 (4) days is inconsistent with the most precise published half-life value of 18.7176 (52) days (Jordan and Blanke, 1967). A critical evaluation of literature data has been performed, indicating a paucity of reliable and independent measurements. Selected independent published values have been used to determine a recommended half-life of 18.697 (7) days. A method has been introduced in the course of this work so that the recommended half-life of 227 Th as determined by ingrowth can be modified if a different 223 Ra half-life has been determined, evaluated and adopted. - Highlights: • First direct measurement of 227 Th half-life by HPGe γ-ray spectrometry. • Precision half-life measurement by ionisation chamber. • New half-life of 18.695 (4) days determined. • Critical evaluation of published half-lives and recommended value determined

Half-life of Xe120

Science.gov (United States)

Phillips, A. A.; Andreoiu, C.; Ball, G. C.; Bandyopadhyay, D.; Behr, J. A.; Chupp, T. E.; Finlay, P.; Garrett, P. E.; Grinyer, G. F.; Hackman, G.; Hayden, M. E.; Hyland, B.; Nuss-Warren, S. R.; Pearson, M. R.; Schumaker, M. A.; Smith, M. B.; Svensson, C. E.; Tardiff, E. R.; Valiente-Dobón, J. J.; Warner, T.

2006-08-01

We have measured the half-life of Xe120 using a high-purity germanium (HPGe) detector to monitor the 176, 178, and 762 keV γ rays from Xe120 β+ decay. The result, 46±0.6 min, differs significantly from the value 40±1 min reported by Andersson [Ark. Fys. 28, 37 (1964)]. We have also measured the half-lives of Cs120 and I120 to be 60±0.7 s and 82.1±0.6 min, respectively, both of which are consistent with previous measurements.

Decoding β-decay systematics: A global statistical model for β- half-lives

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Costiris, N. J.; Mavrommatis, E.; Gernoth, K. A.; Clark, J. W.

2009-01-01

Statistical modeling of nuclear data provides a novel approach to nuclear systematics complementary to established theoretical and phenomenological approaches based on quantum theory. Continuing previous studies in which global statistical modeling is pursued within the general framework of machine learning theory, we implement advances in training algorithms designed to improve generalization, in application to the problem of reproducing and predicting the half-lives of nuclear ground states that decay 100% by the β - mode. More specifically, fully connected, multilayer feed-forward artificial neural network models are developed using the Levenberg-Marquardt optimization algorithm together with Bayesian regularization and cross-validation. The predictive performance of models emerging from extensive computer experiments is compared with that of traditional microscopic and phenomenological models as well as with the performance of other learning systems, including earlier neural network models as well as the support vector machines recently applied to the same problem. In discussing the results, emphasis is placed on predictions for nuclei that are far from the stability line, and especially those involved in r-process nucleosynthesis. It is found that the new statistical models can match or even surpass the predictive performance of conventional models for β-decay systematics and accordingly should provide a valuable additional tool for exploring the expanding nuclear landscape.

Random summing in a multi-detector counting system measuring mixtures of radionuclides of short and long half-lives

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Oxby, C.B.; Oldroyd, B.; Graham, S.G.

1979-01-01

A method is described for correcting a radiation spectrum for the distortion caused by random summing when a multidetector array is used to acquire events from a mixture of radionuclides whose half-lives may be long or short compared with the counting period. With our own counting system it was found that both the resolving time, and the fractions of the energy of a second signal which may be added to that of the immediately previous signal, i.e., the resolving time function, are dependent upon the energies of these two signals. The method requires knowledge of the losses which occur in a multidetector system e.g., live-time error and blocking losses, the variation of the resolving time function with signal energies, a standard spectrum of each radionuclide of the mixture and the fractions of them which constitute the mixture spectrum, the decay constant of each radionuclide, and the fraction of the total events recorded by the system being received by each detector. (orig.)

New determination of the half-lives of 57Co, 103Ru, sup(103m)Rh, 103Pd, and 109Cd

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vaninbroukx, R.; Grosse, G.; Zehner, W.

1981-01-01

The half-lives of five radionuclides were redetermined by photon-counting techniques using NaI(Tl)- and Si(Li) detectors. The results are: 57 Co: (271.90 +- 0.09)d, 103 Ru: (39.260 +- 0.020)d, sup(103m)Rh: (56.114 +- 0.020)m, 103 Pd: (16.991 +- 0.019)d, and 109 Cd: (461.90 +- 0.30)d. The quoted uncertainties, corresponding to a lσ level, take into account random and systematic uncertainties. (author)

Using 226Ra/228Ra disequilibrium to determine the residence half-lives of radium in vegetation compartments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Baeza, A.; Barandica, J.; Paniagua, J.M.; Rufo, M.; Sterling, A.

1999-01-01

The concentrations of 226 Ra and 228 Ra were studied in different vegetation compartments and in available and non-available soil fractions in a Mediterranean scrubland ecosystem. A high percentage of the plant samples showed an apparent discrimination in favour of 226 Ra over 228 Ra. A linear compartmental model was applied to the soil-plant system. It allowed us to explain why these discrimination coefficients differed from unity, to obtain the residence half-lives of radium in the different compartments, to estimate the age of the plants, and to simulate the temporal evolution of the radioactive concentrations in each compartment. (Copyright (c) 1999 Elsevier Science B.V., Amsterdam. All rights reserved.)

The Other May Simply Live: Ecological Design as Environmental Justice

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

William Eisenstein

2004-06-01

Full Text Available As a global consensus continues to form about the gravity of the ecological risks facing the world in the new century, a smaller, parallel consensus about the pivotal role to be played by ecological designers and planners has also emerged. Few observers dispute the basic idea that the physical design of the built environment is a critical element of an ecologically healthy civilisation. As such, the planners and designers who focus on holistic, place-based strategies for creating those environments and promoting the long-term protection of ecosystems have much to contribute to the larger debate over the meaning and practice of sustainability. Because their role is potentially so important, it matters how ecological designers and planners conceptualise and present their work to the larger society. In particular, addressing a subtle, conceptual divide between ecological design and environmental justice concerns should be a priority. Far from being solely the province of New Age escapists or idiosyncratic, wealthy clients as it is often caricatured, ecological design practice is in fact critical to confronting the harsh realities of toxic exposure, air pollution, and water contamination that beset disadvantaged communities. After pointing out the key physical and conceptual links between ecological design and environmental justice, this paper argues that landscape architects do not sufficiently emphasise the human impacts of ecological degradation resulting from unsustainable design. It goes on to identify two specific analytical tools (ecological economics and a modified form of ecological footprint analysis that can help the profession make this case. A greater effort to do so would help to expand the influence of ecological landscape design in both the global debates about sustainability and in localised realms of implementation.

Ecological aspects of historical and contemporary Swedish and Danish mortality

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hansen, Hans Oluf

2014-01-01

preventive and curative measures introduced in the second half of the twentieth century? Hansen (2013) proposed a multivariate hazard model aiming at separating ecological factors in terms of endogenous biological from exogenous effects in human mortality. He explored some of its analytic potentials...

Levels of organization in biology: on the nature and nomenclature of ecology's fourth level.

Science.gov (United States)

Lidicker, William Z

2008-02-01

Viewing the universe as being composed of hierarchically arranged systems is widely accepted as a useful model of reality. In ecology, three levels of organization are generally recognized: organisms, populations, and communities (biocoenoses). For half a century increasing numbers of ecologists have concluded that recognition of a fourth level would facilitate increased understanding of ecological phenomena. Sometimes the word "ecosystem" is used for this level, but this is arguably inappropriate. Since 1986, I and others have argued that the term "landscape" would be a suitable term for a level of organization defined as an ecological system containing more than one community type. However, "landscape" and "landscape level" continue to be used extensively by ecologists in the popular sense of a large expanse of space. I therefore now propose that the term "ecoscape" be used instead for this fourth level of organization. A clearly defined fourth level for ecology would focus attention on the emergent properties of this level, and maintain the spatial and temporal scale-free nature inherent in this hierarchy of organizational levels for living entities.

Tests of a Fast Plastic Scintillator for High-Precision Half-Life Measurements

Science.gov (United States)

Laffoley, A. T.; Dunlop, R.; Finlay, P.; Leach, K. G.; Michetti-Wilson, J.; Rand, E. T.; Svensson, C. E.; Grinyer, G. F.; Thomas, J. C.; Ball, G.; Garnsworthy, A. B.; Hackman, G.; Orce, J. N.; Triambak, S.; Williams, S. J.; Andreoiu, C.; Cross, D.

2013-03-01

A fast plastic scintillator detector is evaluated for possible use in an ongoing program of high-precision half-life measurements of short lived β emitters. Using data taken at TRI-UMF's Isotope Separator and Accelerator Facility with a radioactive 26Na beam, a detailed investigation of potential systematic effects with this new detector setup is being performed. The technique will then be applied to other β-decay half-life measurements including the superallowed Fermi β emitters 10C, 14O, and T = 1/2 decay of 15O.

Investigation concerning the relative formation rate and half-life time of short-lived nuclides with a fast conveyor tube system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kreiner, H.J.

1976-01-01

Since the installation of the 'Ultrafast Rabbit System' at the FRN in end of 1974, some research was started concerning the possibility of neutron activation analysis of short-lived nuclides (0.02 1/2 < 1 s) and measurements of short-lived fission products of U-235 and Pu-239. One of the results of the investigations is a more exact gamma-energy determination of the 0.8 s Cl-38m with 671.33 keV. In NAA it was possible to reach a sensitivity for lead and boron near 2 μg per sample respectively 10 ppm. In measurements of light fission products 0.1 - 8s after a pulse irradiation some differences of the relative formation rate and half-life in the region of A approximately 100 were found in comparison to literature. For example a strong build-up could be seen measuring the gamma-energy of 276.1 keV that belongs to Nb-101. Therefore we suppose the existence of an isomeric state of Nb-101. In comparison to our own results of yield ratio of the Pu- and U-fission products a good agreement with known data was found. Furthermore the measuring method gives the possibility of coordination of unknown gamma-lines to nuclides using the rate of formation, the half-life, the yield ratio between U and Pu and the build-up factor. That could be verified in some cases, e.g. Nb-103 and Sr-96. (author)

Historical ecology: past, present and future

OpenAIRE

Szabó, Péter

2014-01-01

The term ‘historical ecology’ has been used with various meanings since the first half of the 20th century. Studies labelled as historical ecology have been produced in at least four academic disciplines: history, ecology, geography and anthropology. Although all those involved seem to agree that historical ecology concerns the historical interconnectedness of nature and human culture, this field of study has no unified methodology, specialized institutional background and c...

Development of prediction models for radioactive caesium distribution within the 80-km radius of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kinase, Sakae; Sato, Satoshi; Saito, Kimiaki; Takahashi, Tomoyuki; Sakamoto, Ryuichi

2014-01-01

Preliminary prediction models have been studied for the radioactive caesium distribution within the 80-km radius of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. The models were represented by exponential functions using ecological half-life of radioactive caesium in the environment. The ecological half-lives were derived from the changes in ambient dose equivalent rates through vehicle-borne surveys. It was found that the ecological half-lives of radioactive caesium were not constant within the 80-km radius of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. The ecological half-life of radioactive caesium in forest areas was found to be much larger than that in urban and water areas. (authors)

Genetic Allee effects and their interaction with ecological Allee effects.

Science.gov (United States)

Wittmann, Meike J; Stuis, Hanna; Metzler, Dirk

2018-01-01

It is now widely accepted that genetic processes such as inbreeding depression and loss of genetic variation can increase the extinction risk of small populations. However, it is generally unclear whether extinction risk from genetic causes gradually increases with decreasing population size or whether there is a sharp transition around a specific threshold population size. In the ecological literature, such threshold phenomena are called 'strong Allee effects' and they can arise for example from mate limitation in small populations. In this study, we aim to (i) develop a meaningful notion of a 'strong genetic Allee effect', (ii) explore whether and under what conditions such an effect can arise from inbreeding depression due to recessive deleterious mutations, and (iii) quantify the interaction of potential genetic Allee effects with the well-known mate-finding Allee effect. We define a strong genetic Allee effect as a genetic process that causes a population's survival probability to be a sigmoid function of its initial size. The inflection point of this function defines the critical population size. To characterize survival-probability curves, we develop and analyse simple stochastic models for the ecology and genetics of small populations. Our results indicate that inbreeding depression can indeed cause a strong genetic Allee effect, but only if individuals carry sufficiently many deleterious mutations (lethal equivalents). Populations suffering from a genetic Allee effect often first grow, then decline as inbreeding depression sets in and then potentially recover as deleterious mutations are purged. Critical population sizes of ecological and genetic Allee effects appear to be often additive, but even superadditive interactions are possible. Many published estimates for the number of lethal equivalents in birds and mammals fall in the parameter range where strong genetic Allee effects are expected. Unfortunately, extinction risk due to genetic Allee effects

Socio-ecological impact of development schemes in the homelands of South Africa

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

de Wet, C. (Rhodes Univ., Grahamstown (South Africa))

Development schemes in rural areas have a significant ecological impact as they often involve a reorganization of land-use and resource-utilization patterns. This reorganization is usually intended to have a positive ecological effect by combating erosion, promoting rational land-use patterns and using the potential of the area to best effect, thereby also providing economic benefits to the people living there. Often development schemes have the opposite effect - a negative ecological and economic impact as well as causing considerable social disruption, which in its turn has further negative ecological consequences. This paper looks at several kinds of development projects, seeking to understand why they have limited rather than increased ecological, economic and social options, and to what extent such negative effects can be avoided in future development projects in rural areas.

Experimental half-life determination of 176Lu

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kossert, Karsten; Jörg, Gerhard; Gostomski, Christoph Lierse v.

2013-01-01

The half-life of the naturally occurring long-lived rare earth isotope 176 Lu was determined by a combination of highly sophisticated experimental procedures in order to further improve the reliability and the precision of literature data. The amount of lutetium in the samples was determined by inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES) using a NIST reference standard. The isotopic ratio N( 176 Lu)/N(Lu) in the samples was measured by means of inductively coupled plasma high resolution mass spectrometry (ICP-HRMS). The activity divided by the mass of Lu was determined by applying liquid scintillation (LS) counting. The LS counting efficiency of the beta/gamma emitter 176 Lu was determined with the CIEMAT/NIST efficiency tracing technique with low uncertainty. The influences of colour quenching and background effects are discussed in this paper. The half-life was found to be 3.640(35)×10 10 y. The result is in good agreement with other evaluations and the relative standard uncertainty of 0.95% is among the lowest of previously published data. - Highlights: • The half-life of 176 Lu was determined by ICP-OES, ICP-HRMS and LSC. • The LSC efficiency was determined with the CIEMAT/NIST method. • The half-life was found to be 3.640(35)×10 10 y

Cumulative Effects Assessment: Linking Social, Ecological, and Governance Dimensions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marian Weber

2012-06-01

Full Text Available Setting social, economic, and ecological objectives is ultimately a process of social choice informed by science. In this special feature we provide a multidisciplinary framework for the use of cumulative effects assessment in land use planning. Forest ecosystems are facing considerable challenges driven by population growth and increasing demands for resources. In a suite of case studies that span the boreal forest of Western Canada to the interior Atlantic forest of Paraguay we show how transparent and defensible methods for scenario analysis can be applied in data-limited regions and how social dimensions of land use change can be incorporated in these methods, particularly in aboriginal communities that have lived in these ecosystems for generations. The case studies explore how scenario analysis can be used to evaluate various land use options and highlight specific challenges with identifying social and ecological responses, determining thresholds and targets for land use, and integrating local and traditional knowledge in land use planning. Given that land use planning is ultimately a value-laden and often politically charged process we also provide some perspective on various collective and expert-based processes for identifying cumulative impacts and thresholds. The need for good science to inform and be informed by culturally appropriate democratic processes calls for well-planned and multifaceted approaches both to achieve an informed understanding of both residents and governments of the interactive and additive changes caused by development, and to design action agendas to influence such change at the ecological and social level.

Restoring fish ecological quality in estuaries: Implication of interactive and cumulative effects among anthropogenic stressors.

Science.gov (United States)

Teichert, Nils; Borja, Angel; Chust, Guillem; Uriarte, Ainhize; Lepage, Mario

2016-01-15

Estuaries are subjected to multiple anthropogenic stressors, which have additive, antagonistic or synergistic effects. Current challenges include the use of large databases of biological monitoring surveys (e.g. the European Water Framework Directive) to help environmental managers prioritizing restoration measures. This study investigated the impact of nine stressor categories on the fish ecological status derived from 90 estuaries of the North East Atlantic countries. We used a random forest model to: 1) detect the dominant stressors and their non-linear effects; 2) evaluate the ecological benefits expected from reducing pressure from stressors; and 3) investigate the interactions among stressors. Results showed that largest restoration benefits were expected when mitigating water pollution and oxygen depletion. Non-additive effects represented half of pairwise interactions among stressors, and antagonisms were the most common. Dredged sediments, flow changes and oxygen depletion were predominantly implicated in non-additive interactions, whereas the remainder stressors often showed additive impacts. The prevalence of interactive impacts reflects a complex scenario for estuaries management; hence, we proposed a step-by-step restoration scheme focusing on the mitigation of stressors providing the maximum of restoration benefits under a multi-stress context. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The Making of the other half

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Petersson, Dag

Mutation Theory, capable of probing into the shifting perceptions of immigration and tenement poverty that gained a foothold across America thanks to Riis’s work. This sweeping change was an epistemic event sparked by the publication of How the Other Half Lives in 1890. In this seminal book...

The analysis of predictability of recent alpha decay formulae and the alpha partial half-lives of some exotic nuclei

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dasgupta-Schubert, N.; Reyes, M. A.; Tamez, V. A.

2009-01-01

Alpha decay is one of the two main decay modes of the heaviest nuclei, (SHE), and constitutes one of the dominant decay modes of highly neutron deficient medium mass nuclei ('exotics'). Thus identifying and characterizing the alpha decay chains form a crucial part of the identification of SHE. We report the extension of the previously developed method for the detailed and systematic investigation of the reliability of the three main extant analytical formulae of alpha decay half-lives: the generalized liquid drop model based formula of Royer et al. (FR), the Sobiczewski modified semi-empirical Viola-Seaborg formula (VSS) and the recent phenomenological formula of Sobiczewski and Parkhomenko (SP).

Validation of effective half-life of tritium and computation of dose at Madras Atomic Power Station

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Moolya, L.L.; Kannan, R.K.; Sreekumaran Nair, B.; Mohandas, P.G.; Rajan, R.

2001-01-01

In Pressurised Heavy Water Reactors (PHWRs) tritium is produced by the activation of deuterium present in the moderator and coolant system. Hence, the inventory of tritium in PHWR is high and it contributes about 20 percent of the Station Dose. Tritium enters body by inhalation, ingestion and skin absorption. Dose received by an individual depends on its elimination rate from the body and hence the effective half-life. It is found that the effective half-life varies from person to person. The effective half-life also depends on the weather condition. The variation of effective half-life is taken care of in dose estimation by average method. However, in case of dose calculation for single uptake cases, there is a need to take fixed effective half-life. ICRP has taken the effective half-life as 10 days. The effective half-life is taken as 6 days in Indian conditions based on the studies conducted earlier in MAPS and elsewhere. Now with available data for about 16 years a fresh study was conducted to validate the effective half-life. This paper gives the study of effective half-life of tritium and its variation during different seasons of the year in MAPS. This paper also gives methods used for computing dose due to tritium. (author)

Comparative effectiveness of non-print media and live CME

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kuldeep Singh

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Continuing Medical Education is an integral ingredient of professional development of health care providers. The educational activity can be delivered by different modes. Here we share our experience of using Digital Video Disc (DVD of a CME on Sleep Medicine as an alternative and cost effective mode.Objective: To assess improvement in knowledge and competencies in terms of comparative effectiveness of a model CME program using validated non-print medium for medical education.Methods: Recorded and validated DVD of talks delivered at NAMS-AIIMS Regional Symposium on Sleep Medicine was played to the participants in presence of one of the content experts. Video scripts of talk were also distributed to the participants. The assessment of participants and program evaluation of this CME was compared to the previously held live CME.Results: Eighty nine participants completed both pre and post test. Mean score increased from 9.91± 3.5 to 14.09 ± 2.85. Pass percentage based on an arbitrary cut off of 50%, increased from 8.3 to 43.8 (p< 0.001. Among the live CME group, mean score improved from 12.1±4.6 to 18.3 ± 3.8. Comparative analysis between live and DVD based CME showed improvement in scores of 6.17 and 4.18 respectively while pass percentage of 84.7 and 43.8 post CME among two modes were significant. The program evaluation showed identical level of satisfaction in all parameters except they were less satisfied vis-a-vis 'organizers made use of any critical comments I made' since all locally available resource persons were not present. Activity could be completed at just half the cost of live CME.Conclusions: The educational background and selection process of UG students between two medical institutes were strikingly different. While students at one institute were selected by highly competitive exam at All India level, the students at other institute were selected through state level competitive examination. In spite of that, results showed

Analytical basis for neutron-activation analysis measuring nuclides with a half-life of second order

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yonezawa, Chushiro; Ichimura, Shigeju; Matsue, Hideaki; Kurosawa, Tatsuya

1998-01-01

An analytical basis for a neutron-activation analysis (NAA) for measuring nuclides of second-order half-lives produced by the (n, γ) reaction has been studied using a neutron-activation analysis facility (PN-3) of JRR-3M. The NAA facility, comprising a fast pneumatic irradiation system and a high count-rate gamma-ray spectrometer, is able to automatically conduct NAA with short-lived nuclides. Basic experimental conditions, such as a high count-rate gamma-ray measurement, the effects of irradiation-capsule material and the stability of the neutron flux, were examined. The analytical sensitivities and detection limits for 20 elements of which activated radionuclide having half-lives from 0.7 to 100 s were obtained. Scandium, In, Dy and Hf were elements having the highest analytical sensitivity, with detection limits down to 4.2 to 14 ng. Fluorine, which is difficult to determine by other methods, can be detected at above 530 ng. Analytical applications of NAA with short-lived nuclides have been carried out for F, Se, Sc, Hf, In and Dy in various materials, including reference materials. The accuracy, precision and detection limits of NAA with short-lived nuclides have been evaluated. (author)

Long-term lunar stations: Some ecological considerations

Science.gov (United States)

Maguire, Bassett, Jr.; Scott, Kelly W.

1992-01-01

A major factor for long-term success of a lunar station is the ability to keep an agroecosystem functioning at a desirable, stable steady-state with ecological stability and reliability. Design for a long-lived extraterrestrial manned station must take into account interactions among its subsystems to insure that overall functionality is enhanced (or at least not compromised). Physical isolation of feed production, human living areas, recycling, and other systems may be straightforward, however, microbiological isolation will be very difficult. While it is possible to eliminate plant-associated microbiological communities by growing the plants asepticallly, it is not practical to keep plants germ-free on a large scale if humans are working with them. Ecological theory strongly suggests that some kinds of communities or organisms effectively increase the stability of ecosystems and will protect the plants from potential pathogens. A carefully designed and maintained (lunar-derived) soil can provide a variety of habitats for effective microbial buffers while adding structure to the agroecosystem. A soil can also increase ecosystem reliability through buffering otherwise large element and compound fluctuations (of nutrients, wastes, etc.) as well as buffering temperature level and atmosphere composition. We are doing experiments in ecological dynamics and attempting to extend the relevant theories.

Half-width at half-maximum, full-width at half-maximum analysis

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

addition to the well-defined parameter full-width at half-maximum (FWHM). The distribution of ... optical side-lobes in the diffraction pattern resulting in steep central maxima [6], reduc- tion of effects of ... and broad central peak. The idea of.

The effects of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus and free living nitrogen fixing bacteria on growth, photosynthesis and yield of corn

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

mohsen jahan

2009-06-01

Full Text Available In recent years, biological fertilizers have received special attention by scientists in sustainable and low input agriculture. In order to study the effects of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi and free living nitrogen fixing bacteria on growth and photosynthesis characteristics of corn in conventional and ecological cropping systems, a field experiment was conducted at the Research Farm of Ferdowsi University of Mashhad during year 2006. A split plots arrangement based on randomized complete block design with three replications was used. Treatments consisted four cropping systems (1- High input conventional system, 2- Medium input conventional system, 3- Low input conventional system and 4- Ecological system and four inoculations (1- Mycorrhiza fungus, Glomus intraradices, 2- Bacteria, Azotobacter paspali and Azospirillum brasilense, 3- Dual inoculation, Fungus plus bacteria, and 4- No-inoculation, control, which were allocated to main plots and sub plots, respectively. All agronomic practices and inputs application during planting and nursing for each of cropping systems were conducted according to regional traditions. Results showed that the effect of inoculation on photosynthesis rates of corn was significant, as the highest photosynthesis rate obtained in dual inoculation. Single inoculation (fungus or bacteria was ranked second. The effect of all inoculations on corn dry matter production was significant and dual inoculation produced the highest dry matter yield. The cropping systems have significant effect on corn yield and the difference between medium input conventional system and high input conventional system was significant, but the high input, low input and ecological cropping systems showed no differences. Inoculants affected the SPAD readings, and dual inoculation showed the highest SPAD readings. This study showed that utilization of low input conventional and ecological systems in combination with use of dual inoculation of

The Newcomb-Benford law and nuclear half-lives

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Farkas, J.; Gyuerky, Gy.

2010-01-01

Compete text of publication follows. The satisfaction of the Newcomb-Benford law (a.k.a. Benford's first digit law) is a long standing issue in science, and has interesting mathematical and philosophical consequences. It was identified by Newcomb in 1881 and reinvented later by Benford in 1938. The law states that the distribution of the first digit of numbers taken from various sources like magazines, scientific publications, wealth statistics, etc. . . follows the law P d = lg (1 + 1/d) (d = 1, 2, ..., 9), where d is the given digit. It was reported recently that the satisfaction of the law was observed in nuclear decay half-life datasets. Based on this fact, it was implied that the law is helpful as a test for nuclear decay models, as well as it can be used to search for new physical phenomena (like self organized criticality) which can be responsible for the satisfaction of the law. The mathematical conundrum of the Newcomb-Benford law has been solved in 2008 for numbers coming from a data set with a given distribution. The 'Benford compliance theorem' uses the Fourier transform of the probability distribution function of the numbers to identify the characteristics of the distribution responsible for the satisfaction of the law. In our work we confirmed that the halflives of radioactive nuclei satisfy the law by using two standard techniques: direct plotting and the 'ones scaling test' method. We also showed that the distribution of the half-life values closely resembles a log-normal distribution stretching through about 54 orders of magnitude. By using the Fourier transform of the distribution function we showed that the numbers with such a distribution automatically satisfy the Newcomb-Benford law, due to the compliance theorem. Thus we concluded that the satisfaction of the law provides no additional clue on whether a nuclear model is valid or not, given it produces a similar distribution of halflives as observed.

Human breath measurements in a clean-air chamber to determine half-lives for volatile organic compounds

Science.gov (United States)

Gordon, Sydney M.; Wallace, Lance A.; Pelllzzari, Edo D.; O'Neill, Hugh J.

The expired breath of four non-occupationally exposed subjects was monitored following exposure at near-normal environmental concentrations using a specially developed pulmonary clearance technique. The four were exposed to polluted air on a heavily trafficked freeway or at a local dry-cleaning establishment, then spent the next 10 h in a clean-air environmental chamber. Breath and chamber-air samples were collected at regular intervals throughout the 10-h period and analyzed for the presence of selected target compounds. The breath levels of two of the compounds were elevated and decreased slowly with time once the subjects began to breathe clean air. Nonlinear least-squares fitting of the decay-uptake curves permitted the calculation of biological half-lives. Several of the target compounds occurred, however, at very low levels, and the resultant experimental scatter limited the value of these measurements. Higher initial exposures to most of the target compounds would have improved the reliability of the estimates.

Numerical solution of stiff burnup equation with short half lived nuclides by the Krylov subspace method

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yamamoto, Akio; Tatsumi, Masahiro; Sugimura, Naoki

2007-01-01

The Krylov subspace method is applied to solve nuclide burnup equations used for lattice physics calculations. The Krylov method is an efficient approach for solving ordinary differential equations with stiff nature such as the nuclide burnup with short lived nuclides. Some mathematical fundamentals of the Krylov subspace method and its application to burnup equations are discussed. Verification calculations are carried out in a PWR pin-cell geometry with UO 2 fuel. A detailed burnup chain that includes 193 fission products and 28 heavy nuclides is used in the verification calculations. Shortest half life found in the present burnup chain is approximately 30 s ( 106 Rh). Therefore, conventional methods (e.g., the Taylor series expansion with scaling and squaring) tend to require longer computation time due to numerical stiffness. Comparison with other numerical methods (e.g., the 4-th order Runge-Kutta-Gill) reveals that the Krylov subspace method can provide accurate solution for a detailed burnup chain used in the present study with short computation time. (author)

Half-life determination for 27Mg

Science.gov (United States)

Zahn, G. S.; Genezini, F. A.

2015-07-01

In this work, the half-life of the short-lived magnesium radionuclide 27Mg was measured by following the activity of samples after they were irradiated in the IEA-R1 reactor. An exponential decay function was then fitted to the results using the counts from a 60Co source as livetime chronometer; the individual half-life values obtained for each irradiation were compiled using both the usual unweighted and σ-2-weighted averages, as well as the robust averages obtained using the Normalized Residuals and the Rajeval techniques. The final halflive values obtained aren't compatible with the ENSDF compilation values, but have a similar uncertainty; analysis of the experimental literature values, all from the 50’s-60’s, show that further measurements should be undertaken in order to achieve a more robust consensus value for this half-life.

Direct fitness of group living mammals varies with breeding strategy, climate and fitness estimates.

Science.gov (United States)

Ebensperger, Luis A; Rivera, Daniela S; Hayes, Loren D

2012-09-01

1. Understanding how variation in fitness relates to variation in group living remains critical to determine whether this major aspect of social behaviour is currently adaptive. 2. Available evidence in social mammals aimed to examine this issue remains controversial. Studies show positive (i.e. potentially adaptive), neutral or even negative fitness effects of group living. 3. Attempts to explain this variation rely on intrinsic and extrinsic factors to social groups. Thus, relatively more positive fitness effects are predicted in singularly breeding as opposed to plural breeding species. Fitness effects of sociality in turn may depend on ecological conditions (i.e. extrinsic factors) that influence associated benefits and costs. 4. We used meta-analytic tools to review how breeding strategy or ecological conditions influence the effect size associated with direct fitness-sociality relationships reported in the mammalian literature. Additionally, we determined how taxonomic affiliation of species studied, different fitness and sociality measures used, and major climatic conditions of study sites explained any variation in direct fitness effect size. 5. We found group living had modest, yet positive effects on direct fitness. This generally adaptive scenario was contingent not only upon breeding strategy and climate of study sites, but also on fitness measures examined. Thus, positive and significant effects characterized singular as opposed to plural breeding strategies. 6. We found more positive fitness effects on studies conducted in tropical as opposed to temperate or arid climates. More positive and significant effects were noted on studies that relied on group fecundity, male fecundity and offspring survival as measures of fitness. 7. To conclude, direct fitness consequences of mammalian group living are driven by interspecific differences in breeding strategy and climate conditions. Other factors not examined in this study, namely individual variation in

Project Half Double

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Svejvig, Per; Gerstrøm, Anna; Frederiksen, Signe Hedeboe

The Half Double mission: Project Half Double has a clear mission. We want to succeed in finding a project methodology that can increase the success rate of our projects while increasing the development speed of new products and services. We are convinced that by doing so we can strengthen...... the competitiveness of Denmark and play an important role in the battle for jobs and future welfare. The overall goal is to deliver “Projects in half the time with double the impact” where projects in half the time should be understood as half the time to impact (benefit realization, effect is achieved......) and not as half the time for project execution. The Half Double project journey: It all began in May 2013 when we asked ourselves: How do we create a new and radical project paradigm that can create successful projects? Today we are a movement of hundreds of passionate project people, and it grows larger...

Ecological and evolutionary effects of stickleback on community structure.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Simone Des Roches

Full Text Available Species' ecology and evolution can have strong effects on communities. Both may change concurrently when species colonize a new ecosystem. We know little, however, about the combined effects of ecological and evolutionary change on community structure. We simultaneously examined the effects of top-predator ecology and evolution on freshwater community parameters using recently evolved generalist and specialist ecotypes of three-spine stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus. We used a mesocosm experiment to directly examine the effects of ecological (fish presence and density and evolutionary (phenotypic diversity and specialization factors on community structure at lower trophic levels. We evaluated zooplankton biomass and composition, periphyton and phytoplankton chlorophyll-a concentration, and net primary production among treatments containing different densities and diversities of stickleback. Our results showed that both ecological and evolutionary differences in the top-predator affect different aspects of community structure and composition. Community structure, specifically the abundance of organisms at each trophic level, was affected by stickleback presence and density, whereas composition of zooplankton was influenced by stickleback diversity and specialization. Primary productivity, in terms of chlorophyll-a concentration and net primary production was affected by ecological but not evolutionary factors. Our results stress the importance of concurrently evaluating both changes in density and phenotypic diversity on the structure and composition of communities.

Beyond effective half-life characterization of radionuclide dynamics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hermanska, J.; Blazek, T.; Karny, M.

1996-01-01

A refined model was set up and tested of the effective radionuclide half-life in nuclear medicine, making allowance for the fact that the basic assumption that the observed data can be fitted by a mono-exponential, as well as some other assumptions, is not true. The results are discussed. (P.A.). 1 tab., 32 refs

Combining Optical Reporter Proteins with Different Half-lives to Detect Temporal Evolution of Hypoxia and Reoxygenation in Tumors

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Pierre Danhier

2015-12-01

Full Text Available Here we have developed a hypoxia response element driven imaging strategy that combined the hypoxia-driven expression of two optical reporters with different half-lives to detect temporal changes in hypoxia and hypoxia inducible factor (HIF activity. For this purpose, human prostate cancer PC3 cells were transfected with the luciferase gene fused with an oxygen-dependent degradation domain (ODD-luc and a variant of the enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP. Both ODD-luciferase and EGFP were under the promotion of a poly-hypoxia-response element sequence (5xHRE. The cells constitutively expressed tdTomato red fluorescent protein. For validating the imaging strategy, cells were incubated under hypoxia (1% O2 for 48 hours and then reoxygenated. The luciferase activity of PC3-HRE-EGFP/HRE-ODD-luc/tdtomato cells detected by bioluminescent imaging rapidly decreased after reoxygenation, whereas EGFP levels in these cells remained stable for several hours. After in vitro validation, PC3-HRE-EGFP/HRE-ODD-luc/tdtomato tumors were implanted subcutaneously and orthotopically in nude male mice and imaged in vivo and ex vivo using optical imaging in proof-of-principle studies to demonstrate differences in optical patterns between EGFP expression and bioluminescence. This novel "timer" imaging strategy of combining the short-lived ODD-luciferase and the long-lived EGFP can provide a time frame of HRE activation in PC3 prostate cancer cells and will be useful to understand the temporal changes in hypoxia and HIF activity during cancer progression and following treatments including HIF targeting strategies.

Environmental and ecological changes associated with a marina.

Science.gov (United States)

Rivero, Natalie K; Dafforn, Katherine A; Coleman, Melinda A; Johnston, Emma L

2013-01-01

Anthropogenic modifications to waterways are common and their ecological consequences must be understood to effectively conserve local biodiversity. The facilitation of recreational boating activities often requires substantial alteration of natural areas, however the environmental and ecological consequences of such alterations are rarely described in the scientific literature. In this study, ecological and physico-chemical conditions were investigated in a recreational boating marina, located inside a marine park on the south-east coast of Australia. Recruitment panels were deployed for 8 weeks both inside and outside the marina, and differences in the composition of the developing fouling communities were observed. The recruitment of taxa, which often have short-lived larvae, was increased inside the marina (bryozoans, spirorbids and sponges) while the recruitment of taxa, which often have longer-lived larvae, was reduced or absent (barnacles, solitary ascidians and non-spirorbid polychaetes). Differences were also observed in environmental conditions inside the marina cf. directly outside. The marina environment had higher turbidity, temperature and pH along with higher concentrations of lead and copper in suspended sediments, while flow rates and trapped sediment loads were reduced inside the marina. The differences observed in the study suggest that there may be marked environmental changes associated with marina developments. The potential ecological consequences of these changes should be a primary consideration during the planning process, particularly for developments in locations of notable ecological value.

Half-lives of cluster decay of neutron rich nuclei in trans-tin region

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Swamy, G.S.; Umesh, T.K.

2011-01-01

In this work, the logarithmic half-life [log 10 (T 1/2 )] values have been reported for the exotic decay of some neutron rich even–even parent nuclei (56≤Z≤64) accompanied by the emission of alpha-like and non-alpha-like clusters in the trans-tin region. These values were calculated by using the single line of universal curve (UNIV) for alpha and cluster radioactive decay as well as the universal decay law (UDL). The half-life values were also separately calculated by considering the interacting nuclear potential barrier as the sum of Coulomb and proximity potentials. The half-life values based on the three calculations mentioned above, were found to agree with one another within a few orders of magnitude. Possible conclusions are drawn based on the present study. (author)

Avian Influenza Ecology in North Atlantic Sea Ducks: Not All Ducks Are Created Equal

Science.gov (United States)

Hall, Jeffrey S.; Russell, Robin E.; Franson, J. Christian; Soos, Catherine; Dusek, Robert J.; Allen, R. Bradford; Nashold, Sean W.; TeSlaa, Joshua L.; Jónsson, Jón Eínar; Ballard, Jennifer R.; Harms, Naomi Jane; Brown, Justin D.

2015-01-01

Wild waterfowl are primary reservoirs of avian influenza viruses (AIV). However the role of sea ducks in the ecology of avian influenza, and how that role differs from freshwater ducks, has not been examined. We obtained and analyzed sera from North Atlantic sea ducks and determined the seroprevalence in those populations. We also tested swab samples from North Atlantic sea ducks for the presence of AIV. We found relatively high serological prevalence (61%) in these sea duck populations but low virus prevalence (0.3%). Using these data we estimated that an antibody half-life of 141 weeks (3.2 years) would be required to attain these prevalences. These findings are much different than what is known in freshwater waterfowl and have implications for surveillance efforts, AIV in marine environments, and the roles of sea ducks and other long-lived waterfowl in avian influenza ecology. PMID:26677841

Avian influenza ecology in North Atlantic sea ducks: Not all ducks are created equal

Science.gov (United States)

Hall, Jeffrey S.; Russell, Robin E.; Franson, J. Christian; Soos, Catherine; Dusek, Robert J.; Allen, R. Bradford; Nashold, Sean W.; Teslaa, Joshua L.; Jónsson, Jón Einar; Ballard, Jennifer R.; Harms, Naomi Jnae; Brown, Justin D.

2015-01-01

Wild waterfowl are primary reservoirs of avian influenza viruses (AIV). However the role of sea ducks in the ecology of avian influenza, and how that role differs from freshwater ducks, has not been examined. We obtained and analyzed sera from North Atlantic sea ducks and determined the seroprevalence in those populations. We also tested swab samples from North Atlantic sea ducks for the presence of AIV. We found relatively high serological prevalence (61%) in these sea duck populations but low virus prevalence (0.3%). Using these data we estimated that an antibody half-life of 141 weeks (3.2 years) would be required to attain these prevalences. These findings are much different than what is known in freshwater waterfowl and have implications for surveillance efforts, AIV in marine environments, and the roles of sea ducks and other long-lived waterfowl in avian influenza ecology.

Near-optimum procedure for half-life measurement by high-resolution gamma-ray spectrometry

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Parker, J.L.

1989-01-01

A near-optimum procedure for using high-resolution γ-ray spectrometry to measure the half-lives of appropriate γ-ray- emitting-nuclides is presented. Among the important points of the procedure are the employment of the reference source method for implicit correction of pileup and deadtime losses; the use of full-energy peak-area ratios as the fundamental measured quantities; and continuous, high-rate data acquisition to obtain good results in a fraction of a half-life if desired. Equations are given for estimating the precision of the computed half-lives in terms of total measurement time, number of spectral acquisitions, and the precision of peak-area ratios. Results of 169 Yb half-life measurements are given as an example of the procedure's application. 3 refs., 2 tabs

Linking effects of anthropogenic debris to ecological impacts

Science.gov (United States)

Browne, Mark Anthony; Underwood, A. J.; Chapman, M. G.; Williams, Rob; Thompson, Richard C.; van Franeker, Jan A.

2015-01-01

Accelerated contamination of habitats with debris has caused increased effort to determine ecological impacts. Strikingly, most work on organisms focuses on sublethal responses to plastic debris. This is controversial because (i) researchers have ignored medical insights about the mechanisms that link effects of debris across lower levels of biological organization to disease and mortality, and (ii) debris is considered non-hazardous by policy-makers, possibly because individuals can be injured or removed from populations and assemblages without ecological impacts. We reviewed the mechanisms that link effects of debris across lower levels of biological organization to assemblages and populations. Using plastic, we show microplastics reduce the ‘health’, feeding, growth and survival of ecosystem engineers. Larger debris alters assemblages because fishing-gear and tyres kill animals and damage habitat-forming plants, and because floating bottles facilitate recruitment and survival of novel taxa. Where ecological linkages are not known, we show how to establish hypothetical links by synthesizing studies to assess the likelihood of impacts. We also consider how population models examine ecological linkages and guide management of ecological impacts. We show that by focusing on linkages to ecological impacts rather than the presence of debris and its sublethal impacts, we could reduce threats posed by debris. PMID:25904661

Information Ecology

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Christiansen, Ellen Tove

2006-01-01

in the 1960ties, and chosen here because it integrates cultural and psychological trajectories in a theory of living settings. The pedagogical-didactical paradigm comprises three distinct information ecologies, named after their intended outcome: the problem-setting, the exploration-setting, and the fit...

The passive yet successful way of planktonic life: genomic and experimental analysis of the ecology of a free-living polynucleobacter population.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Martin W Hahn

Full Text Available The bacterial taxon Polynucleobacter necessarius subspecies asymbioticus represents a group of planktonic freshwater bacteria with cosmopolitan and ubiquitous distribution in standing freshwater habitats. These bacteria comprise <1% to 70% (on average about 20% of total bacterioplankton cells in various freshwater habitats. The ubiquity of this taxon was recently explained by intra-taxon ecological diversification, i.e. specialization of lineages to specific environmental conditions; however, details on specific adaptations are not known. Here we investigated by means of genomic and experimental analyses the ecological adaptation of a persistent population dwelling in a small acidic pond.The investigated population (F10 lineage contributed on average 11% to total bacterioplankton in the pond during the vegetation periods (ice-free period, usually May to November. Only a low degree of genetic diversification of the population could be revealed. These bacteria are characterized by a small genome size (2.1 Mb, a relatively small number of genes involved in transduction of environmental signals, and the lack of motility and quorum sensing. Experiments indicated that these bacteria live as chemoorganotrophs by mainly utilizing low-molecular-weight substrates derived from photooxidation of humic substances.Evolutionary genome streamlining resulted in a highly passive lifestyle so far only known among free-living bacteria from pelagic marine taxa dwelling in environmentally stable nutrient-poor off-shore systems. Surprisingly, such a lifestyle is also successful in a highly dynamic and nutrient-richer environment such as the water column of the investigated pond, which was undergoing complete mixis and pronounced stratification in diurnal cycles. Obviously, metabolic and ecological versatility is not a prerequisite for long-lasting establishment of abundant bacterial populations under highly dynamic environmental conditions. Caution should be exercised

Measurement of the half-life of 68Ga

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

García-Toraño, Eduardo; Peyrés Medina, Virginia; Romero, Eduardo; Roteta, Miguel

2014-01-01

The half-life of the positron-emitter 68 Ga has been measured by following the decay rate with two systems based on ionization chamber and Ge detectors. The decay rate was measured for periods of time up to 10 half-lives. The combination of the 6 results obtained with both systems gives a value of T 1/2 =67.845(18) min, in good agreement with recommended data and with an uncertainty lower than any other previously reported value. - Highlights: • The half-life of the positron-emitter radionuclide 68 Ga was measured. • Two measurement setups (ionization chamber and Ge detector) were used. • Results agree with evaluated data but exhibit lower uncertainty

Overview of climate information needs for ecological effects models

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Peer, R.L.

1990-01-01

Atmospheric scientists engaged in climate change research require a basic understanding of how ecological effects models incorporate climate. The report provides an overview of existing ecological models that might be used to model climate change effects on vegetation. Some agricultural models and statistical methods are also discussed. The weather input data requirements, weather simulation methods, and other model characteristics relevant to climate change research are described for a selected number of models. The ecological models are classified as biome, ecosystem, or tree models; the ecosystem models are further subdivided into species dynamics or process models. In general, ecological modelers have had to rely on readily available meteorological data such as temperature and rainfall. Although models are becoming more sophisticated in their treatment of weather and require more kinds of data (such as wind, solar radiation, or potential evapotranspiration), modelers are still hampered by a lack of data for many applications. Future directions of ecological effects models and the climate variables that will be required by the models are discussed.

High-dose, half-body irradiation and its effects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Oelssner, W.; Standke, E.; Brock, A.; Dalicho, R.; Friedrich, A.; Kunze, M.L.; Melzer, R.; Sauer, H.

1991-01-01

The major early reactions observable were vegetative disturbances such as nausea, vertigo, repeated vomiting, rise in temperature and pulse rate, variations in blood pressure, and diarrhea in some cases. All these symptoms disappeared quite rapidly. Seven women developed parotitis, which disappeared after a certain time, and all patients suffered from complete epilation, which was followed by enhanced piliation. There were only light mucosal changes in all patients, but many changes in the blood count. Observation of cellular immunity revealed a temporary suppression, which faded out after 3 weeks. Further side effects could be detected in the biochemical regime. The main radiation effects on the lungs and the only virtual complication encountered were three cases of pneumonitis. Apart from these, lung density measurement by CT revealed a temporary increase in density. Effects of the half-body irradiation on the heart consisted for one part of direct effects detectable in the cells of the cardiac muscle in the myocardial capillaries, and for the other by adaptive responses to changes in the hemodynamics of the lesser circulatory system. There were no signs of renal lesions or formation of cataracts. A causality can be suspected between the radiotherapy and the occurrance of two secondary carcinoma, contralateral breast cancer in one patient, and stomach cancer in another. The efficiency of the half-body irradiation is shown by the delayed occurrence of metastases, and a prolongation of survival time of incurable patients. (orig./MG) With 20 figs., 9 tabs [de

Solar energy and ecosystem. ; Simulation system for the ecological system (Bios-3 as an example). Taiyo energy to ecosystem. ; Seitaikei mogi system (Bios-3 wo rei to shite)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nitta, K [National Aerospace Laboratory, Tokyo (Japan)

1992-11-30

The present report gives inspectional opinions about the Bios-3 which is a Russian artificial ecological system and explains the simulation system for the ecological system. The Bios-3 installed in a semi-underground dome of Biophysics Research Institute, Krasnoyarsk is a stainless steel-made enclosed box which is 120m[sup 2] and 3m in total area and height, respectively. Such an internal volume is structurally divided into two botanical cultivation rooms, oxygen supply use chlorella cultivation room and living room where the human living experiment can be done without interruption during half a year. It is judged that the ecological environment can not sufficiently condition both the autotrophic substances which are plants and mosses, and hetrotrophic ones which are animals and microbes. As for the conditional control of ecological system, neither BS-II, USA nor Bios-3 can arbitrarily change the environmental condition. However by utilizing buffers, air blowers and other physico-chemical controllers, development must be done of a new simulator which can change the environment, and elucidate the correlation between the environment and biological beings. That simulator may play an important role also for preparing the IGBP's global model. 5 figs.

Increased volume of distribution for recombinant activated factor VII and longer plasma-derived factor VII half-life may explain their long lasting prophylactic effect.

Science.gov (United States)

Mathijssen, Natascha C J; Masereeuw, Rosalinde; Holme, Pal Andre; van Kraaij, Marian G J; Laros-van Gorkom, Britta A P; Peyvandi, Flora; van Heerde, Waander L

2013-08-01

Prophylaxis with plasma-derived or recombinant activated factor VII is beneficial in severe factor VII deficiency. To understand why prophylactic treatment with both products is efficacious, we conducted a pharmacokinetic study. Ten factor VII deficient patients were treated with either recombinant activated (20 μg/kg) or plasma-derived (25 IU/kg) factor VII in a cross-over design. Pharmacokinetic parameters were analyzed through activated factor VII activity, factor VII clotting activity, and factor VII antigen levels on depicted time points. Factor VII activity half-lifes, determined by non-compartmental and one-compartmental analysis (results in brackets), were shorter for recombinant activated (1.4h; 0.7h) than for plasma-derived factor VII (6.8h; 3.2h); both recombinant activated (5.1h; 2.1h and plasma-derived factor VII (5.8h; 3.2h) resulted in longer half-lives of factor VII antigen. Activated factor VII half-lives (based on activated factor VII activity levels) were significantly higher compared to factor VII clotting activity (1.6h; 0.9h). Volumes of distribution were significantly higher for activated factor VII (236 ml/kg; 175 ml/kg, measured by activated factor VII) as compared to plasma-derived factor VII (206 ml/kg; 64 ml/kg, measured by factor FVII activity), suggesting a plasma- and extracellular fluid distribution for recombinant activated factor VII. Recombinant activated factor VII showed significantly shorter half-lifes than plasma-derived factor VII. Volumes of distribution were significantly higher for treatment with recombinant activated factor VII. The longer half-life for plasma-derived factor VII, compared to recombinant activated factor VII, and the increased volume of distribution for recombinant activated factor VII, compared to plasma-derived factor VII may further elucidate the beneficial effect of prophylactic treatment of both products. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Explorations of ecological autarkey in art, design and science

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Nigten, Anne; van Dartel, Michel

2013-01-01

While the notion of autarky is often contested in terms of feasibility and desirability, art and design projects that deal with autarky seem to highlight the positive socio-cultural and ecological effects of autarkic living. This paper will discuss three notable media artworks that highlight these

Investigation of temperature effect on half-life periods of long-lived isomer sup 1 sup 8 sup 0 sup m Hf and sup 8 sup 7 sup m Sr

CERN Document Server

Alpatov, V G; Davydov, A V; Isaev, Y N; Kartashov, G R; Korotkov, M M; Samojlov, V M

2001-01-01

The experiments on measuring the half-life periods of the sup 1 sup 8 sup 0 sup m Hf and sup 8 sup 7 sup m Sr long-lived isomers at the room temperature and at 77 K with application of the HfO sub 2 , Sr(NO sub 3) sub 2 and SrCO sub 3 massive samples are described. The isomer states of the corresponding nuclei were formed by the samples irradiation through neutrons from the Pu-Be source. According to the Vysotski theory and other authors the surrounding of the gamma-active nuclei by a large number of the same nuclei in the basic state should lead to the T sub 1 sub / sub 2 growth due to distortion of the zero electromagnetic vacuum oscillations near the nuclear energy level value. Decrease in the sample temperature leads to the narrowing of the gamma-lines, especially for the Moessbauer low-energy transitions, which increases the resonance effect on the zero oscillations spectrum. Increase in the T sub 1 sub / sub 2 by 2.99 +- 0.87% was observed by cooling the sup 1 sup 8 sup 0 sup m Hf isomer sample, in the ...

Linking effects of anthropogenic debris to ecological impacts.

Science.gov (United States)

Browne, Mark Anthony; Underwood, A J; Chapman, M G; Williams, Rob; Thompson, Richard C; van Franeker, Jan A

2015-05-22

Accelerated contamination of habitats with debris has caused increased effort to determine ecological impacts. Strikingly, most work on organisms focuses on sublethal responses to plastic debris. This is controversial because (i) researchers have ignored medical insights about the mechanisms that link effects of debris across lower levels of biological organization to disease and mortality, and (ii) debris is considered non-hazardous by policy-makers, possibly because individuals can be injured or removed from populations and assemblages without ecological impacts. We reviewed the mechanisms that link effects of debris across lower levels of biological organization to assemblages and populations. Using plastic, we show microplastics reduce the 'health', feeding, growth and survival of ecosystem engineers. Larger debris alters assemblages because fishing-gear and tyres kill animals and damage habitat-forming plants, and because floating bottles facilitate recruitment and survival of novel taxa. Where ecological linkages are not known, we show how to establish hypothetical links by synthesizing studies to assess the likelihood of impacts. We also consider how population models examine ecological linkages and guide management of ecological impacts. We show that by focusing on linkages to ecological impacts rather than the presence of debris and its sublethal impacts, we could reduce threats posed by debris. © 2015 The Author(s) Published by the Royal Society. All rights reserved.

About possibility of creation of ecologically pure, safe nuclear power plants on the basis of high-effective resonant neutron interaction with splitting substances

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Irdyncheyev, L.A.; Malofeyev, A.M.; Frid, E.S.; Abramov, E.P.

1993-01-01

Currently the most important problem in nuclear engineering is creation of ecologically pure, safe nuclear power plants in the context of real danger of global ecological pollution of the environment with long-lived fission products and the resultant transuranium nuclides. The problem can be solved by creating nuclear power plants on the basis of high-effective resonant interaction (HERI). Such power plants would provide the total cycle, including nuclear fuel production (Plutonium-239 from Uranium-238), combustion and waste products salvaging by way of transformation of radioactive nuclides into stable isotopes

EDUCATION IN ECOLOGICAL TOURISM AND THE USE OF ECOLOGICAL EDUCATIONAL PATHS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Akulina Stefanova

2010-12-01

Full Text Available Bulgaria is an unexplored and attractive tourist destination offering diverse and matchless opportunities in tourist activities. One opportunity could be the ecologically tourism based on natural sightseeing tours and visiting beautiful sites, experiencing customs and rites. Tourism can preserve the environment as well help rise locals’ standard of living. Introducing ecological educational paths (with correctly defined goals, helps achieve new knowledge, foster already taught ideas in school and acquire new skills. Well educated and theoretically prepared specialists who are united in the idea of “correct tourism” and by sending clear messages can help give a lift to Bulgarian ecological tourism.

Some problems of parametric neutron activation analysis based on the use of radioactive daughters of longer-lived mothers with low mother/daughter half-life ratios

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cohen, I.M.

2012-01-01

The theoretical and practical aspects of the use of radioactive daughters originated from the decay of longer-lived radioactive mothers in parametric activation analysis, when the ratio: mother half-life to daughter half-life is less than 10, are discussed. The mother-daughter relationships: 47 Ca/ 47 Sc; 95 Zr/ 95 Nb; 140 Ba/ 140 La; 99 Mo/ 99m Tc and 115 Cd/ 115m In are selected as models for the study. The cases when the radionuclide of interest is formed through both direct and indirect routes are also analyzed. As illustrative example, the direct reaction and the reaction chain: 47 Ti(n,p) 47 Sc/ 46 Ca(n,γ) 47 Ca(β - ) 47 Sc are evaluated with respect to the determination of the elements involved and their reciprocal interferences. (author)

Biological Half-Life Measurements of Radioactive Strontium in Hormonal-Resistant Prostate Cancer Patients

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Haquin, G.; Riemer, T.; Kaniun, N.; Datz, H.; Yungreiss, Z.; Vexler, A.; Ben-Yosef, R.; Pelled, O.; German, U.; Marko, R.; Teshuva, A.; Kol, R.

2004-01-01

Therapy for metastatic bone pain in Hormonal-Resistant Prostate Cancer (HRPC) patients is performed by administering systemic radioisotope therapy [1]. The beta radiation emitted by the radioactive strontium 89 Sr [T 1/2 =50.5 d, E β (max)=1.49 MeV], an adequate radionuclide for this therapy procedure, irradiates the metastatic cells in the bone, producing the desired palliative effect. The beta disintegration of 89 Sr is followed by a low abundance (0.00945%) gamma ray with energy of 909 keV. The commercially available 89 Sr is in the form of Sr Cl and contains an impurity of less than 0.5% of 85 Sr [T 1/2 =64.8 d] ,which decays by electron capture, emitting gamma rays at 511 keV (95.71%). The radiation dose to the metastatic cells due to the gamma rays is negligible compared to the dose given by the beta radiation, assuming that the 89 Sr is concentrated at the metastatic bony lesions. Accurate information about retention and excretion of Sr in the patient's body will contribute to better evaluate the effectiveness of the treatment. he effective half-life of 89 Sr can be calculated either from Whole Body Counting (WBC) measurements or by measuring 85 Sr and/or 89 Sr in urine/blood. WBC measurements, using collimated HPGe detectors, allow the follow-up of 89 Sr and 85 Sr at different sites in the skeletal bones of the patient. Biological half-lives of Sr in different body sections measured by WBC and the correlation with excretion-rate-based biological half-lives are presented

The Half-Half Plot

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Einmahl, J.H.J.; Gantner, M.

2009-01-01

The Half-Half (HH) plot is a new graphical method to investigate qualitatively the shape of a regression curve. The empirical HH-plot counts observations in the lower and upper quarter of a strip that moves horizontally over the scatter plot. The plot displays jumps clearly and reveals further

The half-half plot

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Einmahl, J.H.J.; Gantner, M.

2012-01-01

The Half-Half (HH) plot is a new graphical method to investigate qualitatively the shape of a regression curve. The empirical HH-plot counts observations in the lower and upper quarter of a strip that moves horizontally over the scatterplot. The plot displays jumps clearly and reveals further

Vacancy induced half-metallicity in half-Heusler semiconductors

KAUST Repository

Zhu, Zhiyong; Cheng, Yingchun; Schwingenschlö gl, Udo

2011-01-01

First-principles calculations are performed to investigate the effect of vacancies on the electronic structure and magnetic properties of the two prototypical half-Heusler semiconductors NiTiSn and CoTiSb. The spin degeneracy of the host materials

Ecology of microarthropods in arable soil

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Vreeken - Buijs, M.J.

1998-01-01

Soil microarthropods are all free-living mites and collembolans, living in the soil. The study presented in this thesis formed part of the Dutch Programme on Soil Ecology of Arable Farming Systems, an integrated multidisciplinary research programme, focused on the functioning of two

Nominal radio ecological benchmarks for the ecological risk assessment of radioactive waste management facilities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Garisto, N.C.

2006-01-01

Ecological risk assessments are used to assess potential ecological impacts from contaminated sites, such as radioactive waste management and disposal facilities. These assessments determine the overall significance of the impact of such facilities on non-human biota. Specific indicator species are selected as representative non-human biota at the study sites for the purposes of these risk assessments. Potential environmental impacts are generally assessed in terms of 'screening indices'. In simple terms, a screening index is the ratio of an estimated exposure level of the indicator species (or environmental concentration) divided by a level or concentration deemed unlikely to have a significant ecological effect. These latter levels or concentrations are referred to as 'estimated no effect value' or ENEVs. Nominal ENEV values for chronic radiation effects based on our current interpretation of literature data are presented in this paper. They are: 5 mGy/d for fish and amphibians; 2.4 mGy/d for aquatic plants; 2 mGy/d for reptiles; 5 mGy/d for benthic and terrestrial invertebrates; 1 mGy/d for slow-growing terrestrial animals that reproduce late in life; 10 mGy/d for short-lived prolific terrestrial animals; 2.4 mGy/d for terrestrial plants; 5 mGy/d for birds. The paper identifies major areas of uncertainty regarding the selection of these nominal ENEVs for practical applications. (author)

Vacancy induced half-metallicity in half-Heusler semiconductors

KAUST Repository

Zhu, Zhiyong

2011-09-28

First-principles calculations are performed to investigate the effect of vacancies on the electronic structure and magnetic properties of the two prototypical half-Heusler semiconductors NiTiSn and CoTiSb. The spin degeneracy of the host materials is broken for all types of isolated vacancies under consideration, except for Ni-deficient NiTiSn. A half-metallic character is identified in Sn-deficient NiTiSn and Co/Ti/Sb-deficient CoTiSb. We can explain our findings by introducing an extending Slater-Pauling rule for systems with defects. A ferromagnetic ordering of the local moments due to double exchange appears to be likely.

The safety of Ignalina NPP and ecological danger in public opinion of inhabitants of Daugavpils region

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Peipinia, O.

1998-01-01

Inquest of Daugavpils' region pointed to a big anxiety for ecological danger of Ignalina NPP by inhabitants and experts. Absolute majority of respondents (73-78% inhabitants and 68-82% experts) apprehend the NPP as very dangerous and dangerous. More than half of respondents apprehend the dangerous increased during last two-three years. It is because no one has a good reference about situation, because tragic al Chernobyl NPP burst was on. The anxiety increases if the respondent lives nearer of NPP. Inhabitants of Daugavpils and it's region wants the better reference about situation, about future of Ignalina NPP after 2010 year, about securities means in case of NPP burst. (author)

[Urban ecological risk assessment: a review].

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Mei-E; Chen, Wei-Ping; Peng, Chi

2014-03-01

With the development of urbanization and the degradation of urban living environment, urban ecological risks caused by urbanization have attracted more and more attentions. Based on urban ecology principles and ecological risk assessment frameworks, contents of urban ecological risk assessment were reviewed in terms of driven forces, risk resources, risk receptors, endpoints and integrated approaches for risk assessment. It was suggested that types and degrees of urban economical and social activities were the driven forces for urban ecological risks. Ecological functional components at different levels in urban ecosystems as well as the urban system as a whole were the risk receptors. Assessment endpoints involved in changes of urban ecological structures, processes, functional components and the integrity of characteristic and function. Social-ecological models should be the major approaches for urban ecological risk assessment. Trends for urban ecological risk assessment study should focus on setting a definite protection target and criteria corresponding to assessment endpoints, establishing a multiple-parameter assessment system and integrative assessment approaches.

Nature and history today: the ecological crisis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Luciano ESPINOSA RUBIO

2012-02-01

Full Text Available Today, the Nature-History relations are the ecological ones: we are living in a global eco-bio-techno-noos-sphere and that means that ecological crisis is a crisis of civilization too. Above all, the climate change and its social and political consequences will have a great impact in our lives, and we must respond without losing our rights. In the intellectual way, we need new narrations in order to affront the situation and perhaps the theory of the lesser evil is one of the better answers that we can find.

Ecological effects of exposure to enhanced levels of ionizing radiation.

Science.gov (United States)

Geras'kin, Stanislav A

2016-10-01

Irradiation of plants and animals can result in disruption of ecological relationships between the components of ecosystems. Such effects may act as triggers of perturbation and lead to consequences that may differ essentially from expected ones based on effects observed at the organismal level. Considerable differences in ecology and niches occupied by different species lead to substantial differences in doses of ionizing radiation absorbed by species, even when they all are present in the same environment at the same time. This is especially evident for contamination with α-emitting radionuclides. Radioactive contamination can be considered an ecological factor that is able to modify the resistance in natural populations. However, there are radioecological situations when elevated radioresistance does not evolve or persist. The complexity and non-linearity of the structure and functioning of ecosystems can lead to unexpected consequences of stress effects, which would appear harmless if they were assessed within the narrower context of organism-based traditional radioecology. Therefore, the use of ecological knowledge is essential for understanding responses of populations and ecosystems to radiation exposure. Integration of basic ecological principles in the design and implementation of radioecological research is essential for predicting radiation effects under rapidly changing environmental conditions. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Primate dental ecology: How teeth respond to the environment.

Science.gov (United States)

Cuozzo, Frank P; Ungar, Peter S; Sauther, Michelle L

2012-06-01

Teeth are central for the study of ecology, as teeth are at the direct interface between an organism and its environment. Recent years have witnessed a rapid growth in the use of teeth to understand a broad range of topics in living and fossil primate biology. This in part reflects new techniques for assessing ways in which teeth respond to, and interact with, an organism's environment. Long-term studies of wild primate populations that integrate dental analyses have also provided a new context for understanding primate interactions with their environments. These new techniques and long-term field studies have allowed the development of a new perspective-dental ecology. We define dental ecology as the broad study of how teeth respond to, or interact with, the environment. This includes identifying patterns of dental pathology and tooth use-wear, as they reflect feeding ecology, behavior, and habitat variation, including areas impacted by anthropogenic disturbance, and how dental development can reflect environmental change and/or stress. The dental ecology approach, built on collaboration between dental experts and ecologists, holds the potential to provide an important theoretical and practical framework for inferring ecology and behavior of fossil forms, for assessing environmental change in living populations, and for understanding ways in which habitat impacts primate growth and development. This symposium issue brings together experts on dental morphology, growth and development, tooth wear and health, primate ecology, and paleontology, to explore the broad application of dental ecology to questions of how living and fossil primates interact with their environments. Copyright © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Effect of methodological and ecological approaches on heterogeneity of nest-site selection of a long-lived vulture.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rubén Moreno-Opo

Full Text Available The application of scientific-based conservation measures requires that sampling methodologies in studies modelling similar ecological aspects produce comparable results making easier their interpretation. We aimed to show how the choice of different methodological and ecological approaches can affect conclusions in nest-site selection studies along different Palearctic meta-populations of an indicator species. First, a multivariate analysis of the variables affecting nest-site selection in a breeding colony of cinereous vulture (Aegypius monachus in central Spain was performed. Then, a meta-analysis was applied to establish how methodological and habitat-type factors determine differences and similarities in the results obtained by previous studies that have modelled the forest breeding habitat of the species. Our results revealed patterns in nesting-habitat modelling by the cinereous vulture throughout its whole range: steep and south-facing slopes, great cover of large trees and distance to human activities were generally selected. The ratio and situation of the studied plots (nests/random, the use of plots vs. polygons as sampling units and the number of years of data set determined the variability explained by the model. Moreover, a greater size of the breeding colony implied that ecological and geomorphological variables at landscape level were more influential. Additionally, human activities affected in greater proportion to colonies situated in Mediterranean forests. For the first time, a meta-analysis regarding the factors determining nest-site selection heterogeneity for a single species at broad scale was achieved. It is essential to homogenize and coordinate experimental design in modelling the selection of species' ecological requirements in order to avoid that differences in results among studies would be due to methodological heterogeneity. This would optimize best conservation and management practices for habitats and species in

Ecological effectiveness as an essential quality requirement of innovational construction

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mkrtchyan Tamara

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Nowadays it seems to be very essential to develop national construction industry by implementation of innovative technologies. As an object of innovational construction «Smart house» or «green building» demonstrates the latest advances in ecological building materials, energy-saving structures and lean-technologies. According to the concept of TQM «green building» has tube compatible with environmental protection, environment sustainability and ecological effectiveness requirements. «Green certification» includes these terms into the National environment sustainability rating system. The main goal of this research work was to review and compare theoretical models and concepts of effectiveness and analyze their applicability to determine the term ecological effectiveness as the main Quality Score.

Ecology-centered experiences among children and adolescents: A qualitative and quantitative analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Orton, Judy

The present research involved two studies that considered ecology-centered experiences (i.e., experiences with living things) as a factor in children's environmental attitudes and behaviors and adolescents' ecological understanding. The first study (Study 1) examined how a community garden provides children in an urban setting the opportunity to learn about ecology through ecology-centered experiences. To do this, I carried out a yearlong ethnographic study at an urban community garden located in a large city in the Southeastern United States. Through participant observations and informal interviews of community garden staff and participants, I found children had opportunities to learn about ecology through ecology-centered experiences (e.g., interaction with animals) along with other experiences (e.g., playing games, reading books). In light of previous research that shows urban children have diminished ecological thought---a pattern of thought that privileges the relationship between living things---because of their lack of ecology-centered experiences (Coley, 2012), the present study may have implications for urban children to learn about ecology. As an extension of Study 1, I carried out a second study (Study 2) to investigate how ecology-centered experiences contribute to adolescents' environmental attitudes and behaviors in light of other contextual factors, namely environmental responsibility support, ecological thought, age and gender. Study 2 addressed three research questions. First, does ecological thought---a pattern of thought that privileges the relationship between living things---predict environmental attitudes and behaviors (EAB)? Results showed ecological thought did not predict EAB, an important finding considering the latent assumptions of previous research about the relationship between these two factors (e.g., Brugger, Kaiser, & Roczen, 2011). Second, do two types of contextual support, ecology-centered experiences (i.e., experiences with

Commonness and ecology, but not bigger brains, predict urban living in birds.

Science.gov (United States)

Dale, Svein; Lifjeld, Jan T; Rowe, Melissah

2015-04-11

Several life history and ecological variables have been reported to affect the likelihood of species becoming urbanized. Recently, studies have also focused on the role of brain size in explaining ability to adapt to urban environments. In contrast, however, little is known about the effect of colonization pressure from surrounding areas, which may confound conclusions about what makes a species urban. We recorded presence/absence data for birds in 93 urban sites in Oslo (Norway) and compared these with species lists generated from 137 forest and 51 farmland sites surrounding Oslo which may represent source populations for colonization. We found that the frequency (proportion of sites where present) of a species within the city was strongly and positively associated with its frequency in sites surrounding the city, as were both species breeding habitat and nest site location. In contrast, there were generally no significant effects of relative brain mass or migration on urban occupancy. Furthermore, analyses of previously published data showed that urban density of birds in six other European cities was also positively and significantly associated with density in areas outside cities, whereas relative brain mass showed no such relationship. These results suggest that urban bird communities are primarily determined by how frequently species occurred in the surrounding landscapes and by features of ecology (i.e. breeding habitat and nest site location), whereas species' relative brain mass had no significant effects.

The Ecological effect of conveyance pipeline from Gurara reservoir ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The study focuses on the public awareness of the effect of conveyance pipeline from Gurara reservoir to lower Usman Dam on Ecological degradation in Abuja, using data from questionnaire survey of about 150 households as well as field observation. The data from the survey reveals that over 30% ecological degradations ...

A Social-Ecological, Process-Oriented Perspective on Political Violence and Child Development.

Science.gov (United States)

Cummings, E Mark; Goeke-Morey, Marcie; Merrilees, Christine E; Taylor, Laura K; Shirlow, Peter A

2014-06-01

Youths' risk for adjustment problems in contexts of political violence is well-documented. However, outcomes vary widely, with many children functioning well. Accordingly, moving beyond further documenting the risk for many negative outcomes associated with living in contexts of political violence, a second generation of research is moving towards identifying the mechanisms and conditions that contribute to children's adjustment. Increasing support is emerging for understanding effects on children in terms of changes in the social contexts in which children live, and in the psychological processes engaged by these social ecologies. Selected themes are considered, including (a) the need to study multiple levels of the social ecology, (b) differentiating between the effects of exposure to contexts of political versus non-political violence, and (c) theories about explanatory processes. Selected research pertinent to these directions is reviewed, including findings from a six-wave longitudinal study on political violence and children in Northern Ireland.

Half-life and mass measurement of the short-lived {sup 215}Po isotope (1.78 ms) at the FRS ion catcher

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rink, Ann-Kathrin; Bergmann, Julian; Ebert, Jens; Hornung, Christine; Miskun, Ivan; Reiter, Moritz P. [Justus-Liebig Universitaet Giessen (Germany); Ayet San Andres, Samuel; Dickel, Timo; Plass, Wolfgang R.; Scheidenberger, Christoph [Justus-Liebig Universitaet Giessen (Germany); GSI, Darmstadt (Germany); Geissel, Hans; Purushothaman, Sivaji [GSI, Darmstadt (Germany)

2016-07-01

At the Low-Energy Branch (LEB) of the Super-FRS at FAIR, precision experiments with exotic nuclei will be performed using ion traps and lasers. The nuclei will be produced at relativistic energies, slowed down, thermalised in a cryogenic stopping cell (CSC) and made available to various experiments. The thermalisation is a challenging task because of the large energy straggling of the nuclei after production, which requires a stopping cell with large areal densities. Also, the process needs to be performed on a millisecond time scale in order to give access to short-lived nuclides. This method has already been successfully applied at the FRS Ion Catcher at GSI using a prototype CSC. Recently the potential of the method has been demonstrated by the mass and half-life measurement of the {sup 215}Po nuclide with a half-life of 1.78 ms only. The multiple-reflection time-of-flight mass spectrometer at the FRS Ion Catcher has been used to determine the mass to a sub-ppm accuracy and to provide a mass-selected beam for alpha spectroscopy. Furthermore, experiments have been performed with the prototype CSC in order to test novel concepts to be used with the final version of the CSC for the LEB.

Ecological validity of the screening module and the Daily Living tests of the Neuropsychological Assessment Battery using the Mayo-Portland Adaptability Inventory-4 in postacute brain injury rehabilitation.

Science.gov (United States)

Zgaljardic, Dennis J; Yancy, Sybil; Temple, Richard O; Watford, Monica F; Miller, Rebekah

2011-11-01

The assessment of ecological validity of neuropsychological measures is an area of growing interest, particularly in the postacute brain injury rehabilitation (PABIR) setting, as there is an increasing demand for clinicians to address functional and real-world outcomes. In the current study, we assessed the predictive value of the Screening module and the Daily Living tests of the Neuropsychological Assessment Battery (NAB) using clinician ratings from the Mayo-Portland Adaptability Inventory-4 (MPAI-4) in patients with moderate to severe traumatic brain injury. Forty-seven individuals were each administered the NAB Screening module (NAB-SM) and the NAB Daily Living (NAB-DL) tests following admission to a residential PABIR program. MPAI-4 ratings were also obtained at admission. Linear regression analysis was used to examine the association between these functional and neuropsychological assessment measures. We replicated prior work (Temple at al., 2009) and expanded evidence for the ecological validity of the NAB-SM. Furthermore, our findings support the ecological validity of the NAB-DL Bill Payment, Judgment, and Map Reading tests with regards to functional skills and real-world activities. The current study supports prior work from our lab assessing the predictive value of the NAB-SM, as well as provides evidence for the ecological validity for select NAB-DL tests in patients with moderate to severe traumatic brain injury admitted to a residential PABIR program.

A Reasoning Technique for Taxonomy Expert System of Living Organisms

OpenAIRE

desiani, anita; Firdaus, Firdaus; Maiyanti, Sri Indra

2016-01-01

Taxonomy of living organisms can help scientists to sort organisms in order and help them to identify new organisms by finding out which their groups. It also is easier to study organisms when they are sorted in groups. Taxonomy of living organisms system is a important basic part of ecology system. Researcher should know about any organisms that they noted in an ecology. Integration between classification taxonomy of Living Organisms and technology information will have many advantages for ...

Effect of a submaximal half-squats warm-up program on vertical jumping ability.

Science.gov (United States)

Gourgoulis, Vassilios; Aggeloussis, Nickos; Kasimatis, Panagiotis; Mavromatis, Giorgos; Garas, Athanasios

2003-05-01

The purpose of the current research was to study the effect of a warm-up program including submaximal half-squats on vertical jumping ability. Twenty physically active men participated in the study. Each subject performed 5 sets of half-squats with 2 repetitions at each of the following intensities: 20, 40, 60, 80, and 90% of the 1 repetition maximum (1RM) load. Prior to the first set and immediately after the end of the last set, the subjects performed 2 countermovement jumps on a Kistler force platform; the primary goal was to jump as high as possible. The results showed that mean vertical jumping ability improved by 2.39% after the warm-up period. Subjects were then divided into 2 groups according to their 1RM values for the half-squat. Subjects with greater maximal strength ability improved their vertical jumping ability (4.01%) more than did subjects with lower maximal strength (0.42%). A warm-up protocol including half-squats with submaximal loads and explosive execution can be used for short-term improvements of vertical jumping performance, and this effect is greater in athletes with a relatively high strength ability.

Effects of Changes in Lugu Lake Water Quality on Schizothorax Yunnansis Ecological Habitat Based on HABITAT Model

Science.gov (United States)

Huang, Wei; Mynnet, Arthur

Schizothorax Yunnansis is an unique fish species only existing in Lugu Lake, which is located in the southwestern China. The simulation and research on Schizothorax Yunnansis habitat environment have a vital significance to protect this rare fish. With the development of the tourism industry, there bring more pressure on the environmental protection. The living environment of Schizothorax Yunnansis is destroyed seriously because the water quality is suffering the sustaining pollution of domestic sewage from the peripheral villages. This paper analyzes the relationship between water quality change and Schizothorax Yunnansis ecological habitat and evalutes Schizothorax Yunnansis's ecological habitat impact based on HABITAT model. The results show that when the TP concentration in Lugu Lake does not exceed Schizothorax Yunnansis's survival threshold, Schizothorax Yunnansis can get more nutrients and the suitable habitat area for itself is increased. Conversely, it can lead to TP toxicity in the Schizothorax Yunnansis and even death. Therefore, unsuitable habitat area for Schizothorax Yunnansis is increased. It can be seen from the results that HABITAT model can assist in ecological impact assessment studies by translating results of hydrological, water quality models into effects on the natural environment and human society.

On-line nuclear half life and spectroscopic measurements on mass-separated fission product nuclei

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

McDonald, J.; Fogelberg, B.; Baecklin, A.

1979-01-01

A description is given of the methods and equipment employed for nuclear spectroscopy studies of short lived fission product nuclei at the OSIRIS ISOL facility in Studsvik, Sweden. Furthermore a table of new nuclear half-lives measured with this equipment is presented. (author)

Living in the branches: population dynamics and ecological processes in dendritic networks

Science.gov (United States)

Grant, E.H.C.; Lowe, W.H.; Fagan, W.F.

2007-01-01

Spatial structure regulates and modifies processes at several levels of ecological organization (e.g. individual/genetic, population and community) and is thus a key component of complex systems, where knowledge at a small scale can be insufficient for understanding system behaviour at a larger scale. Recent syntheses outline potential applications of network theory to ecological systems, but do not address the implications of physical structure for network dynamics. There is a specific need to examine how dendritic habitat structure, such as that found in stream, hedgerow and cave networks, influences ecological processes. Although dendritic networks are one type of ecological network, they are distinguished by two fundamental characteristics: (1) both the branches and the nodes serve as habitat, and (2) the specific spatial arrangement and hierarchical organization of these elements interacts with a species' movement behaviour to alter patterns of population distribution and abundance, and community interactions. Here, we summarize existing theory relating to ecological dynamics in dendritic networks, review empirical studies examining the population- and community-level consequences of these networks, and suggest future research integrating spatial pattern and processes in dendritic systems.

Combining individual and ecological data to determine compositional and contextual socio-economic risk factors for suicide

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Agerbo, Esben; Sterne, J.A.; Gunnell, D.J.

2007-01-01

The social and economic characteristics of geographic areas are associated with their suicide rates. The extent to which these ecological associations are due to the characteristics of the people living in the areas (compositional effects) or the influence of the areas themselves on risk (context......The social and economic characteristics of geographic areas are associated with their suicide rates. The extent to which these ecological associations are due to the characteristics of the people living in the areas (compositional effects) or the influence of the areas themselves on risk...... (contextual effects) is uncertain. Denmark's Medical Register on Vital Statistics and its Integrated Database for Longitudinal Labour Market Research were used to identify suicides and 20 matched controls per case in 25-60-year-old men and women between 1982 and 1997. Individual and area (municipality...... area levels of employment and income and increasing proportions of people living alone were much attenuated after controlling for compositional effects. We found no consistent evidence that associations with individual-level risk factors differed depending on the areas' characteristics (cross...

Spatial variation in the flux of atmospheric deposition and its ecological effects in arid Asia

Science.gov (United States)

Jiao, Linlin; Wang, Xunming; Li, Danfeng

2018-06-01

Atmospheric deposition is one of the key land surface processes, and plays important roles in regional ecosystems and global climate change. Previous studies have focused on the magnitude of and the temporal and spatial variations in the flux of atmospheric deposition, and the composition of atmospheric deposition on a local scale. However, there have been no comprehensive studies of atmospheric deposition on a regional scale and its ecological effects in arid Asia. The temporal and spatial patterns, composition of atmospheric deposition, and its potential effects on regional ecosystems in arid Asia are investigated in this study. The results show that the annual deposition flux is high on the Turan Plain, Aral Sea Desert, and Tarim Basin. The seasonal deposition flux also varies remarkably among different regions. The Tarim Basin shows higher deposition flux in both spring and summer, southern Mongolian Plateau has a higher deposition flux in spring, and the deposition flux of Iran Plateau is higher in summer. Multiple sources of elements in deposited particles are identified. Calcium, iron, aluminum, and magnesium are mainly derived from remote regions, while zinc, copper and lead have predominantly anthropogenic sources. Atmospheric deposition can provide abundant nutrients to vegetation and consequently play a role in the succession of regional ecosystems by affecting the structure, function, diversity, and primary production of the vegetation, especially the exotic or short-lived opportunistic species in arid Asia. Nevertheless, there is not much evidence of the ecological effects of atmospheric deposition on the regional and local scale. The present results may help in further understanding the mechanism of atmospheric deposition as well as providing a motivation for the protection of the ecological environment in arid Asia.

Nutritional Ecology and Human Health.

Science.gov (United States)

Raubenheimer, David; Simpson, Stephen J

2016-07-17

In contrast to the spectacular advances in the first half of the twentieth century with micronutrient-related diseases, human nutrition science has failed to stem the more recent rise of obesity and associated cardiometabolic disease (OACD). This failure has triggered debate on the problems and limitations of the field and what change is needed to address these. We briefly review the two broad historical phases of human nutrition science and then provide an overview of the main problems that have been implicated in the poor progress of the field with solving OACD. We next introduce the field of nutritional ecology and show how its ecological-evolutionary foundations can enrich human nutrition science by providing the theory to help address its limitations. We end by introducing a modeling approach from nutritional ecology, termed nutritional geometry, and demonstrate how it can help to implement ecological and evolutionary theory in human nutrition to provide new direction and to better understand and manage OACD.

Nominal radio ecological benchmarks for the ecological risk assessment of radioactive waste management facilities

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Garisto, N.C. [SENES Consultants Ltd., Richmond Hill, Ontario (Canada)]. E-mail: ngaristo@senes.ca

2006-07-01

Ecological risk assessments are used to assess potential ecological impacts from contaminated sites, such as radioactive waste management and disposal facilities. These assessments determine the overall significance of the impact of such facilities on non-human biota. Specific indicator species are selected as representative non-human biota at the study sites for the purposes of these risk assessments. Potential environmental impacts are generally assessed in terms of 'screening indices'. In simple terms, a screening index is the ratio of an estimated exposure level of the indicator species (or environmental concentration) divided by a level or concentration deemed unlikely to have a significant ecological effect. These latter levels or concentrations are referred to as 'estimated no effect value' or ENEVs. Nominal ENEV values for chronic radiation effects based on our current interpretation of literature data are presented in this paper. They are: 5 mGy/d for fish and amphibians; 2.4 mGy/d for aquatic plants; 2 mGy/d for reptiles; 5 mGy/d for benthic and terrestrial invertebrates; 1 mGy/d for slow-growing terrestrial animals that reproduce late in life; 10 mGy/d for short-lived prolific terrestrial animals; 2.4 mGy/d for terrestrial plants; 5 mGy/d for birds. The paper identifies major areas of uncertainty regarding the selection of these nominal ENEVs for practical applications. (author)

Deep ecology: A movement and a new approach to solving environmental problems

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mišković Milan M.

2016-01-01

Full Text Available In the industrial society, nature is conceived as a resource for unlimited exploitation, and the entropic effects of its pollution and depletion can be effectively controlled and resolved. Non-human entities are viewed as raw materials for technical manipulation and the increase in the standard of living for consumers in mass societies. Contrary to such utilitarian pragmatism, some new views on the relationship of man, society and nature are appearing, as well as different concepts of environmentally balanced development. According to these views, the transition to ecological society and ecological culture will not be possible without replacing the current anthropocentric ethics with the ecocentric or environmental ethics. Deep ecology arises in the spectrum of environmental ethics theories. It is considered as a movement and a new approach to solving environmental problems. Deep ecology is a type of ecosophy formed by Arne Nes, and it focuses on wisdom and ecological balance. It is based on ecological science, but it asks deeper questions about the causes of the ecological crisis and corresponds to the general discourse on sustainable development. The article discusses the platform of deep ecology movement and gives the basic principles of deep ecology. It gives explanations of the two basic norms of deep ecology (self-understanding and biospheric egalitarianism and criticism of these concepts.

[Effect of ecological civilized homestead construction on schistosomiasis control].

Science.gov (United States)

Tang, Meng; Jia, Tie-Wu; Wu, Zi-Song; Mao, Ping; Chen, Lin; Li, Han-Gang; Zhong, Bo; Qiu, Dong-Chuan; Yao, Qin; Hu, You-Ping

2012-02-01

To evaluate the effect of Ecological Civilized Homestead Construction on schistosomiasis control. The data of ecological civilized homestead construction and schistosomiasis control were collected and analyzed in Meiwan Village, Shuangqiao Town, Danling County, Sichuan Province from 2004 to 2010. Ecological Civilized Homestead Construction was carried out from 2004 to 2010. Totally 454 bio-gas pools were built. All the farmers used well water. The popularized rates of the household bio-gas pool, sanitary toilet, sewage treatment pool reached 100%. The number of cattle was 4, which decreased by 91.30% compared with that in 2004, and all the cattle were fed in captivity. The schistosome infection rates of populations were 0.26% and 0.30% in 2005 and 2008, respectively, and nobody was infected in other years. The infection rate of cattle was 0 from 2004 to 2010. The awareness rate of knowledge about schistosomiasis control achieved 100% in the population over 6 years old. Most of the farmers could use certain protective measures while they were farming. The effect of ecological civilized homestead construction on schistosomiasis control is remarkable.

Ecological effects of transuranics in the terrestrial environment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Whicker, F.W.

1980-01-01

This chapter explores the ecological effects of transuranium radionuclides in terrestrial environments. No direct studies that relate the level of transuranic contamination to specific changes in structure or function of ecological systems have been carried out. The only alternative approach presently available is to infer such relationships from observations of biota in contaminated environments and models. Advantages and shortcomings of these observations as well as those of the direct experimental approach are discussed

Half-integer flux quantum effect in cuprate superconductors - a probe of pairing symmetry

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tsuei, C.C.; Kirtley, J.R.; Gupta, A.; Sun, J.Z.; Moler, K.A.; Wang, J.H.

1996-01-01

Based on macroscopic quantum coherence effects arising from pair tunneling and flux quantization, a series of tricrystal experiments have been designed and carried out to test the order parameter symmetry in high-T c cuprate superconductors. By using a scanning SQUID microscope, we have directly and non-invasively observed the spontaneously generated half-integer flux quantum effect in controlled-orientation tricrystal cuprate superconducting systems. The presence or absence of the half-integer flux quantum effect as a function of the tricrystal geometry allows us to prove that the order parameter symmetry in the YBCO and Tl2201 systems is consistent with that of the d x 2 -y 2 pair state. (orig.)

Visual search in ecological and non-ecological displays: evidence for a non-monotonic effect of complexity on performance.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Philippe Chassy

Full Text Available Considerable research has been carried out on visual search, with single or multiple targets. However, most studies have used artificial stimuli with low ecological validity. In addition, little is known about the effects of target complexity and expertise in visual search. Here, we investigate visual search in three conditions of complexity (detecting a king, detecting a check, and detecting a checkmate with chess players of two levels of expertise (novices and club players. Results show that the influence of target complexity depends on level of structure of the visual display. Different functional relationships were found between artificial (random chess positions and ecologically valid (game positions stimuli: With artificial, but not with ecologically valid stimuli, a "pop out" effect was present when a target was visually more complex than distractors but could be captured by a memory chunk. This suggests that caution should be exercised when generalising from experiments using artificial stimuli with low ecological validity to real-life stimuli.

Half-lives of ground and isomeric states in {sup 97}Cd and the astrophysical origin of {sup 96}Ru

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lorusso, G., E-mail: lorusso@ribf.riken.j [National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824 (United States); Joint Institute for Nuclear Astrophysics, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824 (United States); Department of Physics and Astronomy, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824 (United States); Becerril, A.; Amthor, A. [National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824 (United States); Joint Institute for Nuclear Astrophysics, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824 (United States); Department of Physics and Astronomy, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824 (United States); Baumann, T.; Bazin, D. [National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824 (United States); Berryman, J.S. [National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824 (United States); Department of Chemistry, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824 (United States); Brown, B.A. [National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824 (United States); Joint Institute for Nuclear Astrophysics, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824 (United States); Department of Physics and Astronomy, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824 (United States); Cyburt, R.H. [National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824 (United States); Joint Institute for Nuclear Astrophysics, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824 (United States); Crawford, H.L. [National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824 (United States); Department of Chemistry, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824 (United States)

2011-05-09

First experimental evidence for a high-spin isomer (25/2{sup +}) in {sup 97}Cd, a waiting point in the astrophysical rapid proton capture process, is presented. The data were obtained in {beta}-decay studies at NSCL using the new RF Fragment Separator system and detecting {beta}-delayed protons and {beta}-delayed {gamma} rays. Decays from ground and isomeric states were disentangled, and proton emission branches were determined for the first time. We find half-lives of 1.10(8) s and 3.8(2) s, and {beta}-delayed proton emission branches of 12(2)% and 25(4)% were deduced for the ground and isomeric states, respectively. With these results, the nuclear data needed to determine an rp-process contribution to the unknown origin of solar {sup 96}Ru are in place. When the new data are included in astrophysical rp-process calculations, one finds that an rp-process origin of {sup 96}Ru is unlikely.

Living roots effect on 14C-labelled root litter decomposition

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Billes, G.; Bottner, P.

1981-01-01

Wheat was 14 C-labelled by cultivation on soil in pots, from seedling to maturity, in a chamber with constant CO 2 and 14 CO 2 levels. The 14 C-distribution was constant amongst the aerial parts, the roots and the soil in the whole pots. After cutting the plant tops, the pots were dried without disturbing the soil and root system. The pots were then incubated under controlled humidity and temperature conditions for 62 days. In the same time a second wheat cultivation was grown on one half of the pots in normal atmosphere without plant cultivation. The purpose of the work is to study the effect of living roots on decomposition of the former 14 C labelled roots litter. The CO 2 and the 14 CO 2 released from the soil were continuously measured. On incubation days 0, 18, 33 and 62, the remaining litter was separated from soil, and the organic matter was fractionated by repeated hydrolysis and NaOH extraction. Root litter disappeared faster when living roots were present than in bare soil. The accumulation and mineralization rates of humified components in soil followed two stages. While the roots of second wheat cultivation grew actively (until earing), the strong acid hydrolysable components accumulated in larger amount than in the case of bare soil. After earing, while roots activity was depressed, these components were partly mineralized and the 14 CO 2 release was then higher with plants than with bare soil. The humification and mineralization rate were related with living plant phenology stages. (orig.)

Historical ecology: past, present and future.

Science.gov (United States)

Szabó, Péter

2015-11-01

The term 'historical ecology' has been used with various meanings since the first half of the 20th century. Studies labelled as historical ecology have been produced in at least four academic disciplines: history, ecology, geography and anthropology. Although all those involved seem to agree that historical ecology concerns the historical interconnectedness of nature and human culture, this field of study has no unified methodology, specialized institutional background and common publication forums. Knowledge of the development of historical ecology is also limited. As a result, the current multitude of definitions of historical ecology is accompanied by divergent opinions as to where the origins of the field are to be sought. In this review, I follow the development of historical ecology from the 18th century to the present. In the first part, I briefly describe some early examples of historical ecological investigations, followed by a description of the various scientific strands in the 20th century that contributed to the formation of historical ecology. In the second part, I discuss the past five decades of historical ecological investigations in more detail, focusing mostly (but not exclusively) on works that their respective authors identified as historical ecology. I also examine the appearance and interconnectedness of the two main trends (ecological and anthropological) in historical ecological research. In the last part, I attempt to outline the future of historical ecology based on common features in existing research. It appears that at present historical ecology is at a crossroads. With rapidly growing interest in historical ecological research, it may move towards institutionalization or remain an umbrella term. © 2014 The Authors. Biological Reviews © 2014 Cambridge Philosophical Society.

Toward a Marine Ecological Forecasting System

Science.gov (United States)

2010-06-01

coral bleaching , living resource distribution, and pathogen progression). An operational ecological forecasting system depends upon the assimilation of...space scales (e.g., harmful algal blooms, dissolved oxygen concentration (hypoxia), water quality/beach closures, coral bleaching , living resource...advance. Two beaches in Lake Michigan have been selected for initial implementation. Forecasting Coral Bleaching in relation to Ocean Temperatures

Environmental Education as a Lived-Body Practice? A Contemplative Pedagogy Perspective

Science.gov (United States)

Pulkki, Jani; Dahlin, Bo; Varri, Veli-Matti

2017-01-01

Environmental education usually appeals to the students' knowledge and rational understanding. Even though this is needed, there is a neglected aspect of learning ecologically fruitful action; that of the lived-body. This paper introduces the lived-body as an important site for learning ecological action. An argument is made for the need of a…

Ecological Forecasting in the Applied Sciences Program and Input to the Decadal Survey

Science.gov (United States)

Skiles, Joseph

2015-01-01

Ecological forecasting uses knowledge of physics, ecology and physiology to predict how ecosystems will change in the future in response to environmental factors. Further, Ecological Forecasting employs observations and models to predict the effects of environmental change on ecosystems. In doing so, it applies information from the physical, biological, and social sciences and promotes a scientific synthesis across the domains of physics, geology, chemistry, biology, and psychology. The goal is reliable forecasts that allow decision makers access to science-based tools in order to project changes in living systems. The next decadal survey will direct the development Earth Observation sensors and satellites for the next ten years. It is important that these new sensors and satellites address the requirements for ecosystem models, imagery, and other data for resource management. This presentation will give examples of these model inputs and some resources needed for NASA to continue effective Ecological Forecasting.

Quantifying the dilution effect for models in ecological epidemiology.

Science.gov (United States)

Roberts, M G; Heesterbeek, J A P

2018-03-01

The dilution effect , where an increase in biodiversity results in a reduction in the prevalence of an infectious disease, has been the subject of speculation and controversy. Conversely, an amplification effect occurs when increased biodiversity is related to an increase in prevalence. We explore the conditions under which these effects arise, using multi species compartmental models that integrate ecological and epidemiological interactions. We introduce three potential metrics for quantifying dilution and amplification, one based on infection prevalence in a focal host species, one based on the size of the infected subpopulation of that species and one based on the basic reproduction number. We introduce our approach in the simplest epidemiological setting with two species, and show that the existence and strength of a dilution effect is influenced strongly by the choices made to describe the system and the metric used to gauge the effect. We show that our method can be generalized to any number of species and to more complicated ecological and epidemiological dynamics. Our method allows a rigorous analysis of ecological systems where dilution effects have been postulated, and contributes to future progress in understanding the phenomenon of dilution in the context of infectious disease dynamics and infection risk. © 2018 The Author(s).

Method to Reduce Long-lived Fission Products by Nuclear Transmutations with Fast Spectrum Reactors.

Science.gov (United States)

Chiba, Satoshi; Wakabayashi, Toshio; Tachi, Yoshiaki; Takaki, Naoyuki; Terashima, Atsunori; Okumura, Shin; Yoshida, Tadashi

2017-10-24

Transmutation of long-lived fission products (LLFPs: 79 Se, 93 Zr, 99 Tc, 107 Pd, 129 I, and 135 Cs) into short-lived or non-radioactive nuclides by fast neutron spectrum reactors without isotope separation has been proposed as a solution to the problem of radioactive wastes disposal. Despite investigation of many methods, such transmutation remains technologically difficult. To establish an effective and efficient transmutation system, we propose a novel neutron moderator material, yttrium deuteride (YD 2 ), to soften the neutron spectrum leaking from the reactor core. Neutron energy spectra and effective half-lives of LLFPs, transmutation rates, and support ratios were evaluated with the continuous-energy Monte Carlo code MVP-II/MVP-BURN and the JENDL-4.0 cross section library. With the YD 2 moderator in the radial blanket and shield regions, effective half-lives drastically decreased from 106 to 102 years and the support ratios reached 1.0 for all six LLFPs. This successful development and implementation of a transmutation system for LLFPs without isotope separation contributes to a the ability of fast spectrum reactors to reduce radioactive waste by consuming their own LLFPs.

Effects of off-specification procedures on the mechanical properties of half-bead weld repairs

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hobson, D.O.; Nanstad, R.K.

1983-07-01

We examined the effects of off-specification procedures on the mechanical properties of half-bead weld repairs. The name half-bead is derived from the specification that half the thickness of the initial weld layer be ground off before the second layer is deposited. In this study the heat-affected zones of a weldment made with both all and none of the first layer removed were tested for toughness, hardness, and microstructural differences, and the results were compared with the properties of a protypical half-bead repair made under ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code, Sect. XI, guidelines. The results of this limited study showed no apparent justification for the requirement to grind off half the first layer in this type of weld repair. The graded electrode sizes used to make the welds probably had more to do with the weld properties than did the range of first-layer thicknesses used in this study

Energy and Ecology

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dimitrov, Konstantin

1996-01-01

With the increase of standard of living of the people, the criteria for a comfortable, secure and foremost a healthy manner of living also increase. Thus arise the stressed importance and necessity of more attention for the issues of protection of the environment, for a better life of future generations, as well as for global problems which do not recognize borders. Republic of Macedonia also contributes in this direction within the frame of its possibilities. The creation of the National Ecological Action Plan /NEAP/, is currently being carried out by the Ministry of Construction, Urbanism and Ecology of Republic Macedonia, financed by the World Bank. The most significant part of the material prepared by the author in this project has been presented, also discussed in detail and worked through with the representatives of the World Bank because of the importance of the energy sector for the development of a state. An energy balance of Macedonia until the end of 1995 is presented here, as well as quantities of harmful effluents emitted through these transformations of energy. (author). 24 tabs., 2 ills

[Diagnostics of broncho-obstructive states in children with wheezing syndrome and who live in ecologically non-friendly regions].

Science.gov (United States)

Antypkin, Iu H; Velychko, M I; Arabs'ka, L P; Barteniev, S H; Pavlovs'kyĭ, V S; Dardyns'ka, I V

2008-01-01

Disorders found by Spirography have been analysed. These data were obtained from 137 children with bronchial asthma and with wheezing syndrome and who live in ecologically not unfavorable regions of Ukraine. Decrease in patency of airways of small and big caliber was detected in patients with bronchial asthma from Dneprodzerzhinsk and the middle and Decrease in patency of airways of middle and small caliber small caliber of patients from Mariupol. The pharmacological test with salbuthamol demonstrated considerable changes in the reactivity of bronchial apparatus that shows necessity of administration of drugs correction in children with bronchial asthma and necessity to detail indications for this correction to patients with an isolated decreased patency of airways of big caliber.

Social-ecology networks : building connections for sustainable landscapes

OpenAIRE

Opdam, P.F.M.

2014-01-01

Humans adapt their landscapes, their living environment. Sustainable use of the various landscape benefits requires that land owners and users collaborate in managing ecological networks. Because the government is stepping back as the organizer of coordinated landscape adaptation, we need new landscape planning approaches that enhance collaboration by building social networks and link them to ecological networks. In this farewell address I will explain why the social-ecological network is a p...

The Effect of Learning Cycle Model on Students’ Reducing Ecological Footprints

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Özgül Keleş

2011-12-01

Full Text Available The objective of this study is to investigate effect of ecological footprint education, in which 5E learning cycle model is used, in reducing primary school students’ ecological footprints. The working group of the study is composed of 124 primary school students studying in 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th classes. In this study, 5E learning model is used in teaching a course in order to increase the participating students’ knowledge about ecological footprints and to calculate ecological footprints. Experimental method is used in this study. In data analysis, the paired samples t-test is used in for relevant samplings. The findings gathered indicate that ecological footprints of the participating students to the study decreased at the end of the study. It is determined that the mean of primary students’ ecological footprints differ from meaningfully according to level of the class and sex. Prospective solution offers are developed by handling the prospective effects of conclusions of the study on sustainable life and environmental education and conclusions’ importance in terms of learning and developing learning programmes with a critical point of view

Ecology of Problem Individuals and the Efficacy of Selective Wildlife Management.

Science.gov (United States)

Swan, George J F; Redpath, Steve M; Bearhop, Stuart; McDonald, Robbie A

2017-07-01

As a result of ecological and social drivers, the management of problems caused by wildlife is becoming more selective, often targeting specific animals. Narrowing the sights of management relies upon the ecology of certain 'problem individuals' and their disproportionate contribution to impacts upon human interests. We assess the ecological evidence for problem individuals and confirm that some individuals or classes can be both disproportionately responsible and more likely to reoffend. The benefits of management can sometimes be short-lived, and selective management can affect tolerance of wildlife for better or worse, but, when effectively targeted, selective management can bring benefits by mitigating impact and conflict, often in a more socially acceptable way. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

An ecological assessment of pasturelands in the Balkhash area of Kazakhstan with remote sensing and models

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lebed, L; Qi, J; Heilman, P

2012-01-01

The 187 million hectares of pasturelands in Kazakhstan play a key role in the nation’s economy, as livestock production accounted for 54% of total agricultural production in 2010. However, more than half of these lands have been degraded as a result of unregulated grazing practices. Therefore, effective long term ecological monitoring of pasturelands in Kazakhstan is imperative to ensure sustainable pastureland management. As a case study in this research, we demonstrated how the ecological conditions could be assessed with remote sensing technologies and pastureland models. The example focuses on the southern Balkhash area with study sites on a foothill plain with Artemisia-ephemeral plants and a sandy plain with psammophilic vegetation in the Turan Desert. The assessment was based on remotely sensed imagery and meteorological data, a geobotanical archive and periodic ground sampling. The Pasture agrometeorological model was used to calculate biological, ecological and economic indicators to assess pastureland condition. The results showed that field surveys, meteorological observations, remote sensing and ecological models, such as Pasture, could be combined to effectively assess the ecological conditions of pasturelands and provide information about forage production that is critically important for balancing grazing and ecological conservation. (letter)

Examining acute bi-directional relationships between affect, physical feeling states, and physical activity in free-living situations using electronic ecological momentary assessment.

Science.gov (United States)

Liao, Yue; Chou, Chih-Ping; Huh, Jimi; Leventhal, Adam; Dunton, Genevieve

2017-06-01

Current knowledge about the relationship of physical activity with acute affective and physical feeling states is informed largely by lab-based studies, which have limited generalizability to the natural ecology. This study used ecological momentary assessment to assess subjective affective and physical feeling states in free-living settings across 4 days from 110 non-physically active adults (Age M = 40.4, SD = 9.7). Light physical activity (LPA) and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) were measured objectively by an accelerometer. Multilevel modeling was used to test the bi-directional associations between affective and physical feeling states and LPA/MVPA minutes. Higher positive affect, lower negative affect and fatigue were associated with more MVPA over the subsequent 15 min, while higher negative affect and energy were associated with more LPA over the subsequent 15 and 30 min. Additionally, more LPA and MVPA were associated with feeling more energetic over the subsequent 15 and 30 min, and more LPA was additionally associated with feeling more negative and less tired over the subsequent 15 and 30 min. Positive and negative affective states might serve as antecedents to but not consequences of MVPA in adults' daily lives. Changes in LPA may be predicted and followed by negative affective states. Physical feeling states appear to lead up to and follow changes in both LPA and MVPA.

Half-Life Measurements in {sup 134}l

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Berg, V; Hoeglund, Aa

1970-07-01

Properties of levels in I following the decay of {sup 13T}e have been investigated using a Ge(Li) detector and a double lens coincidence spectrometer. 4 new transitions were found. Half-lives of the lowest excited levels were measured with the following results: T{sub 1/2} (79.5 keV) = 1.62 {+-} 10 ns; T{sub 1/2} (181.1 keV) < 100 ps; T{sub 1/2} (210.8 keV) < 150 ps.

Improving the control of systematic uncertainties in precision measurements of radionuclide half-life

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Towers, S.

2013-01-01

Many experiments designed to precisely determine the half-life of a radionuclide employ a long lived reference source to help determine the impact on the data of any systematic variation in the detector and associated electronics. The half-life of the radionuclide of interest is determined from the ratio of its decay rate data to the decay rate data from the reference source. This correction procedure assumes that any underlying systematic affects the data and reference measurements in exactly the same way. In this paper we show that when some systematic effects affect the two differently, the ratio procedure can leave artifacts in the corrected data that can compromise an unbiased and precise assessment of the radionuclide half-life. We describe two methods that can help overcome this problem. We also describe several statistical tests that help determine which effects may underlie systematic variations in the data. We discuss an illustrative example based on previously published 32 Si and 36 Cl data recorded by an experiment at Brookhaven National Laboratory. We correct the data for systematic variation related to climate variation and estimate the 32 Si half-life to be T 1/2 =171.8±1.8. The reduction in uncertainty in the 32 Si half-life, relative to the previous estimate based upon this data, is equivalent to that which would be achieved through increasing the size of the data set by almost 3.5 times. - Author-Highlights: • Isotope decay data and reference source data can have differing systematics. • Differing systematics can inflate uncertainty of isotope half-life estimate. • We describe two methods to overcome this problem. • We describe statistical tests to determine which variables cause systematics. • We analyze Brookhaven 32Si/36Cl decay data as an illustrative example

Bio-ecology and language: a necessary unity

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Cowley, Stephen

2014-01-01

-ecology. While shaped by discourse and beliefs about language-systems (and representations), the language and actions of human organism–environment systems change the world. As Garner (2004) argues, ecolinguistics can do more than invoke ‘interaction’ between language and ecology. While ‘realities’ are partly...... shared, much is biophysical. Living subjects link language and languaging with experience and technologies that have transformed the bio-ecology. Once these dynamics are subject to investigation, macrosocial issues can be reconnected with biological, human and linguistic concerns. Ecolinguistics can thus...

Bile duct evaluation of potential living liver donors with Gd-EOB-DTPA enhanced MR cholangiography: Single-dose, double dose or half-dose contrast enhanced imaging

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kinner, Sonja, E-mail: Sonja.Kinner@uni-due.de [Department of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology and Neuroradiology, University Hospital Essen (Germany); Steinweg, Verena [Department of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology and Neuroradiology, University Hospital Essen (Germany); Maderwald, Stefan [Department of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology and Neuroradiology, University Hospital Essen (Germany); Erwin L. Hahn Institute for Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Essen (Germany); Radtke, Arnold; Sotiropoulos, Georgios [Department of General Surgery, University Hospital Essen (Germany); Forsting, Michael; Schroeder, Tobias [Department of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology and Neuroradiology, University Hospital Essen (Germany)

2014-05-15

Introduction: Detailed knowledge of the biliary anatomy is essential to avoid complications in living donor liver transplantation. The aim of this study was to determine the optimal dosage of Gd-EOB-DTPA for contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance cholangiography (ce-MRC) with reference to contrast-enhanced CT cholangiography (ce-CTC). Materials and methods: 30 potential living liver donors (PLLD) underwent both ce-CTC and ce-MRC. Ten candidates each received single, double or half-dose Gd-EOB-DTPA. Ce-MRC images with and without inversion recovery pulses (T1w ± IR) were acquired 20–30 min after intravenous contrast injection. Image data was quantitatively and qualitatively reviewed by two radiologists based on a on a 5-point scale. Data sets were compared using a Mann–Whitney-U-test or Wilcoxon-rank-sum-test. Kappa values were also calculated. Results: All image series provided sufficient diagnostic information both showing normal biliary anatomy and variant bile ducts. Ce-CTC showed statistically significant better results compared to all ce-MRC data sets. T1w MRC with single dose Gd-EOB-DTPA proved to be superior to half and double dose in subjective and objective evaluation without a statistically significant difference. Conclusions: Ce-MRC is at any dosage inferior to ce-CTC. As far as preoperative planning of bile duct surgery is focused on the central biliary anatomy, ce-MRC can replace harmful ce-CTC strategies, anyway. Best results were seen with single dose GD-EOB-DTPA on T1w MRC+IR.

What is dental ecology?

Science.gov (United States)

Cuozzo, Frank P; Sauther, Michelle L

2012-06-01

Teeth have long been used as indicators of primate ecology. Early work focused on the links between dental morphology, diet, and behavior, with more recent years emphasizing dental wear, microstructure, development, and biogeochemistry, to understand primate ecology. Our study of Lemur catta at the Beza Mahafaly Special Reserve, Madagascar, has revealed an unusual pattern of severe tooth wear and frequent tooth loss, primarily the result of consuming a fallback food for which these primates are not dentally adapted. Interpreting these data was only possible by combining our areas of expertise (dental anatomy [FC] and primate ecology [MS]). By integrating theoretical, methodological, and applied aspects of both areas of research, we adopted the term "dental ecology"-defined as the broad study of how teeth respond to the environment. Specifically, we view dental ecology as an interpretive framework using teeth as a vehicle for understanding an organism's ecology, which builds upon earlier work, but creates a new synthesis of anatomy and ecology that is only possible with detailed knowledge of living primates. This framework includes (1) identifying patterns of dental pathology and tooth use-wear, within the context of feeding ecology, behavior, habitat variation, and anthropogenic change, (2) assessing ways in which dental development and biogeochemical signals can reflect habitat, environmental change and/or stress, and (3) how dental microstructure and macro-morphology are adapted to, and reflect feeding ecology. Here we define dental ecology, provide a short summary of the development of this perspective, and place our new work into this context. Copyright © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

[Effects of biochar on microbial ecology in agriculture soil: a review].

Science.gov (United States)

Ding, Yan-Li; Liu, Jie; Wang, Ying-Ying

2013-11-01

Biochar, as a new type of soil amendment, has been obtained considerable attention in the research field of environmental sciences worldwide. The studies on the effects of biochar in improving soil physical and chemical properties started quite earlier, and already covered the field of soil microbial ecology. However, most of the studies considered the soil physical and chemical properties and the microbial ecology separately, with less consideration of their interactions. This paper summarized and analyzed the interrelationships between the changes of soil physical and chemical properties and of soil microbial community after the addition of biochar. Biochar can not only improve soil pH value, strengthen soil water-holding capacity, increase soil organic matter content, but also affect soil microbial community structure, and alter the abundance of soil bacteria and fungi. After the addition of biochar, the soil environment and soil microorganisms are interacted each other, and promote the improvement of soil microbial ecological system together. This review was to provide a novel perspective for the in-depth studies of the effects of biochar on soil microbial ecology, and to promote the researches on the beneficial effects of biochar to the environment from ecological aspect. The methods to improve the effectiveness of biochar application were discussed, and the potential applications of biochar in soil bioremediation were further analyzed.

Living alongside railway tracks: Long-term effects of nocturnal noise on sleep and cardiovascular reactivity as a function of age.

Science.gov (United States)

Tassi, Patricia; Rohmer, Odile; Schimchowitsch, Sarah; Eschenlauer, Arnaud; Bonnefond, Anne; Margiocchi, Florence; Poisson, Franck; Muzet, Alain

2010-10-01

Very few studies were devoted to permanent effects of nocturnal railway noise on sleep and cardiovascular reactivity. We investigated the effects of nocturnal railway noise on sleep and cardiovascular response in young and middle-aged adults living for many years either near a railway track or in a quiet area. Forty subjects (50% males) divided into two age groups (juniors: 26.2+/-3.6 and seniors: 56.2+/-4.2) participated in this experiment. Half of them lived near a railway track (RW group: 2.6 to 19 years) and the other half in a quiet environment (QE group: 8.1 to 14.2 years). After an adaptation night, all subjects underwent two nights in the laboratory: one control night and one noisy night (30 by-passes of a freight train). Sleep and cardiovascular modifications were assessed in response to noise. Sleep fragmentation indices were lower in RW subjects compared to QE whatever their age. In response to noise, there was a higher cardiovascular response rate to noise in RW juniors and a lower cardiovascular response rate in RW seniors compared to their age-paired QE counterparts. In conclusion, permanent exposure to nocturnal railway noise leads to decreased sleep fragmentation and to cardiovascular habituation. It is suggested that during the initial period experienced by residents living near railway tracks, nocturnal railway noise could induce a sensitization process on the autonomic response to noise reflecting a startle/defense reflex due to its functional significance, which progressively turns to habituation in the long-term if no adverse effect is experienced. Copyright 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Measurement of the 230U half-life

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pommé, S.; Altzitzoglou, T.; Van Ammel, R.; Suliman, G.; Marouli, M.; Jobbágy, V.; Paepen, J.; Stroh, H.; Apostolidis, C.; Abbas, K.; Morgenstern, A.

2012-01-01

The 230 U half-life was determined by measuring the decay curve of 230 U sources by various nuclear detection techniques: α-particle counting at a defined small solid angle; 4πα+β counting with a windowless CsI sandwich spectrometer, a liquid scintillation counter and a pressurised proportional counter; gamma-ray spectrometry with a HPGe detector and nearly-2π α-particle counting with an ion-implanted silicon detector. Depending on the technique, the decay was followed for 100–200 d, which is 5–10 times the 230 U half-life. The measurement results of the various techniques were in good mutual agreement. The mean value, T 1/2 ( 230 U)=20.23 (2) d, is lower than the literature value which is based on one measurement in 1948 and resulted in a half-life value of 20.8 d without statement of uncertainty. A correction for the ingrowth of the long-lived 210 Pb and its daughter products may have been overlooked in the past. - Highlights: ► Half-life of 230 U determined by various nuclear detection techniques. ► Result T 1/2 ( 230 U)=20.23 (2) d is lower than the literature value. ► 230 U/ 226 Th decay series has potential use in alpha-immunotherapy.

The Rise of the Anthroposphere since 50,000 Years: An Ecological Replacement of Megaherbivores by Humans in Terrestrial Ecosystems?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hervé Bocherens

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Megaherbivores fulfilled a number of important ecological functions in terrestrial ecosystems and behaved as ecological engineers since 300 million years until around 12,000 years ago. These essential ecological functions include opening vegetation cover, selective seed dispersal and nutrient recycling and spreading. Thanks to these effects, megaherbivores change the vegetation structure where they live, with cascading effects on smaller herbivores and also on climate. The late Pleistocene extinction strongly impacted the megaherbivores almost all over the world and led to the loss of these important ecological functions in terrestrial ecosystems. These functions were partially restored by agriculturist humans through an ecological replacement that occurred through an ecological shift within the species Homo sapiens. A better understanding of the differences and similarities between the ecological impacts of megaherbivores and those of agricultural humans should help to predict the future of terrestrial ecosystems.

Conformational effects on Carbon-13 NMR spectra of half-cage alcohols

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Seidl, Peter Rudolf [Universidade Federal (UFRJ), Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil). Escola de Quimica; Carneiro, J. Walkimar de M. [Universidade Federal Fluminense (UFF), Niteroi, RJ (Brazil). Dept. de Quimica Geral e Inorganica; Tostes, Glauco R. [Universidade Federal do Norte Fluminense (UENSP). Campos dos Goytacazes, RJ (Brazil). Centro de Ciencias e Tecnologia; Pinto, Paulo S.S. [Instituto Militar de Engenharia (IME), Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil). Dept. de Engenharia Quimica; Costa, Valentim E.U.; Alifantes, Joao [Rio Grande do Sul Univ. (UFRGS), Porto Alegre (Brazil). Inst. de Quimica; Bernassau, Jean-Marie; Sizun, Philippe [SANOFI Recherche, Montpellier (France)

1999-05-01

Rotation around the carbon=oxygen bond of the hydroxyl group of half-cage alcohols affects bond lengths and angles as well as charge distribution on carbon and hydrogen atoms. As derivatives of half-cage compounds have played an important role in the investigation of several phenomena of interest in the interpretation of NMR parameters, we calculated carbon -13 chemical shift for the three conformers of half-cage alcohols that were investigated at the 6-31 G{sup *} level. GIAO chemical shifts for 1 A, 1 B and 1 C (C{sub 6}-C{sub 5}-O-H dihedral angles of respectively, -73.6 deg C, 64.8 deg C and 178.0 deg C) were calculated by HF/6-31 g (d)// B3 LYP/6-31 g (d) and by B3LYP/6-31 g (d)//B3LYP/6-31 g (d). Since the later gave better agreement with the published chemical shifts and correctly predicts the order of shifts for 2-exo-norbornol, the bicyclic analog of 1, we took these calculations as a basis for analysis of conformational effects.

Effects of Urbanization Expansion on Landscape Pattern and Region Ecological Risk in Chinese Coastal City: A Case Study of Yantai City

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Di Zhou

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Applied with remote sensing, GIS, and mathematical statistics, the spatial-temporal evolution characteristics of urbanization expansion of Yantai city from 1974 to 2009 was studied. Based on landscape pattern metrics and ecological risk index, the landscape ecological risk from the landscape pattern dynamics was evaluated. The results showed that the area of urban land increased by 189.77 km2 with average expansion area of 5.42 km2 y−1 from 1974 to 2009. The urbanization intensity index during 2004–2009 was 3.92 times of that during 1974–1990. The land use types of urban land and farmland changed greatly. The changes of landscape pattern metrics for land use patterns indicated that the intensity of human activities had strengthened gradually in study period. The landscape ecological risk pattern of Yantai city shaped half-round rings along the coastline. The ecological risk index decreased with increase of the distance to the coastline. The ratio of high ecological risk to subhigh ecological risk zones in 2009 was 2.23 times of that in 1990. The significant linear relationship of urbanization intensity index and regional ecological risk indicated that the anthropological economic activities were decisive factors for sustainable development of costal ecological environment.

Effects of Urbanization Expansion on Landscape Pattern and Region Ecological Risk in Chinese Coastal City: A Case Study of Yantai City

Science.gov (United States)

Zhou, D.; Yu, J.; Li, Y.; Zhan, C.

2017-12-01

Applied with remote sensing, GIS, and mathematical statistics, the spatial-temporal evolution characteristics of urbanization expansion of Yantai city from1974 to 2009 was studied. Based on landscape pattern metrics and ecological risk index, the landscape ecological risk from the landscape pattern dynamics was evaluated. The results showed that the area of urban land increased by 189.77 km2 with average expansion area of 5.42 km2 y-1 from1974 to 2009.The urbanization intensity index during 2004-2009 was 3.92 times of that during 1974-1990. The land use types of urban land and farmland changed greatly. The changes of landscape pattern metrics for land use patterns indicated that the intensity of human activities had strengthened gradually in study period. The landscape ecological risk pattern of Yantai city shaped half-round rings along the coastline. The ecological risk index decreased with increase of the distance to the coastline. The ratio of high ecological risk to sub-high ecological risk zones in 2009 was 2.23 times of that in 1990.The significant linear relationship of urbanization intensity index and regional ecological risk indicated that the anthropological economic activities were decisive factors for sustainable development of costal ecological environment.

Effects of urbanization expansion on landscape pattern and region ecological risk in Chinese coastal city: a case study of Yantai city.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhou, Di; Shi, Ping; Wu, Xiaoqing; Ma, Jinwei; Yu, Junbao

2014-01-01

Applied with remote sensing, GIS, and mathematical statistics, the spatial-temporal evolution characteristics of urbanization expansion of Yantai city from 1974 to 2009 was studied. Based on landscape pattern metrics and ecological risk index, the landscape ecological risk from the landscape pattern dynamics was evaluated. The results showed that the area of urban land increased by 189.77 km(2) with average expansion area of 5.42 km(2) y(-1) from 1974 to 2009. The urbanization intensity index during 2004-2009 was 3.92 times of that during 1974-1990. The land use types of urban land and farmland changed greatly. The changes of landscape pattern metrics for land use patterns indicated that the intensity of human activities had strengthened gradually in study period. The landscape ecological risk pattern of Yantai city shaped half-round rings along the coastline. The ecological risk index decreased with increase of the distance to the coastline. The ratio of high ecological risk to subhigh ecological risk zones in 2009 was 2.23 times of that in 1990. The significant linear relationship of urbanization intensity index and regional ecological risk indicated that the anthropological economic activities were decisive factors for sustainable development of costal ecological environment.

Half-life Measurements of Levels in {sup 75}As

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hoejeberg, M; Malmskog, S G

1969-04-15

Half-lives for three levels in {sup 75}As have been determined using an electron-electron coincidence spectrometer. The following results have been obtained. T{sub 1/2} (199 keV) = 0.87 {+-} 0.03 nsec, T{sub 1/2} (280 keV) = 0.28 {+-} 0.02 nsec and T{sub 1/2} (401 keV) = 1. 67 {+-} 0.14 nsec.

Dissipation, half-lives, and mass spectrometric identification of chlorpyrifos and its two metabolites on field-grown collard and kale.

Science.gov (United States)

Antonious, George F; Turley, Eric T; Abubakari, Mutari; Snyder, John C

2017-04-03

The persistence and fate of chlorpyrifos and its two metabolites, chlorpyrifos-oxon and the 3, 5, 6-trichloro-2-pyridinol (TCP) break-down product were investigated on kale and collard leaves under field conditions. A simultaneous extraction and quantification procedure was developed for chrorpyrifos and its two main metabolites. Residues of chlorpyrifos, chlorpyrifos oxon, and TCP were determined using a gas chromatograph (GC) equipped with an electron capture detector (GC/ECD). Chlorpyrifos metabolites were detectable up to 23 days following application. Residues were confirmed using a GC equipped with a mass selective detector (GC/MSD) in total ion mode. Initial residues of chlorpyrifos were greater on collard (14.5 µg g -1 ) than kale (8.2 µg g -1 ) corresponding to half-lives (T 1/2 ) values of 7.4 and 2.2 days, respectively. TCP, the hydrolysis product, was more persistent on collards with an estimated T 1/2 of 6.5 days compared to kale (T 1/2 of 1.9 days).

Half-and-Half Palatoplasty.

Science.gov (United States)

Han, Hyun Ho; Kang, In Sook; Rhie, Jong Won

2014-08-01

A 14-month-old child was diagnosed with a Veau Class II cleft palate. Von Langenbeck palatoplasty was performed for the right palate, and V-Y pushback palatoplasty was performed for the left palate. The child did not have a special problem during the surgery, and the authors were able to elongate the cleft by 10 mm. Contrary to preoperative concerns regarding the hybrid use of palatoplasties, the uvula and midline incisions remained balanced in the middle. The authors named this combination method "half-and-half palatoplasty" and plan to conduct a long-term follow up study as a potential solution that minimizes the complications of palatoplasty.

PREFACE: Half Metallic Ferromagnets

Science.gov (United States)

Dowben, Peter

2007-08-01

Since its introduction by de Groot and colleagues in the early 1980s [1], the concept of half metallic ferromagnetism has attracted great interest. Idealized, half-metals have only one spin channel for conduction: the spin-polarized band structure exhibits metallic behavior for one spin channel, while the other spin band structure exhibits a gap at the Fermi level. Due to the gap for one spin direction, the density of states at the Fermi level has, theoretically, 100 & spin polarization. This gap in the density of states in one spin at the Fermi level, for example ↓ so N↓ (EF) = 0, also causes the resistance of that channel to go to infinity. At zero or low temperatures, the nonquasiparticle density of states (electron correlation effects), magnons and spin disorder reduce the polarization from the idealized 100 & polarization. At higher temperatures magnon-phonon coupling and irreversible compositional changes affect polarization further. Strategies for assessing and reducing the effects of finite temperatures on the polarization are now gaining attention. The controversies surrounding the polarization stability of half metallic ferromagnets are not, however, limited to the consideration of finite temperature effects alone. While many novel half metallic materials have been predicted, materials fabrication can be challenging. Defects, surface and interface segregation, and structural stability can lead to profound decreases in polarization, but can also suppress long period magnons. There is a 'delicate balance of energies required to obtain half metallic behaviour: to avoid spin flip scattering, tiny adjustments in atomic positions might occur so that a gap opens up in the other spin channel' [2]. When considering 'spintronics' devices, a common alibi for the study of half metallic systems, surfaces and interfaces become important. Free enthalpy differences between the surface and the bulk will lead to spin minority surface and interface states, as well as

The ecological crisis: a question of justice

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kempf, H.

2010-01-01

The question of ecology has become a major issue for international relations in the next half-century. But it poses new problems of worldwide justice more than questions of power politics, and its solution will always be a reflection of internal social issues in the countries concerned. (author)

Study of the gamma spectra emitted in a nuclear reaction - Measurement of the half-lives of the levels 6.13 MeV, 6.92 MeV and 7.12 MeV of 16O

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Leccia, F.

1967-01-01

When the energy shifts of the gamma spectrum released during a nuclear reaction are important compared with the detector resolution, the comparison of the experimental spectrum with theoretical spectra allows us to determine the half-life of the initial state of the transition. The calculation of the experimental spectrum implies to know the slowing-down of the recoil nucleus in the matter in order to take into account the Doppler effect. For recoil energies in the range of the MeV and for solid media, the Lindhard theory agrees well with experimental data. The phenomenon of deflection which appears at very low energies must be taken into account by restraining the measurement domain. By choosing an adequate media we can measure half-lives in the domain 1 and 100 fs without needing to take into account deflection effects. We have measured the half-life of the first 3 energy levels of 16 O (6.135 MeV, 6.923 MeV and 7.121 MeV), these levels are reached through the reaction 19 F(p,αγ) 16 O with proton incident energies ranging from 0.872 MeV to 2.42 MeV. We have used a coaxial germanium semi-conductor with lithium additions that was connected to an amplification line of Ortec type. 2 kinds of target have been used: calcium fluoride and copper fluoride evaporated on tantalum support. We have obtained the following values for the half-life: (16±4) fs for the 6.923 MeV level, (18±4) fs for the 7.121 MeV level, and for the 6.135 MeV we can only give a lower limit since the gamma decay occurs when the nucleus is at rest τ > 200 fs

Flow effects on benthic stream invertebrates and ecological processes

Science.gov (United States)

Koprivsek, Maja; Brilly, Mitja

2010-05-01

Flow is the main abiotic factor in the streams. Flow affects the organisms in many direct and indirect ways. The organisms are directly affected by various hydrodynamic forces and mass transfer processes like drag forces, drift, shear stress, food and gases supply and washing metabolites away. Indirect effects on the organisms are determining and distribution of the particle size and structure of the substrate and determining the morphology of riverbeds. Flow does not affect only on individual organism, but also on many ecological effects. To expose just the most important: dispersal of the organisms, habitat use, resource acquisition, competition and predator-prey interactions. Stream invertebrates are adapted to the various flow conditions in many kinds of way. Some of them are avoiding the high flow with living in a hyporeic zone, while the others are adapted to flow with physical adaptations (the way of feeding, respiration, osmoregulation and resistance to draught), morphological adaptations (dorsoventrally flattened shape of organism, streamlined shape of organism, heterogeneous suckers, silk, claws, swimming hair, bristles and ballast gravel) or with behaviour. As the flow characteristics in a particular stream vary over a broad range of space and time scales, it is necessary to measure accurately the velocity in places where the organisms are present to determine the actual impact of flow on aquatic organisms. By measuring the mean flow at individual vertical in a single cross-section, we cannot get any information about the velocity situation close to the bottom of the riverbed where the stream invertebrates are living. Just measuring the velocity near the bottom is a major problem, as technologies for measuring the velocity and flow of natural watercourses is not adapted to measure so close to the bottom. New researches in the last two decades has shown that the thickness of laminar border layer of stones in the stream is only a few 100 micrometers, what

Compound Half-Backed Weave Design For Digital Jacquard Fabric

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Meng; Zhou, Jiu

2017-12-01

Based on layered-combination design mode and compound structure, this paper presents a design method, named compound half-backed weave in order to achieve innovating weave structure and surface effect of fabric. This design method includes primary weaves chosen, half-backed technical points set up and half-backed weave databases established. The fabric produced using compound half-backed weave designed by this method can exhibit a unique half-backed effect that only half of the threads on the fabric surface remain in a state of being covered by adjacent wefts. Compound half-backed weave can not only meets the design need of jacquard fabric with different digital images and effectively improves the efficiency of structural design, but also puts forward new theory and method for innovative design of digital jacquard fabric.

Effective intracellular inhibition of the cAMP-dependent protein kinase by microinjection of a modified form of the specific inhibitor peptide PKi in living fibroblasts.

Science.gov (United States)

Fernandez, A; Mery, J; Vandromme, M; Basset, M; Cavadore, J C; Lamb, N J

1991-08-01

In order to obtain a peptide retaining its biological activity following microinjection into living cells, we have modified a synthetic peptide [PKi(m)(6-24)], derived from the specific inhibitor protein of the cAMP-dependent protein kinase (A-kinase) in two ways: (1) substitution of the arginine at position 18 for a D-arginine; (2) blockade of the side chain on the C-terminal aspartic acid by a cyclohexyl ester group. In an in vitro assay, PKi(m) has retained a specific inhibitory activity against A-kinase as assessed against six other kinases, with similar efficiency to that of the unmodified PKi(5-24) peptide. Microinjection of PKi(m) into living fibroblasts reveals its capacity to prevent the changes in cell morphology and cytoskeleton induced by drugs which activate endogenous A-kinase, whereas the original PKi peptide failed to do so. This inhibition of A-kinase in vivo by PKi(m) lasts between 4 and 6 h after injection. In light of its effective half-life, this modified peptide opens a route for the use of biologically active peptides in vivo, an approach which has been hampered until now by the exceedingly short half-life of peptides inside living cells. By providing a direct means of inhibiting A-kinase activity for sufficiently long periods to observe effects on cellular functions in living cells, PKi(m) represents a powerful tool in studying the potential role of cAMP-dependent phosphorylation in vivo.

The Cultural Ecology Protection and Management of Urban Forests in China

OpenAIRE

ZHANG, Ying; SONG, Weiming; CHEN, Ke; GUO, Chunjing

2013-01-01

Forests have economic, ecological, social and cultural functions. Forests Cultural ecology, the counterpart of forest ecology， is the integration of human spirit formed on the basis of natural forest and living systems. In recent years, China's urbanization rate has increased from 28% in 1993 to 45.68% in 2008, and ecological protection of urban forest has made great progress, but insufficient attention was paid to the forest cultural ecology protection and the relevant regulatory was not w...

Ecology of rodents at an old quarry in Zambia

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Ecology of rodents at an old quarry in Zambia. E.N. Chidumayo. Livingstone Museum, Zambia. An old quarry, 2,5 hain size near Livingstone in southern. Zambia was kill- and live-trapped between September 1974 and December 1976 to determine ecological relations among. rodent species inhabiting it. Seven species ...

Emergence of Ecological Planning Abroad and in Lithuania

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Justina Mačiukėnaitė

2013-10-01

Full Text Available In the 21st century it is sought to go from overuse and wasting to temperate and abstemious use. Not without reason such terms as ‘sustainable’ and ‘eco-’ are more and more visible and emphasized in all spheres of human activity, including architecture and urban planning. Loud words ‘eco quarter’, ‘eco neighborhood’, ‘eco city’ and similar recently have expanded from theory to practice – in building and territory planning. Ecology principles, such as sustainable transport, water, materials, zero waste, land use culture, satisfaction about the living environment and else, may be understood, valuated and used very widely – from ecological living, farming and manufacturing to ecological planning. Of course, all these aspects are quite easily understood in theory and it is possible to image them in new and currently built towns, but quite hard in historical objects.

Effect of change in half-life of Se-79 on the safety of HLW geological disposal system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ishihara, Yoshinao; Ishiguro, Katsuhiko; Umeki, Hiroyuki

1999-11-01

Se-79 is one of key radionuclides in the performance assessment of the geological disposal system. Based on recent measurements, it is possible that the half-life of Se-79 will be changed longer than the present value in most handbooks and tables of isotopes. This study presents performance assessment calculations to investigate the overall effect of change in half-life of Se-79 on the repository system safety. The total system performance analyses for Se-79 were carried out, which focussed on the Reference-Case of the safety assessment in the H12 Project. As results, the maximum release rate in Becquerel unit of Se-79 from the engineered barrier system with new half-life decreases about one order of magnitude than that with half-life used so far. It is, however, that the maximum release rate in Becquerel unit of Se-79 from the natural barrier system is almost same for both half-life because of the channelling effects of groundwater flow. Consequently, the calculated maximum dose rate of Se-79 with new half-life does not change. It can be concluded that the change in half-life of Se-79 does not affect overall safety of the H12 disposal concept. (author)

The Effect of Size and Ecology on Extinction Susceptibility

Science.gov (United States)

Huynh, C.; Yuan, A.; Heim, N.; Payne, J.

2015-12-01

Although life on Earth first emerged as prokaryotic organisms, it eventually evolved into billions of different species. However, extinctions on Earth, especially the five mass extinctions, have decimated species. So what leads to a species survival or demise during a mass extinction? Are certain species more susceptible to extinctions based on their size and ecology? For this project, we focused on the data of marine animals. To examine the impact of size and ecology on a species's likelihood of survival, we compared the sizes and ecologies of the survivors and victims of the five mass extinctions. The ecology, or life mode, of a genus consists of the combination of tiering, motility, and feeding mechanism. Tiering refers to the animal's typical location in the water column and sediments, motility refers to its ability to move, and feeding mechanism describes the way the organism eats; together, they describe the animal's behavior. We analyzed the effect of ecology on survival using logistic regression, which compares life mode to the success or failure of a genus during each mass extinction interval. For organism size, we found the extinct organisms' mean size (both volume and length) and compared it with the average size of survivors on a graph. Our results show that while surviving genera of mass extinctions tended to be slightly larger than those that went extinct, there was no significant difference. Even though the Permian (Changhsingian) and Triassic (Rhaetian) extinctions had larger surviving species, likewise the difference was small. Ecology had a more obvious impact on the likelihood of survival; fast-moving, predatory pelagic organisms were the most likely to go extinct, while sedentary, infaunal suspension feeders had the greatest chances of survival. Overall, ecology played a greater role than size in determining the survival of a species. With this information, we can use ecology to predict which species would survive future extinctions.

Precision measurement of the half-life of {sup 90m}Nb and {sup 99m}Tc

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kikunaga, H.; Fujisawa, H.; Ooe, K. [Osaka Univ., Toyonaka (Japan). Graduate School of Science] [and others

2011-07-01

We have produced {sup 90m}Nb and {sup 99m}Tc in the reactions of {sup nat}Zr(p, xn){sup 90m}Nb and {sup 100}Mo({gamma}, n){sup 99}Mo, followed by disintegration to {sup 99m}Tc, respectively, and measured the halflives of these nuclides by using a reference source method. In order to determine the short half-lives of {sup 90m}Nb precisely, an on-line gas-jet system has been employed. As a result, the half-lives of these nuclides were determined with good precision on the order of magnitude of 0.1%. (orig.)

Nuclear Decay Data for the International Reactor Dosimetry Library for Fission and Fusion (IRDFF: Updated Evaluations of the Half-Lives and Gamma Ray Intensities

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chechev Valery P.

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Updated evaluations of the half-lives and prominent gamma ray intensities have been presented for 20 radionuclides – dosimetry reaction residuals. The new values of these decay characteristics recommended for the IRDFF library were obtained using the approaches and methodology adopted by the working group of the Decay Data Evaluation Project (DDEP cooperation. The experimental data published up to 2014 were taken into account in updated evaluations. The list of radionuclides includes 3H, 18F, 22Na, 24Na, 46Sc, 51Cr, 54Mn, 59Fe, 57Co, 60Co, 57Ni, 64Cu, 88Y, 132Te, 131I, 140Ba, 140La, 141Ce, 182Ta, 198Au.

Environmental Hermeneutics: Ethnic and Ecological Traditions in Aesthetic Dialogue with Nature

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Boldonova Irina

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The article presents dialogic attitude towards nature and focuses on the aesthetic form of interaction with environment via folklore and imaginative writing. The article analyzes the development of scientific thought from human ecology to environmental hermeneutics. Hermeneutic methodology is used in the field of “aesthetics of nature”, therefore, the author applies hermeneutic categories such as tradition, historically effective consciousness, hermeneutic circle, application to cultural heritage of one of Siberia’s natives and proves the advantages, heuristic value of these categories in analyzing dialogue with nature. Aesthetic dialogue with nature is studied on the example of ethnic and ecological traditions of the Buryat nomads, who historically migrated across Central Asia, nowadays live around Lake Baikal. The author argues that revitalizing ethnic and ecological traditions in folklore and contemporary national literature presents a hermeneutic dialogue with nature and considers it a valuable resource for ethical assumptions and ecological education for sustainable development.

Ecological and economical analysis of development of beekeeping in Dagestan

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. R. Gasanov

2009-01-01

Full Text Available Dagestan Republic is a zone of complex beekeeping. To ensure favorable ecological and economic conditions of bees’ live bees it is necessary to estimate first of all an ecological condition of bee families, using thus melliferous bees as bioindicators.

Measurements of Actual Effective Half - Life in 131I Therapy for Graves' Hyperthyroidism

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

So, Yong Seon; Kim, Myung Seon; Kwon, Ki Hyun; Kim, Seok Whan; Kim, Tae Hyung; Han, Sang Woong; Kim, Eun Sil; Kim, Chong Soon

1996-01-01

Radioiodine[131I] has been used for the treatment of Graves' hyperthyroidism since the late 1940's and is now generally regarded as the treatment of choice for Graves' hyperthyroidism who does not remit following a course of antithyroid drugs. But for the dose given, several different protocols have been described by different centers, each attempting to reduce the incidence of long-term hypothyroidism while maintaining an acceptable rate control of Graves' hyperthyroidism. Our goals were to evaluate effective half-life and predict absorbed dose in Graves' hyperthyroidism patients, therefore, to calculate and read minister radioiodine activity needed to achieve aimed radiation dose. Our data showed that the mean effective 131I half-life for Graves' disease is 5.3 days(S.D=0.88) and mean biologic half-life is 21 days, range 9.5-67.2 days. The mean administered activity and the mean values of absorbed doses wet: 532 MBq(S.D.=254), 112 Gy (S.D.=50.9), respectively. The mean activity needed to achieve aimed radiation dose were 51 MBq and marked differences of 131I thyroidal uptake between tracer and therapy occurred in our study. We are sure that the dose calculation method that uses 5 days thyroidal 131I uptake measurements after tracer and therapy dose, provides sufficient data about the effective treatment in Graves' hyperthyroidism.

Symposium Ecological construction - from half-timbered- to passive house: living yesterday - today - tomorrow; Symposium Oekologische Bauweisen - vom Umgebinde- zum Passivhaus: Wohnen Gestern - Heute - Morgen

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2000-07-01

While the first part of the symposium was dedicated to half-timbered buildings in the traditional style of Lausitz, Bohemia and Silesia, the second part discussed passive buildings. [German] Das Umgebindehaus ist ein weltweit einmaliger Haustyp und zum anderen ist es ein traditionelles Haus unserer Region der Oberlausitz und angrenzender Teile von Boehmen und Schlesien. Das Symposium behandelt das Umgebindehaus in Vergangenheit und Gegenwart und will Motivation und Ansaetze geben, dieses wunderschoene Baukulturgut zu erhalten und unter modernen Wohn-, Arbeits- und Lebensbedingungen zu nutzen. Der zweite Teil der Tagung ist nicht minder wichtig. Beim Passivhaus geht es im wesentlichen darum, Heizwaermeverluste im Winter so klein zu halten, dass sie von den Gewinnen (Sonnenenergie, inneres Waermeaufkommen u.a.) gedeckt werden koennen. Damit wird der Waermeschutz des Gebaeudes vielleicht bis an die Grenzen getrieben und es entstehen neue Anforderungen an das Energiemanagement und die Qualitaet der technischen Gebaeudeausruestung. (orig.)

Indoors and health: results of a systematic literature review assessing the potential health effects of living in basements.

Science.gov (United States)

Mezzoiuso, Angelo Giosué; Gola, Marco; Rebecchi, Andrea; Riccò, Matteo; Capolongo, Stefano; Buffoli, Maddalena; Tirani, Marcello; Odone, Anna; Signorelli, Carlo

2017-10-23

A new law approved in March 2017 in the Lombardy Region makes it possible to live in basements. Basements are defined as buildings partly below curb level but with at least one-half of its height above the curb. Basements' features and structural characteristics might pose risks to human health. In this paper we adopt a multidisciplinary approach to assess the potential health effects of living in basements. In particular, we define a conceptual framework to describe basements' structural characteristics which are risk factors, as well as the mechanisms through which they impact on human health. We also conduct a systematic review on the scientific databases PubMed,Embase, DOAJ, Proquest and EBSCO to retrieve, pool and critically analyze all available research that quantified the risk of living in basements for different health outcomes. Available evidence suggests living in basements increases the risk of respiratory diseases (asthma and allergic disorders); more heterogeneous data are available for cancers and cardiovascular diseases. As more quantitative data need to be prospectively retrieved to assess and monitor the risk of living in basements for human health, clear minimum requirements for light, air, sanitation and egress are to be defined by technical experts and enforced by policy makers.

Assessing the Effect of Musical Congruency on Wine Tasting in a Live Performance Setting

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Qian (Janice Wang

2015-07-01

Full Text Available At a wine tasting event with live classical music, we assessed whether participants would agree that certain wine and music pairings were congruent. We also assessed the effect of musical congruency on the wine tasting experience. The participants were given two wines to taste and two pieces of music—one chosen to match each wine—were performed live. Half of the participants tasted the wines while listening to the putatively more congruent music, the rest tasted the wines while listening to the putatively less congruent music. The participants rated the wine–music match and assessed the fruitiness, acidity, tannins, richness, complexity, length, and pleasantness of the wines. The results revealed that the music chosen to be congruent with each wine was indeed rated as a better match than the other piece of music. Furthermore, the music playing in the background also had a significant effect on the perceived acidity and fruitiness of the wines. These findings therefore provide further support for the view that music can modify the wine drinking experience. However, the present results leave open the question of whether the crossmodal congruency between music and wine itself has any overarching influence on the wine drinking experience.

Assessing the Effect of Musical Congruency on Wine Tasting in a Live Performance Setting

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Qian (Janice)

2015-01-01

At a wine tasting event with live classical music, we assessed whether participants would agree that certain wine and music pairings were congruent. We also assessed the effect of musical congruency on the wine tasting experience. The participants were given two wines to taste and two pieces of music—one chosen to match each wine—were performed live. Half of the participants tasted the wines while listening to the putatively more congruent music, the rest tasted the wines while listening to the putatively less congruent music. The participants rated the wine–music match and assessed the fruitiness, acidity, tannins, richness, complexity, length, and pleasantness of the wines. The results revealed that the music chosen to be congruent with each wine was indeed rated as a better match than the other piece of music. Furthermore, the music playing in the background also had a significant effect on the perceived acidity and fruitiness of the wines. These findings therefore provide further support for the view that music can modify the wine drinking experience. However, the present results leave open the question of whether the crossmodal congruency between music and wine itself has any overarching influence on the wine drinking experience. PMID:27433313

Half-life determination of 125I

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

De Felice, P.; Ientile, P.; Zicari, C.

1990-01-01

The half-life of 125 I was determined by measuring the activity of an initial 3 kBq source at several times. Over a period of two months, 96 absolute measurements were performed, using the sum-peak method to give a half-life of (59.38±0.03) d. A discussion is presented on the effect of correcting for accidental coincidences on the half-life measurements by comparing the results with and without this correction. (orig.)

Ecological studies on rain forest in Northern Suriname

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Schulz, J.P.

1960-01-01

During the years 1955-1957 ecological data were collected in various types of mesophytic forest occurring in the northern half of central Suriname (fig. 1). Physiognomically as well as floristically these forests correspond with the type of vegetation which in the other parts of tropical America

Radiation effects on living systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hawley, N.J.

1980-10-01

This bibliography includes papers and reports by Atomic Energy of Canada Limited scientists concerning radiation effects on living systems. It is divided into three sections: Radiobiology, Radiation Biochemistry and Radiation Chemistry. (auth)

Current and future contraceptive options for women living with HIV.

Science.gov (United States)

Patel, Rena C; Bukusi, Elizabeth A; Baeten, Jared M

2018-01-01

Among women living with HIV, half of the pregnancies are unintended. Effective contraception can prevent unintended pregnancies and consequently reduce maternal mortality and perinatal transmission of HIV. While contraceptive options available for all women also apply to women living with HIV, specific considerations exist to the use of contraception by women living with HIV. Areas covered: First, general principles guiding the use of contraception among women living with HIV are discussed, such as choice, method mix, relative effectiveness, and drug-drug interactions. Second, a detailed discussion of each contraceptive method and issues surrounding the use of that method, such as drug-drug interactions, follows. Third, future contraceptive options in advanced development for use by women or men are briefly discussed. Expert opinion: Contraceptive methods available to all women should also be accessible to women living with HIV. When the relative effectiveness of a contraceptive method is reduced, for example due to drug-drug interactions with antiretrovirals, the method should still be made available to women living with HIV with the appropriate information sharing and counseling. Greater research on various aspects of contraceptive use by women living with HIV and more comprehensive testing of co-administration of hormonal contraceptives and common medications used by these women are warranted.

Ethnobiology in the city: Embracing the urban ecological moment

Science.gov (United States)

Marla R. Emery; Patrick T. Hurley

2016-01-01

More than half the world's human population resides in cities (United Nations Economic and Social Affairs Population Division 2015)1. Unpacking this singular statistic, it becomes clear that people come to live in urban environments via numerous routes. Some have lived in cities all their lives and are descendants of city dwellers. In other...

Integrated radiation and ecological assessment of both environment and living and working places

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Konoplya, E.F.; Lobanok, L.M.

1997-01-01

Are given the results of researches carried out in Belarus in 1996 on the following directions: study of radionuclides behaviour dynamics in an environment (air, water, ground), ecosystems and populated areas; optimization of system of radiation ecological monitoring in the republic as well as scientific methodological and methodical methods of its realization; study of effects of low doze irradiation; research of a role of chemical and other factors in occurrence and current of pathological states on a background of chronic low doze irradiation; radiobiological and radioecological consequences of the Chernobyl accident

Update of NIST half-life results corrected for ionization chamber source-holder instability

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Unterweger, M.P.; Fitzgerald, R.

2014-01-01

As reported at the ICRM 2011, it was discovered that the source holder used for calibrations in the NIST 4πγ ionization chamber (IC) was not stable. This has affected a large number of half-life measurement results previously reported and used in compilations of nuclear data. Corrections have been made on all of the half-life data based on the assumption that the changes to the ionization chamber response were gradual. The corrections are energy dependent and therefore radionuclide specific. This presentation will review our results and present the recommended changes in half-life values and/or uncertainties. - Highlights: • The NIST half-life data is corrected for sample positioning variations and refitted. • These results are reported and increased errors in the reported values are given. • Longer lived radionuclides are discussed

Interaction between Allee effects caused by organism-environment feedback and by other ecological mechanisms.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lijuan Qin

Full Text Available Understanding Allee effect has crucial importance for ecological conservation and management because it is strongly related to population extinction. Due to various ecological mechanisms accounting for Allee effect, it is necessary to study the influence of multiple Allee effects on the dynamics and persistence of population. We here focus on organism-environment feedback which can incur strong, weak, and fatal Allee effect (AE-by-OEF, and further examine their interaction with the Allee effects caused by other ecological mechanisms (AE-by-OM. The results show that multiple Allee effects largely increase the extinction risk of population either due to the enlargement of Allee threshold or the change of inherent characteristic of Allee effect, and such an increase will be enhanced dramatically with increasing the strength of individual Allee effects. Our simulations explicitly considering spatial structure also demonstrate that local interaction among habitat patches can greatly mitigate such superimposed Allee effects as well as individual Allee effect. This implies that spatially structurized habitat could play an important role in ecological conservation and management.

Interaction between Allee effects caused by organism-environment feedback and by other ecological mechanisms.

Science.gov (United States)

Qin, Lijuan; Zhang, Feng; Wang, Wanxiong; Song, Weixin

2017-01-01

Understanding Allee effect has crucial importance for ecological conservation and management because it is strongly related to population extinction. Due to various ecological mechanisms accounting for Allee effect, it is necessary to study the influence of multiple Allee effects on the dynamics and persistence of population. We here focus on organism-environment feedback which can incur strong, weak, and fatal Allee effect (AE-by-OEF), and further examine their interaction with the Allee effects caused by other ecological mechanisms (AE-by-OM). The results show that multiple Allee effects largely increase the extinction risk of population either due to the enlargement of Allee threshold or the change of inherent characteristic of Allee effect, and such an increase will be enhanced dramatically with increasing the strength of individual Allee effects. Our simulations explicitly considering spatial structure also demonstrate that local interaction among habitat patches can greatly mitigate such superimposed Allee effects as well as individual Allee effect. This implies that spatially structurized habitat could play an important role in ecological conservation and management.

Living with worms: On the earthly togetherness of eating

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bertoni, F.

2016-01-01

How to live together in times of ecological change? Asking this question has become increasingly urgent, but it begs that we rethink the articulations of nature, politics and science. To do so, here I focus on the theories and practices of eating in ecological sciences involving earthworms. This

The Present Status of the Half-Life Measuring Equipment and Technique at Studsvik

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Malmskog, S G

1967-10-15

The present article presents the equipment and technique used at Studsvik for measuring half-lives of nuclear excited states using the delayed coincidence method. The experimental set up includes an electron-electron coincidence spectrometer and a fast pneumatic rabbit system attached to the high flux reactor R2 at Studsvik. Special efforts have been made to adapt the system for work with short lived radioactive isotopes with decay times of the order of seconds.

ECOLOGICAL INTELLIGENCE OF COASTAL COMMUNITY ON BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION (Case Study of Bajau Coastal Communities, Gorontalo

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ramli Utina

2017-04-01

Full Text Available Human behavior is a part of the ecological system, therefore overcoming the ecological crisis and living resources need to explore human traditions, way of life and human behavior toward natural resources. Understanding and translation of human harmonious relationship with all elements along with other living beings is a form of human ecological intelligence. The objective of this study was to describe the traditions and coastal communities behavior that contains the value of ecological intelligence in coastal biodiversity conservation. The study was based on observation, focus group discussion and identification of Bajau coastal community tradition in their lives and livelihoods on fishing, as well as the behavior toward biological resources. Bajau coastal communities settled in three villages in Pohuwato regency, Gorontalo. There are two themes that contains the value of ecological intelligence of  Bajau communities in the conservation of biodiversity, namely; mamia kadialo in tradition of fishing, and fishing behavior. The prohibition in the tradition of mamia kadialo contains the value of conservation of biodiversity. Usage of simple equipment on fishing activities provide a positive ecological consequences for the conservation of coastal biodiversity.

Predicting and detecting reciprocity between indirect ecological interactions and evolution.

Science.gov (United States)

Estes, James A; Brashares, Justin S; Power, Mary E

2013-05-01

Living nature can be thought of as a tapestry, defined not only by its constituent parts but also by how these parts are woven together. The weaving of this tapestry is a metaphor for species interactions, which can be divided into three broad classes: competitive, mutualistic, and consumptive. Direct interactions link together as more complex networks, for example, the joining of consumptive interactions into food webs. Food web dynamics are driven, in turn, by changes in the abundances of web members, whose numbers or biomass respond to bottom-up (resource limitation) and top-down (consumer limitation) forcing. The relative strengths of top-down and bottom-up forcing on the abundance of a given web member depend on its ecological context, including its topological position within the food web. Top-down effects by diverse consumers are nearly ubiquitous, in many cases influencing the structure and operation of ecosystems. While the ecological effects of such interactions are well known, far less is known of their evolutionary consequences. In this essay, we describe sundry consequences of these interaction chains on species and ecosystem processes, explain several known or suspected evolutionary effects of consumer-induced interaction chains, and identify areas where reciprocity between ecology and evolution involving the indirect effects of consumer-prey interaction chains might be further explored.

Effective half-lives of 137Cs in giant butterbur and field horsetail, and the distribution differences of potassium and 137Cs in aboveground tissue parts

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tagami, Keiko; Uchida, Shigeo

2015-01-01

Concentrations of 137 Cs and 40 K in different tissues of edible wild herbaceous plants, that is, leaf blade and petiole for giant butterbur (Petasites japonicas (Siebold et Zucc.) Maxim.), and leaf, stem and strobilus for fertile shoot of field horsetail (Equisetum arvense L.) were measured in 2012–2014 to clarify the effect in Japan from the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident. The concentrations of 137 Cs decreased with time with effective half-lives of ca. 450 d and 360 d for giant butterbur and field horsetail, respectively. The ANOVA test revealed that 40 K and 137 Cs distributions in leaf blade and petiole for giant butterbur and leaf and stem for field horsetail were different. Therefore, other plants, leaf and stem for Japanese knotweed (Fallopia japonica (Houtt.) Ronse Decr.) and Canada goldenrod (Solidago canadensis L.), and leaf blade and petiole for gingko (Ginkgo biloba L.) and Someiyoshino cherry (Cerasus × yedoensis (Matsum.) A.V.Vassil. ‘Somei-yoshino’) were collected from the same sampling field and their 137 Cs and 40 K concentrations were compared to those in the giant butterbur and field horsetail parts. For 137 Cs, concentrations in leaf blade and leaf parts were 1.1–6.0 times higher than those in petiole and stem parts for all six plants. On the other hand, 40 K concentrations in leaf blade and leaf parts were 0.40–0.97 of those observed in petiole and stem parts. Discrimination ratios of 40 K/ 137 Cs of leaf blade to petiole or leaf to stem were then calculated and they ranged from 0.09 to 0.57. These results suggested that Cs and K did not behave similarly in these plants. Thus, to understand the radiocesium fate in plants, K measurement results should not be used as an analog for Cs behavior although Cs is known to have a similar chemical reactivity to that of K. - Highlights: • 137 Cs amounts in leaf blade and leaf were higher than those in petiole and stem in plants. • 40 K amounts in leaf blade and leaf

Effect of parent and daughter deformation on half-life time in exotic ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Shi and Swiatecki [6] put forward a model for exotic decay studies that uses Coulomb and proximity potential as interacting barrier for post-scission region and uses simple power law for overlap region. These authors [7] studied the effect of deformation of parent, daughter and shell attenuation on half-life time treating ...

Social and ecological factors in the formation of population health in surveillance zone of nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Prilipko, V.A.; Petrichenko, O.O.

2014-01-01

Most people of radiation-control area estimated ecological state as safe. Respondents pointed to such ecological factors as radionuclide pollutions, irresponsible ecological behavior of people, Rivne Nuclear Power Plant functioning consequences. The last one affects changes of water sanitation and ecological parameters.There is no significant difference between mental state of people of radiation-control area and control group of people by GHQ-28 indices, by somatization scale, anxiety, social disfunction and reactive anxiety. The living life peculiarities are grounded by double risk: life in conditions of radioactive polluted territory and life in radiation-control area. Authors defined the correlation between mental state and factors that characterize ecological living conditions

The Living Rainforest Sustainable Greenhouses

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bot, G.P.A.; Zwart, de H.F.; Hansen, K.; Logan, A.; Witte Groenholland, H.

2008-01-01

The Living Rainforest (www.livingrainforest.org) is an educational charity that uses rainforest ecology as a metaphor for communicating general sustainability issues to the public. Its greenhouses and office buildings are to be renovated using the most sustainable methods currently available. This

Effects of the antibiotic enrofloxacin on the ecology of tropical eutrophic freshwater microcosms.

Science.gov (United States)

Rico, Andreu; Dimitrov, Mauricio R; Van Wijngaarden, René P A; Satapornvanit, Kriengkrai; Smidt, Hauke; Van den Brink, Paul J

2014-02-01

The main objective of the present study was to assess the ecological impacts of the fluoroquinolone antibiotic enrofloxacin on the structure and functioning of tropical freshwater ecosystems. Enrofloxacin was applied at a concentration of 1, 10, 100 and 1,000 μg/L for 7 consecutive days in 600-L outdoor microcosms in Thailand. The ecosystem-level effects of enrofloxacin were monitored on five structural (macroinvertebrates, zooplankton, phytoplankton, periphyton and bacteria) and two functional (organic matter decomposition and nitrogen cycling) endpoint groups for 4 weeks after the last antibiotic application. Enrofloxacin was found to dissipate relatively fast from the water column (half-dissipation time: 11.7h), and about 11% of the applied dose was transformed into its main by-product ciprofloxacin after 24h. Consistent treatment-related effects on the invertebrate and primary producer communities and on organic matter decomposition could not be demonstrated. Enrofloxacin significantly affected the structure of leaf-associated bacterial communities at the highest treatment level, and reduced the abundance of ammonia-oxidizing bacteria and ammonia-oxidizing archaea in the sediments, with calculated NOECs of 10 and enrofloxacin are not likely to result in direct or indirect toxic effects on the invertebrate and primary producer communities, nor on important microbially mediated functions such as nitrification. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The half-life of 207Bi and decays of 211At and 211Po

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yanokura, M.; Kudo, H.; Nakahara, H.; Miyano, K.; Ohya, S.; Nitoh, O.

1978-01-01

The half-life of 207 Bi was obtained from the genetic relation between 207 Po and 207 Bi, and between 211 At and 207 Bi. The half-life was found to be 33.4 +- 0.8 y. The half-life of 207 Po was determined to be 5.81 +- 0.04 h by following the decay of the characteristic γ-rays from 207 Po. The half-life of 211 At was determined to be 7.23 +- 0.02 h by following the decay of γ-rays and α-particles from 211 At and 211 Po. The half-lives determined in the present work for 207 Po and 211 At agree with the literature although the half-life of 207 Bi differs considerably from the currently accepted value of 38 y. The branching ratio of 211 At decaying through EC and α-decay modes was determined together with the branching ratios of the three α-particles emitted from 211 Po. (Auth.)

Intrinsically Disordered Segments Affect Protein Half-Life in the Cell and during Evolution

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Robin van der Lee

2014-09-01

Full Text Available Precise control of protein turnover is essential for cellular homeostasis. The ubiquitin-proteasome system is well established as a major regulator of protein degradation, but an understanding of how inherent structural features influence the lifetimes of proteins is lacking. We report that yeast, mouse, and human proteins with terminal or internal intrinsically disordered segments have significantly shorter half-lives than proteins without these features. The lengths of the disordered segments that affect protein half-life are compatible with the structure of the proteasome. Divergence in terminal and internal disordered segments in yeast proteins originating from gene duplication leads to significantly altered half-life. Many paralogs that are affected by such changes participate in signaling, where altered protein half-life will directly impact cellular processes and function. Thus, natural variation in the length and position of disordered segments may affect protein half-life and could serve as an underappreciated source of genetic variation with important phenotypic consequences.

The effect of eight half-yearly single-dose treatments with DEC on Wuchereria bancrofti circulating antigenaemia

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Simonsen, Paul E; Magesa, Stephen M; Meyrowitsch, Dan W

2005-01-01

The effect of eight half-yearly treatment rounds with diethylcarbamazine (DEC; 6mg/kg bodyweight) on Wuchereria bancrofti-specific circulating filarial antigen (CFA), a marker of adult worm infection, was followed in 79 individuals who were CFA-positive before start of treatment. Half of these we...... values. Repeated DEC therapy thus appears to have a slow but profound and persistent macrofilaricidal effect, which in the long run may be beneficial to populations undergoing DEC-based control interventions by reducing the probability of future morbidity development....

Promoting biodiversity values of small forest patches in agricultural landscapes: Ecological drivers and social demand.

Science.gov (United States)

Varela, Elsa; Verheyen, Kris; Valdés, Alicia; Soliño, Mario; Jacobsen, Jette B; De Smedt, Pallieter; Ehrmann, Steffen; Gärtner, Stefanie; Górriz, Elena; Decocq, Guillaume

2018-04-01

Small forest patches embedded in agricultural (and peri-urban) landscapes in Western Europe play a key role for biodiversity conservation with a recognized capacity of delivering a wide suite of ecosystem services. Measures aimed to preserve these patches should be both socially desirable and ecologically effective. This study presents a joint ecologic and economic assessment conducted on small forest patches in Flanders (Belgium) and Picardie (N France). In each study region, two contrasted types of agricultural landscapes were selected. Open field (OF) and Bocage (B) landscapes are distinguished by the intensity of their usage and higher connectivity in the B landscapes. The social demand for enhancing biodiversity and forest structure diversity as well as for increasing the forest area at the expenses of agricultural land is estimated through an economic valuation survey. These results are compared with the outcomes of an ecological survey where the influence of structural features of the forest patches on the associated herbaceous diversity is assessed. The ecological and economic surveys show contrasting results; increasing tree species richness is ecologically more important for herbaceous diversity in the patch, but both tree species richness and herbaceous diversity obtain insignificant willingness to pay estimates. Furthermore, although respondents prefer the proposed changes to take place in the region where they live, we find out that social preferences and ecological effectiveness do differ between landscapes that represent different intensities of land use. Dwellers where the landscape is perceived as more "degraded" attach more value to diversity enhancement, suggesting a prioritization of initiatives in these area. In contrast, the ecological analyses show that prioritizing the protection and enhancement of the relatively better-off areas is more ecologically effective. Our study calls for a balance between ecological effectiveness and welfare

Radiation effects on living systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hawley, N.J.

1984-04-01

This bibliography includes papers and reports by Atomic Energy of Canada Limited scientists concerning radiation effects on living systems. It is divided into three sections: Radiobiology, Radiation Biochemistry and Radiation Chemistry. It is intended that the bibliography will be updated regularly

Database for long lived radionuclides (LLRN). CEA working group report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2003-01-01

This report constitutes a data base for long lived radionuclides (with half lives ranging from 30 to 10 14 years) presenting informations on seven different topics: 'Radioactive data' gathers fundamental data characterising radioactive properties of considered radionuclides (half-life, disintegration mode, radiation energy,...); 'Formation and inventory' collects data on radionuclide formation ways as well as quantities formed during fuel irradiation; 'Biological effects' gives data characterising both radiotoxicity for each radionuclide and chemical toxicity for the considered element; 'Partitioning' specifies element repartition according to the different ways of Purex reprocessing and complementary partitioning processes possible for isolating chemical elements corresponding to the considered radionuclides; 'Transmutation' provides data allowing in part to evaluate the feasibility and destruction performances of radionuclides by transmutation with neutrons; 'Behaviour in waste packages' gathers some data relative to the properties of waste packages confinement. Only data on vitrified waste packages are given there; 'Behaviour in diluted solution' provides data used for element migration calculations. (author)

Integral statistical eco-indices - effective complementary tool for assessment of ecological state of and ecological risks for water ecosystems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bashamkova, I

2010-01-01

Eco-indices are successfully used for assessment of the ecological state and risks of water reservoirs. They allow, already at early stages, to detect negative effects on water ecosystems caused by progressive anthropogenic impacts and widening of the spectrum of pollutants, and to quantitatively evaluate ecological risks and damage for water reservoirs. Implementing these modern tools to water quality assessment is one of the lines to make decisions concerning challenging environmental problems.

Interactions between Genetic and Ecological Effects on the Evolution of Life Cycles.

Science.gov (United States)

Rescan, Marie; Lenormand, Thomas; Roze, Denis

2016-01-01

Sexual reproduction leads to an alternation between haploid and diploid phases, whose relative length varies widely across taxa. Previous genetical models showed that diploid or haploid life cycles may be favored, depending on dominance interactions and on effective recombination rates. By contrast, niche differentiation between haploids and diploids may favor biphasic life cycles, in which development occurs in both phases. In this article, we explore the interplay between genetical and ecological factors, assuming that deleterious mutations affect the competitivity of individuals within their ecological niche and allowing different effects of mutations in haploids and diploids (including antagonistic selection). We show that selection on a modifier gene affecting the relative length of both phases can be decomposed into a direct selection term favoring the phase with the highest mean fitness (due to either ecological differences or differential effects of mutations) and an indirect selection term favoring the phase in which selection is more efficient. When deleterious alleles occur at many loci and in the presence of ecological differentiation between haploids and diploids, evolutionary branching often occurs and leads to the stable coexistence of alleles coding for haploid and diploid cycles, while temporal variations in niche sizes may stabilize biphasic cycles.

Resilience, political ecology, and well-being: an interdisciplinary approach to understanding social-ecological change in coastal Bangladesh

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sonia F. Hoque

2017-06-01

Full Text Available The commodification of peasant livelihoods through export-oriented aquaculture has brought about significant social-ecological changes in low-lying coastal areas in many parts of Asia. A better understanding of the underlying drivers and distributional effects of these changes requires integration of social and ecological approaches that often have different epistemological origins. Resilience thinking has gained increased traction in social-ecological systems research because it provides a dynamic analysis of the cross-scalar interactions between multiple conditions and processes. However, the system-oriented perspective inherent in resilience thinking fails to acknowledge the heterogeneous values, interests, and power of social actors and their roles in navigating social-ecological change. Incorporation of political ecology and well-being perspectives can provide an actor-oriented analysis of the trade-offs associated with change and help to determine which state is desirable for whom. However, empirical demonstrations of such interdisciplinary approaches remain scarce. Here, we explore the combined application of resilience, political ecology, and well-being in investigating the root causes of social-ecological change and identifying the winners and losers of system transformation through empirical analysis of the differential changes in farming systems in two villages in coastal Bangladesh. Using the adaptive cycle as a structuring model, we examine the evolution of the shrimp aquaculture system over the past few decades, particularly looking at the power dynamics between households of different wealth classes. We found that although asymmetric land ownership and political ties enabled the wealthier households to reach their desired farming system in one village, social resilience achieved through memory, leadership, and crisis empowered poorer households to exercise their agency in another village. Material dimensions such as improved

Happier countries, longer lives: an ecological study on the relationship between subjective sense of well-being and life expectancy.

Science.gov (United States)

Evans, Grahame F; Soliman, Elsayed Z

2017-08-01

The relationship between sense of well-being and longevity is not well-established across populations of varying levels of socioeconomic status. We sought to examine the relationship between happiness, or subjective sense of well-being and life expectancy using data from 151 countries. This analysis is based on the 2012 Happy Planet Index project conducted by the Center of Well-Being of the New Economics Foundation, based in the United Kingdom. Well-being data for each country were taken from responses to the 'Ladder of Life' question in the 2012 Gallup World Poll in which participants were asked to rate their quality of life on a scale from 1 (worst possible life) to 10 (best possible life). Life expectancy and gross domestic product data were taken from the 2011 United Nations records. Ecological footprint data were taken from Global Footprint Network records. Subjective sense of well-being was highly correlated with life expectancy (Pearson correlation r = 0.71, p ecological footprint, and population, each 1 unit of the well-being scale was associated with an increase in life expectancy of 4.0 years (95% confidence interval = 2.7-5.3). In conclusion, better sense of well-being has a strong relationship with life expectancy regardless of economic status or population size, suggesting that governments should foster happiness in order to support long-living populations.

EcoDoses. Improving radiological assessment of doses to man from terrestrial ecosystems. A status report for the NKS-B project 2004

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nielsen, Sven P.; Isaksson, M.; Nilsson, Elisabeth (and others)

2005-07-01

The NKS B-programme EcoDoses project started in 2003 as a collaboration between all the Nordic countries. The aim of the project is to improve the radiological assessments of doses to man from terrestrial ecosystems. The present report sums up the work performed in the second phase of the project. The main topics in 2004 have been: (i) A continuation of previous work with a better approach for estimating global fallout on a regional or national scale, based on a correlation between precipitation and deposition rates. (ii) Fur-ther extension of the EcoDoses milk database. Estimation of effective ecological half lives of {sup 137}Cs in cows milk focussing on suitable post-Chernobyl time-series. Modelling integrated transfer of {sup 13}7{sup C}s to cow's milk from Nordic countries. (iii) Determination of effective ecological half lives for fresh water fish from Nordic lakes. (iv) Investigate ra-dioecological sensitivity for Nordic populations. (v) Food-chain modelling using the Eco-sys-model, which is the underlying food- and dose-module in several computerised deci-sion-making systems. (au)

EcoDoses. Improving radiological assessment of doses to man from terrestrial ecosystems. A status report for the NKS-B project 2004

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nielsen, Sven P.; Isaksson, M.; Nilsson, Elisabeth

2005-07-01

The NKS B-programme EcoDoses project started in 2003 as a collaboration between all the Nordic countries. The aim of the project is to improve the radiological assessments of doses to man from terrestrial ecosystems. The present report sums up the work performed in the second phase of the project. The main topics in 2004 have been: (i) A continuation of previous work with a better approach for estimating global fallout on a regional or national scale, based on a correlation between precipitation and deposition rates. (ii) Fur-ther extension of the EcoDoses milk database. Estimation of effective ecological half lives of 137 Cs in cows milk focussing on suitable post-Chernobyl time-series. Modelling integrated transfer of 13 7 C s to cow's milk from Nordic countries. (iii) Determination of effective ecological half lives for fresh water fish from Nordic lakes. (iv) Investigate ra-dioecological sensitivity for Nordic populations. (v) Food-chain modelling using the Eco-sys-model, which is the underlying food- and dose-module in several computerised deci-sion-making systems. (au)

Soedra's ecological forest management plans. Effects on production and economy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Viklund, E.

1998-01-01

In 1995 SOEDRA Skog, Sweden's largest forest owners association, started making ecological forest management plans, Groena skogsbruksplaner. The ecological forest management plans are divided into different compartments in which the management is adapted to the present ecological conditions. The stands are divided into four different categories depending on the different values of nature conservation. The object of this study was to find an easy method to quantify and describe the effects of nature conservation on economy and forest production in SOEDRA:s ecological forest management plans. The developed and purposed method, called PLAN-metoden, does not consider the interests, measures beyond the period of the plan, or losses due to snow or wind. It calculates the difference between the purposed measures in the ecological management plan and an alternative with management according to the requirements of the present Forestry Act. The economic effects of nature conservation varies between a net profit of 0,3% and a cost of 9,1% when calculated with the cash-flow method. The average decrease of possible cutting of merchantable timber was 11,3% and varies between 3,1 and 32,9%. The average decrease of cutting possibilities was 12,9% and varies between a decrease of 0,7% and a decrease of 28,3% when calculated with a present value method. Mainly mature, well-stocked compartments, which are considered not to be managed in the future, give rise to high costs. Properties with unprofitable thinnings and costly scarification, regeneration and cleaning seem to be favoured by the nature conservation in the plans. The Ecological management plans are expected to be of great importance to the members of SOEDRA. The interest in nature conservation is larger than that of economical issues. In order to avoid unsatisfactory results the planning should be accomplished in close personal contact with the forest owner Examination paper 1998-1. 21 refs, 2 figs, 39 tabs

Survey of arthropod assemblages responding to live yeasts in an organic apple orchard

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Stefanos S Andreadis

2015-10-01

Full Text Available Associations between yeasts and insect herbivores are widespread, and these inter-kingdom interactions play a crucial role in yeast and insect ecology and evolution. We report a survey of insect attraction to live yeast from a community ecology perspective. In the summer of 2013 we screened live yeast cultures of Metschnikowia pulcherrima, M. andauensis, M. hawaiiensis, M. lopburiensis, and Cryptococcus tephrensis in an organic apple orchard. More than 3,000 arthropods from 3 classes, 15 orders, and 93 species were trapped; ca. 79% of the trapped specimens were dipterans, of which 43% were hoverflies (Syrphidae, followed by Sarcophagidae, Phoridae, Lauxaniidae, Cecidomyidae, Drosophilidae, and Chironomidae. Traps baited with M. pulcherrima, M. andauensis, and C. tephrensis captured typically 2.4 times more specimens than control traps; traps baited with M. pulcherrima, M. hawaiiensis, M. andauensis, M. lopburiensis and C. tephrensis were more species-rich than unbaited control traps. We conclude that traps baited with live yeasts of the genera Metschnikowia and Cryprococcus are effective attractants and therefore of potential value for pest control. Yeast-based monitoring or attract-and-kill techniques could target pest insects or enhance the assemblage of beneficial insects. Manipulation of insect behavior through live yeast cultures should be further explored for the development of novel plant protection techniques.

A formula for half-life of proton radioactivity

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Zhi-Xing; Dong, Jian-Min

2018-01-01

We present a formula for proton radioactivity half-lives of spherical proton emitters with the inclusion of the spectroscopic factor. The coefficients in the formula are calibrated with the available experimental data. As an input to calculate the half-life, the spectroscopic factor that characterizes the important information on nuclear structure should be obtained with a nuclear many-body approach. This formula is found to work quite well, and in better agreement with experimental measurements than other theoretical models. Therefore, it can be used as a powerful tool in the investigation of proton emission, in particular for experimentalists. Supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (11435014, 11405223, 11675265, 11575112), the 973 Program of China (2013CB834401, 2013CB834405), National Key Program for S&T Research and Development (2016YFA0400501), the Knowledge Innovation Project (KJCX2-EW-N01) of Chinese Academy of Sciences, the Funds for Creative Research Groups of China (11321064) and the Youth Innovation Promotion Association of Chinese Academy of Sciences

Medical concerns in the application of ultrashort-lived radionuclides

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Strauss, H.W.; Gill, J.; Miller, D.D.; Callahan, R.; Elmaleh, D.

1986-01-01

The dosimetry of ultrashort-lived radionuclides is dependent on the biodistribution and residence time of the materials eluted from the generator. Since the half-life of the daughter usually precludes any serious chemical manipulations, the eluates are usually infused in the chemical form available directly from the generator, typically simple ions. As a result, the factors that will define dosimetry are: (1) decay scheme of the daughter; (2) progeny of the daughter; (3) decay scheme of the parent; (4) radiocontaminants of the parent; (5) breakthrough of the parent; (6) biodistribution of the radionuclides. The half-life of the daughter is usually sufficiently short that it does not contribute significantly to the radiation burden. The half-life of the parent, associated radiocontaminants or the progeny, on the other hand, may contribute substantially to the radiation burden of the patient. Many of these agents, including osmium, germanium, and mercury have long biological half-lives and specific organ localization which contribute the radiation burden. 9 references

ECOLOGICAL SAFETY OF CITIZENS OF RECREATIONAL ZONES OF THE BLACK SEA

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Г. Білявський

2012-04-01

Full Text Available The article is devoted to meaningfulness estimation of ecological control of sea aquatory in forming ofsafety ecological conditions for citizens of the Black Sea. The pecularity and the role of technogenic pollution ofsea aquatory of the Black Sea are estimated. The degrees of ecological safety and negative influences of technogenicobjects on people living in the Black Sea coast are defined. The reccomendations for ecologization of recreationalzones of the Black Seat are characterized. The main goal of the work is the ecological estimation of livingconditions for sitizens in the Black Sea on the bases of using of methodology of complex searching andmarking of protecting laws

Ecological analysis of the health effects of income inequality in Argentina.

Science.gov (United States)

De Maio, Fernando G

2008-05-01

Despite a large body of empirical literature, a consensus has not been reached concerning the health effects of income inequality. This study contributes to ongoing debates by examining the robustness of the income inequality-population health relationship in Argentina, using five different income inequality indexes (each sensitive to inequalities in differing parts of the income spectrum) and five measures of population health. Cross-sectional, ecological study. Income and self-reported morbidity data from Argentina's 2001 Encuesta de Condiciones de Vida (Survey of living conditions) were analysed at the provincial level. Provincial rates of male/female life expectancy and infant mortality were drawn from the Instituto Nacional de Estadistica y Censos database. Life expectancy was correlated in the expected direction with provincial-level income inequality (operationalized as the Gini coefficient) for both males (r=-0.55, P<0.01) and females (r=-0.61, P<0.01), but this association was not robust for all five income inequality indexes. In contrast, infant mortality, self-reported poor health and self-reported activity limitation were not correlated with any of the income inequality indexes. This study adds further complexity to the literature on the health effects of income inequality by highlighting the important effects of operational definitions. Mortality and morbidity data cannot be used as reasonably interchangeable variables (a common practice in this literature), and the choice of income inequality indicator may influence the results.

Effective half-lives of ¹³⁷Cs in giant butterbur and field horsetail, and the distribution differences of potassium and ¹³⁷Cs in aboveground tissue parts.

Science.gov (United States)

Tagami, Keiko; Uchida, Shigeo

2015-03-01

Concentrations of (137)Cs and (40)K in different tissues of edible wild herbaceous plants, that is, leaf blade and petiole for giant butterbur (Petasites japonicas (Siebold et Zucc.) Maxim.), and leaf, stem and strobilus for fertile shoot of field horsetail (Equisetum arvense L.) were measured in 2012-2014 to clarify the effect in Japan from the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident. The concentrations of (137)Cs decreased with time with effective half-lives of ca. 450 d and 360 d for giant butterbur and field horsetail, respectively. The ANOVA test revealed that (40)K and (137)Cs distributions in leaf blade and petiole for giant butterbur and leaf and stem for field horsetail were different. Therefore, other plants, leaf and stem for Japanese knotweed (Fallopia japonica (Houtt.) Ronse Decr.) and Canada goldenrod (Solidago canadensis L.), and leaf blade and petiole for gingko (Ginkgo biloba L.) and Someiyoshino cherry (Cerasus × yedoensis (Matsum.) A.V.Vassil. 'Somei-yoshino') were collected from the same sampling field and their (137)Cs and (40)K concentrations were compared to those in the giant butterbur and field horsetail parts. For (137)Cs, concentrations in leaf blade and leaf parts were 1.1-6.0 times higher than those in petiole and stem parts for all six plants. On the other hand, (40)K concentrations in leaf blade and leaf parts were 0.40-0.97 of those observed in petiole and stem parts. Discrimination ratios of (40)K/(137)Cs of leaf blade to petiole or leaf to stem were then calculated and they ranged from 0.09 to 0.57. These results suggested that Cs and K did not behave similarly in these plants. Thus, to understand the radiocesium fate in plants, K measurement results should not be used as an analog for Cs behavior although Cs is known to have a similar chemical reactivity to that of K. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Ecology-Centered Experiences among Children and Adolescents: A Qualitative and Quantitative Analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Orton, Judy

2013-01-01

The present research involved two studies that considered "ecology-centered experiences" (i.e., experiences with living things) as a factor in children's environmental attitudes and behaviors and adolescents' ecological understanding. The first study (Study 1) examined how a community garden provides children in an urban setting the…

[Scale effect of Li-Xiang Railway construction impact on landscape pattern and its ecological risk].

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, De-zhi; Qiu, Peng-hua; Fang, Yuan-min

2015-08-01

As a large corridor project, plateau railway has multiple points and passes various sensitive environments along the railway. The determination of the scope of impact on ecological environment from railway construction is often controversial in ecological impact assessment work. Taking the Tangbu-Jiantang section of Li-Xiang Railway as study object, and using present land use map (1:10000) in 2012 and DEM as data sources, corridor cutting degree index ( CCI) and cumulative effect index of corridor (CCEI) were established by topology, buffer zone and landscape metrics methods. Besides, the ecological risk index used for railway construction was improved. By quantitative analysis of characteristics of the spatio-temporal change of landscape pattern and its evolution style at different spatial scales before and after railway construction, the most appropriate evaluation scale of the railway was obtained. Then the characteristics of the spatio-temporal variation of ecological risk within this scale before and after railway construction were analyzed. The results indicated that the cutting model and degree of railway corridor to various landscape types could be effectively reflected by CCI, and the exposure and harm relations between risk sources and risk receptors of railway can be measured by CCEI. After the railway construction, the railway corridor would cause a great deal of middle cutting effect on the landscape along the railroad, which would influence wood land and grassland landscape most greatly, while would cause less effect of edge cutting and internal cutting. Landscape indices within the 600 m buffer zone demonstrated the most obvious scale effect, therefore, the 600 m zone of the railway was set as the most suitable range of ecological impact assessment. Before railway construction, the low ecological risk level covered the biggest part of the 600 m assessment zone. However, after the railway construction, the ecological risk increased significantly, and

Minding the ecological body: neuropsychoanalysis and ecopsychoanalysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Dodds, Joseph

2013-01-01

Neuropsychoanalysis explores experimentally and theoretically the philosophically ancient discussion of the relation of mind and body, and seems well placed to overcome the problem of a "mindless" neuroscience and a "brainless" psychology and psychotherapy, especially when combined with a greater awareness that the body itself, not only the brain, provides the material substrate for the emergent phenomenon we call mind. However, the mind-brain-body is itself situated within a complex ecological world, interacting with other mind-brain-bodies and the "non-human environment." This occurs both synchronically and diachronically as the organism and its environment (living and non-living) interact in highly complex often non-linear ways. Psychoanalysis can do much to help unmask the anxieties, deficits, conflicts, phantasies, and defenses crucial in understanding the human dimension of the ecological crisis. Yet, psychoanalysis still largely remains not only a "psychology without biology," which neuropsychoanalysis seeks to remedy, but also a "psychology without ecology." Ecopsychoanalysis (Dodds, 2011b; Dodds and Jordan, 2012) is a new transdisciplinary approach drawing on a range of fields such as psychoanalysis, psychology, ecology, philosophy, science, complexity theory, esthetics, and the humanities. It attempts to play with what each approach has to offer in the sense of a heterogeneous assemblage of ideas and processes, mirroring the interlocking complexity, chaos, and turbulence of nature itself. By emphasizing the way the mind-brain-body studied by neuropsychoanalysis is embedded in wider social and ecological networks, ecopsychoanalysis can help open up the relevance of neuropsychoanalysis to wider fields of study, including those who are concerned with what Wilson (2003) called "the future of life."

Minding the Ecological Body: Neuropsychoanalysis and Ecopsychoanalysis

Science.gov (United States)

Dodds, Joseph

2013-01-01

Neuropsychoanalysis explores experimentally and theoretically the philosophically ancient discussion of the relation of mind and body, and seems well placed to overcome the problem of a “mindless” neuroscience and a “brainless” psychology and psychotherapy, especially when combined with a greater awareness that the body itself, not only the brain, provides the material substrate for the emergent phenomenon we call mind. However, the mind-brain-body is itself situated within a complex ecological world, interacting with other mind-brain-bodies and the “non-human environment.” This occurs both synchronically and diachronically as the organism and its environment (living and non-living) interact in highly complex often non-linear ways. Psychoanalysis can do much to help unmask the anxieties, deficits, conflicts, phantasies, and defenses crucial in understanding the human dimension of the ecological crisis. Yet, psychoanalysis still largely remains not only a “psychology without biology,” which neuropsychoanalysis seeks to remedy, but also a “psychology without ecology.” Ecopsychoanalysis (Dodds, 2011b; Dodds and Jordan, 2012) is a new transdisciplinary approach drawing on a range of fields such as psychoanalysis, psychology, ecology, philosophy, science, complexity theory, esthetics, and the humanities. It attempts to play with what each approach has to offer in the sense of a heterogeneous assemblage of ideas and processes, mirroring the interlocking complexity, chaos, and turbulence of nature itself. By emphasizing the way the mind-brain-body studied by neuropsychoanalysis is embedded in wider social and ecological networks, ecopsychoanalysis can help open up the relevance of neuropsychoanalysis to wider fields of study, including those who are concerned with what Wilson (2003) called “the future of life.” PMID:23533027

Application of genetic algorithm in radio ecological models parameter determination

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pantelic, G. [Institute of Occupatioanl Health and Radiological Protection ' Dr Dragomir Karajovic' , Belgrade (Serbia)

2006-07-01

The method of genetic algorithms was used to determine the biological half-life of 137 Cs in cow milk after the accident in Chernobyl. Methodologically genetic algorithms are based on the fact that natural processes tend to optimize themselves and therefore this method should be more efficient in providing optimal solutions in the modeling of radio ecological and environmental events. The calculated biological half-life of 137 Cs in milk is (32 {+-} 3) days and transfer coefficient from grass to milk is (0.019 {+-} 0.005). (authors)

Human metabolism and ecological transfer of radioactive caesium: Comparative studies of Chernobyl debris and nuclear weapons fallout, in Southern Sweden and in Bryansk, Russia

Science.gov (United States)

Raaf, Christopher Leopold

The whole-body content of radiocaesium was measured in a South-Swedish urban group of people residing in the city of Lund (55.7°N, 13.2°E) between 1960 and 1994. The results from the survey have been analysed in order to estimate the ecological half-time, Teff,eco, of fallout radiocaesium and the aggregate transfer from ground deposition to man in the region. After 1987, the biological half-times, Ts, of 137Cs and 40K in man were also determined in the reference group through whole-body content measurements in combination with 24-hour urine sampling. Relationships between 24-hour urinary excretion and body burden of 137Cs in the group together with data from the literature were then applied to urine samples collected in 1994 and 1995 from adult subjects living in the highly contaminated region of Bryansk, Russia, in order to estimate their average body burden of 137Cs. The equivalent biological half-time for 137Cs in females of the Lund reference group was, on average (+/-1 WSE), 66 +/- 3 d, which agrees with other findings, whereas the value for the males, 81 +/- 4 d, was, on average, significantly lower than what is found in the literature. This is partly explained by the elevated mean age and relatively low mean body muscle mass of the males investigated in the group during the post-Chernobyl study period. The effective ecological half-time for 137Cs from Chernobyl was found to be 1.8 +/- 0.2 y. The aggregate transfer of 137Cs from deposition to mean activity concentration in man was estimated to be 1.7 Bq kg-1/kBq m-2. These vales may be compared with an effective ecological half-time of 1.3 years found in the reference group in the 1960s, and an aggregate transfer factor of 9.8 Bq kg-1/kBq m-2. The average committed effective dose from ingested 137Cs Chernobyl fallout in the study group was estimated to be 0.02 mSv and from the nuclear weapons fallout to 0.20 mSv. The estimates of whole-body content of 137Cs in the Russian subjects obtained through

Ecological transfer mechanisms - Terrestrial

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Martin, W E; Raines, Gilbert E; Bloom, S G; Levin, A A [Battelle Memorial Institute, CoIumbus, OH (United States)

1969-07-01

Radionuclides produced by nuclear excavation detonations and released to the environment may enter a variety of biogeochemical cycles and follow essentially the same transfer pathways as their stable-element counterparts. Estimation of potential internal radiation doses to individuals and/or populations living in or near fallout-contaminated areas requires analysis of the food-chain and other ecological pathways by which radionuclides released to the environment may be returned to man. A generalized materials transfer diagram, applicable to the forest, agricultural, freshwater and marine ecosystems providing food and water to the indigenous population of Panama and Colombia in regions that could be affected by nuclear excavation of a sea-level canal between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, is presented. Transfer mechanisms effecting the movement of stable elements and radionuclides in terrestrial ecosystems are discussed, and methods used to simulate these processes by means of mathematical models are described to show how intake values are calculated for different radionuclides in the major ecological pathways leading to man. These data provide a basis for estimating potential internal radiation doses for comparison with the radiation protection criteria established by recognized authorities; and this, in turn, provides a basis for recommending measures to insure the radiological safety of the nuclear operation plan. (author)

Ecological transfer mechanisms - Terrestrial

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Martin, W.E.; Raines, Gilbert E.; Bloom, S.G.; Levin, A.A.

1969-01-01

Radionuclides produced by nuclear excavation detonations and released to the environment may enter a variety of biogeochemical cycles and follow essentially the same transfer pathways as their stable-element counterparts. Estimation of potential internal radiation doses to individuals and/or populations living in or near fallout-contaminated areas requires analysis of the food-chain and other ecological pathways by which radionuclides released to the environment may be returned to man. A generalized materials transfer diagram, applicable to the forest, agricultural, freshwater and marine ecosystems providing food and water to the indigenous population of Panama and Colombia in regions that could be affected by nuclear excavation of a sea-level canal between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, is presented. Transfer mechanisms effecting the movement of stable elements and radionuclides in terrestrial ecosystems are discussed, and methods used to simulate these processes by means of mathematical models are described to show how intake values are calculated for different radionuclides in the major ecological pathways leading to man. These data provide a basis for estimating potential internal radiation doses for comparison with the radiation protection criteria established by recognized authorities; and this, in turn, provides a basis for recommending measures to insure the radiological safety of the nuclear operation plan. (author)

Edge Effects and Ecological Traps: Effects on Shrubland Birds in Missouri

Science.gov (United States)

April A. Woodward; Alix D. Fink; Frank R. Thompson III

2001-01-01

The effect of habitat edge on avian nesting success has been the focus of considerable debate. We studied relationships between habitat edges, locations of nests, and predation. We tested the ecological trap hypothesis for 5 shrubland bird species in the Missouri Ozarks. We compared habitat selection and daily nest predation rates among 3 distance-to-edge categories....

Ecological radiation protection criteria for nuclear power

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kryshev, I.I.

1993-01-01

By now a large quantity of radioactive hazards of all sizes and shapes has accumulated in Russia. They include RBMK, VVER, and BN (fast-neutron) nuclear power plants, nuclear fuel processing plants, radioactive waste dumps, ships with nuclear power units, etc. In order to evaluate the radioecological situation correctly, the characteristics of the radioactive contamination must be compiled in these areas with some system of criteria which will provide an acceptable level of ecological safety. Currently health criteria for radiation protection are, which are oriented to man's radiation protection, predominate. Here the concept of a thresholdless linear dose-response dependence, which has been confirmed experimentally only at rather high doses (above 1 Gy), is taken as the theoretical basis for evaluating and normalizing radiation effects. According to one opinion, protecting people against radiation is sufficient to protect other types of organisms, although they are not necessarily of the same species. However, from the viewpoint of ecology, this approach is incorrect, because it does not consider radiation dose differences between man and other living organisms. The article discusses dose-response dependences for various organisms, biological effects of ionizing radiation, and appropriate radiation protection criteria

Downstream ecological effects of dams: A geomorphic perspective

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ligon, F.K.; Dietrich, W.E.; Trush, W.J.

1995-01-01

The damming of a river changes the flow of water, sediment, nutrients, energy, and biota, interrupting and altering most of a river's ecological processes. This article discusses the importance of geomorphological analysis in river conservation and management. To illustrate how subtle geomorphological adjustments may profoundly influence the ecological relationships downstream from dames, three case studies are presented. Then a geomorphically based approach for assessing and possibly mitigating some of the environmental effects of dams by tailoring dam designed and operation is outlined. The cases are as follows: channel simplification and salmon decline on the McKenzie River in Oregon; Channel incision and reduced floodplain inundation on the Oconee river in Georgia; Increased stability of a braided river in New Zealand's south island. 41 refs., 10 figs., 1 tab

Revolutionary Ecologies: Ecosocialism and Critical Pedagogy

Science.gov (United States)

McLaren, Peter; Houston, Donna

2004-01-01

In this article, we argue that critical and revolutionary educational praxis is increasingly shaped by and through ecological politics and imaginaries. Indeed, given the pervasiveness of environmental crisis in our everyday lives and vocabularies, we argue that critical educators can no longer ignore questions of ecojustice. In keeping with a…

Half-life data--a critical review of TECDOC-619 update

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Woods, M.J.; Collins, S.M.

2004-01-01

An accurate knowledge of selected nuclear decay data is critical to a wide range of processes involving radionuclides. An IAEA publication in 1991 was dedicated to the evaluation of half-lives and specific gamma-ray emission probabilities for 39 selected radionuclides considered to be important for detector efficiency calibrations. A new exercise was initiated in December 1998 to update this previous evaluation and to include a number of new radionuclides of interest; 62 radionuclides were considered along with specific parent-daughter combinations (to give a total of 64 radionuclides). That work is now being completed and a new set of recommended data is being prepared for publication. A critical comparison of the 1991 and 2003 half-life data suggests that there has not been any significant improvement in the accuracy of the recommended data. The possible reasons for this situation are discussed together with the evaluation procedure and the quality of the available data. Proposals are made for concerted actions that could lead to a significant improvement in these recommended half-life data

Deposition of gamma emitters from Chernobyl accident and their transfer in lichen-soil columns.

Science.gov (United States)

Lehto, Jukka; Paatero, Jussi; Pehrman, Reijo; Kulmala, Seija; Suksi, Juhani; Koivula, Teija; Jaakkola, Timo

2008-10-01

Lichen-soil column samples were taken from several locations in the Southern Finland between 1986 and 2006. Columns were divided into three parts, upper lichen, lower lichen and underlying soil, and their gamma emitting radionuclides, 134Cs, 137Cs, 103Ru, 95Zr, 106Ru, 110mAg, 125Sb and 144Ce, were measured with gamma spectrometry. Deposition values were calculated as Bq/m2 for each sampling site. Distribution of various radionuclides in the three compartments as a function of time was determined. Both effective and ecological half-lives of all radionuclides were calculated for upper lichen, whole lichen and whole lichen-soil column. A linear relation was derived between the physical half-lives and effective half-lives for whole lichen and for whole lichen-soil column. Reindeer meat activity concentrations of various radionuclides and ensuing radiation doses to reindeer-herding people were also estimated for a hypothetical case where a similar high radioactive pollution, as was taken place in the Southern Finland, would have occurred in the reindeer-herding areas in the Finnish Lapland.

Ecological Interventionist Causal Models in Psychosis: Targeting Psychological Mechanisms in Daily Life

Science.gov (United States)

Reininghaus, Ulrich; Depp, Colin A.; Myin-Germeys, Inez

2016-01-01

Integrated models of psychotic disorders have posited a number of putative psychological mechanisms that may contribute to the development of psychotic symptoms, but it is only recently that a modest amount of experience sampling research has provided evidence on their role in daily life, outside the research laboratory. A number of methodological challenges remain in evaluating specificity of potential causal links between a given psychological mechanism and psychosis outcomes in a systematic fashion, capitalizing on longitudinal data to investigate temporal ordering. In this article, we argue for testing ecological interventionist causal models that draw on real world and real-time delivered, ecological momentary interventions for generating evidence on several causal criteria (association, time order, and direction/sole plausibility) under real-world conditions, while maximizing generalizability to social contexts and experiences in heterogeneous populations. Specifically, this approach tests whether ecological momentary interventions can (1) modify a putative mechanism and (2) produce changes in the mechanism that lead to sustainable changes in intended psychosis outcomes in individuals’ daily lives. Future research using this approach will provide translational evidence on the active ingredients of mobile health and in-person interventions that promote sustained effectiveness of ecological momentary interventions and, thereby, contribute to ongoing efforts that seek to enhance effectiveness of psychological interventions under real-world conditions. PMID:26707864

Utilizing Ecological Health Index to Monitor Grazingland Ecological Health: A Quick and Flexible Method for Ranchers and Farmers

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, S.; Borrelli, P. R.; Raven, M. R.; Rowntree, J. E.

2017-12-01

Grazing lands should be monitored to ensure their long-term productivity and sustainability. While monitoring protocols do exist, there is a need to simplify procedures for land managers while maintaining efficacy in order to increase usage. The objective in this study was to investigate the effectiveness of an Ecological Health Index (EHI) on indicating ecological health in grazing lands. We introduced the EHI, which was derived by synthesizing vegetation and soil cover indicators already existing in the literature to ranchers in Patagonia. Additionally, we implemented long-term transects at 44 farms from two ecological regions in Patagonia, the non-brittle Humid Magellan Steppe (HMS) (n=24) and the brittle Subandean Grasslands (SG) (n=20), to collect quantitative vegetative and soil measurements and correlated this back to EHI. In the non-brittle area HMS with even distribution of rainfall and good temperature which can support more plant biomass, the EHI ranged from -40 to 65 with a mean of 12.5 ± 24. The EHI from brittle SG ranged from -80 to 75 with a mean of 1.25 ± 35, which was 90% lower than the mean non-brittle EHI. From a quantitative perspective, HMS had greater species richness compared to SG (27 vs. 20, P=0.0003). Similarly, the average percentage of total live vegetation was higher in HMS than that in SG (77% vs. 48%, P pavement percentage and bare ground + erosion pavement (P < 0.05). These results suggest that EHI could be a useful method to detect the ecological health and productivity in grazing lands. Overall, we conclude that EHI is an effective short and long-term monitoring approach that ranchers could easily use annually to monitor grazing lands and determine the impacts of ranch decision-making on important ecosystem indicators.

Examining Lives in Context: Perspectives on the Ecology of Human Development.

Science.gov (United States)

Moen, Phyllis, Ed.; And Others

Extending the work of behavioral scientist Urie Bronfenbrenner on the social and contextual factors influencing human development, this collection of essays, from scholars in a range of disciplines, shows how Bronfenbrenner's ecological theory and research have transformed the way many social and behavioral scientists approach, think about, and…

Low ecological disparity in Early Cretaceous birds

Science.gov (United States)

Mitchell, Jonathan S.; Makovicky, Peter J.

2014-01-01

Ecological divergence is thought to be coupled with evolutionary radiations, yet the strength of this coupling is unclear. When birds diversified ecologically has received much less attention than their hotly debated crown divergence time. Here, we quantify how accurately skeletal morphology can predict ecology in living and extinct birds, and show that the earliest known assemblage of birds (= pygostylians) from the Jehol Biota (≈ 125 Ma) was substantially impoverished ecologically. The Jehol avifauna has few representatives of highly preservable ecomorphs (e.g. aquatic forms) and a notable lack of ecomorphological overlap with the pterosaur assemblage (e.g. no large or aerially foraging pygostylians). Comparisons of the Jehol functional diversity with modern and subfossil avian assemblages show that taphonomic bias alone cannot explain the ecomorphological impoverishment. However, evolutionary simulations suggest that the constrained ecological diversity of the Early Cretaceous pygostylians is consistent with what is expected from a relatively young radiation. Regardless of the proximate biological explanation, the anomalously low functional diversity of the Jehol birds is evidence both for ecological vacancies in Cretaceous ecosystems, which were subsequently filled by the radiation of crown Aves, and for discordance between taxonomic richness and ecological diversity in the best-known Mesozoic ecosystem. PMID:24870044

Education in ecology

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Marek, R.

1993-01-01

It is not enough to convey knowledge, insights and attitudes if education in ecology is to have fruitful effects. Space and opportunity for action and creativity must be provided in addition. This includes personal consumer habits (eating, transport, hygiene, leisure activities etc.); an individual workplace - in this case school - that can be shaped according to ecological needs. Beyond this, ecological maturation should not be confined to, but should transcend school, for instance in youth groups, citizens' committees, political parties. If school does not inspire action - including action outside school -then education in ecology could be smothered by the Midas effect, where all life is reduced to material, to the curriculum in this case. This book presents ecological projects that have been tried at schools. They aim at an education in ecology that is oriented to the pupil and open to experience. They could be an incentive for colleagues to conduct similar projects at their schools. The projects work from the pupils' own experience and aim at concrete action and activities in his or her own environment. They should encourage teachers to venture outside the classroom with the pupils and teach ecology where it takes place. (orig.) [de

"People try and label me as someone I'm not": The social ecology of Indigenous people living with HIV, stigma, and discrimination in Manitoba, Canada.

Science.gov (United States)

Woodgate, Roberta L; Zurba, Melanie; Tennent, Pauline; Cochrane, Carla; Payne, Mike; Mignone, Javier

2017-12-01

Indigenous peoples (First Nations, Inuit, and Métis) are currently overrepresented in the HIV epidemic in Canada and are infected at a younger age than those who are not Indigenous. This article presents our findings on the stigma and discrimination (as well as related themes such as disclosure) experienced by Indigenous people who contracted HIV in their youth and live in urban and non-urban settings in Manitoba, Canada. The findings were derived from a qualitative study that sought to understand the experiences and needs of Indigenous people living with HIV (including AIDS). We situate such experiences within a social ecological framework towards developing a better structural understanding of the impacts of stigma and discrimination on the lives of Indigenous people who are HIV positive. Stigma and discrimination caused barriers for Indigenous people living with HIV through inhibiting their ease of access to supports including family, peers, community, and long- and short-term health services. Creative forms of outreach and education that are culturally appropriate and/or rooted in culture were considered to be possibly impactful ways of reducing stigma and discrimination at the community level. Learning from communities who are successfully managing stigma also showed promise for developing new programming. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Establishment of a National ecological network to conserve biodiversity. Pros and cons of ecological corridors Establishment of a National ecological network to conserve biodiversity. Pros and cons of ecological corridors

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Laurent Bergès, Philip Roche and Catherine Avon

2011-03-01

Full Text Available Ecological corridors are a fundamental element in the National ecological network approved by the Grenelle environmental agreement in order to reduce ecosystem damage caused by fragmentation of the natural habitat zones of species. How can their effectiveness be evaluated? This article sums up current knowledge on their pros and cons.Fragmentation of natural habitats is considered one of the main causes of biodiversity loss. One of the proposed solutions to limit the effects of fragmentation is to restore ecological connectivity by creating ecological corridors between zones containing natural habitats. The concept remains controversial among scientists, but now serves as the basis for one of the operational projects of the Grenelle environmental agreements in the form of the National ecological network. After examining the ecological concepts justifying the political goal and presenting the various ecological roles of corridors, we briefly discuss their overall advantages and disadvantages. Then, we look closely at the methodological difficulties in detecting a corridor effect. Finally, we recommend a close partnership between research and policy to design biodiversity monitoring and evaluation systems in the different land-management plans.

Ecological Effects of Grazing in the Northern Tianshan Mountains

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Xiaotao Huang

2017-11-01

Full Text Available Identifying the effects of grazing is critical for the conservation, protection and sustainable use of arid grassland ecosystems. However, research regarding the ecological effects of grazing along mountainous elevation gradients is limited in arid areas, particularly at the regional scale. Using the Biome-BGC grazing model, we explored the effects of grazing on grassland net primary productivity (NPP, evapotranspiration (ET and water use efficiency (WUE from 1979 to 2012 along an elevation gradient in the northern Tianshan Mountains. The NPP, ET and WUE values were generally lower under the grazing scenario than under the ungrazed scenario; the differences between the grazing and ungrazed scenarios showed increasing trends over time; and distinct spatial heterogeneity in these differences was observed. Distinct decreases in NPP and WUE under the grazing scenario mainly occurred in regions with high livestock consumption. The decrease in ET was greater in mountainous areas with high grazing intensity due to decreased transpiration and increased surface runoff. This study contributes to a better understanding of the ecological effects of grazing along an elevation gradient in the northern Tianshan Mountains and provides data to support the scientific management of grassland ecosystems.

Application of genetic algorithm in radio ecological models parameter determination

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pantelic, G.

2006-01-01

The method of genetic algorithms was used to determine the biological half-life of 137 Cs in cow milk after the accident in Chernobyl. Methodologically genetic algorithms are based on the fact that natural processes tend to optimize themselves and therefore this method should be more efficient in providing optimal solutions in the modeling of radio ecological and environmental events. The calculated biological half-life of 137 Cs in milk is (32 ± 3) days and transfer coefficient from grass to milk is (0.019 ± 0.005). (authors)

Measurements of Actual Effective Half - Life in {sup 131}I Therapy for Graves' Hyperthyroidism

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

So, Yong Seon; Kim, Myung Seon; Kwon, Ki Hyun; Kim, Seok Whan; Kim, Tae Hyung; Han, Sang Woong; Kim, Eun Sil; Kim, Chong Soon [Hanil General Hospital, Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

1996-03-15

Radioiodine[131I] has been used for the treatment of Graves' hyperthyroidism since the late 1940's and is now generally regarded as the treatment of choice for Graves' hyperthyroidism who does not remit following a course of antithyroid drugs. But for the dose given, several different protocols have been described by different centers, each attempting to reduce the incidence of long-term hypothyroidism while maintaining an acceptable rate control of Graves' hyperthyroidism. Our goals were to evaluate effective half-life and predict absorbed dose in Graves' hyperthyroidism patients, therefore, to calculate and read minister radioiodine activity needed to achieve aimed radiation dose. Our data showed that the mean effective 131I half-life for Graves' disease is 5.3 days(S.D=0.88) and mean biologic half-life is 21 days, range 9.5-67.2 days. The mean administered activity and the mean values of absorbed doses wet: 532 MBq(S.D.=254), 112 Gy (S.D.=50.9), respectively. The mean activity needed to achieve aimed radiation dose were 51 MBq and marked differences of 131I thyroidal uptake between tracer and therapy occurred in our study. We are sure that the dose calculation method that uses 5 days thyroidal 131I uptake measurements after tracer and therapy dose, provides sufficient data about the effective treatment in Graves' hyperthyroidism.

Cost-effectiveness of cadaveric and living-donor liver transplantation.

Science.gov (United States)

Sagmeister, Markus; Mullhaupt, Beat; Kadry, Zakiyah; Kullak-Ublick, Gerd A; Clavien, Pierre A; Renner, Eberhard L

2002-02-27

Cadaveric liver transplantation (5-year survival >80%) represents the standard of care for end-stage liver disease (ESLD). Because the demand for cadaveric organs exceeds their availability, living-donor liver transplantation has gained increasing acceptance. Our aim was to assess the marginal cost-effectiveness of cadaveric and living-donor orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT) in adults with ESLD. Using a Markov model, outcomes and costs of ESLD treated (1) conservatively, (2) with cadaveric OLT alone, and (3) with cadaveric OLT or living-donor OLT were computed. The model was validated with published data. The case-based scenario consisted of data on all 15 ESLD patients currently on our waiting list (3 women, 12 men; median age, 48 years [range, 33-59 years]) and on the outcome of all OLT performed for ESLD at our institution since 1995 (n=51; actuarial 5-year survival 93%). Living-donor OLT was allowed in 15% during the first year of listing; fulminant hepatic failure and hepatocellular carcinoma were excluded. Cadaveric OLT gained on average 6.2 quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs) per patient compared with conservative treatment, living-donor OLT, an additional 1.3 QALYs compared with cadaveric OLT alone. Marginal cost-effectiveness of a program with cadaveric OLT alone and a program with cadaveric and living-donor OLT combined were similar (E 22,451 and E 23,530 per QALY gained). Results were sensitive to recipient age and postoperative survival rate. Offering living-donor OLT in addition to cadaveric OLT improves survival at costs comparable to accepted therapies in medicine. Cadaveric OLT and living-donor OLT are cost-effective.

Global dynamics of a nonlocal delayed reaction-diffusion equation on a half plane

Science.gov (United States)

Hu, Wenjie; Duan, Yueliang

2018-04-01

We consider a delayed reaction-diffusion equation with spatial nonlocality on a half plane that describes population dynamics of a two-stage species living in a semi-infinite environment. A Neumann boundary condition is imposed accounting for an isolated domain. To describe the global dynamics, we first establish some a priori estimate for nontrivial solutions after investigating asymptotic properties of the nonlocal delayed effect and the diffusion operator, which enables us to show the permanence of the equation with respect to the compact open topology. We then employ standard dynamical system arguments to establish the global attractivity of the nontrivial equilibrium. The main results are illustrated by the diffusive Nicholson's blowfly equation and the diffusive Mackey-Glass equation.

Young Children’s Developmental Ecologies and Kindergarten Readiness

Science.gov (United States)

Mollborn, Stefanie

2016-01-01

Children enter the crucial transition to school with sociodemographic disparities firmly established. Domain-specific research (e.g., on poverty and family structure) has shed light on these disparities, but we need broader operationalizations of children’s environments to explain them. Building on existing theory, this study articulates the concept of developmental ecology—those interrelated features of a child’s proximal environment that shape development and health. Developmental ecology links structural and demographic factors with interactional, psychological, and genetic factors. Using the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Birth Cohort (ECLS-B), this study conducts latent class analyses to identify how 41 factors from three domains—namely, household resources, health risks, and ecological changes—cluster within children as four overarching developmental ecologies. Because it documents how numerous factors co-occur within children, this method allows an approximation of their lived environments. Findings illuminate powerful relationships between race/ethnicity, parental age, socioeconomic background, and nativity and a child’s developmental ecology, as well as associations between developmental ecology and kindergarten cognition, behavior, and health. Developmental ecology represents a major pathway through which demographic characteristics shape school readiness. Because specific factors have different implications depending on the ecologies in which they are embedded, findings support the usefulness of a broad ecological approach. PMID:27873222

High-precision half-life measurements of the T =1 /2 mirror β decays 17F and 33Cl

Science.gov (United States)

Grinyer, J.; Grinyer, G. F.; Babo, M.; Bouzomita, H.; Chauveau, P.; Delahaye, P.; Dubois, M.; Frigot, R.; Jardin, P.; Leboucher, C.; Maunoury, L.; Seiffert, C.; Thomas, J. C.; Traykov, E.

2015-10-01

Background: Measurements of the f t values for T =1 /2 mirror β+ decays offer a method to test the conserved vector current hypothesis and to determine Vud, the up-down matrix element of the Cabibbo-Kobayashi-Maskawa matrix. In most mirror decays used for these tests, uncertainties in the f t values are dominated by the uncertainties in the half-lives. Purpose: Two precision half-life measurements were performed for the T =1 /2 β+ emitters, 17F and 33Cl, in order to eliminate the half-life as the leading source of uncertainty in their f t values. Method: Half-lives of 17F and 33Cl were determined using β counting of implanted radioactive ion beam samples on a moving tape transport system at the Système de Production d'Ions Radioactifs Accélérés en Ligne low-energy identification station at the Grand Accélérateur National d'Ions Lourds. Results: The 17F half-life result, 64.347 (35) s, precise to ±0.05 % , is a factor of 5 times more precise than the previous world average. The half-life of 33Cl was determined to be 2.5038 (22) s. The current precision of ±0.09 % is nearly 2 times more precise compared to the previous world average. Conclusions: The precision achieved during the present measurements implies that the half-life no longer dominates the uncertainty of the f t values for both T =1 /2 mirror decays 17F and 33Cl.

Social-ecology networks : building connections for sustainable landscapes

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Opdam, P.F.M.

2014-01-01

Humans adapt their landscapes, their living environment. Sustainable use of the various landscape benefits requires that land owners and users collaborate in managing ecological networks. Because the government is stepping back as the organizer of coordinated landscape adaptation, we need new

The ecological importance of intraspecific variation.

Science.gov (United States)

Des Roches, Simone; Post, David M; Turley, Nash E; Bailey, Joseph K; Hendry, Andrew P; Kinnison, Michael T; Schweitzer, Jennifer A; Palkovacs, Eric P

2018-01-01

Human activity is causing wild populations to experience rapid trait change and local extirpation. The resulting effects on intraspecific variation could have substantial consequences for ecological processes and ecosystem services. Although researchers have long acknowledged that variation among species influences the surrounding environment, only recently has evidence accumulated for the ecological importance of variation within species. We conducted a meta-analysis comparing the ecological effects of variation within a species (intraspecific effects) with the effects of replacement or removal of that species (species effects). We evaluated direct and indirect ecological responses, including changes in abundance (or biomass), rates of ecological processes and changes in community composition. Our results show that intraspecific effects are often comparable to, and sometimes stronger than, species effects. Species effects tend to be larger for direct ecological responses (for example, through consumption), whereas intraspecific effects and species effects tend to be similar for indirect responses (for example, through trophic cascades). Intraspecific effects are especially strong when indirect interactions alter community composition. Our results summarize data from the first generation of studies examining the relative ecological effects of intraspecific variation. Our conclusions can help inform the design of future experiments and the formulation of strategies to quantify and conserve biodiversity.

Pre-Service Science Teachers' Views of the Ecological Footprint: The Starting-Points of Sustainable Living

Science.gov (United States)

Keles, Ozgul; Aydogdu, Mustafa

2010-01-01

In this study, pre-service science teachers' opinions about the concept of the ecological footprint were investigated before and after activities about sustainable life and their ecological footprints were calculated. A total of 49 pre-service science teachers (31 male, 18 female) who attend third class in the science education department…

[Effects of land use structure change on regional ecological health--taking Shapingba County as an example].

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Cheng; Wei, Chaofu; Gao, Ming; Luo, Guanglian; Jiang, Wei

2005-12-01

Land resource is the carrier for the exchange of matter, energy and information flows, while the change velocity and the intensity of land use has strong effects on the ecological processes such as matter circulation, energy flow, and biologic diversity. Land use structure change will alter the type, area, and spatial distribution of ecosystem, and in the meantime, result in the changes of regional ecological health. Employing the principles and methods of landscape ecology, and through endowing relative ecological value to land use type, this paper analyzed the charaeteristics of recent 10 years land use change in Shapingba County of Chongqing, and discussed the effects of land use change on regional ecological health, aimed to provide scientific references for land use planning and sustainable land resource utilization. The results indicated that transformation often occurred among different land use types, and the land use structure in each transformation phase differed quite obviously. Under different land use structure, there was a great disparity in relative ecological value of sub-ecosystems, which played various roles in regional ecological health. In general, the regional relative ecological value embodied both increase and decrease. In the future, the relative ecological value of sub-ecosystem would represent three tendencies, i.e., increase first and decrease then, continuous decrease, and continuous increase. The situation of regional ecological health would gradually become better.

An Ecological Inventory Approach to Developing Curricula for Rural Areas of Developing Countries

Science.gov (United States)

Baine, David; Puhan, Biranchi; Puhan, Gautam; Puhan, Siba

2000-05-01

The paper describes a curriculum development pilot study in a rural village in India. The purpose of the study was to develop and test application of an ecological inventory approach to curriculum development integrating academic and functional skill training. Ecologically valid curricula teach the knowledge, skills, attitudes and values required by students to function effectively in current and future environments (e.g., urban and/or rural, academic, vocational, domestic, community and recreational) in which the students perform. The discussion illustrates application of ecological inventories and describes several related data collection instruments and procedures. The paper also describes an Integrated Core Curriculum Structure (ICCS) as a guide for designing curricula based on ecological inventories. An example is provided of a practical Thematic Unit Plan derived from the ICCS and integrating a variety of functional and academic skills into a guide for instruction and evaluation. The discussion provides a clear insight into many of the problems faced by students, school leavers and graduates in rural areas of developing countries, both in their daily lives and as they plan for their futures.

Project Half Double

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Svejvig, Per; Ehlers, Michael; Adland, Karoline Thorp

activities carried out within the framework of the projects. The formal part of Project Half Double was initiated in June 2015. We started out by developing, refining and testing the Half Double methodology on seven pilot projects in the first phase of the project, which will end June 2016. The current......Project Half Double has a clear mission to succeed in finding a project methodology that can increase the success rate of our projects while increasing the speed at which we generate new ideas and develop new products and services. Chaos and complexity should be seen as a basic condition...... and as an opportunity rather than a threat and a risk. We are convinced that by doing so, we can strengthen Denmark’s competitiveness and play an important role in the battle for jobs and future welfare. The overall goal is to deliver “projects in half the time with double the impact”, where projects in half the time...

Doubling and half-life times for a combined fission-fusion system

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pantis, G

1982-01-01

The long term fuel dynamics for a fission symbiotic system is examined under the assumption of discontinuous loading and offloading conditions. It is found that the breeding capacities of the core and the blankets identify several distinct fuel cycles. By numerical test and a specific comparison it is shown that doubling times and half-lives can differ by as much as 10% from those predicted by conventional methods.

Identification of radionuclides in γ ray spectrum with half life fitting

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sodaye, Suparna; Sudarshan, K.; Tomar, B.S.; Mukhopadhyay, P.K.

2001-01-01

The peak shape analysis software PHAST developed by Electronic Division, BARC has been tested for identification of the radio nuclides using the least square fitting of the time correlated peak areas of the γ lines. The half lives fitted by the software were found to be in agreement with the library data within 10%. Thus the software was able to unambiguously identify the radionuclides in the γ ray spectrum. (author)

Ecological effects of fuel cycle activities

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Barnthouse, L; Cada, G; Kroodsma, R; Shriner, D; Tolbert, V; Turner, R

1994-07-01

The purpose of this paper is to summarize the approach used to characterize ecological impacts of the coal fuel cycle. The same approach is used for many of the impacts in other fuel cycles as well. The principal analytical approach being used in the study is an accounting framework - that is, a series of matrices that map each phase of the fuel cycle to a suite of possible. emissions, each emission to a suite of impact categories, and each impact category to an external cost. This paper summarizes the ecological impacts of all phases of the coal fuel cycle, defines the ecological impact categories used in the study's 'accounting framework', and discusses alternative approaches to quantification. Externalities associated with CO{sub 2}-induced global climate change are beyond the scope of this paper and are not discussed.

Ecological effects of fuel cycle activities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Barnthouse, L.; Cada, G.; Kroodsma, R.; Shriner, D.; Tolbert, V.; Turner, R.

1994-01-01

The purpose of this paper is to summarize the approach used to characterize ecological impacts of the coal fuel cycle. The same approach is used for many of the impacts in other fuel cycles as well. The principal analytical approach being used in the study is an accounting framework - that is, a series of matrices that map each phase of the fuel cycle to a suite of possible. emissions, each emission to a suite of impact categories, and each impact category to an external cost. This paper summarizes the ecological impacts of all phases of the coal fuel cycle, defines the ecological impact categories used in the study's 'accounting framework', and discusses alternative approaches to quantification. Externalities associated with CO 2 -induced global climate change are beyond the scope of this paper and are not discussed

Ecology of mycophagous collimonas bacteria in soil

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Höppener-Ogawa, Sachie

2008-01-01

Bacteria belonging to the genus Collimonas consist of soil bacteria that can grow at expense of living fungal hyphae i.e. they are mycophagous. This PhD studies deals with the ecology of mycophagous bacteria in soil using collimonads as model organisms. Collimonads were found to be widely

A Half-Life Measurement of the 343.4 keV Level in {sup 175}Lu

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hoejeberg, M; Malmskog, S G

1969-05-15

Great theoretical interest has recently been shown in the asymptotically forbidden 5/2 5/2+ [402] - 7/2 7/2+ [404] M1-transitions in {sup 181}Ta and {sup 175}Lu . Half-lives of the 5/2 5/2+ [402] level in {sup 175}Lu have been reported which differ by more than a factor of 10. Using an electron-electron coincidence spectrometer the half-life of this level has been re-measured and a value of (0.26 {+-} 0.02) nsec has been established.

Magnetic Half-Monopole Solutions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Teh, Rosy; Lim, Kok-Geng; Koh, Pin-Wai

2009-01-01

We present exact SU(2) Yang-Mills-Higgs monopole solutions of one half topological charge. These non-Abelian solutions possess gauge potentials which are singular along either the positive or the negative z-axis and common magnetic fields that are singular only at the origin where the half-monopole is located. These half-monopoles are actually a half Wu-Yang monopole and they can possess a finite point electric charge and become half-dyons. They do not necessarily satisfy the first order Bogomol'nyi equations and they possess infinite energy density at r = 0.

AN INTERSECTION IN THE ECOLOGICAL PARADIGM: ECOLOGIST CINEMA

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Refik YASLIKAYA

2015-07-01

Full Text Available We have witnessed the rise of ecologist movements since the second half of 20. Century when it is understood that t he mankind has exploited and polluted the world he/ she lives on as far as the world will be exterminated by the mankind. This rise has sometimes been concrete with the acts of an organization that is environmental protector; has come into existence with t he basic thesis of green parties that contains ecologist policies or has been one of the basic arguments of international politics. As a consequence of this, environmental awareness and protectionist approach have been mentioned from national policy docume nts and green party programs to international/ supranational agreements and acts of environmentalist activists in the academic studies in a broad framework. Moreover, a lot of ecological based philosophical trend like deep ecology, eco - socialism, eco - femin ism, etc. has emerged in this process. In the period in question, a sector has also adopted the environmental awareness as a subject; but this sector’s activities haven’t been mentioned so much in academic studies. Mentioned sector is cinema; in other wor ds, it is American and European based film industry. American based Holywood is the center that made the first production in this sense. Starting from 1970’s, lots of films have been begun to play under the main topic of disaster movie. European film indus try has started to use this theme as of 2000’s yet. First produced films were fictionalized via disaster scenarios which arise depending on a singular problem. In this frame, lots of factors like an earthquake, flood, a disease that a virus appears suddenl y creates were thought as the initiator of disaster. The solutions found for singular problem are usually the solutions found depending on the work of a person or a small group of professionals. In time, we can see that the themes change into global ecolog ical disasters which affect the world in general

Self-Recognition in Live Videos by Young Children: Does Video Training Help?

Science.gov (United States)

Demir, Defne; Skouteris, Helen

2010-01-01

The overall aim of the experiment reported here was to establish whether self-recognition in live video can be facilitated when live video training is provided to children aged 2-2.5 years. While the majority of children failed the test of live self-recognition prior to video training, more than half exhibited live self-recognition post video…

Ecological aspects of the nuclear age: selected readings in radiation ecology

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schultz, V.; Whicker, F.W.

1971-01-01

A compilation of selected readings is presented in the areas of radiation ecology, radionuclide cycling, ionizing radiation effects, radioisotope tracer techniques in ecology, and military and peaceful uses of nuclear energy

High-precision half-life measurements of the T=1/2 mirror beta decays F-17 and Cl-33

OpenAIRE

Grinyer, J; Grinyer, G. F; Babo, Mathieu; Bouzomita, H; Chauveau, P; Delahaye, P; Dubois, M; Frigot, R; Jardin, P; Leboucher, C; Maunoury, L; Seiffert, C; Thomas, J. C; Traykov, E

2015-01-01

Background: Measurements of the ft values for T=1/2 mirror β+ decays offer a method to test the conserved vector current hypothesis and to determine Vud, the up-down matrix element of the Cabibbo-Kobayashi-Maskawa matrix. In most mirror decays used for these tests, uncertainties in the ft values are dominated by the uncertainties in the half-lives. Purpose: Two precision half-life measurements were performed for the T=1/2β+ emitters, 17F and 33Cl, in order to eliminate the half-life as th...

High-precision half-life measurements of the T=1/2 mirror β decays F17 and Cl33

OpenAIRE

Grinyer, J; Grinyer, G F; Babo, M; Bouzomita, H; Chauveau, P; Delahaye, P; Dubois, M; Frigot, R; Jardin, P; Leboucher, C; Maunoury, L; Seiffert, C; Thomas, J C; Traykov, E

2015-01-01

Background: Measurements of the ft values for T=1/2 mirror β+ decays offer a method to test the conserved vector current hypothesis and to determine Vud, the up-down matrix element of the Cabibbo-Kobayashi-Maskawa matrix. In most mirror decays used for these tests, uncertainties in the ft values are dominated by the uncertainties in the half-lives. Purpose: Two precision half-life measurements were performed for the T=1/2β+ emitters, F17 and Cl33, in order to eliminate the half-life as the le...

Living Labs: overview of ecological approaches for health promotion and rehabilitation.

Science.gov (United States)

Korman, M; Weiss, P L; Kizony, R

2016-01-01

The term "Living Lab" was coined to reflect the use of sensors to monitor human behavior in real life environments. Until recently such measurements had been feasible only within experimental laboratory settings. The objective of this paper is to highlight research on health care sensing and monitoring devices that enable direct, objective and accurate capture of real-world functioning. Selected articles exemplifying the key technologies that allow monitoring of the motor-cognitive activity of persons with disabilities during naturally occurring daily experiences in real-life settings are discussed in terms of (1) the ways in which the Living Lab approach has been used to date, (2) limitations related to clinical assessment in rehabilitation settings and (3) three categories of the instruments most commonly used for this purpose: personal technologies, ambient technologies and external assistive systems. Technology's most important influences on clinical practice and rehabilitation are in a shift from laboratory-based to field-centered research and a transition between in-clinic performance to daily life activities. Numerous applications show its potential for real-time clinical assessment. Current technological solutions that may provide clinicians with objective, unobtrusive measurements of health and function, as well as tools that support rehabilitation on an individual basis in natural environments provide an important asset to standard clinical measures. Until recently objective clinical assessment could not be readily performed in a client's daily functional environment. Novel technologies enable health care sensing and monitoring devices that enable direct, objective and accurate capture of real-world functioning. Such technologies are referred to as a "Living Lab" approach since they enable the capture of objective and non-obtrusive data that clinicians can use to assess performance. Research and development in this field help clinicians support maintain

An overview of the ecological half-life of the 137Cs radioisotope and a determination of radioactivity levels in sediment samples after Chernobyl in the Eastern Black Sea, Turkey

Science.gov (United States)

Baltas, Hasan; Sirin, Murat; Dalgic, Goktug; Cevik, Ugur

2018-01-01

A study which determined the activity concentration of 137Cs in sediments contaminated by effluents from the Chernobyl accident which had collected along the coast of the Eastern Black Sea region in Turkey was carried out in 1993. Marine sediment samples were collected in 2015 from the same fifteen sampling points, and the activity concentrations of 226Ra, 232Th, 40K and 137Cs were determined for the sediment samples. The activity concentrations ranged from 10.94-25.95, 12.14-33.05, 265.74-459.89 and 2.08-37.45 Bq kg- 1 for 226Ra, 232Th, 40K and 137Cs respectively. The results showed that there was a steep decline in 137Cs within the sediment at most of the sampling sites from the Eastern Black Sea region during the 22-year period, except for two sites at which the measured levels were much higher. This may be the result of the combined effects of radioactive contaminant entry into this area from rivers, environmental changes and nuclear testing between 1993 and 2015. Furthermore, the ecological half-life (EHL) of the 137Cs radionuclide was estimated for the sediment samples, and radiological hazard parameters such as the absorbed dose rate in air (D), the annual effective dose equivalent (AEDE) and the excess lifetime cancer risk (ELCR) were calculated and compared with the international recommended values. It was shown that these sediments do not present any significant health risk for humans in this area.

Neutron effects on living things

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1964-01-01

Scientific interest in neutrons and protons - two fundamental particles of the atomic nucleus - has grown in recent years as the technology of peaceful uses of atomic energy has progressed. Such interest also has increased because both protons and neutrons are encountered in outer space. However, only recently has a thorough study of the biological effects of neutrons and protons become possible, as a result of progress in making physical measurements of the radiation dose absorbed in biological systems (of plants and animals, for example). Reports of work in that field were presented in December 1962, when IAEA sponsored at Harwell Laboratory in the United Kingdom the first international symposium on detection dosimetry (measurement) and standardization of neutron radiation sources. The Harwell meeting was followed in October 1963 at Brookhaven National Laboratory, Long Island, New York, by the first scientific meeting sponsored by IAEA in the U. S. Entitled 'Biological Effects of Neutron Irradiations', the Symposium continued the review of problems of measuring radiation absorption in living things and provided in addition for several reports dealing with the effects of radiation on living organisms - plant, animal and human - and with delayed consequences of exposure to radiation, such as: change in life span; tumour incidence; and fertility. Eighteen countries were represented. Although much has been learned about X-ray and gamma-ray effects, comparatively little is known about the biological effects of neutrons, and therefore many of the Symposium papers reviewed the various aspects of neutron experimentation. Similarly, since there is increasing interest in the biological effects of protons, papers were given on that related subject.

Accurate mass measurements of short-lived isotopes with the MISTRAL rf spectrometer

CERN Document Server

Toader, C F; Borcea, C; Doubre, H; Duma, M; Jacotin, M; Henry, S; Képinski, J F; Lebée, G; Le Scornet, G; Lunney, M D; Monsanglant, C; De Saint-Simon, M; Thibault, C

1999-01-01

The MISTRAL experiment has measured its first masses at ISOLDE. Installed in May 1997, this radiofrequency transmission spectrometer is to concentrate on nuclides with particularly short half-lives. MISTRAL received its first stable beam in October and first radioactive beam in November 1997. These first tests, with a plasma ion source, resulted in excellent isobaric separation and reasonable transmission. Further testing and development enabled first data taking in July 1998 on neutron-rich Na isotopes having half-lives as short as 31 ms.

Ecological tax reform - an optimal solution?. Critical remarks on the DIW study ''Economic effects of an ecological tax reform''

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Boehringer, C.; Fahl, H.; Voss, A.

1994-01-01

Through the latest expertise of the German institute for economic research (DIW) regarding an ecological tax reform, the discussion about a tax system considering the shortage of the ressource environment and a deficiency of demand regarding the ressource work is newly provoked. The focus of this article is a critical dealing with the methodical procedure of the German institute for economic reserarch when analyzing the national economic effect of a concretely formulated ecological tax law scenario. When assessing the overall economic consequences of a tax reform, it is recommended to use an analysis instrument, which is farly more consistent compared to the instruments by DIW, and which is more problem adequate through the increased resort to financial knowledge. Based on the obvious weakness of the DIW study, a more extensive comprehension for an ecological tax reform is pleaded for, standing out for an application of taxes based on division of labour and oriented to the objective. (orig./UA) [de

Influence of antithyroid medication on effective half-life and uptake of 131 I following radioiodine therapy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Moka, D.; Voth, E.; Schicha, H.

1997-01-01

Aim: A radioiodine therapy (RIT) in thyrotoxic patients receiving antithyroid drugs (ATD) leads in comparison to nonpretreated patients either to higher therapeutic doses or to higher treatment failure rates. Aim of this study was to optimize the effect of RIT in patients pretreated with ATD. Methods: Therefore, the influence of ATD was assessed in 109 patients with shortened effective half-life of 131 I. RIT was performed under stationary conditions. Radioiodine activity of the thyroid gland was stopped three days after RIT. The patients antithyroid medication was stopped three days after RIT. The progress of the first RIT and of a second radioiodine application, which still was necessary in 29 patients, was compared to 32 patients receiving ATD, continuously. Results: Values of effective half-life for 131 I rose significantly from 3.2±0.2 to 5.7±0.2 days (Graves' disease: 3.4 to 5.7 days; toxic goiters' disease: Multifocal autonomy 3.2 to 6.2 days; unifocal autonomy 2.5 auf 5.0 days) 2-3 days after stopping ATD. There was an increase of the 131 I-uptake of a second RIT decreased significantly in patients receiving ATD, continuously. Conclusion: Effective half-life and uptake of 131 I was affected significantly by ATD. The stop taking of ATD after RIT is useful to improve an apparent insufficient RIT in thyrotoxic patients receiving ATD. (orig.) [de

FORUM: Effective management of ecological resilience – are we there yet?

Science.gov (United States)

Spears, Bryan M.; Ives, Stephen C.; Angeler, David G.; Allen, Craig R.; Birk, Sebastian; Carvalho, Laurence; Cavers, Stephen; Daunt, Francis; Morton, R. Daniel; Pocock, Michael J. O.; Rhodes, Glenn; Thackeray, Stephen J.

2015-01-01

Ecological resilience is developing into a credible paradigm for policy development and environmental management for preserving natural capital in a rapidly changing world. However, resilience emerges from complex interactions, limiting the translation of theory into practice.Main limitations include the following: (i) difficulty in quantification and detection of changes in ecological resilience, (ii) a lack of empirical evidence to support preventative or proactive management and (iii) difficulties in managing processes operating across socio-ecological systems that vary in space and time.We highlight recent research with the potential to address these limitations including new and/or improved indicators of resilience and tools to assess scale as a driver of resilience.Synthesis and applications. Effective resilience-based management must be adaptive in nature. To support this, we propose an operational model using resilience-based iterative management actions operating across scales.

First evidence of dengue infection in domestic dogs living in different ecological settings in Thailand.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Suporn Thongyuan

Full Text Available Dengue is a vector-borne disease transmitted by Aedes mosquitoes. It is considered an important public health problem in many countries worldwide. However, only a few studies have been conducted on primates and domestic animals that could potentially be a reservoir of dengue viruses. Since domestic dogs share both habitats and vectors with humans, this study aimed to investigate whether domestic dogs living in different ecological settings in dengue endemic areas in Thailand could be naturally infected with dengue viruses.Serum samples were collected from domestic dogs in three different ecological settings of Thailand: urban dengue endemic areas of Nakhon Sawan Province; rubber plantation areas of Rayong Province; and Koh Chang, an island tourist spot of Trat Province. These samples were screened for dengue viral genome by using semi-nested RT-PCR. Positive samples were then inoculated in mosquito and dog cell lines for virus isolation. Supernatant collected from cell culture was tested for the presence of dengue viral genome by semi-nested RT-PCR, then double-strand DNA products were double-pass custom-sequenced. Partial nucleotide sequences were aligned with the sequences already recorded in GenBank, and a phylogenetic tree was constructed. In the urban setting, 632 domestic dog serum samples were screened for dengue virus genome by RT-PCR, and six samples (0.95% tested positive for dengue virus. Four out of six dengue viruses from positive samples were successfully isolated. Dengue virus serotype 2 and serotype 3 were found to have circulated in domestic dog populations. One of 153 samples (0.65% collected from the rubber plantation area showed a PCR-positive result, and dengue serotype 3 was successfully isolated. Partial gene phylogeny revealed that the isolated dengue viruses were closely related to those strains circulating in human populations. None of the 71 samples collected from the island tourist spot showed a positive result

Granulated wood ash to forest soil - Ecological effects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rosen, K.; Eriksson, H.; Clarholm, M.; Lundkvist, H.; Rudebeck, A.

1993-01-01

This report describes research concerning ecological effects of wood ash recycling to forest soils. The main part of the minerals in the wood fuels are retained in the ashes after combustion. By returning the ashes back to the cleared forest areas, the mineral losses can be reduced. Adding ashes and limestone is a method to vitalize acidified forest soils and restore the production capacity. 48 refs, 26 figs, 8 tabs

Effects of an exercise programme with people living with HIV ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Effects of an exercise programme with people living with HIV: research in a disadvantaged setting. Clemens Ley, Lloyd Leach, María Rato Barrio, Susan Bassett. Abstract. This study aimed to analyse the physical health effects of a community based 10-week physical activity programme with people living with HIV.

Ecology and management of Pericopsis elata (Harms Meeuwen (Fabaceae populations: a review

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bourland, N.

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Pericopsis elata (Fabaceae is a valuable timber species occurring in moist semi-deciduous African forests. While it is at present substantially reduced, the tree's natural distribution previously covered several distinct areas from Côte d'Ivoire to the Democratic Republic of Congo. This species has been logged since the second half of the 20th century. Because it suffers from a lack of regeneration, P. elata is now included in CITES Appendix II and is recorded as "Endangered A1cd" on the IUCN Red List. As with other long-lived light-demanding species, the survival of P. elata may have been favored by important disturbances that occurred in the Congo Basin during the last millennia. While both international trade and industrial uses of the wood of P. elata are well documented, information about its ecology are very sparse or contradictory, and even absent in some cases (e.g., regarding its effective flowering diameter. Furthermore, data describing the management of P. elata are scarce, including potential solutions to compensate for the deficit of natural regeneration. Along the same lines, genetic studies still remain at an early stage and only vague hypotheses have been offered to explain the origins of the tree's populations. We emphasize the need for new research on those topics. Further studies would be useful in deciding whether P. elata populations can continue to be logged without the species being threatened with extinction. Finally, such research needs to target effective and inexpensive management procedures that could secure the future of the species in a logging context.

Ecological effects assessment: requirements vs state-of-the-art

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

McKenzie, D.H.; Thomas, J.M.; Eberhardt, L.L.

1981-05-01

Concerns for environmental quality, the ecologist's understanding of ecosystems, and the ability to quantitatively sample and evaluate hypotheses have contributed to current requirements and the state-of-the-art in ecological effects assessments in refard to nuclear power plants. The current cooling system approaches, data collection programs, and ecological effects assessments reflect these contributions. Over a decade of experience provides the basis for a timely review and evaluation of current proactice. The magnitude of economic and environmental resources being committed to cooling system alternatives mandates that the decision-making process result in as many optimal choices as possible. In addition, the resources being devoted to environmental data collection and integration provide considerable motivation for providing meaningful input to the decision-making process. It is maintained that the input should be as quantitative and as free from subjective content as is reasonably possible. An alternative viewpoint suggests that the past several decades of experience be considered but a first step, and the current task to be one of designing a second step

Molecules, morphology, and ecology indicate a recent, amphibious ancestry for echidnas.

Science.gov (United States)

Phillips, Matthew J; Bennett, Thomas H; Lee, Michael S Y

2009-10-06

The semiaquatic platypus and terrestrial echidnas (spiny anteaters) are the only living egg-laying mammals (monotremes). The fossil record has provided few clues as to their origins and the evolution of their ecological specializations; however, recent reassignment of the Early Cretaceous Teinolophos and Steropodon to the platypus lineage implies that platypuses and echidnas diverged >112.5 million years ago, reinforcing the notion of monotremes as living fossils. This placement is based primarily on characters related to a single feature, the enlarged mandibular canal, which supplies blood vessels and dense electrosensory receptors to the platypus bill. Our reevaluation of the morphological data instead groups platypus and echidnas to the exclusion of Teinolophos and Steropodon and suggests that an enlarged mandibular canal is ancestral for monotremes (partly reversed in echidnas, in association with general mandibular reduction). A multigene evaluation of the echidna-platypus divergence using both a relaxed molecular clock and direct fossil calibrations reveals a recent split of 19-48 million years ago. Platypus-like monotremes (Monotrematum) predate this divergence, indicating that echidnas had aquatically foraging ancestors that reinvaded terrestrial ecosystems. This ecological shift and the associated radiation of echidnas represent a recent expansion of niche space despite potential competition from marsupials. Monotremes might have survived the invasion of marsupials into Australasia by exploiting ecological niches in which marsupials are restricted by their reproductive mode. Morphology, ecology, and molecular biology together indicate that Teinolophos and Steropodon are basal monotremes rather than platypus relatives, and that living monotremes are a relatively recent radiation.

Our Lives with Electric Things

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Schick, Lea

2017-01-01

Our lives with electric things are positively charged with meaning. Our bodies pulse with electrical activity. The electric appliances, devices, and technologies around us bring hope and anxiety, possibility and danger. Some have transformed our possibilities for reproducing, nurturing, and susta......Our lives with electric things are positively charged with meaning. Our bodies pulse with electrical activity. The electric appliances, devices, and technologies around us bring hope and anxiety, possibility and danger. Some have transformed our possibilities for reproducing, nurturing......, and sustaining life. Some mediate human sociality across time and space, while others knit ecological and interspecies relationships together. Still others create possibilities for controlling, managing, exploiting, and ending life. Against this backdrop any anthropology of electricity seems to require electric...... things. Can we still imagine the possibility of lives without electric things? Can electric things help us to address the possibilities and limits of life with electricity? Can our lives with electricity ever be disentangled from electric things? What are the unique capacities and material politics...

[Ecological carrying capacity and Chongming Island's ecological construction].

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Kaiyun; Zou, Chunjing; Kong, Zhenghong; Wang, Tianhou; Chen, Xiaoyong

2005-12-01

This paper overviewed the goals of Chongming Island's ecological construction and its background, analyzed the current eco-economic status and constraints of the Island, and put forward some scientific issues on its ecological construction. It was suggested that for the resources-saving and sustainable development of the Island, the researches on its ecological construction should be based on its ecological carrying capacity, fully take the regional characteristics into consideration, and refer the successful development modes at home and abroad. The carrying capacity study should ground on systemic and dynamic views, give a thorough evaluation of the Island's present carrying capacity, simulate its possible changes, and forecast its demands and risks. Operable countermeasures to promote the Island's carrying capacity should be worked out, new industry structure, population scale, and optimized distribution projects conforming to regional carrying capacity should be formulated, and effective ecological security alarming and control system should be built, with the aim of providing suggestions and strategic evidences for the decision-making of economic development and sustainable environmental resources use of the region.

The Effects of "Live Virtual Classroom" on Students' Achievement and Students' Opinions about "Live Virtual Classroom" at Distance Education

Science.gov (United States)

Yilmaz, Ozgur

2015-01-01

This study was performed to investigate the effects of live virtual classroom on students' achievement and to determine students' opinions about the live virtual physics classroom at distance learning. 63 second-year Distance Computer Education & Instructional Technology students enrolled in this study. At the live virtual physics classroom,…

Associations of Affective Responses During Free-Living Physical Activity and Future Physical Activity Levels: an Ecological Momentary Assessment Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Liao, Yue; Chou, Chih-Ping; Huh, Jimi; Leventhal, Adam; Dunton, Genevieve

2017-08-01

Affective response during physical activity may influence motivation to perform future physical activity behavior. However, affective response during physical activity is often assessed under controlled laboratory conditions. The current study used ecological momentary assessment (EMA) to capture affective responses during free-living physical activity performed by adults, and determined whether these affective responses predict future moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) levels after 6 and 12 months. At baseline, electronic EMA surveys were randomly prompted across 4 days asking about current activities and affective states (e.g., happy, stressed, energetic, tired). Affective response during physical activity was operationalized as the level of positive or negative affect reported when concurrent physical activity (e.g., exercise or sports) was also reported. Data were available for 82 adults. Future levels of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) were measured using accelerometers, worn for seven consecutive days at 6 and 12 months after the baseline assessment. Feeling more energetic during physical activity was associated with performing more minutes of daily MVPA after both 6 and 12 months. Feeling less negative affect during physical activity was associated with engaging in more daily MVPA minutes after 12 months only. This study demonstrated how EMA can be used to capture affective responses during free-living physical activity. Results found that feelings more energetic and less negative during physical activity were associated with more future physical activity, suggesting that positive emotional benefits may reinforce behavior.

THE ROLE OF ENERGY IN ECOLOGICAL SUSTAINABILITY

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Popescu Maria-Floriana

2015-07-01

Full Text Available The rapid population growth leads to greater daily demand for energy, causing nations to diversify their portfolios and seek new sources of energy, including renewable to provide more energy. In a universe with seriously exhausted natural resources, severe urbanization, climate change and conflicts that go beyond borders, the issue of overpopulation unquestionably causes worldwide debates and can generate a snowball effect for the global economy or human society. Population’s increase in the nearby future will have a central role in challenges such as: global warming, air and water contamination, increase in the level of poverty, food scarcity, deforestation, desertification, health problems and resource shortages. The transformation into a sustainable environmental model, situated in a post-carbon economy, will imply setting barriers to industrial progress (will have to be sustainable and environmental friendly and also to population growth (will have to follow a normal pace. But, the level on vulnerability and uncertainty in the evolution of energy has been threatened lately by major events that took place all around the world. Security of supply, new geopolitical perspectives and ecological and sustainability issues are yet again on the bleeding line. Therefore, the goal of this theoretical article is to give an overview of the current situation concerning the role of energy in ecological sustainability. It expresses routes in which humans and enterprises can act in order to contribute to ecologically sustainable development. The subject of how we live on a congested planet represents the most critical sustainability of all. We are witnessing our current risks and we can also envision our possible, and particularly desirable, future: a steady human population, living and protecting the nature and planet, having finite needs of goods, services, or energy, and maintaining a healthy Earth for us and the animals that also depend on it. This is

The welfare implications of using exotic tortoises as ecological replacements.

Science.gov (United States)

Griffiths, Christine J; Zuël, Nicolas; Tatayah, Vikash; Jones, Carl G; Griffiths, Owen; Harris, Stephen

2012-01-01

Ecological replacement involves the introduction of non-native species to habitats beyond their historical range, a factor identified as increasing the risk of failure for translocations. Yet the effectiveness and success of ecological replacement rely in part on the ability of translocatees to adapt, survive and potentially reproduce in a novel environment. We discuss the welfare aspects of translocating captive-reared non-native tortoises, Aldabrachelys gigantea and Astrochelys radiata, to two offshore Mauritian islands, and the costs and success of the projects to date. Because tortoises are long-lived, late-maturing reptiles, we assessed the progress of the translocation by monitoring the survival, health, growth, and breeding by the founders. Between 2000 and 2011, a total of 26 A. gigantea were introduced to Ile aux Aigrettes, and in 2007 twelve sexually immature A. gigantea and twelve male A. radiata were introduced to Round Island, Mauritius. Annual mortality rates were low, with most animals either maintaining or gaining weight. A minimum of 529 hatchlings were produced on Ile aux Aigrettes in 11 years; there was no potential for breeding on Round Island. Project costs were low. We attribute the success of these introductions to the tortoises' generalist diet, habitat requirements, and innate behaviour. Feasibility analyses for ecological replacement and assisted colonisation projects should consider the candidate species' welfare during translocation and in its recipient environment. Our study provides a useful model for how this should be done. In addition to serving as ecological replacements for extinct Mauritian tortoises, we found that releasing small numbers of captive-reared A. gigantea and A. radiata is cost-effective and successful in the short term. The ability to release small numbers of animals is a particularly important attribute for ecological replacement projects since it reduces the potential risk and controversy associated with

The welfare implications of using exotic tortoises as ecological replacements.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Christine J Griffiths

Full Text Available Ecological replacement involves the introduction of non-native species to habitats beyond their historical range, a factor identified as increasing the risk of failure for translocations. Yet the effectiveness and success of ecological replacement rely in part on the ability of translocatees to adapt, survive and potentially reproduce in a novel environment. We discuss the welfare aspects of translocating captive-reared non-native tortoises, Aldabrachelys gigantea and Astrochelys radiata, to two offshore Mauritian islands, and the costs and success of the projects to date.Because tortoises are long-lived, late-maturing reptiles, we assessed the progress of the translocation by monitoring the survival, health, growth, and breeding by the founders. Between 2000 and 2011, a total of 26 A. gigantea were introduced to Ile aux Aigrettes, and in 2007 twelve sexually immature A. gigantea and twelve male A. radiata were introduced to Round Island, Mauritius. Annual mortality rates were low, with most animals either maintaining or gaining weight. A minimum of 529 hatchlings were produced on Ile aux Aigrettes in 11 years; there was no potential for breeding on Round Island. Project costs were low. We attribute the success of these introductions to the tortoises' generalist diet, habitat requirements, and innate behaviour.Feasibility analyses for ecological replacement and assisted colonisation projects should consider the candidate species' welfare during translocation and in its recipient environment. Our study provides a useful model for how this should be done. In addition to serving as ecological replacements for extinct Mauritian tortoises, we found that releasing small numbers of captive-reared A. gigantea and A. radiata is cost-effective and successful in the short term. The ability to release small numbers of animals is a particularly important attribute for ecological replacement projects since it reduces the potential risk and controversy

Ecological stability of landscape - ecological infrastructure - ecological management

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1992-01-01

The Field Workshop 'Ecological Stability of Landscape - Ecological Infrastructure - Ecological Management' was held within a State Environmental Programme financed by the Federal Committee for the Environment. The objectives of the workshop were to present Czech and Slovak approaches to the ecological stability of the landscape by means of examples of some case studies in the field, and to exchange ideas, theoretical knowledge and practical experience on implementing the concept of ecological infrastructure in landscape management. Out of 19 papers contained in the proceedings, 3 items were inputted to the INIS system. (Z.S.)

Identification of the neutron-rich nuclides /sup 147; 148/Ba and half- life determination of the heavy isotopes of Rb, Sr, Y, Cs, Ba and La

CERN Document Server

Amiel, S; Nir-El, Y; Shmid, M

1976-01-01

The neutron nuclides /sup 147; 148/Ba were produced in the thermal neutron induced fission of /sup 235/U. A new surface ionization integrated target ion source operating at temperatures in the region of 1800 degrees C permits the measurement of half-lives of isotopes down to about 0.1 sec due to the very fast release of atoms from the target. Isotopes of Rb, Sr, Cs, and Ba were separated by positive surface ionization and their half-lives measured using beta activity detected by a silicon surface barrier detector with a depletion depth of 300 mu . The isotopes /sup 147/Ba and /sup 148/Ba were identified for the first time and their half-lives were found to be 0.72+or-0.07 sec and 0.47+or-0.20 sec, respectively. (0 refs).

Cumulative ecological and socioeconomic effects of forest policies in coastal Oregon.

Science.gov (United States)

T.A. Spies; K.N. Johnson; K.M. Burnett; J.L. Ohmann; B.C. McComb; G.H. Reeves; P. Bettinger; J.D. Kline; B. Garber-Yonts

2007-01-01

Forest biodiversity policies in multiownership landscapes are typically developed in an uncoordinated fashion with little consideration of their interactions or possible unintended cumulative effects. We conducted an assessment of some of the ecological and socioeconomic effects of recently enacted forest management policies in the 2.3-million-ha Coast Range...

Epidemiology and Ecology of Tularemia in Sweden, 1984–2012

Science.gov (United States)

Desvars, Amélie; Furberg, Maria; Hjertqvist, Marika; Vidman, Linda; Sjöstedt, Anders; Rydén, Patrik

2015-01-01

The zoonotic disease tularemia is endemic in large areas of the Northern Hemisphere, but research is lacking on patterns of spatial distribution and connections with ecologic factors. To describe the spatial epidemiology of and identify ecologic risk factors for tularemia incidence in Sweden, we analyzed surveillance data collected over 29 years (1984–2012). A total of 4,830 cases were notified, of which 3,524 met all study inclusion criteria. From the first to the second half of the study period, mean incidence increased 10-fold, from 0.26/100,000 persons during 1984–1998 to 2.47/100,000 persons during 1999–2012 (ptularemia was higher than expected in the boreal and alpine ecologic regions (ptularemia in Sweden and illustrate that incidence is higher in locations near lakes and rivers. PMID:25529978

Novel two-tiered approach of ecological risk assessment for pesticide mixtures based on joint effects.

Science.gov (United States)

Tian, Dayong; Mao, Haichen; Lv, Huichao; Zheng, Yong; Peng, Conghu; Hou, Shaogang

2018-02-01

Ecological risk assessments for mixtures have attracted considerable attention. In this study, 38 pesticides in the real environment were taken as objects and their toxicities to different organisms from three trophic levels were employed to assess the ecological risk of the mixture. The first tier assessment was based on the CA effect and the obtained sum of risk quotients (SRQ species-CA ) were 3.06-9.22. The second tier assessment was based on non-CA effects and the calculated SRQ species-TU are 5.37-9.29 using joint effects (TU sum ) as modified coefficients, which is higher than SRQ species-CA and indicates that ignoring joint effects might run the risk of underestimating the actual impact of pesticide mixtures. Due to the influences of synergistic and antagonistic effects, risk contribution of components to mixture risks based on non-CA effects are different from those based on the CA effect. Moreover, it was found that the top 8 dominating components explained 95.5%-99.8% of mixture risks in this study. The dominating components are similar in the two tiers for a given species. Accordingly, a novel two-tiered approach was proposed to assess the ecological risks of mixtures based on joint effects. This study provides new insights for ecological risk assessments with the consideration of joint effects of components in the pesticide mixtures. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Half-marathoners are younger and slower than marathoners.

Science.gov (United States)

Knechtle, Beat; Nikolaidis, Pantelis T; Zingg, Matthias A; Rosemann, Thomas; Rüst, Christoph A

2016-01-01

Age and performance trends of elite and recreational marathoners are well investigated, but not for half-marathoners. We analysed age and performance trends in 508,108 age group runners (125,894 female and 328,430 male half-marathoners and 10,205 female and 43,489 male marathoners) competing between 1999 and 2014 in all flat half-marathons and marathons held in Switzerland using single linear regression analyses, mixed-effects regression analyses and analyses of variance. The number of women and men increased across years in both half-marathons and marathons. There were 12.3 times more female half-marathoners than female marathoners and 7.5 times more male half-marathoners than male marathoners. For both half-marathons and marathons, most of the female and male finishers were recorded in age group 40-44 years. In half-marathons, women (10.29 ± 3.03 km/h) were running 0.07 ± 0.06 km/h faster (p marathon, women (14.77 ± 4.13 km/h) were running 0.28 ± 0.16 km/h faster (p marathon, women (42.18 ± 10.63 years) were at the same age than men (42.06 ± 10.45 years) (p > 0.05). Also in half-marathon, women (41.40 ± 10.63 years) were at the same age than men (41.31 ± 10.30 years) (p > 0.05). However, women and men marathon runners were older than their counterpart half-marathon runners (p marathons than in marathons, (2) women were running faster than men, (3) half-marathoners were running slower than marathoners, and (4) half-marathoners were younger than marathoners.

ENVIRONMENTAL PHILOSOPHY AND ECOLOGICAL CULTURE

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kalimat M. Alilova

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Aim. The aim of the research is to study environmental problems related to the decline of culture, the importance of philosophy in overcoming private and personal interests as well as the unilateral approach of man in his relationship to nature. The study shows how philosophy can participate in the formation of ecological culture, a new ecological consciousness in man, while ecological culture is called upon to resist technocratic stereotypes and the course of history was aimed at preventing the biosphere from becoming deserted. Discussion. On the basis of the analysis of literary sources, we used the method of socio-cultural and socio-natural approaches based on the possibility of philosophy to introduce a new life into culture, new ecological values and new ecological principles. To solve these problems, environmental philosophy develops new theories. Representatives of different cultures, ethnic groups, nations, religions must learn to coexist with each other. We consider philosophy as a means of teaching rapprochement between peoples and creating new opportunities for understanding and improving the environmental situation. Cultural development makes it possible to assess the level of a man’s knowledge of nature, himself and the world around him. Ecological culture is a way of connecting man with nature on the basis of deeper knowledge and understanding. Philosophy says that you cannot move away from nature and be lauded over it since this will destroy culture. Rational doctrines tend to put a person above other living beings so the synthesis of philosophy with culture can have a positive ecological meaning. Conclusion. The findings obtained can be recommended for practical use in schools, starting from primary school, as well as in secondary special educational institutions and universities. It is necessary to work on the motivation and values of people, develop a common and ecological culture. Only a cultured person can move from

The Other Half Speaks: Reminiscences of Coal Town Women, 1900-1950, Athens County, Ohio.

Science.gov (United States)

Horn, Helen, Ed.; Good, Roger, Ed.

These materials are intended to accompany a videotape, that incorporates stories from 15 women who lived in the coal producing towns of Athens County, Ohio during the first half of the 20th century. Discussion questions, a list of resource volunteers, and background information on mining and Athens County coal towns are included. (DB)

Living is information processing: from molecules to global systems

OpenAIRE

Farnsworth, Keith D.; Nelson, John; Gershenson, Carlos

2012-01-01

We extend the concept that life is an informational phenomenon, at every level of organisation, from molecules to the global ecological system. According to this thesis: (a) living is information processing, in which memory is maintained by both molecular states and ecological states as well as the more obvious nucleic acid coding; (b) this information processing has one overall function - to perpetuate itself; and (c) the processing method is filtration (cognition) of, and synthesis of, info...

Use of ecological exposure units in ecological risk assessment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ferenbaugh, R.; Myers, O.; Gallegos, A.; Breshears, D.; Ebinger, M.

1995-01-01

The traditional approach to ecological risk assessment at hazardous waste sites that are being evaluated for cleanup under CERCLA or RCRA requirements is to focus on the immediate impacts at or adjacent to a site. While this may be acceptable in some situations, it is not ecologically defensible in situations where there are numerous contaminated sites in proximity to each other. In the latter case, transport from the sites, potential cumulative effects, and wide-ranging receptors must be considered. The concept of the Ecological Exposure Unit (EEU) has been proposed to address this situation. Ecological Exposure Units are defined on the basis of ecological considerations and each EEU may contain several to many contaminated sites. The initial steps involved in performing ecological risk assessments using the EEU approach include (1) selection of appropriate receptors and assessment endpoints, and (2) geographical definition of EEUs. At Los Alamos National Laboratory, receptors have been identified and EEUs have been defined for these receptors. GIS is being used as a tool to map EEUs. Receptors include representatives from threatened or endangered species, species reflecting status of ecological health, species with social or cultural relevance, and other species of concern. After definition of EEUs, cumulative impacts of all stressors at all sites within each EEU must be evaluated. The two major advantages to performing ecological risk assessments using this approach are that risk assessments are performed in a more scientifically defensible manner because they are performed on ecologically defined units and that resources are used optimally by minimizing redundant remedial activities

Municipalities' opinions about decontamination in special decontamination area. Records from three and a half years after the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kawasaki, Kota

2015-01-01

This study discusses opinions of 11 municipalities in Fukushima Prefecture designated as Special Decontamination Area as of the end of September 2014, about three and a half years after the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident. This study shows that (1) more than half of the municipalities recognize that decontamination activities of the national government which is responsible for decontamination in Special Decontamination Area are inadequate, (2) more than half of the municipalities recognize that residents cannot live their lives with a sense of safety and security unless air radiation dose is reduced to the level before the accident or less than 0.23 μSv/h, and (3) many municipalities recognize that residents will not be able to live their lives with a sense of safety and security even if the national government implements decontamination, (4) many municipalities points out 'Inability to secure enough temporary storage sites' and 'Inappropriateness of the decontamination policy and methods for forests or reservoir' as problems for the promotion of decontamination, and (5) almost all the municipalities recognize the necessity of the installation of interim storage facilities to accelerate the reconstruction of towns. (author)

Ecological effect of rare earth elements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hu Aitang; Zhou Quansuo; Zheng Shaojian; Zhai Hai; Zhao Xiulan; Pang Yonglin; Wang Yuqi; Sun Jingxin; Zhang Shen; Wang Lijun

1997-01-01

Water and soil culture were carried out to study the ecological effect of rare earth elements (REEs) in the aspect of plant-soil system. Contents of REEs were determined by instrumental neutron activation analysis (INAA). There was a limit to REEs-tolerance of crops, which differed with the development periods of plant and soil types. The REEs concentration in plant, especially in root, was marked related to the concentration in culture material. Beyond the concentration-limit appeared phototoxicity. The chemical behavior of REEs in plants and soils varied with soil types and elements. The bio-availability of REEs in soil mainly depended on the exchangeable fraction of REEs affected strongly by the physi-chemical properties of soils

Quantifying the effects of ecological constraints on trait expression using novel trait-gradient analysis parameters.

Science.gov (United States)

Ottaviani, Gianluigi; Tsakalos, James L; Keppel, Gunnar; Mucina, Ladislav

2018-01-01

Complex processes related to biotic and abiotic forces can impose limitations to assembly and composition of plant communities. Quantifying the effects of these constraints on plant functional traits across environmental gradients, and among communities, remains challenging. We define ecological constraint ( C i ) as the combined, limiting effect of biotic interactions and environmental filtering on trait expression (i.e., the mean value and range of functional traits). Here, we propose a set of novel parameters to quantify this constraint by extending the trait-gradient analysis (TGA) methodology. The key parameter is ecological constraint, which is dimensionless and can be measured at various scales, for example, on population and community levels. It facilitates comparing the effects of ecological constraints on trait expressions across environmental gradients, as well as within and among communities. We illustrate the implementation of the proposed parameters using the bark thickness of 14 woody species along an aridity gradient on granite outcrops in southwestern Australia. We found a positive correlation between increasing environmental stress and strength of ecological constraint on bark thickness expression. Also, plants from more stressful habitats (shrublands on shallow soils and in sun-exposed locations) displayed higher ecological constraint for bark thickness than plants in more benign habitats (woodlands on deep soils and in sheltered locations). The relative ease of calculation and dimensionless nature of C i allow it to be readily implemented at various scales and make it widely applicable. It therefore has the potential to advance the mechanistic understanding of the ecological processes shaping trait expression. Some future applications of the new parameters could be investigating the patterns of ecological constraints (1) among communities from different regions, (2) on different traits across similar environmental gradients, and (3) for the same

Performance of one and a half-effect absorption cooling cycle of H2O/LiBr system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang Jianzhao; Zheng Danxing

2009-01-01

The performances of half-effect, single-effect and double-effect H 2 O/LiBr absorption cooling cycles were analyzed, and it was found that there is an obvious blank for generation temperature between the maximum generation temperature of the single-effect cycle and the minimum generation temperature of the double-effect cycle. It was proposed that the one and a half-effect (1.5-effect) cycle can fill up the blank perfectly. The state of the art in the 1.5-effect cycles was reviewed and analyzed, and two new configurations of 1.5-effect cycles were proposed. Three configurations of 1.5-effect cycles, which are suitable for H 2 O/LiBr as working fluids, were selected to be analyzed in detail. The 1.5-effect cycle shows the optimum performance at the foregoing blank of generation temperature. For example, under the conditions of evaporation temperature t E is 5 deg. C, and condensation temperature t C is 42 deg. C, and absorption temperature t A is 37 deg. C, the optimum range of generation temperature t G for the 1.5-effect cycle is from 110 deg. C to 140 deg. C. The coefficient of performance of the 1.5-effect cycle is about 1.0, which is more than 30% higher than that of the single-effect cycle at the same condition. The effects of the efficiency of solution heat exchanger, the generation temperature, the absorption temperature (or the condensation temperature) and the evaporation temperature on the performances of the three configurations of 1.5-effect cycle were analyzed. It was shown that the configuration II, which is composed with a high-temperature single-effect subcycle and a low-temperature half-effect subcycle, has the highest coefficient of performance and the best operational flexibility. Among the four parameters analyzed, the performances of 1.5-effect cycles are most sensitive to the change of absorption temperature (or condensation temperature), and then to the change of generation temperature.

Integration of research infrastructures and ecosystem models toward development of predictive ecology

Science.gov (United States)

Luo, Y.; Huang, Y.; Jiang, J.; MA, S.; Saruta, V.; Liang, G.; Hanson, P. J.; Ricciuto, D. M.; Milcu, A.; Roy, J.

2017-12-01

The past two decades have witnessed rapid development in sensor technology. Built upon the sensor development, large research infrastructure facilities, such as National Ecological Observatory Network (NEON) and FLUXNET, have been established. Through networking different kinds of sensors and other data collections at many locations all over the world, those facilities generate large volumes of ecological data every day. The big data from those facilities offer an unprecedented opportunity for advancing our understanding of ecological processes, educating teachers and students, supporting decision-making, and testing ecological theory. The big data from the major research infrastructure facilities also provides foundation for developing predictive ecology. Indeed, the capability to predict future changes in our living environment and natural resources is critical to decision making in a world where the past is no longer a clear guide to the future. We are living in a period marked by rapid climate change, profound alteration of biogeochemical cycles, unsustainable depletion of natural resources, and deterioration of air and water quality. Projecting changes in future ecosystem services to the society becomes essential not only for science but also for policy making. We will use this panel format to outline major opportunities and challenges in integrating research infrastructure and ecosystem models toward developing predictive ecology. Meanwhile, we will also show results from an interactive model-experiment System - Ecological Platform for Assimilating Data into models (EcoPAD) - that have been implemented at the Spruce and Peatland Responses Under Climatic and Environmental change (SPRUCE) experiment in Northern Minnesota and Montpellier Ecotron, France. EcoPAD is developed by integrating web technology, eco-informatics, data assimilation techniques, and ecosystem modeling. EcoPAD is designed to streamline data transfer seamlessly from research infrastructure

Combining individual and ecological data to determine compositional and contextual socio-economic risk factors for suicide

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Agerbo, Esben; Sterne, J.A.; Gunnell, D.J.

2006-01-01

(contextual effects) is uncertain. Denmark's Medical Register on Vital Statistics and its Integrated Database for Longitudinal Labour Market Research were used to identify suicides and 20 matched controls per case in 25-60-year-old men and women between 1982 and 1997. Individual and area (municipality......The social and economic characteristics of geographic areas are associated with their suicide rates. The extent to which these ecological associations are due to the characteristics of the people living in the areas (compositional effects) or the influence of the areas themselves on risk...... area levels of employment and income and increasing proportions of people living alone were much attenuated after controlling for compositional effects. We found no consistent evidence that associations with individual-level risk factors differed depending on the areas' characteristics (cross...

Combining individual and ecological data to determine compositional and contextual socio-economic risk factors for suicide

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Agerbo, Esben; Sterne, J.A.; Gunnell, D.J.

2007-01-01

(contextual effects) is uncertain. Denmark's Medical Register on Vital Statistics and its Integrated Database for Longitudinal Labour Market Research were used to identify suicides and 20 matched controls per case in 25-60-year-old men and women between 1982 and 1997. Individual and area (municipality......The social and economic characteristics of geographic areas are associated with their suicide rates. The extent to which these ecological associations are due to the characteristics of the people living in the areas (compositional effects) or the influence of the areas themselves on risk...... area levels of employment and income and increasing proportions of people living alone were much attenuated after controlling for compositional effects. We found no consistent evidence that associations with individual-level risk factors differed depending on the areas' characteristics (cross...

β-Decay half-lives and nuclear structure of exotic proton-rich waiting point nuclei under rp-process conditions

Science.gov (United States)

Nabi, Jameel-Un; Böyükata, Mahmut

2016-03-01

We investigate even-even nuclei in the A ∼ 70 mass region within the framework of the proton-neutron quasi-particle random phase approximation (pn-QRPA) and the interacting boson model-1 (IBM-1). Our work includes calculation of the energy spectra and the potential energy surfaces V (β , γ) of Zn, Ge, Se, Kr and Sr nuclei with the same proton and neutron number, N = Z. The parametrization of the IBM-1 Hamiltonian was performed for the calculation of the energy levels in the ground state bands. Geometric shape of the nuclei was predicted by plotting the potential energy surfaces V (β , γ) obtained from the IBM-1 Hamiltonian in the classical limit. The pn-QRPA model was later used to compute half-lives of the neutron-deficient nuclei which were found to be in very good agreement with the measured ones. The pn-QRPA model was also used to calculate the Gamow-Teller strength distributions and was found to be in decent agreement with the measured data. We further calculate the electron capture and positron decay rates for these N = Z waiting point (WP) nuclei in the stellar environment employing the pn-QRPA model. For the rp-process conditions, our total weak rates are within a factor two compared with the Skyrme HF +BCS +QRPA calculation. All calculated electron capture rates are comparable to the competing positron decay rates under rp-process conditions. Our study confirms the finding that electron capture rates form an integral part of the weak rates under rp-process conditions and should not be neglected in the nuclear network calculations.

Transformative Moral Education: Challenging an Ecology of Violence

Science.gov (United States)

Joseph, Pamela Bolotin; Mikel, Edward

2014-01-01

From the perspective that we live amidst an ecology of violence, we contend that educators should not circumscribe their ethical roles by endorsing the dominant individualistic goals and practices of moral education. To counter a pervading worldview of violence and tolerance for violence, we propose instead that teachers embrace the multifaceted…

Mineralization Rate Constants, Half-Lives and Effects of Two Organic

African Journals Online (AJOL)

INTRODUCTION. Low soil fertility is one the ... important for maintenance of fertility of tropical soils. ... soil N. Thus, total N in the soil and the amount released for plant uptake depend on its content of organic ... capacity for productivity, nutrient cycling, filtering and buffering ... (Steel and Torrie, 1981) and, thereafter, Fischer's.

Ecological Interventionist Causal Models in Psychosis: Targeting Psychological Mechanisms in Daily Life.

Science.gov (United States)

Reininghaus, Ulrich; Depp, Colin A; Myin-Germeys, Inez

2016-03-01

Integrated models of psychotic disorders have posited a number of putative psychological mechanisms that may contribute to the development of psychotic symptoms, but it is only recently that a modest amount of experience sampling research has provided evidence on their role in daily life, outside the research laboratory. A number of methodological challenges remain in evaluating specificity of potential causal links between a given psychological mechanism and psychosis outcomes in a systematic fashion, capitalizing on longitudinal data to investigate temporal ordering. In this article, we argue for testing ecological interventionist causal models that draw on real world and real-time delivered, ecological momentary interventions for generating evidence on several causal criteria (association, time order, and direction/sole plausibility) under real-world conditions, while maximizing generalizability to social contexts and experiences in heterogeneous populations. Specifically, this approach tests whether ecological momentary interventions can (1) modify a putative mechanism and (2) produce changes in the mechanism that lead to sustainable changes in intended psychosis outcomes in individuals' daily lives. Future research using this approach will provide translational evidence on the active ingredients of mobile health and in-person interventions that promote sustained effectiveness of ecological momentary interventions and, thereby, contribute to ongoing efforts that seek to enhance effectiveness of psychological interventions under real-world conditions. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Maryland Psychiatric Research Center. All rights reserved. For permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

[Cytokine dysregulation in children with chronic catarrhal gingivitis living in polluted areas with fluoride and iodine deficiency].

Science.gov (United States)

Bezvushko, E V; Malko, N V

The aim of the research was to study the state of oral liquid immunity in children with chronic catarrhal gingivitis living in unfavorable environmental conditions. The study included 190 children with chronic catarrhal gingivitis (CCG): 110 children aged 7, 12 and 15 years and residing in ecologically unfavorable areas of Lviv region and 80 children living in 'conditionally clean' region which constituted comparison group. Children with CCG from polluted areas had increased content of pro-inflammatory cytokines and reduction of anti-inflammatory cytokines compared to controls. The level of pro-inflammatory cytokines was age-depended in both groups but in children from ecologically unfavorable region this tendency was more pronounced. Thus, changes of indicators of interleukin spectrum in children with CCG depend not only on age and degree of severity of periodontium pathology but also on ecological living conditions.

Ecological effects of harvesting biomass for energy in the Spanish Mediterranean

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zavala, Miguel A.; Marcos, Francisco

1993-01-01

Biomass utilization for energy has major consequences for Spanish Mediterranean landscapes. In this paper we present a synthesis of the ecological effects of harvesting biomass for energy. We compare these effects with other fuel reduction procedures such as prescribed burning. Throughout history we see that some Iberian ecosystems are stabilized by long human interference. One of the stabilizing factors is the utilization of wood as a source of energy. New energy sources and massive human movements towards urban areas have changed the ecosystem dynamics. Reforested areas in Spain during the period from 1940 to 1970 included silviculture treatments that in some cases never took place. This has led to a greater accumulation of biomass. The current perspective of the problem must be analyzed from an economic and political viewpoint. For instance, the Middle East crisis has direct consequences for the budget dedicated to forest energetics, and consequently for the landscape. This shows how ecological problems must be dealt with using a very broad perspective. In Spain current biomass usage should be considered primarily as a complementary silvicultural treatment rather than as a way of producing great biomass outputs. If we are going to manage our forest from an ecological perspective, we have to analyze the effects of these operations at the stand level. At the landscape level fuel management plans should be included in the Forest Management Prescriptions (ordenaciones) whether in terms of harvesting or in a prescribed burning plan

Patients' willingness to talk to others about living kidney donation.

Science.gov (United States)

Rodrigue, James R; Cornell, Danielle L; Kaplan, Bruce; Howard, Richard J

2008-03-01

Living donor kidney transplantation has several advantages for patients with end-stage renal disease. However, many patients are reluctant to pursue this treatment option, preferring instead to wait for a deceased donor organ. To examine predictors of patients' willingness to talk to others about living kidney donation. One hundred thirty-two adult patients awaiting kidney transplantation who were enrolled in a randomized trial examining the effectiveness of education on rates of live donor kidney transplantation completed a baseline rating of their willingness to talk to others about living kidney donation. Also, patients completed measures of knowledge and concerns about living donation and a rating of perceived health. Slightly more than half the patients (56.1%) had low willingness to talk to others about living donation. The following variables were associated with higher willingness to talk to others: white race (odds ratio, 3.31; confidence interval, 1.7-7.4), college education (odds ratio, 3.43, confidence interval, 2.0-5.6), fewer concerns about living donor kidney transplantation (odds ratio, 0.31; confidence interval, 0.2-0.6), and less favorable perceptions of their current health status (odds ratio, 4.31; confidence interval, 2.6-7.6). White race, more education, less concern about living donor kidney transplantation, and poorer perceived health are associated with greater willingness to talk to others about living kidney donation. These findings have important implications for educating patients about living donor kidney transplantation.

Designing of peptides with desired half-life in intestine-like environment

KAUST Repository

Sharma, Arun

2014-08-20

community for predicting intestinal half-life of peptides and to design mutant peptides with better half-life and physicochemical properties. HLP models were trained using a dataset of peptides whose half-lives have been determined experimentally in crude intestinal proteases preparation. Thus, HLP server will help in designing peptides possessing the potential to be administered via oral route (http://www.imtech.res.in/raghava/hlp/).

Using Ecological Momentary Assessment to Evaluate Current Physical Activity

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jolanta Marszalek

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Objective. The purpose of this study was to assess the value of ecological momentary assessment in evaluating physical activity among children, adolescents, and adults. It also determines whether ecological momentary assessment fulfills the criteria of validity, reliability, objectivity, norms, and standardization applied to the tools used for the evaluation of physical activity. Methods. The EBSCO-CINHAL, Medline, PsycINFO, PubMed, and SPORTDiscuss databases were reviewed in December 2012 for articles associated with EMA. Results. Of the 20 articles examined, half (10 used electronic methods for data collection, although various methods were used, ranging from pen and paper to smartphone applications. Ten studies used objective monitoring equipment. Nineteen studies were performed over 4 days. While the validity of the EMA method was discussed in 18 studies, only four found it to be objective. In all cases, the EMA procedures were precisely documented and confirmed to be feasible. Conclusions. Ecological momentary assessment is a valid, reliable, and feasible approach to evaluate activity and sedentary behavior. Researchers should be aware that while ecological momentary assessment offers many benefits, it simultaneously imposes many limitations which should be considered when studying physical activity.

Surface half-metallicity of half-Heusler compound FeCrSe and interface half-metallicity of FeCrSe/GaP

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Khalaf Al-zyadi, Jabbar M., E-mail: jabbar_alzyadi@yahoo.com [Department of Physics, College of Education for Pure Sciences, University of Basrah (Iraq); Jolan, Mudhahir H. [Department of Physics, College of Education for Pure Sciences, University of Basrah (Iraq); Yao, Kai-Lun, E-mail: klyao@mail.hust.edu.cn [School of Physics and Wuhan National High Magnetic Field Center, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430074 (China); International Center of Materials Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenyang 110015 (China)

2016-04-01

Recent studies showed that half-Heusler FeCrSe exhibits half-metallic ferromagnetism (Huang et al. [20]). In this paper, we investigate extensively the electronic, magnetic, and half-metallic properties of the half-Heusler alloy FeCrSe (111) and (001) surfaces and the interface with GaP (111) substrate by using the first-principles calculations within the density functional theory. The atomic density of states demonstrates that the half-me tallicity verified in the bulk FeCrSe is maintained at the CrSe-terminated (001) and Se-terminated (111) surfaces, but lost at both Cr- and Fe-terminated (111) surfaces and the Fe-terminated (001) surface. Alternatively, for the interface of FeCrSe/GaP (111), the bulk half-metallicity is destroyed at Se–P configuration while Se–Ga interface and subinterface show nearly 100% spin polarization. Moreover, the calculated interfacial adhesion energies exhibit that Se–Ga shape is more stable than the Se–P one. The calculated magnetic moments of Se, Ga at the Se–Ga (111) interface and P at the Se–P (111) interface increase with respect to the corresponding bulk values while the atomic magnetic moment of Se atom at the Se–P (111) interface decreases. We also notice that the magnetic moments of subinterface Fe at both Se–Ga and Se–P (111) interfaces decrease compared to the bulk values. - Highlights: • The half-metallicity verified in the bulk FeCrSe is kept at the CrSe-terminated (001) and Se-terminated (111) surfaces. • The calculated interfacial adhesion energies exhibit that Se–Ga shape is more stable than Se–P. • The magnetic moments of Se, Ga and P atoms at the interface increase. • The Se–Ga interface shows nearly 100% spin polarization.

Assessing ecological effects of radionuclides: data gaps and extrapolation issues

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Garnier-Laplace, Jacqueline; Gilek, Michael; Sundell-Bergman, Synnoeve; Larsson, Carl-Magnus

2004-01-01

By inspection of the FASSET database on radiation effects on non-human biota, one of the major difficulties in the implementation of ecological risk assessments for radioactive pollutants is found to be the lack of data for chronic low-level exposure. A critical review is provided of a number of extrapolation issues that arise in undertaking an ecological risk assessment: acute versus chronic exposure regime; radiation quality including relative biological effectiveness and radiation weighting factors; biological effects from an individual to a population level, including radiosensitivity and lifestyle variations throughout the life cycle; single radionuclide versus multi-contaminants. The specificities of the environmental situations of interest (mainly chronic low-level exposure regimes) emphasise the importance of reproductive parameters governing the demography of the population within a given ecosystem and, as a consequence, the structure and functioning of that ecosystem. As an operational conclusion to keep in mind for any site-specific risk assessment, the present state-of-the-art on extrapolation issues allows us to grade the magnitude of the uncertainties as follows: one species to another > acute to chronic = external to internal = mixture of stressors> individual to population> ecosystem structure to function

Understanding the decline and resilience loss of a long-lived social-ecological system: insights from system dynamics

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alicia Tenza

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Collapse of social-ecological systems (SESs is a common process in human history. Depletion of natural resources, scarcity of human capital, or both, is/are common pathways toward collapse. We use the system dynamics approach to better understand specific problems of small-scale, long-lived SESs. We present a qualitative (or conceptual model using the conceptualization process of the system dynamics approach to study the dynamics of an oasis in Mexico that has witnessed a dramatic transition to decline in recent decades. We used indepth interviews, participant observation, expert opinions, and official statistical data sets to define the boundaries, and structure in a causal loop diagram of our studied system. We described historical trends and showed the reference mode for the main system variables (observed data, and analyzed the expected system behavior according to the system structure. We identified the main drivers that changed the system structure, as well as structural changes, and the effects of these changes on the dynamics, resilience, and vulnerability of this SES. We found that the tendency of this SES toward collapse was triggered by exogenous factors (growth of modern agriculture in nearby valleys, and socio-political relocation, and was maintained by an endogenous structure. These structural changes weakened the resilience of this SES. One of these changes resulted in a long-term maladaptation of the SES, which increased its vulnerability to frequent system disturbances (hurricanes and droughts. The conceptual model developed provides an in-depth qualitative description of the system, with an important amount of qualitative and quantitative information, to establish the structural hypothesis of the observed behavior. Using this qualitative model, the next research steps are to develop a quantitative model to test the qualitative theories, and to explore future scenarios of system resilience for decision-making processes to

Ecological effects from transuranium elements in terrestrial environment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Uiker, F.U.

1985-01-01

To understand ecological effects from transuranium elements in environment it is necessary to know how their chemical, physical and biological behaviour depends on duration of their being in natural environment. It is necesary to take into account that behaviour of transuranium elements in environment depends on physical and chemical forms of a nuclide as well as on characteristics of ecosystem. Radiation dose of certain tissues plays an essential role here but dose distribution is especially complicated for relatively non-soluble α-irradiators

20 CFR 404.273 - When are automatic cost-of-living increases effective?

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... 20 Employees' Benefits 2 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false When are automatic cost-of-living increases..., SURVIVORS AND DISABILITY INSURANCE (1950- ) Computing Primary Insurance Amounts Cost-Of-Living Increases § 404.273 When are automatic cost-of-living increases effective? We make automatic cost-of-living...

The Lived Environment Life Quality Model for institutionalized people with dementia.

Science.gov (United States)

Wood, Wendy; Lampe, Jenna L; Logan, Christina A; Metcalfe, Amy R; Hoesly, Beth E

2017-02-01

There is a need for a conceptual practice model that explicates ecological complexities involved in using occupation to optimize the quality of life of institutionalized people with dementia. This study aimed to prepare the Lived Environment Life Quality Model, a dementia-specific conceptual practice model of occupational therapy in institutional facilities, for publication and application to practice. Interviews and focus groups with six expert occupational therapists were subjected to qualitative content analysis to confirm, disconfirm, and further develop the model. The model's lived-environment domain as the focus of assessment and intervention was extensively confirmed, and its quality-of-life domain as the focus of intervention goals and outcomes was both confirmed and further developed. As confirmed in this study, the Lived Environment Life Quality Model is a client-centred, ecologically valid, and occupation-focused guide to optimizing quality of life of institutionalized adults with dementia in present moments and progressively over time.

Environmentally friendly planning and construction - ecological aspects; Unweltschonendes Planen und Bauen - oekologische Aspekte

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Boos, H.J. [Bundesministerium fuer Raumordnung, Bauwesen und Staedtebau, Bonn (Germany)

1995-09-01

The author of the present lecture deals with the change in ecological awareness and its influence on construction. The following topics are covered: The starting situation as seen from today; political tasks, ecology and architecture; air pollution control and energy conservation; building materials and ecology; healthy construction concepts and healthy living. (HW) [Deutsch] Der Verfasser setzt sich in seinem Vortrag auseinander mit der Veraenderung im oekologischen Bewusstsein und der Auswirkung auf das Bauen. Inhalt: - Ausgangsituation aus heutiger Sicht - politische Aufgaben - Oekologie und Architektur - Immisionsschutz und Energieeinsparung - Baustoff und Oekologie - gesundes Bauen und Wohnen. (HW)

A shifting paradigm: Teachers' beliefs and methods for fostering ecological literacy in two public charter schools

Science.gov (United States)

Sterling, Evan P.

Ecological literacy is measured by a person's ability to understand the natural systems that make life on earth possible and how to live in accordance with those systems. The emergence of the pedagogies of place- and community-based education during the past two decades provides a possible avenue for fostering ecological literacy in schools. This thesis explores the following research questions: 1) How is ecological literacy fostered in two Alaskan public charter schools? 2) What are teachers' beliefs in these two schools about the way children and youth develop ecological literacy? 3) What are effective teaching methods and what are the challenges in engaging students in ecological literacy? Semi-structured interviews were conducted with six K--12 teachers in two public charter schools in Alaska in order to investigate these questions, and relevant examples of student work were collected for study as well. Qualitative data analysis revealed several emergent themes: the need for real-world connections to curriculum; the necessity of time spent outdoors at a young age; the long-term and holistic nature of ecological literacy development; and the importance of family and community role models in developing connections with the natural world. Based upon the research findings, several recommendations are made to support the efforts of teachers in these schools and elsewhere for fostering ecological literacy in children and youth.

Materials of research-practical conference dedicated to 70-anniversary of sanitation, hygiene and occupational diseases research institute 'Actual problems of hygiene, sanitation and ecology'

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Iskandarov, T.I.; Kamil'dzhanov, A.Kh.

2004-01-01

The Research-practical conference dedicated to 70-anniversary of sanitation, hygiene and occupational diseases research institute 'Actual problems of hygiene, sanitation and ecology' was held on 2004 in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. Specialists discussed various aspects of actual problems of sanitation, hygiene, occupational diseases and ecology. They discussed also some aspects of radiology and nuclear medicine, radiation protection and dosimetry, radiation and other environmental pollutant effect on living organisms and biological materials. More than 250 talks were presented in the meeting. (k.m.)

ECOLOGICAL BASES OF FORMATION OF THE LAND USE OF THE TERRITORIES OF THE NATURAL RESERVOIR FUND IN THE COMPOSITION OF ECOLOGICAL NETWORK OF UKRAINE

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hetmanchik I.

2017-11-01

Full Text Available The article highlights ecological and economic measures on the formation of land use territories of the nature reserve fund within the ecological network of Ukraine, its current state and problems, as well as directions of improvement. These measures are directed towards the balanced provision of the needs of the population and sectors of the economy with land resources, rational use and protection of lands, preservation of landscape and biodiversity, creation of environmentally safe living conditions of the population and economic activity and protection of land from depletion, degradation and pollution.

Human metabolism and ecological transfer of radioactive caesium. Comparative studies of Chernobyl debris and nuclear weapons fallout, in southern Sweden and in Bryansk, Russia

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Raeaef, C.L.

2000-05-01

The whole-body content of radiocaesium was measured in a South Swedish urban group of people residing in the city of Lund between 1960 and 1994. The results from the survey have been analysed in order to estimate the ecological half time, T eff,eco of fallout radiocaesium, and the aggregate transfer from ground deposition to man in the region. After 1987, the biological half times, T e of 137 Cs and 40 K in man were also determined in the reference group through whole-body content measurements in combination with 24-hour urine sampling. Relationships between 24-hour urinary excretion and body burden of 137 Cs in the group together with data from the literature were then applied to urine samples collected in 1994 and 1995 from adult subjects living in the highly contaminated region of Bryansk, Russia, in order to estimate their average body burden of 137 Cs. The equivalent biological half-time for 137 Cs in females of the Lund reference group was, on average 66±3 d, which agrees with other findings, whereas the value for the males, 81±4 d, was, on average, significantly lower than what is found in the literature. This is partly explained by the elevated mean age and relatively low mean body muscle mass of the males investigated. The 137 Cs from nuclear weapons tests in the 1950s and 1960s still gave a significant contribution to the total 137 Cs levels in man during the post-Chernobyl study period (1987-1994). About 10% of the peak post-Chernobyl concentration level of 137 Cs (3.5-4 Bq/kg) in 1987, was attributed to pre-Chernobyl 137 Cs. The effective ecological half-time for 137 Cs from Chernobyl was found to be 1.8±0.2 y. The time-integrated aggregate transfer of 137 Cs from ground deposition to mean activity concentration in man was estimated to be 0.4 Bq/kg/kBq/m 2 . These values may be compared with an effective ecological half-time of 1.3 years found in the Lund reference group in the 1960s, and in time-integrated aggregate transfer factor of 4.4 Bq

Human metabolism and ecological transfer of radioactive caesium. Comparative studies of Chernobyl debris and nuclear weapons fallout, in southern Sweden and in Bryansk, Russia

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Raeaef, C.L

2000-05-01

The whole-body content of radiocaesium was measured in a South Swedish urban group of people residing in the city of Lund between 1960 and 1994. The results from the survey have been analysed in order to estimate the ecological half time, T{sub eff,eco} of fallout radiocaesium, and the aggregate transfer from ground deposition to man in the region. After 1987, the biological half times, T{sub e} of {sup 137}Cs and {sup 40}K in man were also determined in the reference group through whole-body content measurements in combination with 24-hour urine sampling. Relationships between 24-hour urinary excretion and body burden of {sup 137}Cs in the group together with data from the literature were then applied to urine samples collected in 1994 and 1995 from adult subjects living in the highly contaminated region of Bryansk, Russia, in order to estimate their average body burden of {sup 137}Cs. The equivalent biological half-time for {sup 137}Cs in females of the Lund reference group was, on average 66{+-}3 d, which agrees with other findings, whereas the value for the males, 81{+-}4 d, was, on average, significantly lower than what is found in the literature. This is partly explained by the elevated mean age and relatively low mean body muscle mass of the males investigated. The {sup 137}Cs from nuclear weapons tests in the 1950s and 1960s still gave a significant contribution to the total {sup 137}Cs levels in man during the post-Chernobyl study period (1987-1994). About 10% of the peak post-Chernobyl concentration level of {sup 137}Cs (3.5-4 Bq/kg) in 1987, was attributed to pre-Chernobyl {sup 137}Cs. The effective ecological half-time for {sup 137}Cs from Chernobyl was found to be 1.8{+-}0.2 y. The time-integrated aggregate transfer of {sup 137}Cs from ground deposition to mean activity concentration in man was estimated to be 0.4 Bq/kg/kBq/m{sup 2}. These values may be compared with an effective ecological half-time of 1.3 years found in the Lund reference group in

The ecological disruptive and bioaccumulative potentials of PPCPs (pharmaceuticals and personal care products) in freshwater streams

OpenAIRE

ERINN KATE RICHMOND

2017-01-01

Pharmaceuticals and Personal Care Products (PPCPs) are now detected in waterways around the world, and are most commonly discharged into waterways via wastewater treatment plants. The effects of PPCPs on aquatic plants and animals including fish and insects within these environments are largely unknown. This research examines the ecological impacts of PPCPs on vital processes like photosynthesis, and assesses the potential exposure risks to aquatic animals, including platypus and fish, living...

Activation analysis with neutron generators using short-lived radionuclides

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Salma, I.

1993-01-01

The short half-life involves a number of important differences in production, transportation and measurement of radionuclides, and in counting statistics as compared with those in traditional activation analysis. Experiments were performed to investigate the analytical possibilities and prospective utilization of short-lived radionuclides produced by 14-MeV neutron irradiation. A rapid pneumatic transfer system for use with neutron generators was installed and applied for detecting radionuclides with a half-life from 300 ms to 30 s. The transport time for samples with a total mass of 1-4 g is between 130 and 160 ms for pressurized air of 0.1-0.4 MPa. 11 elements were studied by the conventional activation method using both a typical pneumatic transport system (run time 3 s) and the fast pneumatic transport facility. The effect of the cyclic activation technique on the elemental sensitivities was also investigated. (orig.)

Ecological risk estimation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bartell, S.M.; Gardner, R.H.; O'Neill, R.V.

1992-01-01

Ecological risk assessment, the process that evaluates the likelihood that adverse ecological effects may occur or are occurring as a result of exposure to one or more stressors, is being developed by the US EPA as a tool for decision making. This book presents one approach to risk assessment-that of applying laboratory toxicity data within an ecosystem model to predict the potential ecological consequences of toxic chemicals. Both Standard Water Column Model (SWACOM), using zooplankton and fish, and Monte Carlo simulations are discussed in detail, along with quantitative explanations for many responses. Simplifying assumptions are explicitly presented. The final chapter discusses strengths, weaknesses, and future directions of the approach. The book is appropriate for anyone who does or uses ecological risk assessment methodologies

Shared Living and Sustainability: Emerging Trends in the Tourism Industry

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Paul Valva

2014-12-01

Full Text Available An emerging concept in accommodations in the travel industry called Shared Living is blurring the lines between hospitality and residential living and is moving the industry towards greater ecological and social sustainability. Changing trends brought about by the sustainability challenge, climate change, technological advancements and increasing affluence and cultural awareness are disrupting the tourism industry. Meeting clients’ needs for Leisure and Relaxation is not enough. Increasingly sustainability-conscious travelers expect their fundamental needs of Participation, Creation and Identity to be fulfilled as well. Today’s travelers want to do more than eat, sleep and sightsee – they want to interact with the local communities they are visiting. But traditional accommodations offer little opportunity for travelers to engage with fellow travelers or local communities. Emerging trends in accommodations are increasingly connecting travelers to the people, organizations and projects that are changing lives and transforming communities. By understanding and adapting to the trends, the tourism industry can both contribute towards ecological social sustainability and reap the business benefits presented by the sustainability challenge of our time.

US Subseabed Disposal Program radioecological data base: summaries of available radionuclide concentration factors and biological half-lives

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gomez, L.S.; Marietta, M.G.; Jackson, D.W.

1984-01-01

The US Subseabed Disposal Program has compiled an extensive objective concentration factor and biological half-life data base from the international marine radioecological literature. A microcomputer-based data management system has been implemented to provide statistical and graphical summaries of these data. The data base is constructed in a manner which allows subsets to be sorted using a number of inter-study variables such as organism category, tissue/organ category, geographic location (for in situ studies), and several laboratory-related conditions (e.g., exposure time and exposure concentration). We discuss concentration factor data summaries for many elements. We also discuss summary material for biological half-life data. We discuss the results of our review with the estimates of mean concentration factors provided by the IAEA. It is proposed that this presentation scheme will enable those concerned with predictive assessment of radiation dose in the marine environment to make a more judicious selection of data for a given application. 7 references

Long-lived effects of administering β-glucans

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Petit, Jules; Wiegertjes, Geert F.

2016-01-01

Over the past decades, it has become evident that immune-modulation of fish with β-glucans, using injection, dietary or even immersion routes of administration, has stimulating but presumed short-lived effects on both intestinal and systemic immunity and can increase protection against a

Comparing spatially explicit ecological and social values for natural areas to identify effective conservation strategies.

Science.gov (United States)

Bryan, Brett Anthony; Raymond, Christopher Mark; Crossman, Neville David; King, Darran

2011-02-01

Consideration of the social values people assign to relatively undisturbed native ecosystems is critical for the success of science-based conservation plans. We used an interview process to identify and map social values assigned to 31 ecosystem services provided by natural areas in an agricultural landscape in southern Australia. We then modeled the spatial distribution of 12 components of ecological value commonly used in setting spatial conservation priorities. We used the analytical hierarchy process to weight these components and used multiattribute utility theory to combine them into a single spatial layer of ecological value. Social values assigned to natural areas were negatively correlated with ecological values overall, but were positively correlated with some components of ecological value. In terms of the spatial distribution of values, people valued protected areas, whereas those natural areas underrepresented in the reserve system were of higher ecological value. The habitats of threatened animal species were assigned both high ecological value and high social value. Only small areas were assigned both high ecological value and high social value in the study area, whereas large areas of high ecological value were of low social value, and vice versa. We used the assigned ecological and social values to identify different conservation strategies (e.g., information sharing, community engagement, incentive payments) that may be effective for specific areas. We suggest that consideration of both ecological and social values in selection of conservation strategies can enhance the success of science-based conservation planning. ©2010 Society for Conservation Biology.

The ecology of the Chernobyl catastrophe. Scientific outlines of an international programme of collaborative research

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Savchenko, V.K.

1995-01-01

The Chernobyl disaster was the largest civil nuclear catastrophe of all time. When reactor number 4 of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant exploded on 26 April 1986, it permanently changed the lives of more than 4 million people living in Belarus, Ukraine and Russia, shaking the fabric of an area almost the size of England, and triggering a whole swathe of environmental, economic, social, medical and political repercussions. At first the Soviet Union tackled the aftermath alone but, by 1990, with the process of change associated with perestroika, the three affected states of Belarus, Ukraine and the Federation of Russia appealed to the international community for solidarity and help. In co-operation with other agencies of the United Nations system, the UNESCO Chernobyl Programme was launched , with the formal signing of an agreement in January 1991 between the three republics and UNESCO. Since then, some twenty projects have been carried out in UNESCO's various fields of competence - education, science, culture and communication. The volume reviews eight years of study on the impact of Chernobyl on natural ecosystems, agro-ecosystems, human ecology, biological diversity, and genetic and socio-economic systems. It comprises eight chapters. The first three chapters discuss the effects of the high levels of radionuclides released from the Chernobyl reactor on the environment, on natural ecosystems and on agro-ecosystems. The fourth chapter, on human ecology, covers both the human effects at the time of the disaster and those still continuing today. Chapters five and six describe the impact of radionuclide release on biological diversity and genetic systems respectively. The socioeconomic effects of the catastrophe are discussed in chapter seven. Each of these seven chapters ends with scientific hypotheses and research recommendations, with a final chapter providing a detailed description of the setting up and aims of the multinational and multidimensional Chernobyl

First Isochronous Time-of-Flight Mass Measurements of Short-Lived Projectile Fragments in the ESR

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stadlmann, J.; Geissel, H.; Hausmann, M.; Nolden, F.; Radon, T.; Schatz, H.; Scheidenberger, C.; Attallah, F.; Beckert, K.; Bosch, F.; Falch, M.; Franczak, B.; Franzke, B.; Kerscher, Th.; Klepper, O.; Kluge, H.J.; Kozhuharov, C.; Loebner, K.E.G.; Muenzenberg, G.; Novikov, Yu.N.; Steck, M.; Sun, Z.; Suemmerer, K.; Weick, H.; Wollnik, H.

2000-01-01

A new method for precise mass measurements of short-lived hot nuclei is presented. These nuclei were produced via projectile fragmentation, separated with the FRS and injected into the storage ring ESR being operated in the isochronous mode. The revolution time of the ions is measured with a time-of-flight detector sensitive to single particles. This new method allows access to exotic nuclei with half-lives in the microsecond region. First results from this novel method obtained with measurements on neutron-deficient fragments of a chromium primary beam with half-lives down to 50 ms are reported. A precision of deltam/m ≤ 5 · 10 -6 has been achieved

Half-time re-warm up increases performance capacity in male elite soccer players

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Edholm, P; Krustrup, Peter; Randers, Morten Bredsgaard

2015-01-01

This study investigated the acute effects of a half-time re-warm up on performance and movement patterns in soccer match play. Using a crossover design, 22 professional male players performed traditional passive rest (CON) or a low-intensity re-warm up (RW) during the half-time period of two soccer.......01). Moreover, RW had more possession of the ball in the beginning of the second half. In conclusion, traditional passive half-time rest leads to impaired sprint and jump performance during the initial phase of the second half in professional soccer players whereas a re-warm up effectively attenuates...

Radiological impact of TEPCO's Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Power Plant accident on invertebrates in the coastal benthic food web

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sohtome, Tadahiro; Wada, Toshihiro; Mizuno, Takuji; Nemoto, Yoshiharu; Igarashi, Satoshi; Nishimune, Atsushi; Aono, Tatsuo; Ito, Yukari; Kanda, Jota; Ishimaru, Takashi

2014-01-01

Radioactive cesium ( 134 Cs and 137 Cs) concentrations in invertebrates of benthic food web (10 taxonomic classes with 46 identified families) collected from wide areas off Fukushima Prefecture (3–500 m depth) were inspected from July 2011, four months after the Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Power Plant (FDNPP) accident, to August 2013 to elucidate time-series trends among taxa and areas. Cesium-137 was detected in seven classes (77% of 592 specimens). Higher 137 Cs concentrations within detected data were often found in areas near or south of the FDNPP, which is consistent with the reported spatial distribution of 137 Cs concentrations in highly contaminated seawater and sediments after the FDNPP accident. Overall 137 Cs concentrations in invertebrates, the maxima of which (290 Bq kg −1 -wet in the sea urchin Glyptocidaris crenularis) were lower than in many demersal fishes, had decreased exponentially with time, and exhibited taxon-specific decreasing trends. Concentrations in Bivalvia and Gastropoda decreased clearly with respective ecological half-lives of 188 d and 102 d. In contrast, decreasing trends in Malacostraca and Polychaeta were more gradual, with longer respective ecological half-lives of 208 d and 487 d. Echinoidea showed no consistent trend, presumably because of effects of contaminated sediments taken into their digestive tract. Comparison of 137 Cs concentrations in the invertebrates and those in seawater and sediments suggest that contaminated sediments are the major source of continuing contamination in benthic invertebrates, especially in Malacostraca and Polychaeta. - Highlights: • Radioactive cesium was measured in benthic invertebrates collected off Fukushima. • Results show taxon-specific and area-specific decreases in ecological half-lives. • Reasonable depuration of 137 Cs concentration was found in Bivalvia and Gastropoda. • Slow depuration was observed in Polychaeta and Malacostraca. • Sediments are expected to be the major

Plant selenium hyperaccumulation- Ecological effects and potential implications for selenium cycling and community structure.

Science.gov (United States)

Reynolds, R Jason B; Pilon-Smits, Elizabeth A H

2018-04-25

Selenium (Se) hyperaccumulation occurs in ~50 plant taxa native to seleniferous soils in Western USA. Hyperaccumulator tissue Se levels, 1000-15,000 mg/kg dry weight, are typically 100 times higher than surrounding vegetation. Relative to other species, hyperaccumulators also transform Se more into organic forms. We review abiotic and biotic factors influencing soil Se distribution and bioavailability, soil being the source of the Se in hyperaccumulators. Next, we summarize the fate of Se in plants, particularly hyperaccumulators. We then extensively review the impact of plant Se accumulation on ecological interactions. Finally, we discuss the potential impact of Se hyperaccumulators on local community composition and Se cycling. Selenium (hyper)accumulation offers ecological advantages: protection from herbivores and pathogens and competitive advantage over other plants. The extreme Se levels in and around hyperaccumulators create a toxic environment for Se-sensitive ecological partners, while offering a niche for Se-resistant partners. Through these dual effects, hyperaccumulators may influence species composition in their local environment, as well as Se cycling. The implied effects of Se hyperaccumulation on community assembly and local Se cycling warrant further investigations into the contribution of hyperaccumulators and general terrestrial vegetation to global Se cycling and may serve as a case study for how trace elements influence ecological processes. Furthermore, understanding ecological implications of plant Se accumulation are vital for safe implementation of biofortification and phytoremediation, technologies increasingly implemented to battle Se deficiency and toxicity. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier B.V.

On the half-life of luminescence signals in dosimetric applications: A unified presentation

Science.gov (United States)

Pagonis, V.; Kitis, G.; Polymeris, G. S.

2018-06-01

Luminescence signals from natural and man-made materials are widely used in dosimetric and dating applications. In general, there are two types of half-lives of luminescence signals which are of importance to experimental and modeling work in this research area. The first type of half-life is the time required for the population of the trapped charge in a single trap to decay to half its initial value. The second type of half-life is the time required for the luminescence intensity to drop to half of its initial value. While there a handful of analytical expressions available in the literature for the first type of half-life, there are no corresponding analytical expressions for the second type. In this work new analytical expressions are derived for the half-life of luminescence signals during continuous wave optical stimulation luminescence (CW-OSL) or isothermal luminescence (ITL) experiments. The analytical expressions are derived for several commonly used luminescence models which are based on delocalized transitions involving the conduction band: first and second order kinetics, empirical general order kinetics (GOK), mixed order kinetics (MOK) and the one-trap one-recombination center (OTOR) model. In addition, half-life expressions are derived for a different type of luminescence model, which is based on localized transitions in a random distribution of charges. The new half-life expressions contain two parts. The first part is inversely proportional to the thermal or optical excitation rate, and depends on the experimental conditions and on the cross section of the relevant luminescence process. The second part is characteristic of the optical and/or thermal properties of the material, as expressed by the parameters in the model. A new simple and quick method for analyzing luminescence signals is developed, and examples are given of applying the new method to a variety of dosimetric materials. The new test allows quick determination of whether a set of

Measurement of the 20F half-life

Science.gov (United States)

Hughes, M.; George, E. A.; Naviliat-Cuncic, O.; Voytas, P. A.; Chandavar, S.; Gade, A.; Huyan, X.; Liddick, S. N.; Minamisono, K.; Paulauskas, S. V.; Weisshaar, D.

2018-05-01

The half-life of the 20F ground state was measured using a radioactive beam implanted in a plastic scintillator and recording β γ coincidences together with four CsI(Na) detectors. The result, T1 /2=11.0011 (69) stat(30) sys s, is at variance by 17 combined standard deviations with the two most precise results. The present value revives the poor consistency of results for this half-life and calls for a new measurement, with a technique having different sources of systematic effects, to clarify the discrepancy.

Recent activities for β-decay half-lives and β-delayed neutron emission of very neutron-rich isotopes

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dillmann, Iris [TRIUMF, Vancouver BC, V6T 2A3, Canada and GSI Helmholtzzentrum für Schwerionenforschung GmbH, D-64291 Darmstadt (Germany); Abriola, Daniel [Laboratorio Tandar, Comisión Nacional de Energía Atómica, B1650KINA, San Martín, Buenos Aires (Argentina); Singh, Balraj [Department of Physics and Astronomy, McMaster University, Hamilton ON, L8S 4M1 (Canada)

2014-05-02

Beta-delayed neutron (βn) emitters play an important, two-fold role in the stellar nucleosynthesis of heavy elements in the 'rapid neutron-capture process' (r process). On one hand they lead to a detour of the material β-decaying back to stability. On the other hand, the released neutrons increase the neutron-to-seed ratio, and are re-captured during the freeze-out phase and thus influence the final solar r-abundance curve. A large fraction of the isotopes inside the r-process reaction path are not yet experimentally accessible and are located in the (experimental) 'Terra Incognita'. With the next generation of fragmentation and ISOL facilities presently being built or already in operation, one of the main motivation of all projects is the investigation of these very neutron-rich isotopes. A short overview of one of the planned programs to measure βn-emitters at the limits of the presently know isotopes, the BRIKEN campaign (Beta delayed neutron emission measurements at RIKEN) will be given. Presently, about 600 β-delayed one-neutron emitters are accessible, but only for a third of them experimental data are available. Reaching more neutron-rich isotopes means also that multiple neutron-emission becomes the dominant decay mechanism. About 460 β-delayed two-, three-or four-neutron emitters are identified up to now but for only 30 of them experimental data about the neutron branching ratios are available, most of them in the light mass region below A=30. The International Atomic and Energy Agency (IAEA) has identified the urgency and picked up this topic recently in a 'Coordinated Research Project' on a 'Reference Database for Beta-Delayed Neutron Emission Data'. This project will review, compile, and evaluate the existing data for neutron-branching ratios and half-lives of β-delayed neutron emitters and help to ensure a reliable database for the future discoveries of new isotopes and help to constrain astrophysical and

A Philosophical Analysis of David Orr's Theory of Ecological Literacy: Biophilia, Ecojustice and Moral Education in School Learning Communities

Science.gov (United States)

Mitchell, Debra B.; Mueller, Michael P.

2011-01-01

In his writings, David Orr claims that the US is in an "ecological crisis" and that this stems from a crisis of education. He outlines a theory of ecological literacy, a mode by which we better learn the ecology of the Earth and live in a sustainable manner. While emphasizing a shock doctrine, the diagnosis of "crisis" may be…

Ecological validity of cost-effectiveness models of universal HPV vaccination: A systematic literature review.

Science.gov (United States)

Favato, Giampiero; Easton, Tania; Vecchiato, Riccardo; Noikokyris, Emmanouil

2017-05-09

The protective (herd) effect of the selective vaccination of pubertal girls against human papillomavirus (HPV) implies a high probability that one of the two partners involved in intercourse is immunised, hence preventing the other from this sexually transmitted infection. The dynamic transmission models used to inform immunisation policy should include consideration of sexual behaviours and population mixing in order to demonstrate an ecological validity, whereby the scenarios modelled remain faithful to the real-life social and cultural context. The primary aim of this review is to test the ecological validity of the universal HPV vaccination cost-effectiveness modelling available in the published literature. The research protocol related to this systematic review has been registered in the International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews (PROSPERO: CRD42016034145). Eight published economic evaluations were reviewed. None of the studies showed due consideration of the complexities of human sexual behaviour and the impact this may have on the transmission of HPV. Our findings indicate that all the included models might be affected by a different degree of ecological bias, which implies an inability to reflect the natural demographic and behavioural trends in their outcomes and, consequently, to accurately inform public healthcare policy. In particular, ecological bias have the effect to over-estimate the preference-based outcomes of selective immunisation. A relatively small (15-20%) over-estimation of quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) gained with selective immunisation programmes could induce a significant error in the estimate of cost-effectiveness of universal immunisation, by inflating its incremental cost effectiveness ratio (ICER) beyond the acceptability threshold. The results modelled here demonstrate the limitations of the cost-effectiveness studies for HPV vaccination, and highlight the concern that public healthcare policy might have been

Toward effective ecological risk-management of refinery corrective action

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Metzger, B.H.; Rury, P.M.; Turton, D.; Archibald, B.; Clark, J.; Cura, J.

1995-01-01

Cleanup of complex industrial sites, such as refineries, requires risk-based decision tools to ensure that environmentally protective remediation is consistent with current and future land use. However, conventional ecological risk assessment approaches are not well suited for complex industrial sites. Site risk assessments focus on hypothetical chemical risk assuming diverse and undisturbed ecosystems, rather than industrial and disturbed area conditions. In addition, they offer little guidance as to how to make timely and effective risk management decisions. An innovative methodology is proposed to assist industry and regulatory risk managers with rapid EcoRisk reconnaissance and cost-effective remedial decision-making at complex industrial sites. Phase 1 comprises a three-step risk screening of areas of ecological concern at the site, which integrates habitat quality characteristics and potential chemical hazards. It yields an ordering of areas as follows: areas of no significant risk; areas of potentially significant risk; and areas of likely significant risk. A decision rule is then applied to determine appropriate risk management action, including: no action; additional study; and remedial or management action. In Phase 2, additional study is conducted for areas that exhibit potentially significant risk so as to facilitate risk management. This methodology is currently being applied at the 1,300 acre, former Exxon Bayway Refinery in New Jersey

Generalized herd effects and vaccine evaluation: impact of live influenza vaccine on off-target bacterial colonisation.

Science.gov (United States)

Mina, Michael J

2017-06-01

Interactions between pathogens and commensal microbes are major contributors to health and disease. Infectious diseases however are most often considered independent, viewed within a one-host one-pathogen paradigm and, by extension, the interventions used to treat and prevent them are measured and evaluated within this same paradigm. Vaccines, especially live vaccines, by stimulating immune responses or directly interacting with other microbes can alter the environment in which they act, with effects that span across pathogen species. Live attenuated infl uenza vaccines for example, while safe, increase upper respiratory tract bacterial carriage density of important human commensal pathogens like Streptococcus pneumoniae and Staphylococcus aureus. Further, by altering the ecological niche and dynamics of phylogenetically distinct microbes within the host, vaccines may unintentionally affect transmission of non-vaccine targeted pathogens. Thus, vaccine effects may span across species and across scales, from the individual to the population level. In keeping with traditional vaccine herd-effects that indirectly protect even unvaccinated individuals by reducing population prevalence of vaccine-targeted pathogens, we call these cross-species cross-scale effects "generalized herd-effects". As opposed to traditional herd-effects, "generalized" relaxes the assumption that the effect occurs at the level of the vaccine-target pathogen and "herd effect" implies, as usual, that the effects indirectly impact the population at large, including unvaccinated bystanders. Unlike traditional herd-effects that decrease population prevalence of the vaccine-target, generalized herd-effects may decrease or increase prevalence and disease by the off-target pathogen. LAIV, for example, by increasing pneumococcal density in the upper respiratory tract of vaccine recipients, especially children, may increase pneumococcal transmission and prevalence, leading to excess pneumococcal invasive

Landscape fragmentation and pollinator movement within agricultural environments: a modelling framework for exploring foraging and movement ecology.

Science.gov (United States)

Rands, Sean A

2014-01-01

Pollinator decline has been linked to landscape change, through both habitat fragmentation and the loss of habitat suitable for the pollinators to live within. One method for exploring why landscape change should affect pollinator populations is to combine individual-level behavioural ecological techniques with larger-scale landscape ecology. A modelling framework is described that uses spatially-explicit individual-based models to explore the effects of individual behavioural rules within a landscape. The technique described gives a simple method for exploring the effects of the removal of wild corridors, and the creation of wild set-aside fields: interventions that are common to many national agricultural policies. The effects of these manipulations on central-place nesting pollinators are varied, and depend upon the behavioural rules that the pollinators are using to move through the environment. The value of this modelling framework is discussed, and future directions for exploration are identified.

Landscape fragmentation and pollinator movement within agricultural environments: a modelling framework for exploring foraging and movement ecology

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sean A. Rands

2014-02-01

Full Text Available Pollinator decline has been linked to landscape change, through both habitat fragmentation and the loss of habitat suitable for the pollinators to live within. One method for exploring why landscape change should affect pollinator populations is to combine individual-level behavioural ecological techniques with larger-scale landscape ecology. A modelling framework is described that uses spatially-explicit individual-based models to explore the effects of individual behavioural rules within a landscape. The technique described gives a simple method for exploring the effects of the removal of wild corridors, and the creation of wild set-aside fields: interventions that are common to many national agricultural policies. The effects of these manipulations on central-place nesting pollinators are varied, and depend upon the behavioural rules that the pollinators are using to move through the environment. The value of this modelling framework is discussed, and future directions for exploration are identified.

[Engineering issues of microbial ecology in space agriculture].

Science.gov (United States)

Yamashita, Masamichi; Ishikawa, Yoji; Oshima, Tairo

2005-03-01

Closure of the materials recycle loop for water-foods-oxygen is the primary purpose of space agriculture on Mars and Moon. A microbial ecological system takes a part of agriculture to process our metabolic excreta and inedible biomass and convert them to nutrients and soil substrate for cultivating plants. If we extend the purpose of space agriculture to the creation and control of a healthy and pleasant living environment, we should realize that our human body should not be sterilized but exposed to the appropriate microbial environment. We are proposing a use of hyper-thermophilic aerobic composting microbial ecology in space agriculture. Japan has a broad historical and cultural background on this subject. There had been agriculture that drove a closed loop of materials between consuming cities and farming villages in vicinity. Recent environmental problems regarding garbage collection and processing in towns have motivated home electronics companies to innovate "garbage composting" machines with bacterial technology. Based on those matured technology, together with new insights on microbiology and microbial ecology, we have been developing a conceptual design of space agriculture on Moon and Mars. There are several issues to be answered in order to prove effectiveness of the use of microbial systems in space. 1) Can the recycled nutrients, processed by the hyper-thermal aerobic composting microbial ecology, be formed in the physical and chemical state or configuration, with which plants can uptake those nutrients? A possibility of removing any major components of fertilizer from its recycle loop is another item to be evaluated. 2) What are the merits of forming soil microbial ecology around the root system of plants? This might be the most crucial question. Recent researches exhibit various mutually beneficial relationships among soil microbiota and plants, and symbiotic ecology in composting bacteria. It is essential to understand those features, and define

Enlightening Butterfly Conservation Efforts: The Importance of Natural Lighting for Butterfly Behavioral Ecology and Conservation

Science.gov (United States)

2018-01-01

Light is arguably the most important abiotic factor for living organisms. Organisms evolved under specific lighting conditions and their behavior, physiology, and ecology are inexorably linked to light. Understanding light effects on biology could not be more important as present anthropogenic effects are greatly changing the light environments in which animals exist. The two biggest anthropogenic contributors changing light environments are: (1) anthropogenic lighting at night (i.e., light pollution); and (2) deforestation and the built environment. I highlight light importance for butterfly behavior, physiology, and ecology and stress the importance of including light as a conservation factor for conserving butterfly biodiversity. This review focuses on four parts: (1) Introducing the nature and extent of light. (2) Visual and non-visual light reception in butterflies. (3) Implications of unnatural lighting for butterflies across several different behavioral and ecological contexts. (4). Future directions for quantifying the threat of unnatural lighting on butterflies and simple approaches to mitigate unnatural light impacts on butterflies. I urge future research to include light as a factor and end with the hopeful thought that controlling many unnatural light conditions is simply done by flipping a switch. PMID:29439549

Enlightening Butterfly Conservation Efforts: The Importance of Natural Lighting for Butterfly Behavioral Ecology and Conservation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Brett M Seymoure

2018-02-01

Full Text Available Light is arguably the most important abiotic factor for living organisms. Organisms evolved under specific lighting conditions and their behavior, physiology, and ecology are inexorably linked to light. Understanding light effects on biology could not be more important as present anthropogenic effects are greatly changing the light environments in which animals exist. The two biggest anthropogenic contributors changing light environments are: (1 anthropogenic lighting at night (i.e., light pollution; and (2 deforestation and the built environment. I highlight light importance for butterfly behavior, physiology, and ecology and stress the importance of including light as a conservation factor for conserving butterfly biodiversity. This review focuses on four parts: (1 Introducing the nature and extent of light. (2 Visual and non-visual light reception in butterflies. (3 Implications of unnatural lighting for butterflies across several different behavioral and ecological contexts. (4. Future directions for quantifying the threat of unnatural lighting on butterflies and simple approaches to mitigate unnatural light impacts on butterflies. I urge future research to include light as a factor and end with the hopeful thought that controlling many unnatural light conditions is simply done by flipping a switch.

Belted kingfishers as ecological monitors of contamination: A review

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Landrum, C.L.

1993-03-01

Aquatic systems serve as transport pathways and reservoirs for most of the contaminants known to be present on the Oak Ridge Reservation (ORR). Organisms that live in aquatic systems accumulate some of these contaminants from their food and directly from the water or sediment. A wide array of terrestrial organisms feeds on aquatic organisms and may accumulate contaminants from aquatic prey. The belted kingfisher (Ceryle alcyon) is a piscivorous and territorial avian species that may be a suitable monitor of contaminant accumulation at specific sites on the ORR. A kingfisher collected on White Oak Lake in 1991 had a 137 Cs concentration of 568 pCi/g in muscle tissue, which exceeds levels found in any other waterfowl collected from the lake. An investigation into the efficacy of using the kingfisher as an ecological indicator of aquatic contaminants on the ORR was initiated in late August 1992. The primary objective of this study was to acquire information concerning the ecology of the kingfisher to determine how the species could be used within the framework of the Biological Monitoring and Abatement Program at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). A second important objective of the study was to examine the possible somatic and reproductive effects of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), Hg, and various radioactive contaminants on piscivorous birds by reviewing pollution ecology studies conducted on those species

Belted kingfishers as ecological monitors of contamination: A review

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Landrum, C.L. [North Texas Univ., Denton, TX (United States). Dept. of Biology; Ashwood, T.L.; Cox, D.K. [Oak Ridge National Lab., TN (United States)

1993-03-01

Aquatic systems serve as transport pathways and reservoirs for most of the contaminants known to be present on the Oak Ridge Reservation (ORR). Organisms that live in aquatic systems accumulate some of these contaminants from their food and directly from the water or sediment. A wide array of terrestrial organisms feeds on aquatic organisms and may accumulate contaminants from aquatic prey. The belted kingfisher (Ceryle alcyon) is a piscivorous and territorial avian species that may be a suitable monitor of contaminant accumulation at specific sites on the ORR. A kingfisher collected on White Oak Lake in 1991 had a {sup 137}Cs concentration of 568 pCi/g in muscle tissue, which exceeds levels found in any other waterfowl collected from the lake. An investigation into the efficacy of using the kingfisher as an ecological indicator of aquatic contaminants on the ORR was initiated in late August 1992. The primary objective of this study was to acquire information concerning the ecology of the kingfisher to determine how the species could be used within the framework of the Biological Monitoring and Abatement Program at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). A second important objective of the study was to examine the possible somatic and reproductive effects of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), Hg, and various radioactive contaminants on piscivorous birds by reviewing pollution ecology studies conducted on those species.

Applications of short lived nuclides in activation analysis, problems and progress

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Grass, F [Atominstitut, Vienna (Austria)

1976-07-01

Short lived nuclides or isomeric transitions, respectively would have some advantages over long lived ones. Although we published a paper concerning a germanium-determination in iron meteorites some years ago, only few laboratories use this technique, the main reason being that the high matrix activity disturbs the measurement of energy-spectra. A multichannel analyzer in the time sequence mode enables Li-8 determination by a purely instrumental method which is therefore used more frequently. In the time sequence mode much higher counting rates up to 10 - 50 MHz are processed then by taking energy-spectra. This is the reason why activation analysis with short lived isomeric states is seldom applied when counting rate and pulse height are to be detected simultaneously. Exceptional difficulties are encountered in measurement of samples activated by a reactor pulse. Further difficulties arise from the fact that an optimal expelling time depends on the half life of the nuclide, and is more critical if the half life is short and the full width half maximum of the reactor pulse is small. Commercial Ge-Li-detectors can be used only at low counting rates, so that samples with high matrix activities cannot be measured. Modifying the electronic system enables registration of samples with high matrix activities. For short lived nuclides emitting hard beta-rays, e.g. B-12 or Li-8, a Cerenkov-detector is optimal. These problems are discussed in examples. (author)

A modern landscape ecology of Black-tailed Godwits : Habitat selection in southwest Friesland, The Netherlands

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Groen, Niko M.; Kentie, Rosemarie; de Goeij, Petra; Verheijen, Bram; Piersma, Theunis; Hooijmeijer, Jos C.E.W.

2012-01-01

For a long time, agricultural areas had considerable ornithological value, an ecological richness which in The Netherlands was epitomised by the term 'meadow birds'. However, over the last half century, agricultural intensification has negatively affected the quality of meadow bird habitats. Here we

A modern landscape ecology of Black-tailed Godwits: habitat selection in southwest Friesland, The Netherlands

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Groen, N.M.; Kentie, R.; de Goeij, P.; Verheijen, B.; Hooijmeijer, J.C.E.W.; Piersma, T.

2012-01-01

For a long time, agricultural areas had considerable ornithological value, an ecological richness which in The Netherlands was epitomised by the term 'meadow birds'. However, over the last half century, agricultural intensification has negatively affected the quality of meadow bird habitats. Here we

Self-DNA inhibitory effects: Underlying mechanisms and ecological implications.

Science.gov (United States)

Cartenì, Fabrizio; Bonanomi, Giuliano; Giannino, Francesco; Incerti, Guido; Vincenot, Christian Ernest; Chiusano, Maria Luisa; Mazzoleni, Stefano

2016-01-01

DNA is usually known as the molecule that carries the instructions necessary for cell functioning and genetic inheritance. A recent discovery reported a new functional role for extracellular DNA. After fragmentation, either by natural or artificial decomposition, small DNA molecules (between ∼50 and ∼2000 bp) exert a species specific inhibitory effect on individuals of the same species. Evidence shows that such effect occurs for a wide range of organisms, suggesting a general biological process. In this paper we explore the possible molecular mechanisms behind those findings and discuss the ecological implications, specifically those related to plant species coexistence.

The burden of disaster: Part I. Challenges and opportunities within a child's social ecology.

Science.gov (United States)

Noffsinger, Mary A; Pfefferbaum, Betty; Pfefferbaum, Rose L; Sherrib, Kathleen; Norris, Fran H

2012-01-01

Child development and adaptation are best understood as biological and psychological individual processes occurring within the context of interconnecting groups, systems, and communities which, along with family, constitute the child's social ecology. This first of two articles describes the challenges and opportunities within a child's social ecology consisting of Micro-, Meso-, Exo-, and Macrosystems. The parent-child relationship, the most salient Microsystem influence in children's lives, plays an influential role in children's reactions to and recovery from disasters. Children, parents, and other adults participate in Mesosystem activities at schools and faith-based organizations. The Exosystem--including workplaces, social agencies, neighborhood, and mass media--directly affects important adults in children's lives. The Macrosystem affects disaster response and recovery indirectly through intangible cultural, social, economic, and political structures and processes. Children's responses to adversity occur in the context of these dynamically interconnected and interdependent nested environments, all of which endure the burden of disaster Increased understanding of the influences of and the relationships between key components contributes to recovery and rebuilding efforts, limiting disruption to the child and his or her social ecology A companion article (R. L. Pfefferbaum et al., in press) describes interventions across the child's social ecology.

Migration-related detention centers: the challenges of an ecological perspective with a focus on justice.

Science.gov (United States)

Esposito, Francesca; Ornelas, José; Arcidiacono, Caterina

2015-06-06

In recent years, border control and migration-related detention have become increasingly widespread practices affecting the lives of undocumented migrants, their families, and communities at large. In spite of the concern within academia, few studies have directly witnessed the life and experiences of people confined to migration-related detention centers. In the medical and psychological fields, a considerable body of research has demonstrated the pathogenic nature of detention in terms of mental health, showing an association between length of detention and severity of distress. Nevertheless, it was limited to the assessment of individuals' clinical consequences, mainly focusing on asylum seekers. There currently exists a need to adopt an ecological perspective from which to study detained migrants' experiences as context-dependent, and influenced by power inequalities. This paper addresses this gap. Drawing upon advances in community psychology, we illustrate an ecological framework for the study of migration-related detention contexts, and their effects on the lives of detained migrants and all people exposed to them. Making use of existing literature, Kelly's four principles (interdependence, cycling of resources, adaptation, succession) are analyzed at multiple ecological levels (personal, interpersonal, organizational, communal), highlighting implications for future research in this field. A focus on justice, as a key-dimension of analysis, is also discussed. Wellbeing is acknowledged as a multilevel, dynamic, and value-dependent phenomenon. In presenting this alternative framework, the potential for studying migration-related detention through an ecological lens is highlighted, pointing the way for future fields of study. We argue that ecological multilevel analyses, conceptualized in terms of interdependent systems and with a focus on justice, can enhance the comprehension of the dynamics at play in migration-related detention centers, providing an

Hydrology and Conservation Ecology

Science.gov (United States)

Narayanan, M.

2006-12-01

Responses to change in the behavior of ecological systems are largely governed by interactions at different levels. Research is essential and is to be necessarily designed to gain insights into various interactions at the community level. Sustainable resource management is only possible if conservation of biodiversity can be accomplished by properly using the knowledge discovered. It is well known that the United States Department of Agriculture provides technical information, resources, and data necessary to assist the researchers in addressing their conservation needs. Conservation aims to protect, preserve and conserve the earth's natural resources. These include, but not limited to the conservation of soil, water, minerals, air, plants and all living beings. The United States Department of Agriculture also encourages farmers and ranchers to voluntarily address threats to soil and water. Protection of wetlands and wildlife habitat has been on the radar screen of conservation experts for a very long time. The main objective has always been to help farmers and landowners conform and comply with federal and state environmental laws. During the implementation phase, farmers should be encouraged to make beneficial, cost-effective changes to methods of irrigation systems. In some cases, the hydrologic regime of the project area can be thought of as principally an issue of river flow regimes for floodplain forests. In this presentation, the author tries to focus on the impact of hydrology and conservation ecology on global warming. He also discusses the impact of hydrology and conservation ecology global air concerns such as greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere. References: Chow, V. T, D. R. Maidment, and L. W. Mays. 1988. Applied Hydrology. McGraw-Hill, Inc. U.S. Soil Conservation Service. Technical Release 55: Urban Hydrology for Small Watersheds. USDA (U.S. Department of Agriculture). June 1986. Lehner, B. and P. Döll (2004). Development and validation

A guide to statistical analysis in microbial ecology: a community-focused, living review of multivariate data analyses.

Science.gov (United States)

Buttigieg, Pier Luigi; Ramette, Alban

2014-12-01

The application of multivariate statistical analyses has become a consistent feature in microbial ecology. However, many microbial ecologists are still in the process of developing a deep understanding of these methods and appreciating their limitations. As a consequence, staying abreast of progress and debate in this arena poses an additional challenge to many microbial ecologists. To address these issues, we present the GUide to STatistical Analysis in Microbial Ecology (GUSTA ME): a dynamic, web-based resource providing accessible descriptions of numerous multivariate techniques relevant to microbial ecologists. A combination of interactive elements allows users to discover and navigate between methods relevant to their needs and examine how they have been used by others in the field. We have designed GUSTA ME to become a community-led and -curated service, which we hope will provide a common reference and forum to discuss and disseminate analytical techniques relevant to the microbial ecology community. © 2014 The Authors. FEMS Microbiology Ecology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Federation of European Microbiological Societies.

Meta-analysis in applied ecology.

Science.gov (United States)

Stewart, Gavin

2010-02-23

This overview examines research synthesis in applied ecology and conservation. Vote counting and pooling unweighted averages are widespread despite the superiority of syntheses based on weighted combination of effects. Such analyses allow exploration of methodological uncertainty in addition to consistency of effects across species, space and time, but exploring heterogeneity remains controversial. Meta-analyses are required to generalize in ecology, and to inform evidence-based decision-making, but the more sophisticated statistical techniques and registers of research used in other disciplines must be employed in ecology to fully realize their benefits.

Radiation ecological monitoring in NPP region

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Egorov, Yu.A.; Kazakov, S.V.

1985-01-01

The known principle of sanitary-hygienic regulation of NPP radiation effect on man and environment is analyzed. An ecological approach is required to optimize NPP relations with the environment and to regulate radioactivity of the NPP - environment system. The ecological approach envisages the development of standards of permissible concentrations of radioactive and chemical substances (as well as heat) in natural environment, taking into account their synergism, corresponding to ecologically permissible response reactions of biota to their effect. The ecological approach also comprises the sanitary-hygienic principle of radiation protection of man. Attention is paid to ecological monitoring in NPP region, comprising consideration of factors, affecting the environment, evaluation of the actual state of the environment, prediction of the environmental state, evaluation of the expected environmental state

Effects of season on ecological processes in extensive earthen tilapia ponds in Southeastern Brazil.

Science.gov (United States)

Favaro, E G P; Sipaúba-Tavares, L H; Milstein, A

2015-11-01

In Southeastern Brazil tilapia culture is conducted in extensive and semi-intensive flow-through earthen ponds, being water availability and flow management different in the rainy and dry seasons. In this region lettuce wastes are a potential cheap input for tilapia culture. This study examined the ecological processes developing during the rainy and dry seasons in three extensive flow-through earthen tilapia ponds fertilized with lettuce wastes. Water quality, plankton and sediment parameters were sampled monthly during a year. Factor analysis was used to identify the ecological processes occurring within the ponds and to construct a conceptual graphic model of the pond ecosystem functioning during the rainy and dry seasons. Processes related to nitrogen cycling presented differences between both seasons while processes related to phosphorus cycling did not. Ecological differences among ponds were due to effects of wind protection by surrounding vegetation, organic loading entering, tilapia density and its grazing pressure on zooplankton. Differences in tilapia growth among ponds were related to stocking density and ecological process affecting tilapia food availability and intraspecific competition. Lettuce wastes addition into the ponds did not produce negative effects, thus this practice may be considered a disposal option and a low-cost input source for tilapia, at least at the amounts applied in this study.

Determination of nuclear spins of short-lived isotopes by laser induced fluorescence

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Buchinger, F.; Dabkiewicz, P.; Kremmling, H.; Kuehl, T.; Mueller, A.C.; Schuessler, H.A.

1980-01-01

The spins of several nuclear ground and isomeric states have been measured for a number of mercury isotopes. The fluorescent light from the 6s6p 3 P 1 state is observed at 2537 Angstroem after excitation with the frequency doubled output of a pulsed dye laser. Four different laser induced fluorescence techniques were tested for their applicability: double resonance, Hanle effect, time delayed integral Hanle beats, and time resolved quantum beats. The sensitivity and selectivity of these models are compared with emphasis on the determination of spins of nuclei far from beta-stability, where short half lives and low production yields restrict the number of available atoms. The experiments were carried out on-line with the ISOLDE isotope separator at CERN at densities as low as 10 6 atoms/cm 3 . Results for the very neutron deficient high spin mercury isomers with half lives of several seconds, but also for the ground states of the abundant low spin stable mercury isotopes, are given as examples. The test measurements determined the nuclear spins of the odd sup(185m-191m)Hg isomers to be I = 13/2. (orig.)

18F half-life measurement using a high-purity germanium detector

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Han, Jubong; Lee, K.B.; Park, T.S.; Lee, J.M.; Oh, P.J.; Lee, S.H.; Kang, Y.S.; Ahn, J.K.

2012-01-01

The half-life of 18 F has been measured using HPGe detectors with a 137 Cs reference source. The counting ratio of 511 keV γ-rays from 18 F to 622 keV γ-rays from 137 Cs was fitted for the half-life with a weighted least-square method. Uncertainties due to the systematic effects arising from the measurement of a high activity 18 F source were studied in detail. The half-life of 18 F was found to be (109.72±0.19) min. The result is in a good agreement with the recommended value of (109.728±0.019) min evaluated at the Laborotaire National Henri Becquerel (LNHB). - Highlights: ► The 18 F half-life was measured with a reference source and without it using HPGe detectors. ► We found the systematic effect ‘activity dynamic range effect’ by monitoring the counts of the reference source. ► This activity dynamic range effect was corrected by using the reference source method. ► The 18 F half-life using the reference source method was in a good agreement with the recommended value of LNHB.

Studies on the fate of poisonous metals in experimental animal. VIII. Species difference on biological half life of cadmium

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Urakubo, G; Hasegawa, A; Ikebuchi, H; Onoda, K; Nakaura, S [National Inst. of Hygienic Sciences, Tokyo (Japan)

1978-04-01

About 30 -- 60 ..mu..Ci/0.15 mg Cd/kg of cadmium chloride solution containing sup(115m)Cd was injected intraperitoneally to mice, rats, guinea pigs, rabbits and quails, and thereafter the whole body retention of Cd was measured continuously for 60 -- 92 days in order to find the biological half lives of the metal in these animals. The whole body retention was determined by whole body counting of radioactivity in mice, rats, guinea pigs and quails, but in the case of rabbit it was determined by counting rates of excreta. The biological half lives thus obtained in mouse, rat, guinea pig, rabbit and quail were 220, 150 and 181, 334, 299 and 367 days, respectively. Namely, an apparent species difference was observed even under the same conditions such as sex of animal, dose of metal per kg and dosing route.

Ecology and basic laws

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mayer-Tasch, P.C.

1980-01-01

The author sketches the critical relation between ecology and basic law - critical in more than one sense. He points out the incompatibility of constitutional states and atomic states which is due to constitutional order being jeopardised by nuclear policy. He traces back the continuously rising awareness of pollution and the modern youth movement to their common root i.e. the awakening, the youth movement of the turn of the century. Eventually, he considers an economical, political, and social decentralization as a feasible alternative which would considerably relieve our basic living conditions from the threatening forms of civilization prevailing. (HSCH) [de

Visual half-field presentations of incongruent color words: effects of gender and handedness.

Science.gov (United States)

Franzon, M; Hugdahl, K

1986-09-01

Right-handed (dextral) and left-handed (sinistral) males and females (N = 15) were compared for language lateralization in a visual half-field (VHF) incongruent color-words paradigm. The paradigm consists of repeated brief (less than 200 msec) presentations of color-words written in an incongruent color. Presentations are either to the right or to the left of center fixation. The task of the subject is to report the color the word is written in on each trial, ignoring the color-word. Color-bars and congruent color-words were used as control stimuli. Vocal reaction time (VRT) and error frequency were used as dependent measures. The logic behind the paradigm is that incongruent color-words should lead to a greater cognitive conflict when presented in the half-field contralateral to the dominant hemisphere. The results showed significantly longer VRTs in the right half-field for the dextral subjects. Furthermore, significantly more errors were observed in the male dextral group when the incongruent stimuli were presented in the right half-field. There was a similar trend in the data for the sinistral males. No differences between half-fields were observed for the female groups. It is concluded that the present results strengthen previous findings from our laboratory (Hugdahl and Franzon, 1985) that the incongruent color-words paradigm is a useful non-invasive technique for the study of lateralization in the intact brain.

Radobiologic effects in the population living near Chernobyl

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Livingston, G.; Pratt, G.; Silberstein, E.; Shukla, R.; Jensen, R.; Hinnefeld, J.; Bigbee, W.; Langlois, R.

1994-01-01

Eightly citizens of the former Soviet Union were examined after immigrating to the U.S. from 1989-91. During the Chernobyl nuclear reactor accident, they were residents of four cities (Kiev, Gomel, Bobrujsk and Mozyr) all located 100-200 km from the plant. Examination of each individual included one - four whole-body radiation counts and a cytogenetic analysis of mitogen-stimulated peripheral blood lymphocytes for micronuclei as a biomarker of chromosome damage. In addition, 19 of the subjects heterozygous for the MN blood group were further tested using the glycophorin-A (GPA) specific locus mutation assay on erythrocytes. Results showed 48 immigrants including persons from all four cities had detectable levels of radiocesium contamination. The highest body burdens were found in a family who had lived in Mozyr, about 100 km northwest of Chernobyl. The observed decline in radiocesium of these subjects was consistent with the published biological half-life of 137 Cs. Adults showed the highest body burdens of radiocesium and the adult males from all four cities consistently showed higher levels than adult females. Age was found to account for much of the variation of lymphocyte micronuclei, however, a significant correlation was also demonstrated with radiocesium body burden and the absorbed dose for 20 subjects. Consistent with earlier studies, the frequency of simple allele loss (N/O) variants at the autosomal GPA locus was significantly higher than age- and sex-matched contemporaneous controls. Nine of the 19 MN heterozygotes showed variant frequencies 4-fold higher than mean frequency of matched controls. The allele loss mutations also showed a significant positive correlation with the radiocesium body burden. Results from this study indicate individuals living as far as 100-200 km from Chernobyl received radiation exposure from fallout sufficient to induce both cytogenetic abnormalities and specific locus mutations in hematopoietic tissues

LibHalfSpace: A C++ object-oriented library to study deformation and stress in elastic half-spaces

Science.gov (United States)

Ferrari, Claudio; Bonafede, Maurizio; Belardinelli, Maria Elina

2016-11-01

The study of deformation processes in elastic half-spaces is widely employed for many purposes (e.g. didactic, scientific investigation of real processes, inversion of geodetic data, etc.). We present a coherent programming interface containing a set of tools designed to make easier and faster the study of processes in an elastic half-space. LibHalfSpace is presented in the form of an object-oriented library. A set of well known and frequently used source models (Mogi source, penny shaped horizontal crack, inflating spheroid, Okada rectangular dislocation, etc.) are implemented to describe the potential usage and the versatility of the library. The common interface given to library tools enables us to switch easily among the effects produced by different deformation sources that can be monitored at the free surface. Furthermore, the library also offers an interface which simplifies the creation of new source models exploiting the features of object-oriented programming (OOP). These source models can be built as distributions of rectangular boundary elements. In order to better explain how new models can be deployed some examples are included in the library.

Air pollution and case fatality of SARS in the People's Republic of China: an ecologic study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yu Shun-Zhang

2003-11-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS has claimed 349 lives with 5,327 probable cases reported in mainland China since November 2002. SARS case fatality has varied across geographical areas, which might be partially explained by air pollution level. Methods Publicly accessible data on SARS morbidity and mortality were utilized in the data analysis. Air pollution was evaluated by air pollution index (API derived from the concentrations of particulate matter, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, carbon monoxide and ground-level ozone. Ecologic analysis was conducted to explore the association and correlation between air pollution and SARS case fatality via model fitting. Partially ecologic studies were performed to assess the effects of long-term and short-term exposures on the risk of dying from SARS. Results Ecologic analysis conducted among 5 regions with 100 or more SARS cases showed that case fatality rate increased with the increment of API (case fatality = - 0.063 + 0.001 * API. Partially ecologic study based on short-term exposure demonstrated that SARS patients from regions with moderate APIs had an 84% increased risk of dying from SARS compared to those from regions with low APIs (RR = 1.84, 95% CI: 1.41–2.40. Similarly, SARS patients from regions with high APIs were twice as likely to die from SARS compared to those from regions with low APIs. (RR = 2.18, 95% CI: 1.31–3.65. Partially ecologic analysis based on long-term exposure to ambient air pollution showed the similar association. Conclusion Our studies demonstrated a positive association between air pollution and SARS case fatality in Chinese population by utilizing publicly accessible data on SARS statistics and air pollution indices. Although ecologic fallacy and uncontrolled confounding effect might have biased the results, the possibility of a detrimental effect of air pollution on the prognosis of SARS patients deserves further investigation.

High precision measurement of the Ne-19 beta-decay half-life using real-time digital acquisition

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Fontbonne, C.; Ujic, P.; de Oliveira Santos, F.; Flechard, X.; Rotaru, F.; Achouri, N. L.; Girard Alcindor, V.; Bastin, B.; Boulay, F.; Briand, J. B.; Sanchez-Benitez, A. M.; Bouzomita, H.; Borcea, C.; Borcea, R.; Blank, B.; Cerniol, B.; Celikovic, I.; Delahaye, P.; Delaunay, F.; Etasse, D.; Fremont, G.; de France, G.; Fontbonne, J. M.; Grinyer, G. F.; Harang, J.; Hommet, J.; Jevremovic, A.; Lewitowicz, M.; Martel, I.; Mrázek, Jaromír; Parlog, M.; Poincheval, J.; Ramos, D.; Spitaels, C.; Stanoiu, M.; Thomas, J. C.; Toprek, D.

2017-01-01

Roč. 96, č. 6 (2017), č. článku 065501. ISSN 2469-9985 R&D Projects: GA MŠk LM2015076 Institutional support: RVO:61389005 Keywords : after-pulses * baseline fluctuations * half-lives nuclei Subject RIV: BG - Nuclear, Atomic and Molecular Physics, Colliders OBOR OECD: Nuclear physics Impact factor: 3.820, year: 2016

The effect of mining on landscape ecological systems and land reclamation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stys, S.

1991-01-01

Coal mining causes serious disturbance of the environment. Basic principles for the reclamation of affected territories are discussed. The effects of mining on the socio-ecological landscape system, the agricultural and forestry aspects of reclamation technologies after surface mining and the factors affecting the way of reclamation are shown in a diagrammatic form. The attached photographs document the effect of mining on landscape devastation. (M.D.). 17 figs