September 25, 2006, 10:05 PM CT

Sewage Management Through Metagenomics

Few stop to consider the consequences of their daily ablutions, the washing of clothes, the watering of lawns, and the flush of a toilet. However, wastewater treatment--one of the cornerstones of modern civilization--is the largest microbially-mediated biotechnology process on the planet. When it works, it is a microbial symphony in tune with humanity. When it fails, the consequences can be dire. Researchers from the U.S. Department of Energy Joint Genome Institute (DOE JGI) and collaborators at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and the Advanced Wastewater Management Centre, University of Queensland, Australia, have published the first metagenomic study of an activated sludge wastewater treatment process. The research appeared online in the September 24 edition of the journal Nature Biotechnology (http://www.nature.com/nbt/journal/vaop/ncurrent/abs/nbt1247.html).

The metagenomic strategy entails generating DNA sequence information directly from samples of sewage sludge to provide a blueprint of the genes and hence the metabolic possibilities of the wastewater environment, with a view to understanding how the system works and predicting and averting failures or crashes.

"This is a first step in a much broader strategy employing a systems biology approach to the study of microbial communities with the goal of designing predictive models to understand how these communities function," said Hector Garcia Martin, lead author of the study and post-doctoral fellow in the DOE JGI's Microbial Ecology Program. "With this information now available, there are opportunities to bioengineer the process to make it more reliable".........

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September 25, 2006, 9:57 PM CT

Keep an ey on the plate

Did you know that we consume most of what is served on our dinner plate, no matter what the size of the plate?

Previous research has established that serving sizes of practically all foods and beverages offered at restaurants have dramatically gone up over the last twenty years. Also the actual size of the lunch packs for one time meal has gone up dramatically as well. For example, portions of orange juice are greater than forty percent larger now compared to what was the serving size 20 years back. The significance of this increased portion would become apparent when we realize that, this increased amount of orange juice provides fifty extra calories and could equal a five-pound weight gain over the course of one single year if consumed on daily basis. Even though the causes of obesity are multifactorial, the incidence of obesity has gone up significantly over the past twenty years in parallel with larger portion sizes, and Portion Distortion may be playing a significant role.

What can you do to combat this growing problem of portion distortion? When eating at home, try using smaller sized plates for serving food; this will help you to be satisfied with smaller portions. When eating out, share your main meal! The serve size now-a-days is often sufficient for two or even three people. This way you are ahead of the game and can get all the nutrients you would require without increased risk of developing overweight and obesity.........

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September 25, 2006, 9:20 PM CT

Polar Bear Habitat Preferences

The Wildlife Society´s 13th Annual Conference & Trade Show is being held September 23-27, 2006 in downtown Anchorage, Alaska at the William A. Egan Civic and Convention Center.

Polar bear habitat preferences and prey availability in a changing sea ice environment. In the Beaufort Sea, polar bears (Ursus maritimus), ringed seals (Phoca hispida), and bearded seals (Eriginathus barbatus), inhabit a seasonably dynamic environment that has experienced climate-induced changes. During most seasons polar bears prefer mixed ice habitats near ice edges in shallow waters over the continental shelf. In past decades, polar bears could maintain this habitat preference for nearshore ice, but in recent years, extensive ice melt has forced most polar bears to summer in deepwater ice habitat more than 200 km from the mainland coast. A smaller segment of the population is forced to use shoreline habitat.

Other research suggests that prey resources may be diminished for polar bears force to occupy land and the deep water pack ice during summer. For example, the winter and spring distribution of ringed seals, the most important prey for polar bears, reflects the general distribution of polar bears. During summer, while some ringed seals may track the ice edge as it retreats north, others may have an open water life style and thus would be unavailable to polar bears. Bearded seals, due to their bottom-feeding habits, have not been available to polar bears summering over deep-water habitats during recent summers. In addition, a changing sea ice environment may affect reproduction of both predator and prey. Many pregnant polar bears in Alaska den on the active sea ice, the thinning of which brings into question whether winter ice has the stability necessary for successful denning. Seals also depend on sea ice for birth and hence are also susceptible to changes in the composition of sea ice. George Durner and Steven Amstrup, Session 33, Tuesday, Sept. 26, 8:40-9:00 a.m.........

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September 25, 2006, 7:35 PM CT

Milano Moda Donna 2007

An assay of the two paraded yesterday of Luciano Soprani and Clips whom it has seen to parade the splendid Bar Rafaeli fiancee of Leonardo di Caprio.

Good look counts!........

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September 25, 2006, 7:27 PM CT

London Fashion Week 2007

The week of the London fashion has concluded and begins that from Milan one.

Not even a moment of pause for the footbridges that are ollowed phrenetic. Here the last ones paraded of London, in attended of Milan.

Important the participation of Emporio Armani, B-rude and Julien Macdonald.........

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September 25, 2006, 7:22 PM CT

Nintendo T-shirts!

Jean Snow blogged about the Nintendo T-shirts about a fortnight ago, then Kotaku and Game Set Watch picked up on it and then I guess the interest in the T-shirts from The King Of Games must have skyrocketed in Western countries because the website has spawned an English section where it will accept Paypal payments and ship overseas.

I've mentioned before that Japan is famous for it's T-shirt designs. This is another example of it. Plus it has the Nintendo video game bent so I like it twice as much!

By the way, for those who think that the US$50 is a bit much, my message is: don't be surprised. There's plenty of cool cheap T-shirts in Japan but most of the designer stuff is about this price.........

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September 25, 2006, 7:18 PM CT

Latex-Free Balloons

Via Allergy blog.

Yesterday, my son celebrated his birthday in the kindergarten. We brought a cake, which I made sure was nut-free, becasue aside from my son, there was one other child with nut allergies. We also brought some ballons, which was a hit among the kiddies, but in hindsight, could have caused a problem.

What if there was a child with latex allergies? or among the teachers? I didn't even bother to ask, bad me! Good thing that it turned out nobody had allergies to latex.

If you're hosting a party, or will be using balloons for other purposes where guests or other people are involved, you might want to consider using Mylar, vinyl, or plastic balloons. MisterBalloons also carry a wide range of latex-free balloons you can choose from. Check them out!........

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September 25, 2006, 7:12 PM CT

Prince Edward Island

AND SO BEGINS Your Guide to Familiar Birds of Prince Edward Island, a pocket-sized, colour guide to some of the most sought out birds in the province. The book was compiled and written by legendary Island naturalist, the late Geoff Hogan, and published in 1991 by Ragweed Press, 222 Grafton St., Charlottetown.

In this handy, take-along paperback, Mr. Hogan has included 90 colour photos of everything from Eastern Kingbirds to Greater Yellowlegs. Accompanying text for each of these species and about 100 others outlines such details as habitat, when to find them and unique characteristics that will aid in identification.

Prince Edward Islanders have always enjoyed a unique relationship with nature. In a province where agriculture, fishing and tourism are the driving forces behind the economy, Islanders take very seriously the responsibility of being the guardians of one of Mother Nature's most glorious works of art.

In all, there are about 333 species of birds found in this rolling tapestry we here are so proud to call home. Therefore, from birders who have just bought their first set of binoculars to those who have travelled the world in order to add to their lists of lifetime sightings, there is something on PEI for everyone.

Considering the abundance of bird life in the province, it is not surprising that Prince Edward Island has become a bird-watching hot spot over the last several years, says Kate MacQuarrie, Executive Director of Island Nature Trust, a non-profit organization devoted to the protection and management of natural areas.........

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September 25, 2006, 7:04 PM CT

Life Cycle Of A Spider

The spider life cycle progresses through three stages: the embryonic, the larval, and the nympho-imaginal.

The time between when an egg is fertilized and when the spider begins to take the shape of an adult spider is referred to as the embryonic stage. As the spider enters the larval stage, it begins to look more and more like an adult spider. It enters the larval stage as a prelarva and, through subsequent moults, reaches its larval form, a spider-shaped animal feeding off its yolk supply. After a few more moults (also called instars) body structures become differentiated. Soon, all organ systems are complete and the animal begins to hunt on its own; it has reached the nympho-imaginal stage.[2].

This stage is differentiated into two sub-stages: the nymph, or juvenile stage and the imago, or adult stage. A spider does not become sexually mature until it makes the transition from nymph to imago.[2] Once a spider has reached the imago stage, it will remain there until its death. After sexual maturity is reached, the general rule is that they stop moulting, but the females of some non-araneomorph species will continue to moult the rest of their lives.

Many spiders may only live for about a year, but a number will live two years or more, overwintering in sheltered areas. The annual influx of 'outdoor' spiders into houses in the fall is due to this search for a warm place to spend the winter. It is common for tarantulas to live around twenty years.........

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September 25, 2006, 6:37 PM CT

Galapagos Islands

The following section gives you parameters based on allowed activities for visitors to the Galapagos Islands.

Tourism:

The Galapagos is one of the few sites in the world where tourism is orientated distinctly around the nature, constituting a educational activity.

Tourism in the Galapagos was started in 1969 with the arrival of the first tourist boat the "Lina A", and today it is the principal force of the economy of the region and responsible for the principal changes in structure of the insular space.

The areas of the National Park that are established for public use are found clearly marked and distributed in almost all of the main islands of the archipelago. There are 54 land sites to visit and 62 marine sites. Most of the sites are accessed by sea and for this tourism has principally developed to be carried out in organized groups, with an authorized guide, that arrive at visitor sites on board tourist boats. Furthermore there exists sites in the four populated islands (Santa Cruz, San Cristobal, Isabela and Floreana), with land access, where it is permitted to visit without a guide.

Visitors to the PNG (Galapagos National Park) require the presence of one or more guides, the same that help the PNG in the work of control and vigilance of the visitor sites, a job of great importance considering the size and dispersion of the archipelago and the high cost of management.........

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