Geographical Simulation of Cross-border Cooperation: Relevance and Prospects

Рассмотрены актуальность и возможности использования географического моделирования приграничного сотрудничества для административных регионов Беларуси. Представлены стратегии моделирования приграничного сотрудничества. We consider the relevance and feasibility of geographical simulation of cross-border cooperation in the administrative regions of Belarus. Presents the modeling strategy of cross-border cooperation

Effects of parabolic flight and spaceflight on the endocannabinoid system in humans

The endocannabinoid system (ECS) plays an important role in the regulation of physiological functions, from stress and memory regulation to vegetative control and immunity. The ECS is considered a central and peripheral stress response system to emotional or physical challenges and acts through endocannabinoids (ECs), which bind to their receptors inducing subsequent effecting mechanisms. In our studies, the ECS responses have been assessed through blood concentrations of the ECs anandamide and 2-arachidonoylglycerol. In parallel, saliva cortisol was determined and the degree of perceived stress was quantified by questionnaires. This report summarizes the reactivity of the ECS in humans subjected to brief periods of kinetic stress and weightlessness during parabolic flights and to prolonged stress exposure during life onboard the International Space Station (ISS). Both conditions resulted in a significant increase in circulating ECs. Under the acute stress during parabolic flights, individuals who showed no evidence of motion sickness were in low-stress conditions and had a significant increase of plasma ECs. In contrast, highly stressed individuals with severe motion sickness had an absent EC response and a massive increase in hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis activity. Likewise, chronic but well-tolerated exposure to weightlessness and emotional and environmental stressors on the ISS for 6 months resulted in a sustained increase in EC blood concentrations, which returned to baseline values after the cosmonauts' return. These preliminary results suggest that complex environmental stressors result in an increase of circulating ECs and that enhanced EC signaling is probably required for adaptation and tolerance under stressful conditions

The distribution of platinum and palladium metals in iron meteorites and in the metal phase of ordinary chondrites

The concentrations of Ru, Rh, Pd, Ir, and Pt have been determined spectrographically in twenty-four iron meteorites and in the metal phase of five ordinary chondrites. It was found that most iron meteorites fall into three distinct groups with regard to the Ru and Rh concentrations and into three groups with regard to the Ir and Pt concentrations, each Ir-Pt group corresponding to one of the Ru-Rh groups. Correlations are observed between these Ir-Pt and Ru-Rh groups on the one hand, and the Ga-Ge groups found by previous workers on the other, but the relationships are by no means clear-cut. Compared with Ru, Ir, and Pt, Pd was found to vary over a relatively small range. The metal phases of all chondrites studied are chemically identical with the iron meteorites of the largest Ru-Rh and the largest Ir-Pt group, namely the Ru-Rh group which contains about 6 ppm Ru and 1.5 ppm Rh, and the Ir-Pt group which contains about 2 ppm Ir and 7 ppm Pt. The following atomic abundances (Si = 10^6) of Ru, Rh, Pd, Ir, and Pt have been derived from our data: Ru Rh Pd Ir Pt Based on metal phase of high-iron-group chondrites 1.66 0.27 1.05 0.40 1.22 Based on iron meteorites, assuming they constitute 10%of mean meteoritic matter 1.44 0.23 0.52 0.31 0.89 These values generally agree within a factor of less than 2 with the abundances calculated by recent workers

Platinum and iridium abundances in meteorites

At the suggestion of Dr. E.M. Burbidge, Dr. G.R. Burbidge, Professor W.A. Fowler, and Professor F. Hoyle, we have carried out a determination of the abundances of platinum and iridium in meteorites. The purpose of the work was to obtain data for a more precise estimation of the abundance peak near mass 195 in the atomic abundance curve, since both the observed(1) and calculated(2) abundances for this interesting γ-process abundance region were only approximate

ВЕЛИКІ СЕРЦЯ МАЛЕНЬКИХ ДРУЗІВ

The article presents a literary review of scientific works related to the topic of the role of dogs in human life. The union of man and dog, as scientists report, dates back to ancient times, probably 14000 to 16000 years ago. In modern conditions, dogs occupy one of the main places next to people in almost all spheres of life - from protection of the rights and freedoms of citizens to sports with the use of dogs, as well as non-standard methods of treatment with the active participation of dogs. Dogs were the first animals domesticated by man. In this regard, they managed to overtake cows, sheep and goats. Of course, dogs were great guards and helpers during the hunt, but much more important was that you could communicate with them. They were devoted to their master and understood him better than other animals. A dog's ability to track prey and warn of danger was enough for primitive man. It freed a person from the fear of the unknown. It is difficult to overestimate the role of dogs in human life, because they perform many functions, in particular, they are actively used for hunting, as shepherds, in the work of the police and the military, in everyday life for people with disabilities, and dog therapy is also widely distributed, that is, work with injured people due to certain circumstances.У статті поданий літературний огляд наукових праць, які стосуються теми ролі собаки у житті людини. Союз людини та собаки, як повідомляють науковці, бере свій початок з давнини, ймовірно, 14–16 тисяч років тому. У сучасних умовах собаки посіли одне з головних місць поряд з людиною майже у всіх сферах життя – від охорони прав і свобод громадян до спорту з використанням собак, а також нестандартних методів лікування за активної участі собак. Собаки були першими тваринами, прирученими людиною. У цьому плані їм вдалося випередити корів, овець і кіз. Звичайно, собаки були прекрасними охоронцями та помічниками під час полювання, але набагато важливішим було те, що з ними можна було спілкуватися. Вони були відданими хазяїнові та розуміли його краще, ніж інші тварини. Первісній людині достатньо було вміння собаки вистежувати здобич і попереджати про небезпеку. Це звільняло людину від страху перед невідомістю. Важко переоцінити роль собак у житті людини, адже вони виконують багато функцій, зокрема їх активно використовують для полювання, як пастухів, в роботі поліції та військових, в побуті для осіб з обмеженими можливостями, а також широко поширюється каніс-терапія, тобто, робота із травмованими людьми в силу певних обставин

Accretion-Induced Lithium Line Enhancements in Classical T Tauri Stars: RW Aur

It is widely accepted that much of the stochastic variability of T Tauri stars is due to accretion by a circumstellar disk. The emission line spectrum as well as the excess continuum emission are common probes of this process. In this communication, we present additional probes of the circumstellar environment in the form of resonance lines of low ionization potential elements. Using a set of 14 high resolution echelle observations of the classical T Tauri star (CTTS), RW Aur, taken between 1986 and 1996, we carefully measure the continuum veiling at each epoch by comparing more than 500 absorption lines with those of an appropriate template. This allows us to accurately subtract out the continuum emission and to recover the underlying photospheric spectrum. In doing so, we find that selected photospheric lines are enhanced by the accretion process, namely the resonance lines of LiI and KI. A resonance line of TiI and a low excitation potential line of CaI also show weak enhancements. Simple slab models and computed line bisectors lead us to propose that these line enhancements are markers of cool gas at the beginning of the accretion flow which provides an additional source of line opacity. These results suggest that published values of surface lithium abundances of classical T Tauri stars are likely to be overestimated. This would account for the various reports of surface lithium abundances in excess of meteoritic values among the extreme CTTS. Computing LTE lithium abundances of RW Aur in a low and then high accretion state yields abundances which vary by one order of magnitude. The low accretion state lithium abundance is consistent with theoretical predictions for a star of this age and mass while the high accretion state spectrum yields a super-meteoritic lithium abundance.Comment: 28 pages, 8 figures, accepted by Ap

Influences of large sets of environmental exposures on immune responses in healthy adult men

Environmental factors have long been known to influence immune responses. In particular, clinical studies about the association between migration and increased risk of atopy/asthma have provided important information on the role of migration associated large sets of environmental exposures in the development of allergic diseases. However, investigations about environmental effects on immune responses are mostly limited in candidate environmental exposures, such as air pollution. The influences of large sets of environmental exposures on immune responses are still largely unknown. A simulated 520-d Mars mission provided an opportunity to investigate this topic. Six healthy males lived in a closed habitat simulating a spacecraft for 520 days. When they exited their "spacecraft" after the mission, the scenario was similar to that of migration, involving exposure to a new set of environmental pollutants and allergens. We measured multiple immune parameters with blood samples at chosen time points after the mission. At the early adaptation stage, highly enhanced cytokine responses were observed upon ex vivo antigen stimulations. For cell population frequencies, we found the subjects displayed increased neutrophils. These results may presumably represent the immune changes occurred in healthy humans when migrating, indicating that large sets of environmental exposures may trigger aberrant immune activity