An early Little Ice Age brackish water invasion along the south coast of the Caspian Sea (sediment of Langarud wetland) and its wider impacts on environment and people

Caspian Sea level has undergone significant changes through time with major impacts not only on the surrounding coasts, but also offshore. This study reports a brackish water invasion on the southern coast of the Caspian Sea constructed from a multi-proxy analysis of sediment retrieved from the Langarud wetland. The ground surface level of wetland is >6 m higher than the current Caspian Sea level (at -27.41 m in 2014) and located >11 km far from the coast. A sequence covering the last millennium was dated by three radiocarbon dates. The results from this new study suggest that Caspian Sea level rose up to at least -21.44 m (i.e. >6 m above the present water level) during the early Little Ice Age. Although previous studies in the southern coast of the Caspian Sea have detected a high-stand during the Little Ice Age period, this study presents the first evidence that this high-stand reached so far inland and at such a high altitude. Moreover, it confirms one of the very few earlier estimates of a high-stand at -21 m for the second half of the 14th century. The effects of this large-scale brackish water invasion on soil properties would have caused severe disruption to regional agriculture, thereby destabilizing local dynasties and facilitating a rapid Turko-Mongol expansion of Tamerlane’s armies from the east.N Ghasemi (INIOAS), V Jahani (Gilan Province Cultural Heritage and Tourism Organisation) and A Naqinezhad (University of Mazandaran), INQUA QuickLakeH project (no. 1227) and to the European project Marie Curie, CLIMSEAS-PIRSES-GA-2009-24751

Combining biomarker and bulk compositional gradient analysis to assess reservoir connectivity

Author Posting. © The Author(s), 2010. This is the author's version of the work. It is posted here by permission of Elsevier B.V. for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Organic Geochemistry 41 (2010): 812-821, doi:10.1016/j.orggeochem.2010.05.003.Hydraulic connectivity of petroleum reservoirs represents one of the biggest uncertainties for both oil production and petroleum system studies. Here, a geochemical analysis involving bulk and detailed measures of crude oil composition is shown to constrain connectivity more tightly than is possible with conventional methods. Three crude oils collected from different depths in a single well exhibit large gradients in viscosity, density, and asphaltene content. Crude oil samples are collected with a wireline sampling tool providing samples from well‐defined locations and relatively free of contamination by drilling fluids; the known provenance of these samples minimizes uncertainties in the subsequent analysis. The detailed chemical composition of almost the entire crude oil is determined by use of comprehensive two‐dimensional gas chromatography (GC×GC) to interrogate the nonpolar fraction and negative ion electrospray ionization Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry (ESI FT‐ICR MS) to interrogate the polar fraction. The simultaneous presence of 25‐ norhopanes and mildly altered normal and isoprenoid alkanes is detected, suggesting that the reservoir has experienced multiple charges and contains a mixture of oils biodegraded to different extents. The gradient in asphaltene concentration is explained by an equilibrium model considering only gravitational segregation of asphaltene nanoaggregates; this grading can be responsible for the observed variation in viscosity. Combining these analyses yields a consistent picture of a connected reservoir in which the observed viscosity variation originates from gravitational segregation of asphaltene nanoaggregates in a crude oil with high asphaltene concentration resulting from multiple charges, including one charge that suffered severe biodegradation. Observation of these gradients having appropriate magnitudes suggests good reservoir connectivity with greater confidence than is possible with traditional techniques alone.The mass spectrometry work was supported by the NSF Division of Materials Research through DMR‐06‐54118, and the State of Florida

Designing playful learning by using educational board game for children in the age range of 7-12: (A case study: Recycling and waste separation education board game)

Due to a progressive deterioration of our planet and its resources, environmental education has become important and children are required to understand environmental issues at an early ages. So, they can cultivate the positive changes in the future. Over the past decade, many new evaluation methods have developed for evaluating user experience with children, but the results of these studies have tended to be reported in the isolation of other techniques. This paper use different methods include focus group, Fun toolkit, and game checklist for designing board game about recycling. First we sketch our primary ideas and then we design our first board game prototype and evaluate it by focus group in order to gather children opinion and then redesign it for further evaluation, after that we select two computer game about recycling, in this part 20 children participate in evaluating two games by fun toolkit. The experiences of each were captured by using 4 evaluation instrument in fun toolkit including: smileyometer, the fun sorter, the again-again, This or That method, The results showed that the Fun Toolkit and This or That method showed similar results and were able to establish a preference for one game over the other. However, there were some inconsistencies between the results of individual tools in the Fun toolkit and some of the constructs being measured in the This or That method. Further research will try to identify any ordering effects of each method and redundancies of the questions. Result of this part were used in promoting our game according to the result of fun toolkit. Game checklist was also used in order to redesign the different parts of the game, consequently, we design a board game of these young children�s responses. Which can be used in both home and school area. © 2016 Mostowfi et al

Knocking down the DRD2 by shRNA expressing plasmids in the nucleus accumbens prevented the disrupting effect of apomorphine on prepulse inhibition in rat

Prepulse Inhibition (PPI), the objective measure of sensorimotor gating disturbance has being widely used in animal models of schizophrenia. Dopaminergic direct and indirect agonists impair PPI. However, the profile of dopaminergic receptors involved in PPI impairment by dopamine agonists is not clear. By injecting shRNA expressing plasmids against dopamine D2 receptor genes (DRD2) in the nucleus accumbens, here, we studied the effect of apomorphine on PPI in D2 down-regulated rats. Seventy two adult Wistar rats assigned randomly in nine groups, each received coding (250 and 500 ng/μl) or noncoding shRNA expressing plasmids against DRD2 in the nucleus accumbens, with or without apomorphine (0.5 mg/kg, S.C., 72 hours after treatment with plasmids). Auditory startle response and PPI were measured after apomorphine injection. Real time RT-PCR was used to measure DRD2 expression. Results showed that apomorphine significantly decreased PPI in noncoding plasmid treated rats; While, PPI did not impaired in rats pretreated with 250 and 500 ng/μl shRNA expressing plasmids. Accordingly, the expression of DRD2 mRNA in the nucleus accumbens showed 72-78 decrease in expressing plasmid treated rats. Additionally, treatment with expressing plasmids had no effect on basal PPI and/or auditory startle response. Taken together, our results demonstrated that DRD2 silencing in the nucleus accumbens can prevent PPI impairment by apomorphine. These observations suggest application of molecular techniques such as the use of shRNA against DRD2s in studies of schizophrenia pathophysiology and development of new treatments in schizophrenia