Atmospheric, Geomorphological, and Compositional Analysis of Martian Asimov and Hale Craters: Implications for Recurring Slope Lineae

Recurring slope lineae (RSL) are small, dark, seasonal albedo features lengthening down “warm” Martian steep slopes. Their origin has been attributed to both liquid and dry processes, hence representing one of the major open science questions on present day Mars. In the present study, we report a catalog of previous literature and newly added RSL sites making a total of 940 sites globally on Mars along with the detailed geological and compositional investigation of the Hale and Asimov craters with their RSL features. We also estimate temperature and atmospheric water abundances in the study area, which are two of the main factors to explain the origin and formation of RSL. The study found that the Asimov crater’s local temperatures are high enough to allow either the melting of brines or deliquescence of calcium perchlorate and other salts during the HiRISE observation period and found the water vapor column to be nearly five times higher than those measured “before RSL appearance.” This supports the theory of deliquescence as one of the mechanisms for the regolith-atmosphere interaction and RSL formation in the studied crater, which suggests that minerals absorb moisture from the environment until the minerals dissolve in the absorbed water and yield a solution. We also used compact reconnaissance imaging spectrometer for Mars–derived browse products for a compositional study associated with RSL features hosting craters and surface characteristics of Mars.

Micro-structural and compositional study: ε-Fe2O3 crystals in the Hare’s Fur Jian Ware

The Jian kilns in the present-day Jianyang county of Fujian province are well-known as their thick and lustrous black-glazed porcelain production. The hare’s fur (HF) glazed Jian wares characterized by radial fur-like strips, as one of the most typical representatives of black-glazed tea bowls, are originated from phase separation of glaze melt and crystallization of iron oxides. In this work, various techniques were performed on the yellowish-brown HF samples, including portable energy-dispersive X-ray fluorescence (PXRF), synchrotron X-ray absorption near-edge spectroscopy (XANES), optical microscopy (OM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Raman spectroscopy (RS). The objective of this study was to well understand the microstructure characteristics and chemical compositions of glaze patterns. Results showed that the main constituents of the ceramic glaze were alumina (10.61-16.43 wt.%), silica (62.20-77.07 wt.%), calcium (3.85-6.97 wt.%) and iron oxide (4.10-8.35 wt.%). The studies evidenced that the presence of metastable epsilon-hematite crystals (ε-Fe2O3) formed on the brownish yellow glazed surface. Microstructural analysis revealed that there were three types of crystal structures in the glaze surface, one consisted of well-grown leaf-like or dendritic-like structure with highly ordered branches at micrometers scales, one was comprised of flower-like clusters accompanied by branches radiating from the center, petals growing along the branches and needles on both sides of the petals, and the last embraced a honeycomb structure tightly packed with plentiful spherical or irregular-shaped particles. In addition, ε-Fe2O3 crystals in the cross-section of glaze showed a gradient distribution.

Compositional study of the lost temples in instructional design

The article presents the design and research work of the authors and first-year architecture students of Irkutsk National Research Technical University concerning compositional study of lost temples of Irkutsk with the reconstruction of their architectural appearance. The illustrative material was prepared using the students’ works. The complex of Siberian Baroque temples in Irkutsk in the mid-18th – late 19th centuries and various types of church buildings were studied. The work uses modeling as a tool for predicting the architectural appearance of the temple. Sketch drawings and models of the Miracle-Working, Tikhvinsky and Annunciation temples were completed, and the model of the evolution of Siberian Baroque temples was recreated. The main stages of the term project, from building functional, planning and volumetric models to designing image and structural characteristics of the object on the sample board, were presented.

Assessment of the Effects of Back Sloping on Some Starter Culture Strains and the Organoleptic Qualities of their Yoghurt Products

Fermented milk is an essential commodity in Africa and beyond. Many techniques have been developed over time for the manufacture of different forms of yoghurt products. One of these Traditional methods includes back slopping). The advantages of this method include faster fermentation rates due to reduction in lag time, and subsequent production of relevant metabolites as well as allowing for a more reliable product formation on a consistent basis. The aim of this study was to better understand, the effects of back sloping on the microbial community as well as on the organoleptic characteristics of the yoghurts produced using the method. The model from this work could be used to study the dynamics of the microbial community associated with back-slopping practices and the understanding of possible associated defects in order to allow better control over the application of the method on commercial levels. We characterized the yoghurt produced from both microbial compositional study using culture-dependent morphological examinations on MRS, M17, Nutrient Agar and Potato dextrose Agar, as well as from organoleptic point of view. The results show that back sloping up to three-fold (batch) gave increasing acceptance but decreased afterwards. Acidification activity which determines proteolysis of casein for coagulation to take place also increased up to three folds. Residual lactose, syneresis and moisture content also decreased favourably by three fold order. Therefore, back sloping could be recommended on commercial level especially in the developing countries where facilities for consistent supply of pouched starter culture are limited because, aside the above mentioned advantages, this process also favours the growth of bacteria which release antimicrobial substances thereby ensuring the growth of the same species while reducing the growth of other organisms thereby preserving the products’ quality.

Composition of time in movement behaviors and weight change in Latinx, Black and white participants

Background The relationship between time-use behaviors and prospective weight change is poorly understood. Methods A subset of Cancer Prevention Study-3 participants (n = 549, 58% women, 66% non-Latinx white) self-reported weight in 2015 and 2018 and completed an accelerometer protocol for seven days. Sedentary time, sleep, light, moderate, and vigorous intensity physical activity (PA) were treated as a compositional variable and multiple linear regression was used to examine associations between activity composition and weight change stratified by sex and race/ethnicity. Compositional isotemporal substitution analysis was used to quantify change in weight associated with reallocating 30 min./day. Results Activity composition was associated with weight change among women (p = 0.007), but not men (p = 0.356), and among Latinx (p = 0.032) and white participants (p = 0.001), but not Black participants (p = 0.903). Replacement of 30 min./day sedentary time with moderate-vigorous PA was associated with 3.49 lbs. loss (-6.76, -0.22) in Latinx participants and replacement with sleep was associated with 1.52 (0.25, 2.79) and 1.31 (0.40, 2.21) lbs. gain in white women and men. Conclusion The distribution of time spent in daily behaviors was associated with three-year weight change in women, Latinx, and white participants. This was the first longitudinal compositional study of weight change; thus, more studies are needed.