Putting the wood back into our rivers: an experiment in river rehabilitation

This paper presents an overview of a project established to assess the effectiveness of woody debris (WD) reintroduction as a river rehabilitation tool. An outline of an experiment is presented that aims to develop and assess the effectiveness of engineered log jams (ELJs) under Australian conditions, and to demonstrate the potential for using a range of ELJs to stabilise a previously de-snagged, high energy gravel-bed channel. Furthermore, the experiment will test the effectiveness of a reach based rehabilitation strategy to increase geomorphic variability and hence habitat diversity. While primarily focusing on the geomorphic and engineering aspects of the rehabilitation strategy, fish and freshwater mussel populations are also being monitored. The project is located within an 1100m reach of the Williams River, NSW. Twenty separate ELJ structures were constructed, incorporating a total of 430 logs placed without any artificial anchoring (e.g., no cabling or imported ballast). A geomorphic control reach was established 3.1 km upstream of the project reach. In the 6 months since the structures were built the study site has experienced 6 flows that have overtopped most structures, 3 of the flows were in excess of the mean annual flood, inundating 19 of the ELJs by 2 - 3 m, and one by 0.5 m. Early results indicate that with the exception of LS4 and LS5, all structures are performing as intended and that the geomorphic variability of the reach has substantially increased

Film, Dreams, and MMORPGs: Cultural Leakage and Digital Gaming Literacy in Inception

The confluence of art, technology, and texts is unavoidable and yet remains under-addressed in scholarship. Technological artifacts, while prevalent in digital gaming, are seldom examined in terms of their contribution to other artistic artifacts. Specifically, MMORPGs (massively multiplayer online role-playing games) as texts are rarely considered in terms of their relevance to digital and artistic literacy. Residing within are rich cultural discourses that address the entertainment of escapism and their affiliated connection to addiction, loss of identity, and violence resulting from prolonged immersion. Not surprisingly these tensions are reflected in other texts such as film. In the current examination, a rhetorical analysis uses a close reading of Inception to examine cultural leakages of digital gaming issues entering into and shaping film discourse. Implications and societal impact of issues such as dream worlds, fantasy attractions, and counter strategies are discussed both as recommendation and social commentary

Targeted chemotherapy for parasite infestations in rural black preschool children

Objective. To investigate whether targeted chemotherapy can reduce parasite prevalence rates in rural black preschool children.Design. The study consisted of a before/after trial. Stool and urine samples were analysed on four occasions over a 21-week period.Setting. Creches in two rural areas of southern _ Kwazulu/Natal (coastal and inland). Patients. Two hundred children of 4 - 6 years of age attending 19 creches in the area. Intervention. Targeted chemotherapy using albendazole for nematode infestations, praziquantel for trematode and cestode infestations and metronidazole for protozoal infections was administered twice at an interval of 14 weeks.Main outcome measure. Prevalence rates.Results. The prevalences of Ascaris lumbricoides, Trichuris trichiura and Necator americanus infestation decreased significantly after treatment. Reinfestation rates 12 weeks after treatment were 16% for A lumbricoides, 33% for T. trichiura, 24% for Giardia lamblia and 3% for N. americanus. No reinfestation was noted for Schistosoma haematobium, Hymenolepsis or Taenia species.Conclusion. The study suggests that parasite prevalence rates in children can be reduced by the administration of appropriate chemotherapy at regular intervals. However, the provision of clean water and adequate sewerage facilities remains a high priority for black communities living in rural areas of South Africa

Sea Level at Port Leopold, N.W.T. in 1848

Forty-seven days of hourly sea level and atmospheric pressure data collected in 1848 at Port Leopold, N.W.T., are analyzed using modern time series computation techniques. Tidal analysis reveals a mixed tide but mainly semi-diurnal. A detailed analysis of the tidal data reveals that the time-keeping of the record was as good as today's standard. A high correlation between hourly sea level and atmospheric pressure data demonstrates the inverse barometric effect.Key words: Arctic, sea level, tide, ice cover, free oscillation, lowpass, scatter diagram, time series, Resolute, Port LeopoldMots clés: Arctique, Niveau de la mer, marée, couvert de glace, oscillation libre, goulet, diagramme de dispersion, series chronologiques, Resolute, Port Léopol

Quantum dot emission from site-controlled ngan/gan micropyramid arrays

InxGa1−xN quantum dots have been fabricated by the selective growth of GaN micropyramid arrays topped with InGaN/GaN quantum wells. The spatially, spectrally, and time-resolved emission properties of these structures were measured using cathodoluminescence hyperspectral imaging and low-temperature microphotoluminescence spectroscopy. The presence of InGaN quantum dots was confirmed directly by the observation of sharp peaks in the emission spectrum at the pyramid apices. These luminescence peaks exhibit decay lifetimes of approximately 0.5 ns, with linewidths down to 650 me

Toward sustainable nitrogen management in vegetable production: balancing yield and nitrogen use efficiency

Non-Peer ReviewedCover crops (CC) have the potential to immobilize nutrients, especially nitrogen (N), that would otherwise be lost during post- or pre-harvest periods, leading to improved N management. However, information on how CCs influence N management for vegetable production are scarce. This study aims to determine agronomic responses (yield and N use efficiency, NUE) of three common prairie vegetable crops when produced with and without an overwintering rye CC. In 2017 and repeated in 2018, trials were initiated on a Sutherland clay soil (Dark Brown Chernozem) in Saskatoon for a fully phased broccoli-sweet corn-carrot sequence, with each crop type receiving five N fertilizer treatments (ranging from 0 to 300 kg N ha-1) arranged in a randomized complete block design with three replicates. After harvest, sub-plots were established with vs without a shoulder-season rye CC, and the effect followed into the subsequent growing season. Compared with zero N control, N fertilizer rate did not affect vegetable crop yields in either year, demonstrating the N-rich nature of the soil at this site. Depending on the crop, moderate to high application rates of N significantly reduced crop NUE; N rates above zero N control reduced NUE for sweet corn, rates above 75 kg N ha-1 reduced NUE for broccoli, all rates above 55 kg N ha-1 reduced NUE for the root crop in 2018. Subsequent to the CC in 2018, we found no N fertilizer by CC interaction for crop yields or NUE. The rye CC had no effect on crop yield or NUE for sweet corn or carrot, but significantly reduced broccoli yield and NUE. Regression analysis showed a decreasing trend in NUE with increasing N rates for all three vegetables, regardless of the CC. Our results suggest that the repetition of this experiment for a number of years is necessary to avoid excessive N application and improvement of productivity with cover crops

Developing a soil health assessment protocol for Saskatchewan producers

Non-Peer ReviewedMaintaining and building soil health is an essential component of long-term sustainable agriculture. Soil health can be defined as the capacity of a soil to function, which reflects sustained biological productivity, environmental quality, and plant health. Farmers need appropriate tools or methods for assessing and interpreting the soil health status of their soils, however, there is no standardized and prairie-based soil health test available. Thus, research is needed to address this gap. We currently have a project underway to assess soil health across Saskatchewan, which will contribute to developing a Saskatchewan Soil Health Assessment Protocol (SSHAP). Soil samples from the 0-15, 15-30, and 30-60 cm depth were collected from 56 fields across 26 sites in Sept and Oct 2018. The selected sites represented various Agri-Arm sites, producer fields, and AAFC long-term sites. The selected sites were representative of Saskatchewan agriculture as most sites were previously cropped with wheat or canola; other sites had barley, chickpea, lentil, field pea, soybean, potato, and green manure. Native prairie samples were also collected. Soil samples were air dried and sieved (2mm) prior to analyses. Lab-work in currently underway to characterize soil health attributes, such as wet aggregate stability, active carbon, texture, pH, EC, organic matter, nutrient composition, mineralizable nitrogen, etc. The dataset will enable descriptive statistics for each soil health attribute, form which soil health scoring functions will be explored (similar to the Cornell Soil Health Assessment, but based on Saskatchewan soils). Maintaining soil health is an essential constituent of sustainable agriculture and having an appropriate and standardized method for quantifying and interpreting soil health status a logical first-step

Impact of Endogenous Bile Salts on the Thermodynamics of Supersaturated Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient Solutions

A variety of formulation strategies have been developed to mitigate the inadequate aqueous solubility of certain therapeutic agents. Among these, achieving supersaturation in vivo is a promising approach to improve the extent of oral absorption. Because of the thermodynamic instability of supersaturated solutions, inhibitors are needed to kinetically hinder crystallization. In addition to commonly used polymeric additives, bile salts, naturally present in the gastrointestinal tract, have been shown to exhibit crystallization inhibition properties. However, the impact of bile salts on solution thermodynamics is not well understood, although this knowledge is essential in order to explore the mechanism of crystallization inhibition. To better describe solution thermodynamics in the presence of bile salts, a side-by-side diffusion cell was used to evaluate solute flux for solutions of telaprevir in the absence and presence of the six most abundant bile salts in human intestinal fluid at various solute concentrations; flux measurements provide information about the solute thermodynamic activity and hence can provide an improved measurement of supersaturation in complex solutions. Trihydroxy bile salts had minimal impact on solution phase boundaries as well as solute flux, while micellar dihydroxy bile salts solubilized telaprevir leading to reduced solute flux across the membrane. An inconsistency between the concentration-based supersaturation ratio and that based on solute thermodynamic activity (the fundamental driving force for crystallization) was noted, suggesting that the activity-based supersaturation should be determined to better interpret any modification in crystallization kinetics in the presence of these additives. These findings indicate that bile salts are not interchangeable from a thermodynamic perspective and provide a foundation for further studies evaluating the mechanism of crystallization inhibition

Deformation of the Planetary Orbits Caused by the Time Dependent Gravitational Potential in the Universe

In the paper are studied the deformations of the planetary orbits caused by the time dependent gravitational potential in the universe. It is shown that the orbits are not axially symmetric and the time dependent potential does not cause perihelion precession. It is found a simple formula for the change of the orbit period caused by the time dependent gravitational potential and it is tested for two binary pulsars.Comment: 7 page