Absorption of very low frequency (VLF) waves in the whistler mode propagation in Jovian ionosphere

Making use of currently available theory of wave absorption, an attempt has been made to estimate the refractive indices and absorption coefficients for different wave frequencies during day and night times in the Jovian ionosphere. The results obtained have striking similarity with the corresponding results in the case of the Earth's ionosphere. It is concluded that VLF signals can be observed more easily during night times.     

Institutional designs of customary fisheries management arrangements in Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, and Mexico

There are considerable efforts by governments, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and academia to integrate marine conservation initiatives and customary practices, such as taboos that limit resource use. However, these efforts are often pursued without a fundamental understanding of customary institutions. This paper examines the operational rules in use and the presence of institutional design principles in long-enduring and dynamic customary fisheries management institutions in Papua New Guinea, Indonesia, and Mexico. Rather than a “blue print” for devising long-enduring institutions, this study relies on the design principles as a starting point to organize an inquiry into the institutional diversity found in customary governance regimes. Three important trends emerged from this comparative analysis: (1) despite it being notoriously difficult to define boundaries around marine resources, almost 3/4 of the cases in this study had clearly defined boundaries and membership; (2) all of the customary institutions were able to make and change rules, indicating a critical degree of flexibility and autonomy that may be necessary for adaptive management; (3) the customary institutions examined generally lacked key interactions with organizations operating at larger scales, suggesting that they may lack the institutional embeddedness required to confront some common pool resources (CPR) challenges from the broader socioeconomic, institutional and political settings in which they are embedded. Future research will be necessary to better understand how specific institutional designs are related to social and ecological outcomes in commons property institutions.     

A New Approach in Coal Mine Exploration Using Cosmic Ray Muons

Muon radiography is a technique that uses cosmic ray muons to image the interior of large scale geological structures. The muon absorption in matter is the most important parameter in cosmic ray muon radiography. Cosmic ray muon radiography is similar to X-ray radiography. The main aim in this survey is the simulation of the muon radiography for exploration of mines. So, the production source, tracking, and detection of cosmic ray muons were simulated by MCNPX code. For this purpose, the input data of the source card in MCNPX code were extracted from the muon energy spectrum at sea level. In addition, the other input data such as average density and thickness of layers that were used in this code are the measured data from Pabdana (Kerman, Iran) coal mines. The average thickness and density of these layers in the coal mines are from 2 to 4 m and 1.3 gr/c³, respectively. To increase the spatial resolution, a detector was placed inside the mountain. The results indicated that using this approach, the layers with minimum thickness about 2.5 m can be identified.     

PGE exploration in the Wadi Amarah complex,southwestern Arabian Shield

A stream sediment survey targeting PGE and their pathfinders was carried out at a gabbro/pyroxenite complex in Wadi Amarah in the SW Arabian Shield. Twenty-nine stream sediment samples were collected from wadi channels and analyzed for PGE and base metals. None of the samples contained detectable PGE except for WAS-3 and WAS-27 which returned values above 70 ppb of combined Pt and Pd; these two locations are also anomalous for Au. A follow-up survey was conducted to further investigate the anomalies at these locations. A total of 48 soil and rock samples were collected from the two anomalous localities. Unlike the initial survey, most samples contained detectable PGE and Au albeit not as high as the original anomalies. Factor analysis of the results from the initial survey returned five main factors, with the first four reflecting the effects of mineral detritus as well as adsorption onto Fe–Mn oxyhydroxides; however, the last factor is loaded only for Cu and Ni and is therefore considered an ore factor indicating the presence of Cu–Ni sulphides. Another five factors were obtained from the follow-up survey, and as was the case in the initial survey, the first four factors are detrital/adsorption-related, while factor 5 has high loadings for only Pd and Pt and is therefore interpreted as a PGE ore factor. These findings reveal different modes of dispersion of PGE and base metals in the secondary environment and, more importantly, demonstrate the effectiveness of factor analysis in detecting even faint anomalies from disseminated mineralization.     

Biodegradation of cyanide and evaluation of kinetic models by immobilized cells of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Serratia marcescens</Emphasis> strain AQ07

Immobilized form of Serratia marcescens strain AQ07 was experimented for cyanide biodegradation. Cyanide degradation (200 ppm) was achieved after 24-h incubation. Three parameters were optimized which included gellan gum concentration, beads size, and number of beads. In accordance with one-factor-at-a-time method, cyanide removal was optimum at 0.6% w/v gellan gum gel, 0.3-cm-diameter beads, and 50 beads number. It was able to withstand cyanide toxicity of 800 ppm, which makes it very suitable candidate in cyanide remediation. Beads reusability indicates one-cycle ability. The first cycle removed 96.3%, while the second removed 78.5%. Effects of heavy metals at 1.0 ppm demonstrated that mercury has a considerable effect on bacteria, inhibiting degradation to 61.6%, while other heavy metals have less effect, removing 97–98%. Maximum specific degradation rate of 0.9997 h^?1 was observed at 200 ppm cyanide concentration. Gellan gum was used as the encapsulation matrix. ?-picoline-barbituric acid spectrophotometric analytical method was used to optimize the condition in buffer medium integrated with potassium cyanide via one-factor-at-a-time and response surface method. The range of cyanide concentrations used in this research, specific biodegradation rate was obtained to model the substrate inhibition kinetics. This rate fits to the kinetic models of Teisser, Aiba and Yano, which are utilized to elucidate substrate inhibition on degradation. One-factor-at-a-time approach parameters were adopted because it removes more cyanide compared to response surface methodology modules. The predicted biokinetic constant from this model suggests suitability of the bacteria for use in cyanide treatment of industrial waste effluents.     

Litter pollution on the Jordanian shores of the Gulf of Aqaba (Red Sea)

Litter was assessed on three beaches along the Jordanian coast of the Gulf of Aqaba, south of the town Aqaba, monthly during 1994 and 1995, in order to determine its nature, extent and possible sources. The overall mean was about 5 and 3 items/m(2) in 1994 and 1995, respectively. Approximately a total of 14,000 m(2) were examined and a total of 101,000 items were noted, 67,000 during 1994 and 34,000 in 1995. More than 50% of the litter was plastic and the remainder wood, glass, cardboard, Styrofoam, metal and other materials. Most litter appears to be from local land-based or near shore sources, although there are some regional influences as well. The main local sources are the passenger port, the cargo port and the beach goers. The findings are compared with other regions of the world. The amount of litter is related to distance of the beach from the main sources, and shape, physiography and orientation of the beach. Spatial and seasonal variations are examined and discussed, and actions and measures to combat the problem on local and regional levels are suggested.