Whole lake responses to low level copper sulfate treatment

The impact of three low level copper sulfate applications to Cazenovia Lake, New York, was assessed through a high frequency monitoring program. Monitored parameters included: (1) filtered and total copper; (2) phytoplankton identification and enumeration; (3) chlorophyll-a, (4) in situ¹⁴C assimilation; (5) bacteria numbers; (6) zooplankton identification and enumeration, (7) macrophyte nutrient status and (8) filtered reactive and total phosphorus.The low level application caused only small increases (maximum of 5 μg/l) of short duration (2–5 days) in filtered copper. The treatments failed to induce effective algicidal action in the target phytoplankton populations of the lake, but they did induce short term stress and alterations in the natural seasonal succession processes within these populations. No definitive responses in the zooplankton, submerged macrophytes or water column phosphorus levels were noted. Dramatic reductions in the water column bacteria occurred immediately following each treatment, indicating direct negative impact. Phytoplankton and bacteria populations recovered within 1 week and several days, respectively.     

The scanning optical microscope (extracts on near-field microscopy)—from a 1975 report

The following consists of extracts concerning near-field microscopy from a Progress Report prepared in April 1975 as Oxford University Engineering Laboratory Report No. 1883/77, describing work initiated by the late Professor R. Kompfner. Preliminary experimental work on near-field microscopy is outlined, and a theory for contrast formation is presented.     

Brittle‐to‐Ductile Transition in Uniaxial Compression of Silicon Pillars at Room Temperature

Robust nanostructures for future devices will depend increasingly on their reliability. While great strides have been achieved for precisely evaluating electronic, magnetic, photonic, elasticity and strength properties, the same levels for fracture resistance have been lacking. Additionally, one of the self‐limiting features of materials by computational design is the knowledge that the atomistic potential is an appropriate one. A key property in establishing both of these goals is an experimentally‐determined effective surface energy or the work per unit fracture area. The difficulty with this property, which depends on extended defects such as dislocations, is measuring it accurately at the sub‐micrometer scale. In this Full Paper the discovery of an interesting size effect in compression tests on silicon pillars with sub‐micrometer diameters is presented: in uniaxial compression tests, pillars having a diameter exceeding a critical value develop cracks, whereas smaller pillars show ductility comparable to that of metals. The critical diameter is between 310 and 400 nm. To explain this transition a model based on dislocation shielding is proposed. For the first time, a quantitative method for evaluating the fracture toughness of such nanostructures is developed. This leads to the ability to propose plausible mechanisms for dislocation‐mediated fracture behavior in such small volumes.     

The development of an audit technique to assess the quality of safety barrier management

This paper describes the development of a management model to control barriers devised to prevent major hazard scenarios. Additionally, an audit technique is explained that assesses the quality of such a management system. The final purpose of the audit technique is to quantify those aspects of the management system that have a direct impact on the reliability and effectiveness of the barriers and, hence, the probability of the scenarios involved.

First, an outline of the management model is given and its elements are explained. Then, the development of the audit technique is described. Because the audit technique uses actual major hazard scenarios and barriers within these as its focus, the technique achieves a concreteness and clarity that many other techniques often lack. However, this strength is also its limitation, since the full safety management system is not covered with the technique. Finally, some preliminary experiences obtained from several test sites are compiled and discussed.     

Variation in rubber chemistry and dynamic mechanical properties of the milking liner barrel with age

The milking liner is the interface between the milking machine and the cow. Liner properties important to milking performance were investigated for liners of different ages using discriminating tests rather than the normal, rubber-industry quality control-based tests. Large variations in the liner mechanical properties occurred depending on where the sample was taken; stiffness increased 4-fold 40 to 50 mm below the top of the liner. This was related to changes in the chemistry of the rubber created by absorption of milk-derived products (MDP) into the rubber and losses of formulation components, particularly 50% of the plasticizer and all of the antidegradent 40 to 50 mm below the top of the liner, with age and use. The presence of MDP leads to calcium and phosphate deposits on the inner surface of the liner barrel where the MDP was absorbed. The detailed liner properties can be used to explain the forces on the cow's teat and its reactions and effects on milk flow behavior, and to guide future liner development.     

Using Design Projects for Program Assessment

Engineering education is undergoing an assessment of its own. Organizations responsible for engineering education are looking at themselves in an attempt to improve their total quality as well as the quality of the programs they assess. The reasons for these changes include issues relating to cost, efficiency and quality of engineering education programs, and the increased demand for accountability by constituencies (state legislatures, students, employers). The ability to work in a group and to acquire and assimilate new knowledge effectively is another key requirement of graduate engineers and is difficult to assess. This article describes the national and local forces for more definitive outcome assessment and how we have responded to those forces. The article in particular describes how we have used senior design projects as an important part of undergraduate program assessment.     

Intramaze and Extramaze Cue Processing in Adult APPSWE Tg2576 Transgenic Mice.

The present study examined spatial and nonspatial learning in adult Tg2576 mice. Transgenic mice were impaired in acquisition of a T-maze forced-choice alternation task. However, mutant mice were as sensitive as control mice to the introduction of retention intervals and proactive interference, and this suggested that short-term memory processes were intact in Tg2576 mice. Probe trials revealed that the Tg2576 mice did not use an allocentric strategy to navigate to the goal arm. However, mutant mice acquired an intramaze brightness discrimination, a simple room discrimination, and a contextual biconditional left-right discrimination in a T maze. Results suggest that Tg2576 mice are able to process both intramaze and extramaze stimuli but are impaired in forming an allocentric representation of their environment. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Pyrolysis of peat: Product yield and characterization

Pyrolysis of peat obtained from Yeniça?a, Bolu, Turkey was conducted in a fixed-bed tube furnace under various conditions, and variations in the structure of the char, tar and gas products were examined. The chars produced were studied by proximate and ultimate analyses. The maximum tar yield of 20.41% was obtained at a heating rate of 20 °C/min, a temperature of 450 °C, a sweeping gas flow rate of 100 ml/min and a 0.5–2.0 mm size range. The chemical composition of the tar was examined by elemental analysis, FTIR spectroscopy, ¹H-NMR spectroscopy and column chromatography. The chemical composition of the tar with dense aliphatic structure was established to be CH_1.22O_0.25N_0.02. The composition of the gases obtained at a heating rate of 20 °C/min for the 0.5–2.0 mm size range was examined by gas chromatography.     

Early physics results

For the past year, experiments at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) have started exploring physics at the high-energy frontier. Thanks to the superb turn-on of the LHC, a rich harvest of initial physics results have already been obtained by the two general-purpose experiments A Toroidal LHC Apparatus (ATLAS) and the Compact Muon Solenoid (CMS), which are the subject of this report. The initial data have allowed a test, at the highest collision energies ever reached in a laboratory, of the Standard Model (SM) of elementary particles, and to make early searches Beyond the Standard Model (BSM). Significant results have already been obtained in the search for the Higgs boson, which would establish the postulated electro-weak symmetry breaking mechanism in the SM, as well as for BSM physics such as Supersymmetry (SUSY), heavy new particles, quark compositeness and others. The important, and successful, SM physics measurements are giving confidence that the experiments are in good shape for their journey into the uncharted territory of new physics anticipated at the LHC.