The strength and deformation characteristics of a soft alluvial clay under full scale loading conditions

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Shelter from the storm : issues and trends for collection development in a digital typhoon

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A CrC^{r} Closing Lemma for a Class of Symplectic Diffeomorphisms

We prove a $C^r$ closing lemma for a class of partially hyperbolic symplectic diffeomorphisms. We show that for a generic $C^r$ symplectic diffeomorphism, $r =1, 2, ...,$, with two dimensional center and close to a product map, the set of all periodic points is dense

Two time constants for the binding of proteins to DNA from micromechanical data

Recent experimental advances allow the direct measurement of the force/extension behavior for DNA in the presence of strongly binding proteins. Such experiments reveal information about the cooperative mechanism of protein binding. We have studied the irreversible binding of such proteins to DNA using a simple simulation and present a method for estimating quantitative rate constants for the nucleation and growth of linear domains of proteins bound to DNA. Such rate constants also give information about the relative energetics of the two binding processes. We discuss our results in the context of recent data for the DNA-recA-ATPγs system, for which the nucleation time is 4.7 × 104 min per recA binding site and the total growth rate of each domain is 1400 recA/min

A Noninvasive Method For In situ Determination of Mating Success in Female American Lobsters (Homarus americanus)

Despite being one of the most productive fisheries in the Northwest Atlantic, much remains unknown about the natural reproductive dynamics of American lobsters. Recent work in exploited crustacean populations (crabs and lobsters) suggests that there are circumstances where mature females are unable to achieve their full reproductive potential due to sperm limitation. To examine this possibility in different regions of the American lobster fishery, a reliable and noninvasive method was developed for sampling large numbers of female lobsters at sea. This method involves inserting a blunt-tipped needle into the female\u27s seminal receptacle to determine the presence or absence of a sperm plug and to withdraw a sample that can be examined for the presence of sperm. A series of control studies were conducted at the dock and in the laboratory to test the reliability of this technique. These efforts entailed sampling 294 female lobsters to confirm that the presence of a sperm plug was a reliable indicator of sperm within the receptacle and thus, mating. This paper details the methodology and the results obtained from a subset of the total females sampled. Of the 230 female lobsters sampled from George\u27s Bank and Cape Ann, MA (size range = 71-145 mm in carapace length), 90.3% were positive for sperm. Potential explanations for the absence of sperm in some females include: immaturity (lack of physiological maturity), breakdown of the sperm plug after being used to fertilize a clutch of eggs, and lack of mating activity. The surveys indicate that this technique for examining the mating success of female lobsters is a reliable proxy that can be used in the field to document reproductive activity in natural populations

Generation of internal stress and its effects

Internal stresses may be generated continually in many polycrystalline materials. Their existence is manifested by changes in crystal defect concentration and arrangement, by surface observations, by macroscopic shape changes and particularly by alteration of mechanical properties when external stresses are simultaneously imposed

A Noninvasive Method For In situ Determination of Mating Success in Female American Lobsters (Homarus americanus)

Despite being one of the most productive fisheries in the Northwest Atlantic, much remains unknown about the natural reproductive dynamics of American lobsters. Recent work in exploited crustacean populations (crabs and lobsters) suggests that there are circumstances where mature females are unable to achieve their full reproductive potential due to sperm limitation. To examine this possibility in different regions of the American lobster fishery, a reliable and noninvasive method was developed for sampling large numbers of female lobsters at sea. This method involves inserting a blunt-tipped needle into the female\u27s seminal receptacle to determine the presence or absence of a sperm plug and to withdraw a sample that can be examined for the presence of sperm. A series of control studies were conducted at the dock and in the laboratory to test the reliability of this technique. These efforts entailed sampling 294 female lobsters to confirm that the presence of a sperm plug was a reliable indicator of sperm within the receptacle and thus, mating. This paper details the methodology and the results obtained from a subset of the total females sampled. Of the 230 female lobsters sampled from George\u27s Bank and Cape Ann, MA (size range = 71-145 mm in carapace length), 90.3% were positive for sperm. Potential explanations for the absence of sperm in some females include: immaturity (lack of physiological maturity), breakdown of the sperm plug after being used to fertilize a clutch of eggs, and lack of mating activity. The surveys indicate that this technique for examining the mating success of female lobsters is a reliable proxy that can be used in the field to document reproductive activity in natural populations

A novel route to Pt-Bi2O3 composite thin films and their application in photo-reduction of water

A novel homoleptic bismuth(III) β-diketonate (dibenzoylmethane – dbm) complex [Bi(dbm)3]2 has been used as a precursor to thin films of crystalline β-Bi2O3, and hexachloroplatinic acid (H2PtCl6·6H2O) has been demonstrated as a suitable precursor for deposition of platinum nanoparticles, both deposited via aerosol-assisted chemical vapour deposition (AACVD). Thin films of Pt–Bi2O3 were co-deposited from a mixture of [Bi(dbm)3]2 and H2PtCl6·6H2O; the introduction of Pt particles into β-Bi2O3 causes hydrogen to be evolved during photolysis of water over the composite material, a property not found for Pt particles or β-Bi2O3 alone