As assessment of power system vulnerability to release of carbon fibers during commercial aviation accidents

The vulnerability of a power distribution system in Bedford and Lexington, Massachusetts to power outages as a result of exposure to carbon fibers released in a commercial aviation accident in 1993 was examined. Possible crash scenarios at Logan Airport based on current operational data and estimated carbon fiber usage levels were used to predict exposure levels and occurrence probabilities. The analysis predicts a mean time between carbon fiber induced power outages of 2300 years with an expected annual consequence of 0.7 persons losing power. In comparison to historical outage data for the system, this represents a 0.007% increase in outage rate and 0.07% increase in consequence

Mise en place d’un laboratoire naturel sur le mont Covey Hill (Québec, Canada)

Le mont Covey Hill héberge des populations de salamandres rares et menacées dont les habitats sont maintenus en partie par\ud l’eau souterraine. Des travaux de recherche multidisciplinaires (UQAM, U. McGill, U. Montréal, IRBV, Centre Brace, SCABRIC et\ud ministères) ont permis de comprendre l’hydrologie ainsi que la répartition et les caractéristiques des habitats de salamandres. Ces projets ont contribué à la mise en place de stations de suivi écologique à long terme et de stations hydrométriques permanentes. En tant que propriétaire de terrains dédiés à la conservation, Conservation de la Nature assure la coordination de ces initiatives. Le mont Covey Hill est aujourd’hui un Laboratoire naturel unique au Québec, dédié à la compréhension intégrée et à long terme d’un écosystème fragile. Cet article a pour objectif de présenter le Laboratoire naturel par une description des recherches en cours et à venir

The role of the social network structure on the spread of intensive agriculture: an example from Navarre, Spain

Social networks influence decision-making in agricultural landscapes by affecting how farmers access knowledge and resources. However, researchers ignore the disparate structures built to access different kinds of knowledge and resources and the social mechanisms that take place on such farmers advice networks. We explored the role of social networks in decision-making among farmers in Navarre (Spain) to understand how and why some practices spread among farming communities. Social network analysis allows us to understand how farmers in this region share both knowledge and resources, and the potential implications of this sharing for the landscape. We find that large-scale farmers undertaking intensive land management are at the core of the network in this region, controlling the flow of knowledge and resources related to farm management, policy, technology, and finance. The central position of these farmers in the social network, and their reputation, is key to the spread of intensive farming practices in the region, which ultimately may lead to homogenization of local agricultural landscapes. Understanding farmer network structures in a context of agricultural intensification can help tease out the social mechanisms, such as farmers joining each other in cooperatives, behind the spread of agricultural practices. © 2020, Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.Many thanks to all the participants, especially to the lead author?s host Patxi Sueskun, and the people from the local cooperative: Rogelio Rodriguez, Andrea Ayestaran, and Leire Elorz. Without their help, this work would have not been possible. The lead author would also like to mention Julen Ugalde for his support in Canada during the data analysis and Jesse Rieb, Jesse Sayles, Jacopo Baggio, Karina Benessaiah, Carrie Dai, and Yevgen Nazarenko for their help at different stages of this research. Likewise, we are grateful for the insightful comments of the four reviewers that have made this paper stronger and sharper

Ruthenium half-sandwich complexes containing novel anionic (phosphino) tetraphenylborate ligands

In an attempt to expand upon previous work involving ruthenium-arene complexes bearing anionic (phosphino) tetraphenylborate ligands, and possibly provide further insight into the products obtained, a series of metal complexes containing these anionic phosphines were synthesized

The potential of major ion chemistry to assess groundwater vulnerability of a regional aquifer in southern Quebec (Canada)

Groundwater vulnerability mapping provides useful but limited information for developing protection plans of the resource. Classical vulnerability ranking methods often do not take into account complex hydrostratigraphy and never consider groundwater flow dynamics. The objective of this work was to test the potential of major ion chemistry to assess regional-scale intrinsic groundwater vulnerability. Because it reflects water–sediment and water–rock interactions, the new vulnerability index reflects both infiltration processes and groundwater hydrodynamics. The method was applied on a regional fractured bedrock aquifer located in the Becancour region of southern Quebec (Canada). In this region, hydrogeochemistry shows that freshly recharged groundwater evolves from (Ca, Mg)–HCO3 and Ca–SO4 to Na–HCO3 type with gradually increasing confinement conditions in the fractured aquifer and tends to Na–Cl type locally by mixing with trapped marine pore-water. The new method identified recharge areas as those of the highest vulnerability and gradually decreasing vulnerability as confinement of the aquifer increased. It also highlights local discontinuities in confinement that differ from the regional pattern. Results showed a good correlation between groundwater vulnerability estimated with the new method and nitrate occurrence in groundwater. Eighty-two per cent of all samples presenting detectable nitrate concentrations were characterized by a Hydrogeochemical Vulnerability Index greater than 9 (maximum is 10). The ability of the new vulnerability method to identify areas vulnerable to detectable nitrate concentrations was much higher than that deriving from the DRASTIC method. This work confirms that major ions chemistry contains significant information about groundwater vulnerability and could be used to improve groundwater resource management

Three-dimensional mapping of fluorescent dye using a scanning, depth-resolving airborne lidar

Author Posting. © American Meteorological Society, 2007. This article is posted here by permission of American Meteorological Society for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Journal of Atmospheric and Oceanic Technology 24 (2007): 1050-1065, doi:10.1175/JTECH2027.1.Results are presented from a pilot study using a fluorescent dye tracer imaged by airborne lidar in the ocean surface layer on spatial scales of meters to kilometers and temporal scales of minutes to hours. The lidar used here employs a scanning, frequency-doubled Nd:YAG laser to emit an infrared (1064 nm) and green (532 nm) pulse 6 ns in duration at a rate of 1 kHz. The received signal is split to infrared, green, and fluorescent (nominally 580–600 nm) channels, the latter two of which are used to compute absolute dye concentration as a function of depth and horizontal position. Comparison of dye concentrations inferred from the lidar with in situ fluorometry measurements made by ship shows good agreement both qualitatively and quantitatively for absolute dye concentrations ranging from 1 to >10 ppb. Uncertainties associated with horizontal variations in the natural seawater attenuation are approximately 1 ppb. The results demonstrate the ability of airborne lidar to capture high-resolution three-dimensional “snapshots” of the distribution of the tracer as it evolves over very short time and space scales. Such measurements offer a powerful observational tool for studies of transport and mixing on these scales.Support was provided by the Cecil H. and Ida M. Green Technology Innovation Fund under Grant 27001545, the Office of Naval Research Grant N00014-01-1-0984, and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Coastal Ocean Institute

Amino Alkynylisoquinoline and Alkynylnaphthyridine Compounds Potently Inhibit Acute Myeloid Leukemia Proliferation in Mice

B ackground: Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) remains one of the most lethal, rarely cured cancers, despite decades of active development of AML therapeutics. Currently, the 5-year survival of AML patients is about 30% and for elderly patients, the rate drops to b10%. About 30% of AML patients harbor an activating mutation in the tyrosine kinase domain (TKD) of Fms-Like Tyrosine kinase 3 (FLT3) or a FLT3 internal tandem duplication (FLT3-ITD). In- hibitors of FLT3, such as Rydapt that was recently approved by the FDA, have shown good initial response but pa- tients often relapse due to secondary mutations in the FLT3 TKD, like D835Y and F691 L mutations. Methods: Alkynyl aminoisoquinoline and naphthyridine compounds were synthesized via Sonogashira coupling. The compounds were evaluated for their in vitro and in vivo effects on leukemia growth. Findings: The compounds inhibited FLT3 kinase activity at low nanomolar concentrations. The lead compound, HSN431, also inhibited Src kinase activity. The compounds potently inhibited the viability of MV4–11 and MOLM-14 AML cells with IC50 values b1 nM. Furthermore, the viability of drug-resistant AML cells harboring the D835Y and F691 L mutations were potently inhibited. In vivo efficacy studies in mice demonstrated that the compounds could drastically reduce AML proliferation in mice. Interpretation: Compounds that inhibit FLT3 and downstream targets like Src (for example HSN431) are good leads for development as anti-AML agents

3-He in the Milky Way Interstellar Medium: Ionization Structure

The cosmic abundance of the 3-He isotope has important implications for many fields of astrophysics. We are using the 8.665 GHz hyperfine transition of 3-He+ to determine the 3-He/H abundance in Milky Way HII regions and planetary nebulae. This is one in a series of papers in which we discuss issues involved in deriving accurate 3-He/H abundance ratios from the available measurements. Here we describe the ionization correction we use to convert the 3-He+/H+ abundance, y3+, to the 3-He/H abundance, y3. In principle the nebular ionization structure can significantly influence the y3 derived for individual sources. We find that in general there is insufficient information available to make a detailed ionization correction. Here we make a simple correction and assess its validity. The correction is based on radio recombination line measurements of H+ and 4-He+, together with simple core-halo source models. We use these models to establish criteria that allow us to identify sources that can be accurately corrected for ionization and those that cannot. We argue that this effect cannot be very large for most of the sources in our observational sample. For a wide range of models of nebular ionization structure we find that the ionization correction factor varies from 1 to 1.8. Although large corrections are possible, there would have to be a conspiracy between the density and ionization structure for us to underestimate the ionization correction by a substantial amount.Comment: 36 pages, 4 figures To appear Astrophysical Journal, 20 August 2007, vol 665, no

Immunologic Responses to Vibrio cholerae in Patients Co-Infected with Intestinal Parasites in Bangladesh

Vibrio cholerae causes cholera, a severe diarrhea that may lead to fatal dehydration if not treated. Cholera occurs mostly in impoverished areas where there is poor sanitation and intestinal parasites are also common. However, little is known about the relationship between intestinal parasites and cholera. To learn about how parasites affect the immune response to Vibrio cholerae, this article describes 361 patients with cholera, including 53 who had intestinal parasitic infection. We found that cholera patients with parasitic worms had decreased antibody response to cholera toxin. The decrease was greatest in IgA antibodies, which are secreted in the intestine. However, patients with worm infection did not have a difference in their immune response to lipopolysaccharide, a sugar-based molecule that is important for immunity. These different effects on the immune response to cholera toxin and lipopolysaccharide could be explained by the effect of parasitic infection on CD4+ T cells, a type of cell that influences the development of the antibody response to proteins such as cholera toxin but may not always influence the response to sugar-based molecules. The finding that worm infection is associated with decreased immune responses to cholera provides an additional reason for deworming in cholera-endemic areas