Basal bark treatment with triclopyr butoxyethyl ester is used to control woody invasive plants, including Brazilian peppertree (Schinus terebinthifolia Raddi). However, the ester formulation cannot be applied where standing water is present, which includes wetlands where S. terebinthifolia is found. In 2009, a low-volatile acid formulation of triclopyr was labeled for use in aquatic sites, which allows for basal bark applications when standing water is present. This formulation may have utility for controlling woody plants in standing water. However, anecdotal observations of injury to non-target plants following applications during periods of inundation have been reported. To address this, mesocosm studies were conducted to assess non-target injury through triclopyr root exudation or release from the surface of treated stems via flooding. Mesocosms contained S. terebinthifolia as the treated target, while sugarberry (Celtis laevigata Willd.), buttonbush (Cephalanthus occidentalis L.), and red maple (Acer rubrum L.) were included as non-targets. In the first study, the pathway of root exudation for non-target injury following triclopyr (34 g L−1) basal bark application was isolated with activated charcoal placed at the soil surface. In the second study, mesocosms were flooded to assess triclopyr release from the surface of treated stems and subsequent non-target injury. Defoliation of non-target species posttreatment was ≤8%, and triclopyr was detected at ≤5 µg L−1 in mesocosm wells when activated charcoal was present. Posttreatment non-target defoliation up to 92%, coupled with triclopyr concentrations in surface waters and wells as high as 4,637 µg L−1, indicated triclopyr movement as a result of flooding. Additionally, triclopyr non-target injury from soil activity independent of flooding was observed. These findings provide limited evidence of triclopyr root exudation but considerable evidence of triclopyr release during flooding following basal bark treatment and support a cautionary approach to basal bark application when standing water is present.

This project surveyed Veterans’ COVID-19 vaccination beliefs and status. 1,080 (30.8%) Veterans responded. Factors associated with being unvaccinated, identified using binomial logistic regression, included negative feelings about vaccines (OR = 3.88, 95%CI = 1.52, 9.90) and logistical difficulties such as finding transportation (OR = 1.95, 95%CI = 1.01, 3.45). This highlights the need for education about and access to vaccination.

Contaminated shoes are a potential vector for dissemination of healthcare-associated pathogens. We demonstrated that healthcare personnel walking into patient rooms frequently transferred pathogens from their shoes to the floor. An 8-second treatment of shoes with a UV-C decontamination device significantly reduced the frequency of transfer of vegetative bacterial pathogens.

The false codling moth (FCM), Thaumatotibia leucotreta (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) is an insect pest which represents an important threat to the production and marketing of a wide range of agricultural crops in the African-Caribbean-Pacific (ACP) countries. The FCM reduces not only the yield and quality of the crop but also as a quarantine insect pest, restricts the trade of susceptible agricultural produce on the international market. In addition, little research has been conducted in the ACP countries on the bio-ecology and sustainable management of this pest, especially on vegetables for export. Thus, action-oriented research aimed at understanding the bio-ecology of this important pest is essential to achieve effective management. Various management interventions against this pest have been used in some parts of the world, especially in South Africa on citrus. Currently, farm sanitation is regarded as the key management strategy. Exploring and improving on other interventions such as Sterile Insect Technique, monitoring and mass trapping of male moths, augmentative biological control, use of bio-pesticides, protected cultivation and cold treatment may help to mitigate the expansion of FCM into other countries, especially in the European and Mediterranean Plant Protection Organization region where it has become a regulated insect pest since 2014. This review discussed the bio-ecology of FCM and highlighted some of the challenges and opportunities for its effective management and its implication for international trade, especially the export of chillies from the ACP countries into the European Union market which requires strict phytosanitary regulations.

The new species Begonia maguniana H.P.Wilson from New Guinea is described. It is endemic to the Central Range of New Guinea at altitudes of c.1700–2300 m and belongs to the IUCN category Least Concern.

Filamentary structures can form within the beam of protons accelerated during the interaction of an intense laser pulse with an ultrathin foil target. Such behaviour is shown to be dependent upon the formation time of quasi-static magnetic field structures throughout the target volume and the extent of the rear surface proton expansion over the same period. This is observed via both numerical and experimental investigations. By controlling the intensity profile of the laser drive, via the use of two temporally separated pulses, both the initial rear surface proton expansion and magnetic field formation time can be varied, resulting in modification to the degree of filamentary structure present within the laser-driven proton beam.

A dolostone layer is found in spatial association with the Emirli epithermal Sb-Au deposit in western Turkey. It occurs within an argillic alteration zone adjacent to the major Emirli fault zone, which is the controlling structure for the deposit, and is composed of large closely packed subhedral to anhedral planar and nonplanar dolomites. Pyrite is the only accessory mineral in the layer and occurs as disseminations and veinlets up to 100 μm wide. Dolomite crystals are petrographically homogeneous and have consistent deep-red cathodoluminescence (CL) colour with no zoning which implies single-stage dolomitization of a calcitic precursor which is partly preserved as remnant patches of orange-coloured CL zones. Some crystal boundaries have dark (or no) CL colour. Electron microprobe line-scan analyses across these regions indicate intense enrichment of Fe and Mg depletion, revealing late-stage Fe-metasomatism (ankeritization) especially prevalent near pyrite veinlets and disseminations.

Dolomite crystals are composed of 52.4–55.0 mol.% CaCO3, 29.9 –41.2 mol.% MgCO3, 1.8 – 14.4 mol.% FeCO3 and 0.75 –3.2 mol.% MnCO3 indicating ferroan dolomite. The relationship between Ca and Mg is not stoichiometric due to substitution of Mg2+ by Fe2+ after dolomitization, as demonstrated by a strong negative correlation between Fe and Mg. Whole-rock Fe contents of the dolostone layer increases toward the Emirli fault zone.

The δ13C(PDB) compositions of the Emirli dolomite, calcitic marbles, and graphite-schists are in the ranges of –1.6 to 0.8‰, 1.5 to 1.5‰ and –6.6 to –23.5%, respectively, indicating that dolomite was formed due to interaction of light-carbon-enriched fluids with calcitic marbles; light-carbon may have been derived from decarboxylation of the graphitic schist layers. δ18O(PDB) values of dolomite and marble range –15.2 to – 11.2‰ and –2.4 to – 3.5‰, respectively. This large isotopic difference between dolomite and marble was probably inherited from oxygen isotope exchange between the dolomitizing fluid and the precursor calcites, as well as other minerals enriched in light-oxygen.

Fluid inclusions in dolomite are two-phase, and homogenize into liquid within the temperature interval 242 – 362ºC with a mode of 290ºC, and have salinities of 1 – 3 wt.% NaCl equiv. Using this modal temperature, the average δ18O(PDB) composition of water in isotopic equilibrium with the Emirli dolostone was estimated to be –19.4±2.1‰, which is interpreted as an indication of modified surface-waters; this interpretation is also supported by low fluid salinity and Na and Sr contents. These fluids migrated along graben-related faults, penetrating deeper levels where they were transformed into hydrothermal fluids due to the high heat-flow of the Küçük Menderes graben system, and flowed-up mainly through the Emirli and Haliköy faults that control mineralization in local deposits of Sb-Au and Hg, respectively. Due to interaction with chlorite-bearing graphite-schists, the fluid may have dissolved Mg2+ from chlorite and been enriched in isotopically-light carbon due to decarboxylation of graphite. Dolomitization occurred as a result of the interaction of these fluids with a calcitic marble band adjacent to the Emirli fault zone. Subsequent introduction of Fe2+ caused ankeritization along dolomite crystal boundaries during first-stage Sb-Au mineralization.

To achieve their conservation goals individuals, communities and organizations need to acquire a diversity of skills, knowledge and information (i.e. capacity). Despite current efforts to build and maintain appropriate levels of conservation capacity, it has been recognized that there will need to be a significant scaling-up of these activities in sub-Saharan Africa. This is because of the rapid increase in the number and extent of environmental problems in the region. We present a range of socio-economic contexts relevant to four key areas of African conservation capacity building: protected area management, community engagement, effective leadership, and professional e-learning. Under these core themes, 39 specific recommendations are presented. These were derived from multi-stakeholder workshop discussions at an international conference held in Nairobi, Kenya, in 2015. At the meeting 185 delegates (practitioners, scientists, community groups and government agencies) represented 105 organizations from 24 African nations and eight non-African nations. The 39 recommendations constituted six broad types of suggested action: (1) the development of new methods, (2) the provision of capacity building resources (e.g. information or data), (3) the communication of ideas or examples of successful initiatives, (4) the implementation of new research or gap analyses, (5) the establishment of new structures within and between organizations, and (6) the development of new partnerships. A number of cross-cutting issues also emerged from the discussions: the need for a greater sense of urgency in developing capacity building activities; the need to develop novel capacity building methodologies; and the need to move away from one-size-fits-all approaches.

Growing enough cover crop biomass to adequately suppress weeds is one of the primary challenges in reduced-tillage systems that rely on mulch-based weed suppression. We investigated two approaches to increasing cereal rye biomass for improved weed suppression: (1) increasing soil fertility and (2) increasing cereal rye seeding rate. We conducted a factorial experiment with three poultry litter application rates (0, 80, and 160 kg N ha−1) and three rye seeding rates (90, 150, and 210 kg seed ha−1) in Pennsylvania and Maryland in 2008 and 2009. We quantified rye biomass immediately after mechanically terminating it with a roller and weed biomass at 10 wk after termination (WAT). Rye biomass increased with poultry litter applications (675, 768, and 787 g m−2 in the 0, 80, and 160 kg N ha−1 treatments, respectively), but this increased rye biomass did not decrease weed biomass. In contrast, increasing rye seeding rate did not increase rye biomass, but it did reduce weed biomass (328, 279, and 225 g m−2 in the 90, 150, and 210 kg seed ha−1 treatments, respectively). In 2009, we also sampled ground cover before rolling and weed biomass and density at 4 WAT. Despite no treatment effects, we found a correlation between bare soil before rolling (%) and weed biomass at 4 WAT. Our results suggest that increased rye seeding rate can effectively reduce weed biomass and that ground cover in early spring can influence weed biomass later in the growing season.

Experiments on the National Ignition Facility show that multi-dimensional effects currently dominate the implosion performance. Low mode implosion symmetry and hydrodynamic instabilities seeded by capsule mounting features appear to be two key limiting factors for implosion performance. One reason these factors have a large impact on the performance of inertial confinement fusion implosions is the high convergence required to achieve high fusion gains. To tackle these problems, a predictable implosion platform is needed meaning experiments must trade-off high gain for performance. LANL has adopted three main approaches to develop a one-dimensional (1D) implosion platform where 1D means measured yield over the 1D clean calculation. A high adiabat, low convergence platform is being developed using beryllium capsules enabling larger case-to-capsule ratios to improve symmetry. The second approach is liquid fuel layers using wetted foam targets. With liquid fuel layers, the implosion convergence can be controlled via the initial vapor pressure set by the target fielding temperature. The last method is double shell targets. For double shells, the smaller inner shell houses the DT fuel and the convergence of this cavity is relatively small compared to hot spot ignition. However, double shell targets have a different set of trade-off versus advantages. Details for each of these approaches are described.

We assessed evidence of exposure to viruses and bacteria in an unmanaged and long-isolated population of Soay sheep (Ovis aries) inhabiting Hirta, in the St Kilda archipelago, 65 km west of Benbecula in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland. The sheep harbour many metazoan and protozoan parasites but their exposure to viral and bacterial pathogens is unknown. We tested for herpes viral DNA in leucocytes and found that 21 of 42 tested sheep were infected with ovine herpesvirus 2 (OHV-2). We also tested 750 plasma samples collected between 1997 and 2010 for evidence of exposure to seven other viral and bacterial agents common in domestic Scottish sheep. We found evidence of exposure to Leptospira spp., with overall seroprevalence of 6·5%. However, serological evidence indicated that the population had not been exposed to border disease, parainfluenza, maedi-visna, or orf viruses, nor to Chlamydia abortus. Some sheep tested positive for antibodies against Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis (MAP) but, in the absence of retrospective faecal samples, the presence of this infection could not be confirmed. The roles of importation, the pathogen–host interaction, nematode co-infection and local transmission warrant future investigation, to elucidate the transmission ecology and fitness effects of the few viral and bacterial pathogens on Hirta.