The distribution of molybdenum in the tissues of wild ducks

The Mo contents and the relations between Mo and Cu or Crcontents were investigated in the organs of Japanese wild ducks(spotbill duck, pintail, wigeon, scaup and tufted duck). Thehighest Mo content in kidney and liver of the dabbling duckswere more than 30 g g^-1 dry weight (g g^-1 d.wt.), though that of diving ducks were less than 11 gg^-1 d. wt. The contents were lower in the ducks migratingwithin Japan, Eurasia and North America than those in the birdsmigrating between Japan and Eurasia. The contents of liver inall species were more than 50 and less than 5 g g^-1 d.wt. for Cu and Cr, respectively. Significant correlations werefound between Mo and both elements in pintail and scaup, and Moand Cr in tufted duck. These results suggest that thecontamination of wild ducks reflects the reproductive area, andnot the collected area. Mo contents closely correlated with theCu and/or Cr contaminations.     

Rapid hydropyrolysis of model compounds for epoxy resin oligomers and biomass tar

The rapid hydropyrolysis of model compounds for epoxy resin oligomers and biomass tar was carried out in a hydrogen atmosphere at 1073 K and 973 K. The assumed oligomers were partially pyrolyzed epoxy resin with biomass tar as solvent for the resin. The product distributions obtained from rapid hydropyrolysis of phenol and bisphenol-A are shown. We also discuss the effects of reaction temperature and hydrogen partial pressure on the product yield. In particular, more phenol was produced from bisphenol-A at 973 K than at 1073 K. The yield of methane, which was the final hydropyrolysis product, increased with increasing hydrogen partial pressure, whereas benzene and phenol were believed to behave as intermediate products in the hydropyrolysis reaction. The results suggest that phenol could be obtained with high selectivity from tar by optimizing the reaction conditions.     

Estimation of 14CO2 flux at soil-atmosphere interface and distribution of 14C in forest ecosystem

To realize the dynamical behavior of 14C among exchangeable carbon reservoirs in terrestrial environment, a method for in situ determination of 14CO2 flux at soil-atmosphere interface and a high flow rate CO2 sampler were developed. This method allowed us to collect integrated quantity of CO2 for determining 14C activity over an extended time period under environmental conditions with minimal site disturbance. The 14CO2 flux from ground surface was estimated to be 1.59 x 10(-5) Bq m (-2) S (-1) in a forest floor with the method. The specific activities of 14C in environmental materials such as some biological and air samples were also determined in the vicinity of the place, where the flux measurement was made, to discuss the behavior of 14C in the forest ecosystem. The results indicated that fresh pine needles had a similar 14C specific activity to the atmospheric CO2 at the same height due to its fairly rapid equilibrium, 14C specific activity in the atmospheric CO2 has a concentration gradient near the ground surface and, at least in this site, CO2 with high 14C specific activity was generated by decomposition of soil organic matter which may be accumulated in soil as a result of former nuclear weapons tests.     

Estimation of effects of dioxins and dioxin-like PCBs on wildlife population--a case study on common cormorant

We presented a method for quantitatively evaluating the effects of chemical pollutants in the environment on a wildlife population. We expressed the effects of exposure to dioxins and dioxin-like PCBs in Tokyo Bay sediment on a common cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo) population in two ways. One was the changes in the intrinsic growth rate, and the other was the changes in the gross population size. The effects of exposure to the compounds were estimated by using the method of population ecology and available field data. Common cormorant population at Shinobazu Pond in Tokyo, Japan during 1974-1986 was selected as the target population. Intrinsic growth rate or gross size of the population based on the calculated residual level of dioxins and dioxin-like PCBs in the period was estimated to decrease to 89% or 85% of that without exposure to the compounds, respectively.     

吹脱捕集GC/MS法测定水中挥发性有机物

采用吹脱捕集GC/MS法对日本环境厅和厚生省规定的水中23项有机污染物进行同时分析测定,该方法在0.1～100μg/L范围内的线性相关系数为0.998以上,相对标准偏差在8%以下,废水加标回收率在92%～102%之间。在实际水样(河水和自来水)分析中,有8种化合物几乎在17个实际水样中都有检出。实验结果表明,吹脱捕集GC/MS法是实现水中挥发性有机物同时分析的最有效的手段之一。      

Dams and Flows: Immersing in Western Meaning Systems in Search of Ecocultural Reflexivity

In this unprecedented era of anthropogenic ecological destruction, this study illustrates inadequacies in conceptual language available in Western settings to think deeply and holistically about “nature.” At the same time, the study illustrates transformative potential of moments of ecocultural reflexivity. Using free write methodology, we examine ways participants in the United States, New Zealand, and Australia articulate what they mean when they say “nature.” We interpret participant streams of consciousness as representative of a wider Western river-way, a channel of dominant, multiple, and contradictory meanings in continuous movement. We identify conceptual obstructions that provide glimpses into ways Western ecological relations are bounded and dammed by binary, fragmented, and unconsidered meanings. Yet reflexivity in the face of such obstructions, and in potent ecocultural side streams of childhood remembering and ecocentric cosmology, provides some participants a lucid flow of regenerative narratives at a time such shared stories are urgently needed.     

Quantum-chemical descriptors for estimating hemolytic activity of aliphatic and aromatic methacrylates

Methacrylates such as methyl methacrylate (6), triethyleneglycol dimethacrylate (5) and bisphenol A glycidyldimethacrylate, bis-GMA, (8) are widely used as materials in dental resins perturbation of the phosphatidylcholine-cholesterol interaction. Such effects of aromatic methacrylates may be involved in their marked hemolytic action.