PRODUCTION OF ETHANOL BY FED-BATCH FERMENTATION

The production of ethanol, from glucose in batch and fed batch culture, was investigated. In the fed batch culture, the glucose feeding was added into the culture at 16th hour of fermentation. The effects of different glucose concentration feeding rates on ethanol fermentation were investigated for fed batch culture. The 2gL-1hr-1 glucose concentration feeding rate was found to give higher ethanol yield (2.47 g ethanol g glucose-1), with respect to substrate consumed as compared to 8 gL-1hr-1 (0.23 g ethanol g glucose-1) and 4 gL-1hr-1 (0.20 g ethanol g glucose-1). The ethanol yield with respect to substrate consumed obtained in batch culture was 0.81 g ethanol g glucose-1. The fed batch culture at 2 gL-1hr-1 glucose concentration feeding rate was proven to be a better fermentation system than the batch culture. The specific growth rate, specific glucose consumption rate and specific ethanol production rate for the fed batch fermentation, at 2 gL-1hr-1 glucose concentration feeding rate, were 0.065 hr-1, 1.20 hr-1 and 0.0009 hr-1, respectively

Markers of automaticity in sleep-associated consolidation of novel words

Two experiments investigated effects of sleep on consolidation and integration of novel form-meaning mappings using size congruity and semantic distance paradigms. Both paradigms have been used in previous studies to measure automatic access to word meanings. When participants compare semantic or physical font size of written word-pairs (e.g. BEE–COW), judgments are typically faster if relative sizes are congruent across both dimensions. Semantic distance effects are also found for wellestablished words, with semantic size judgements faster for pairs that differ substantially on this dimension. English-speaking participants learned novel form-meaning mappings with Mandarin (Experiment 1) or Malay (Experiment 2) words and were tested following overnight sleep or a similar duration awake. Judgements on English words controlled for circadian effects. The sleep group demonstrated selective stronger size congruity and semantic distance effects for novel word-pairs. This benefit occurred in Experiment 1 for semantic size comparisons of novel words, and in Experiment 2 on comparisons where novel pairs had large distances and font differences (for congruity effects) or in congruent trials (for semantic distance effects). Conversely, these effects were equivalent across sleep and wake for English words. Experiment 2 included polysomnography data and revealed that changes in the strength of semantic distance and congruity effects were positively correlated with slow-wave sleep and sleep spindles respectively. These findings support systems consolidation accounts of declarative learning and suggest that sleep plays an active role in integrating new words with existing knowledge, resulting in increased automatic access of the acquired knowledge

Microplastic Ingestion by Daphnia Magna and its Enhancement on Algal Growth

The rapid increase in plastic use over the last few decades has resulted in plastic pollution in freshwater and marine ecosystems. However, more attention has been paid to plastic pollution in marine ecosystems than to freshwater ecosystems. This research determined microplastic ingestion by Daphnia magna and the potential effect of microplastics on the organism\u27s survival and reproduction. The study also examined the potential of microplastics to enhance algal growth in support of understanding effects of microplastic ingestion on the organism. When exposed to 25, 50, and 100 mg/L fluorescent green polyethylene microbeads at size of 63–75 μm, D. magna ingested significant amount of plastic microbeads. The number of ingested beads increased with increasing particle concentration and exposure time. However, no significant effect on survival and reproduction was observed although the gut of D. magna was filled with plastic microbeads. In the algal experiment, Raphidocelis subcapitata grew more in the exposure media with the present of plastic microbeads than without plastic microbeads. This result suggests that plastic microbeads could serve as substrates for R. subcapitata to grow. Raphidocelis subcapitata then could be transferred to the organism\u27s gut and provided energy for survival and reproduction. Results of the present study add to the literature of microplastic ingestion by aquatic organisms. Caution should be taken when interpreting hazards of microplastics based on ingestion, such as the measurement unit and the presence of algae in the environment

Effects of Contaminated St. Lucie River Saltwater Sediments on an Amphipod (Ampelisca abdita) and a Hard-Shell Clam (Mercenaria mercenaria)

The St. Lucie estuary (SLE) ecosystem in South Florida has been shown to be contaminated with metals and pesticides. Our earlier studies also showed that aquatic organisms, especially benthic species in the SLE ecosystem, might be potentially at high risk from copper (Cu) exposure. The objectives of this study were to conduct studies with separate groups of organisms exposed to seven field-collected sediment samples from the St. Lucie River according to standard procedures to evaluate toxicity and tissue concentrations of Cu and zinc (Zn). Short term and longer term whole sediment acute toxicity studies were performed with Ampelisca abdita and Mercenaria mercenaria. Analysis of sediment chemical characteristics showed that Cu and Zn are of most concern because their concentrations in 86 % of the sediments were higher than the threshold effect concentrations for Florida sediment quality criteria and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Screening Quick Reference Tables (SQuiRTs) sediment values. There was no significant effect on survival of the tested organisms. However, increased Cu and Zn concentrations in the test organisms were found. Dry weight of the tested organisms was also inversely related to Cu and Zn concentrations in sediments and organisms. The effects on organism weight and Cu and Zn uptake raise concerns about the organism population dynamics of the ecosystem because benthic organisms are primary food sources in the SLE system and are continuously exposed to Cu- and Zn-contaminated sediments throughout their life cycle. The results of the present study also indicate that Cu and Zn exposures by way of sediment ingestion are important routes of exposure

A Study on Causes of Condemnation of Carcass and Organs at Shah Alam Abattoir

A two-week study of the causes of condemnation at Shah Alam abattoir was conducted. In the bovine species, liver and lungs w.ere the main organs condemned due to fluke infestation. and emphysema respectively. Ninety-five percent of pig lungs were condemned because of back bleeding, while in sheep caseous lymphadenitis was the major cause of organ condemnedtion affectingg mainly the lungs and lymph nodes. No total carcass condemnation was observed in any species during the study perio

Experimental Demonstration of Quantum Fully Homomorphic Encryption with Application in a Two-Party Secure Protocol

A fully homomorphic encryption system hides data from unauthorized parties while still allowing them to perform computations on the encrypted data. Aside from the straightforward benefit of allowing users to delegate computations to a more powerful server without revealing their inputs, a fully homomorphic cryptosystem can be used as a building block in the construction of a number of cryptographic functionalities. Designing such a scheme remained an open problem until 2009, decades after the idea was first conceived, and the past few years have seen the generalization of this functionality to the world of quantum machines. Quantum schemes prior to the one implemented here were able to replicate some features in particular use cases often associated with homomorphic encryption but lacked other crucial properties, for example, relying on continual interaction to perform a computation or leaking information about the encrypted data. We present the first experimental realization of a quantum fully homomorphic encryption scheme. To demonstrate the versatility of a a quantum fully homomorphic encryption scheme, we further present a toy two-party secure computation task enabled by our scheme

Experimental Demonstration of Quantum Fully Homomorphic Encryption with Application in a Two-Party Secure Protocol

A fully homomorphic encryption system hides data from unauthorized parties, while still allowing them to perform computations on the encrypted data. Aside from the straightforward benefit of allowing users to delegate computations to a more powerful server without revealing their inputs, a fully homomorphic cryptosystem can be used as a building block in the construction of a number of cryptographic functionalities. Designing such a scheme remained an open problem until 2009, decades after the idea was first conceived, and the past few years have seen the generalization of this functionality to the world of quantum machines. Quantum schemes prior to the one implemented here were able to replicate some features in particular use-cases often associated with homomorphic encryption but lacked other crucial properties, for example, relying on continual interaction to perform a computation or leaking information about the encrypted data. We present the first experimental realisation of a quantum fully homomorphic encryption scheme. We further present a toy two-party secure computation task enabled by our scheme. Finally, as part of our implementation, we also demonstrate a post-selective two-qubit linear optical controlled-phase gate with a much higher post-selection success probability (1/2) when compared to alternate implementations, e.g. with post-selective controlled-$Z$ or controlled-$X$ gates (1/9).Comment: 11 pages, 16 figures, 2 table

Spontaneous autologous erythrocyte-rosette formation of lymphocytes from cerebrospinal fluid of a dog with canine distemper.

An adult female crossbed dog, with pyrexia, ocular, neurologic and respiratory problems suggestive of distemper, was observed for 28 days. Marked lymphopenia was present on days, 8, 12, and 245, and myoclonus of the fore- and hind-limbs was seen on day 22. At day 24, a cytopahogenic agent with paramyxovirus morphology was isolated from peripheral blood mononuclear cells by co-cultivation with Vero cells. On day 28, cerebrospinal fluid was found to contain 82.7% of lymphocytes and 10% monocytes. About 19% of these lymphocytes formed spontaneous autologous erythrocyte-rosettes. The demonstration of such rosettes (at 4-5 times the level normal for dogs) is unusual. It is possible that is rosette test may be specific for distemper infection. This technique must be further investigated to determine if it can be used as a specific diagnostic test for distemper in dogs