Sources and distribution of organic carbon and nitrogen in the Tagliamento River, Italy

Abstract.: Elemental carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) concentrations, C:N ratios, and stable C and N isotopic compositions (δ13C and δ15N) were used to determine the sources of riverine solid phase extracted and ultrafiltered dissolved organic matter (DOM) and suspended fine particulate organic matter (FPOM). DOM and FPOM as well as potential source materials were seasonally collected in downstream direction along the last large semi-natural river draining the European Alps, the Tagliamento River (Italy). These investigations suggest that the major sources of FPOM and solid phase extracted and ultrafiltered DOM in this river are a mixture of river-borne bacterial and microalgal biomass and soil-derived organic matter. Low C:N ratios of FPOM and bulk DOM, compared to DOM isolates, further indicate that FPOM is highly reactive and that its degradation releases bioavailable DOM compounds. Downstream abundance and distribution of organic C and N were also compared to inorganic nutrient concentrations and indicate that FPOM remineralization is a major pathway for the formation of inorganic nutrients in Tagliamento surface water

Constrained LMS for Dynamic Flow Networks

In this era of climate change, there is a growing need to offer adaptive learning algorithms in the optimisation of natural resources. These resources are typically optimised by evolutionary algorithms. However, evolutionary algorithms (EAs) are no longer adequate due to the ‘drift’ component introduced by environmental factors such as flash flooding. We therefore propose a novel constrained Least Mean Squares (LMS) algorithm for the optimisation of flow networks. For rigor, we provide a stability analysis of our adaptive algorithm, which enables us to interpret the physical meaning of the network at equilibrium. We evaluate our proposed method against genetic algorithm (GA), the most common evolutionary algorithm. The results are promising: not only the proposed constrained LMS has a performance advantage over GA, but its computational cost is significantly lower making it more suitable for real-time applications

David Mabb, William Morris. Ministering to the Swinish Luxuary of the Rich

Catalogue for Whitworth Art Gallery exhibtion William Morris ‘Ministering to the Swinish Luxuary of the Rich’ curated by David Mabb. Includes The Colonisation of Utopia by Steve Edwards; William Morris: 'Ministering to the Swinish Luxuary of the Rich' by David Mabb and Four Walls: Morris and Ornament by Caroline Arscott

The Tagliamento River: A model ecosystem of European importance

In NE Italy is a remarkable floodplain river that retains the dynamic nature and morphological complexity that must have characterized most Alpine rivers in the pristine stage. This river system, the Fiume Tagliamento, constitutes an invaluable resource not only as a reference site for the Alps, but as a model ecosystem for large European rivers. The Tagliamento has a number of attributes that have not been given due consideration in river ecology: (i) an immense corridor of more than 150 km2 that connects the land and the sea and two biomes, the Alps and the Mediterranean; (ii) unconstrained floodplain segments characterised by a dynamic mosaic of aquatic/terrestrial habitats; and (iii) a large number of vegetated islands (ca. 700). We believe it is critical to understand the functional roles of these endangered attributes in order to effectively engage in river conservation and management programmes. The Tagliamento River in Italy offers the rare opportunity to investigate natural processes at a scale that can be studied almost nowhere else in Europ

Low-Cost, Open-Source, and Low-Power: But What to Do With the Data?

There are now many ongoing efforts to develop low-cost, open-source, low-power sensors and datalogging solutions for environmental monitoring applications. Many of these have advanced to the point that high quality scientific measurements can be made using relatively inexpensive and increasingly off-the-shelf components. With the development of these innovative systems, however, comes the ability to generate large volumes of high-frequency monitoring data and the challenge of how to log, transmit, store, and share the resulting data. This paper describes a new web application that was designed to enable citizen scientists to stream sensor data from a network of Arduino-based dataloggers to a web-based Data Sharing Portal. This system enables registration of new sensor nodes through a Data Sharing Portal website. Once registered, any Internet connected data-logging device (e.g., connected via cellular or Wi-Fi) can then post data to the portal through a web service application programming interface (API). Data are stored in a back-end data store that implements Version 2 of the Observations Data Model (ODM2). Live data can then be viewed using multiple visualization tools, downloaded from the Data Sharing Portal in a simple text format, or accessed via WaterOneFlow web services for machine-to-machine data exchange. This system was built to support an emerging network of open-source, wireless water quality monitoring stations developed and deployed by the EnviroDIY community for do-it-yourself environmental science and monitoring, initially within the Delaware River Watershed. However, the architecture and components of the ODM2 Data Sharing Portal are generic, open-source, and could be deployed for use with any Internet connected device capable of making measurements and formulating an HTTP POST request

Isolation, characterization and partial sequencing of cystine and thiol peptides of pig heart lipoamide dehydrogenase

Pig heart lipoamide dehydrogenase (EC 1.6.4.3) contains ten half-cystines (as cysteic acid) per mole of enzyme bound FAD. Two of these are linked in an intrachain cystine which acts in concert with the flavin during catalysis. A peptic peptide containing this active center disulfide has been isolated and shown to have the sequence: Glu-Thr-Leu-Gly-Gly-Thr-Cys-Leu-Asn-Val-Gly-Cys-Ile-Pro-Ser (Lys, Ala, Leu). The enzyme also contains seven titratable thiols when either 5,5'-dithiobis (2-nitrobenzoic acid) or iodoacetate is used as titrant. Tryptic peptides containing alkylated thiols have been isolated and characterized by amino acid composition and by their positions in two-dimensional chromatography-electrophoresis. On the basis of map position and composition, the peptides containing thiols can be distinguished from one another. The results are compared with recent data of Brown and Perham (Brown, J. P. and Perham, R. N. (1974) Biochem. J. 138, 505-512) on the compositions and partial sequences of tryptic chymotryptic peptides containing half-cystines. The combined data associate nine of the ten half-cystines with unique compositions.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/22230/1/0000664.pd

The Phenomenon of Darboux Displacements

For a class of Schrodinger Hamiltonians the supersymmetry transformations can degenerate to simple coordinate displacements. We examine this phenomenon and show that it distinguishes the Weierstrass potentials including the one-soliton wells and periodic Lame functions. A supersymmetric sense of the addition formula for the Weierstrass functions is elucidated.Comment: 11 pages, latex, 2 eps figure

New genetic loci link adipose and insulin biology to body fat distribution.

Body fat distribution is a heritable trait and a well-established predictor of adverse metabolic outcomes, independent of overall adiposity. To increase our understanding of the genetic basis of body fat distribution and its molecular links to cardiometabolic traits, here we conduct genome-wide association meta-analyses of traits related to waist and hip circumferences in up to 224,459 individuals. We identify 49 loci (33 new) associated with waist-to-hip ratio adjusted for body mass index (BMI), and an additional 19 loci newly associated with related waist and hip circumference measures (P < 5 × 10(-8)). In total, 20 of the 49 waist-to-hip ratio adjusted for BMI loci show significant sexual dimorphism, 19 of which display a stronger effect in women. The identified loci were enriched for genes expressed in adipose tissue and for putative regulatory elements in adipocytes. Pathway analyses implicated adipogenesis, angiogenesis, transcriptional regulation and insulin resistance as processes affecting fat distribution, providing insight into potential pathophysiological mechanisms

Microtechnologies for the monolithic fabrication of mm and submm non linear devices

We report on the recent development in microtechnology aimed at monolithically fabricating non linear devices at millimetre and submillimetre wavelengths. This approach will be illustrated with the fabrication of planar integrated Heterostructure Barrier Varactors and Schottky mixers for a use at 250 GHz and 500 GHz respectively. Also, epitaxial lift-off, followed by a transfer onto a host quartz substrate demonstrated here should permit us to further integrate the devices with the filtering and matching circuits in a monolithic fashion