Triple-aspect monism: Physiological, mental unconscious and conscious aspects of brain activity

Brain activity contains three fundamental aspects: (a) The physiological aspect, covering all kinds of processes that involve matter and/or energy; (b) the mental unconscious aspect, consisting of dynamical patterns (i.e., frequency, amplitude and phase-modulated waves) embodied in neural activity. These patterns are variously operated (transmitted, stored, combined, matched, amplified, erased, etc), forming cognitive and emotional unconscious processes and (c) the mental conscious aspect, consisting of feelings experienced in the first-person perspective and cognitive functions grounded in feelings, as memory formation, selection of the focus of attention, voluntary behavior, aesthetical appraisal and ethical judgment. Triple-aspect monism (TAM) is a philosophical theory that provides a model of the relation of the three aspects. Spatially distributed neuronal dendritic potentials generate amplitude-modulated waveforms transmitted to the extracellular medium and adjacent astrocytes, prompting the formation of large waves in the astrocyte network, which are claimed to both integrate distributed information and instantiate feelings. According to the valence of the feeling, the large wave feeds back on neuronal synapses, modulating (reinforcing or depressing) cognitive and behavioral functions.

A sublimation technique for high-precision measurements of d13CO2 and mixing ratios of CO2 and N2O from air trapped in ice cores

In order to provide high precision stable carbon isotope ratios (δ13CO2 or δ13C of CO2) from small bubbly, partially and fully clathrated ice core samples we developed a new method based on sublimation coupled to gas chromatography-isotope ratio mass spectrometry (GC-IRMS). In a first step the trapped air is quantitatively released from ~30 g of ice and CO2 together with N2O are separated from the bulk air components and stored in a miniature glass tube. In an off-line step, the extracted sample is introduced into a helium carrier flow using a minimised tube cracker device. Prior to measurement, N2O and organic sample contaminants are gas chromatographically separated from CO2. Pulses of a CO2/N2O mixture are admitted to the tube cracker and follow the path of the sample through the system. This allows an identical treatment and comparison of sample and standard peaks. The ability of the method to reproduce δ13C from bubble and clathrate ice is verified on different ice cores. We achieve reproducibilities for bubble ice between 0.05 ‰ and 0.07 ‰ and for clathrate ice between 0.05 ‰ and 0.09 ‰ (dependent on the ice core used). A comparison of our data with measurements on bubble ice from the same ice core but using a mechanical extraction device shows no significant systematic offset. In addition to δ13C, the CO2 and N2O mixing ratios can be volumetrically derived with a precision of 2 ppmv and 8 ppbv, respectively.

Molecular and ionic sublimation of erbium tribromide

The molecular and ionic composition of vapor over erbium tribromide sublimed from the Knudsen effusion cell and the open surface of a single crystal was studied by high-temperature mass spectrometry. The partial pressures of ErBr3 and Er2Br6 molecules in saturated vapor and the ratio between their sublimation coefficients under free vaporization conditions were determined. The enthalpies and activation energies of sublimation of ErBr3 crystals in the form of monomers and dimers were calculated. The emission of and Er2 was recorded in studies of ionic sublimation in both modes. The enthalpies of formation of gas molecules and ions were determined.

Observations of the northern seasonal polar cap on Mars: I. Spring sublimation activity and processes

Spring sublimation of the seasonal CO2 northern polar cap is a dynamic process in the current Mars climate. Phenomena include dark fans of dune material propelled out onto the seasonal ice layer, polygonal cracks in the seasonal ice, sand flow down slipfaces, and outbreaks of gas and sand around the dune margins. These phenomena are concentrated on the north polar erg that encircles the northern residual polar cap. The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter has been in orbit for three Mars years, allowing us to observe three northern spring seasons. Activity is consistent with and well described by the Kieffer model of basal sublimation of the seasonal layer of ice applied originally in the southern hemisphere. Three typical weak spots have been identified on the dunes for escape of gas sublimed from the bottom of the seasonal ice layer: the crest of the dune, the interface of the dune with the interdune substrate, and through polygonal cracks in the ice. Pressurized gas flows through these vents and carries out material entrained from the dune. Furrows in the dunes channel gas to outbreak points and may be the northern equivalent of southern radially-organized channels ("araneiform" terrain), albeit not permanent. Properties of the seasonal CO2 ice layer are derived from timing of seasonal events such as when final sublimation occurs. Modification of dune morphology shows that landscape evolution is occurring on Mars today, driven by seasonal activity associated with sublimation of the seasonal CO2 polar cap.