Assortative mating in sympatric host races of the European corn borer

Although a growing body of work supports the plausibility of sympatric speciation in animals, the practical difficulties of directly quantifying reproductive isolation between diverging taxa remain an obstacle to analyzing this process. We used a combination of genetic and biogeochemical markers to produce a direct field estimate of assortative mating in phytophagous insect populations. We show that individuals of the same insect species, the European corn borer Ostrinia nubilalis, that develop on different host plants can display almost absolute reproductive isolation-the proportion of assortative mating was >95%-even in the absence of temporal or spatial isolation.     

Charging effects on bonding and catalyzed oxidation of CO on Au8 clusters on MgO

Gold octamers (Au8) bound to oxygen-vacancy F-center defects on Mg(001) are the smallest clusters to catalyze the low-temperature oxidation of CO to CO2, whereas clusters deposited on close-to-perfect magnesia surfaces remain chemically inert. Charging of the supported clusters plays a key role in promoting their chemical activity. Infrared measurements of the stretch vibration of CO adsorbed on mass-selected gold octamers soft-landed on MgO(001) with coadsorbed O2 show a red shift on an F-center-rich surface with respect to the perfect surface. The experiments agree with quantum ab initio calculations that predict that a red shift of the C-O vibration should arise via electron back-donation to the CO antibonding orbital.     

A rule-based method for the development of crop management systems applied to grain sorghum in south-western France

A generic approach is proposed for the development and testing of crop management systems in contrasting situations of water availability. Ecophysiological knowledge, expertise, regional references and simulation models are combined to devise management strategies adapted to production targets and constraints. The next stage consists of converting these crop management strategies into logical and consistent sets of decision rules. Each rule describes the reasoning which is used to apply a technical decision by taking account of observed or simulated environmental conditions or predicted agronomic risks.

This approach was applied to design crop management systems for grain sorghum (Sorghum bicolor L. Moench.) in south-western France. For spring-sown crops, management (sowing date, plant density, varietal choice, N fertilizer rate and timing) was based on water availability, both for economic and environmental reasons. Specific sets of decision rules were written for irrigated and rainfed conditions. The establishment of rules was based on agronomic principles (e.g. for plant density) or on the application of a simulation model (e.g. for sowing date, variety). N fertilization and irrigation were applied using combined N and water dynamic models.

A novel methodology combining crop diagnosis, analytical trials and crop simulation was developed to evaluate the management systems. An irrigated and a rainfed rule-based management system were compared near Toulouse (S.W. France) from 1995 to 2002. The profitability of rainfed low-input management was confirmed for sorghum in spite of high yields under irrigation (up to 10 t ha⁻¹). The adaptation of sorghum management in rainfed conditions was mainly achieved through early maturing cultivars and by reducing N applications by 65%.     

三种农药对Cu2+在蒙脱石和δ-Al2O3上吸附的影响

本文比较研究了Ｃｕ＾２＋在草甘磷、毒莠定和杀虫脒等三种农药条件下在Ｃａ－蒙脱石和δ－Ａｌ２Ｏ３上的吸附。草甘磷降低了Ｃｕ＾２＋在Ｃａ－蒙脱石上的吸附。当草甘磷／Ｃｕ＾２＋摩尔比越高时，Ｃｕ＾２＋吸附的降低量则越大。草甘磷是通过络合机制而降低Ｃｕ＾２＋在Ｃａ－蒙脱石上的吸附，同时增加了Ｃｕ＾２＋在δ－Ａｌ２Ｏ３上的吸附。当草甘磷／Ｃｕ＾２＋摩尔比越高时，Ｃｕ＾２＋吸附的增加量也就越大。草甘磷作为桥而     

Preliminary estimation of above-ground carbon storage in cocoa agroforests of Bengamisa-Yangambi forest landscape (Democratic Republic of Congo)

Agroforestry Systems - In the perspective of using cocoa as a response to climate change, a preliminary carbon stock assessment was conducted in cocoa agroforests of the Bengamisa-Yangambi forest...     

A 50-year record of quinolone and sulphonamide antimicrobial agents in Seine River sediments

Purpose  

Even though sediments may represent a reservoir for antimicrobial agents, little is known about the persistence of these molecules over time or their accumulation. In this study, six antimicrobial agents, oxolinic acid, flumequine, nalidixic acid, norfloxacin, sulphamethoxazole and trimethoprim, were investigated in a sediment core from the Seine River. This work aimed to (1) measure antimicrobial agent contamination levels in the sediment and identify their origins, (2) obtain information on the persistence of these compounds in sediment over long periods (>4 years) and (3) show the existence of a historical record in sediment of river contamination by antimicrobial agents.