High-level Content Research Articles

Factors affecting Nitrogen Transformations and Related Nitrous Oxide Emissions from Aerobically Treated Piggery Slurry

A laboratory treatment system was designed to study the fate of nitrogen during aerobic treatment of pig slurry. Different aeration strategies, and more particularly the influence of residence time and aeration level, were manipulated. A series of six experiments was carried out to determine the nitrogen mass balance, including measurement of the gaseous nitrogen forms particularly ammonia and nitrous oxide. Further nitrogen transformations were examined during the subsequent anaerobic storage of aerated pig slurry at 7, 21 and 60 days. Aeration level and carbon content of raw slurry were identified as the main factors influencing nitrogen transformation during treatment. A high aeration level (2–4 mg O2/l) and/or low carbon content (biological oxygen demand of the raw slurry approximately 2 g/kg) resulted in nitrite accumulation (up to 33% of the total nitrogen content of the raw slurry) while a low level of aeration (redox potential=0 mVAg/AgCl) and high carbon content (biological oxygen demand of the raw slurry approximately 16 g/kg) led to simultaneous nitrification and denitrification which removed 66% of the total nitrogen in the raw slurry. Nitrous oxide emissions were observed in all treatments and represent up to 30% of the total nitrogen content of the raw slurry. Both nitrification and denitrification appear to be sources of nitrous oxide during the treatment. Further nitrous oxide emissions were recorded during subsequent storage, especially when the biological oxygen demand to NO−x-N ratio was lower than 1·3. However, during closed storage experiments, the nitrous oxide emitted was dissolved into the slurry and finally reduced to di-nitrogen after 60 days of storage.

NeTra-V: toward an object-based video representation

We present a prototype video analysis and retrieval system, called NeTra-V, that is being developed to build an object-based video representation for functionalities such as search and retrieval of video objects. A region-based content description scheme using low-level visual descriptors is proposed. In order to obtain regions for local feature extraction, a new spatio-temporal segmentation and region-tracking scheme is employed. The segmentation algorithm uses all three visual features: color, texture, and motion in the video data. A group processing scheme similar to the one in the MPEG-2 standard is used to ensure the robustness of the segmentation. The proposed approach can handle complex scenes with large motion. After segmentation, regions are tracked through the video sequence using extracted local features. The results of tracking are sequences of coherent regions, called "subobjects". Subobjects are the fundamental elements in our low-level content description scheme, which can be used to obtain meaningful physical objects in a high-level content description scheme. Experimental results illustrating segmentation and retrieval are provided.

A Comparison of the Chinese Buddhist and Indian Buddhist Modes of Thought

The modes of thought in Chinese Buddhism and Indian Buddhism refer to the structures of understanding, the modes and methods of thinking about problems and theories of explanation on the part of the Buddhist scholars in China and in India; this belongs to the deeper and higher-level contents of Buddhist culture. To study and compare the Chinese Buddhist and Indian Buddhist modes of thought will help us to understand the framework of response with which the Buddhist scholars of the two countries and cultures respond to external stimuli, and how they approach the task of processing intellectual information. It will help us to comprehend better the specific forms of the intuitive thought, analytical thought, and the thinking in images on the part of the Buddhist scholars of the two countries, as well as their mental and psychological structure and their national character—even the psychological structure and national characteristics of the common Buddhist in the two countries and cultures. This would be significant for the study of religion, of philosophy, of the science of thought, and for the study of psychology. This essay hopes, through focusing on explaining and demonstrating the evolution of the modes of thought of Chinese and Indian Buddhism, to reveal certain similarities as well as differences between the Chinese Buddhist and Indian Buddhist modes of thought, and to arrive at some conclusion with regard to this matter.

Standard experimental diets for crustacean nutrition research. II. Growth and survival of juvenile crayfish Astacus astacus (Linné) fed diets containing various amounts of protein, carbohydrate and lipid

Nutritional experiments were conducted with individual juvenile freshwater crayfish, Astacus astacus (Linné), using twelve pelleted diets containing various combinations of protein (22, 31 or 40%), lipid (5.5–16%) and carbohydrate (9.2–25.8%) in a 394-day experiment. The diets ranged from 241 to 321 kcal/100 g feed and with protein/energy (P/E) ratios of 69 to 153 mg/kcal. The experiments were carried out in a closed system with constant temperature; dissolved nitrogen, oxygen content, pH and water temperature were monitored. All diets with 40% protein gave a good survival rate. The diet with 31% protein, moderately high carbohydrate (16.6%) and a low lipid content (7%) promoted a high survival rate as well. At the 22% protein level, the feed with high lipid content (16%) gave a poor survival rate. The mean biomass increase was greatest with all diets with 40% protein and those diets with 31% protein, high carbohydrate level and low lipid content. Younger juveniles demonstrated the highest growth rate on 40% protein diets and 31% protein diets, when the latter containedP/E ratios in the range 114 to 153 mg/kcal. At the 22% protein level growth was poor. Optimum biomass gain was obtained withP/E ratios above 114 mg/kcal. Optimum lipid/carbohydrate ratios changed with protein content of the feed. Lipid levels above 10% in diets containing 31 and 22% protein depressed the growth rate of younger animals. With increasing physiological age, the animals responded favourably to higher lipid and carbohydrate levels.

A Case of Testosterone‐secreting Adrenal Cortical Adenoma with Spironolactone Body‐like Inclusion

Testosterone-secreting adrenal adenoma is rare. We recently experienced a 17-year-old pubertal girl who showed signs of virilization and a high serum level of testosterone. The excised adrenal gland showed a 3.5 x 3 x 3-cm cortical adenoma. Light and electron microscopic findings together with the high serum level and high tumor tissue contents of testosterone and dehydroepiandrosterone (DHA) indicated that the tumor was a testosterone-secreting adrenal cortical adenoma. This appears to be a rather rare tumor from a review of the literature. Interestingly, in this case, the cytoplasm of the tumor cells contained structures resembling spironolactone bodies. From the results of enzyme histochemistry, the steroidogenetic pathways in this tumor were speculated.

Optimization of an industrial chemical cleaning process for glass lenses

AbstractThe chemical cleaning of glass constitutes an extremely complicated problem, since its exposure to chemical attack by either water, acid, alkali salt solutions or even gases in the atmosphere may result in corrosion. In reality, corrosion generally occurs in a combination of ways simultaneously. This is particularly true with respect to industrial chemical cleaning of glass lenses, in which the absolute cleanliness (and spotlessness) of the surface of the lenses is the primary condition for further processing and/or fitness to the ultimate use. This paper presents data of a selected industrial field study (in vivo conditions) in which an application, optimization, and assessment of the chemical cleaning process (and its results) of glass lenses involving various surfactant‐based formulations has been carried out. With a high level content of polyphosphates (i.e., sodium tripolyphosphates), the phosphate ester‐based formulations were found to perform better than formulations based on other classes of surfactants (i.e., anionics and nonionics). The best results were achieved with 2.5–3.5% solutions of the formulation that contained ca. 3% of surface active agent. The optimal ratio of alkali‐phosphate in the formulations was found to be in the range of 1:1.7–1:2.4. The results are discussed and conclusions with regard to the “real world” of such industrial processes have been drawn.