Hemiptera records from Lake Spechtensee and from Southern Styria (Austria)

Hemiptera records gained in July 2015 in course of the 7th European Hemiptera Congress in Styria are presented. In total, 144 Auchenorrhyncha, 143 Heteroptera, 13 Psylloidea and 2 Aphididae species were collected. Ribautodelphax imitans (Delphacidae), Eurhadina saageri (Cicadellidae), Notonecta maculata (Notonectidae), Notonecta meridionalis (Notonectidae) and Polymerus cognatus (Miridae) are new records for Styria

Metal release from contaminated estuarine sediment under pH changes in the marine environment

The contaminant release from estuarine sediment due to pH changes was investigated using a modified CEN/TS 14429 pH-dependence leaching test. The test is performed in the range of pH values of 0-14 using deionised water and seawater as leaching solutions. The experimental conditions mimic different circumstances of the marine environment due to the global acidification, carbon dioxide (CO2) leakages from carbon capture and sequestration technologies, and accidental chemical spills in seawater. Leaching test results using seawater as leaching solution show a better neutralisation capacity giving slightly lower metal leaching concentrations than when using deionised water. The contaminated sediment shows a low base-neutralisation capacity (BNCpH 12 = -0.44 eq/kg for deionised water and BNCpH 12 = -1.38 eq/kg for seawater) but a high acid-neutralisation capacity when using deionised water (ANCpH 4 = 3.58 eq/ kg) and seawater (ANCpH 4 = 3.97 eq/kg). Experimental results are modelled with the Visual MINTEQ geochemical software to predict metal release from sediment using both leaching liquids. Surface adsorption to iron- and aluminium- (hydr)oxides was applied for all studied elements. The consideration of the metal-organic matter binding through the NICA-Donnan model and Stockholm Humic Model for lead and copper, respectively, improves the former metal release prediction. Modelled curves can be useful for the environmental impact assessment of seawater acidification due to its match with the experimental values.This work was supported by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness, Project No. CTM 2011-28437-C02-01, ERDF included. M. C. Martı´n-Torre was funded by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness by means of FPI. Fellowship No. BES-2012-053816

Measurement of the Tau Lepton Polarisation at LEP2

A first measurement of the average polarisation P_tau of tau leptons produced in e+e- annihilation at energies significantly above the Z resonance is presented. The polarisation is determined from the kinematic spectra of tau hadronic decays. The measured value P_tau = -0.164 +/- 0.125 is consistent with the Standard Model prediction for the mean LEP energy of 197 GeV.A first measurement of the average polarisation Pτ of tau leptons produced in e + e − annihilation at energies significantly above the Z resonance is presented. The polarisation is determined from the kinematic spectra of tau hadronic decays. The measured value Pτ=−0.164±0.125 is consistent with the Standard Model prediction for the mean LEP energy of 197 GeV.A first measurement of the average polarisation P_tau of tau leptons produced in e+e- annihilation at energies significantly above the Z resonance is presented. The polarisation is determined from the kinematic spectra of tau hadronic decays. The measured value P_tau = -0.164 +/- 0.125 is consistent with the Standard Model prediction for the mean LEP energy of 197 GeV

Receiving the diagnosis of lung cancer : patient recall of information and satisfaction with physician communication

PURPOSE: Little is known about the information newly diagnosed patients with lung cancer recall and how satisfied they are with physicians' communication. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Seventy-one consecutive patients with newly diagnosed lung cancer were surveyed 1 to 3 days after the disclosure of diagnosis. Patients' recall of the given information was assessed, as well as their satisfaction with physicians' communication of diagnosis, treatment procedure, and goal of treatment as curative or palliative. Physicians who provided diagnosis were asked to complete a questionnaire concerning what information they had given to the patient. Congruence between physician information and patient recall of that information was then evaluated. RESULTS: Ninety percent (62 of 69 patients) correctly recalled their physician's information about the diagnosis, 83% (55 of 66 patients) knew what treatment procedure their physicians proposed, and 49% (32 of 65 patients) accurately recalled information about the goal of treatment. Seventy-six and 73% of patients were highly satisfied with their physician's communication of diagnosis and treatment procedure, respectively. Only 39% were highly satisfied with communication of the treatment goal. Patients who correctly recalled information regarding the treatment procedure were significantly more satisfied with its communication. CONCLUSION: Recall of information about the intent of treatment is poor, and satisfaction with communication of the intent of treatment is lacking among newly diagnosed patients with lung cancer. Future studies should address whether specific interventions can improve these deficiencies

Combined Impacts of Climate and Land Use Changes on Long-Term Streamflow in the Upper Halda Basin, Bangladesh

In Bangladesh, rapid population growth and associated land-use changes are escalating water scarcity issues, which will be further exacerbated under ongoing climate change. As such, predicting the consequences of climate and land-use change on freshwater supplies is critical for the sustainable management of water resources. In this study, a Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) associated with a Land Cover Model (LCM) were used to simulate long-term stream flows in the Halda Basin, Bangladesh, under baseline and future climate and land-use change scenarios. In addition, the separate and combined impacts of both types of change on long-term streamflow projections were assessed. Results indicate that by the 2060s, the maximum temperature of the Halda Basin may rise by 1.6 °C in comparison to the baseline 1986–2005 period, while minimum temperature will also increase, albeit at a lower rate than maximum temperature. Precipitation during the dry season is expected to increase, although it may decline in the monsoon period. Simulations show that these changes in climate are likely to increase future streamflow in the Halda catchment, with monthly streamflow influenced mainly by the variability in precipitation. The LCM projected decreases in grassland along with cultivated land at the expense of artificial areas. Combined, future climate and land-use changes are projected to increase annual streamflow, with climate change likely to be a greater driver of altered streamflow than land-use changes. Our results should guide environmental management authorities in more sustainable and strategic water resource planning under global climate change

Quantification the filling of microcracks due to Autogenous self-healing in cement paste

Microcracks play vital roles in the prediction of the service life of concrete structure. Because microcracks in concrete structure are the preferential ingression channels for aggressive ions, e.g., chloride, sulphate, etc. However, microcracks have potentials to self-heal autogenously due to the continuous hydration of unhydrated cement, especially when ultra-/ high strength concrete is used. To quantify the autogenous self-healing effects of microcracks in cement paste, our experiment is designed to monitor the self-healing process of microcracks in cement paste continuously by using optical microscope. The healing products are quantified by image analysis with newly implemented software in MATLAB. The results indicate that the microcracks are not filled evenly along the crack length and most healing products are Ca(OH)2, which dissolve partly from the paste matrix and re-nucleate in the microcrack, in addition to its counterpart from the continuous hydration of unhydrated cement. Furthermore, the sample cracked at earlier age shows higher potential to heal, while the sample with smaller crack width experiences greater filling efficiency. The obtained autogenous selfhealing mechanism will be used in the future simulation

Ultrasonic Techniques for Determination and Monitoring Various Properties of Cementitious Materials at Early Ages

info:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Evaluation of the LDPM elastic and fracture parameters by up-scaling procedure

The heterogeneity of the concrete may be considered on different size scales of observation, ranging from the atomistic scale (10-10m), characterized by the behavior of crystalline particles of hydrated Portland cement, to the macroscopic scale (101 m), where concrete has traditionally been considered homogeneous. The multiscale framework we are proposing in this paper is based on the following models: chemical analyses at the cement paste scale; mechanical lattice model at the cement and mortar scales; geometrical aggregate distribution models at the mortar and concrete scales; and the Lattice Discrete Particle Model (LDPM) at the concrete scale. For that purpose, a set of analysis starting from a known set of parameters of the cement paste. This input is utilized to evaluate the mechanical properties of the mortars (cement and sand), and then these properties are used to evaluate the mechanical properties of the mortar-a4 (mortar-s and aggregate smaller then 4mm). The upscaling in the proposed methodology involved the evaluation of the LDPM concrete parameters based on the mortara4 properties. Here we are suggesting a uni-axial tension "numerical experiments" on the mortar-a4 scale to evaluate the elastic and fracture LDPM mechanical parameters