Female choice in sage grouse: the roles of attraction and active comparison

Previous studies of female choice in sage grouse Centrocercus urophasianus have implicated both the acoustic quality and repetition rate of the stereotyped strut display as putative cues for female choice. Stages in the choice process at which specific components of male courtship display influence female decisions were investigated using field observations of female pre-mating behavior. Females visited a subset of territorial males and then actively chose one of these as a mate. The order in which males were visited suggested that females searched until an acceptable mate was found, rather than employing a “best-of-n” tactic. Numbers of females visiting a male were related to differences in an acoustical component of display (inter-pop interval) whereas the probability that a visiting female mated was related to display rate (Table 3), indicating that initial attraction and active choice are influenced by different components of display. In addition, inter-pop interval and display rate tended to covary inversely (Fig. 1), suggesting that attraction and active choice may impose conflicting selection pressures on display performance. Received: 11 November 1995/Accepted after revision: 16 March 1996     

Fenton试剂氧化降解聚丙烯酰胺污水及其反应动力学研究

采用Fenton试剂氧化处理聚丙烯酰胺(HPAM)污水取得了良好的效果.通过正交试验得到了Fenton试剂各影响因素的影响权重,并通过单因素实验确定了最佳实验条件.研究了Fenton试剂中各影响因素的作用机制,在最佳实验条件下,HPAM的降解率能达到近89%.针对Fenton试剂氧化处理HPAM的反应特性,深入研究了反应动力学模型,确定反应为一级反应.     

磁化处理对活性污泥胶体颗粒表面的zeta电位的影响

污水处理过程中,二沉池的泥水分离影响整套工艺的效果,用投加混凝剂来降低活性污泥胶体颗粒表面的zeta电位(以下简写活性污泥zeta电位),增加了运行成本.通过磁场磁化可以降低活性污泥zeta电位,达到节省药剂的目的.研究了磁感应强度、磁化时间、磁场位型以及搅拌速率对氧化沟活性污泥zeta电位的影响规律.研究表明,磁化处理能降低活性污泥zeta电位,在磁场中心磁感应强度为0.40 T左右及反应器与磁场平行静置磁化时,zeta电位降低幅度最大,平均在46.5%～51.4%.     

Defensive anointing: extended chemical phenotype and unorthodox ecology

Summary. Many animals acquire substances on their integument from heterospecifics through anointing. In active or self-anointing, animals rub against scent sources or they apply them by appendage or mouth. In passive anointing, animals adsorb emitted chemicals. Most investigators suggest that chemicals appropriated via anointing deter predators, ectoparasites, and/or microbial pathogens. Similarly, nesting birds and brood parasites of social insects acquire chemicals from and reside unmolested near or within insect colonies. The acquisition through anointing of chemicals that deter predators, ectoparasites, microbial pathogens, and other offenders, i.e. defensive anointing, constitutes an extended phenotype: the genetic machinery by which defensive compounds are synthesized does not reside with the anointing organisms, but the sensory mechanisms and/or behavioral tendencies by which chemicals are appropriated from heterospecifics do. The ecological relationships between anointing organisms and chemical donors, and between chemical donors and those responding to chemicals appropriated via anointing, may be unorthodox. Interactions between anointing organisms and chemical donors typically entail abrasive contact with or other damage to the latter. These encounters sometimes are evidenced by telltale marks on chemical donors or by chemicals deposited on the integument of anointing organisms. The organisms furnishing chemicals and those affected by them may not interact, and they may even occupy different habitats, because mobile anointing organisms are the medium by which chemicals are disseminated. Thus, in allelochemical studies where anointing is involved, species can be tested, with ecological legitimacy, using chemicals from organisms they might fail to interact with in nature. Practical implications of anointing stem from its potential importance in conservation and captive management, where consideration is given to the protection that animals derive by accessing topically acquired chemicals from heterospecifics.     

Post-war levels of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in air from Serbia determined by active and passive sampling methods

For the duration of the war accident in former Yugoslavia, several industrial and military targets were burnt and damaged, resulting in a significant release of persistent organic pollutants. Locations heavily targeted in the attacks were later defined by UNEP as four “hot spots”: Kragujevac, Novi Sad, Pancevo and Bor. We analyzed concentration levels of pollutants collected in 2004 and 2005 in air samples from the city of Kragujevac, Serbia, following the war accident of 1999. Pollutants included polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), hexachlorocyclohexane (HCH), dichloro-diphenyl-trichloroethane (DDT), dichloro-diphenyl-dichloroethylene (DDE), dichloro-diphenyl-dichloroethane (DDD) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). We present results obtained during air sampling campaign conducted in July 2004 by the active sampling method; and during September 2004–June 2005 by the passive sampling method. Our findings show the occurrence of residual quantities of DDT, HCH, PCBs and PAHs in air samples. High levels of PCBs are probably due to the destruction of transformers during the war accident.     

完全混和式和阶段曝气组合工艺中微生物常见的冲击及对策

活性污泥法完全混和式和阶段曝气组合工艺，具有抗冲击能力强，有机物去除率高等特点。该工艺组合中微生物经常受到的冲击有进水ＣＯＤ、ＢＯＤ、碱度和曝气池低溶解氧。所采取的措施分别有：终水回流稀释、ＰＨ值控制、营养盐浓度控制、原水预曝气等。     

湿地土壤有机碳及其活性组分分布特征影响因素研究

红碱淖湖泊湿地是西北半干旱荒漠区重要的生态屏障,随着湖泊面积的减少以及土壤退化程度的加剧,逐渐形成5种典型的景观类型(盐碱沼泽、沼泽化草甸、草地、草原化沙地、沙地)。基于野外实地调查,选取红碱淖湖泊湿地流域蟒盖兔和尔林兔2个典型子流域,研究湖泊退化后不同景观类型土壤有机碳及其活性组分的分布特征及其影响因素。结果表明,5种景观类型土壤有机碳(SOC)、土壤可溶性有机碳(DOC)、土壤易氧化态有机碳(EOC)含量均较低。土壤SOC和EOC在垂直剖面上分布特征一致,土壤EOC与土壤有机质动态变化密切相关,土壤砂砾含量高是研究区土壤有机碳含量较低的主要原因。     

Soil organic carbon decomposition and carbon pools in temperate and sub-tropical forests in China

Decomposition of soil organic carbon (SOC) is a critical component of the global carbon cycle, and accurate estimates of SOC decomposition are important for forest carbon modeling and ultimately for decision making relative to carbon sequestration and mitigation of global climate change. We determined the major pools of SOC in four sites representing major forest types in China: temperate forests at Changbai Mountain (CBM) and Qilian Mountain (QLM), and sub-tropical forests at Yujiang (YJ) and Liping (LP) counties. A 90-day laboratory incubation was conducted to measure CO(2) evolution from forest soils from each site, and data from the incubation study were fitted to a three-pool first-order model that separated mineralizable soil organic carbon into active (C(a)), slow (C(s)) and resistant (C(r)) carbon pools. Results indicate that: (1) the rate of SOC decomposition in the sub-tropical zone was faster than that in the temperature zone, (2) The C(a) pool comprised approximately 1-3% of SOC with an average mean residence time (MRT) of 219 days. The C(s) pool comprised approximately 25-65% with an average MRT of 78 yr. The C(r) pool accounted for approximately 35-80% of SOC, (3) The YJ site in the sub-tropical zone had the greatest C(a) pool and the lowest MRT, while the QLM in the temperature zone had the greatest MRT for both the C(a) and C(s) pools. The results suggest a higher capacity for long-term C sequestration as SOC in temperature forests than in sub-tropical forests.     

基于安全心理学的主动式防火墙设计

当前防火墙的防御策略为被动防御 ,它只能被动等待攻击者的攻击 ,直接降低了其安全性能。从安全心理学的角度出发 ,分析了被动式防火墙的弱点并设计了一种新型防火墙。该防火墙采用主动式防御策略 ,对于在防火墙中识别出的非法访问 ,通过重定向 ,引导至识别区来保护主系统 ,降低攻击者的攻击欲望 ,从而提高了防火墙的安全性能。防火墙中关键技术为攻击识别技术和重定向技术。     

Alteration of brain electrical activity by electromagnetic field

To better understand the affect of different levels of EMF on one’s brain activity, the Hodgkin–Huxley model has been used to describe the generation of an active potential in the nerve cell membrane. The theoretical calculations have shown that by the simultaneous affect of both passing an electrical potential and external very low frequency AC, one’s excitation pulses may be suppressed beginning with a certain level of external current. The level of this current depends on the frequency. It is postulated that to eliminate this suppression, the brain increases its normal level relatively to the lower limit. It is also postulated that the brain “tunes up” in the presence of external AC, by increasing the amplitude of its own excitation signals so that suppression does not occur. It is possible that this “tuning” process lasts some time after removing the external EMF as the brain adapts. This has been observed experimentally.