Effects of stocking density on growth performance and survival of three male morphotypes in all-male culture of Macrobrachium rosenbergii (De Man)

A study was conducted to appraise the effect of different stocking densities on three male morphotypes named blue claw (BC), orange claw (OC) and small male (SM) at harvest in all-male culture and to assess the growth performance of BC, OC and SM in each isolated culture. Trials involving three stocking densities of all-male prawn viz., 20, 30 and 40 juvenile m^-2 were carried out in replicates. After 4 months of culture, BC, OC and SM were sorted from all tanks and restocked at 5 m^-2 in treatments BC, OC and SM respectively for 80 days. A difference in prawn density significantly (p<0.05) affected adversely on morphotypes. The highest survival rate combined with good yield performance was from 20 juvenile m^-2 stocking density with 21% BC, 62.5% OC and 16.5% SM, respectively. In isolation culture, the average specific growth rate of the SM population (1.22) was significantly higher than that of the OC (1.01) and the BC (0.43) population. The survival of the SM population was 100% while for others it was 72%. Absolute weight of prawn was significantly greater in the male OC (23.87 g) than the SM (19.57 g) and the BC males (6.31 g). Impacts of isolated culture on population structure were much more pronounced in the SM population than others

Tribological behaviour of AZ31 magnesium alloy reinforced by bimodal size B4C after precipitation hardening

This study investigated dry sliding wear properties of AZ31 magnesium alloy and B4C-reinforced AZ31 composites containing 5, 10, and 20 wt.% B4C with bimodal sizes under different loadings (10–80 N) at various sliding speeds (0.1–1 m/s) via the pin-on-disc configuration. Microhardness evaluations showed that when the distribution of B4C particles was uniform the hardness of the composites increased by enhancing the reinforcement content. The unreinforced alloy and the composite samples were examined to determine the wear mechanism maps and identify the dominant wear mechanisms in each wear condition and reinforcement content. For this purpose, wear rates and friction coefficients were recorded during the wear tests and worn surfaces were characterized by scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray spectrometry analyses. The determined wear mechanisms were abrasion, oxidation, delamination, adhesion, and plastic deformation as a result of thermal softening and melting. The wear evaluations revealed that the composites containing 5 and 10 wt.% B4C had a significantly higher wear resistance in all the conditions. However, 20 wt.% B4C/AZ31 composite had a lower resistance at high sliding speeds (0.5–1 m/s) and high loadings (40–80 N) in comparison with the unreinforced alloy. The highest wear resistance was obtained at high sliding speeds and low loadings with the domination of oxidative wear

Concomitant Overlap Steal Tip-plasty: A Versatile Technique to Simultaneously Adjust the Rotation, Definition, Projection, and Symmetry of the Nasal Tip

Background Tip-plasty is a particularly challenging stage of aesthetic nose surgery. The diversity of nasal tip deformities has necessitated the development of numerous surgical techniques that can be difficult to master and may yield unpredictable surgical results when combined. Objectives The authors describe how concomitant overlap steal tip-plasty (COST) can enable surgeons to address all of the aesthetic characteristics of the nasal tip simultaneously. COST involves lateral crural steal followed by medial crural overlap. Methods The medical records of 1617 patients who underwent primary open septorhinoplasty with COST were evaluated in a retrospective study. Pre- and postoperative patient photographs were compared for nasal length, nasolabial angle, tip projection, and deviation of the nasal axis. Results Pre- and postoperative mean nasal lengths were 5.66 cm and 5.17 cm, respectively (P <. 05). The mean nasolabial angle was 86.95° preoperatively and 101.8° postoperatively (P <. 05). The projection of the nasal tip was reduced from 3.09 cm to 2.53 cm, and tip symmetry was achieved by decreasing the nasal axis deviation from 7.76° to 1.71° (both P <. 05). Conclusions COST does not obviate all other tip-plasty techniques for specific situations. Once mastered, however, COST can become the only procedure needed to achieve all of the aesthetic goals of the nasal tip in most cases. Level of Evidence: 4 Therapeutic. © 2015 The American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, Inc

Thermodynamics and reentrant phase transition for logarithmic nonlinear charged black holes in massive gravity

We investigate a new class of $(n+1)$-dimensional topological black hole solutions in the context of massive gravity and in the presence of logarithmic nonlinear electrodynamics. Exploring higher dimensional solutions in massive gravity coupled to nonlinear electrodynamics is motivated by holographic hypothesis as well as string theory. We first construct exact solutions of the field equations and then explore the behavior of the metric functions for different values of the model parameters. We observe that our black holes admit the multi-horizons caused by a quantum effect called anti-evaporation. Next, by calculating the conserved and thermodynamic quantities, we obtain a generalized Smarr formula. We find that the first law of black holes thermodynamics is satisfied on the black hole horizon. We study thermal stability of the obtained solutions in both canonical and grand canonical ensembles. We reveal that depending on the model parameters, our solutions exhibit a rich variety of phase structures. Finally, we explore, for the first time without extending thermodynamics phase space, the critical behavior and reentrant phase transition for black hole solutions in massive gravity theory. We realize that there is a zeroth order phase transition for a specified range of charge value and the system experiences a large/small/large reentrant phase transition due to the presence of nonlinear electrodynamics.Comment: 14 pages (one column), 12 captioned figure

Composition and diversity of phytoplankton from mangrove estuaries in Sarawak, Malaysia

The composition and diversity of phytoplankton were studied along with physico-chemical parameters of water of two mangrove-dominated estuaries i.e., Kuala Sibuti (KS) and Kuala Nyalau (KN), Sarawak, Malaysia. A total of 46 species of phytoplankton with the mean density of 147000 cells L-1 were recorded from KS estuary i.e., 3 species of Cyanophyceae; 22 species of Bacillariophyceae; 20 species of Dinophyceae and 1 species of Chlorophyceae. The recorded mean density of phytoplankton was 113000 cells L-1 with 33 species from 19 genera from KN estuary, in which 19 species were from Bacillariophyceae; 12 species were from Dinophyceae; 1 species was from Cyanophyceae and 1 species was from Chlorophyceae. In both the estuaries, the species composition was found to be in an order of Diatom>Dinoflagellate>Cyanophyceae>Chlorophyceae. Canonical Correspondence Analysis (CCA) revealed that the abundance of Bacillariophyceae and Dinoflagellates was influenced by salinity and conductivity along with ammonium and phosphate while the abundance of Chlorophyceae was influenced by temperature, TDS, DO and pH in KS. The influence of salinity and conductivity along with PO4 and NH4 on the abundance of Bacillariophyceae, Dinoflagellates and Chlorophyceae were observed in KN

Seasonal variation of water characteristics in Kuala Sibuti river estuary in Miri, Sarawak, Malaysia

This paper presents the water characteristics of Kuala Sibuti river estuary, which is margined by pristine mangrove forest. For this purpose, nutrients, chlorophyll a and environmental parameters were investigated for 12 months. Physical, chemical and biological parameters of this estuarine water followed a seasonal rhythm and induced by the annual cycle of the monsoon. Surface water temperature ranged from 27.4°C to 32.2°C with a wide variety of salinity from 0.70 PSU to 27.10 PSU followed by Dissolved Oxygen (DO) from 1.94 to 6.71 mg/L. The concentration of chlorophyll a was found to be varied from 0.02 to 0.16 mg/m3. Nitrate, phosphate and ammonium concentrations ranged from 0.40 to 3.53mg/L, 0.01 to 1.92 mg/L and 0.06 to 1.24 mg/L, respectively. Pearson correlation coefficients showed a significant relationship between nitrate and TDS, nitrate and pH, ammonium and salinity, temperature and salinity, temperature and TDS, phosphate and light attenuation in this estuarine environment. The estuary was found to be mesohaline in nature. Estuarine Water Quality Index (EWQI) calculated from phosphate (PO4), suspended matter (SM) and dissolved oxygen (DO) indicate very good quality (4.95). Significantly seasonal difference for salinity, water temperature and, TDS were observed probably related to tidal flow and upstream river runoff

Phytoplankton in tropical mangrove estuaries: role and interdependency

Mangrove estuaries are claimed to be productive and important breeding grounds for fishery resources. The role of particulate organic matter (POM), especially derived from decomposed litter detritus, is well documented in mangrove estuaries. However, being a primary producer, phytoplankton may play a significant role, which has not been well discussed, in governing the productivity of mangrove estuaries. Based on relevant published literature, this paper focuses on the role of phytoplankton in mangrove estuaries in the tropical coastal region and their interdependency. Analysis reveals that there are two-way interactions between phytoplankton and mangrove estuaries. The POM enriched water in mangrove estuaries acts as an ideal medium for phytoplankton succession. Simultaneously, diversified phytoplankton assemblages play a significant role in the food web of the estuarine mangrove ecosystem. Biomass and diversity of phytoplankton are influenced by nutrient and environmental parameters in mangrove estuaries and, concurrently, phytoplankton play a significant role in fish diversity and primary production in the same system. This review reveals that the inconsistent relationships between mangroves and coastal production could probably be due to the influence of seasonal changes. This paper unveils the latent potential and role of phytoplankton in tropical mangrove estuaries, which could be a source of thought for future research in this arena

Inter-linkage among some physico-chemical and biological factors in the tropical mangrove estuary

The interaction between abiotic and biotic parameters in an ecosystem usually shows health and functioning of the system. Thus, some physico-chemical parameters, phytoplankton abundance, chlorophyll a and primary production of the mangrove estuary in Sarawak, Malaysia were extensively investigated from January 2013 to December 2013 in order to establish the inter-linkage among them. The Pearson correlation coefficient revealed a significant relation between atmospheric and water temperatures (r = 0.692). Similarly, surface water temperature showed a significant positive correlation with salinity (r = 0.744), TDS (r = 0.708) and conductivity (r = 0.776). The light extinction coefficient (LEC, K) changed negatively in relation to TDS (r =-0.623), conductivity (r =-0.644) and surface water temperature (r =-0.766). Ammonium showed a negative correlation with rainfall (r =-0.620) but a positive correlation with salinity (r = 0.600). The biological variable such as phytoplankton abundance was found to be positively correlated with chlorophyll a (r = 0.692), ammonium (r = 0.645) and silica (r = 0.644) and negatively with rainfall (r =-0.644). The canonical correspondence analysis revealed a strong positive correlation between environmental parameters and phytoplankton species. The analysis of variance disclosed significant seasonal differences in salinity, water temperature, TDS, conductivity, LEC, ammonium and chlorophyll a

Comparison of Material Consumption, Experimental Protocols and Computation Time in DNA Computing

One of the major constraints in DNA computation is the exponential increase in material consumption and computation time for larger computation size in DNA computing particularly in critical stages such as initial pool generation and extraction during gel electrophoresis. In DNA computation, both the hybridization-ligation method and parallel overlap assembly method can be utilized to generate the initial pool of all possible solutions. In this paper, we discuss and compare the implementation of N × N Boolean matrix multiplication via in vitro implementation between Hybridization-Ligation Method and Parallel Overlap Assembly Method to show that selection of tools and protocols affect the cost effectiveness of a computation in terms of the material consumption, protocol steps and execution time to compute. In general, the the parallel overlap assembly method performs better than hybridization-ligation method in terms of the three parameters mentioned. The calculations are based on approximation of unique sequence strands required for the computation and not actual calculations on the nmol concentration