Non-finite constructions in Old English : with special reference to syntactic borrowing from Latin

My dissertation is a corpus-based study of non-finite constructions in Old English (OE). It revisits the question of Latin influence on the OE syntax, offering a new evaluation of syntactic interference between Latin and OE, and, more generally, of the contact situation in the OE period, drawing on methods used in studying grammaticalization and language contact. I address three non-finite constructions: absolute participial construction, accusative-and-infinitive construction, and nominative-and-infinitive construction, exemplified respectively in present-day English as - She looked like a pixie sometimes, her eyes darting here and there, forever watchful (BNC CCM 98); - My first acquaintance with her was when I heard her sing (BNC CFY 2215); - Charles the Bald was said to resemble his grandfather physically (BNC HPT 175). This study compares data from translated texts against the background of original OE writings, establishing dependencies and differences between the two. Although the contrastive analysis of source and target texts is one of the major methods employed in the study, translation and translation strategies as such are only my secondary foci. The emphasis is rather on what source/target comparison can tell us about the OE non-finite syntax and the typological differences between Latin and OE in this domain, and on whether contact-induced change can originate in translation. In terms of theoretical framework, I have adopted functional-typological approach, which rests on the principles of iconicity and event integration, and to the best of my knowledge, has not been applied systematically to OE non-finite constructions. Therefore one more aim of the dissertation is to test this framework and to see how OE fits into the cross-linguistic picture of non-finites. My research corpus consists of two samples: 1) written OE closely dependent on the Latin originals, based on editions of two gloss texts, five translations, and Latin originals of these texts, representing four text types: hymns, religious regulations, homily/life narrative, and biblical narrative (180,622 words); and 2) written OE as far independent from Latin as possible, based on a selection from the York-Toronto-Helsinki Parsed Corpus of Old English Prose (YCOE) and representing five text types: laws, charters, correspondence, chronicle narrative, and homily/life narrative (274,757 words).

Modelling growth rate of Penaeus monodon Fabricius in intensively managed ponds: effects of temperature, pond age and stocking density

Records of shrimp growth and water quality made during 12 crops from each of 48 ponds, over a period of 6.5 years, were provided by a Queensland, Australia, commercial shrimp farm, These data were analysed with a new growth model derived from the Gompertz model. The results indicate that water temperature, mortality and pond age significantly affect growth rates. After 180 days, shrimp reach 34 g at constant 30 degrees C, but only 15 g after the same amount of time at 20 degrees C. Mortality, through thinning the density of shrimp in the ponds, increased the growth rate, but the effect is small. With continual production, growth rates at first remained steady, then appeared to decrease for the sixth and seventh crop, after which they have increased steadily with each crop. It appears that conservative pond management, together with a gradual improvement in husbandry techniques, particularly feed management, brought about this change. This has encouraging implications for the long-term sustainability of the farming methods used. The growth model can be used to predict productivity, and hence, profitability, of new aquaculture locations or new production strategies.

Role of Protozoa in the Aerobic Purification of Sewage

DURING recent years, there has been increasing amount of evidence regarding the importance of protozoa in the aerobic purification of sewage1–4 and, more recently, some quantitative observations on protozoa in determining the condition of sludge and quality of effluent have been recorded5–10. The evidence so far obtained has, however, been only indirect, chiefly owing to the difficulty in separating the protozoa from the associated bacteria. This has now been achieved and the object of this note is to show that the isolated protozoa can bring about practically all the changes associated with the purification. The part played by the bacteria is almost negligible.

Push-pull ethylenes: the structures of 3-(2-imidazolidinylidene)-2,4-pentanedione (I), C8H12N2O2, and 3-(1,3-dimethyl-2-imidazolidinylidene)-2,4-pentanedione trihydrate (II), C10H16N2O2.3H2O

(I): Mr= 168, triclinic, P1, Z=2, a= 5.596 (2), b = 6.938 (3), c = 10.852 (4) A, ~t= 75.64 (3), fl= 93.44 (3), ),= 95.47 (3) °, V= 406.0A 3, Din= 1.35 (by flotation using carbon tetrachloride and n-hexane), D x= 1.374 Mg m -3, g(Mo Kct, 2 = 0.7107 A) = 1.08 cm -l, _F(000) = 180, T= 293 K. (II): Mr= 250, triclinic, P1, Z= 2, a = 7.731(2), b=8.580(2), c=11.033(3)A, a= 97-66 (2), fl= 98.86 (2), y= 101.78 (2) °, V= 697.5 A 3, D m = 1.18 (by flotation using KI solution), Dx= 1.190Mgm -3, g(MoKa, 2=0.7107A)= 1.02 cm -1, F(000) = 272, T= 293 K. Both structures were solved by direct methods and refined to R = 4.4% for 901 reflexions for (I) and 5.7% for 2001 reflexions for (II). The C=C bond distances are 1.451 (3) A in (I) and 1.468 (3)A in (II), quite significantly longer than the C=C bond in ethylene [1.336 (2).~; Bartell, Roth, Hollowell, Kuchitsu & Young (1965). J. Chem. Phys. 42, 2683-2686]. The twist angle about the C=C bond in (II) is 72.9 (5) ° but molecule (I) is essentially planar, the twist angle being only 4.9 (5) ° .

Conformational Dynamics in Alkyl Chains of an Anchored Bilayer: A Molecular Dynamics Study

Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations are reported for an anchored bilayer formed by the intercalation of cetyl trimethyl ammonium (CTA) and CH3(CH2)15N+(CH3) ions in a layered solid, CdPS3. The intercalated CTA ions are organized with the cationic headgroups tethered to the inorganic sheet and the hydrocarbon tails arranged as bilayers. Simulations were performed at three temperatures, 65, 180, and 298 K, using an isothermal−isobaric ensemble that was subsequently switched once macroscopic parameters had converged to a canonical isothermal−isochoric ensemble. The simulations are able to reproduce the experimental features of this system, including the formation of the bilayer and layer-to-layer separation distance. An analysis of the conformation of the chains showed that at all three temperatures a fraction of the alkyl chains retained a planar all-trans conformation, and that gauche bonds occurred as part of a “kink” (gauche+−trans−gauche−) sequence and not as isolated gauche bonds. Trans−gauche isomerization rates for the alkyl chains in the anchored bilayer are slower than those in lipid bilayers at the same temperature and show a progressive increase as the torsion numbers approach the tail. A two-dimensional periodic Voronoi tessellation analysis was performed to obtain the single-molecular area of an alkyl chain in the bilayer. The single-molecular area relaxation times are an order of magnitude longer than the trans−gauche isomerization times. The results indicate that the trans−gauche isomerization is associated with the creation and annihilation of a kink defect sequence. The results of the present MD simulation explain the apparent conflicting estimates of the gauche disorder in this system as obtained from infrared and 13C nuclear magnetic resonance measurements.

Effects of Nutrition and Time of Weaning on Dry Season Liveweight Loss of Breeder Cows

In the seasonally dry tropics of northern Australia, breeder cows may lose up to 30% liveweight during the dry season when pasture is of low nutritive value. This is a major cause of low reproductive rates and high mortality. Weaning early in the dry season is effective to reduce this liveweight loss of the breeder (Holroyd et al. 1988). An experiment examined the dry season liveweight loss of breeders for a range of weaning times and levels of nutrition. From April to October through the dry season, 209 Bos indicus x Shorthorn cross cows 4-6 years of age grazed speargrass pastures in north Queensland. The cows had been joined with bulls from late January until April. Twenty-nine breeders had not suckled a calf during the previous wet season (DRY cows). In addition 180 cows lactating in April were weaned in late April, mid July or early September. The cows were allocated by stratified randomisation based on lactational status, stage of pregnancy and body condition to 15 x 40 ha paddocks. Five paddocks with low fertility soils provided LOW nutrition, while 10 paddocks with medium fertility soils and no supplementation or with supplementation provided MEDIUM and HIGH nutrition, respectively. The supplement consisted of molasses containing 14% urea offered ad libitum. Liveweight was measured at intervals and conceptus-free liveweight (CF-LW) calculated. Data were analyses by AOV within groups of paddocks. Animal production for a consuming world : proceedings of 9th Congress of the Asian-Australasian Association of Animal Production Societies [AAAP] and 23rd Biennial Conference of the Australian Society of Animal Production [ASAP] and 17th Annual Symposium of the University of Sydney, Dairy Research Foundation, [DRF]. 2-7 July 2000, Sydney, Australia.

Dynamics of the ammonium ion in the ferroelectric transition in sodium ammonium selenate, NaNH4SeO4·2H2O-an E.S.R. study

E.S.R. investigations of γ-irradiated ferroelectric Sodium ammonium selenate, NaNH4SeO4•2H2O and its deuteriated analogue in powder and single crystal forms have led to a deeper understanding of the nature of the ferroelectric transition of 180 K. A number of paramagnetic species formed due to γ-irradiation have been identified on the basis of their g-factors and hyperfine features from 77Se. The radical SeO4 has been used as a microprobe in studying the phase transition.

GRDB: A general purpose relational database system

This article discusses the design and development of GRDB (General Purpose Relational Data Base System) which has been implemented on a DEC-1090 system in Pascal. GRDB is a general purpose database system designed to be completely independent of the nature of data to be handled, since it is not tailored to the specific requirements of any particular enterprise. It can handle different types of data such as variable length records and textual data. Apart from the usual database facilities such as data definition and data manipulation, GRDB supports User Definition Language (UDL) and Security definition language. These facilities are provided through a SEQUEL-like General Purpose Query Language (GQL). GRDB provides adequate protection facilities up to the relation level. The concept of “security matrix” has been made use of to provide database protection. The concept of Unique IDentification number (UID) and Password is made use of to ensure user identification and authentication. The concept of static integrity constraints has been used to ensure data integrity. Considerable efforts have been made to improve the response time through indexing on the data files and query optimisation. GRDB is designed for an interactive use but alternate provision has been made for its use through batch mode also. A typical Air Force application (consisting of data about personnel, inventory control, and maintenance planning) has been used to test GRDB and it has been found to perform satisfactorily.

Tospoviruses - An Australian perspective

The detection, distribution, molecular and biological properties, vector relations and control of tospoviruses present in Australia, including Tomato spotted wilt virus (TSWV), Capsicum chlorosis virus (CaCV) and Iris yellow spot virus (IYSV), are reviewed. TSWV occurs throughout Australia where it has caused serious sporadic epidemics since it was first described in the 1920s. The frequency and distribution of outbreaks has increased in the 1990s, with the arrival and dispersal of the western flower thrips (Frankliniella occidentalis) being one factor favouring this situation. The crops most frequently and severely affected are capsicum, lettuce, tomato, potato and several species of ornamentals. Minimal differences were found between the nucleocapsid (N) gene amino acid sequences of Australian isolates and these were most closely related to a clade of northern European isolates. CaCV was first detected in Australia in 1999 and is most closely related to Watermelon silver mottle virus, a serogroup IV tospovirus. The natural hosts include capsicum, tomato, peanut and Hoya spp. The virus also occurs in Thailand and Taiwan. IYSV was first found in Australia in 2003, infecting onion and leek, with the distribution in three States suggesting that the virus has been present for some time.

Amelioration of soil compaction can take 5 years on a Vertisol under no till in the semi-arid subtropics

Heavy wheel traffic causes soil compaction, which adversely affects crop production and may persist for several years. We applied known compaction forces to entire plots annually for 5 years, and then determined the duration of the adverse effects on the properties of a Vertisol and the performance of crops under no-till dryland cropping with residue retention. For up to 5 years after a final treatment with a 10 Mg axle load on wet soil, soil shear strength at 70-100 mm and cone index at 180-360 mm were significantly (P < 0.05) higher than in a control treatment, and soil water storage and grain yield were lower. We conclude that compaction effects persisted because (1) there were insufficient wet-dry cycles to swell and shrink the entire compacted layer, (2) soil loosening by tillage was absent and (3) there were fewer earthworms in the compacted soil. Compaction of dry soil with 6 Mg had little effect at any time, indicating that by using wheel traffic only when the soil is dry, problems can be avoided. Unfortunately such a restriction is not always possible because sowing, tillage and harvest operations often need to be done when the soil is wet. A more generally applicable solution, which also ensures timely operations, is the permanent separation of wheel zones and crop zones in the field--the practice known as controlled traffic farming. Where a compacted layer already exists, even on a clay soil, management options to hasten repair should be considered, e.g. tillage, deep ripping, sowing a ley pasture or sowing crop species more effective at repairing compacted soil.

Epithiospecifier protein activity in broccoli: The link between terminal alkenyl glucosinolates and sulphoraphane nitrile

The chemical nature of the hydrolysis products from the glucosinolate-myrosinase system depends on the presence or absence of supplementary proteins, such as epithiospecifier proteins (ESPs). ESPs (non-catalytic cofactors of myrosinase) promote the formation of epithionitriles from terminal alkenyl glucosinolates and as recent evidence suggests, simple nitriles at the expense of isothiocyanates. The ratio of ESP activity to myrosinase activity is crucial in determining the proportion of these nitriles produced on hydrolysis. Sulphoraphane, a major isothiocyanate produced in broccoli seedlings, has been found to be a potent inducer of phase 2 detoxification enzymes. However, ESP may also support the formation of the non-inductive sulphoraphane nitrile. Our objective was to monitor changes in ESP activity during the development of broccoli seedlings and link these activity changes with myrosinase activity, the level of terminal alkenyl glucosinolates and sulphoraphane nitrile formed. Here, for the first time, we show ESP activity increases up to day 2 after germination before decreasing again to seed activity levels at day 5. These activity changes paralleled changes in myrosinase activity and terminal alkenyl glucosinolate content. There is a significant relationship between ESP activity and the formation of sulforaphane nitrile in broccoli seedlings. The significance of these findings for the health benefits conferred by eating broccoli seedlings is briefly discussed.

Seasonal variations in the body composition of lightweight rowers

OBJECTIVE To monitor the seasonal body composition alterations in 18 lightweight rowers (six females, 12 males) across a rowing season incorporating preseason, early competition, competition, and postseason. METHODS Subject age was 23.1 (SD 4.5) years, height 170.8 (5.6) cm (female, 23.5 (3.5) years, 180.5 (2.7) cm (male). Body weight, fat mass, and fat-free mass (FFM) were assessed using dual energy x ray absorptiometry (DXA-L Lunar) and skinfold techniques. Weight control techniques were documented before major regattas by a questionnaire. RESULTS Female body weight was reduced from 61.3 (2.9) to 57.0 (1.1) kg (5.9%), while male body weight was reduced from 75.6 (3.1) to 69.8 (1.6) kg (7.8%) preseason to competition season respectively. These body weight reductions were mirrored by a significant reduction in fat mass as indicated by the sum of skinfolds [female seven sites: 80.9 (8.1) to 68.2 (11.8) mm; male eight sites: 54.2 (8.7) to 41.8 (4.8) mm], percentage body fat [female 22.1 (1.0) to 19.7 (2.4)%; male 10.0 (0.9) to 7.8 (0.8)%], and total fat [female 12.5 (5.2) to 10.9 (1.4) kg; male 7.3 (1.9) to 5.6 (1.8) kg] (DXA). In contrast, no changes were observed in FFM despite a season of intensive rowing training. Seasonal body weight control was achieved through reduced total energy and dietary fat intakes. Acute body weight reductions were achieved by exercise in 73.3% of participants, food restriction in 71.4%, and fluid restrictions in 62.9%. CONCLUSIONS Seasonal body weight alterations in lightweight rowers are in response to a significant reduction in fat mass. However, the weight restrictions appear to be limiting an increase in FFM which could be beneficial to rowing performance.

Quality of handling and holding yard environment, and beef cattle temperament: 1. Relationships with flight speed and fear of humans.

Numerous tests have been used to measure beef cattle temperament, but limited research has addressed the relationship between such tests and whether temperament can be modified. One-hundred-and-forty-four steers were given one of three human handling and yarding experiences on six occasions during a 12-month grazing period post-weaning (backgrounding): Good handling/yarding, Poor handling/yarding and Minimal handling/yarding. At the end of this phase the cattle were lot-fed for 78 days, with no handling/yarding treatments imposed, before being transported for commercial slaughter. Temperament was assessed at the start of the experiment, during backgrounding and lot-feeding by flight speed (FS) and a fear of humans test, which measured the proximity to a stimulus person (zone average; ZA), the closest approach to the person (CA) and the amount the cattle moved around the test arena (total transitions; TT). During backgrounding, FS decreased for all treatments and at the end of backgrounding there was no difference between them. The rate of decline, however, was greatest in the Good group, smallest in the Minimal group with the Poor intermediate. In contrast, ZA was affected by treatment, with a greater reduction for the Good group than the others (P = 0.012). During lot-feeding, treatment did not affect FS, but all groups showed a decrease in ZA, with the greatest change in the Poor group, the least in the Good and the Minimal intermediate (P = 0.052). CA was positively correlated with ZA (r = 0.18 to 0.66) and negatively with TT (r = -0.180 to -0.659). FS was consistently correlated with TT only (r = 0.17 to 0.49). These findings suggest that FS and TT measure a similar characteristic, as do ZA and CA, but that these characteristics are different from one another, indicating that temperament is not a unitary trait, but has different facets. FS and TT measure one facet that we suggest is general agitation, whilst ZA and CA measure fear of people. Thus, the cattle became less agitated during backgrounding, but the effect was not permanently influenced by the quantity and quality of handling/yarding. However, Good handling/yarding reduced fearfulness of people. Fear of people was also reduced during lot-feeding, probably as a consequence of frequent exposure to humans in a situation that was neutral or positive for the cattle.