Tolerance of Plant Monoterpenes and Diterpene Acids by Four Species of Lymantriidae (Lepidoptera) Exhibiting a Range of Feeding Specificities

Lymantriidae (Lepidoptera) is a family of leaf-feeding insects that includes some of the most damaging forest pests worldwide. Species within this family vary widely in feeding specificity. We evaluated the ability of four species, Douglas fir tussock moth (Orgyia pseudotsugata McDunnough), nun moth (Lymantria monacha L. ), rusty tussock moth (Orgyia antiqua (L.)), and white- marked tussock moth (Orgyia leucostigma (J. E. Smith)), to contend with one of the most ubiquitous and effective groups of plant defense compounds, terpenoids. We selected these species to provide a range of feeding specificities on conifer hosts, from obligate to occasional. We evaluated the effects of three monoterpenes (bornyl acetate, limonene, and myrcene) and two diterpene acids (isopimaric acid and neoabietic acid) on larval performance. Although these four species differ in their feeding ranges, utilization of conifers as hosts, and other life history processes, each shows a relatively high tolerance for conifer terpenes. The mean relative growth rates, relative consumption rates, and development times were not affected by these monoterpenes and diterpene acids when administered at concentrations present in the foliage of conifers in which they are most abundant. The most likely explanation seems to be metabolism, as a) no limonene or myrcene were recovered from frass or larvae, and b) borneol, an apparent metabolite of bornyl acetate, was recovered from frass of Douglas fir tussock moth, rusty tussock moth, and white-marked tussock moth, and from tissues of Douglas fir tussock moth and white-marked tussock moth

Sobre los diferenciales y clasificaciones soberanos de economías emergentes

En este trabajo se analizan modelos alternativos de clasificación soberana emergente. Aunque un número pequeño de indicadores económicos fundamentales explica las clasificaciones de manera razonablemente precisa, las variaciones de esos indicadores económicos fundamentales se pueden explicar, en sí mismas, por un puñado de factores mundiales. Por otro lado, hay que tomar en cuenta además las variables financieras mundiales relacionadas con la aversión al riesgo para poder explicar la considerable reducción de los diferenciales a finales de 2006. La prueba es que las clasificaciones sí importan. Por último, el trabajo descubre que los indicadores mundiales de aversión al riesgo han perdido importancia para los diferenciales de mercados emergentes y que el efecto de los últimos acontecimientos en la situación de préstamos hipotecarios de alto riesgo en EE. UU. es de menor magnitud que el efecto de las “noticias promedio” sobre los diferenciales de canjes de incumplimiento crediticio de las economías emergentes.

Phase field theory of interfaces and crystal nucleation in a eutectic system of fcc structure: I. Transitions in the one-phase liquid region

The published version of this Article can be accessed from the link below - Copyright @ 2007 American Institute of PhysicsThe phase field theory (PFT) has been applied to predict equilibrium interfacial properties and nucleation barrier in the binary eutectic system Ag-Cu using double well and interpolation functions deduced from a Ginzburg-Landau expansion that considers fcc (face centered cubic) crystal symmetries. The temperature and composition dependent free energies of the liquid and solid phases are taken from CALculation of PHAse Diagrams-type calculations. The model parameters of PFT are fixed so as to recover an interface thickness of approximately 1 nm from molecular dynamics simulations and the interfacial free energies from the experimental dihedral angles available for the pure components. A nontrivial temperature and composition dependence for the equilibrium interfacial free energy is observed. Mapping the possible nucleation pathways, we find that the Ag and Cu rich critical fluctuations compete against each other in the neighborhood of the eutectic composition. The Tolman length is positive and shows a maximum as a function of undercooling. The PFT predictions for the critical undercooling are found to be consistent with experimental results. These results support the view that heterogeneous nucleation took place in the undercooling experiments available at present. We also present calculations using the classical droplet model classical nucleation theory (CNT) and a phenomenological diffuse interface theory (DIT). While the predictions of the CNT with a purely entropic interfacial free energy underestimate the critical undercooling, the DIT results appear to be in a reasonable agreement with the PFT predictions.This work has been supported by the Hungarian Academy of Sciences under Contract No. OTKA-K-62588 and by the ESA PECS Contract Nos. 98005, 98021, and 98043

Higgs transitions of spin ice

Frustrated magnets such as spin ice exhibit Coulomb phases, where correlations have power-law forms at long distances. Applied perturbations can cause ordering transitions which cannot be described by the usual Landau paradigm, and are instead naturally viewed as Higgs transitions of an emergent gauge theory. Starting from a classical statistical model of spin ice, it is shown that a variety of possible phases and transitions can be described by this approach. Certain cases are identified where continuous transitions are argued to be likely; the predicted critical behavior may be tested in experiments or numerical simulations.Comment: 23 pages, 10 figures; v2: published version with minor changes; ancillary file "Figures3D.nb" is a Mathematica (v7) notebook containing figures as rotatable 3D graphics (see http://www.wolfram.com/cdf-player/ for a free viewer

Determination of ASPS performance for large payloads in the shuttle orbiter disturbance environment

A high fidelity simulation of the annular suspension and pointing system (ASPS), its payload, and the shuttle orbiter was used to define the worst case orientations of the ASPS and its payload for the various vehicle disturbances, and to determine the performance capability of the ASPS under these conditions. The most demanding and largest proposed payload, the Solar Optical Telescope was selected for study. It was found that, in all cases, the ASPS more than satisfied the payload's requirements. It is concluded that, to satisfy facility class payload requirements, the ASPS or a shuttle orbiter free-drift mode (control system off) should be utilized

Tolerance of Plant Monoterpenes and Diterpene Acids by Four Species of Lymantriidae (Lepidoptera) Exhibiting a Range of Feeding Specificities

Lymantriidae (Lepidoptera) is a family of leaf-feeding insects that includes some of the most damaging forest pests worldwide. Species within this family vary widely in feeding specificity. We evaluated the ability of four species, Douglas fir tussock moth (Orgyia pseudotsugata McDunnough), nun moth (Lymantria monacha L. ), rusty tussock moth (Orgyia antiqua (L.)), and white- marked tussock moth (Orgyia leucostigma (J. E. Smith)), to contend with one of the most ubiquitous and effective groups of plant defense compounds, terpenoids. We selected these species to provide a range of feeding specificities on conifer hosts, from obligate to occasional. We evaluated the effects of three monoterpenes (bornyl acetate, limonene, and myrcene) and two diterpene acids (isopimaric acid and neoabietic acid) on larval performance. Although these four species differ in their feeding ranges, utilization of conifers as hosts, and other life history processes, each shows a relatively high tolerance for conifer terpenes. The mean relative growth rates, relative consumption rates, and development times were not affected by these monoterpenes and diterpene acids when administered at concentrations present in the foliage of conifers in which they are most abundant. The most likely explanation seems to be metabolism, as a) no limonene or myrcene were recovered from frass or larvae, and b) borneol, an apparent metabolite of bornyl acetate, was recovered from frass of Douglas fir tussock moth, rusty tussock moth, and white-marked tussock moth, and from tissues of Douglas fir tussock moth and white-marked tussock moth

Characterizing HMX/AP Cocrystal Propellant Through Planar Laser Induced Fluorescence

Energetic cocrystals, or energetic materials that consist of two or more components that form a unique crystalline structure with unique properties, are currently being investigated as a possible method for decreasing the sensitivity of high energy density explosives for use in powerful solid composite propellants. Fuels more powerful than those in current use have not been practical because of their increased safety hazard due to higher sensitivity to being ignited. This has been one of the barriers that has prevented solid composite propellants from seeing significant improvements in performance. This study is an attempt to characterize a cocrystal of HMX and ammonium perchlorate (AP) of 2:3 molar mass ratio. The cocrystal was compared to the equivalent physical mix and baseline propellants of HMX and AP. Planar laser induced fluorescence (PLIF) was performed to measure hydroxyl (OH) concentrations in the propellants’ flames. It appeared that the flame structure of the cocrystal was very similar to that of HMX, as well as the distribution of OH concentrations around the flame. The results were inconclusive, and it is believed that the cocrystal’s constituents were not sufficiently bonded at the molecular level; thus, the cocrystal was instead more a mixture of smaller individual crystals of HMX and AP. Future research could include cocrystals created by varying methods, and perform cyano (CN) PLIF to characterize these cocrystals, which may display a better defined region of interest in the flame that can be more closely studied and answer more questions

A CFD simulation of a single phase hydrocyclone flow field

The hydrodynamics of a hydrocyclone present a complex internal flow structure, the numerical simulation of which remains a nontrivial task. We report on three-dimensional water-only computational fluid dynamics (CFD) hydrocyclone flow field predictions and highlight some of the issues concerned with the development of a CFD model incorporating an air core. The potential for the application of CFD as a hydrocyclone design tool is also discussed. Physically realistic velocity profile predictions were obtained, which challenge the classical account of the hydrocyclone radial particle classification mechanism. A pressure field distribution consistent with literature reports was also predicted

A provisional database for the silicon content of foods in the United Kingdom

Si may play an important role in bone formation and connective tissue metabolism. Although biological interest in this element has recently increased, limited literature exists on the Si content of foods. To further our knowledge and understanding of the relationship between dietary Si and human health, a reliable food composition database, relevant for the UK population, is required. A total of 207 foods and beverages, commonly consumed in the UK, were analysed for Si content. Composite samples were analysed using inductively coupled plasma&ndash;optical emission spectrometry following microwave-assisted digestion with nitric acid and H2O2. The highest concentrations of Si were found in cereals and cereal products, especially less refined cereals and oat-based products. Fruit and vegetables were highly variable sources of Si with substantial amounts present in Kenyan beans, French beans, runner beans, spinach, dried fruit, bananas and red lentils, but undetectable amounts in tomatoes, oranges and onions. Of the beverages, beer, a macerated whole-grain cereal product, contained the greatest level of Si, whilst drinking water was a variable source with some mineral waters relatively high in Si. The present study provides a provisional database for the Si content of UK foods, which will allow the estimation of dietary intakes of Si in the UK population and investigation into the role of dietary Si in human health.<br /