Gamergates in the myrmicine genus <Emphasis Type="Italic">Metapone</Emphasis> (Hymenoptera:Formicidae)

Gamergates (i.e. mated reproductive workers) are mostly known from ant species within the Ponerinae. We report here the discovery of gamergates in two species of the subfamily Myrmicinae. Until now, mated reproductive females in colonies of myrmicine species have been considered morphologically distinct from the worker caste. However, in two species of the myrmicine Metapone (Metapone madagascarica and a newly discovered, not yet described Metapone species) all workers have six ovarioles and a spermatheca; and some of them are mated. There are no morphological differences between mated and non-mated workers. Field observations and laboratory studies indicate that colonies of the Metapone species can reproduce with gamergates only.     

Vocal acrobatics in a Chinese frog, <Emphasis Type="Italic">Amolops tormotus</Emphasis>

Although amphibians are highly vocal, they generally emit only a limited number of acoustic communication signals. We report here the extraordinarily rich vocal repertoire of Amolops tormotus, a ranid species in China. These frogs produce countless vocalizations, some of which share features of birdsong or primate calls, e.g., ultrasonic frequency components, multiple upward and downward FM sweeps, and sudden onset and offset of selective harmonic components within a call note. Frame-by-frame video analysis of the frog's calling behavior suggests the presence of two pairs of vocal sacs that may contribute to the remarkable call-note complexity in this species. Electronic supplementary material to this paper can be obtained by using the Springer LINK server located at http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00114-002-0335-x.     

Inventory of emissions from major air pollutant categories in Turkey

In this study, an inventory of air pollutant emission estimates from major air polluting sources in Turkey for period between 1985 and 2005 with 5-year intervals were estimated. Inventory covers anthropogenic sources of five major air pollutants of particulate matter, sulfur dioxide, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides and non-methane volatile organic compounds. Their break-down with respect to main activity sectors were shown and their distribution by the largest industrial source categories were worked out as annual estimates. This inventory and its analysis point to serious environmental implications of air pollutants and a need to develop a policy plan for reducing these emissions.     

Practical environmental monitoring of major construction projects

Independent teams undertook environmental monitoring of particular concentrations of major construction projects forming part of Hong Kong’s U.S. $20 billion airport infrastructure programme located in dense urban areas. The team combination of environmental specialists with experienced civil engineers enabled pragmatic mitigation measures to be developed and accepted by the construction personnel with the result that potentially significant adverse impacts were averted. The authors discuss the mechanism and success of this innovative approach.     

独立学院教学中的四忌

独立学院的学生与母体高校学生相比有一定的特殊性。独立学院的教学如若完全沿用母体高校的方法和要求,势必会出现一些问题和矛盾。为此,在独立学院教学中,教师应注意四忌。     

厌氧酸化-二级PSB流化床工艺处理高浓度有机废水

采用厌氧酸化+二级光合细菌(PSB)流化床的组合工艺对植物压榨发酵废水进行降解实验,一级流化床(PSB1)中填料为轻质多孔炭渣,二级流化床(PSB2)为活性炭,扰动方式分别采用机械流化和机械气动组合流化,稳定运行40d。结果表明,进水酸化12h后CODCr由80000~120000mg/L降至63000~95000mg/L,进而由系统出水回流稀释至8000~12000mg/L,进入二级流化床反应器,PSB1白天厌氧光照、夜间微好氧,PSB2白天微好氧、夜间好氧,停留48h,CODCr降至295.8~384mg/L,稳定实现96.2%以上的CODCr去除率,TN去除率为71.3%。     

生物多样性在路域植被恢复中的应用

从生物多样性的特点出发 ,根据公路路域的特点以及近年来公路绿化成功与失败的经验 ,探讨植物多样性在公路植被恢复中的应用。自然界中植物通过多种多样的组合体而存在 ,多样性是自然形成 ;利用植物多样性原理可以提高路域植被的恢复水平和景观效果     

硝基芳烃化合物诱发细胞微核的比较研究

利用蚕豆根法细胞和人在淋巴细胞的微核试验对６种硝基芳烃化合物的致突变性进行比较研究，结果表明，邻二硝基苯、间二硝基苯、２，４－二硝基甲苯，２，６－二硝基甲苯，对硝基氯苯和对硝基溴苯均能诱发两咱细胞的微核率增加，除了对硝基溴苯外均具有明显剂量一效应关系。引进标准剂量概念比较５种硝基芳烃人合物的致突变性，结果表明，致突变性强弱依次为２，４－二硝基甲苯〉对硝基氯苯〉间二硝基苯〉２，６－二硝基甲苯〉邻二硝     

Hydrogen storage and distribution systems

Hydrogen storage and transportation or distribution is closely linked together. Hydrogen can be distributed continuously in pipelines or batch wise by ships, trucks, railway or airplanes. All batch transportation requires a storage system but also pipelines can be used as pressure storage system. Hydrogen exhibits the highest heating value per weight of all chemical fuels. Furthermore, hydrogen is regenerative and environment friendly. There are two reasons why hydrogen is not the major fuel of toady’s energy consumption: First of all, hydrogen is just an energy carrier. And, although it is the most abundant element in the universe, it has to be produced, since on earth it only occurs in the form of water. This implies that we have to pay for this energy, which results in a difficult economic task, because since the industrialization we are used to consuming energy for free. The second difficulty with hydrogen as an energy carrier is the low critical temperature of 33 K, i.e. hydrogen is a gas at room temperature. For mobile and in many cases also for stationary applications the volumetric and gravimetric density of hydrogen in a storage system is crucial. Hydrogen can be stored by six different methods and phenomena: high pressure gas cylinders (up to 800 bar), liquid hydrogen in cryogenic tanks (at 21 K), adsorbed hydrogen on materials with a large specific surface area (at T < 100 K), absorbed on interstitial sites in a host metal (at ambient pressure and temperature), chemically bond in covalent and ionic compounds (at ambient pressure), oxidation of reactive metals e.g. Li, Na, Mg, Al, Zn with water. These metals easily react with water to the corresponding hydroxide and liberate the hydrogen from the water. Finally, the metal hydroxides can be thermally reduced to the metals in a solar furnace.     

关于秦皇岛市竞争力的初步分析及对策研究

我国城市竞争力研究成果表明秦皇岛市综合竞争力在全国排序第39位,基础设施、环境、区位等硬竞争力较强,而企业管理、制度、文化等软竞争力较弱,因此虽然在河北省名列前茅,但在沿海城市中比较落后,为了增强城市竞争力,必须正确定位、协调发展;发挥优势、加快发展;加快招商引资;进一步开放;加快科技进步,加强精神文明建设;强化城市营销和品牌建设;强化城市和企业管理。