Analysis of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in airborne particles by direct sample introduction thermal desorption GC/MS

The technique of thermal desorption (TD)–GC/MS was evaluated for measuring airborne, 4–6 ring polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) collected onto quartz filters. TD provides a more readily automated and sensitive alternative to traditional solvent extraction, decreasing the time/cost of analysis and reducing the risk of analyte loss or sample contamination. The developed method was successfully applied to the analysis of PAH standard solutions loaded on sorbent tubes packed with quartz wool and the graphitized carbon black sorbent Carbograph2. The optimized method showed high desorption efficiency over the whole range of target PAHs with good precision, linearity and sensitivity. The proposed method was verified on an urban dust Standard Reference Material (SRM 1649a); the experimentally determined concentrations agreed with the certified ranges (95% confidence limit) for all target compounds except benzo[a]anthracene, which fell just outside the narrow certified range. The desorption efficiency and the reproducibility of the method was evaluated by analysing pieces of real sample filters sampled from urban air for a period of 24 h. The results confirmed the homogeneity of the filter and showed high recovery efficiencies for all target PAHs.     

Disappearance of bromopropylate residues in artichokes, strawberries and beans

Residues of Bromopropylate were determine in artichokes, strawberries and beans after foliar spray of acaricide at two rates. The rates used were 1 g/l formulated product (normal recommended) and 1.5 g/l. The residue levels of bromopropylate in the three crops after 14 days were lower than 0.7 ppm and did not exceed the Maximum Residual Level (MRL) recommended by FAO. In the artichokes and strawberries, the total concentration of residues decreased by 50% of the initial level after 2-3 days. Only trace levels of the bromopropylate residues (less than 0.01 ppm) were detected in the "hearts" of the artichokes. Bromopropylate residues in the green beans were also less than 0.8 ppm after the first day of foliar spraying. The kinetic of degradation occurred in two different steps. In the first step (4-6 days) the dissipation of bromopropylate was faster whereas in the second step (7-14 days) the loss of residues was much slower.     

The modern theory of biological evolution: an expanded synthesis

In 1858, two naturalists, Charles Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace, independently proposed natural selection as the basic mechanism responsible for the origin of new phenotypic variants and, ultimately, new species. A large body of evidence for this hypothesis was published in Darwins Origin of Species one year later, the appearance of which provoked other leading scientists like August Weismann to adopt and amplify Darwins perspective. Weismanns neo-Darwinian theory of evolution was further elaborated, most notably in a series of books by Theodosius Dobzhansky, Ernst Mayr, Julian Huxley and others. In this article we first summarize the history of life on Earth and provide recent evidence demonstrating that Darwins dilemma (the apparent missing Precambrian record of life) has been resolved. Next, the historical development and structure of the modern synthesis is described within the context of the following topics: paleobiology and rates of evolution, mass extinctions and species selection, macroevolution and punctuated equilibrium, sexual reproduction and recombination, sexual selection and altruism, endosymbiosis and eukaryotic cell evolution, evolutionary developmental biology, phenotypic plasticity, epigenetic inheritance and molecular evolution, experimental bacterial evolution, and computer simulations (in silico evolution of digital organisms). In addition, we discuss the expansion of the modern synthesis, embracing all branches of scientific disciplines. It is concluded that the basic tenets of the synthetic theory have survived, but in modified form. These sub-theories require continued elaboration, particularly in light of molecular biology, to answer open-ended questions concerning the mechanisms of evolution in all five kingdoms of life.Dedicated to Prof. Dr. Dr. hc mult. Ernst Mayr on the occasion of his 100th birthdayThis revised version was published online in March 2004, with corrections to the caption of Figure 6.     

模拟酸露对植物影响的实验

模拟酸露对植物影响的实验结果表明，用酸露处理后，蚕豆的生理指标发生一定的变化，尤以ｐＨ１３．０时的变化较明显，显示了模拟酸露对植物的伤害作用。     

Food caching in orb-web spiders (Araneae: Araneoidea)

Caching or storing surplus prey may reduce the risk of starvation during periods of food deprivation. While this behaviour occurs in a variety of birds and mammals, it is infrequent among invertebrates. However, golden orb-web spiders, Nephila edulis, incorporate a prey cache in their relatively permanent web, which they feed on during periods of food shortage. Heavier spiders significantly reduced weight loss if they were able to access a cache, but lost weight if the cache was removed. The presence or absence of stored prey had no effect on the weight loss of lighter spiders. Furthermore, N. edulis always attacked new prey, irrespective of the number of unprocessed prey in the web. In contrast, females of Argiope keyserlingi, who build a new web every day and do not cache prey, attacked fewer new prey items if some had already been caught. Thus, a necessary preadaptation to the evolution of prey caching in orb-web spiders may be a durable or permanent web, such as that constructed by Nephila.     

燃煤飞灰负载钾基CO2吸收剂再生反应特性的动力学分析

采用热重分析的方法对吸收剂的再生反应进行研究,说明了燃煤飞灰负载钾基CO2吸收剂的制备方法,探讨了在不同升温速率下燃煤飞灰负载钾基CO2吸收剂和纯KHCO3的再生反应特性。结果表明: 燃煤飞灰负载吸收剂的峰值失重速率为0.13~0.73 mg?min-1,在升温速率为20 ℃?min-1时,反应温度区间最小,为94.34 ℃;采用多种分析方法对吸收剂的受热分解反应进行动力学分析,纯KHCO3的反应活化能为85.7~92.0 kJ·mol-1;燃煤飞灰负载钾基CO2吸收剂的反应活化能为66.2~69.4 kJ·mol-1,随着转化率上升,2种样品的活化能均先减小后增大。燃煤飞灰负载钾基吸收剂再生反应的活化能小于纯KHCO3的活化能,说明将KHCO3负载于燃煤飞灰上有利于再生反应的进行。     

Effects of salinity on soil bacterial and archaeal community in estuarine wetlands and its implications for carbon sequestration: verification in the Yellow River Delta

Soils from two typical tidal salt marshes with varied salinity in the Yellow River Delta wetland were analysed to determine possible effects of salinity on soil carbon sequestration through changes in soil microbiology. The mean soil respiration (SR) of the salt water–fresh water mixing zone (MZ) was 2.89 times higher than that of the coastal zone (CZ) (4.73 and 1.63?μmol?m^?2?s^?1, respectively, p?Pseudomonas sp. and Limnobacter sp. that might have led to its higher dehydrogenase activity and respiratory rates. Additionally, the CZ possessed more Halobacteria and Thaumarchaeota with the ability to fix CO₂ than the MZ. Significantly lower soil salinity in MZ (4.25?g?kg^?1) was suitable for β-Proteobacteria, but detrimental for Halobacteria compared with CZ (7.09?g?kg^?1, p?相似文献