Bacterial production and microbial food web structure in a large arctic river and the coastal Arctic Ocean

Globally significant quantities of organic carbon are stored in northern permafrost soils, but little is known about how this carbon is processed by microbial communities once it enters rivers and is transported to the coastal Arctic Ocean. As part of the Arctic River-Delta Experiment (ARDEX), we measured environmental and microbiological variables along a 300 km transect in the Mackenzie River and coastal Beaufort Sea, in July–August 2004. Surface bacterial concentrations averaged 6.7 × 10⁵ cells mL^− 1 with no significant differences between sampling zones. Picocyanobacteria were abundant in the river, and mostly observed as cell colonies. Their concentrations in the surface waters decreased across the salinity gradient, dropping from 51,000 (river) to 30 (sea) cells mL^− 1. There were accompanying shifts in protist community structure, from diatoms, cryptophytes, heterotrophic protists and chrysophytes in the river, to dinoflagellates, prymnesiophytes, chrysophytes, prasinophytes, diatoms and heterotrophic protists in the Beaufort Sea.Size-fractionated bacterial production, as measured by ³H–leucine uptake, varied from 76 to 416 ng C L^− 1 h^− 1. The contribution of particle-attached bacteria (> 3 µm fraction) to total bacterial production decreased from > 90% at the Mackenzie River stations to < 20% at an offshore marine site, and the relative importance of this particle-based fraction was inversely correlated with salinity and positively correlated with particulate organic carbon concentrations. Glucose enrichment experiments indicated that bacterial metabolism was carbon limited in the Mackenzie River but not in the coastal ocean. Prior exposure of water samples to full sunlight increased the biolability of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) in the Mackenzie River but decreased it in the Beaufort Sea.Estimated depth-integrated bacterial respiration rates in the Mackenzie River were higher than depth-integrated primary production rates, while at the marine stations bacterial respiration rates were near or below the integrated primary production rates. Consistent with these results, P_CO2 measurements showed surface water supersaturation in the river (mean of 146% of air equilibrium values) and subsaturation or near-saturation in the coastal sea. These results show a well-developed microbial food web in the Mackenzie River system that will likely convert tundra carbon to atmospheric CO₂ at increasing rates as the arctic climate continues to warm.     

Attitudes to transport modes for shopping purposes in Singapore

A review of the retailing and transportation literature shows that there is an apparently large research gap in the understanding of shoppers’ attitudes towards transport modes for shopping purposes. In particular, not many studies have been done to examine shoppers’ detailed and disaggregated attitudinal image structures of the various transport modes for shopping purposes. Using Singapore as a study area, this paper has attempted to investigate shoppers’ image structure of transport modes and their comparative perception ratings for the various modes of transportation for shopping purposes. Using principal component analysis, the research has unveiled the perceptions of five transport modes for shopping purposes. While some of the factors are unique to certain transport modes, other factors, namely ‘suitability’, ‘practicality’, ‘ease of travel’ and ‘cost’, are common to all modes of transportation. By way of the weighted‐factor rating, the study found that the car recorded the highest overall perception rating while the bus rated the lowest. In addition, the shoppers have reasonably good perception of public transport modes in Singapore.     

Community Fishery Resources Management on Malalison Island,Philippines: R & D Framework,Interventions, and Policy Implications

In 1991, the Aquaculture Department of the Southeast Asian Fisheries Development Center launched a community-based fishery resources management project on Malalison Island, in central Philippines, to help conserve the country's marine resources and to help the fisherfolk rise above their poverty. The eight-year project integrated various disciplines in biology, economics, sociology, public administration, and engineering in its study of fishery resources and fishing communities and in evolving intervention strategies for resource conservation and management, and for community development. The project's most important accomplishment was the inculcation among the fisherfolk of the importance of resource conservation and management. The most important lesson learned was that an enlightened and empowered fisherfolk could be effective managers and responsible users of fishery resources.     

Modelling of high speed gas quenching

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A moving bottleneck

Suppose that a vehicle or convoy enters a two-lane unidirectional roadway and travels at a velocity v^* less than the prevailing traffic. This moving bottleneck may cause a queue to form as vehicles try to pass the obstruction. It is shown that by going to a moving coordinate system traveling at velocity v^* the analysis of this can be transformed into a corresponding analysis of flow past a stationary bottleneck. The theory is then extended to investigate possible consequences of trucks on grades.     

Strategies for Serving Peak Elevator Traffic

—Suppose that in an office building of moderate height (5 to 20 floors) elevator traffic during peak periods is predominantly between a lobby floor and various upper floors. We compare the waiting plus riding time and the average number of passengers carried per trip for various strategies. In particular, if two (or more) elevators serve the same group of floors (a common strategy), the waiting plus riding time would typically be (slightly) less if one split the group into two parts and had each elevator serve separate parts of this group. The latter strategy would have considerably fewer passengers per trip. It may also be advantageous to have a single elevator serve different floors on successive trips. Seldom would it be advantageous for an elevator to serve more than 2 or 3 floors on any trip. If elevator systems used more efficient strategies during peak periods, buildings would not need as many elevators.     

汽车发动机连杆的弹性改造研究

论述了用高弹性应变率高强度材料将连杆制成易于产生弹性弯曲而缩伸的形式 ,使排气更干净 ,进气更充分 ,小进气量时压缩比更高 ;在做功行程的起始点 (上止点 )时降压储能 ,增加推动曲柄的切向分力 ;上止点后释放能量 ,提高对曲柄的推动功率 ;分析了连杆弹性弯曲折断和弯曲干涉的可能原因 ,并有针对性地提出了防止折断和防止干涉的可行办法     

Peak-period traffic congestion: A state-of-the-art analysis and evaluation of effective solutions

This paper reports on an analysis of a range of largely non-construction congestion reduction techniques which was funded by the U.S. National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP). A number of evaluations of the direct and indirect effec tiveness, costs, timing and feasibility of 22 major classes of promising techniques was performed. Based on this analysis, the study team evaluated 17 of these techniques as both effective and feasible in a U. S. institutional context.However, none of these 17 offered more than marginal reductions in peak-period traffic congestion when applied individually. Some techniques affected so small a percentage of travelers that reductions in congestion would not be discernible. Other techniques promised significant congestion reductions in theory but did not realize that promise in practice. It was concluded that many techniques could be implemented together with the potential for far greater combined effectiveness.An analysis was performed to determine how best to package or jointly implement promising techniques to optimize their combined effectiveness. It was found that all promising techniques could not be applied together because of conflicts in their impact. This analysis suggested eight sample packages or combinations of mutually supportive techniques. These eight packages were subjected to evaluations similar to those performed for individual techniques; while the packages are merely examples of potential combinations, the evaluation methodology employed should be of continuing use to local transportation planners.This paper was developed from NCHRP Report 169, Peak-Period Traffic Congestion, Options for Current Programs, and Peak-Period Traffic Congestion: State-of-the-Art and Recommended Research (NCHRP Agency Draft) By Robert Remak and Sandra Rosenbloom.This study was conducted under National Cooperative Highway Research Program Project 7/10. The opinions and findings expressed or implied in this paper are those of the author. They are not necessarily those of the Transportation Research Board, The National Academy of Sciences, the Federal Highway Administration, the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, nor of the individual states participating in the National Cooperative Highway Research Program.On Leave to the U. S. Department of Transportation, Washington     

Short-line railroad managers discuss their industry

In the United States, the 1980 Staggers Rail Act created a positive regulatory environment for the creation of new short-line railroads. At present there are about 450 of these railroads that have less than 250 miles of trackage. This study asked managers/owners of these railroads two basic questions. First, what do you believe is the single most important trend that is currently taking place in your industry. The most frequently noted trend was the frustration of working with the larger Class 1 railroads. Five additional trends were also identified by the respondents. The second question asked the respondents if they thought the short-line sector of the rail industry will become more or less important in the next ten years and why. About 70% of the owner/managers believed their industry would become more important in the next decade. The most commonly expressed reason for this position is that the Class 1 railroads will increasingly specialize in mainline service only. Three other rationales were also enumerated. For the managers that thought their industry would become less important, the most noted reason was their trackage would not safely transport the newer very heavy bulk commodity freight cars.     

基于神经网络的部分预应力混凝土梁荷载-裂缝模型研究

混凝土结构裂缝形成和发展的过程十分复杂，具有一定的随机性，难于用常规的方法进行建模。应用神经网络较强的函数映射能力和联想、记忆功能，对部分预应力混凝土梁的荷载－裂缝关系进行建模，通过试验数据进行验证，效果良好，证明应用神经网络来对部分预应力混凝土梁的荷载－裂缝关系进行建模是可行的。