Optimizing the sample size to estimate growth in I-214 poplar plantations at definitive tree density for bioenergetic production

ArticleIn Europe, over the last decades, the arboriculture for woody biomass production has significantly expanded, often using poplar plantations. In order to maximize prod uction, the flexibility of the cultivation algorithms becomes necessary. For this reason, it is necessary to apply monitoring tools for the evaluation and estimate of the wood productions, without significantly affect the production costs. In particular, f or the estimate of the productions, the choice of the sample size is of particular importance. The aim of this study was to verify a simplified sampling approaches in poplar plantations characterized by constant tree density. The research was conducted in a poplar plantation on the Tuscan hills (Italy). The surveys were carried out each year for 13 years, from 4 to 16 years old. Through different statistical techniques, the change in the social position of each tree over time was evaluated. The results show ed that the social position of each tree has been characterized by the first years after the plantation. Consequently, the estimate of the productions can be carried out by analysing the diameter increment of 10% of the trees, included in the diameter clas ses around the medium - sized tree at the time of the survey. This study provided a valid method for forest managers characterized by a simplified approach useful to estimate the growth and yield of hybrid poplars. This method will permit reliable biomass es timates, but also a reduction of the costs in the sampling activities in the field

Thermal annealing and exposure to divertor-like deuterium plasma of tailored tungsten oxide coatings

In this work we produced tungsten (W) and W oxide (WOx) films by pulsed laser deposition (PLD) with the aim of the addressing modifications of structure and morphology that occur after annealing treatments and high-flux deuterium plasma. Thanks to the high flexibility of PLD we produced nanostructured W containing non-bounded oxygen, different types of WOx and multilayered films. W coatings are dense, non-porous and exhibit a nanocrystalline structure, resembling the coatings used as first wall in tokamaks. The oxide films are nearly stoichiometric amorphous WOx (x = 3) with different morphology from compact to porous. Depending on annealing temperature, nucleation of different crystalline phases (e.g. WO3, W18O49) occurs. Exposure of films to high-flux (similar to 10(24) m(-2) s(-1)) deuterium plasmas in Magnum-PSI at different surface temperatures (T-max = 580 K) determines material modifications at the nanoscale (e.g. nanometric defects) but no delamination. In addition preliminary deuterium retention results are reported

Non-renormalization conditions for four-gluon scattering in supersymmetric string and field theory

The constraints imposed by maximal supersymmetry on multi-loop contributions to the scattering of four open superstrings in the U(N) theory are examined by use of the pure spinor formalism. The double-trace term k^2 t_8(tr F^2)^2 (where k represents an external momentum and F the Yang--Mills field strength) only receives contributions from L<=2 (where L is the loop number) while the single-trace term k^2 t_8(tr F^4) receives contributions from all L. We verified these statements up to L=5, but arguments based on supersymmetry suggest they extend to all L. This explains why the single-trace contributions to low energy maximally supersymmetric Yang--Mills field theory are more divergent in the ultraviolet than the double-trace contributions. We also comment further on the constraints on closed string amplitudes and their implications for ultraviolet divergences in N=8 supergravity.Comment: 25 pages. 2 eps figures. Harvmac format. v2 qualifications regarding comments on closed strings. References adde

Non-BPS D-Branes in Light-Cone Green-Schwarz Formalism

Non-BPS D-branes are difficult to describe covariantly in a manifestly supersymmetric formalism. For definiteness we concentrate on type IIB string theory in flat background in light-cone Green-Schwarz formalism. We study both the boundary state and the boundary conformal field theory descriptions of these D-branes with manifest SO(8) covariance and go through various consistency checks. We analyze Sen's original construction of non-BPS D-branes given in terms of an orbifold boundary conformal field theory. We also directly study the relevant world-sheet theory by deriving the open string boundary condition from the covariant boundary state. Both these methods give the same open string spectrum which is consistent with the boundary state, as required by the world-sheet duality. The boundary condition found in the second method is given in terms of bi-local fields that are quadratic in Green-Schwarz fermions. We design a special ``doubling trick'' suitable to handle such boundary conditions and prescribe rules for computing all possible correlation functions without boundary insertions. This prescription has been tested by computing disk one-point functions of several classes of closed string states and comparing the results with the boundary state computation.Comment: 47 pages, 1 figure. Typos corrected, references added and slight modification of certain explanation made. Version accepted for publication in JHE

Defining the genomic signature of the parous breast.

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: It is accepted that a woman's lifetime risk of developing breast cancer after menopause is reduced by early full term pregnancy and multiparity. This phenomenon is thought to be associated with the development and differentiation of the breast during pregnancy. METHODS: In order to understand the underlying molecular mechanisms of pregnancy induced breast cancer protection, we profiled and compared the transcriptomes of normal breast tissue biopsies from 71 parous (P) and 42 nulliparous (NP) healthy postmenopausal women using Affymetrix Human Genome U133 Plus 2.0 arrays. To validate the results, we performed real time PCR and immunohistochemistry. RESULTS: We identified 305 differentially expressed probesets (208 distinct genes). Of these, 267 probesets were up- and 38 down-regulated in parous breast samples; bioinformatics analysis using gene ontology enrichment revealed that up-regulated genes in the parous breast represented biological processes involving differentiation and development, anchoring of epithelial cells to the basement membrane, hemidesmosome and cell-substrate junction assembly, mRNA and RNA metabolic processes and RNA splicing machinery. The down-regulated genes represented biological processes that comprised cell proliferation, regulation of IGF-like growth factor receptor signaling, somatic stem cell maintenance, muscle cell differentiation and apoptosis. CONCLUSIONS: This study suggests that the differentiation of the breast imprints a genomic signature that is centered in the mRNA processing reactome. These findings indicate that pregnancy may induce a safeguard mechanism at post-transcriptional level that maintains the fidelity of the transcriptional process

Metal carboxyphosphonates-based electrocatalysts

Co1-xFex-HPAA metal phosphonates were prepared and pyrolyzed under N2 and H2/Ar flows. The resulting powders were structural and electrochemically characterized by XRD and CV, respectively. The obtained materials possess different structures depending on the temperature and pyrolysis atmosphere. Samples pyrolized in N2 at 1000 ºC are monophasic diphosphates, while phosphides form in H2/Ar at 850 ºC.Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tec

Single and solid solutions metal carboxyphosphonates as precursors for phosphorous-containing electrocatalysts

Co1-xFex-HPAA metal phosphonates were prepared and pyrolyzed under N2 and H2/Ar flows. The result-ing powders were structural and electrochemically characterised by XRD and CV, respectively. The ob-tained materials possess different structures depending on the temperature and pyrolysis atmosphere. Samples pyrolized in N2 at 1000 ºC are monophasic diphosphates, while phosphides form in H2/Ar at 850 ºC. Cyclic voltammetry studies indicate that the Co0.5Fe0.5HPAA sample, pyrolized in H2/Ar, exhibits the best behaviour, but further studies are needed to fully understand the role of graphene oxide and pyrazine.Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tec