SMALLER FORAMINIFERS, CHARACTERISTIC ALGAE AND PSEUDO-ALGAE OF THE LATEST CARBONIFEROUS-EARLY PERMIAN RATTENDORF GROUP,CARNIC ALPS (AUSTRIA/ITALY)

Limestones of the latest Carboniferous-early Permian Rattendorf Group (Lower Pseudoschwagerina Limestone, Grenzland Formation and Upper Pseudoschwagerina Limestone) of the Carnic Alps (Austria/Italy) contain a rich and interesting assemblage of smaller foraminifers, algae and pseudo-algae. The foraminiferal assemblage of the Lower Pseudoschwagerina Limestone is identical to that of the Auernig Formation. The Grenzland Formation is characterized by the appearance of the genus Geinitzinaand Pseudovermiporella, and the disappearance of Bradyinidae. The Upper Pseudoschwagerina Limestone contains the same species as the Grenzland Formation, but is characterized by the local appearance of Neoendothyra (?) and diverse species of Hemigordiidae and Nodosarioidea. The biostratigraphical value of diverse species of Hemigordius, ìArenovidalinaîsensu Baryshnikov = ìNeohemigordiusîsensu Pinard & Mamet, Nodosinelloides, Protonodosariaand Geinitzinafor the Asselian and early Sakmarian stages is briefly discussed. The systematical part contains some generic remarks on the Hemigordiidae and Nodosarioidea. Due to the porcelaneous wall, the microfossils Ellesmerellapermica(Pia) (= ìGirvanellaî subparallelaFlügel & Flügel-Kahler) and Pseudovermiporella spp., which are generally interpreted as algae, are considered as attached miliolinid foraminifera. A new genus of problematical Chlorophyta, Homannisiphon,is established.&nbsp

MICROFACIES AND MICROFOSSIL ASSEMBLAGES (SMALLER FORAMINIFERS, ALGAE, PSEUDOALGAE) OF THE HUECO GROUP AND LABORCITA FORMATION (UPPER PENNSYLVANIAN-LOWER PERMIAN) SOUTH-CENTRAL NEW MEXICO, USA

During the latest Carboniferous and earliest Permian (Virgilian-Wolfcampian), the eastern margin of the Orogrande Basin in south-central New Mexico was rimmed by a narrow, tectonically unstable shelf, on which sediments of the Laborcita and Abo formations were deposited. Sediments of the Hueco Group accumulated on the more stable western margin of the Orogrande Basin. On the eastern shelf, the Laborcita Formation of the northern Sacramento Mountains represents a transition from marine to terrestrial facies and is composed of clastic-carbonate cycles. Limestones accumulated during relative sea-level highstands in a shallow marine shelf environment. Clastic sediments were deposited during relative lowstands when there was strong clastic influx in a nearshore to terrestrial environment. The overlying Abo Formation is composed of terrestrial red beds. On the western shelf, the Shalem Colony Formation of the Hueco Group, equivalent to the Laborcita Formation, is composed of mostly normal marine shallow shelf limestones with only minor interbedded clastics. The Robledo Mountains Formation and Hueco Group reflects a trend from a restricted shallow  shelf and tidal flat clastics facies in the lower part to more open conditions in the upper part, which also prevailed during deposition of the overlying Apache Dam Formation. Limestones of the Laborcita Formation and Hueco Group contain smaller foraminifers, algae and problematic carbonate microfossils. All taxa except two pseudoalgae in open nomenclature (Litostroma (?) sp. and “problematicum gen. 1”) are taxa already described. Compared with the Carnic Alps (Austria/Italy), the assemblages of smaller foraminifers of the Laborcita Formation  and Shalem Colony Formation are very similar to those of the Auernig and Carnizza Formations (Auernig Group), and Lower Pseudoschwagerina Limestone (Rattendorf Group), indicating an Orenbugian (“Bursumian”) to Asselian age. Smaller foraminifers of the Robledo Mountains Formation allow correlation with the Grenzland Formation and Upper Pseudoschwagerina Limestone (Rattendorf Group) of the Carnic Alps, dated as Asselian to Sakmarian. Smaller foraminifers of the Apache Dam Formation suggest an Artinskian age, correlating with the Wolfcampian, or the Trogkofel Group of the Carnic Alps.  &nbsp

Sustainable Development

The emergence of a global and technological world and the accelerating dissemination of technology does not only give rise to technological, economic, social, environmental, political and educational tasks. Significant philosophical questions, epistemic reflections and cultural debates result and have to be pushed forward. To move sustainable development from a political mission statement and scientific challenge into everyday life we have to shift our focus of attention to those who are driving a non-sustainable development: human beings and their societal and cultural conditions and interactions. Ultimately not the ecological footprint is the core challenge, but we and those who are leaving this footprint. The idea of the present volume of Sustainable Development - Relationships to Culture, Knowledge and Ethics was developed in the course of the international conference “Sustainability 2010: The Cultural Dimension”, which took place in July 2010 in Berlin. The aim of this book is to provide discussions about cultural, epistemic and ethical implications of contemporary changes and emerging challenges on an interdisciplinary and international level

Robust estimation of bacterial cell count from optical density

Optical density (OD) is widely used to estimate the density of cells in liquid culture, but cannot be compared between instruments without a standardized calibration protocol and is challenging to relate to actual cell count. We address this with an interlaboratory study comparing three simple, low-cost, and highly accessible OD calibration protocols across 244 laboratories, applied to eight strains of constitutive GFP-expressing E. coli. Based on our results, we recommend calibrating OD to estimated cell count using serial dilution of silica microspheres, which produces highly precise calibration (95.5% of residuals <1.2-fold), is easily assessed for quality control, also assesses instrument effective linear range, and can be combined with fluorescence calibration to obtain units of Molecules of Equivalent Fluorescein (MEFL) per cell, allowing direct comparison and data fusion with flow cytometry measurements: in our study, fluorescence per cell measurements showed only a 1.07-fold mean difference between plate reader and flow cytometry data

The Rigelj Formation, a new lithostratigraphic unit of the Lower Permian in the Karavanke Mountains (Slovenia/Austria)

The Rigelj Formation is a new lithostratigraphic unit of the Lower Permian Rattendorf Group in the Karavanke Mountains. The Formation is up to 105 m thick and mainly composed of siliciclastic and fossiliferous carbonate sediments that are entirely of shallow-marine setting. Conglomerates are interpreted as shoreface deposits, sandstones as deposits of the upper to lower shoreface, and fossiliferous siltstones as offshore deposits. Fossiliferous limestones were deposited in a shallow, open-marine shelf environment of moderate to low energy (wackestone, floatstone) and strong water turbulence (packstone, rudstone). The siliciclastic and carbonate lithotypes form some well-developed backstepping cycles starting with conglomerates, overlain by sandstones, siltstones and fossiliferous limestones that formed in an open shelf environment without siliciclastic influx. Similar sedimentary cycles are developed in the Grenzland Formation of the Carnic Alps. The fusulinid fauna indicates that the Rigelj Formation ranges in age from the late Asselian to the middle Sakmarian. In the western Karavanke Mountains and near Trögern, the Lower Permian lithostratigraphic succession is very similar to the succession in the Carnic Alps with Tarvis Breccia resting on the Trogkofel Limestone and the Goggau Limestone. Unlike this, in the central part of the Karavanke Mountains (Dovžanova Soteska–Mt. Pleschiwetz/Plešivec area) the Rigelj Formation is erosively overlain by the Tarvis Breccia. The stronger diversification of the sedimentary environments within the Karavanke-Carnic Alps in the Lower Permian after the uniform sedimentation in the Upper Carboniferous can be attributed to block-faulting

SMALLER FORAMINIFERS OF THE UPPER CARBONIFEROUS AUERNIG GROUP, CARNIC ALPS (AUSTRIA/ITALY)

The micropaleontological components, particularly smaller foraminifers, from limestonesof theUpper Carboniferous Auernig Group (Carnic Alps, Austria/Italy) are described. Most of the taxa have been previously recorded from North America, Arctica and Russia (Urals, Donbass). The biostratigraphical value of Pseudovidalina, Nodosinelloides, Tezaquina and Vervilleina for the Oembourgian stage is recognized. The systematical part is principally devoted to generic discussion concerning Hemidiscus and Eolasiodiscus; Palaeobigenerina, Deckerella, Cribrogenerina and Climacammina; Ammovertella, Calcivertella and Calcitornella; Spireitlina and Pseudopaleospiroplectammina; Pseudovidalina and Raphconilia: Vervilleina and Tezaquina; and Nodosinelloides, Protonodosaria and Nodosaria.&nbsp