Distribution and Abundance of Steller Sea Lions, Eumetopias jubatus, on the Asian Coast, 1720's-2005

We analyzed published and archived records for the past 250 years to assess changes in distribution and abundance of Steller sea lions, Eumetopias jubatus, along the Asian coast from the Bering Strait to the Korean Peninsula. We found that the northern extent of Steller sea lion distribution has not changed but that the southern limit has moved north by some 500–900 km (~300–500 n.mi.) over the past 50 years. Additionally, the number of animals and their distribution has changed on the Commander Islands, Kuril Islands, and Kamchatka Peninsula. We found no changes in the number of rookeries in the northern Sea of Okhotsk, but a new rookery was established at Tuleny Island on the eastern coast of Sakhalin Island. We estimate that the total abundance of Steller sea lions along the Asian coast in the late 19th century was about 115,000 animals; during the 1960’s, the total estimate was about 27,000 (including pups), most of which were in the Kuril Islands. The fewest number of Steller sea lions occurred in the northwestern Pacific in the late 1980’s–early 1990’s when only about 13,000 individuals (including pups) were estimated in the entire region. During the 1990’s, and especially in early 2000, an increasing trend in abundance occurred in most areas. Present estimated abundance of Steller sea lions in Asia is about 16,000 individuals (including about 5,000 pups), about half of which occur in the Kuril Islands. Changes in abundance occurred during all time periods but varied by site and period. Specifically, over the past 150 years Steller sea lion abundance at most sites has changed. There were no rookeries on the Commander Islands between 1850 and 1960 and abundance was low, but by 1977, abundance increased to 4,800 individuals and a rookery was established in the mid 1980’s; abundance there has declined since the early 1980’s and in 2004 only 895 individuals (including 221 pups) were counted during the breeding season. Between 1940 and 2004, abundance along the eastern coast of Kamchatka declined from ~7,000 to ~600 individuals, an overall reduction of 90%. Steller sea lion abundance on the Kuril Islands declined by >90% from the 1800’s to 2005; the most severe decline there occurred during 1969–1981. Steller sea lion numbers in the northern part of the Sea of Okhotsk declined during 1930–2002 from 7,200 to 3,100 individuals. Numbers at Tuleny Island have increased since establishment of a rookery there during 1983–2005 and by immigration from other sites.

Consumo de carnes por forma de preparo no Brasil.

A plausível associação entre o consumo de carnes e o desenvolvimento do câncer colorretal vem sendo em parte explicada pelo processo de formação de aminas heterocíclicas e hidrocarbonetos aromáticos durante a cocção. No Brasil este tipo de câncer encontra-se entre as três mais frequentes causas de óbito por câncer tanto em homens como em mulheres, sendo as regiões Sul e Sudeste as que apresentam as maiores taxas de mortalidade. Este estudo tem como objetivo estimar o consumo médio per capita e prevalência de carnes segundo formas de preparo no Brasil, com ênfase nas técnicas grelhado/brasa/churrasco e frito. Foram utilizados dados do Inquérito Nacional de Alimentação (INA) que faz parte da Pesquisa de Orçamentos Familiares (POF) realizado entre os anos de 2008 e 2009. Nesse inquérito foram analisadas informações referentes ao consumo alimentar de 34.003 indivíduos com dez anos de idade ou mais, contemplando questões a cerca da quantidade de alimentos consumidos em unidades de medidas caseiras, forma de preparo do alimento e local de consumo (alimentação dentro do domicílio ou quando o alimento foi preparado e consumido fora do domicílio). As medias de carnes em geral foram estratificadas por sexo, escolaridade, quarto de renda, grandes regiões geográficas, situação do domicílio (urbano/rural) e local de consumo (dentro/fora do lar). Para a extração dos valores médios per capita consumidos, foram utilizados os procedimentos survey para levar em consideração os efeitos do desenho amostral. Verificou-se que a maior média per capita de consumo em gramas ocorreu no grupo de carne bovina, e a forma de preparo frito apresentou a maior média per capita de ingestão (31 gramas/ dia). Agrupando-se todos os tipos de carnes em apenas uma classe, "carnes em geral", a forma de preparação frita permaneceu com média de consumo demasiadamente maior que a forma grelhado/brasa/churrasco em todas as variáveis analisadas. Quando desagregado pelas variáveis de interesse, a maior média de consumo per capita de carnes em geral ocorreu na mais alta categoria de escolaridade (21 gramas/ dia) para o tipo grelhado/brasa/churrasco e entre residentes da região Norte (111gramas/ dia) para o tipo frito. As menores médias per capita ocorreram entre os indivíduos no primeiro quarto de renda (1,96 gramas/ dia) para aqueles que consumiram grelhado/brasa/churrasco e para as carnes fritas a menor média foi observada fora do domicílio (20 gramas/ dia). Os achados indicam que existe uma acentuada diferença entre o consumo médio per capita de grelhado/brasa/churrasco e fritos entre as regiões brasileiras, sendo mais evidente quando desagregado por variáveis sócio demográficas.

Measurement of stressful postures during daily activities: An observational study with older people.

This study measured the postures of older people during cooking and laundry. A sample of men and women aged 75+ years (n=27) was recruited and observed in a home-like environment. Postures were recorded with a measurement system in an objective and detailed manner. The participants were videotaped to be able to see where 'critical' postures occurred, as defined by a trunk inclination of ≥60°. Analysis of data was facilitated by specially developed software. Critical postures accounted for 3% of cooking and 10% of laundry, occurring primarily during retrieving from and putting in lower cabinets, the refrigerator, laundry basket or washing machine as well as disposing into the waste bin. These tasks involve a great variation in postural changes and pose a particular risk to older people. The results suggest that the use of stressful postures may decrease efficiency and increase fatigue, eventually leading to difficulties with daily activities. The specific tasks identified during which critical postures occurred should be targeted by designers in order to improve the activities. A few examples are given of how better design can reduce or eliminate some of the postural constraints.

Survival rates of rays discarded by the bottom trawl squid fishery off the Falkland Islands

Waters off the Falkland Islands are subject to a specialized multispecies ray fishery and were first fished by a Korean fleet in 1989. More than twenty different rajid species have been recorded from catches around the islands, and five species accounted for 87.04% of the total catch during 1993−2002. Catches peaked in 1993 at 8523 metric tons, and specific fishing licenses — R (second season) and F (first season) — were first introduced in 1994 and in 1995, respectively (Agnew et al. 2000; Falkland Islands Government, 2002; Wakeford et al., in press).

蒙古枥红松动态及生物多样性主题信息标准的研究

（一）蒙古栎红松林动态的研究 本文综述了森林动态模型的基本概念和发展历史，把模型分为生长和演替模型两类，并比较了两类模型的特点和适用条件，详细论述了演替模型的基本原理，分析了早期和最新林窗模型的特点，给出了林窗模型的最新进展，指出森林动态模型的发展趋势为：①、为满足不同用户对模型的要求，模型应向综合总体方向发展;②、随着生理生态学的发展、试验仪器及分析方法的进步，和为了进一步认识森林动态变化的机理，建立树木生长机制过程模型成为另一个必然的发展方向。 随后综合分析了广泛应用于林窗模型中作为描述树高和直径关系的数学函数，通过理论分析和实际观测数据拟合及预测精度检验，表明理查德方程和单分子方程是森林动态林窗模型中描述树高和直径关系的最佳方程。 通过对蒙古栎红松林三个年龄阶段物种和结构动态实际观测数据分析表明，该类型森林的早期阶段以蒙古栎等阳性树种占优势，中期形成红松和阔叶树占优势的混交林，后期以红松占绝对优势。对该类型森林直径分布变化的研究得出：林分发育的早期，阔叶树中大径级木较多，针叶树中小径级木多;在林分发育的后期呈相反分布。用理论概率模型拟合直径分布表明，韦布尔概率分布模型是描述蒙古栎红松林直径分布的最合适函数。 在以上研究结果的基础上，以森林动态斑块理论为基础建立了蒙古栎红松林动态变化的林窗模型FOROAK，该模型包括对树木生长的生物学过程和影响树木生长的环境因子模拟两部分。运行模型用两种不同面积大小的样地分析森林动态，确定蒙古栎红松林林窗面积为0.05ha。以实际调查数据检验模型，证明所得模型能合理预测森林变化过程，在预测树种组成上精度很高。对裸地上森林的模拟表明蒙古栎红松林动态过程复杂，蒙古栎和白桦在林分发育开始占优势后期渐被红松取代。对现实原始林预测显示，森林未来300年变化稳定，红松株数和生物量变化很小。 最后，应用建立的林窗模型研究了同龄纯林林分密度动态，模拟了林分密度、断面积、生物量、叶面积指数和生产力150年的变化，用林分密度效应的3/2法则和产量恒定法则检验模拟结果表明，模拟的林分密度发展与理论预测相符合，通过本文的研究既检验了林窗动态模型又印证了林分密度效应理论。 （二）生物多样性主题信息标准的研究 中国是世界上生物多样性最丰富的国家之一，在多年的调查、研究和保护工作中，已积累了大量的数据资料，因此，被联合国环境规划署挑选参加“发展中国家生物多样性数据管理能力建设及信息系统网络化”项目，该项目的主要内容之一就是了解与生物多样性有关领域的主题信息标准。 主题信息标准部分讨论了生物多样性信息的收集、管理和转换标准，系统而全面地概述了生物多样性有关领域应用的数据分类系统、核心数据集以及与数据获得有关的术语、定义和数据模型，并讨论了各部门在研究和促进生物多样性信息标准化方面的成果和正在开展的工作。涉及的领域有自然和人工生境中的陆地植被、农业、林业、湿地、海岸和海洋，还有保护区、物种和对生物多样性有威胁的因子等专题。 文中讲述了与陆地植被分类有关的土地利用方式和土地覆盖分类等问题，并给出了国际国内应用广泛的植被分类系统。讨论了农业中与生物多样性有直接关系的分类系统，包括土地分类系统、土壤分类系统等。从森林生态系统和土地利用、林权和林政、森林资源调查、评价和监测、森林利用和经营实践、森林环境和可持续发展等几方面讨论了这些主题的概念、术语和数量划分标准。 讨论了湿地分类系统的发展，列举了国内外应用广泛的分类系统。论述了海岸和海洋生境及保护区的分类系统和标准，给出了数据定义和模型。列举了国内外广泛应用的物种命名标准和其发展过程。分遗传多样性、物种多样性和生态系统多样性三个层次讨论了它们受威胁的特点和评价现状，最后分别不同的威胁因子，如：生境丧失和片断化、全球气候变化、酸雨、臭氧层破坏和有毒污染物讨论了它们对生物多样性的威胁特点和评价现状。

Studies on the preparation of fish protein concentrate

The paper deals with the method of preparation of an edible fish protein concentrate from cheap miscellaneous fish. The method consists in cooking the fish with 0.5% glacial acetic acid, and extracting batch—wise, using ethyl alcohol followed by an azeotropic mixture of hexane and alcohol (B. Pt. 58-68°C). The product is finally vacuum dried during which the residual solvent is also removed. The concentrate prepared by this method contains 85% protein of which 96% is pepsin digestible. The product is practically odorless and almost white in color.

Studies on technological problems associated with the processing of cooked frozen prawns. Pt. 1. Preprocess storage conditions of raw material in relation to quality

The chemical and organoleptic properties of prawn held in ice for different days prior to cooking and the changes after freezing and subsequent storage were studied with three different species of prawn viz. Metapenaeus monoceros, Metapenaeus dobsoni and Parapeneopsis stylifera. The optimum period for which the prawn can be kept under ideal conditions of icing prior to cooking has been worked out.

Effect of microwave pasteurisation on the quality of fish chikuwa

Temperature profile of fish chikuwa was taken during microwave cooking at 100 power level for different durations and subjected to organoleptic evaluation. Moisture content and organoleptic quality of fish chikuwa paste mixed with different levels of moisture and cooked at 100 power levels for 6 minutes were analysed. Microwave cooked fish chikuwa with standardized recipe was heated in microwave oven with hot air at different temperature for different durations. Fish chikuwa microwave cooked at 100 power level for 6 minutes had higher scores for all attributes as compared to those cooked for different durations and also fulfill the condition of pasteurisation of fish chikuwa. Fish chikuwa prepared with 35% moisture had better scores for all attributes unlike those of other levels. Heating of microwave pasteurised fish chikuwa at different temperatures for different durations could not achieve the desired brown colour.

Fracture and energy partitioning in uncooked and cooked noodles

Humans perform fascinating science experiments at home on a daily basis when they undertake the modification of natural and naturally-derived materials by a cooking process prior to consumption. The material properties of such foods are of interest to food scientists (texture is often fundamental to food acceptability), oral biologists (foods modulate feeding behavior), anthropologists (cooking is probably as old as the genus Homo and distinguishes us from all other creatures) and dentists (foods interact with tooth and tooth replacement materials). Materials scientists may be interested in the drastic changes in food properties observed over relatively short cooking times. In the current study, the mechanical properties of one of the most common (and oldest at 4,000+ years) foods on earth, the noodle, were examined as a function of cooking time. Two types of noodles were studied, each made from natural materials (wheat flour, salt, alkali and water) by kneading dough and passing them through a pasta-making machine. These were boiled for between 2-14 min and tested at regular intervals from raw to an overcooked state. Cyclic tensile tests at small strain levels were used to examine energy dissipation characteristics. Energy dissipation was >50% per cycle in uncooked noodles, but decreased by an order of magnitude with cooking. Fractional dissipation values remained approximately constant at cooking times greater than 7 min. Overall, a greater effect of cooking was on viscoplastic dissipation characteristics rather than on fracture resistance. The results of the current study plot the evolution of a viscoplastic mixture into an essentially elastic material in the space of 7 minutes and have broad implications for understanding what cooking does to food materials. In particular, they suggest that textural assessment by consumers of the optimally cooked state of food has a definite physical definition. © 2007 Materials Research Society.

Studies on the suitability of producing value-added products from silver carp, Hypophthalmichthys molitrix

Silver carp, Hypophthalmichthys molitrix is contributing significantly to the total production of fish through aquaculture in Bangladesh. However, its low market price has become a serious concern to the fish farmers. The suitability of silver carp mince for the production of various value-added products (VAPs) - surimi, fish sausage, fish burger and fish stick was studied during April-September 2000 to ensure more appropriate and profitable utilization of silver carp. Surimi/frozen mince block was produced by washing the silver carp mince with 0.1% NaCl for 7-8 min (4-5 min agitation and 3-4 min settling). A two-step heating schedule for incubation at 50°C for 2 h and cooking at 95°C for 30 min gave high textured good quality consumer product. With the addition of cryoprotectants, surimi could be kept frozen for 5 months without loosing [sic] much of its textural and sensory qualities. Mince-mix and a batter with different ingredients and spices were formulated to produce fish burger using potato smash as the binding agent. Fish flake-mix and a batter with different ingredients and spices were formulated to prepare fish stick using both potato starch and potato smash as filler ingredients. Unwashed and washed frozen mince block or fresh flesh of silver carp was used to prepare fish sausage by heating at 100°C for 1 h after incubating at 50°C for 2 h. A spice-mix formulated with various local spices at the rate of 1.0-1.2% gave good texture and flavor to the sausage. A good-appeared sausage-pink color was developed by combining three food-grade colors of asthaxanthin. Products prepared with potato starch, potato smash and rice smash had an acceptable bacterial load in refrigeration (5°C) for up to 8 days and in room temperature (28°C) for up to 3 days. No coliform bacteria were found in the products prepared.

Utilization of frog waste

Commercial frog waste samples have been converted into meals by cooking at 0.7 kg/sq. cm for 30 min, draining off the stick water and drying the press cake either in the sun, tunnel dryer under controlled conditions or hot air oven. Yield of the meal varied between 18.6 to 21.5% of the fresh frog waste. Chemical analyses of the meals have shown that the meals prepared from frog waste conform to standards prescribed for fish meal and livestock feed and can therefore be used for supplementation of poultry/animal feed.