Shrinkage of Gobiocypris rarus, Procypris rabaudi, and Sinilabeo rendahli preserved in formalin

Length measurements of preserved fishes are necessary in many types of fish surveys because logistics often do not allow for fish measurement immediately after catch. If the fixative causes significant shrinkage, then the preserved lengths cannot be directly used to indicate accurate live lengths. The objective of this study was to determine how preservation in formalin affects standard length of Gobiocypris rarus larvae (24-day-old and newly hatched), larval Procypris rabaudi (4-day-old), and larval Sinilabeo rendahli (12-day-old). Fishes were measured (to nearest 0.01 mm) and individually fixed in the appropriate formalin solution (2.5% or 5.0% formalin), then re-measured at 0.5, 1, 3, 7, 14, 30, 45 and 75 days after preservation to follow the time course of shrinkage. Most of the shrinkage occurred within the first half day after preservation. The 5.0% formalin caused a higher relative shrinkage rate than did the 2.5% solution; however, the difference was not statistically significant. In G. rarus, initial shrinkage of newly hatched larvae was higher than that of 24-day-old larvae.

Estimation of the natural purification rate of a eutrophic lake after pollutant removal

Pollution resulting from increased human activities is threatening Lake Donghu, its effects being characterized by serious eutrophication. A steady increase of phosphorus loading is the most important factor of the lake eutrophication. Pollution external control projects are being implemented and will be accomplished before the year 2010. In order to predict the restoration rate by the lake's self-purification after the projects of external control, a model of predicting the removal rate of total phosphorus (TP) from lake water is developed, and a brief method of estimating the release and export rate of sediment phosphorus is suggested. Results show that, on the premise of external loading fully controlled. The restoration needs about 55 years or more. Obviously, the great P pool in the sediment will be a limiting factor of preventing the improvement of water quality after the external loading is under control. Based on the estimation we conclude that after the external control projects before 2010, in order to restore the lake in a few years, although highly cost, the first step must be the sediment dredging to remove internal loading. The second step is diverting water of River Changjiang into the lake to accelerate the improvement of lake water. Otherwise, removal of pollutant sources will become meaningless. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Pt redistribution in N-MOS transistors during Ni salicide process

Atom probe tomography was used to study the redistribution of platinum during Ni(10 at.%Pt) silicidation of n-doped polycrystalline Si. These measurements were performed after the two annealing steps of standard salicide process both on a field-effect transistor and on unpatterned region submitted to the same process. Very similar results are obtained in unpatterned region and in transistor gate contact. The first phase to form is not the expected δ-Ni2Si but the non stoichiometric θ-Ni2Si. Pt redistribution is strongly influenced by this phase and the final distribution is different from what is reported in literature. © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Acrossocheilus spinifer, a new species of barred cyprinid fish from south China (Pisces : Teleostei)

Acrossocheilus spinifer sp. nov. is described from the river basins in Fujian Province and the Han Jiang basin in Guangdong Province, south China. It is one of the barred Acrossocheihis species sharing five or six vertical bars on the flanks, with each bar being two scales in width. Acrossocheilus spinifer sp. nov. is morphologically most similar to Acrossocheilus wenchowensis. but distinguished from it by: a colour pattern of all vertical bars extending ventrally to the second scale row below the lateral line, and having the second bar placed posterior to the base of the last simple dorsal-fin ray, a blunt snout; and a stout, last simple dorsal-fin ray. Acrossocheilus spinifer sp. nov. resembles Acrossocheilus kreyenbergii and Acrossocheilus stenotaeniatus with which it shares a stout, last simple dorsal-fin ray with a serrated posterior edge, but is separated from both species by having a narrow median interruption in the lower lip, a lower jaw fully covered by the lower lip when viewed ventrally and the second vertical bar placed posterior to the base of the last simple dorsal-fin ray. The absence of a longitudinal stripe extending along the lateral line on the flanks in males readily distinguishes A. spinifer sp. nov. from Four other species, namely Acrossocheilus fasciatus, Acrossocheilus paradoxus, Acrossocheilus parallens, and Acrossocheilus jishouensis. (c) 2006 The Authors Journal compilation (c) 2006 The Fisheries Society of the British Isles.

Effects of the phytoplanktivorous silver carp (Hypophthalmichthys molitrixon) on plankton and the hepatotoxic microcystins in an enclosure experiment in a eutrophic lake, Lake Shichahal in Beijing

The responses of nutrients, water transparency, zooplankton, phytoplankton and microcystins to a gradient of silver carp biomass (0, 18, 55, 110 g/m(3)) were assessed using enclosures in Lake Shichahai (Beijing). Picophytoplankton biomass increased with increasing fish stocking density (r=0.64, p=0.09). Silver carp significantly depressed zooplankton biomass, and thus, zooplankton grazing was too low to control phytoplankton. Intracellular microcystin (MC) content in the enclosures was correlated only to Microcystis biomass in the present study. Microcystis spp. biomass and intracellular microcystins content were much higher in lake water than those of enclosures with and without stocking fish. Stocking of silver carp could be an appropriate in highly productive Lake Shichahai, which naturally lacks of large cladoceran zooplankton. A fish stocking density of 55 g/m(3) was most efficient at controlling Microcystis blooms and increasing water clarity. Mean extracellular MC concentration in the lake water was almost the same with that of the enclosures with fish. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Reproductive seasonality and maturity of male Neophocaena phocaenoides asiaeorientalis in captivity: A case study based on the hormone evidence

To provide hormone evidence on reproductive seasonality and maturity of the Yangtze finless porpoise, the authors monitored the monthly variations of serum reproductive hormones of a male Yangtze finless porpoise in captivity via radioimmunoassay from 1997 to 2003. It was demonstrated that the immature animal had a serum T level of 28-101ngdL -1 (6552ngdL -1 ), reached puberty with the serum T concentration ranging between 250 and 590ngdL -1 (390130ngdL -1 ), and attained reproductive maturity when the serum T level went beyond 1120180ngdL -1 in the breeding season. The body length growth of the animal showed a pattern similar to the serum T variations during its adolescent period from the age of 4 to 6 years. Moreover, the serum T concentration of the male porpoise exhibited significant seasonal variations, indicating that its breeding season may start as early as March and end as late as September.

Is performance measurement and management fit for the future?

Performance measurement and management (PMM) is a management and research paradox. On one hand, it provides management with many critical, useful, and needed functions. Yet, there is evidence that it can adversely affect performance. This paper attempts to resolve this paradox by focusing on the issue of "fit". That is, in today's dynamic and turbulent environment, changes in either the business environment or the business strategy can lead to the need for new or revised measures and metrics. Yet, if these measures and metrics are either not revised or incorrectly revised, then we can encounter situations where what the firm wants to achieve (as communicated by its strategy) and what the firm measures and rewards are not synchronised with each other (i.e., there is a lack of "fit"). This situation can adversely affect the ability of the firm to compete. The issue of fit is explored using a three phase Delphi approach. Initially intended to resolve this first paradox, the Delphi study identified another paradox - one in which the researchers found that in a dynamic environment, firms do revise their strategies, yet, often the PMM system is not changed. To resolve this second paradox, the paper proposes a new framework - one that shows that under certain conditions, the observed metrics "lag" is not only explainable but also desirable. The findings suggest a need to recast the accepted relationship between strategy and PMM system and the output included the Performance Alignment Matrix that had utility for managers. © 2013 .

Nonylphenol, bisphenol-A and DDTs in Lake Donghu, China

A preliminary survey was carried out in April 2003 to estimate the levels of nonylphenol (NP), bisphenol-A (BPA) and residual DDTs in Lake Donghu. After then, the sediments of some areas of the lake were moved out for clearing the lake by the local government. Therefore, the variance of NP and BPA after the clearance of sediment in the surface water was determined from December 2003 to May 2004. Sediments, surface water and fish were collected from four sub-lake areas and the analytes were qualified by GC/MS in SIM mode after concentration onto an Oasis solid phase extraction cartridge. NP and BPA values ranged between 5.46-119.10 and 0.9913.42 mg/kg dw, respectively, in sediments, 75.2-179.6 and 15.1-62.5 mu g/L in surface water. Meanwhile, the bioaccumulation factors (BCFs) of NP and BPA were calculated in fish livers. Plasma vitellogenin (VTG), a sensitive biomarker showing oestrogenicity was detected in the captured male Wuchang bream (Megalobrama amblycephala Yih) and common carp (Cyprinus carpio). After sediment clearance, the concentrations of NP and BPA decreased to 0.65-25.04 and 0.04-21.32 mu g/L. The results indicate the presence of high-dose xenoestrogenic NP and BPA, probably major contributors which associate with VTG induction in Lake Donghu male fish.

Detection of Myxobolus rotundus (Myxozoa : Myxosporea) in skin mucus of crucian carp Carassius auratus auratus using a monoclonal antibody

Diagnosis of myxosporean Myxobolus rotundus infection was conducted by examining skin mucus from the infected crucian carp Carassius auratus auratus with a monoclonal antibody, MAb 2D12, raised previously against the parasite. A positive reaction was observed in skin mucus collected from infected fish, and spores and pre-spore stages of the parasite were identified by the MAb 2D12. It was also demonstrated that M. rotundus infection can be successfully detected by a simple method, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), and that skin mucus collected from infected fish skin had a significantly higher optical density (OD) value than that from uninfected fish.

Molecular systematics of Xenocyprinae (Teleostei : Cyprinidae): Taxonomy, biogeography, and coevolution of a special group restricted in east Asia

We surveyed mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) sequence variation in the subfamily Xenocyprinae from China and used these data to estimate intraspecific, interspecific, and intergeneric phylogeny and assess biogeographic scenarios underlying the geographic structure of lineages. We sequenced 1140 bp of cytochrome b from 30 individuals of Xenocyprinae and one putative outgroup (Myxocypris asiaticus) and also sequenced 297 bp of ND4L, 1380 bp of ND4, 68 bp of tRNA(His), and 69 bp of tRNA(Ser) from 17 individuals of Xenocyprinae and the outgroup (M. asiaticus). We detected high levels of nucleotide variation among populations, species, and genera. The phylogenetic analysis suggested that Distoechodon hupeinensis might be transferred to the genus Xenocypris, the taxonomic status of the genus Plagiognathops might be preserved, and species of Xenocypris and Plagiognathops form a monophyletic group that is sister to the genus Distoechodon and Pseudobrama. The introgressive hybridization might occur among the populations of X. argentea and X. davidi, causing the two species to not be separated by mtDNA patterns according to their species identification, and the process and direction of hybridization are discussed. The spatial distributions of mtDNA lineages among populations of Xenocypris were compatible with the major geographic region, which indicated that the relationship between Hubei + Hunan and Fujian is closer than that between Hubei + Hunan and Sichuan, From a perspective of parasite investigation, our data suggested that the fauna of Hexamita in Xenocyprinae could be used to infer the phylogeny of their hosts. (C) 2001 Academic Press.

Methods for characterization of packaging parasitics of semiconductor lasers

Two novel methods for analyzing the parasitics of packaging networks are proposed based on the relations between the scattering parameters of a semiconductor laser before and after packaging, and the experiments are designed and performed using our methods. It is found that the analysis results of the two methods are in good agreement with the measurements. Either of the two methods can provide an alternative approach for characterizing the packaging parasitics for semiconductor lasers, and both are convenient due to the developed measurement techniques. (c) 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

The effect of In content on high-density InxGa1-xAs quantum dots

We have successfully grown self-assembled InxGa1-xAs (x = 0.44, 0.47, 0.50) quantum dots (QDs) with high density (> 10(11)/cm(2)) by MBE. The effect of In content on the high-density QD is investigated by atomic force microscopy (AFM) and photoluminescence (PL) spectra. It is found that sample with In-mole-fraction of 0.5 shows small size fluctuation and high PL intensity. The influence of growth temperature on high-density QD is also investigated in our experiment. (c) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

基于有序标记的IP包追踪方案

包标记方案是一种针对DoS攻击提出的数据包追踪方案，由于其具有响应时间快、占用资源少的特点，近年来受到了研究者的广泛关注．但由于包标记方案标记过程的随机性，使得受害者进行路径重构时所需收到的数据包数目大大超过了进行重构所必需收到的最小数据包数目，从而导致重构误报率的提高和响应时间的增长．本文提出了一种基于有序标记的IP包追踪方案，该方案通过存储每个目标IP地址的标记状态，对包标记的分片进行有序发送，使得在DoS发生时，受害者重构路径所需收到的标记包的数目大大降低，从而提高了对DoS攻击的响应时间和追踪准确度．该算法的提出进一步提高了包标记方案在实际应用中的可行性．

低轮FOX分组密码的碰撞-积分攻击

FOX是最近推出的系列分组密码，它的设计思想基于可证安全的研究结果，且在各种平台上的性能优良．本文利用碰撞攻击和积分攻击相结合的技术分析FOX的安全性，结果显示碰撞-积分攻击比积分攻击有效，攻击对4轮FOX64的计算复杂度是2^45.4，对5轮FOX64的计算复杂度是2^109.4，对6轮FOX64的计算复杂度是2^173.4，对7轮FOX64的计算复杂度是2^237.4，且攻击所需数据量均为2^9；也就是说4轮FOX64／64、5轮FOX64／128、6轮FOX64／192和7轮FOX64／256对本文攻击是不免疫的．