Effects of Spent Engine Oil Polluted Soil and Organic Amendment on Soil Chemical Properties, Micro-Flora on Growth and Herbage of Telfairia Occidentalis (hook f).

A trial was conducted at the Screen House of the Department of Crop Science, University of Benin, Benin City, Nigeria to evaluate the efficacy of using organic fertilizer as bioremediant for spent engine oil polluted soils. Three concentrations of spent engine oil (0, 5 and 10 % w/w, spent engine oil in soil) and three application rates of organic fertilize (0, 5 and 10 t ha-1) were utilized in a 3 x 3 factorial arrangement and laid out as a completely randomized design with three replication. Soil pH, available P and exchangeable cations were significantly reduced by spent engine oil except organic C compared to control. Heavy metals (Va and Pb) concentration increased with increasing concentration of spent engine oil. Amendment of spent engine oil polluted soil with organic fertilizer significantly remediated the degraded soil and decreases the heavy metal concentration. In addition, 10 t ha-1 organic fertilizer showed superiority over 5tha-1 organic fertilizer in amending spent engine oil degraded soil for pH, total N, available P, exchangeable Ca2+ and reduced heavy metal concentration. Soil pollution adversely affected number of leaves, dry vine weight, dry leaf weight and herbage yield. Growth and herbage yield were much higher in organic fertilizer amended spent engine oil polluted soil. the highest herbage yield (9.23 t ha-1) was obtained from unpolluted soil treated with 10 t ha-1 organic fertilizer which was statistically comparable with soil polluted with 5 % spent engine oil and amended with 10 t ha-1 organic fertilizer (7.10 t ha-1). Soils polluted with 5 % spent engine oil had higher bacteria population compared to control, while organic fertilizer had depressing effect on soil without spent oil pollution. However, unpolluted soiltreated with 10 t ha-1 organic fertilizer had the fungi (0.77 x 106cfu g-1) population which was statistically compared to 5 t ha-1 organically treated soil without spent engine oil pollution (0.76 x 106cfu g-1). Soil polluted with spent engine oil has been bioremediated with organic fertilizer and hence put into productive use.Keyword: Growth, herbage yield, micro-flora, organic fertilizer, spent engine oil, Telfairia occidentalis

Influence by artificial defoliation and NPK fertilizer application on growth and yield of Okra (Abelmoschus esculentus (L) Moench)

A field trial to determine the effect of artificial defoliation and NPK fertilizer application on growth and yield of okra was conducted in 2010 and 2011 at the Teaching and Research Farms of the Faculty of Agriculture, University of Benin, Benin City, Nigeria. Okra “Uselu Local” was sourced locally and subjected to four rates of NPK fertilizer (0, 200 (30 kg N, 13 kg P and 30 kg K ha-1); 400 (60 kg N, 26 kg P, 50 kg K ha-1), and 600 (90 kg N, 60 kg P, 90 kg K ha-1) kg ha-1) at different percentages (0, 25 and 50 %) of defoliation respectively at four and six weeks after sowing. The experiment was laid out as a randomized complete block design arranged in a split-split plot and replicated three times. Each replication was allocated 12 treatments with NPK fertilizer application as the main plot, defoliation (sub-plot) and time of defoliation (sub- sub plot). Data were collected on parameters such as days to 50 % flowering, plant height at which fresh pods were harvested, plant height at which dry pods were harvested, number of pods per stand, average pod weight, pod weight per stand, pod yield per hectare, pod diameter, number of dry pod per stand, number of seeds per pod and stand. Obtained data were analyzed using analysis of variance procedure for split – split plot design and means were compared using LSD at 5 % level of significance. Results obtained indicated that defoliation considerably affected plant height and days to 50 % flowering. The reduction in growth due to defoliation was observed to be significant at four weeks after sowing of okra. NPK fertilizer application significantly reduced the deleterious effects of defoliation with regards to plant heights, days to 50 % flowering and yield of okra. The NPK fertilizer application promoted vegetative growth to cushion the adverse effects of defoliation. The interaction between NPK fertilizer application and defoliation was only significant on number of seeds per pod. There were significant interactive effects between NPK fertilizer and time of defoliation on plant heights and number of seeds per pod. Increasing in NPK fertilizer application above 200 kg (30 kg N, 13 kg P and 30 kg K ha-1) NPK fertilizer ha-1 could be profitable and to bring about a considerable increase in the growth and yield of okra.Keywords: Defoliation, NPK fertilizer, okra, yiel

Ground Motion Study on Dumbarton Toll Bridge

The existing Dumbarton Toll Bridge was built in 1982, connecting the cities of Newark and East Palo Alto in the San Francisco Bay Area. The initial vulnerability studies conducted by California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) in 2004 indicated that the performance of the bridge during a maximum credible earthquake was uncertain. Earth Mechanics, Inc. (EMI) has carried out the necessary study for the seismic evaluation of the bridge. An extensive field investigation was undertaken both on-land and over-water at the site to develop the idealized subsurface profile along the bridge alignment. According to the probabilistic and deterministic seismic hazard analyses incorporated with new seismic source model and Next Generation Attenuation (NGA) models, a 1,000-year return period spectrum was adopted for the Safety Evaluation Earthquake (SEE) event and a 100-year return period spectrum for the Function Evaluation Earthquake (FEE) event. SHAKE and KIPS programs were used to conduct the seismic response analysis and kinematic soil-pile interaction analysis were carried out at selected piers. From this study, two sets of Acceleration Response Spectrum (ARS) curves were generated for the seismic retrofit of this bridge: one for the Main Channel piers and another for the West and East Approach structures. Other seismic retrofit-related issues are also addressed

Prevalence of workplace violence against nurses in Hong Kong

Objectives. To determine the prevalence and nature of workplace violence against nurses, and how nurses deal with such aggression; and to identify the risk factors related to violence in the hospital environment. Design. Cross-sectional questionnaire study. Setting. University teaching hospital, Hong Kong. Participants. All nursing staff in the hospital, except nurses who were unable to read Chinese or who did not have patient contact (eg those worked in administrative positions), were invited to complete a questionnaire. Main outcome measures. Demographic data of the respondents, incidence of and risk factors contributing to workplace violence. Results. A total of 420 nurses returned the completed questionnaire (response rate, 25%). Three hundred and twenty (76%; 95% confidence interval, 72-80%) nurses reported abuse of any kind - verbal abuse, 73%; bullying, 45%; physical abuse, 18%; and sexual harassment, 12%. Most (82%) nurses who experienced verbal abuse tended to confide in friends, family members, or colleagues. Some (42%) ignored the incident. Risk factors for workplace violence included: working in male wards and in certain specialties such as the Accident and Emergency Department, Community Nursing Service, and the Orthopaedics and Traumatology Department. Conclusion. Workplace violence against nurses is a significant problem in Hong Kong. Further large-scale studies should be conducted to more closely examine the problem.published_or_final_versio

Performance Enhancement of VAWT using Diffuser for Energy Extraction from Cooling Tower Exhaust Air

Renewable energy generation need to be accelerated to battle climate change and depletion of fossil fuel resources. Innovation to design wind recovery system which are efficient is vital to contribute green energy production. Many advancements in vertical axis wind turbines (VAWT) were made over the years however, it is still not as efficient as conventional turbines, and some countries does not have the luxury of strong consistent wind throughout the year. Therefore, this study focuses on extracting wind energy from unnatural sources, specifically for cooling tower exhaust air energy recovery. In this study, cycloidal diffuser with different shroud lengths was used to study the performance of a 3-bladed H-Darrieus VAWT (HDWT) with S-1046 airfoils under accelerated wind conditions in a 3-dimensional numerical study using shear stress transport k-ω turbulence model. The cycloidal diffuser with shroud length of 0.48D increased the HDWT power coefficient by 26.66% compared to the bare HDWT at tip speed ratio of 2.0. Aerodynamics around the energy extractor system was also discussed and this investigation has provided good understanding of the flow behaviour of the wind augmented HDWT under cooling tower exhaust air

Antibacterial properties of chitosan isolated from the black soldier fly, Hermetia illucens

Insects are receiving wide attention as alternative food and feed resources, and for the production of useful by-products such as chitin, which can be converted into chitosan, a natural antibacterial agent. The larvae of Hermetia illucens, commonly known as Black Soldier Fly (BSF), can be reared on organic waste substrates and can be produced on a large scale. In this study, we focused on the antibacterial activity of chitosan obtained from BSF. Chitin from different growth phases of BSF was isolated using chemical treatments, characterized, and further synthesized into chitosan by deacetylation. The identities and structures of all isolated and synthesized compounds were verified using Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The antibacterial effect of BSF chitosan compounds against pathogenic bacteria were assessed with the determination of a minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC). Results showed that the chitin content increased gradually during the transition from larvae to adult BSF, with the highest amount obtained in the pupal stage. In the antibacterial susceptibility assay, Staphylococcus aureus was the most resistant to the action of BSF chitosan, with no significant effect exerted on its growth. For other species of bacteria, BSF chitosan could only restrict bacterial growth at concentrations of 0.25% or 0.5%, with the two most susceptible species being identified as Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Serratia marcescens. In conclusion, BSF chitosan exhibited antibacterial activity against different bacteria with varying sensitivities, in which the chitosan concentration was demonstrated to play an essential role

Joint EANM/SIOPE/RAPNO practice guidelines/SNMMI procedure standards for imaging of paediatric gliomas using PET with radiolabelled amino acids and [¹⁸F]FDG: version 1.0

Positron emission tomography (PET) has been widely used in paediatric oncology. 2-Deoxy-2-[18F]fluoro-D-glucose ([18F]FDG) is the most commonly used radiopharmaceutical for PET imaging. For oncological brain imaging, different amino acid PET radiopharmaceuticals have been introduced in the last years. The purpose of this document is to provide imaging specialists and clinicians guidelines for indication, acquisition, and interpretation of [18F]FDG and radiolabelled amino acid PET in paediatric patients affected by brain gliomas. There is no high level of evidence for all recommendations suggested in this paper. These recommendations represent instead the consensus opinion of experienced leaders in the field. Further studies are needed to reach evidence-based recommendations for the applications of [18F]FDG and radiolabelled amino acid PET in paediatric neuro-oncology. These recommendations are not intended to be a substitute for national and international legal or regulatory provisions and should be considered in the context of good practice in nuclear medicine. The present guidelines/standards were developed collaboratively by the EANM and SNMMI with the European Society for Paediatric Oncology (SIOPE) Brain Tumour Group and the Response Assessment in Paediatric Neuro-Oncology (RAPNO) working group. They summarize also the views of the Neuroimaging and Oncology and Theranostics Committees of the EANM and reflect recommendations for which the EANM and other societies cannot be held responsible

LAMOST Experiment for Galactic Understanding and Exploration (LEGUE) The survey science plan

We describe the current plans for a spectroscopic survey of millions of stars in the Milky Way galaxy using the Guo Shou Jing Telescope (GSJT, formerly the Large Area Multi-Object Spectroscopic Telescope - LAMOST). The survey will obtain spectra for 2.5 million stars brighter than $r<19$ during dark/grey time, and 5 million stars brighter than $r<17$ or $J<16$ on nights that are moonlit or have low transparency. The survey will begin in fall of 2012, and will run for at least four years. The telescope design constrains the optimal declination range for observations to $10^\circ<\delta<50^\circ$, and site conditions lead to an emphasis on stars in the direction of the Galactic anticenter. The survey is divided into three parts with different target selection strategies: disk, anticenter, and spheroid. The resulting dataset will be used to study the merger history of the Milky Way, the substructure and evolution of the disks, the nature of the first generation of stars through identification of the lowest metallicity stars, and star formation through study of open clusters and the OB associations. Detailed design of the LEGUE survey will be completed after a review of the results of the pilot survey in summer 2012.Comment: 19 pages, 1 figure, accepted for publication in RA

Exploring the complex relationship between gut microbiota and risk of colorectal neoplasia using bidirectional Mendelian Randomization analysis

Background: Human gut microbiome has complex relation-ships with the host, contributing to metabolism, immunity, and carcinogenesis. Methods: Summary-level data for gut microbiota and metabo-lites were obtained from MiBioGen, FINRISK and human meta-bolome consortia. Summary-level data for colorectal cancer were derived from a genome-wide association study meta-analysis. In forward Mendelian randomization (MR), we employed genetic instrumental variables (IV) for 24 gut microbiota taxa and six bacterial metabolites to examine their causal relationship with colorectal cancer. We also used a lenient threshold for nine apriori gut microbiota taxa as secondary analyses. In reverse MR, we explored association between genetic liability to colorectal neoplasia and abundance of microbiota studied above using 95, 19, and 7 IVs for colorectal cancer, adenoma, and polyps, respectively. Results: Forward MR did not find evidence indicating causal relationship between any of the gut microbiota taxa or six bacterial metabolites tested and colorectal cancer risk. However, reverse MR supported genetic liability to colorectal adenomas was causally related with increased abundance of two taxa: Gammaproteobacteria (b = 0.027, which represents a 0.027 increase in log-transformed relative abundance values of Gam-maproteobacteria for per one-unit increase in log OR of adenoma risk; P = 7.06x10-8), Enterobacteriaceae (b = 0.023, P = 1.29x10-5). Conclusions: We find genetic liability to colorectal neoplasia may be associated with abundance of certain microbiota taxa. It is more likely that subset of colorectal cancer genetic liability variants changes gut biology by influencing both gut microbiota and colo-rectal cancer risk.Impact: This study highlights the need of future complemen-tary studies to explore causal mechanisms linking both host genetic variation with gut microbiome and colorectal cancer susceptibility