Land Grant Application- Stevens, Jonas (Norway)

Land grant application submitted to the Maine Land Office on behalf of Jonas Stevens for service in the Revolutionary War, by their widow Mary.https://digitalmaine.com/revolutionary_war_me_land_office/1855/thumbnail.jp

Super-Droplet Method for the Numerical Simulation of Clouds and Precipitation: a Particle-Based Microphysics Model Coupled with Non-hydrostatic Model

A novel simulation model of cloud microphysics is developed, which is named Super-Droplet Method (SDM). SDM enables accurate calculation of cloud microphysics with reasonable cost in computation. A simple SDM for warm rain, which incorporates sedimentation, condensation/evaporation, stochastic coalescence, is developed. The methodology to couple SDM and a non-hydrostatic model is also developed. It is confirmed that the result of our Monte Carlo scheme for the coalescence of super-droplets agrees fairly well with the solution of stochastic coalescence equation. A preliminary simulation of a shallow maritime cumulus formation initiated by a warm bubble is presented to demonstrate the practicality of SDM. Further discussions are devoted for the extension and the computational efficiency of SDM to incorporate various properties of clouds, such as, several types of ice crystals, several sorts of soluble/insoluble CCNs, their chemical reactions, electrification, and the breakup of droplets. It is suggested that the computational cost of SDM becomes lower than spectral (bin) method when the number of attributes $d$ becomes larger than some critical value, which may be $2\sim4$

Structural and photophysical properties of various polypyridyl ligands : a combined experimental and computational study

Covalent triazine frameworks (CTFs) with polypyridyl ligands are very promising supports to anchor photocatalytic complexes. Herein, we investigate the photophysical properties of a series of ligands which vary by the extent of the aromatic system, the nitrogen content and their topologies to aid in selecting interesting building blocks for CTFs. Interestingly, some linkers have a rotational degree of freedom, allowing both a trans and cis structure, where only the latter allows anchoring. Therefore, the influence of the dihedral angle on the UV-Vis spectrum is studied. The photophysical properties are investigated by a combined computational and experimental study. Theoretically, both static and molecular dynamics simulations are performed to deduce ground- and excited state properties based on density functional theory (DFT) and time-dependent DFT. The position of the main absorption peak shifts towards higher wavelengths for an increased size of the pi-system and a higher pi-electron deficiency. We found that the position of the main absorption peak among the different ligands studied in this work can amount to 271 nm; which has a significant impact on the photophysical properties of the ligands. This broad range of shifts allows modulation of the electronic structure by varying the ligands and may help in a rational design of efficient photocatalysts

ナンキョク ケンキュウ カガク イインカイ ノ レンゾク プランクトン サイシュウキ センモンカ グループ ワークショップ ホウコク

2010年11月22-26日に国立極地研究所にて「南極研究科学委員会(以下SCAR)連続プランクトン採集器(以下CPR)専門家グループワークショップ」を開催した.4カ国から12名が参加し,南大洋CPR観測実務担当者の間で,観測データの品質管理,種同定やデータ分析手法の再確認,及び今後の活動についての詳細な討議を行った.前半は文献資料及び顕微鏡観察を通して,動物プランクトンの分類群ごとに種同定の情報交換及び具体的な分類カテゴリーの統一を図った.まとめられた種同定基準を用いて新たにマニュアルを作成することとなった.後半はデータ分析手法とデータマネージメント,さらには将来的な観測計画を確認した.今後,定期的にワークショップを開催し,各国間で統一された試料処理及びデータ管理を維持していくことで合意した."Southern Ocean Continuous Plankton Recorder (SO-CPR) Standards Workshop: SCAR Expert Group on CPR Research" was held at the National Institute of Polar Research (NIPR) on 22-26 November 2011. Twelve participants from four countries attended. The purposes of the workshop were to ensure that consistent and high standards of species identification, methodology, and data quality were being maintained amongst all participants and laboratories in the SO-CPR survey, and to discuss future contributions of the SO-CPR program to a global CPR network. The first three and a half days of the workshop were focused on assessing the accuracy and consistency of species identifications. We concluded that our species identifications and procedures are accurate and uniform, and that the SO-CPR database is of the highest possible standard. Certain taxonomic criteria developed at the workshop will be described in a new laboratory procedures manual. Four major gaps in the database (spatial, temporal, taxonomic, and data analysis gaps) were identified and discussed. Participants concurred that there should be more regular workshops to ensure that the high standards of the SO-CPR program are maintained

Petroselinic acid purification and its use for the fermentation of new sophorolipids

Petroselinic acid, a positional isomer of oleic acid, was isolated from the vegetable oil of Coriandrum sativum fruits. This uncommon fatty acid was subsequently used as substrate for sophorolipid fermentation with a Starmerella bombicola lactone esterase overexpression (oe sble) strain. A petroselinic acid based diacetylated sophorolipid lactone was obtained in high purity without incorporation of de novo synthesized fatty acids such as oleic acid. A total production of 40 g/L was obtained. The petroselinic acid based sophorolipid lactone was subsequently hydrolyzed towards the petroselinic acid based sophorolipid acid. For both compounds, their critical micelle concentration (CMC) and corresponding surface tension were compared to their oleic acid based counterparts. Both petroselinic acid based sophorolipids displayed a much lower CMC value than their oleic acid based counterparts, although their minimal surface tension was the same. Besides, the sophorolipid fermentation product was chemically modified towards a novel C12 sophorolipid aldehyde. This derivative constitutes an interesting building block for further modification towards new-to-nature sophorolipids with high potential for self-assembly applications

Synthesis and self-assembly of aminyl and alkynyl substituted sophorolipids

Sophorolipids are one of the most important microbial biosurfactants, because of their large-scale production and applications developed so far in the fields of detergency, microbiology, cosmetics or environmental science. However, the structural variety of native sophorolipids is limited/restricted, a limiting fact for the development of new properties and their potential applications. In their open acidic form, C18:1 sophorolipids (SL) are classically composed of a sophorose headgroup and a carboxylic acid (COOH) end-group. The carboxyl group gives them unique pH-responsive properties, but they are a poorly-reactive group and their charge can only be negative. To develop a new generation of pH-responsive, positively-charged, SL and to improve their reactivity for further functionalization, we develop here SLs with an amine (-NH2) or terminal alkyne (-C$\not\equiv$CH) end-group analogues. The amine group generates positively-charged SL and is more reactive than carboxylic acids, e.g. towards aldehydes; the alkyne group provides access to copper-based click chemistry. In this work, we synthesize (C18:1) and (C18:0) --NH2 and (C18:1) -C$\not\equiv$CH sophorolipid derivatives and we study their self-assembly properties in response to pH and/or temperature changes by means of static and dynamic light scattering, small angle (X-ray, neutron) scattering and cryogenic electron microscopy. Monounsaturated aminyl SL-C18:1-NH2 sophorolipids form a micellar phase in their neutral form at high pH and a mixed micellar-bilayer phase in their positively-charged form at low pH. Saturated aminyl SL-C18:0-NH2 sophorolipids form a micellar phase in their charged form at low pH and a twisted ribbon phase in their neutral form at high pH and monounsaturated alkynyl SL-C18:1-C$\not\equiv$CH sophorolipids form a main micellar phase at T> 51.8{\textdegree}C and a twisted ribbon phase at T< 51.8 {\textdegree}C

Immobilization of Ir(I) complex on covalent triazine frameworks for C-H borylation reactions : a combined experimental and computational study

Metal-modified covalent triazine frameworks (CTFs) have attracted considerable attention in heterogeneous catalysis due to their strong nitrogen-metal interactions exhibiting superior activity, stability and hence recyclability. Herein, we report on a post-metalation of a bipyridine-based CTFs with an Ir(I) complex for C\u2013H borylation of aromatic compounds. Physical characterization of the Ir(I)-based bipyCTF catalyst in combination with density functional theory (DFT) calculations exhibit a high stabilization energy of the Ir-bipy moiety in the frameworks in the presence of B2Pin2. By using B2Pin2 as a boron source, Ir(I)@bipyCTF efficiently catalyzed the C\u2013H borylation of various aromatic compounds with excellent activity and good recyclability. In addition, XAS analysis of the Ir(I)@bipyCTF gave clear evidence for the coordination environment of the Ir

Improved estimation of glomerular filtration rate (GFR) by comparison of eGFRcystatin C and eGFRcreatinine

Objective. GFR-prediction equations based upon cystatin C and creatinine have better diagnostic performance in estimating GFR than equations based upon only one of the two markers. The present work concerns in what way a comparison between separate estimations of GFR based upon cystatin C (eGFR(cystatin C)) or creatinine (eGFR(creatinine)) can be used to evaluate the diagnostic performance of a combined cystatin C-and creatinine-based estimation of GFR. Methods. The difference between eGFR(cystatin C) and eGFR(creatinine) was compared with measured GFR (iohexol clearance) and a combined cystatin C- and creatinine-based estimation of GFR in a Swedish-Caucasian cohort of 857 adult patients. Results. A difference between eGFR(cystatin C) and eGFR(creatinine) of >= 40% indicated a markedly reduced diagnostic performance of the combined cystatin C- and creatinine-based estimation of GFR. Conclusion. Comparison of the agreement between eGFR(cystatin C) and eGFR(creatinine) can be used to evaluate the diagnostic performance of combined cystatin C-and creatinine-based estimations of GFR. If 'threshold values' for discordance are exceeded, it must be considered whether the clinical context requires the use of an invasive gold standard method to measure GFR. In some clinical contexts either creatinine or cystatin C are known to be invalidated as markers of GFR and in these situations the use of only the cystatin C-or the creatinine-based GFR estimate should be considered when the 'threshold values' are exceeded