16,243 research outputs found
Effets de travaux de curage sur la faune benthique d'un cours d'eau d'une région agricole du Québec
Une étude quantitative et qualitative du benthos du Ruisseau des Anges (Comté de Montcalm, Québec), un bassin à vocation agricole, réalisée de 1986 à 1988, a permis d'évaluer les effets d'un curage effectué en 1987.L'échantillonnage couvrait les zones d'amont destinées être curés, ainsi que des sites en aval des travaux et des sites témoins. Les cours d'eau y sont enrichis, principalement en azote, et le benthos s'avère dominé par les Oligochètes Tubificidae. Mémo la station-témoin, située dans une zone plus boisée, contient une faune appauvrie, bien que plus diversifiée, dominée par les Diptères Chironomidae, les Mollusques Sphaeriidae, les Coléoptères Elmidae et les Mégaloptères Sialidae, groupes résistants à la pollution. Le curage a éliminé les accumulations de boues organiques, ainsi que les plantes aquatiques qui les retenaient, et favorisé la colonisation du milieu par les Diptères Chironomidae. Cependant, dès l'automne suivant (1988), l'envasement avait repris et les Tubificidae avaient recouvré leur position de dominance, particulièrement dans les stations d'amont, sans toutefois atteindre les densités de 1986. Les bénéfices du curage sur le benthos ont été de faible importance et de courte durée, dans la mesure où l'envasement et la pollution organique maintiennent des conditions de dégradation en absence de mesures efficaces de contrôle de l'érosion. L'utilisation de plusieurs indices biotiques pour décrire l'état des cours d'eau illustre la difficulté de leur application à des cours d'eau de plaine.A quantitative and qualitative study of the benthos of Ruisseau des Anges (Montcalm County, Quebec), in an agricultural area, in 1986 to 1988 was undertaken to evaluate the effects of ditching operations in 1987.Sampling included upstream zones where the ditching occurred, downstream stations, and control areas. All streams were enriched, particularly in nitrogen, and their benthic fauna was dominated by Tubificidae (Oligochaeta). Even the control area had a reduced fauna dominated by Chironomidae (Diptera), Sphaeriidae (Mollusca), Elmidae (Coleoptera) and Sialidae (Megaloptera), all resistant to pollution. The ditching operations eliminated the accumulated mud and destroyed the vegetation winch choked the streams. This allowed a colonization by Chironomidae. However, by the fall of 1988 much silting had occurred and the Tubificidae reestablished, though not in the high densities of 1986. Any improvement of the benthic fauna was marginal and shortlived, as silting and organic pollution restored the degradated conditions in the absence of erosion control. The use of several biotic indices to assess stream conditions showed that these are often unsatisfactory in lowland streams
The Business of Collaboration and Electronic Collection Development
Purpose - Strategic business partnerships inform business faculty-librarian (BFL) collaborations. This paper seeks to address how the motivations for business partnerships and faculty-librarian collaborations are similar. A conceptual model suggests that the depth of the BFL relationship significantly enhances electronic collection development outcomes. Design/methodology/approach - Literature concerning strategic business alliances, faculty-librarian collaborations, and collection development was examined to determine whether principles that are applied to strategic business alliances can also be applied to BFL collaborations. A case-in-point is included for illustration. Findings - Specific principles of strategic business partnerships can be applied to BFL collaborations aimed at improving electronic collection development. In addition, driving forces such as assessment, communication, and technology influence the nature of alliances across the business and academic arenas. Originality/value - The findings are significant because they demonstrate how BFL collaborations can be made more effective through the application of business principles. BFL collaborations can positively influence electronic collection development in a variety of ways. The paper offers a new and unique conceptual model that improves understanding of the nature and depth of BFL collaborations in the context of electronic collection development. This paper will be of interest to business faculty in particular and faculty in general, and librarians working in diverse library settings, especially librarians aligned with management and business departments. Librarians in management positions will likely find this information useful as a means to increase faculty-librarian collaboration across all disciplines
The Association Between the Long-Term Change in Directly Measured Cardiorespiratory Fitness and Mortality Risk
Introduction: There is a strong inverse association between cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) and mortality outcomes. This relationship has predominantly been assessed cross-sectionally, however low CRF is a modifiable risk factor, thus assessing this association using a single baseline measure may be sub-optimal. Purpose: To examine the association of the long-term change in CRF, measured using cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPX) with all-cause and disease-specific mortality.
Methods: Participants included 833 apparently healthy men and women (42.9±10.8 years) who underwent two maximal CPXs, the second CPX being ≥ 1 year following the baseline assessment. Participants were followed for 17.7 ± 11.8 years for allcause, cardiovascular disease (CVD), and cancer mortality. Cox-proportional hazard models were performed to determine the association between the change in CRF, computed as visit 1 (V1) peak oxygen consumption (VO2peak (ml·kg-1·min-1)) – visit 2 (V2) VO2peak, and mortality outcomes.
Results: During follow-up, 172 participants died. Overall, the change in CPX-derived CRF was inversely related to all-cause, CVD, and cancer mortality (p\u3c0.05). Each 1 ml·kg-1·min-1 increase was associated with a 10.8, 14.7, and 15.9% reductions in allcause, CVD, and cancer mortality, respectively. The inverse relationship between CRF and all-cause mortality remained significant (p\u3c0.05) when men and women were examined independently, after adjusting for years since first CPX, baseline VO2peak, and age.
Conclusion: Long-term changes in CRF were inversely related to mortality outcomes, and mortality was better predicted by CRF measured at subsequent examination than baseline CRF. These findings support the recent American Heart Association scientific statement advocating CRF as a clinical vital sign that should be assessed routinely in clinical practice, as well as support regular participation in physical activity to maintain adequate CRF levels across the lifespan
Ariel - Volume 7 Number 2
Editors
Mark Dembert
Frank Chervanek
John Lammie
Jim Burke
Curt Cumming
A Note on Solid-State Maxwell Demon
Starting from 2002, at least two kinds of laboratory-testable, solid-state
Maxwell demons have been proposed that utilize the electric field energy of an
open-gap n-p junction and that seem to challenge the validity of the Second Law
of Thermodynamics. In the present paper we present some arguments against the
alleged functioning of such devices.Comment: 9 pages, 4 figures. Foundations of Physics, forthcoming. arXiv admin
note: substantial text overlap with arXiv:1101.505
Magnetic Field Effect on the Pseudogap Temperature within Precursor Superconductivity
We determine the magnetic field dependence of the pseudogap closing
temperature T* within a precursor superconductivity scenario. Detailed
calculations with an anisotropic attractive Hubbard model account for a
recently determined experimental relation in BSCCO between the pseudogap
closing field and the pseudogap temperature at zero field, as well as for the
weak initial dependence of T* at low fields. Our results indicate that the
available experimental data are fully compatible with a superconducting origin
of the pseudogap in cuprate superconductors.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure
Case Selection: A Case for a New Approach
While conducting empirical research regarding the relationship between case characteristics and student performance, the authors were surprised to find a lack of conceptual and empirical research regarding instructor case selection. This conceptual paper explores the case selection process and introduces case selection as an under-investigated component of the case teaching method in management education. Case selection is important because it is a critical component of the case teaching method. There has been no empirical testing of the effectiveness of case selection technique. The authors identify and propose case selection criteria for instructors of management education
Film thickness measurements in a running hydrostatic unit using ultrasound
The present paper describes the measurement of the oil film thickness in the range of a few micrometers in an operating hydrostatic unit using ultrasound. The investigated tribological system consists of a rotating steel cylinder block and a stationary bi-metal valve plate under static and hydrodynamic lubrication. The film thickness has been recorded in a wide range of operating conditions, pressure between 100 to 300 bar and rotational speed between 500 and 3000 rpm, to support a deeper understanding of the system. Temperature sensors were implemented next to the ultrasound sensors to compensate the ultrasound signal amplitude and phase change due to temperature dependent acoustic impedances. To confirm the results, especially the presence of deliberate zero-film conditions, wear profiles of the running surface were taken. The ultrasound technique also allows the real-time observation of film thickness oscillations with shaft and piston frequency. Steady-state measurements confirm the system behavior observed in transient operation and zero-film conditions with respect to hardware configuration were detected. The findings will be utilized to support current product development activities and to validate and improve simulation models used for film thickness predictions
Determining the Locations of Dust Sources in FeLoBAL Quasars
We conduct a spectroscopic search of quasars observed by the Sloan Digital
Sky Survey (SDSS) with broad absorption line (BAL) troughs due to Mg II and
troughs due to Fe II that simultaneously exhibit strong Balmer narrow emission
lines (NELs). We find that in a redshift range of 0.4 less than or equal to z
less than or equal to 0.9 approximately 23 of the 70 Mg II BALs and 4 of a
subset of 15 Fe II BALs exhibit strong Balmer emission. We also find
significant fractions of Mg II BALs (approximately 23%) and those Mg II BALs
with Fe II troughs (approximately 27%) have strong continuum reddening, E(B -
V) greater than or equal to 0.1. From measurements of the Balmer decrement in
three objects, we find similarly significant reddening of the NEL region in
three of the four objects; the NELs in the fourth object are not measurable. We
also include one object in this study not taken from the SDSS sample that shows
Fe II absorption and strong narrow emission, but due to measurement uncertainty
and low continuum reddening the comparison is consistent but inconclusive. We
find a trend in both the Mg II and Fe II BAL samples between the NEL reddening
and continuum reddening. Because the narrow line reddening is consistent with
the continuum reddening in every object in the two SDSS samples, it suggests
that the reddening sources in these objects likely exist at larger radial
distances than the narrow line regions from the central nucleus.Comment: 40 manuscript pages, accepted in ApJ (July
Decrement Operators in Belief Change
While research on iterated revision is predominant in the field of iterated
belief change, the class of iterated contraction operators received more
attention in recent years. In this article, we examine a non-prioritized
generalisation of iterated contraction. In particular, the class of weak
decrement operators is introduced, which are operators that by multiple steps
achieve the same as a contraction. Inspired by Darwiche and Pearl's work on
iterated revision the subclass of decrement operators is defined. For both,
decrement and weak decrement operators, postulates are presented and for each
of them a representation theorem in the framework of total preorders is given.
Furthermore, we present two sub-types of decrement operators
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