Organic farming without fossil fuels - life cycle assessment of two Swedish cases

Organic agriculture is dependent on fossil fuels, just like conventional agriculture, but this can be reduced by the use of on-farm biomass resources. The energy efficiency and environmental impacts of different alternatives can be assessed by life cycle assessment (LCA), which we have done in this project. Swedish organic milk production can become self-sufficient in energy by using renewable sources available on the farm, with biogas from manure as the main energy source. Thereby greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the production system can be reduced, both by substituting fossil fuels and by reducing methane emissions from manure. The arable organic farm studied in the project could be self-sufficient in energy by using the residues available in the crop rotation. Because of soil carbon losses, the greenhouse gas emission savings were lower with the use of straw ethanol, heat and power (9%) than by using ley for biogas production (35%). In this research project, the system boundaries were set at energy self-sufficiency at farm or farm-cluster level. Heat and fuel were supplied as needed, and electricity production was equal to use on an annual basis. In practice, however, better resource efficiency can be achieved by making full use of available energy infrastructure, and basing production on resource availability and economic constraints, rather than a narrow self-sufficiency approach

Investigation of resin systems for improved ablative materials Interim report, 10 Jan. - 1 Jul. 1966

Preparation, and evaluation of polyimide sulfone resins, graphite-silica reinforced polyamide resins, and resin resistance to FLOX- methane, and fluorine-hydrogen fuel

Traditional Cultural Districts: An Opportunity for Alaska Tribes to Protect Subsistence Rights and Traditional Lands

Alaska tribes have limited control over their traditional lands and waters. Tribes may increase their influence through a Traditional Cultural District designation under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act. This designation does not stop development, but requires federal agencies to consult with tribes regarding potential development that may impact the district. The consultation right applies regardless of whether a tribe owns or has formally designated the district. In Alaska, where no Traditional Cultural Districts exist as of 2014, there is potential for designating large areas of land or water that correspond to the range of traditionally important species

Comparison of the beta-alpha angular correlations in the Li8 and B8 beta decays, and the conserved vector current theory

This paper describes a comparison of the beta-alpha angular correlations of the beta decays of Li8 and B8 to the 2.90-Mev alpha-unstable level of Be8. The data were fitted to an angular correlation in the laboratory system of the form W(θβα)=1+Acosθβα+Bcos2θβα, where A and B were independently determined for the Li8 and B8 beta decays from measurements at θβα=0°, 90°, and 180°. The coefficients A are due to the recoil of Be8* and have the same sign for both beta decays. The coefficients B arise from the interference of forbidden vector matrix elements with the allowed axial vector matrix element and have different signs in the two decays. The correlation for the Li8 decay was measured with average total beta energies, Wβ~5, 8, and 11 Mev. Both A and B were found to be approximately linear in Wβ. The correlation for the B8 decay was measured only with average Wβ~11 Mev. From the data with Wβ~11 Mev, the difference of the coefficients, B(Li8)-B(B8), equals (0.0070±0.0012)Wβ. This result is compared with theoretical predictions based on the older Fermi and the newer conserved vector current theories of beta decay. The experiment agrees with the prediction of the latter theory

Double quantum dot with tunable coupling in an enhancement-mode silicon metal-oxide semiconductor device with lateral geometry

We present transport measurements of a tunable silicon metal-oxide-semiconductor double quantum dot device with lateral geometry. Experimentally extracted gate-to-dot capacitances show that the device is largely symmetric under the gate voltages applied. Intriguingly, these gate voltages themselves are not symmetric. Comparison with numerical simulations indicates that the applied gate voltages serve to offset an intrinsic asymmetry in the physical device. We also show a transition from a large single dot to two well isolated coupled dots, where the central gate of the device is used to controllably tune the interdot coupling.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures, to be published in Applied Physics Letter

Pulmonary Epithelial Integrity in Children: Relationship to Ambient Ozone Exposure and Swimming Pool Attendance

Airway irritants such as ozone are known to impair lung function and induce airway inflammation. Clara cell protein (CC16) is a small anti-inflammatory protein secreted by the nonciliated bronchiolar Clara cells. CC16 in serum has been proposed as a noninvasive and sensitive marker of lung epithelial injury. In this study, we used lung function and serum CC16 concentration to examine the pulmonary responses to ambient O(3) exposure and swimming pool attendance. The measurements were made on 57 children 10–11 years of age before and after outdoor exercise for 2 hr. Individual O(3) exposure was estimated as the total exposure dose between 0700 hr until the second blood sample was obtained (mean O(3) concentration/m(3) × hours). The maximal 1-hr value was 118 μg/m(3) (59 ppb), and the individual exposure dose ranged between 352 and 914 μg/m(3)hr. These O(3) levels did not cause any significant changes in mean serum CC16 concentrations before or after outdoor exercise, nor was any decrease in lung function detected. However, children who regularly visited chlorinated indoor swimming pools had significantly lower CC16 levels in serum than did nonswimming children both before and after exercise (respectively, 57 ± 2.4 and 53 ± 1.7 μg/L vs. 8.2 ± 2.8 and 8.0 ± 2.6 μg/L; p < 0.002). These results indicate that repeated exposure to chlorination by-products in the air of indoor swimming pools has adverse effects on the Clara cell function in children. A possible relation between such damage to Clara cells and pulmonary morbidity (e.g., asthma) should be further investigated

Enhancement mode double top gated MOS nanostructures with tunable lateral geometry

We present measurements of silicon (Si) metal-oxide-semiconductor (MOS) nanostructures that are fabricated using a process that facilitates essentially arbitrary gate geometries. Stable Coulomb blockade behavior free from the effects of parasitic dot formation is exhibited in several MOS quantum dots with an open lateral quantum dot geometry. Decreases in mobility and increases in charge defect densities (i.e. interface traps and fixed oxide charge) are measured for critical process steps, and we correlate low disorder behavior with a quantitative defect density. This work provides quantitative guidance that has not been previously established about defect densities for which Si quantum dots do not exhibit parasitic dot formation. These devices make use of a double-layer gate stack in which many regions, including the critical gate oxide, were fabricated in a fully-qualified CMOS facility.Comment: 11 pages, 6 figures, 3 tables, accepted for publication in Phys. Rev.

Studies in homosexual patients with and without lymphadenopathy - Relationships to the acquired immune deficiency syndrome

We studied the immunologic function of 19 sexually active homosexual men, ten of whom had persistent lymphadenopathy. Analysis of mononuclear cell populations distinguished homosexuals from heterosexual controls since, as a group, homosexuals had increased percentages of natural killer cells (Leu 7+), decreased helper-inducer T lymphocytes (OKT-4+), increased suppressor/cytotoxic (OKT-8+) T lymphocytes, low OKT-4:OKT-8 ratios, and depressed mitogenic responses. Homosexuals without lymphadenopathy were distinguishable from controls by increased percentages of la+ cells, decreased OKT-4+ cells, and decreased OKT-4:OKT-8 ratios. Four had positive findings simultaneously for hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) and surface antibody, and five had positive findings for HBsAg alone. Homosexuals with lymphadenopathy were distinguishable from controls by increased percentages of Leu 7+ cells, increased total lymphocyte numbers per cubic millimeter, decreased percentages of both OKT-4+ and OKT-8+ cells, abnormal OKT-4:OKT-8 ratios, and depressed mitogenic responses. Only histories of larger numbers of sexually acquired diseases, higher numbers of OKT-8+ cells per cubic millimeter, and lower mitogenic responses in homosexuals with lymphadenopathy distinguished this group from homosexuals without lymphadenopathy. Furthermore, none of the nine patients tested in this group was HBsAg positive. We conclude that homosexuals without lymphadenopathy are distinguishable from those with lymphadenopathy by both immunologic and serologic abnormalities

Rate Measurement of D0→K+π−π0D^{0}\to K^{+}\pi^{-}\pi^{0} and Constraints on D0−D0‾D^{0} - \overline{D^{0}} Mixing

We present an observation and rate measurement of the decay D0 -> K+pi-pi0 produced in 9/fb of e+e- collisions near the Upsilon(4S) resonance. The signal is inconsistent with an upward fluctuation of the background by 4.9 standard deviations. We measured the rate of D0 -> K+pi-pi0 normalized to the rate of D0bar -> K+pi-pi0 to be 0.0043 +0.0011 -0.0010 (stat) +/- 0.0007 (syst). This decay can be produced by doubly-Cabibbo-suppressed decays or by the D0 evolving into a D0bar through mixing, followed by a Cabibbo-favored decay to K+pi-pi0. We also found the CP asymmetry A=(8 +25 -22)% to be consistent with zero.Comment: 10 pages postscript, also available through http://w4.lns.cornell.edu/public/CLN