Influence of Breast Implant Surface Finishing on Physicochemical and Mechanical Properties before and after Extreme Degradation Studies

The influence of the surface finishing of breast implants on physicochemical and mechanical properties, before and after extreme degradation experiments, was investigated in this study. Removal of superficial layers after degradation was verified for both smooth and rough membranes, in which local erosion was verified. FTIR results demonstrated the generation of low-molecular-weight structures in all samples due to exposure to acidic and basic environments. Furthermore, smooth samples presented higher degrees of crosslinking than rough samples. Considering the mechanical properties, no difference was verified between smooth and rough samples as received and after degradation studies. However, the pH of the degradation solution had an influence on mechanical properties of the material and a basic environment caused greater deterioration of the mechanical properties compared to acidic conditions.

Hipsimetric and morphometric characters of soil surface in the Gobustan region

It was determined during the research that the relief of the zone is complex, very fragmented and the potential riskiness of erosion is higher. It was defined on the map that a main part of the Gobustan zone, i.e, 68,1% concentrated at an altitude of 500-800 meters. The areas of which surface inclination is more than 10 are 71, 3%. The potential riskiness of the erosion in the zone is very high. It was found that the depth of the local erosion basis is deeper than 50 meters and the most depth is 600-800 meters. It was determined that the south-east end of the Great Caucasus and the Gobustan zones are the most fragmented regions. Here the density of the ravine-gorge network is mainly more than 0,5 km at one kilometre.

The impacts of peat slides on upland blanket peatland hydrology, ecology and soil structure. A paired catchment approach.

<p>Rainfall-induced landslides are difficult to forecast and often evolve into highly destructive flows, as such, they are one of the most dangerous natural hazards globally. While our understanding of peatland hydrology has improved greatly in the past two decades, there has been less focus on the response of peat hydrology following perturbations such as wildfires and landslides.  Here we report on a new paired catchment experiment in Ireland. Our focus is to quantify the hydrological changes following peat landslides and further, to establish the short-term and longer-term impacts on local peatland hydrology, ecology and recovery.</p><p>The two paired sites are located in Co. Leitrim, Ireland, in two adjacent, small upland blanket bog catchments. The first peat catchment (0.2km<sup>2</sup>) is an area of a recent (June 2020) slope failure. According to preliminary estimates ~178,000 – 188,000 tonnes of peat were transported downstream during the peat slide event, resulting in a large landslide scar section (~0.059 km<sup>2</sup>) in a special area of conservation [SAC]. Preliminary impacts are assessed to include: habitat loss, decreased slope stability, impacts on hydrology and water quality, as well as increased local erosion.</p><p>This catchment is paired with an adjacent upland blanket peat catchment (0.11 km<sup>2</sup>) which is deemed to have been under the same anthropogenic pressures (grazing, upslope forestry plantation).</p><p>A hydrometric suite, including weather station, piezometers, and water level recorders to evaluate the surface and subsurface hydrology has been installed at both sites. In addition, we are monitoring the response of landslide deposits (e.g. rafted peat, some with still-standing sika spruce), ecology, soil structure, permeability and shear strength in both catchments.</p><p>Here we will report on the initial results of our monitoring.</p>

An auspicious landscape: Quantifying transient glacial incision in the Patagonian Andes from ~6 Ma to present

<p>The topography, climate, and geology of the central Patagonian Andes provide an auspicious natural laboratory to track long-term rates of erosion in a dynamic mountainous landscape. Herein, we report a mountain-scale record of erosion rates in the central Patagonian Andes from >10 million years (Ma) ago to present, which covers the transition from a fluvial to alpine glaciated landscape. Apatite (U-Th)/He ages of 72 granitic cobbles from alpine glacial deposits show slow erosion before ~6 Ma ago, followed by a two- to three-fold increase in the spatially averaged erosion rate of the source region after the onset of alpine glaciations and a 15-fold increase in the top 25% of the distribution. This transition is followed by a pronounced decrease in erosion rates over the past ~3 Ma. We ascribe the pulse of fast erosion to local deepening and widening of valleys, which are characteristic features of alpine glaciated landscapes. The subsequent decline in local erosion rates may represent a return toward a balance between rock uplift and erosion.</p>

Воздействие импульсного тлеющего разряда атмосферного давления на алюминиевые пленки нанометровой толщины

The effect of a positive pulsed corona discharge on the thin-film cathode surface was studied in atmospheric pressure air gaps of 2–8 mm at voltages of 5–15 kV. Observed current pulses had the following parameters: repetition rate about 10-15 kHz, pulse duration of 300-500 ns, and amplitude of 10-20 mA. It was shown that at relatively low average currents of 20–50 μA, the discharge transforms into the glow one near the cathode. Due to the discharge channel radial contraction to micrometer scale, Joule heating of the formed cathode layer can lead to a temperature increase up to 1000 K and cause local erosion of the cathode surface. This mechanism should be taken into account when analyzing the interaction of discharge plasma with biological objects.

Extraction of a bullet floating in the pulmonary artery after a gunshot wound

Background Patients with thoracic trauma caused by gunshots face a high risk of death, and medical staff often encounter technical difficulties in resolving these cases. Most gunshot wounds result in an entrance and exit wound. In cases with no exit wound, missiles are seen in other areas with screening radiographs. The bullet may migrate depending on gravity, coughing, swallowing, blood flow, or local erosion. Case presentation We present the case of a teenager who was hospitalized in critical condition owing to a left hemithorax injury caused by an improvised explosive device. The patient underwent two surgeries: an anterior left thoracotomy during which a hole in the myocardium was sutured, and after radiography, anterolateral right thoracotomy was performed, in which a deformed projectile was found at the level of the intermediate right pulmonary artery. Conclusions This case highlights the crucial importance of repeated imaging to assess the possibility of projectile migration within the cardiovascular system in similar cases of penetrating injury. Immediate surgery was necessary and very important for the survival of our patient, despite the difficulties presented by this complicated case.

Bank destruction in the middle section of the Amudarya River

The paper presents the results of a full-scale study of the banks destruction in the middle section of the Amudarya River. The article presents the main factors of coastal destruction during floods and low water periods. Recommendations for the protection of banks from erosion are also developed. As a result of studies of the intensive local re-formation process of an easily washed-out channel, the plan for hydraulic schemes for the occurrence of local erosion of the coast both with a steady and unsteady movement in an open flow was developed.

GEOECOLOGICAL ANALYSIS OF THE DEVELOPMENT OF GULLY EROSION WITHIN THE ANTHROPOGENIC LANDSCAPES OF UDMURTIA

The article analyzes the gully head retreat for the period from 1998 to 2018, depending on geological and geomorphological factors (the composition of eroded rocks, the area of the gully’s top catchment, the length of runoff lines, the depth of the local erosion basis, the average slope and the slope exposure. The analysis uses indicators of growth of 168 heads of gully’s that develop in different landscape conditions of the Udmurt Republic. The results of correlation analysis are presented.

Impact of coastal East Antarctic ice rises on surface mass balance: insights from observations and modeling

About 20 % of all snow accumulation in Antarctica occurs on the ice shelves. There, ice rises control the spatial surface mass balance (SMB) distribution by inducing snowfall variability and wind erosion due to their topography. Moreover these ice rises buttress the ice flow and represent ideal drilling locations for ice cores. In this study we assess the connection between snowfall variability and wind erosion to provide a better understanding of how ice rises impact SMB variability, how well this is captured in the regional atmospheric climate model RACMO2 and the implications of this SMB variability for ice rises as an ice core drilling site. By combining ground-penetrating radar (GPR) profiles from two ice rises in Dronning Maud Land with ice core dating, we reconstruct spatial and temporal SMB variations from 1983 to 2018 and compare the observed SMB with output from RACMO2 and SnowModel. Our results show snowfall-driven differences of up to 1.5 times higher SMB on the windward side of both ice rises than on the leeward side as well as a local erosion-driven minimum at the ice divide of the ice rises. RACMO2 captures the snowfall-driven differences but overestimates their magnitude, whereas the erosion on the peak can be reproduced by SnowModel with RACMO2 forcing. Observed temporal variability of the average SMBs, retrieved from the GPR data for four time intervals in the 1983–2018 range, are low at the peak of the easternmost ice rise (∼0.06 mw.e.yr-1), while they are higher (∼0.09 mw.e.yr-1) on the windward side of the ice rise. This implies that at the peak of the ice rise, higher snowfall, driven by orographic uplift, is balanced out by local erosion. As a consequence of this, the SMB recovered from the ice core matches the SMB from the GPR at the peak of the ice rise but not at the windward side of the ice rise, suggesting that the SMB signal is damped in the ice core.