Conversion of Food Waste into 2,3-Butanediol via Thermophilic Fermentation: Effects of Carbohydrate Content and Nutrient Supplementation

Fermentation of food waste into 2,3-butanediol (2,3-BDO), a high-value chemical, is environmentally sustainable and an inexpensive method to recycle waste. Compared to traditional mesophilic fermentation, thermophilic fermentation can inhibit the growth of contaminant bacteria, thereby improving the success of food waste fermentation. However, the effects of sugar and nutrient concentrations in thermophilic food waste fermentations are currently unclear. Here, we investigated the effects of sugar and nutrients (yeast extract (YE) and peptone) concentrations on 2,3-BDO production from fermenting glucose and food waste media using the newly isolated thermophilic Bacillus licheniformis YNP5-TSU. When glucose media was used, fermentation was greatly affected by sugar and nutrient concentrations: excessive glucose (>70 g/L) slowed down the fermentation and low nutrients (2 g/L YE and 1 g/L peptone) caused fermentation failure. However, when food waste media were used with low nutrient addition, the bacteria consumed all 57.8 g/L sugars within 24 h and produced 24.2 g/L 2,3-BDO, equivalent to a fermentation yield of 0.42 g/g. An increase in initial sugar content (72.9 g/L) led to a higher 2,3-BDO titer of 36.7 g/L with a nearly theoretical yield of 0.47 g/g. These findings may provide fundamental knowledge for designing cost-effective food waste fermentation to produce 2,3-BDO.

Interactive methods of teaching mathematics, contributing to the formation of competencies in students of the field of training Agronomy format

The article outlines aspects of the formation of general professional competencies (GPC-1) through the study of mathematical disciplines; reveals the features of the methodology for the application of tasks (tasks of profile content, task case, task-situation), which are the main means of assessing the formation of the corresponding indicators of achievement of competence: ID-1, ID-2, ID-3, etc. The work analyzed educational publications in mathematical disciplines for the presence of tasks for an objective assessment of the level of formation of general professional competence (GPC-1), the problem of developing the content of criteria and assessment tools for formation of general professional competencies. The authors provide examples of tasks in the disciplines of Higher Mathematics and Mathematics and Mathematical Statistics, designed to form skills in identifying and defining a problem, choosing research methods, analyzing, interpreting the result and transferring fundamental knowledge into the language of professional activity.

Combined Transcriptome and Metabolome Analysis of Alfalfa Response to Thrips Infection

Thrips (Thysanoptera: Thripidae) is a major insect pest for alfalfa which can result in decreased plant nutrients, low yields, and even plant death. To identify the differentially expressed genes and metabolites in response to thrips in alfalfa, a combination of metabolomics and transcriptomics was employed using alfalfa (Caoyuan No. 2) with and without thrips infestation. The results showed that the flavonoid biosynthesis and isoflavonoid biosynthesis pathways were the most significantly enriched pathways in response to thrips infection, as shown by the combined transcriptome and metabolome analysis. The transcriptome results showed that SA and JA signal transduction and PAPM-triggered immunity and the MAPK signaling pathway–plant pathways played a crucial role in thrips-induced plant resistance in alfalfa. In addition, we found that thrips infestation could also induce numerous changes in plant primary metabolism, such as carbohydrate and amino acid metabolism as compared to the control. Overall, our results described here should improve fundamental knowledge of molecular responses to herbivore-inducible plant defenses and contribute to the design of strategies against thrips in alfalfa.

A Vertical Joint Spacing Calculation Method for UDEC Modeling of Large-Scale Strata and Its Influence on Mining-Induced Surface Subsidence

While universal discrete element code (UDEC) is widely used for understanding the mechanism of large-scale strata movement and the effects of mining subsidence on the environment, the fundamental knowledge of how to set vertical joint spacing (VJS) in UDEC is still not fully understood. To address the knowledge gap, we first present a novel VJS calculation method, then conduct UDEC experiments, and finally compare the predictions of UDEC models with field subsidence observation. The results suggest the following: (1) when compared to the conventional VJS setting (1× to 3× bed thickness), the maximum surface subsidence (MSS) prediction via UDEC models based on our proposed VJS setting method is closer to field observation; (2) a smaller but varying VJS setting can also have the effect of a larger VJS setting; and (3) with the increase in VJS, MSS first drops, then rises, and reaches the minimum when VJS is set at approximately 7× bed thickness. This paper provides an explanation of the VJS setting in UDEC and establishes a bridge between the KS theory and VJS, which is helpful for the sustainable development of such an UDEC modeling strategy and for a better understanding of the influences of mining subsidence on the environment in mining-affected areas.

Hardness–Deformation Energy Relationship in Metals and Alloys: A Comparative Evaluation Based on Nanoindentation Testing and Thermodynamic Consideration

Nanoindentation testing using a Berkovich indenter was conducted to explore the relationships among indentation hardness (H), elastic work energy (We), plastic work energy (Wp), and total energy (Wt = We + Wp) for deformation among a wide range of pure metal and alloy samples with different hardness, including iron, steel, austenitic stainless steel (H ≈ 2600–9000 MPa), high purity copper, single-crystal tungsten, and 55Ni–45Ti (mass%) alloy. Similar to previous studies, We/Wt and Wp/Wt showed positive and negative linear relationships with elastic strain resistance (H/Er), respectively, where Er is the reduced Young’s modulus obtained by using the nanoindentation. It is typically considered that Wp has no relationship with We; however, we found that Wp/We correlated well with H/Er for all the studied materials. With increasing H/Er, the curve converged toward Wp/We = 1, because the Gibbs free energy should not become negative when indents remain after the indentation. Moreover, H/Er must be less than or equal to 0.08. Thermodynamic analyses emphasized the physical meaning of hardness obtained by nanoindentation; that is, when Er is identical, harder materials show smaller values of Wp/We than those of softer ones during nanoindentation under the same applied load. This fundamental knowledge will be useful for identifying and developing metallic materials with an adequate balance of elastic and plastic energies depending on the application (such as construction or medical equipment).

Nanoscience in the k-12 classroom: More Needed than Ever

The topic of nanoscience and nanotechnology has gained popularity in the last decade with the widespread of its various applications to daily used products and services. This has led to an increased interest by the public to learn more about this unique and small world. However, there is still a significant lack in comprehensively defining the field of nanoscience and understanding its fundamental laws that govern the behavior of particles at the very small nanoscale. It has been noticed from several in-person as well as virtual interactions with educators in the sciences that there is an increased interest in inquiring more about the field and how it is impacting our lives with its ongoing advancements to various aspects of our lives. This was more prominent during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic season as nanoscience and nanotechnology have taken a central role in understanding the disease progression, providing early detection tools as well their significant involvement in vaccine development. I have taken a role in multiple initiatives to illuminate on the involvement of nanotechnology in combating the COVID-19 pandemic and have concluded that there is greater need than ever to integrate the subject matter to the k-12 classroom and educate our future generations on this incredible unique Nano world. Here we will review the need to introduce the fundamental knowledge of nanotechnology into the education curriculum, while emphasizing on its usefulness in fighting infectious diseases such as the SARS-CoV-2 virus.

Archaeological and Geological Approaches in the Work on the Project “Materiality and ancient environmental knowledge reconstruction trough archaeological chemistry analytical techniques (RE:MATRIARCHES)”

The study discusses new approaches designed for the purposeful selection of archeological and geological sites and sample collection for analysis via archaeological chemistry techniques. The approaches discussed provide opportunities for coherent interpretation of analytical data in view of the project’s objectives: gaining fundamental knowledge of material culture in different archaeological periods as well as of people’s knowledge of the environment in ancient times.

On-line Studies of ESL at Pandemic

The article under the headline On-line Studies of ESL at Pandemic, concerns the modern theory of connectivism by George Simens in the pandemic for teaching and learning English as a second language. As the changing world and learning circumstances show the era for fundamental knowledge has come to an end. The informal way for getting information on the issue rather than the knowledge appears to be more important. In the era of information not the existing knowledge matters as the ways for getting the information on the certain topic even then when you know nothing of the issue. The on-line world and technologies give a wonderful possibility for gaining the info from those who already are aware of the matter via the chat or comment on blogs or online articles. The need of informal ways of teaching and getting the information have become serious outcome for mastering the English in an authentic atmosphere and get the very recent information on the topic. Thus, to pass asynchronous way the subject enables the student not only to get the grade but the information with less effort on the issue and make his own English internet community.

PRECONDITIONS TO DEEPEN BASIC KNOWLEDGE ON ISSUES OF "NATURAL FOCAL INFECTIONS" IN MEDICAL STUDENTS NOWADAYS

At the stage of forming of fundamental knowledge on focal infectious diseases, three compulsory disciplines are vertically “encountered”: medical biology, microbiology, virology and immunology, and infectious diseases. Microbiology, virology and immunology occupy a central position in the formation of basic knowledge, and as a leading preclinical discipline, it lays the foundations for the application of acquired knowledge, skills and abilities by future healthcare professionals. The article discusses the preconditions to form the fundamental knowledge of natural focal infections in medical students, whose majors are specialty "Medicine», and "Paediatrics", as well as possible ways to boost students’ cognitive activity/ learning interest, taking into account interdisciplinary integration. Medical students gain knowledge on natural focal infectious diseases, the scientifically grounded characteristics of this group of infections and the ways to apply this knowledge during their II and III years being fostered in the educational and cognitive environment of the Department of Microbiology, Virology and Immunology. Students are guided on receiving knowledge on natural focal infections also during independent out-of-class training. Such model is implemented in four stages, each of which assumes its own psychological and didactic goals aimed at the implementation of educational activities, and as the end result, consisting in the formation of basic knowledge on each specific topic of the practical lesson, for each specific thematic block, and at the end of intensive cognitive activity at the department - an expected high-quality educational and effective product from the mastered discipline.