The advantages of a salt/bentonite backfill for Waste Isolation Pilot Plant disposal rooms

A 70/30 wt% salt/bentonite mixture is shown to be preferable to pure crushed salt as backfill for disposal rooms in the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP). This report discusses several selection criteria used to arrive at this conclusion: the need for low permeability and porosity after closure, chemical stability with the surroundings, adequate strength to avoid shear erosion from human intrusion, ease of emplacement, and sorption potential for brine and radionuclides. Both salt and salt/bentonite are expected to consolidate to a final state of impermeability (i.e., {le} 10{sup {minus}18}m{sup 2}) adequate for satisfying federal nuclear regulations. Any advantage of the salt/bentonite mixture is dependent upon bentonite's potential for sorbing brine and radionuclides. Estimates suggest that bentonite's sorption potential for water in brine is much less than for pure water. While no credit is presently taken for brine sorption in salt/bentonite backfill, the possibility that some amount of inflowing brine would be chemically bound is considered likely. Bentonite may also sorb much of the plutonium, americium, and neptunium within the disposal room inventory. Sorption would be effective only if a major portion of the backfill is in contact with radioactive brine. Brine flow from the waste out through highly localized channels in the backfill would negate sorption effectiveness. Although the sorption potentials of bentonite for both brine and radionuclides are not ideal, they are distinctly beneficial. Furthermore, no detrimental aspects of adding bentonite to the salt as a backfill have been identified. These two observations are the major reasons for selecting salt/bentonite as a backfill within the WIPP. 39 refs., 16 figs., 6 tabs

Representational predicaments for employees: Their impact on perceptions of supervisors\u27 individualized consideration and on employee job satisfaction

A representational predicament for a subordinate vis-à-vis his or her immediate superior involves perceptual incongruence with the superior about the subordinate\u27s work or work context, with unfavourable implications for the employee. An instrument to measure the incidence of two types of representational predicament, being neglected and negative slanting, was developed and then validated through an initial survey of 327 employees. A subsequent substantive survey with a fresh sample of 330 employees largely supported a conceptual model linking being neglected and negative slanting to perceptions of low individualized consideration by superiors and to low overall job satisfaction. The respondents in both surveys were all Hong Kong Chinese. Two case examples drawn from qualitative interviews illustrate and support the conceptual model. Based on the research findings, we recommend some practical exercises to use in training interventions with leaders and subordinates. © 2013 Copyright Taylor and Francis Group, LLC

Diving into the vertical dimension of elasmobranch movement ecology

Knowledge of the three-dimensional movement patterns of elasmobranchs is vital to understand their ecological roles and exposure to anthropogenic pressures. To date, comparative studies among species at global scales have mostly focused on horizontal movements. Our study addresses the knowledge gap of vertical movements by compiling the first global synthesis of vertical habitat use by elasmobranchs from data obtained by deployment of 989 biotelemetry tags on 38 elasmobranch species. Elasmobranchs displayed high intra- and interspecific variability in vertical movement patterns. Substantial vertical overlap was observed for many epipelagic elasmobranchs, indicating an increased likelihood to display spatial overlap, biologically interact, and share similar risk to anthropogenic threats that vary on a vertical gradient. We highlight the critical next steps toward incorporating vertical movement into global management and monitoring strategies for elasmobranchs, emphasizing the need to address geographic and taxonomic biases in deployments and to concurrently consider both horizontal and vertical movements

Whole-genome sequencing reveals host factors underlying critical COVID-19

Critical COVID-19 is caused by immune-mediated inflammatory lung injury. Host genetic variation influences the development of illness requiring critical care1 or hospitalization2,3,4 after infection with SARS-CoV-2. The GenOMICC (Genetics of Mortality in Critical Care) study enables the comparison of genomes from individuals who are critically ill with those of population controls to find underlying disease mechanisms. Here we use whole-genome sequencing in 7,491 critically ill individuals compared with 48,400 controls to discover and replicate 23 independent variants that significantly predispose to critical COVID-19. We identify 16 new independent associations, including variants within genes that are involved in interferon signalling (IL10RB and PLSCR1), leucocyte differentiation (BCL11A) and blood-type antigen secretor status (FUT2). Using transcriptome-wide association and colocalization to infer the effect of gene expression on disease severity, we find evidence that implicates multiple genes—including reduced expression of a membrane flippase (ATP11A), and increased expression of a mucin (MUC1)—in critical disease. Mendelian randomization provides evidence in support of causal roles for myeloid cell adhesion molecules (SELE, ICAM5 and CD209) and the coagulation factor F8, all of which are potentially druggable targets. Our results are broadly consistent with a multi-component model of COVID-19 pathophysiology, in which at least two distinct mechanisms can predispose to life-threatening disease: failure to control viral replication; or an enhanced tendency towards pulmonary inflammation and intravascular coagulation. We show that comparison between cases of critical illness and population controls is highly efficient for the detection of therapeutically relevant mechanisms of disease

Creep consolidation of nuclear depository backfill materials

Evaluation of the effects of backfilling nuclear waste repository rooms is an important aspect of waste repository design. Consolidation of the porous backfill takes place as the room closes with time, causing the supporting stress exerted by the backfill against the intact rock to increase. Estimation of the rate of backfill consolidation is required for closure rate predictions and should be possible if the creep law for the solid constituent is known. A simple theory describing consolidation with a spherical void model is derived to illustrate this relationship. Although the present form of the theory assumes a homogeneous isotropic incompressible material atypical of most rocks, it may be applicable to rock salt, which exhibits considerable plasticity under confined pressure. Application of the theory is illustrated assuming a simple steady-state creep law, to show that the consolidation rate depends on the externally applied stress, temperature, and porosity

Multiple capsid-stabilizing interactions revealed in a high-resolution structure of an emerging picornavirus causing neonatal sepsis

Microscopic imaging and technolog

Comparative population genomics confirms little population structure in two commercially targeted carcharhinid sharks

Many shark species are at risk of overexploitation due to their high economic value, slow maturation, and low recruitment compared to most teleosts. However, there is insufficient knowledge about population structure at different spatial scales necessary to optimise fisheries models. We used single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) obtained through complexity-reduction genome sequencing to quantify the population structure of two highly mobile and commercially fished shark species: bronze whalers (Carcharhinus brachyurus) and dusky sharks (C. obscurus). We applied a comprehensive approach to test several population-structure hypotheses and signal consistency across methods and marker type. We found that C. obscurus was panmictic across Australia and Indonesia and across the Indian Ocean to South Africa based on neutral loci, whereas for C. brachyurus, the westernmost Australian samples appeared to be separate from the rest. The southernmost east Australian samples indicated some difference from the rest of Australia and New Zealand based on candidate loci for C. brachyurus, and potentially also C. obscurus; however, the lack of a reference genome makes the interpretation difficult. Despite similar patterns in both species, subtle and potentially important structure differences emphasise the importance of studying each target species independently rather than assuming similar patterns from closely related species with similar dispersal abilities, as well as considering different marker types in future studies. We found evidence of connectivity across the regions sampled, suggesting that the cumulative effects of regional fisheries and the potential for cross-jurisdictional fishery assessments and management should be considered for Australian, Indonesian, and New Zealand populations.Claudia Junge, Stephen C. Donnellan, Charlie Huveneers, Corey J.A. Bradshaw, Alexis Simon, Michael Drew, Clinton Duffy, Grant Johnson, Geremy Cliff, Matias Braccini, Scott C. Cutmore, Paul Butcher, Rory McAuley, Vic Peddemors, Paul Rogers, Bronwyn M. Gillander