538 research outputs found
Importance of thermophilous habitats for protection of wild bees (Apiformes)
Research on wild bees (Apiformes) was conducted in the Lower Oder Valley (NW Poland) at Natura 2000 sites near the border between Poland and Germany. The analysis involved 3 landscape types with xerothermic and sandy grasslands, differing in the proportion of woody vegetation. In total, we collected there 4158 specimens of Apiformes, representing 180 species. We have proved that mid-forest grasslands with a high proportion of thermophilous broad-leaved forests and xerothermic shrub communities are equally attractive to wild bees as open habitats (sandy grasslands, xerothermic grasslands/heaths). We observed varied responses of wild bee species with specific functional characteristics to increasing proportion of woody vegetation. The grasslands surrounded by forests were characterized by the highest number of cleptoparasitic species. In contrast, solitary and social bee species preferred forest-steppe habitats. However, in open habitats, solitary bees were the most abundant. Moreover, open habitats were distinguished by the highest number and abundance of rare species. Active protection of thermophilous grasslands is crucial for biodiversity conservation, also with respect to the natural resources of Apiformes. Preservation of biodiversity in threatened xerothermic and sandy grasslands should be one of the key objectives of nature conservation in European countries. Currently, more and more actions are undertaken to improve their condition and to restore those particularly valuable and threatened habitat types
The Croatian Health Survey â Patient\u27s Satisfaction with Medical Service in Primary Health Care in Croatia
The aim of the study was to investigate patient satisfaction with nurses and general
practice organization in Croatia. A total of 2,252 patients 18 years of age and over from
47 randomly selected general practices were included in the study. 72.1% of patients
were satisfied with nurses and general practice organization. Older and less educated
patients were generally more satisfied. Patients were more pleased with nursesâ behavior
(81.9%) than with practice organization (62.3%). Factor analysis revealed two underlying
discriminates of patient satisfaction â »positive attitude towards the nurse«
and »inaccessibility of practice«. The former discriminate emphasized a great potential
of nursing, which should be taken into consideration in the transformation of health
care system in Croatia
Activity of Daily Living Trajectories Surrounding Acute Hospitalization of LongâStay Nursing Home Residents
Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/101804/1/jgs12511.pd
Uptake and Retention of Nanoplastics in Quagga Mussels
Here, a set of experiments to assess the feasibility of using an invasive and widespread freshwater mussel (Dreissena rostrformis bugensis) as a sentinel species for nanoplastic detection is reported. Under laboratory experimental conditions, mussels ingest and retain fluorescent polystyrene (PS) beads with carboxylic acid (ĂŻÂŁÂżCOOH) termination over a size range of 200- 2000 nm. The number of beads the mussels ingested is quantified using fluorescence spectroscopy and the location of the beads in the mussels is imaged using fluorescence microscopy. PS beads of similar size (1000- 2000 nm) to musselsâ preferred food are trafficked in the ciliated food grooves of the gills. Beads of all sizes are observed in the musselsâ digestive tracts, indicating that the mussels do not efficiently reject the beads as unwanted foreign material, regardless of size. Fluorescence microscopy shows all sizes of beads are concentrated in the siphons and are retained there for longer than one month postexposure. Combined atomic force microscopy- infrared spectroscopy and photothermal infrared spectroscopy are used to locate, image, and chemically identify the beads in the mussel siphons. In sum, these experiments demonstrate the potential for using mussels, specifically their siphons, to monitor environmental accumulation of aquatic nanoplastics.Can quagga mussels (Dreissena rostriformis bugensis), a widespread and invasive freshwater species that alters local ecosystems, act as a sentinel species for detecting nanoplastics? In the laboratory, mussels ingest and retain 200- 2000 nm fluorescent polystyrene beads, which are in the size range for the musselsâ preferred food and are trafficked like food in the ciliated grooves of the gills.Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/155884/1/gch2201800104-sup-0001-SuppMat.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/155884/2/gch2201800104.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/155884/3/gch2201800104_am.pd
Structure and energetics of the Si-SiO_2 interface
Silicon has long been synonymous with semiconductor technology. This unique
role is due largely to the remarkable properties of the Si-SiO_2 interface,
especially the (001)-oriented interface used in most devices. Although Si is
crystalline and the oxide is amorphous, the interface is essentially perfect,
with an extremely low density of dangling bonds or other electrically active
defects. With the continual decrease of device size, the nanoscale structure of
the silicon/oxide interface becomes more and more important. Yet despite its
essential role, the atomic structure of this interface is still unclear. Using
a novel Monte Carlo approach, we identify low-energy structures for the
interface. The optimal structure found consists of Si-O-Si "bridges" ordered in
a stripe pattern, with very low energy. This structure explains several
puzzling experimental observations.Comment: LaTex file with 4 figures in GIF forma
Predicting enhanced absorption of light gases in polyethylene using simplified PC-SAFT and SAFT-VR
International audienceAbsorption of light gases in polyethylene (PE) is studied using two versions of the Statistical Associating Fluid Theory (SAFT): SAFT for chain molecules with attractive potentials of variable range (VR) and simplified perturbed-chain (PC) SAFT. Emphasis is placed on the light gases typically present during ethylene polymerisation in the gas-phase reactor (GPR) process. The two approaches are validated using experimental binary-mixture data for gas absorbed in PE, and predictions are made for mixtures of more components. For most cases studied both SAFT versions perform equally well. For the case of ternary mixtures of two gases with PE, it is predicted that the less-volatile of the two gases acts to enhance the absorption of the more-volatile gas, while the more-volatile gas inhibits the absorption of the less-volatile gas. This general behaviour is also predicted in mixtures containing more gases, such as typical reactor mixtures. The magnitude of the effect may vary considerably, depending on the relative proximity of the gas-mixture saturation pressure to the reactor pressure; for example it is predicted that the absorption of ethylene may be approximately doubled if diluent gases, propane or nitrogen, are partially or completely replaced by less-volatile butane or pentane for a reactor pressure similar to 2 MPa. In the case of a co-polymerisation reaction, it is predicted that increases in absorption of both co-monomers may be obtained in roughly equal proportion. Our findings cast light on the so-called co-monomer effect, in which substantial increases in the rate of ethylene polymerisation are observed in the presence of hexene co-monomer, while suggesting that the effect is more general and not restricted to co-monomer. For example, similar rate increases may be expected in the presence of, e.g., pentane instead of hexene, but without the change in the branch structure of the produced polymer that is inevitable when the amount of co-monomer is increased
The Green Bank Northern Celestial Cap Pulsar Survey - I: Survey Description, Data Analysis, and Initial Results
We describe an ongoing search for pulsars and dispersed pulses of radio
emission, such as those from rotating radio transients (RRATs) and fast radio
bursts (FRBs), at 350 MHz using the Green Bank Telescope. With the Green Bank
Ultimate Pulsar Processing Instrument, we record 100 MHz of bandwidth divided
into 4,096 channels every 81.92 . This survey will cover the entire sky
visible to the Green Bank Telescope (, or 82% of the sky)
and outside of the Galactic Plane will be sensitive enough to detect slow
pulsars and low dispersion measure (30 ) millisecond
pulsars (MSPs) with a 0.08 duty cycle down to 1.1 mJy. For pulsars with a
spectral index of 1.6, we will be 2.5 times more sensitive than previous and
ongoing surveys over much of our survey region. Here we describe the survey,
the data analysis pipeline, initial discovery parameters for 62 pulsars, and
timing solutions for 5 new pulsars. PSR J02145222 is an MSP in a long-period
(512 days) orbit and has an optical counterpart identified in archival data.
PSR J06365129 is an MSP in a very short-period (96 minutes) orbit with a
very low mass companion (8 ). PSR J06455158 is an isolated MSP
with a timing residual RMS of 500 ns and has been added to pulsar timing array
experiments. PSR J14347257 is an isolated, intermediate-period pulsar that
has been partially recycled. PSR J18164510 is an eclipsing MSP in a
short-period orbit (8.7 hours) and may have recently completed its spin-up
phase.Comment: 18 pages, 10 figures, 5 tables, accepted by Ap
The Green Bank Northern Celestial Cap Pulsar Survey II: The Discovery and Timing of Ten Pulsars
We present timing solutions for ten pulsars discovered in 350 MHz searches
with the Green Bank Telescope. Nine of these were discovered in the Green Bank
Northern Celestial Cap survey and one was discovered by students in the Pulsar
Search Collaboratory program in analysis of drift-scan data. Following
discovery and confirmation with the Green Bank Telescope, timing has yielded
phase-connected solutions with high precision measurements of rotational and
astrometric parameters. Eight of the pulsars are slow and isolated, including
PSR J09302301, a pulsar with nulling fraction lower limit of 30\% and
nulling timescale of seconds to minutes. This pulsar also shows evidence of
mode changing. The remaining two pulsars have undergone recycling, accreting
material from binary companions, resulting in higher spin frequencies. PSR
J05572948 is an isolated, 44 \rm{ms} pulsar that has been partially recycled
and is likely a former member of a binary system which was disrupted by a
second supernova. The paucity of such so-called `disrupted binary pulsars'
(DRPs) compared to double neutron star (DNS) binaries can be used to test
current evolutionary scenarios, especially the kicks imparted on the neutron
stars in the second supernova. There is some evidence that DRPs have larger
space velocities, which could explain their small numbers. PSR J1806+2819 is a
15 \rm{ms} pulsar in a 44 day orbit with a low mass white dwarf companion. We
did not detect the companion in archival optical data, indicating that it must
be older than 1200 Myr.Comment: 9 pages, 5 figure
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