Determination of Sulfate,Nitrate, and Chloride in Throughfall using Ion-Exchange Resins

Throughfall, the solution that falls from the forest canopy, is an important and commonly measured flux in forest ecosystem studies. Throughfall water and chemistry are highly variable spatially, requiring large numbers of collectors to quantify it. This and the fact that the solution can be chemically unstable make throughfall sampling very labor intensive, thus we have developed a method to reduce the field labor portion of this effort. Our throughfall collection method uses compact ion exchange resin columns that need only be collected every 1–2 months. The resin columns are subsequently extracted with 1.0 M potassium iodide (KI), releasing anions back into solution, with extraction efficiencies > 94% for sulfate, nitrate, and chloride. The extracts are analyzed by ion-chromatography (IC) to determine the total microequivalents of anions per unit area of collector surface collected over the period of resin column exposure. This ion exchange resin method was originally developed for a project in which we needed to deploy over 300 throughfall collectors to quantify throughfall variability across mountainous terrain with heterogeneous vegetation.     

Markarian 348: a tidally disturbed seyfert galaxy

Combined optical and radio images of galaxies can provide new insights into the sizes, masses, and possible evolution of these objects. Deep optical and neutral hydrogen images of Markarian 348, a type 2 Seyfert galaxy, show that it is a gigantic spiral (perhaps the largest known non-cluster galaxy). Measurements of the neutral hydrogen velocity field and spiral structure, and detection of an optical "tidal plume," all provide evidence that it has been subject to tidal disruption. The measured velocities yield a mass-to-light ratio for this object (within a radius of 130 kiloparsecs from its nucleus) that is similar to the ratio found for the inner regions of most galaxies of similar type. This is one of the few cases where detailed velocity measurements have demonstrated that a galaxy with an active nucleus has been subject to extensive tidal perturbation.     

Gravitational Evidence for a Low-Density Mass beneath the Galapagos Islands

A residual negative free-air and Bouguer anomaly of at least 80 milligals, superimposed on a broader high, occurs over the Galápagos Islands The axis of the anomaly trends roughly east and plunges eastward. Thus, a low-density mass in the crust or upper mantle must underlie the archipelago. This anomaly may be caused by thermal expansion over a crust-mantle " hot spot".     

Incidence of alcohol-related deaths in the veterinary profession in England and Wales, 1993-2005

It has recently been shown that the proportional mortality ratio for suicide by veterinarians is one of the highest of all occupational groups. The reasons for this alarming statistic are unclear although it has been postulated that alcohol or drug misuse may be significant risk factors which contribute towards the high incidence of suicide within the profession. However, there have been few studies on alcohol misuse by veterinarians and so the aim of this study was to investigate the incidence of alcohol-related deaths in the veterinary profession in England and Wales between 1993 and 2005. The proportional mortality ratio for alcohol-related deaths for veterinarians was not significantly higher than the general population during this time period. Future studies should focus on establishing the incidence of sub-lethal alcohol misuse within the veterinary profession.     

Method for obtaining bovine zygotes produced in vivo

A superovulatory and surgical protocol was developed for recovery of bovine zygotes. Holstein cows and heifers were given follicle-stimulating hormone and cloprostenol to induce superovulation. Surgical cannulation and lavage of the uterine tube was performed 40 to 48 hours after the start of standing estrus. In general, cows had more corpora hemorrhagica than did heifers, but a higher percentage (P less than 0.05) of ova recovered from cows were infertile. Several heifers were subjected to the procedure twice, and embryo recovery rates were equivalent both times.