Influence of water table levels on CO2 emissions in a Colorado subalpine fen: an in situ microcosm study

We quantified the relationship between water table position and CO₂ emissions by manipulating water table levels for two summers in microcosms installed in a Colorado subalpine fen. Water levels were manipulated in the microcosms by either adding water or removing water and ranged from +10 cm above the soil surface to 40 cm below the soil surface, with ambient water levels in the fen averaging +3 and +2 cm above the soil surface during 1998 and 1999, respectively. Microcosm installation had no significant effect on CO₂ efflux; the 2 year means of natural and reference CO₂ efflux were 205.4 and 213.9 mg CO₂-C m⁻² h⁻¹, respectively (p=0.80). Mean CO₂ emissions were lowest at the highest water tables (water +6 to +10 cm above the soil surface), averaging 133.8 mg CO₂-C m⁻² h⁻¹, increased to 231.3 mg CO₂-C m⁻² h⁻¹ when the water table was +1 to +5 cm above the soil surface and doubled to 453.7 mg CO₂-C m⁻² h⁻¹, when the water table was 0-5 cm below the soil surface. However, further lowering of the water table had little additional effect on CO₂ emissions, which averaged 470.3 and 401.1 mg CO₂-C m⁻² h⁻¹ when the water table was 6-10 cm, and 11-40 cm beneath the soil surface, respectively. The large increase in CO₂ emissions as we experimentally lowered the water table beneath the soil surface, coupled with no increase in CO₂ emissions as we furthered lowered water tables beneath the soil surface, suggest the presence of an easily oxidized labile carbon pool near the soil surface.     

Fate of isoxaflutole in soil under controlled conditions

Isoxaflutole (IFT, 5-cyclopropyl-1,2-oxazol-4yl-alpha,alpha,alpha-trifluoro-2-mesyl-p-tolyl ketone) is a new pre-emergence proherbicide used in maize and sugarcane. Its two main derivatives are a diketonitrile derivative, 2-cyano-3-cyclopropyl-1-(2-methanesulfonyl-4-trifluoromethylphenyl)propane-1,3-dione, called DKN, and a benzoic acid derivative, 2-methanesulfonyl-4-trifluoromethylbenzoic acid, called BA. Few data are available of the factors influencing the degradation of IFT in soil, and the purpose of the present work was to determine the relative importance of, and factors affecting, the degradation of IFT in soil. Experiments were conducted on five soils with distinct physicochemical characteristics, at different temperatures and moisture contents in biotic and abiotic conditions. The isomerization of IFT to DKN is rapid, increasing with higher moisture contents and higher temperatures. It depends strongly on pH and is governed by chemical processes. The degradation of DKN to BA appeared to be essentially due to the biological activity of the soil.     

Synthesis of nonribosomal RNA by lymphocytes: a response to phytohemagglutinin treatment

When lymphocytes are stimulated to enlarge and divide by treatment with phytohemagglutinin, most of the rapidly synthesized RNA is nonribosomal. The phenomenon is a response by lymphocytes to stimulation by phytohemagglutinin, rather than a general concomitant of lymphocyte growth.     

Micromorphological analysis to characterize structure modifications of soil samples submitted to wetting and drying cycles

The physical characteristics of the soil surface are of extreme importance in relation to energy and matter transfer processes between the atmosphere and the soil. Soil internal structure changes can be due to natural or artificial causes and one important natural process is the alternation of wetting and drying (W–D) processes, which induce swelling and shrinking of soil particles, causing modifications in pore size and shape. To study the consequence of these W–D events on possible modifications in pore size distribution, pore number, and pore shape of soil samples collected in metal rings pore image analysis was used. Samples were taken from profiles of three soils of different characteristics, named as Geric Ferralsol (GF), Eutric Nitosol (EN), and Rhodic Ferralsol (RF). Confined volumetric samples (50 cm³) were submitted to none (T₀), three (T₁), and nine (T₂) subsequent W–D cycles. Image cross sections of resin impregnated soil permitted the micrometric and macrometric characterization of changes in soil structure induced by sequences of W–D cycles. Duncan's statistical test indicated that there were significant differences (α = 0.05) among treatments for all soil samples. General conclusions indicate that total pore area increased for all soils after repeated W–D processes, specifically 19.0 to 28.9% for GF, 5.9 to 11.7% for EN, and 13.0 to 17.2% for RF. Main changes of pore diameter occurred in pores larger than 500 μm, and minor changes were observed in the total number of these pores. It is demonstrated that soil samples undergo important changes in their structures after repeated W–D cycles. The information presented here is very important for the evaluation of soil water retention curves and other soil hydric properties, because soil samples used in these procedures are collected in rings and frequently submitted to several W–D cycles.     

Effect of organic and conventional crop rotation, fertilization, and crop protection practices on metal contents in wheat (Triticum aestivum)

The effects of organic versus conventional crop management practices (crop rotation, crop protection, and fertility management strategies) on wheat yields and grain metal (Al, Cd, Cu, Ni, Pb, and Zn) concentrations were investigated in a long-term field trial. The interactions between crop management practices and the season that the crop was grown were investigated using univariate and redundancy analysis approaches. Grain yields were highest where conventional fertility management and crop protection practices were used, but growing wheat after a previous crop of grass/clover was shown to partially compensate for yield reductions due to the use of organic fertility management. All metals except for Pb were significantly affected by crop management practices and the year that the wheat was grown. Grain Cd and Cu levels were higher on average when conventional fertility management practices were used. Al and Cu were higher on average when conventional crop protection practices were used. The results demonstrate that there is potential to manage metal concentrations in the diet by adopting specific crop management practices shown to affect crop uptake of metals.     

Assessing Potential Impacts on Biodiversity Using Critical Loads

In many countries there has been much concern over maintaining biodiversity in natural ecosystems in the face of pressures such as changing land use and pollution. The 1992 UN Convention on Biodiversity calls upon signatories to develop national strategies for the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity. In the UK, the potential impacts of sulphur and nitrogen deposition at the national level are being assessed using national critical loads and modelled deposition maps, together with available information on the occurrence of habitats and plant species. This simple approach gives an indication of the areas where atmospheric deposition may have impacts on biodiversity. The results of the analyses are presented and the strengths and weaknesses of the methods used are discussed. This first approach to considering the effects on biodiversity shows the importance of including the effects of atmospheric deposition in any biodiversity action plan. It also highlights those areas where more or improved information is required for the national strategy. With the modelled deposition data available, it would seem that reduced impacts are to be expected by 2010. However, higher resolution deposition data, better estimates of ammonium deposition, consideration of temporal aspects and the dynamics of change, and the use of higher resolution biological data sets are likely to suggest greater impacts than current predictions.     

The genome of black cottonwood, Populus trichocarpa (Torr. & Gray)

We report the draft genome of the black cottonwood tree, Populus trichocarpa. Integration of shotgun sequence assembly with genetic mapping enabled chromosome-scale reconstruction of the genome. More than 45,000 putative protein-coding genes were identified. Analysis of the assembled genome revealed a whole-genome duplication event; about 8000 pairs of duplicated genes from that event survived in the Populus genome. A second, older duplication event is indistinguishably coincident with the divergence of the Populus and Arabidopsis lineages. Nucleotide substitution, tandem gene duplication, and gross chromosomal rearrangement appear to proceed substantially more slowly in Populus than in Arabidopsis. Populus has more protein-coding genes than Arabidopsis, ranging on average from 1.4 to 1.6 putative Populus homologs for each Arabidopsis gene. However, the relative frequency of protein domains in the two genomes is similar. Overrepresented exceptions in Populus include genes associated with lignocellulosic wall biosynthesis, meristem development, disease resistance, and metabolite transport.     

Episodic rifting of phanerozoic rocks in the victoria land basin, Western ross sea, antarctica

Multichannel seismic-reflection data show that the Victoria Land-basin, unlike other sedimentary basins in the Ross Sea, includes a rift-depression 15 to 25 kilometers wide that parallels the Transantarctic Mountains and contains up to 12 kilometers of possible Paleozoic to Holocene age sedimentary rocks. An unconformity separates the previously identified Cenozoic sedimentary section from the underlying strata of possible Mesozoic and Paleozoic age. Late Cenozoic volcanic rocks intrude into the entire section along the eastern flank of the basin. The Victoria Land basin is probably part of a more extensive rift system that has been active episodically since Paleozoic time. Inferred rifting and basin subsidence during Mesozoic and Cenozoic time may be associated with regional crustal extension and uplift of the nearby Transantarctic Mountains.     

An extremely luminous panchromatic outburst from the nucleus of a distant galaxy

Variable x-ray and γ-ray emission is characteristic of the most extreme physical processes in the universe. We present multiwavelength observations of a unique γ-ray-selected transient detected by the Swift satellite, accompanied by bright emission across the electromagnetic spectrum, and whose properties are unlike any previously observed source. We pinpoint the event to the center of a small, star-forming galaxy at redshift z = 0.3534. Its high-energy emission has lasted much longer than any γ-ray burst, whereas its peak luminosity was ～100 times higher than bright active galactic nuclei. The association of the outburst with the center of its host galaxy suggests that this phenomenon has its origin in a rare mechanism involving the massive black hole in the nucleus of that galaxy.