241 research outputs found
Long-term study of antibiotic presence in Ebro river basin (Spain): identification of the emission sources
Water monitoring is key to determining the presence of potentially hazardous substances related to urban activities and intensive farming. This research aimed to perform a long-term (four years) quantitative monitoring of selected antibiotics (azithromycin, enrofloxacin, trimethoprim and sulfadiazine) both in rivers and wastewaters belonging to the Ebro River basin (North of Spain). The target antibiotics were chosen on the basis of a preliminary multispecies screening. The analysis of the antibiotics was carried out by LC-MS/MS on wastewater-treatment plant (WWTP) effluent, effluents of a slaughterhouse and hospital, rivers downstream and upstream of these WWTPs, and rivers close to extensive farming areas. The ANOVA test was performed to study the significant differences between the points exposed to concrete emission sources and antibiotic concentration. The monitoring, carried out from 2018 to 2020, has been essential to illustrating the presence of the most abundant antibiotics that were detected in the Ebro River basin. Enrofloxacin has appeared in river waters in significant concentrations, especially near intensive farming, meanwhile azithromycin has been frequently detected in wastewaters. Copyright: © 2022 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland
Protention and retention in biological systems
This paper proposes an abstract mathematical frame for describing some
features of cognitive and biological time. We focus here on the so called
"extended present" as a result of protentional and retentional activities
(memory and anticipation). Memory, as retention, is treated in some physical
theories (relaxation phenomena, which will inspire our approach), while
protention (or anticipation) seems outside the scope of physics. We then
suggest a simple functional representation of biological protention. This
allows us to introduce the abstract notion of "biological inertia".Comment: This paper was made possible only as part of an extended
collaboration with Francis Bailly (see references), a dear friend and
"ma\^itre \'a penser", who contributed to the key ideas. Francis passed away
in february 2008: we continue here our inspiring discussions and joint wor
Numerical Study of a Mixed Ising Ferrimagnetic System
We present a study of a classical ferrimagnetic model on a square lattice in
which the two interpenetrating square sublattices have spins one-half and one.
This model is relevant for understanding bimetallic molecular ferrimagnets that
are currently being synthesized by several experimental groups. We perform
exact ground-state calculations for the model and employ Monte Carlo and
numerical transfer-matrix techniques to obtain the finite-temperature phase
diagram for both the transition and compensation temperatures. When only
nearest-neighbor interactions are included, our nonperturbative results
indicate no compensation point or tricritical point at finite temperature,
which contradicts earlier results obtained with mean-field analysis.Comment: Figures can be obtained by request to [email protected] or
[email protected]
Calculation of magnetic anisotropy energy in SmCo5
SmCo5 is an important hard magnetic material, due to its large magnetic
anisotropy energy (MAE). We have studied the magnetic properties of SmCo5 using
density functional theory (DFT) calculations where the Sm f-bands, which are
difficult to include in DFT calculations, have been treated within the LDA+U
formalism. The large MAE comes mostly from the Sm f-shell anisotropy, stemming
from an interplay between the crystal field and the spin-orbit coupling. We
found that both are of similar strengths, unlike some other Sm compounds,
leading to a partial quenching of the orbital moment (f-states cannot be
described as either pure lattice harmonics or pure complex harmonics), an
optimal situation for enhanced MAE. A smaller portion of the MAE can be
associated with the Co-d band anisotropy, related to the peak in the density of
states at the Fermi energy. Our result for the MAE of SmCo5, 21.6 meV/f.u.,
agrees reasonably with the experimental value of 13-16 meV/f.u., and the
calculated magnetic moment (including the orbital component) of 9.4 mu_B agrees
with the experimental value of 8.9 mu_B.Comment: Submitted to Phys. Rev.
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An Analysis of Markets for Small-Scale, Advanced Coal-Combustion Technology in Spain, Italy, and Turkey
This report discusses the examination of potential overseas markets for using small-scale, US-developed, advanced coal-combustion technologies (ACTs). In previous work, member countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) were rated on their potential for using ACTs through a comprehensive screening methodology. The three most promising OECD markets were found to be Spain, Italy, and Turkey. This report provides in-depth analyses of these three selected countries. First, it addresses changes in the European Community with particular reference to the 1992 restructuring and its potential effect on the energy situation in Europe, specifically in the three subject countries. It presents individual country studies that examine demographics, economics, building infrastructures, and energy-related factors. Potential niches for ACTs are explored for each country through regional analyses. Marketing channels, strategies, and the trading environments in each country are also discussed. The information gathered indicates that Turkey is a most promising market, Spain is a fairly promising market, and Italy appears to be a somewhat limited market for US ACTs. 76 refs., 16 figs., 14 tabs
Structure optimization effects on the electronic properties of BiSrCaCuO
We present detailed first-principles calculations for the normal state
electronic properties of the high T superconductor
BiSrCaCuO, by means of the linearized augmented plane wave
(LAPW) method within the framework of density functional theory (DFT). As a
first step, the body centered tetragonal (BCT) cell has been adopted, and
optimized regarding its volume, ratio and internal atomic positions by
total energy and force minimizations. The full optimization of the BCT cell
leads to small but visible changes in the topology of the Fermi surface,
rounding the shape of CuO barrels, and causing both the BiO bands,
responsible for the pockets near the \textit{\=M} 2D symmetry point, to dip
below the Fermi level. We have then studied the influence of the distortions in
the BiO plane observed in nature by means of a
orthorhombic cell (AD-ORTH) with space group. Contrary to what has been
observed for the Bi-2201 compound, we find that for Bi-2212 the distortion does
not sensibly shift the BiO bands which retain their metallic character. As a
severe test for the considered structures we present Raman-active phonon
frequencies () and eigenvectors calculated within the frozen-phonon
approximation. Focussing on the totally symmetric A modes, we observe
that for a reliable attribution of the peaks observed in Raman experiments,
both - and a-axis vibrations must be taken into account, the latter being
activated by the in-plane orthorhombic distortion.Comment: 22 pages, 4 figure
Varied effect of fortification of kale sprouts with novel organic selenium compounds on the synthesis of sulphur and phenolic compounds in relation to cytotoxic, antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activity
Selenium deficiency in daily diet is a common problem in many countries, thus searching for new dietary sources of this trace element is an important scientific challenge. Selenium biofortified sprouts from Brassicaceae family are good candidates for new dietary selenium source, as they reveal one of the highest capability to synthesize and accumulate this element. As a part of this extensive search, the influence of novel selenium organic compounds on fortification of kale sprouts biological activity was investigated. The present study is focused on the evaluation of the influence of these compounds on the synthesis of glucosinolates, isothiocyanates, indoles and phenolic acids in kale sprouts, together with the determination of their impact on antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and cytotoxic activity on gastrointestinal, prostate, and thyroid normal and cancer cells. The present study yields the conclusion that fortification of kale sprouts with selenium organic compounds bearing benzoselenoate scaffold influences the production of isothiocyanates, phenolic acids, and enhances the antioxidant properties of fortified sprouts. Notably, fortification with compounds based on benzoselenoate scaffold display chemoprotective properties in various cancer types (gastric, thyroid, and prostate cancer). The present study can facilitate the design of future agrochemicals. Compounds bearing benzoselenoate scaffold or selenyl phenylpiperazine motif seem to be particularly promising for these purposes.This study was partly supported by Polish grants N42/DBS/000231 and N42/DBS/000167. The publication was created with the use of equipmentâs (Biotek Synergy microplate reader and Dionex HPLC system) co-financed by the qLIFE Priority Research Area under the program âExcellence InitiativeâResearch Universityâ (No. 06/IDUB/2019/94) at Jagiellonian University
Spontaneous and deliberate future thinking: A dual process account
© 2019 Springer Nature.This is the final published version of an article published in Psychological Research, licensed under a Creative Commons Attri-bution 4.0 International License. Available online at: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00426-019-01262-7.In this article, we address an apparent paradox in the literature on mental time travel and mind-wandering: How is it possible that future thinking is both constructive, yet often experienced as occurring spontaneously? We identify and describe two âroutesâ whereby episodic future thoughts are brought to consciousness, with each of the âroutesâ being associated with separable cognitive processes and functions. Voluntary future thinking relies on controlled, deliberate and slow cognitive processing. The other, termed involuntary or spontaneous future thinking, relies on automatic processes that allows âfully-fledgedâ episodic future thoughts to freely come to mind, often triggered by internal or external cues. To unravel the paradox, we propose that the majority of spontaneous future thoughts are âpre-madeâ (i.e., each spontaneous future thought is a re-iteration of a previously constructed future event), and therefore based on simple, well-understood, memory processes. We also propose that the pre-made hypothesis explains why spontaneous future thoughts occur rapidly, are similar to involuntary memories, and predominantly about upcoming tasks and goals. We also raise the possibility that spontaneous future thinking is the default mode of imagining the future. This dual process approach complements and extends standard theoretical approaches that emphasise constructive simulation, and outlines novel opportunities for researchers examining voluntary and spontaneous forms of future thinking.Peer reviewe
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