Interspecific allometry of bone dimensions: A review of the theoretical models

A fascinating problem in biological scaling is the variation of long-bone length (or diameter) Y with body mass M in mammals, birds, and other vertebrates. It turns out that Y and M are related by a power law, namely Y=Y₀M^b, where Y₀ is a constant and b is the so-called allometric exponent. The origin of these power laws is still unclear because, in general, biological laws do not follow from physical ones in a simple manner.Here we make a historical review of this subject, summarizing the main experimental papers as well as discussing the main theoretical proposals. Long-bone allometry seems to be determined by the need to resist the particular loads applied to each bone in each taxon. Experimental measurements of in vivo stresses have found that mammalian long bones are subjected mainly to compression and bending, while avian wing-bones and reptilian limb-bones suffer a high degree of torsion. A recent model, based on the hypothesis that mammalian long-bone allometry is determined by compressive and bending loads, was able elucidate several aspects of mammalian limb-bone scaling. However, an explanation for avian and reptilian long-bone allometry is still missing.     

First-principles studies of kinetics in epitaxial growth of III–V semiconductors

We demonstrate how first-principles calculations using density-functional theory (DFT) can be applied to gain insight into the molecular processes that rule the physics of materials processing. Specifically, we study the molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) of arsenic compound semiconductors. For homoepitaxy of GaAs on GaAs (001), a growth model is presented that builds on results of DFT calculations for molecular processes on the β2-reconstructed GaAs (001) surface, including adsorption, desorption, surface diffusion, and nucleation. Kinetic Monte Carlo simulations on the basis of the calculated energetics enable us to model MBE growth of GaAs from beams of Ga and As₂ in atomistic detail. The simulations show that island nucleation is controlled by the reaction of As₂ molecules with Ga adatoms on the surface. The analysis reveals that the scaling laws of standard nucleation theory for the island density as a function of growth temperature are not applicable to GaAs epitaxy. We also discuss heteroepitaxy of InAs on GaAs (001), and report first-principles DFT calculations for In diffusion on the strained GaAs substrate. In particular, we address the effect of heteroepitaxial strain on the growth kinetics of coherently strained InAs islands. The strain field around an island is found to cause a slowing down of material transport from the substrate towards the island, and thus helps to achieve more homogeneous island sizes. Received: 2 May 2001 / Accepted: 23 July 2001 / Published online: 3 April 2002     

Preserving the half-metallicity at the Heusler alloy Co2MnSi(001) surface: a density functional theory study

We have studied the stability, the electronic, and the magnetic properties of Co2MnSi(001) thin films for 15 different terminations using density functional theory calculations. The phase diagram obtained by ab initio atomistic thermodynamics shows that in practice the MnSi, pure Mn, or pure Si terminated surfaces can be stabilized under suitable conditions. Analyzing the surface band structure, we find that the pure Mn termination, due to its strong surface-subsurface coupling, preserves the half-metallicity of the system, while surface states appear for the other terminations.     

Morphology of the male reproductive system and spermatozoa in Centris Fabricius, 1804 (Hymenoptera: Apidae, Centridini)

The genera Centris and Epicharis constitute the Centridini and are widely distributed in the Neotropical region. Centris is also found in the southern portion of the Neartic region, although both genera are more abundant in the humid tropical regions. To describe the structure of the male reproductive system and spermatozoa, light and transmission electron microscopy were used. The male reproductive system of Centris sp. is formed by a pair of testes, a pair of deferent ducts, a pair of seminal vesicles, a pair of accessory glands and an ejaculatory duct connected to the external genitalia, the aedeagus. In this species, testes and the pre-vesicular deferens ducts as well as the seminal vesicles are encapsulated in a single conjunctive capsule, the scrotal membrane. Each testis consists of four testicular follicles, made up of cysts with up to 64 germinative cells. Histologically, the seminal vesicles are formed by a simple cylindrical epithelium, basal membrane and muscular tunic. The spermatozoa of Centris analis, C. fuscata, C. tarsata and Centris sp. are morphologically similar. They have two easily distinguishable regions: the head and flagellum. The head is formed by the two-layer acrosome, the linear nucleus and the flagellum, the centriole adjunct, the axoneme of pattern 9+9+2 microtubules, two asymmetric mitochondrial derivatives and two accessory bodies. These Centris species share various morphological characteristics of the male reproductive system and spermatozoa with the other bees previously described, indicating that several characteristics are synapomorphic for the family Apidae. Studies on the morphology of the male reproductive system and spermatozoa in Hymenoptera have demonstrated the diversity of the information provided by these reproductive structures, which can be used in taxonomy studies and the phylogeny of this important group of insects.     

Series representation for semistable laws and their domains of semistable attraction

If the centered and normalized partial sums of an i.i.d. sequence of random variables converge in distribution to a nondegenerate limit then we say that this sequence belongs to the domain of attraction of the necessarily stable limit. If we consider only the partial sums which terminate atk _n wherek _n+1 ck _n then the sequence belongs to the domain of semistable attraction of the necessarily semistable limit. In this paper, we consider the case where the limiting distribution is nonnormal. We obtain a series representation for the partial sums which converges almost surely. This representation is based on the order statistics, and utilizes the Poisson process. Almost sure convergence is a useful technical device, as we illustrate with a number of applications.This research was supported by a research scholarship from the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG).     

A Combined Experimental and Theoretical Study on the Formation of Ag Filaments on β‐Ag2MoO4 Induced by Electron Irradiation

A combined experimental and theoretical study is presented to understand the novel observed nucleation and early evolution of Ag filaments on β‐Ag₂MoO₄ crystals, driven by an accelerated electron beam from an electronic microscope under high vacuum. The growth process, chemical composition, and the element distribution in these filaments are analyzed in depth at the nanoscale level using field‐emission scanning electron microscopy (FE‐SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) with energy‐dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) characterization. To complement experimental results, chemical stability, structural and electronic aspects have been studied systematically using first‐principles electronic structure theory within a quantum theory of atoms in molecules (QTAIM) framework. The Ag nucleation and formation on β‐Ag₂MoO₄ are a result of structural and electronic changes of the AgO₄ tetrahedral cluster as a constituent building block of β‐Ag₂MoO₄, consistent with Ag metallic formation. The formation of Ag filament transforms the β‐Ag₂MoO₄ semiconductor from n‐ to p‐type concomitant with the appearance of Ag defects.     

Niobian iron oxides as heterogeneous Fenton catalysts for environmental remediation

Heterogeneous Fenton or Fenton-like reagents consist of a mixture of an iron-containing solid matrix and a liquid medium with H₂O₂. The Fenton system is based on the reaction between Fe^2?+? and H₂O₂ to produce highly reactive intermediate hydroxyl radicals (^???OH), which are able to oxidize organic contaminants, whereas the Fenton-like reaction is based on the reaction between Fe^3?+? and H₂O₂. These heterogeneous systems offer several advantages over their homogeneous counterparts, such as no sludge formation, operation at near-neutral pH and the possibility of recycling the iron promoter. Some doping transition cations in the iron oxide structure are believed to enhance the catalytic efficiency for the oxidation of organic substrates in water. In this work, goethites synthesized in presence of niobium served as precursors for the preparation of magnetites (niobian magnetites) via chemical reduction with hydrogen at 400°C. These materials were used as Fenton-like catalysts. Both groups of (Nb, Fe)-oxide samples were characterized by ⁵⁷Fe Mössbauer spectroscopy at 298 K. The results show that increasing niobium contents raise the catalytic potential for decomposition of methylene blue, which was, in this work, used as a model molecule for organic substrates in water.     

The Electric Charge Confining in Polyakov’s Compact QED in <Emphasis Type="Italic">R</Emphasis><Superscript>4</Superscript>

We present a Wilson Loop evaluation of the binding energy of electric static charges in A.M. Polyakov’s Compact QED in R ⁴ through path integrals.