Identifying potential surface water sampling sites for emerging chemical pollutants in Gauteng Province, South Africa

Emerging chemical pollutants (ECPs) are defined as new chemicals which do not have a regulatory status, but which may have an adverse effect on human health and the environment. The occurrence and concentrations of ECPs in South African water bodies are largely unknown, so monitoring is required in order to determine the potential threat that these ECPs may pose. Relevant surface water sampling sites in the Gauteng Province of South Africa were identified utilising a geographic information system (GIS). The sites were identified by identifying potential sources of ECPs, including hospitals and clinics, sewage treatment plants, and areas with high population densities or areas that were vulnerable from an environmental point of view. Buffers were drawn around these areas to identify the water sources which have the highest probability of containing ECPs. Areas along the Klip River were identified as having a high likelihood of containing both anthropogenic ECPs and agricultural ECPs. Additionally, sections of the Hennops River were likely to contain anthropogenic ECPs, while the Blesbokspruit area had a high likelihood of containing agricultural ECPs.The Water Research Commission (Grant K5/2438), the Photonics Institute of South Africa (Grant PISA-15-DIR-06) and the National Research Foundation (funding grants 90720 and 93394).http://www.wrc.org.zaam2017ChemistryGeography, Geoinformatics and Meteorolog

Large atom number dual-species magneto-optical trap for fermionic 6Li and 40K atoms

We present the design, implementation and characterization of a dual-species magneto-optical trap (MOT) for fermionic 6Li and 40K atoms with large atom numbers. The MOT simultaneously contains 5.2x10^9 6Li-atoms and 8.0x10^9 40K-atoms, which are continuously loaded by a Zeeman slower for 6Li and a 2D-MOT for 40K. The atom sources induce capture rates of 1.2x10^9 6Li-atoms/s and 1.4x10^9 40K-atoms/s. Trap losses due to light-induced interspecies collisions of ~65% were observed and could be minimized to ~10% by using low magnetic field gradients and low light powers in the repumping light of both atomic species. The described system represents the starting point for the production of a large-atom number quantum degenerate Fermi-Fermi mixture

Ammonite Faunal Dynamics Across Bio-Events During the Mid-and Late Cretaceous Along the Russian Pacific Coast

Jagt−Yazykova, E.A. 2012. Ammonite faunal dynamics across bio−events during the mid − and Late Cretaceous along th

Velocity-space sensitivity of the time-of-flight neutron spectrometer at JET

The velocity-space sensitivities of fast-ion diagnostics are often described by so-called weight functions. Recently, we formulated weight functions showing the velocity-space sensitivity of the often dominant beam-target part of neutron energy spectra. These weight functions for neutron emission spectrometry (NES) are independent of the particular NES diagnostic. Here we apply these NES weight functions to the time-of-flight spectrometer TOFOR at JET. By taking the instrumental response function of TOFOR into account, we calculate time-of-flight NES weight functions that enable us to directly determine the velocity-space sensitivity of a given part of a measured time-of-flight spectrum from TOFOR

Relationship of edge localized mode burst times with divertor flux loop signal phase in JET

A phase relationship is identified between sequential edge localized modes (ELMs) occurrence times in a set of H-mode tokamak plasmas to the voltage measured in full flux azimuthal loops in the divertor region. We focus on plasmas in the Joint European Torus where a steady H-mode is sustained over several seconds, during which ELMs are observed in the Be II emission at the divertor. The ELMs analysed arise from intrinsic ELMing, in that there is no deliberate intent to control the ELMing process by external means. We use ELM timings derived from the Be II signal to perform direct time domain analysis of the full flux loop VLD2 and VLD3 signals, which provide a high cadence global measurement proportional to the voltage induced by changes in poloidal magnetic flux. Specifically, we examine how the time interval between pairs of successive ELMs is linked to the time-evolving phase of the full flux loop signals. Each ELM produces a clear early pulse in the full flux loop signals, whose peak time is used to condition our analysis. The arrival time of the following ELM, relative to this pulse, is found to fall into one of two categories: (i) prompt ELMs, which are directly paced by the initial response seen in the flux loop signals; and (ii) all other ELMs, which occur after the initial response of the full flux loop signals has decayed in amplitude. The times at which ELMs in category (ii) occur, relative to the first ELM of the pair, are clustered at times when the instantaneous phase of the full flux loop signal is close to its value at the time of the first ELM

Addressing stillbirth inequities in Australia: steps towards a better future

Persistent disparities in stillbirth risk and care are present in Australia. Eliminating these disparities is possible with a commitment to enhancing and scaling up models of culturally safe maternity care shown to be effective for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women and those of migrant and refugee backgrounds. Campaigns to improve public awareness of stillbirth also play an important role in reducing stillbirth risk and consequences. To achieve reach and impact in communities at risk, messaging needs to be framed around the social and cultural context of women’s lives. Here we describe important initiatives underway within the Stillbirth Centre of Research Excellence to develop a coordinated national approach to stillbirth prevention and care in communities that bear a disproportionate burden of stillbirth.Alice R. Rumbold, Jane Yelland, Deanna Stuart-Butler, Madeline Forbes, Clemence Due, Frances M.Boyle, Philippa Middleton ... et al