The Discrimination of Colored Acrylic, Cotton, and Wool Textile Fibers Using Micro-Raman Spectroscopy. Part 1 : In Situ Detection and Characterization of Dyes

Raman spectroscopy has been applied to characterize fiber dyes and determine the discriminating ability of the method. Black, blue, and red acrylic, cotton, and wool samples were analyzed. Four excitation sources were used to obtain complementary responses in the case of fluorescent samples. Fibers that did not provide informative spectra using a given laser were usually detected using another wavelength. For any colored acrylic, the 633-nm laser did not provide Raman information. The 514-nm laser provided the highest discrimination for blue and black cotton, but half of the blue cottons produced noninformative spectra. The 830-nm laser exhibited the highest discrimination for red cotton. Both visible lasers provided the highest discrimination for black and blue wool, and NIR lasers produced remarkable separation for red and black wool. This study shows that the discriminating ability of Raman spectroscopy depends on the fiber type, color, and the laser wavelength.

Francoisite-(Ce), a new mineral species from La Creusaz uranium deposit (Valais, Switzerland) and from Radium Ridge (Flinders Ranges, South Australia): Description and genesis

The new mineral francoisite-(Ce), (Ce,Nd,Ca)[(UO(2))(3)O(OH)(PO(4))(2)]center dot 6H(2)O is the Ce-analog of francoisite-(Nd). It has been discovered simultaneously at the La Creusaz uranium deposit near Les Marecottes in Valais, Switzerland, and at the Number 2 uranium Workings, Radium Ridge near Mt. Painter, Arkaroola area, Northern Flinders Ranges in South Australia. Francoisite-(Ce) is a uranyl-bearing supergene mineral that results from the alteration under oxidative conditions of REE- and U(4+)-bearing hypogene minerals: allanite-(Ce), monazite-(Ce), +/- uraninite at Les Marecottes; monazite-(Ce), ishikawaite-samarskite, and an unknown primary U-mineral at Radium Ridge. The REE composition of francoisite-(Ce) results from a short aqueous transport of REE leached out of primary minerals [most likely monazite-(Ce) at Radium Ridge and allanite-(Ce) at La Creusaz], with fractionation among REE resulting mainly from aqueous transport, with only limited Ce loss due to oxidation to Ce(4+) during transport.

Distribution and genesis of the RFRP-producing neurons in the rat brain: comparison with melanin-concentrating hormone- and hypocretin-containing neurons.

Prepro-RFRP-containing neurons have recently been described in the mammalian brain. These neurons are only found in the tuberal hypothalamus. In this work, we have provided a detailed analysis of the distribution of cells expressing the RFRP mRNA, and found them in seven anatomical structures of the tuberal hypothalamus. No co-expression with melanin-concentrating hormone (MCH) or hypocretin (Hcrt), that are also described in neurons of the tuberal hypothalamus, was observed. Using the BrdU method, we found that all RFRP cell bodies are generated between E13 and E14. Thus, RFRP neurons form a specific cell population with a complex distribution pattern in the tuberal hypothalamus. However, they are generated in one peak. These observations are discussed with data concerning the distribution and genesis of the MCH and Hcrt cell populations that are also distributed in the tuberal hypothalamus.

The Tightness of the Cotton Swabs Meshing Influences the Chances of Getting Conclusive DNA Profiles

Objective: The chance of obtaining a conclusive DNA profile strongly depends on the quantity of biological material that can be recovered from a crime scene sample. Optimizing the collection strategy is therefore of prime interest. A difference in the level of tightness of the cotton meshed around the shaft has been observed between manufacturers and is hypothesized to affect the collection and subsequent release capacity of cotton swabs. Consequently, we compared the performance of cotton swabs from two different suppliers: Applimed SA and DryswabTM. Methods: These swabs were used to recover 50 ml of blood, either pure or diluted (1:1000 and 1:5000), deposited on both smooth and absorbent surfaces. Performance was compared in terms of ease of use, concentration of extracted DNA, and quality of DNA profiles. DNA quantification was obtained by real-time PCR using the QuantifilerTM Human DNA Quantification Kit. Evaluation of DNA profiles was based on profiles obtained using AmpFlSTR® NGM SElectTM PCR Amplification kit. Results: When considering smooth surfaces, recovered DNA was more concentrated when using the DryswabTM than the Applimed SA cotton swab. More precisely, DNA concentrations ranged from 15.7 to 28.8 ng/ml and 6.7 to 21.2 ng/ml, respectively for samples of pure blood. The same trend was observed for the absorbent surface, with 2.0 to 5.0 ng/ml and 0.9 to 1.4 ng/ml, respectively. Conclusion: Our results illustrate that different cotton swabs produce different results in terms of ease of use and quantity of recovered DNA and this should be taken into consideration when choosing which swab to use at both the crime scene and laboratory. More specifically, results from the present study suggest that looser meshing of the cotton fibres

The Genesis and Effect of French Anti-Doping Policies in Cycling

This paper focuses on the transformation of French public policy on doping and its effects on the life of cycling professionals. We first focus on the emergence and the evolution of French public policies against doping in cycling. Then the article attempts to qualitatively observe the effects of policies on cyclists. The objective is to understand how the cycling culture is evolving. This article is based on 39 interviews with new and seasoned professionals, as well as ethnographic observations over a dozen years .

Multiple plume events in the genesis of the peri-Caribbean Cretaceous oceanic plateau province

The oceanic crust fragments exposed in central America, in north-western South America, and in the Caribbean islands have been considered to represent accreted remnants of the Caribbean-Colombian Oceanic Plateau (CCOP). On the basis of trace element and Nd, Sr, and Pb isotopic compositions we infer that cumulate rocks, basalts, and diabases from coastal Ecuador have a different source than the basalts from the Dominican Republic. The latter suite includes the 86 Ma basalts of the Duarte Complex which are light rare earth element (REE) -enriched and display (relative to normal mid-ocean ridge basalts, NMORB) moderate enrichments in large ion lithophile elements, together with high Nb, Ta, Pb, and low Th contents. Moreover, they exhibit a rather restricted range of Nd and Pb isotopic ratios consistent with their derivation from an ocean island-type mantle source, the composition of which includes the HIMU (high U-238/Pb-204) component characteristic of the Galapagos hotspot. In contrast, the 123 Ma Ecuadorian oceanic rocks have flat REE patterns and (relative to NMORB) are depleted in Zr, Hf, Th, and U. Moreover, they show a wide range of Nd and Pb isotopic ratios intermediate between those of ocean island basalts and NMORB. It is unlikely, on geochemical grounds, that the plume source of the Ecuadorian fragments was similar to that of the Galapagos. In addition, because of the NNE motion of the Farallon plate during the Early Cretaceous, the Ecuadorian oceanic plateau fragments could not have been derived from the Galapagos hotspot but were likely formed at a ridge-centered or near-ridge hotspot somewhere in the SE Pacific.

The contribution of the young Cretaceous Caribbean Oceanic Plateau to the genesis of late Cretaceous arc magmatism in the Cordillera Occidental of Ecuador

The eastern part of the Cordillera Occidental of Ecuador comprises thick buoyant oceanic plateaus associated with island-arc tholeiites and subduction-related calc-alkaline series, accreted to the Ecuadorian Continental Margin from Late Cretaceous to Eocene times. One of these plateau sequences, the Guaranda Oceanic Plateau is considered as remnant of the Caribbean-Colombian Oceanic Province (CCOP) accreted to the Ecuadorian Margin in the Maastrichtien. Samples studied in this paper were taken from four cross-sections through two arc-sequences in the northern part of the Cordillera Occidental of Ecuador, dated as (Rio Cala) or ascribed to (Macuchi) the Late Cretaceous and one arc-like sequence in the Chogon-Colonche Cordillera (Las Orquideas). These three island-arcs can clearly be identified and rest conformably on the CCOP. In all four localities, basalts with abundant large clinopyroxene phenocrysts can be found, mimicking a picritic or ankaramitic facies. This mineralogical particularity, although not uncommon in island arc lavas, hints at a contribution of the CCOP in the genesis of these island arc rocks. The complete petrological and geochemical study of these rocks reveals that some have a primitive island-arc nature (MgO values range from 6 to 11 wt.%). Studied samples display marked Nb, Ta and Ti negative anomalies relative to the adjacent elements in the spidergrams characteristic of subductionrelated magmatism. These rocks are LREE-enriched and their clinopyroxenes show a tholeiitic affinity (FeO(1)-TiO(2) enrichment and CaO depletion from core to rim within a single crystal). The four sampled cross-sections through the island-arc sequences display homogeneous initial Nd, and Pb isotope ratios that suggest a unique mantellic source for these rocks resulting from the mixing of three components: an East-Pacific MORB end-member, an enriched pelagic sediment component, and a HIMU component carried by the CCOP. Indeed, the ankaramite and Mg-basalt sequences that form part of the Caribbean-Colombian Oceanic Plateau are radiogenically enriched in (206)Pb/(204)Pb and (207)Pb/(204)Pb and contain a HIMU component similar to that observed in the Gorgona basalts and Galapagos lavas. The subduction zone that generated the Late Cretaceous arcs occurred far from the continental margin, in an oceanic environment. This implies that no terrigenous detrital sediments interacted with the source at this period. Thus, the enriched component can only result from the melting of subducted pelagic sediments. We have thus defined the East-Pacific MORB, enriched (cherts, pelagic sediments) and HIMU components in an attempt to constrain and model the genesis of the studied island-arc magmatism, using a compilation of carefully selected isotopic data from literature according to rock age and paleogeographic location at the time of arc edification. Tripolar mixing models reveal that proportions of 12-15 wt.% of the HIMU component, 7-15 wt.% of the pelagic sediment end-member and 70-75 wt.% of an East-pacific MORB end-member are needed to explain the measured isotope ratios. These surprisingly high proportions of the HIMU/CCOP component could be explained by the young age of the oceanic plateau (5-15 Ma) during the Late Cretaceous arc emplacement. The CCOP, basement of these arc sequences, was probably still hot and easily assimilated at the island-arc lava source. (C) 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved,

The sandstone-hosted Beverley uranium Deposit, Lake Frome Basin, South Australia: Mineralogy, geochemistry, and a time-constrained model for its genesis

The sandstone-hosted Beverley uranium deposit is located in terrestrial sediments in the Lake Frome basin in the North Flinders Ranges, South Australia. The deposit is 13 km from the U-rich Mesoproterozoic basement of the Mount Painter inlier, which is being uplifted 100 to 200 m above the basin by neotectonic activity that probably initiated in the early Pliocene. The mineralization was deposited mainly in organic matter-poor Miocene lacustrine sands and partly in the underlying reductive strata comprising organic matter-rich clays and silts. The bulk of the mineralization consists of coffinite and/or uraninite nodules, growing around Co-rich pyrite with an S isotope composition (delta S-34 = 1.0 +/- 0.3 parts per thousand), suggestive of an early diagenetic lacustrine origin. In contrast, authigenic sulfides in the bulk of the sediments have a negative S isotope signature (delta S-34 ranges from -26.2 to -35.5 parts per thousand), indicative of an origin via bacterially mediated sulfate reduction. Minor amounts of Zn-bearing native copper and native lead also support the presence of specific, reducing microenvironments in the ore zone. Small amounts of carnotite are associated with the coffinite ore and also occur beneath a paleosoil horizon overlying the uranium deposit. Provenance studies suggest that the host Miocene sediments were derived from the reworking of Early Cretaceous glacial or glaciolacustrine sediments ultimately derived from Paleozoic terranes in eastern Australia. In contrast, the overlying Pliocene strata were in part derived from the Mesoproterozoic basement inlier. Mass-balance and geochemical data confirm that granites of the Mount Painter domain were the ultimate source of U and BEE at Beverley. U-Pb dating of coffinite and carnotite suggest that the U mineralization is Pliocene (6.7-3.4 Ma). The suitability of the Beverley deposit for efficient mining via in situ leaching, and hence its economic value, are determined by the nature of the hosting sand unit, which provides the permeability and low reactivity required for high fluid flow and low chemical consumption. These favorable sedimentologic and geometrical features result from a complex conjunction of factors, including deposition in lacustrine shore environment, reworking of angular sands of glacial origin, deep Pliocene weathering, and proximity to an active fault exposing extremely U rich rocks.

Major environmental change and bonebed genesis prior to the Triassic-Jurassic mass extinction

We present new geochemical and sedimentological data from marginal marine strata of Penarth Bay, south Wales (UK) to elucidate the origin of widespread but enigmatic concentrations of vertebrate hard parts (bonebeds) in marine successions of Rhaetian age (late Triassic). Sedimentological evidence shows that the phosphatic constituents of the bonebeds were subjected to intense phosphatization in shallow current-dominated settings and subsequently reworked and transported basinward by storms. Interbedded organic-rich strata deposited under quiescent and poorly oxygenated conditions record enhanced phosphorus regeneration from sedimentary organic matter into the water column and probably provided the main source of phosphate required for heavy bonebed clast phosphatization. The stratigraphically limited interval showing evidence for oxygen depletion and accelerated P-cycling coincides with a negative 4% organic carbon isotope excursion, which possibly reflects supra-regional changes in carbon cycling and clearly predates the 'initial isotope excursion' characterizing many Triassic-Jurassic boundary strata. our data indicate that Rhaetian bonebeds are the lithological signature of profound, climatically driven changes in carbon cycling and redox conditions and support the idea of a multi-pulsed environmental crisis at the end of the Triassic, possibly linked to successive episodes of igneous activity in the central Atlantic Magmatic Province.