Variability in nursery function of tropical seagrass beds during fish ontogeny: timing of ontogenetic habitat shift

Seagrass beds are often considered to be important nurseries for coral reef fish, yet the effectiveness of these nursery functions (refuge and food availability) at different juvenile stages is poorly understood. To understand how the demands of juvenile fish on seagrass nursery functions determines the timing of ontogenetic habitat shifts from seagrass beds to coral reefs, we conducted visual transect survey and field tethering and caging experiments on three different sizes of the coral reef fish Pacific yellowtail emperor (Lethrinus atkinsoni) during its juvenile tenure in seagrass beds at Ishigaki Island, southern Japan. The study showed that although the number of individual L. atkinsoni juveniles decreased by >90 % during their stay in the seagrass nursery, the shelter and/or food availability functions of the nursery, at least for a juvenile size of approximately 5 cm total length (TL), provided the best survival and growth option. The timing of ontogenetic migration to coral reefs of larger fish (>8 cm TL) was attributed to foraging efficiency for larger food items in different habitats. Overall, the function of the seagrass bed nursery changed with juvenile body size, with marginally higher survival and significantly greater growth rates during early juvenile stages in seagrass beds compared to coral reefs. This would contribute to the enhancement in the number of individuals eventually recruited to adult populations.     

The interdependence of work and family roles

The circumstances of the lack of attention to the interdependence of family functions and external employment in the research to date are considered. Major problems and barriers to progress are noted. One problem is the conceptual-theoretical barrier of viewing work as masculine and family responsibility as feminine. A second problem is a differential focus in the research to date in which either the family is studied with inadequate attention given to work, or the work setting is studied with insufficient consideration of family responsibilities. Research strategies are reviewed and discussed, including the need to identify combinations of types of occupations and family situations. Five work-family groups are identified. One of the five groups, single parent is used to illustrate policies pertaining to the interdependence of work and family roles. The relevance of research on role interdependence for both governmental policy and organizational policy is considered in a discussion of the effects of policy on effective integration of work and family roles.     

Explosion properties of highly concentrated ozone gas

The explosive self-decomposition characteristics of gaseous ozone with a concentration of up to almost 100 vol% were quantitatively investigated using a closed system with an electric spark device. The lower self-decomposition (explosion) limit for ozone diluted with oxygen at room temperature and atmospheric pressure was 10–11 vol%, and so ozone at more than 10–11 vol% will lead to an explosive chain decomposition reaction leading to its complete conversion to oxygen in a vessel. The lower explosion limit shifts to a higher concentration with a decrease in pressure. The limit was about 80 vol% under a reduced pressure of 10 Torr. We also confirmed that explosion trigger energy (minimum ignition energy) is strongly dependent on ozone concentration and pressure. For example, the minimum trigger energy for 15 vol% ozone at a pressure of 76 Torr (about 220 mJ) was more than 20-fold that at atmospheric pressure (about 10 mJ), and that for 13 vol% ozone (about 580 mJ) was approximately 30 times higher than that for 20 vol% (about 20 mJ) at the same pressure of 76 Torr. Moreover, the physical characteristics of the trigger energy sources (e.g. spark gap and electrode tip angle) leading to the decomposition (explosion) of ozone were investigated under various conditions.     

SUBSTATE INSTITUTIONAL INNOVATION FOR MANAGING LAKES AND WATERSHEDS: A WISCONSIN CASE STUDY1

ABSTRACT: Since the 1970s, there has been extensive experimentation with new approaches to water and land resources management at the state and local levels. There is a critical need to document, assess, and synthesize lessons learned from the nation's recent experience with subnational institutional changes in environmental management. This paper examines institutional changes aimed at more integrated water and related resources management at the substate level of government. We describe innovative institutional changes in a case study of Dane County, Wisconsin, and assess the implementation and preliminary consequences of these changes. Dissatisfaction with watershed and lake management results and perceptions of institutional inadequacy led to significant changes in the structure and rules for county resources management. A new entity was created to focus watershed management responsibilities. The scope of authority and powers were expanded. However, these changes all occurred within the framework of a general purpose unit of government. The new institutional arrangements have achieved a number of milestones, although it is premature to fully assess resource outcomes. The substantive changes, implementation tactics, and overall experience in Dane County's reforms - especially with regard to addressing intergovernmental tensions and decentralized management, limited authorities and funding, and public and constituency support - have useful implications for other substate efforts at more comprehensive and integrated water resources management.     

Ozone–dioxane delignification from the cell walls of Japanese cypress (Chamaecyparis obtusa Endl.)

Delignification from the cell walls with a combination of ozone oxidation and dioxane–water extraction using thin sections of a softwood, Japanese cypress (Chamaecyparis obtusa Endl.), was studied to determine its suitability for the production of recyclable cellulose-based materials from wood waste. The visible-light absorption spectra of treated wood sections revealed that delignification from the cell walls with ozone increased with increasing ozonization time. Ozone delignification proceeded from the lumen side toward the middle lamella within the secondary wall of a cell, and it proceeded faster in early wood than in late wood within an annual ring. Mild ozonization for 10–30 min was sufficient for the removal of lignin from the cell walls when sections were extracted with dioxane after ozonization. The results obtained here demonstrate that microspectrometry coupled with the Wiesner reaction is useful for the quantitative analysis of lignin in cell walls.     

Thermal remediation of PCDD/Fs contaminated soil by zone combustion process

A new thermal process has been proposed for remediating soils contaminated by chlorinated organic compounds, e.g., PCDD/Fs and PCBs. This is to apply the "zone combustion process" which utilizes stable combustion of coke particles in the packed bed to soils with air flow across the bed. The usefulness and validity were obtained the results showing that more than 98.9% of PCDD/Fs in the soil was successfully removed in a laboratory-scale experiment. Some pretreatment of the soil sample, such as drying, pre-granulation and addition of limestone was found to make the removal efficiency better. Although, some fundamentals on the behavior of PCDD/Fs, e.g., decomposition/vaporization ratios and formation of other compounds cannot be certainly identified yet, the present results clearly show a way to remediate the contaminated soils and solid wastes.     

Development of a dynamic transfer model of (14)C from the atmosphere to rice plants

A dynamic compartment model was investigated to describe ¹⁴C accumulation in rice plants exposed to atmospheric ¹⁴C with temporally changing concentrations. In the model, rice plants were regarded to consist of three compartments: the ear and the mobile and immobile carbon pools of the shoot. Photosynthetically fixed carbon moves into the ear and the mobile carbon pool, and these two compartments release a part of this carbon into the atmosphere by respiration. Carbon accumulated in the mobile carbon pool is redistributed to the ear, while carbon transferred into the immobile carbon pool from the mobile one is accumulated there until harvest. The model was examined by cultivation experiments using the stable isotope, ¹³C, in which the ratios of carbon photosynthetically fixed at nine times during plant growth to the total carbon at the time of harvest were determined. The model estimates of the ratios were in relatively good agreement with the experimental observations, which implies that the newly developed compartment model is applicable to estimate properly the radiation dose to the neighboring population due to an accidental release of ¹⁴C from nuclear facilities.     

Arsenic release from flooded paddy soils is influenced by speciation, Eh, pH, and iron dissolution

Arsenic (As) is highly mobilized when paddy soil is flooded, causing increased uptake of As by rice. We investigated factors controlling soil-to-solution partitioning of As under anaerobic conditions. Changes in As and iron (Fe) speciation due to flooded incubation of two paddy soils (soils A and B) were investigated by HPLC/ICP-MS and XANES. The flooded incubation resulted in a decrease in Eh, a rise in pH, and an increase in the As(III) fraction in the soil solid phase up to 80% of the total As in the soils. The solution-to-soil ratio of As(III) and As(V) (R_L/S) increased with pH due to the flooded incubation. The R_L/S for As(III) was higher than that for As(V), indicating that As(III) was more readily released from soil to solution than was As(V). Despite the small differences in As concentrations between the two soils, the amount of As dissolved by anaerobic incubation was lower in soil A. With the development of anaerobic conditions, Fe(II) remained in the soil solid phase as the secondary mineral siderite, and a smaller amount of Fe was dissolved from soil A than from soil B. The dissolution of Fe minerals rather than redox reaction of As(V) to As(III) explained the different dissolution amounts of As in the two paddy soils. Anaerobic incubation for 30 d after the incomplete suppression of microbial activity caused a drop in Eh. However, this decline in Eh did not induce the transformation of As(V) to As(III) in either the soil solid or solution phases, and the dissolution of As was limited. Microbial activity was necessary for the reductive reaction of As(V) to As(III) even when Eh reached the condition necessary for the dominance of As(III). Ratios of released As to Fe from the soils were decreased with incubation time during both anaerobic incubation and abiotic dissolution by sodium ascorbate, suggesting that a larger amount of As was associated with an easily soluble fraction of Fe (hydr) oxide in amorphous phase and/or smaller particles.     

Utilizing the Cyberforest live sound system with social media to remotely conduct woodland bird censuses in Central Japan

We have developed a system that streams and archives live sound from remote areas across Japan via an unmanned automatic camera. The system was used to carry out pilot bird censuses in woodland; this allowed us to examine the use of live sound transmission and the role of social media as a mediator in remote scientific monitoring. The system has been streaming sounds 8 h per day for more than five years. We demonstrated that: (1) the transmission of live sound from a remote woodland could be used effectively to monitor birds in a remote location; (2) the simultaneous involvement of several participants via Internet Relay Chat to listen to live sound transmissions could enhance the accuracy of census data collection; and (3) interactions through Twitter allowed members of the public to engage or help with the remote monitoring of birds and experience inaccessible nature through the use of novel technologies.     

Traditional Farming Landscapes for Sustainable Living in Scandinavia and Japan: Global Revival Through the Satoyama Initiative

Traditional, pre-industrial farming was adapted to the natural environment—topography, geology, hydrology, climate, and biota. Traditional land use systems are still to be traced in Scandinavia as an “infield/outland landscape”, and in Japan as a “Satoyama landscape.” There are obvious similarities and differences in land use—the main difference being that pasturing of cattle and sheep has been less important in Japan. These land use systems can be traced back to early sedentary settlements 1500–2500 years ago. In both regions, traditional management almost ceased in the mid-twentieth century leading to afforestation and decreased biological diversity. Today, there is in Japan a growing movement for landscape restoration and promotion of a sustainable living countryside based on local agrarian and forestry production, local energy, tourism, etc. With this background, the so-called Satoyama Initiative has been organized and introduced as a global socio-ecological project with ecosystem services for human well-being.