Harmful algal research and response: A human dimensions strategy

Harmful Algal Research and Response: A Human Dimensions Strategy (HARR-HD) justifies and guides a coordinated national commitment to human dimensions research critical to prevent and respond to impacts of harmful algal blooms (HABs). Beyond HABs, it serves as a framework for developing hu-man dimensions research as a cross-cutting priority of ecosystem science supporting coastal and ocean management, including hazard research and mitigation planning. Measuring and promoting commu-nity resilience to hazards require human dimensions research outcomes such as effective risk commu-nication strategies; assessment of community vulnerability; identification of susceptible populations; comprehensive assessment of environmental, sociocultural, and economic impacts; development of effective decision support tools; and improved coordination among agencies and stakeholders. HARR-HD charts a course for human dimensions research to achieve these and other priorities through co-ordinated implementation by the Joint Subcommittee on Ocean Science and Technology (JSOST) In-teragency Working Group on HABs, Hypoxia and Human Health (IWG-4H); national HAB funding programs; national research and response programs; and state research and monitoring programs. (PDF contains 72 pages)

A kinematic subgrid scale model for large-eddy simulation of turbulence generated sound

In the hybrid approach of large-eddy simulation (LES) and Lighthill’s acoustic analogy for turbulence-generated sound, the turbulence source fields are obtained using an LES and the turbulence-generated sound at far fields is calculated from Lighthill’s acoustic analogy. As only the velocity fields at resolved scales are available from the LES, the Lighthill stress tensor, serving as a source term in Lighthill’s acoustic equation, has to be evaluated from the resolved velocity fields. As a result, the contribution from the unresolved velocity fields is missing in the conventional LES. The sound of missing scales is shown to be important and hence needs to be modeled. The present study proposes a kinematic subgrid-scale (SGS) model which recasts the unresolved velocity fields into Lighthill’s stress tensors. A kinematic simulation is used to construct the unresolved velocity fields with the imposed temporal statistics, which is consistent with the random sweeping hypothesis. The kinematic SGS model is used to calculate sound power spectra from isotropic turbulence and yields an improved result: the missing portion of the sound power spectra is approximately recovered in the LES.

Falling through the cracks: are European directives and international conventions the panacea for freshwater nature conservation?

There are many ways of practising freshwater nature conservation: from strict legislative protection of individual species considered rare or threatened to protecting whole lakes or long stretches of rivers; from practical conservation management at a local scale to integrated catchment management at the river basin scale; and from the encouragement of better habitat management through codes of good practice to statutory control of pollution or abstraction. Whatever the mechanism, an essential pre-requisite is a way of choosing where to put the effort, especially when resources for nature conservation are severely limited. The aim of this article is to review the contribution from four specific international measures to the task of assigning priorities for conservation. The 1990s saw the introduction of two European directives (the Habitats Directive (HD) and the Water Framework Directive (WFD)) and one international convention (the Biodiversity Convention (CBD)) each with the potential for influencing, to a greater or lesser extent, the conservation of freshwater habitats and species. This article also discusses a much older convention – the Ramsar Convention – adopted in 1971 specifically to help tackle the conservation and management of wetlands and aquatic ecosystems. Although the authors have focused mainly on the UK, the subject is relevant to other parts of Europe and beyond. The article explores the degree to which these measures help in identifying the most important fresh waters for conservation, and asks whether or not they present the right conservation message to a wide audience.

Biochemical and Biophysical Characterization of Huntingtin

Huntington’s disease (HD) is a fatal autosomal dominant neurodegenerative disease. HD has no cure, and patients pass away 10-20 years after the onset of symptoms. The causal mutation for HD is a trinucleotide repeat expansion in exon 1 of the huntingtin gene that leads to a polyglutamine (polyQ) repeat expansion in the N-terminal region of the huntingtin protein. Interestingly, there is a threshold of 37 polyQ repeats under which little or no disease exists; and above which, patients invariably show symptoms of HD. The huntingtin protein is a 350 kDa protein with unclear function. As the polyQ stretch expands, its propensity to aggregate increases with polyQ length. Models for polyQ toxicity include formation of aggregates that recruit and sequester essential cellular proteins, or altered function producing improper interactions between mutant huntingtin and other proteins. In both models, soluble expanded polyQ may be an intermediate state that can be targeted by potential therapeutics.

In the first study described herein, the conformation of soluble, expanded polyQ was determined to be linear and extended using equilibrium gel filtration and small-angle X-ray scattering. While attempts to purify and crystallize domains of the huntingtin protein were unsuccessful, the aggregation of huntingtin exon 1 was investigated using other biochemical techniques including dynamic light scattering, turbidity analysis, Congo red staining, and thioflavin T fluorescence. Chapter 4 describes crystallization experiments sent to the International Space Station and determination of the X-ray crystal structure of the anti-polyQ Fab MW1. In the final study, multimeric fibronectin type III (FN3) domain proteins were engineered to bind with high avidity to expanded polyQ tracts in mutant huntingtin exon 1. Surface plasmon resonance was used to observe binding of monomeric and multimeric FN3 proteins with huntingtin.

Construction of the refractive index profiles for few-mode planar optical waveguides

We present a nondestructive technique to predict the refractive index profiles of isotropic planar waveguides, on which a thin gold film is deposited to as the cladding. The negative dielectric constant of the metal results in significant differences of effective indices between TE and TM modes. The two polarized modes and a surface plasmon resonance (SPR) with abundant information of the surface index can be used to construct the refractive index profiles of single-mode and two-mode waveguides at a fixed wavelength. (c) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Spectroscopic and thermal properties of short wavelength metal (II) complexes containing alpha-isoxazolylazo-beta-diketones as co-ligands

Two new azo dyes of alpha-isoxazolylazo-beta-dilcetones and their Ni(II) and Cu(II) complexes with blue-violet light wavelength were synthesized using a coupling component, different diazo components and metal (II) ions (Ni2+ and Cu2+). Based on the elemental analysis, MS spectra and FT-IR spectral analyses, azo dyes were unequivocally shown to exist as hydrazoketo and azoenol forms which were respectively obtained from the solution forms and from the solid forms. The action of sodium methoxide (NaOMe) on azo dyes in solutions converts hydrazoketo form into azoenol form, so azo dyes are coordinated with metal (II) ions as co-ligands in the azoenol forms. The solubility of all the compounds in common organic solvents such as 2,2,3,3-tetrafluoro-1-propanol (TFP) or chloroform (CHCl3) and absorption properties of spin-coating thin films were measured. The difference of absorption maxima from the complexes to their ligands was discussed. In addition, the TG analysis of the complexes was also determined, and their thermal stability was evaluated. It is found that these new metal (II) complexes had potential application for high-density digital versatile disc-recordable (HD-DVD-R) system due to their good solubility in organic solvents, reasonable and controllable absorption spectra in blue-violet light region and high thermal stability. (c) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Synthesis, spectroscopic and thermal properties of nickel (II)-azo complexes with blue-violet light wavelength

A novel azo dye containing isoxazole ring and beta-diketone derivative (TIAD) and its two nickel (II) complexes (Ni (II)-ETIAD and Ni (II)-HTIAD) were synthesized in order to obtain a blue-violet light absorption and better thermal stability as a promising organic storage material for next generation of high density digital versatile disc-recordable (HD-DVD-R) systems that uses a high numerical aperture of 0.85 at 405 nm wavelength. Their structures were confirmed on the basis of elemental analysis, MS, FT-IR, UV-Vis and magnetic data. Their solubility in 2,2,3,3-tetrafluoro-1-propanol (TFP) and absorption properties of thin film were measured. The difference of absorption maximum from the complexes to their ligands was discussed. In addition, the TG analysis of the complexes was also determined, and their thermal stability was evaluated. (C) 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Solutions for New Terrestrial Broadcasting Systems Offering Simultaneously Stationary and Mobile Services

221 p.

Rare earth dibenzoylmethane complexes for potential application as high-density recordable optical recording materials

Three kinds of rare earth complexes derived from dibenzoylmethane (DBM) ligand were synthesized by reacting free ligand and different rare earth ions(La (3+), Sm3+ and Gd3+). Their contents and structures were postulated based on elemental analysis, LDI-TOF-MS, FT-IR spectra and UV-Vis spectra. Smooth films on K9 glass substrates were prepared using the spin-coating method. Their solubility in organic solvents, absorption and reflection properties of thin film and thermal stability of these complexes were evaluated. These complexes would be a promising recording material for high-density digital versatile disc-recordable (HD-DVD-R) system. (c) 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Hemisferectomia unilateral na vida adulta como modelo para o estudo das assimetrias motoras em camundongos

Em humanos, uma série de estudos vem sugerindo que o hemisfério esquerdo é particularmente importante no controle e execução de movimentos. De modo geral, lesões no hemisfério esquerdo promovem déficits motores mais pronunciados que lesões semelhantes no hemisfério direito. Neste trabalho utilizamos a hemisferectomia unilateral para avaliar a contribuição de cada hemisfério na função motora em camundongos. Camundongos Suíços adultos foram submetidos a hemisferectomia unilateral direita (HD) ou esquerda (HE) ou aos procedimentos de controle. Quinze dias após cirurgia, a coordenação motora de cada animal foi avaliada no teste da locomoção forçada em cilindro giratório (Rotarod). A latência para a queda do grupo controle foi significativamente maior que a do grupo HD e não diferiu da do grupo HE. Para auxiliar a interpretação dos resultados obtidos no ROTAROD, uma parte dos animais foi submetida a uma bateria adicional de testes comportamentais na seguinte seqüência: teste de campo aberto, avaliação qualitativa da assimetria sensório-motora, teste da grade elevada e teste de suspensão pela cauda. De modo interessante, no teste da grade elevada, enquanto o grupo HD apresentou o desempenho da pata traseira esquerda (contralateral à lesão) significativamente pior que o da direita, os grupos Controle e HE não apresentaram diferenças entre as duas patas traseiras. De modo análogo ao observado em humanos, nossos resultados sugerem uma ação assimétrica dos hemisférios cerebrais no controle da função motora em camundongos.