Components of lifetime reproductive success in communally and solitarily nursing house mice — a laboratory study

Under laboratory conditions, communal nursing among familiar and closely related female house mice (Mus domesticus) improved lifetime reproductive success compared to females rearing litters alone or females living with a previously unfamiliar, unrelated partner (reproductive success was measured within an experimental lifespan of 6 months, standardized as 120 days after mating at the age of about 2 months). An analysis of the contribution of three multiplicatively combined components to variation in reproductive success among breeding females revealed that, in all three social groups, survival of young until weaning contributed most to differences in lifetime reproduction (46–64% of the total variance). Females living with a sister had a significantly higher probability of reproducing successfully than females in the other groups, and also reared significantly more litters communally than females sharing nests with an unrelated partner. Weaning probabilities of young were highest in litters cared for by sisters and lowest in nests of unrelated females. Young were found dead either directly after birth (within the first 2 days of lactation) or after they had been cared for and nursed for at least 1 day. The loss of an entire litter typically occurred directly after birth. In monogamous females rearing litters alone the death of almost all young coincided with such early entire-litter mortality. In polygynous groups, however, offspring died at an older age and more litters suffered the loss of some young. Still, rearing young with a sister improved survival directly after birth and fewer litters were lost entirely in comparison with females in the other groups. In polygynous groups, pregnant females were observed to kill some of their partner's dependent young shortly before they gave birth themselves. As a consequence, individual young had reduced survival when they were firstborn in a communal nest (another litter was born within 16 days). Analyzed over a lifetime, communal care among familiar and closely related female house mice seems to be an adaptation to maximize the survival of offspring until weaning.     

中药青蒿的生理生化特征及其研究进展

中药青蒿即黄花蒿 (ＡｒｔｅｍｉｓｉａａｎｎｕａＬ .) ,与分类学上的青蒿 (Ａｒｔｅｍｉｓｉａａｐｉａｃｅａ)同属菊科 (ＡｓｔｅｒａｃｅａｅｏｒＣｏｍｐｏｓｉｔａｅ)蒿属(Ａｒｔｅｍｉｓｉａ) ,两者均为一年生草本植物且形态上非常相似 ,最明显的区别是黄花蒿的叶片为三回羽状全裂 ,而青蒿为二回羽状全裂 .青蒿广泛分布于全国各地 ,多生于海拔 40 0ｍ以下的丘陵平地[1] .现在这种植物广泛分布于世界各地[2 ] .青蒿在许多地区被用于编制花环 ,提取香料 ,更重要的是从青蒿中分离出的青蒿素是所有抗疟药中起效最快、疗效最好、毒性最低…     

Analysis of impulse electric field effect on organic exhaust gas decomposition

The technique of organic exhaust gas decomposition with impulse corono-dischrge plasma has been investigated in this study. It has been discovered that the impulse electric fieldaffected the decomposition efficiency with the secondary electron emission coefficient (δ of the corona electrode as an intermediate: when W was fixed the corona electrode material with higher δcould induce higher decomposition efficiency. In these experiments,wolfram electrode which has the highest δhas really induced the highest decomposition efficiency.     

城市环境系统的权重分配--多目标二级决策法

本文将多目标二级决策法用于城市环境系统的权重分配 ,对城市环境系统各要素及各要素的表征参数进行客观自动赋权 ,克服了环境质量评价中权重分配的主观随意性。该方法物理意义清晰 ,算法简便 ,具有较好的应用价值     

地球物理环境与人类健康

阐述了地球物理环境的概念，以及原生物环境和次生物环境与人类健康之间的相互关系。文章指出，地球物理环境的存在及发展变化与人类的健康生存有密切的关系：由于现代生产活动所导致的的地球物理环境污染，破坏，已构成对人类健康的严重影响。文章呼吁，要加强对地球物理环境的保护，重视并开展这方面的有关研究，制订地球物理环境质量标准，切实保护好地球物理环境。     

Assessment of natural components of PM10 at UK urban and rural sites

Proposals from the European Commission have raised the possibility that Member States may be able to subtract the concentrations of natural components of airborne particulate matter from measured concentrations when evaluating compliance with EU Limit Values. By applying the pragmatic mass closure model [Harrison et al., 2003. A pragmatic mass closure model for airborne particulate matter at urban background and roadside sites. Atmospheric Environment 37, 4927–4933] to chemical composition data for PM₁₀, it has been possible to estimate the concentrations of natural sea salt, strongly bound water and secondary organic carbon (which is assumed wholly biogenic) to the measured mass of PM₁₀. Because of the difficulty in distinguishing between natural and anthropogenic crustal dusts, the contribution of natural windblown dust and soil has not been accounted for. When the natural components are estimated for two urban and one rural site in the UK, the long-term mean PM₁₀ concentration is reduced by between 5.2 and 7.3 μg m⁻³. The number of exceedences of the 50 μg m⁻³ 24-h limit value falls dramatically from 54 to 21 (from a total of 291 days) at an urban street canyon site, 7 to 3 (n=292 days) at an urban background site and from 8 to 0 (n=241 days) at a rural site when using gravimetric PM₁₀ concentrations. The calculations have also been performed using PM₁₀ concentrations measured by TEOM increased by a factor of 1.3 as recommended by the European Commission as an interim means of estimating gravimetric equivalency, and the number of exceedences of the 24-h limit value fell from 92 to 47 (from a total of 291 days) at the urban street canyon site, from 11 to 3 (n=292 days) at the urban background site and from 6 to 3 (n=241) at the rural site. Clearly, therefore, application of this proposed measure would make a very major difference to the likelihood of compliance or otherwise with the 24-h limit value for PM₁₀.     

选矿技术在城市固体废弃物资源化中的应用

选矿技术作为一种成熟的矿物分离技术已广泛应用于城市固体废弃物资源化领域 ,促进了环境的保护和资源的综合回收 ;同时也开辟了选矿技术新的应用领域。结合实例介绍国内外常用的各种城市固体废弃物的分选工艺 ,指出选矿技术的运用对固体废弃物的资源化有着重要的实际意义     

Sexual dimorphism in amphipods: the role of male posterior gnathopods revealed in Gammarus pulex

In the mate-guarding amphipod, Gammarus pulex, the enlarged male posterior gnathopods have been variously suggested to function to grasp and subdue the female, to be used as weapons in fights between males, to signal to the female the male presence and stimulate moult accelaration, egg development or egg extrusion. These hypotheses were tested in a series of experiments, the results of which reveal an unexpected function. Ablation of the posterior gnathopods of males showed that they were neither necessary for, nor advantageous in, establishment and/or maintenance of precopula mate guarding, with or without competition with intact males. Furthermore, these appendages do not function to advance female moult, or stimulate egg development or extrusion. However, only males with intact posterior gnathopods were able to copulate. We also show that females require a full copulation of several bouts to extrude eggs. We conclude that the function of the posterior gnathopods is to facilitate copulation and suggest future studies focus on the selective pressures acting on copulating males.     

Changes in Forest Use Value through Ecological Succession and Their Implications for Land Management in the Peruvian Amazon

Abstract:  Research on local use values of forests across an ecological succession informs land-use decisions and conservation planning. I evaluated use values of three age classes of secondary forest: fallow fields (<5 years old, $8.20/ha/year), young secondary forest (5–20 years old, $20.60/ha/year), and old secondary forest (>20 years old, $6.80/ha/year). I quantified daily forest product use and calculated use values in dollars per hectare per year for three communities in the northern Peruvian Amazon. I made three comparisons between forest types: number of useful species, value based on different use categories, and overall use values. Old secondary forest had the greatest number of total species present and species collected. Wood, food, and medicine were the three most valuable use categories. The value different families extracted from local forests varied enormously, but median forest values were lower for all forest types than potential gains from agricultural land use (e.g., coffee $167/ha/year). Values of different-aged stands on privately owned lands in two communities did not differ significantly, whereas in the third community, young secondary forest had a significantly greater value than other forest types. Old secondary forests were the most valuable source of wood products, and wood was the only use category in which there was any difference in the value of products extracted from different-aged forest stands. The value of all three forest types on open-access (nonprivate) lands was minimal (mean in each forest type, $0/ha/year). Local people can utilize the valuation results to develop land-use strategies that balance forest product use, agricultural productivity, and biodiversity conservation.     

土壤水溶性有机碳的研究进展

综述了土壤中水溶性有机碳的组成和来源，水溶性有机碳的含量及其影响因素，水溶性有机碳对土壤中一些无机离子的吸附以及对农药、重金属在土壤中迁移的影响等，并提出有待于进一步研究的一些问题。