We show that uloborid spiders, which lack the poison glands typical of nearly all other spiders, employ thousands of wrapping movements with their hind legs and up to hundreds of meters of silk line to make a shroud that applies substantial compressive force to their prey. Shrouds sometimes break the prey’s legs, buckle its compound eyes inward, or kill it outright. The compressive force apparently results from the summation of small tensions on sticky lines as they are applied to the prey package. Behavioral details indicate that wrapping is designed to compact prey; in turn, compaction probably functions to facilitate these spiders’ unusual method of feeding. This is the first demonstration that prey wrapping by spiders compacts and physically damages their prey, rather than simply restraining them. 相似文献
Studying the modes of selenium occurrence in high-Se soils and its behaviors can improve understanding and evaluating its cycling, flux, and balance in geo-ecosystems and its influence on health. In this paper, using a modified sequential chemical extraction technique, seven operationally defined selenium fractions and Se valence distribution were determined about five soils in which paddy was planted (W1, W2, W3, W4, W5) and five soils in which maize was planted (H1, H2, H3, H4, H5) around the selenium-rich core, Ziyang County, Shaanxi Province, China. The results show that selenium fractions in the soils mainly include sulfide/selenide and base-soluble Se, and ligand-exchangeable Se is also high for five soils in which paddy was planted. For water-soluble Se, Se (IV) is main Se valence and almost no Se (VI) was determined about five soils in which paddy was planted, while almost 1:1 of Se (IV) and Se (VI) coexist about five soils in which maize was planted. For exchangeable Se, similar results were found. For the first time, two typical high-Se soils (W1 soil and H1 soil) were chosen to measure the pH-dependent solid-solution distribution of selenite in the pH range 3–9, and the results were explained using LCD (ligand and charge distribution) adsorption modeling. The desorbed selenite concentrations from the two soils are in general underestimated by the model due to a comparable binding affinity of phosphate and selenite on goethite and much lower amount of total selenite than total reactively adsorbed phosphate. The pH dependency of adsorption of selenite added to the soil can be successfully described with the LCD model for W1 soil. Whereas considering the influence of Al-oxides, by lowering selenite adsorption affinity constant K of Se adsorption on goethite by 16 times, the LCD model can describe the adsorption much better. The results can help to understand selenium cycling, flux, and balance in typical high-Se soils.
Studies of radionuclides in the environment have entered a new era with the renaissance of nuclear energy and associated fuel reprocessing, geological disposal of high-level nuclear wastes, and concerns about national security with respect to nuclear non-proliferation. This work presents an overview on sources of anthropogenic radionuclides in the environment, as well as a brief discussion of salient geochemical behavior of important radionuclides. We first discuss the following major anthropogenic sources and current developments that have lead, or could potentially contribute, to the radionuclide contamination of the environment: (1) nuclear weapons program; (2) nuclear weapons testing; (3) nuclear power plants; (4) uranium mining and milling; (5) commercial fuel reprocessing; (6) geological repository of high-level nuclear wastes that include radionuclides might be released in the future, and (7) nuclear accidents. Then, we briefly summarize the inventory of radionuclides 99Tc and 129I, as well as geochemical behavior for radionuclides 99Tc, 129I, and 237Np, because of their complex geochemical behavior, long half-lives, and presumably high mobility in the environment; biogeochemical cycling and environment risk assessment must take into account speciation of these redox-sensitive radionuclides. 相似文献
Industrialization and urbanization result in significant changes in lifestyle. These lifestyle changes seem to lead to unsustainable
consumption patterns and increase the generation of various kinds of environmental loads, especially the amount of municipal
solid waste (MSW). Taiwan is a small island with scarce natural resources. The economic development in Taiwan has resulted
in the generation of large amounts of MSW. As a result, the Taiwan Environmental Pollution Administration (TEPA) has produced
regulations for waste minimization and has imposed several important policy measures that have successfully reduced the MSW
discard rate in recent years and have established a public recycling network as a part of the MSW collection. Nowadays, the
objective of the MSW policies in Taiwan is to develop a “zero-waste society.” This article aims to review the MSW management
progress in Taiwan and to project future MSW discards up to 2011 based on the national plan and assumed scenarios for socioeconomic
variables. According to the analysis results, a more sustainable consumption pattern can be proposed and the corresponding
MSW management system can be planned so as to develop a low-waste-discard society. 相似文献