Integrated Ocean Drilling Program Expedition 317/319 Scientific Prospectus: Pacific Equatorial Age Transect

As the world's largest ocean, the Pacific is intricately linked to major changes in the global climate system. Throughout the Cenozoic, Pacific plate motion has had a northward component. Thus, the Pacific is unique in that the thick sediment bulge of biogenic-rich deposits from the currently narrowly focused zone of equatorial upwelling is slowly moving away from the Equator. Hence, older sections are not deeply buried and can be recovered by drilling. Previous drilling in this area during Ocean Drilling Program (ODP) Legs 138 and 199 was remarkably successful in giving us new insights into the workings of the climate and carbon system, productivity changes across the zone of divergence, time-dependent calcium carbonate dissolution, bio- and magnetostratigraphy, the location of the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ), and evolutionary patterns for times of climatic change and upheaval. Together with older Deep Sea Drilling Project drilling in the eastern equatorial Pacific, both legs also helped to delineate the position of the paleoequator and variations in sediment thickness from ~150°W to 110°W.The Pacific equatorial age transect (PEAT) science program is based on Integrated Ocean Drilling Program (IODP) Proposal 626 and consists of Expeditions 317 and 319, grouped into one science program. The goal is to recover a continuous Cenozoic record of the equatorial Pacific by drilling at the paleoposition of the Equator at successive crustal ages on the Pacific plate. Records collected from Expeditions 317 and 319 are to be joined with records of previous drilling during ODP Legs 138 and 199 to make a complete equatorial Pacific record from 0 to 55 Ma. Previously, ODP Legs 138 and 199 were designed as transects across the paleoequator in order to study the changing patterns of sediment deposition across equatorial regions at critical time intervals. As we have gained more information about the past movement of plates and when in Earth's history "critical" climate events took place, it becomes possible to drill an age transect ("flow-line") along the position of the Pacific paleoequator. The goal of this transect is to target important time slices where calcareous sediments have been best preserved and the sedimentary archive will allow us to reconstruct past climatic and tectonic conditions. Leg 199 enhanced our understanding of extreme changes of the calcium carbonate compensation depth (CCD) across major geological boundaries during the last 55 m.y. A very shallow CCD during most of the Paleogene makes it difficult to obtain well-preserved sediments during these stratigraphic intervals, but the strategy of site locations for the current two expeditions is designed to occupy the most promising sites and to obtain a unique sedimentary biogenic sediment archive for time periods just after the Paleocene/Eocene boundary event, Eocene cooling, the Eocene–Oligocene transition, the "one cold pole" Oligocene, the Oligocene–Miocene transition, and the Miocene. These new cores and data will significantly contribute to the objectives of the IODP Extreme Climates Initiative and will provide material that the previous legs were not able to recover.For logistical reasons, the PEAT science program is composed of two expeditions but is being implemented as a single science program to best achieve the overall objectives of Proposal 626. Participants on both expeditions (as well as approved shore-based scientists) will comprise a single science party with equal access to data and materials from both cruises. Sampling aboard the ship will be minimal, and the bulk of the sampling will be completed postcruise.The operational plan is to occupy eight sites along the age transect with the goal of recovering as complete a sedimentary succession as possible. This will probably require three holes to be cored at each site with wireline logging operations in one hole. Basement will be tagged in at least one of the holes. Expedition 317 will be directed primarily to sample the Neogene sites (proposed Sites PEAT-2C, 6C, and 7C, in priority order). The second expedition (319) will primarily sample the Paleogene sites (proposed Sites PEAT-1C, 3C, 4C, and possibly 5C, in priority order)

A quality enhancement green strategy for broiler meat by application of turmeric (Curcuma longa) powder as litter amendment to affect microbes, ammonia emission, pH and moisture

 In multi-cultural Sri Lankan conditions, poultry meat is paramount importance in ensuring food security and improving nutrition. Issues as contact dermatitis and ammonia emission in broiler industry which caused by diminished litter parameters cause reduction of meat quality, profits and environmental conditions. Therefore use of Turmeric (Curcuma longa) (TM) powder as an antiseptic litter amendment at several application levels to enhance litter parameters with microbial demolition was attempted. Three months old broiler litter (2 kg) sample was taken and initial pH and moisture was determined. Turmeric was used to mix at levels of 0%, 1%, 3%, 5% and 8% (w/w). After mixing, 150 g of mixed litter was placed in container for each level of the 4 replicates, incubated for 5h and analyzed for Total Plate Count (TPC), Yeast and Mold Count (YMC), total Nematode Count (NC), ammonia emission, pH and moisture. Significant reduction (p <0.05) of total bacteria was seen (20%, 46%, 95% and 96%) when 1%, 3%, 5% and 8% applications of TM. The YMC reduction was also significant (p <0.05) (34%, 41%, 55% and 65%). Total nematode reduction (p <0.05) was 22%, 45%, 62.5% and 70%. A significant (p <0.05) pH reduction with increment of TM also seen (0.1, 2, 3 and 3%). Moisture (%) was increased (p <0.05) (6, 0.78, 19 and 1%). Ammonia emission was significantly decreased (p <0.05) by increased TM (64, 68, 73 and 84%) against control. It was concluded that the bacterial, fungal, nematode counts, pH and Ammonia emission of broiler litter can be significantly reduced with the application of 8% (w/w) of turmeric powder

ESTIMATION OF LIQUID EMISSION LOADS FROM INDUSTRIES WITHIN THE KELANI RIVER BASIN

The Kelani River could be ranked as the largest recipient of industrialeffluents of the country. The pollution burden of this effluent is quite diverseranging from food manufacturing industries to heavy industrial dischargesfrom textile factories, tanneries, soap and cleaning preparationsmanufacturing plants and rubber factories. An attempt was made to estimatethe liquid emission loads released annually into the Kelani River Basin by theabove sectors.Liquid emission loads were assessed in terms of Biological Oxygen Demand(BOD) and Total Suspended Solid (TSS) content. In certain cases specialparameters such as Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) and Chromium werealso assessed because of chemical contamination and hazardous potential. Inestimating emission loads Rapid Assessment Procedure and the Date BadeUrban Pollution Control Model were used as the guide.The results of the study indicate that the Kelani River receives 766.73 tons ofBOD and 462.04 tons of TSS annually from the above mentioned industrialsectors and 3.8 million cubic meters of annual industrial wastewater volume.In addition, the tanneries and leather finishing factories discharge untreatedeffluent, which is contaminated with chromium, a hazardous heavy metalhaving bioaccumulation potential, into the river basin. The amount ofchromium released into the river is as high as 6.36 tons while the COD loadfrom rubber manufacturing sector is 48.71 tons annually

PROCEDURE TO ALLOCATE UNITS IN A CONDOMINIUM IN AN URBAN RESETTLEMENT PROJECT: A SCIENTIFIC APPROACH

Many public and private sector projects provoke forced relocation of the population but fail to resettle people sustainably and thus to trigger their impoverishment. Studies also found that one root cause of such failures and impoverishment is the disposal of properties and the lack of financial support for relocation. Make a systematical way of allocating housing units in a condominium in resettlement projects using a scientific and analytical model of payment of compensation is the primary purpose of this article. The independent variables which affect to the market value of the existing lands, especially in Nawama Mawatha and Wekanda Road in Colombo 2 area, are considered, distance from the main road (accessibility), the shape of the land (regular or irregular) and availability of infrastructure and sanitary facilities (utilities). After collecting the market variables then weighted all these independent variables to run the multiple regression analysis to get the results of the study. The results of the study showed that the significant effect comes to the market value of the land is from the distance from the main road (accessibility) as it has the strong negative correlation with the market value

SEEDLING GROWTH PERFORMANCE OF FOUR Syzygium species IN THE SIMULATED LIGHT AND SOIL NUTRIENT ENVIRONMENTS OF A RAIN FOREST IN SRI LANKA

Seedlings of four species of Syzygium (S. firmum, S. makul, S. operculatum, S.rubicundutn) were investigated for differences in growth and survival after one and halfyears growth in a nursery experiment. All four species co-exist in the moist evergreen rainforest of South western Sri Lanka. S. firmum is a canopy tree on valleys to midslopes. S.rubicundum is considered a canopy tree of late-successional forest on hill mid slops. BothS. makul and S. operculatum arc sub canopy trees of late-successional forest alongstreamways of lower slopes and valleys.Seedlings of each species were grown within replicated light and soil nutrient treatmentsfound in the groundstorey forest environments. The light treatments exposed seedlings toi) full sun; ii) sunlight like that at the center of a 200 m2 forest opening. iii) sunlight likethat at the center of a 400 m2 canopy opening; iv) 50% shade of sunlight with qualitysimilar to the outside edge of a 400 m2 canopy opening on the shaded side; v) 20% ofsunlight with a quality similar to the inside edge of a 400 m2 canopy opening on theshaded side and vi) I% of sunlight with a quality and amount similar to the forestunderstorey. Within each light treatment seedlings were grown with additions ofphosphorus, potassium, magnesium, al\ three combined and a control with no additionalnutrients. At the end of one and half years seedlings were measured for net photosynthesis,height increment, leaf number and survival.Seedling survival for all species was low in the forest understorey treatment. Both survivaland seedling height were greatest in shelters simulating forest openings. Leaf productionwas highest in full sun and inside edge light treatments and all species had their greatestnet photosynthesis in the inside edge treatment. For nutrient treatments phosphoruspromoted greatest seedling growth in all species

THE VARIATION IN LEAr STRUCTURE O~ SEEDLINGS IN THE FAMILIES DIPTEROCARPACEAE, CLUSIACEAE, AND MYRTACEAE UNDER DIFFERENT LIGHT ENVIRONMENTS

Light has been characicriscd as the most important environmental factor that affect the leafstructure of tree seedlings in tropical rain forest in South and Southeast Asia. Many studieshave been carried out on leaf structure of early-successional and late-successional specic-,and also among the species within the same successional status. These studies have helpedin creating a clear understanding of ecological distribution in relation to each species. Thepresent study examined the leaf structure or six canopy tree species that are considered to berelatively shade tolerant in lowland rain forests in Sri Lanka.Seedlings of Dipteracarpus tevlcnticns, D. hispidus (Diptcrocarpaceae), Mesua f{'ITNI. M.nagassarium (Clusiaccac). Sy:rgillillfirnllll'/1 and S. rubicundum (Myrtaccac) were grown indifferent controlled environmental shelters that simulated a range of light environmentsfound in the ground storey of the rain forest. Two treatments exposed seedlings to differentduration of full sunlight. These simulated the groundstorey Photosynthetic Photon FluxDensity (PFD) that were comparable to the centres of about 200 m2 and 400 m2 canopyopenings. Three other shelters exposed seedlings to uniform diffuse light conditions thatsimulated amounts and qualities of radiation similar to that of the forest undcrstorey (PFD50. R:FR ratio 0.46: PPO 350. R:FR ratio 0.97; PFO XOO,R:FR ratio 1.05). A control lighttreatment proved full sun light quality (PPFD 200n, R:FR ratio 1.27) for the seedlinggrowth.The attributes measured were thickness of leaf blade. upper and lower epidermis. palisademesophyll and number of layers, and stomatal frequency. Results show that S\'~\'gil/lllspecies have highest in leaf blade, palisade cell thickness and stomatal frequency followedin order by MC.I'I.w>Dipterocarpus. This suggests that S\'~ygillill species are more lighttolerant but less in drought tolerance. The thickest upper and lower epidermis inDipterocarpus reveal that they are more efficient in water use. Svzygiun: and Dipteroiarpusexhibit rows in palisidac mcsophyll when exposed to full sun. These findings elucidatesome of the relationships between leaf anatomy and the species ecology across the foresttopography.

Changes in dietary fiber intake in mice reveal associations between colonic mucin O-glycosylation and specific gut bacteria

The colonic mucus layer, comprised of highly O-glycosylated mucins, is vital to mediating host-gut microbiota interactions, yet the impact of dietary changes on colonic mucin O-glycosylation and its associations with the gut microbiota remains unexplored. Here, we used an array of omics techniques including glycomics to examine the effect of dietary fiber consumption on the gut microbiota, colonic mucin O-glycosylation and host physiology of high-fat diet-fed C57BL/6J mice. The high-fat diet group had significantly impaired glucose tolerance and altered liver proteome, gut microbiota composition, and short-chain fatty acid production compared to normal chow diet group. While dietary fiber inclusion did not reverse all high fat-induced modifications, it resulted in specific changes, including an increase in the relative abundance of bacterial families with known fiber digesters and a higher propionate concentration. Conversely, colonic mucin O-glycosylation remained similar between the normal chow and high-fat diet groups, while dietary fiber intervention resulted in major alterations in O-glycosylation. Correlation network analysis revealed previously undescribed associations between specific bacteria and mucin glycan structures. For example, the relative abundance of the bacterium Parabacteroides distasonis positively correlated with glycan structures containing one terminal fucose and correlated negatively with glycans containing two terminal fucose residues or with both an N-acetylneuraminic acid and a sulfate residue. This is the first comprehensive report of the impact of dietary fiber on the colonic mucin O-glycosylation and associations of these mucosal glycans with specific gut bacteria

AVIFAUNAL DIVERSITY IN A TEA PLANTATION ECOSYSTEM IN THE UP-COUNTRY OF SRI LANKA

A survey on birds was conducted at Mattakelle Tea Estate with the objective of assessing the significance of a given tea plantation ecosystem in maintaining avifaunal diversity. Seven different habitats were identified in the ecosystem namely home garden, seasonal stream, small scale reservoir, Eucalyptus forest, wetland, tea field and secondary forest. The monitoring was conducted from January to June 2010 using line transect method. 28 counts were made for each habitat. Besides, activities of birds, feeding habits and food recourses were observed.61 species of birds including  9 species of endemics and 10 species of migrants were recorded. One globally threatened species Kashmir Flycatcher (Ficedula subrubra) and 12 nationally threatened species were observed. Among the habitats, the highest species count of 62% was recorded in  home garden habitat where Shannon index (H’) = 3.03 and Evenness (J) =0.46. Species diversity and the evenness of the secondary forest were comparable to tea field indicating H’= 2.86 and J=0.43; H’ =2.77 and J= 0.46 respectively.  The avifaunal diversity was relatively low in the rest.The study revealed that each of the habitats provided unique niches and supported maintenance of natural diversity. Vegetation structure and the complexity of the ecosystem in tea plantations play a vital role in sustaining  avifaunal diversity. Several conservation measures such as increasing plant diversity, introduction of shade trees, conduct of good agricultural practices and prevention from setting fire are recommended to protect and conserve avifaunal diversity

Peri-Operative Risk Factors Associated with Post-Operative Cognitive Dysfunction (POCD): An Umbrella Review of Meta-Analyses of Observational Studies

This umbrella review aimed to systematically identify the peri-operative risk factors associated with post-operative cognitive dysfunction (POCD) using meta-analyses of observational studies. To date, no review has synthesised nor assessed the strength of the available evidence examining risk factors for POCD. Database searches from journal inception to December 2022 consisted of systematic reviews with meta-analyses that included observational studies examining pre-, intra- and post-operative risk factors for POCD. A total of 330 papers were initially screened. Eleven meta-analyses were included in this umbrella review, which consisted of 73 risk factors in a total population of 67,622 participants. Most pertained to pre-operative risk factors (74%) that were predominantly examined using prospective designs and in cardiac-related surgeries (71%). Overall, 31 of the 73 factors (42%) were associated with a higher risk of POCD. However, there was no convincing (class I) or highly suggestive (class II) evidence for associations between risk factors and POCD, and suggestive evidence (class III) was limited to two risk factors (pre-operative age and pre-operative diabetes). Given that the overall strength of the evidence is limited, further large-scale studies that examine risk factors across various surgery types are recommended