Environmental evolution in the salt-water intrusion area south of Laizhou Bay since late Pleistocene

The south coastal plain of Laizhou Bay is one of the typical salt-water intrusion areas in China, the occurrence and development of which was closely related with the palaeoenvironment evolution. Systematic analyses of pollen, foraminifera and grain size composition based on ^14C and luminescence dating from two sediment cores were performed for the purpose of understanding the salt-water intrusion in the coastal plain of Laizhou Bay from the perspective of environmental evolution since late Pleistocene. It could be classified into seven evolution stages since 120 kaBP： 120-85 kaBP was a transition period from cold to warm; 85-76 kaBP was a period with warm and wet climate having swamp lakes developed in the lower reaches of the Weihe River, south coastal plain of Laizhou Bay; 76-50 kaBP was characterized by grassland vegetation and coarse sediments in terrestrial environment, which was the early stage of Dali Ice-Age; 50-24 kaBP was a period with alternate sea deposition in the south coastal plain of Laizhou Bay; 24-10 kaBP was the late stage of Dali Ice-Age with coldest period of Quaternary, the south coastal plain of Laizhou Bay was dry grassland and loess deposition environment; 10-4 kaBP was another warm and wet climate period, sea level was high and regressed at 4 kaBP; and has been the modern sedimentary environment since 4 kaBP. Among the three warm stages, including 85-76 kaBP, 50-24 kaBP and 10-4 kaBP, corresponded to late Yangkou, Guangrao and Kenli seawater transgression respectively. The duration of the latter one in south coastal plain of Laizhou Bay was longer than that in west coast of Bohai Sea and east coast of Laizhou Bay. The three periods of seawater transgression formed the foundation of salt-water intrusion in this area.

Phase Equilibria of Salt-water Systems Containing Magnesium and Borate Ions

1 Introduction A salt lake is a naturally occurring complex body of water and salt interaction.More than 700 salt lakes are widely distributed in the area of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.Most of the salt lakes are famous for their abundance of lithium,potassium,magnesium,and boron resources.It is

Optimization and pharmacodynamic evaluation of stir-frying with bran for Tangshen processing

Background:Traditional Chinese medicine requires special processing before it can be effectively used for clinical treatment of diseases.In particular,Tangshen stir-fried with wheat bran smoke has been found to enhance the function of the stomach and spleen.However,there is limited research on the technology and pharmacodynamic effects of Tangshen fried with bran.Therefore,the objective of this article is to optimize the method of stir-frying with bran for Tangshen processing and to compare the anti-fatigue and hypoxia-resistance effects of Tangshen before and after bran-frying.Methods:The response surface methodology was utilized to optimize the frying temperature,frying time,and the bran-to-Tangshen ratio,using lobetyolin as the indicator.The swimming time of mice and the levels of blood urea nitrogen,lactate dehydrogenase,and blood glucose in fatigued mice were compared before and after Tangshen was fried with bran.Additionally,the hypoxic resistance ability of Tangshen before and after bran-frying was determined through normobaric hypoxia test and sodium nitrite poisoning test.Results:The optimal bran-frying conditions for Tangshen processing were determined as:frying temperature of 167°C,frying time of 2.67 min,and the bran-to-Tangshen ratio of 50:100.Pharmacodynamic analysis results indicated that Tangshen significantly increased the GLU content(P<0.01)and significantly reduced the LDH content(P<0.01)both before and after bran-frying.While both traditional and new bran-frying methods significantly increased the content of muscle glycogen(P<0.05),the optimized method in this study also significantly elevated the content of liver glycogen(P<0.05).The traditional method significantly prolonged the survival time of mice from sodium nitrite poisoning(P<0.05).Conclusion:The response surface model proved to be highly effective in optimizing the stir-frying process with bran for Tangshen processing.The results of this study indicate that Tangshen possesses anti-fatigue and hypoxia-resistance effects both before and after bran-frying,with bran-fried Tangshen exhibiting significantly stronger effects.

Processing Technique of Carbonizing by Stir-Frying for Baked Rheum tanguticum Maxim.ex Balf. Optimized by Orthogonal Design

[Objectives]To optimize the processing technology of baked Rheum tanguticum carbon.[Methods]Firstly,the baking temperature and baking time were investigated by single factor,and the content of 5-hydroxymethylfurfural(5-HMF)was determined by HPLC.The main influencing factors of baking effect were baking temperature,baking time and tablet specifications.The L 9(34)orthogonal design experiment was carried out to optimize the processing technique of R.tanguticum carbon.[Results]The optimum processing technique was as follows:small-sized tablets,controlled oven baking temperature at(210±2)℃,and baking time of 20 min.[Conclusions]The optimum processing technique of R.tanguticum carbon is reasonable and feasible.Thus,this experiment can provide a certain reference for processing method and quality control of R.tanguticum carbon.

Cooking Class:Stir-Fried Shrimp and Green Peppers (Feicui Xiaren)

Jiangsucuisine,oneofChinaseightmajorcookingschools,isrepresentedbySuzhouandYangzhoudishes.JiangsucuisinecomprisescookinJmethodssuchasstewing,braising,simmering,steamlug,deep-frying,andstir-frying.Thedisheslookinvitlugandtastelightanddelicious.Emphasi...

Study on Changes of Nitrite Content in Two Kinds of Foods under Different Storage Conditions

[Objectives]This study was conducted to store and consume overnight vegetables more safely and reasonably.[Methods]Fried cabbage and barbecue was selected as raw materials,which were determine by Griess reagent colorimetry for the effects of storage time,storage temperature and storage method on the changes in nitrite content in the two foods.[Results]The nitrite content in fried cabbage and barbecue increased with the prolongation of storage time.Both types of food,whether stored in a sealed or open manner,had a nitrite content that increased with the storage temperature.When barbecue was stored in an open manner,its nitrite content was greater than that in sealed storage.The condition of stir-fried cabbage was the same as barbecue when stored at 10℃,but the situation was opposite when stored at 20 and 30℃.In this study,except for the slightly excessive nitrite content in stir-fried cabbage stored at 30℃in open and sealed conditions for 72 h,the nitrite contents in both foods under other storage conditions all met the national standard limit.[Conclusions]This study provides a theoretical basis for the safe and reasonable storage and use of leftovers.

Measuring Salinity within Shallow Piezometers:Comparison of Two Field Methods

The objective of this study is to understand the validity of salinity vertical profiles collected from shallow piezometers that are not previously flushed. This study shows that salinity data collected from boreholes are only an average value along the entire screened section of the piezometer. In order to collect data that is rep-resentative for the salinity of the adjacent aquifer, a new monitoring strategy has been developed. This strat-egy includes measurement of the salinity at the top of the watertable in an auger hole which is a shallow boreholes made with an handheld drill. This should be combined with measurements in piezometers that are first flushed to take out stagnant water. From the piezometers on can measure the average salinity of the screened part and the salinity at the bottom of the aquifer. By using this monitoring strategy it is also possi-ble to define where the piezometers screens are located if this is not known beforehand.

Stir-Fry Chicken with Green Curry Suppresses Inflammatory Gene Expression by Lipopolysaccharide-Induced Murine Macrophages

Inflammatory mediators produced during inflammatory response play an important role on pathological development of several chronic diseases. Although several dietary plants exhibited anti-inflammatory property, their impacts as a whole food has been rarely reported. The aim of the present study is to assess anti-inflammatory activity of an ethanol extract from a whole food namely “ready to eat stir-fry chicken with green curry” consisting of green curry paste, big egg plant, pea egg plant, red chili, kaffer lime and sweet basil as plant-based ingredients. The food extract at 55 - 220 μg/ml was incubated with RAW264.7 murine macrophage cells prior to stimulation with lipopolysaccharide (LPS) for 24 h. Inflammatory mediators [(inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), tumor necrosis factor (TNF-α) and interleukine-6 (IL-6)] mRNA and protein were determined by RT-PCR, immunoblot and ELISA respectively. The modulation mechanism by the food extract was observed by measuring the phosphorylated form of mitogen activated protein kinases (MAPKs) and inhibitor kappa B alpha (IκB-α). The ready to eat stir-fry chicken with green curry extract significantly suppressed LPS-induced iNOS, COX-2, IL-6 and TNF-α gene expression in a dose-depend- ent manner without cytotoxicity. The suppressive effect was modulated partly by inhibiting phosphorylation of MAPKs and IκB-α. These results indicate that spices and vegetables in a complex diet still possess strong anti-inflammatory activities which warrant confirming such activities to ameliorate the pathogenesis of inflammatory-associated chronic diseases in vivo.

Seawater Intrusion and Salinization Processes Assessment in a Multistrata Coastal Aquifer in Italy

This paper presents the results of the investigations, driven by different techniques, including environmental tracers and geophysical methods, in the aim of better understand the causes of the current salt-water intrusion in the Pontina Plain, in the south of the Lazio Region (Italy). In the last 50 years many investigation campaigns have been carried out to evaluate the evolution of salt-water intrusion. This is an area with a strong man-made residential and tourist impact and, in the some cases, it is characterized by intensive agricultural practices. Therefore, it can be affected not only by salt-water intrusion, but by the salinization of its groundwater also due to other factors. All these factors have led the Pontina Plain to a groundwater situation which makes the groundwater resource management and the planning of their future exploitation very difficult.

Solid-liquid Equilibria for the System KBr–K_2SO_4–H_2O at 348 K

1 Introduction The underground brine resources distributing widely in Sichuan Basin,China have drawn worldwide attention due to their unusual element abundance and excellent quality.

Influence of stir-frying on the lipid stability and flavor substances in oat flour during storage using HS-SPME-GC-MS and electronic nose

Objectives:We used stir-fried oat flour as experimental material and raw oat flour as a control to explore the influence of stir-frying on the storagequalityofoatflour.Materials and Methods:The HS-SPME-GC-MS method combined with electronic nose technology was used to understand the lipid stability and analyze the changes in the flavor of the substances during the entire storage period.Results:It was observed that during the storage period,stir-fried oat flour contained less water than raw oat flavor.The former was characterized by a lower fatty acid value,lower acid value,and lower linoleic acid content,but higher oleic acid content and palmitic acid content compared to the latter.With the passage of storage time,the palmitic acid content significantly increased,and the linoleic acid content significantly decreased in raw and stir-fried oats flour(P<o.05).The sulfur and methyl contents in the stir-fried oat flour were higher than those in the raw flour,while nitrogen oxide content in the former was lower than that in the latter.Stir-fried oat flour possessed a total of 78 identified flavor substances.The process of stir-frying boosts the oxidation decomposition of unsaturated fatty acids aldehydes and heterocyclic compounds produced by the Maillard reaction,so the flavor substances of stir-fried oat flour are richer.Conclusions:Stir-fried oat flour,containing diverse types of flavor substances,experienced more obvious flavor changes throughout the storage period than raw oat flour.

Jupiter Moon May Have a Salt-Water Ocean

上帝若有知,也应为人类探索宇宙空间的努力而感动。遥望夜空,星汉灿烂。好像地球在宇宙间并不孤独,然而,当要寻觅外星朋友时,人类便怅然若失!NASA,(美国)国家航空和航天局的伽里略号太空船发回的数据显示:木星最大的卫星,Ganymede(土卫三), may possess a huge salt-water ocean beneath its crusty(有硬壳的)surface. 本文末句发人深省:...but the issue of whether it's there is different than the issue of whether you can expect to see it clearly in the data. 此言初读有些难,再读,便为科学家的求实精神所染。

Study on phase diagrams and properties of solutions in ternary systems Li+,K+(Mg2+)/SO42--H2O at 25℃

Solubilities of ternary systems Li+,K+/SO42--H2O (1) and Li+,Mg2+/SO42-H2O (2) were investigated by isothermal method at 25℃. Physico-chemical properties of solutions, such as density, refractive index, viscosity, conductivity and pH, were determined. Phase diagram of the system (1) consists of three solubility branches and three crystallization fields corresponding to K2SO4, Li2SO4.H2O and LiKSO4. LiKSO4 is an incongruent compound, and its transition point is estimated graphically to be 45.5-46.0℃. No solid solution of LiKSO4 with Li2SO4.H2O was found in the system. The system (2) is a simple eutonic type. Pitzer model of electrolyte solution was used to check the obtained solubilities. Data comparison gives good agreement. Two equations were used to correlate density, refractive index of the solution with its composition. Differences between measured and calculated values are less than 0.6% for density, 0.15% for the latter.

Phase Equilibria of Quaternary System NaCl-NaBr-Na2B4O7-H2O at 348 K

The phase equilibria of quaternary system NaCl-NaBr-Na2B4O7-H2O at 348 K were studied by the iso- thermal equilibrium method. The solubilities and densities of the equilibrium solution were determined. According to the experimental data, the phase diagram, density-composition diagrams and water content diagram of the quaternary system at 348 K were plotted respectively. And the phase diagram consists of one univariant curve, two crystalliza- tion fields and without any invariant point of the quaternary system. The equilibrium solid phases of the two crysta- llization fields were Na（C1, Br） and Na2B4OT＇5H20, The experimental results show that the quaternary system contained solid solution. The densities of the solution decrease with increasing NaC1 concentration and increase with increasing NaBr concentration.

Measurements and Calculations of Solid-liquid Equilibria in Quaternary System Li2SO4-Na2SO4-K2SO4-H2O at 288 K

The isothermal dissolution equilibrium method has been used to investigate the solid and liquid equilibria of quatemary system Li2SO4-Na2SO4-K2SO4-H2O at 288 K. The phase diagram and water diagram were plotted according to the experiment results. It was found that LizSO4-Na2SO4-K2SO4-H2O quaternary system contains four double salts at 288 K. There are six invariant points, twelve univariant curves and seven areas of crystallization： Li2SO4·H2O, Na2SO4·10H2O, K2SO4,LiESO4·3Na2SO4-12H2O, Li2SO4K2SO4, Na2SO4·3K2SO4, 2Li2SO4·Na2SO4- K2SO4. Using the equilibrium solubility data of the quaternary system at 288 K, the solubility product（lnKsp） of solid phase 2LiESO4-Na2SO4.KESO4, which is not reported was acquired. Based on the chemical model of Pitzer＇s electrolyte solution theory, the solubilities for the quaternary system Li2SO4-Na2SO4-K2SO4-H2O at 288 K were calculated with corresponding parameters. Compared the results of experimental measurement with those of calculation, it was shown that the calculated values had a good agreement with the experimental ones.

Simultaneous Determination of Eleven Bioactive Constituents in Honey-Processed Licorice by High-Performance Liquid Chromatography-Diode Array Detector and Its Application from the Perspective of Processing Influence under Orthogonal Design

Objective:The aim of this study was to develop a reliable approach to simultaneously quantify 11 markers and explore the quality variation in honey-processed licorice.Materials and Methods:A high-performance liquid chromatography-diode array detector method was developed for the simultaneous determination of 11 markers(nine flavonoids and two triterpenoid saponins)in honey-processed licorice.The changes to the 11 markers in honey-processed licorice were investigated using an orthogonal design with three input factors.Results:The established method was precise,accurate,and sensitive enough for the simultaneous quantitative evaluation of 11 markers in honey-processed licorice.Intuitive analysis and variance analysis revealed that(1)the soaking time of crude licorice,stir-frying temperature,and stir-frying time remarkably influenced the content of liquiritin apioside,signifying the decomposition of liquiritin apioside to liquiritin or transformation of liquiritin apioside to isoliquiritin apioside,(2)stir-frying temperature significantly influenced licorice-saponin G2,(3)stir-frying temperature was the most important factor of the three input factors,(4)in terms of composition,honey fried licorice had significant effects on two components,namely liquiritin apioside and licorice-saponin G2.Conclusions:Honey processing influenced the content of the 11 licorice analytes differently.This paper highlights the first report on how the quality of honey-processed licorice varies under different processing conditions and suggests the optimal levels of the investigated three factors as A2B2C3 according to the degrees of influence of these factors on the 11 components.Specifically,the soaking time of crude licorice with honey solution,stir-frying temperature,and stir-frying time were 40 min,100°C,and 20 min,respectively.