Discrete Nebulization for Sample Introduction of High Salt Solutions in Flame Atomic Absorption Spectrometry

The detection of copper in high salt solutions using flame atomic absorption spectrometry with discrete nebulization of microliter volumes compared to conventional continuous nebulization for sample introduction was investigated. Using continuous nebulization, a decrease in absorbance signal and uptake rate with increasing salt concentration, a detection limit of 0.02 μg/mL for copper, and precision deteriorating with increasing salt concentration in the 1–3% range was found. Discrete nebulization showed similar trends with decreasing absorbance signal with increasing salt concentration, but had the advantage that the microliter volumes used prevented clogging of the burner. At low microliter volumes and high salt concentrations, the precision deteriorated to around 10% and detection limit to 0.3 pg/mL. The technique was rapid, simple and did not produce memory effects.     

The Existence of a Solution to the Multi-Index Problem

The multi-index problem can be described as minimizing the cost of moving a set of p different commodities (k = 1, 2,..., p) from n origins (i = 1, 2,..., n) to m destinations (j = 1, 2,..., m). The equations then give rise to the conditions on the amount of the various types of combination that is available and required. Alternatively, the same set of restrictions arise when a single commodity has to be moved by different methods, e.g. road, rail, sea, canal, air, etc. Similarly the use of intermediate depots may require the use of a multi-index formulation. A third special type of problem where the method can be used is the capacitated transportation problem (each variable has an upper bound).     

Exploiting the Hydrogen Bond Donor/Acceptor Properties of PN‐Heterocycles: Selective Anion Receptors for Hydrogen Sulfate

We describe two novel hybrid receptors combining a phosphorus‐/nitrogen‐containing (PN) phosphonamidate heterocycle with urea recognition units in an arylethynyl backbone. Structural, spectroscopic and computational studies reveal that the origin of superior binding for hydrogen sulfate (HSO₄^?) anion is correlated with the formation of strong hetero‐complementary hydrogen bonds with the phosphonamidate motif. We further demonstrate that the hybrid host system is capable of capturing/transporting the HSO₄^? anion from an aqueous, biphasic system.     

The thermodynamics of the A–B transition in superfluid He as a probe of the A-phase gap node geometry

We have used a magnetic field gradient to stabilise the phase boundary between the A- and B-phases of superfluid ³He inside a quasiparticle black body radiator down to 146 μK. The radiator technique enables us to measure very accurately the density of quasiparticle excitations and therefore the temperature of the B-phase inside the radiator. As we ramp the field through the transition we can observe the cooling (warming) effect when the volume of A-phase is increased (decreased). From these measurements we deduce the temperature dependence of the latent heat, which provides the lowest temperature verification yet of the existence of nodes in the A-phase order parameter.     

Increased glucose concentration in the hippocampus in early Alzheimer's disease following oral glucose ingestion

Glucose is the primary source of energy for brain cells. Because energy storage in the brain is limited, an uninterrupted supply of glucose and its rapid metabolism are essential for normal cognitive function. This study utilized an oral glucose load to examine hippocampal glucose metabolism in early Alzheimer's disease (AD) - a disease characterized by progressive deterioration of cognitive function and glucose hypometabolism. Short echo time 1H MR spectra (20 ms) from the right hippocampus of 8 patients with probable AD, 14 healthy elderly and 14 healthy young adults were compared pre- and post-glucose loading. In contrast to the healthy adults, the AD patients exhibited significantly elevated hippocampal glucose concentrations post-glucose ingestion relative to baseline (P < .01). These results suggest that cerebral glucose hypometabolism in AD leads to an increased steady-state concentration of cerebral glucose. This research demonstrates the feasibility of studying cerebral glucose metabolism in AD with 1H MR spectroscopy.     

Fluctuations and Correlations of Pure Quantum Turbulence in Superfluid 3He-B

We describe the first measurements of line-density fluctuations and spatial correlations of quantum turbulence in superfluid 3He-B. All of the measurements are performed in the low-temperature regime, where the normal-fluid density is negligible. The quantum turbulence is generated by a vibrating grid. The vortex-line density is found to have large length-scale correlations, indicating large-scale collective motion of vortices. Furthermore, we find that the power spectrum of fluctuations versus frequency obeys a -5/3 power law which verifies recent speculations that this behavior is a generic feature of fully developed quantum turbulence, reminiscent of the Kolmogorov spectrum for velocity fluctuations in classical turbulence.