Assessing the Radiological Risks Associated with High Natural Radioactivity of Microgranitic Rocks: A Case Study in a Northeastern Desert of Egypt

This study aimed to evaluate the radiological hazards of uranium (238U), thorium (232Th), and potassium (40K) in microgranitic rocks from the southeastern part of Wadi Baroud, a northeastern desert of Egypt. The activity concentrations of the measured radionuclides were determined by using a gamma-ray spectrometer (NaI-Tl-activated detector). The mean (238U), (232Th), and (40K) concentrations in the studied rocks were found to be 3680.3, 3635.2, and 822.76 Bq/kg, respectively. The contents in these rocks were elevated, reaching up to 6.3 wt%. This indicated the alkaline nature of these rocks. The high ratios of Th/U in the mineralized rocks could be related to late magmatic mineralization, suggesting the ascent of late magmatic fluids through weak planes such as faults and the contact of these rocks with older granites. The present data were higher than those of the United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation (UNSCEAR) guideline limits. All the radiological hazard results indicated high human health risks. This confirmed that this area is not radiologically safe, and care must be taken when working in this area. This study showed that the area under investigation had high U content suitable for uranium extraction that could be used in the nuclear fuel cycle.

Analysis of the genus thymus of the southeastern part of the northern caucasus

The paper presents the analysis of the genus Thymus of the flora of the South-East of the North Caucasus. Revealed the total species, compiled an aspect of the genus Thymus, and conducted the analysis's bioecological, geographical composition. In the investigated territory, we have registered eight thymus species, distributed mainly in xerophilic types of vegetation: steppe, friganoid, alpine, meadow-steppe, and meadow societies.

Ubiquitous but Ignored? A Case of Water Beetle in Southeastern Europe

Although freshwater habitats, especially springs, are widely recognized as top-priority habitats for monitoring and conservation procedures, their fauna, especially water beetles, are still poorly studied in the southeastern part of Europe. Thus, the dominant water beetle in these habitats, E. bosnica (Zaitzev, 1908) (Insecta: Coleoptera: Elmidae), has been completely ignored and misidentified. This study represents the first review of its taxonomy and its population and ecological traits. Both published and unpublished data are presented and discussed, as well as the results of field sampling in 46 springs and other waterbodies conducted in this region from 2004 to 2019. The identification characters of the male genitalia and the first DNA barcode of the species are presented. The results confirm the close phylogenetic relationship of E. bosnica with E. aenea (Müller, 1806) and E. rioloides (Kuwert, 1890). The species proved to be a useful environmental descriptor and can easily be used as a biological indicator due to its easy identification. The species shows remarkable sensitivity to environmental conditions and inhabits sites that are potentially under increased anthropogenic pressure and could disappear at an alarming rate. Thus, karstic habitats should be included in future conservation and monitoring procedures in this part of Europe.

Climatically Driven Landscape Evolution in the High-Mountainous Russian Altai and Its Human Occupation Over the Past 20 Thousand Years

Multidisciplinary studies of various natural archives indicate contrasting changes in the human habitat in the high-mountainous southeastern part of the Russian Altai during the last 20,000 years. This period includes the final stage of the last glaciation and its degradation, the formation of the last giant ice-dammed lakes in the intermountain basins and their cataclysmic draining, considerable transformation of glacial landscapes to modern diverse and mosaic structure. Warmer and more humid climate in the first half of the Holocene was followed by cooling and repeated advances of mountain glaciers. The general trend to cooling and aridization in the second half of the Holocene is the most pronounced during the last two millennia. Deglaciation and final drying of intermountain basins boosted a renovation of the local ecosystems and established an environmental baseline of human occupation in the region. The arid climate, widespread permafrost and low population density determined a good preservation of archaeological heritage in the region, which is located at the crossroad between East and West, North and South. This paper presents the analysis of previously published and new data including newly obtained 14C and OSL dates, which allow to correlate climatically driven landscape transformations with habitat of ancient communities and cultures shifting in the region during the last 20, 000 years, as well as to assess the anthropogenic impact on the environment.

Application seismic refraction method to characterize the building site of Injibara University building site,injibara Ethiopia

Geophysical investigation using seismic refraction method was conducted for engineering characterization of the foundation conditions of Injibara University buildings construction site located in Injibara town of Amhara Regional State, northwestern Ethiopia. The principal objective of the research was studying the suitability of the foundation earth materials underlying the site, where Injibara University is established. The seven refraction seismic spreads, seismic velocity models interpretation have provided valuable geotechnical information incorporated with available geologic information in the study area. Interpretation of geophysical data revealed that the subsurface geology of the area is composed of three layers. The topsoil consisted of clay, silt and sand mixtures having a 1-4 m thickness and 255-510 m/s p-wave velocity ranges are mapped over the whole area. The second layer attributed to the highly weathered and fractured vesicular basalt is characterized by 948-1802 m/s P-wave velocity range and revealed somewhat undulating morphology. The depth extent of this layer varies from about 10m on the North West end and southeastern parts and to about 27m around the central part. The third layer occurred in the depth range of 10-27m is characterized by greater than 2550m/s average high p-wave velocity and it is due to moderately weathered and fractured basaltic bedrock, which is deeper near to the center of the profiles and gets shallower towards North West end and southeastern portions. Besides, analyses of collected data have suggested the possible locations of minor structural discontinuities (maybe local fractures).The geophysical results show that the bedrock is found at shallow depth in the northwestern end and southeastern part of the study area, whereas in the central part of the survey area the bedrock is found relatively at high depth. Therefore, setting the building foundation is more recommended in the southeastern part of the construction site.

Economic Availability of Forest Resources in Russia: An Analytical Assessment

The topic of the availability of forest resources is especially relevant for Russia, given the volume of the existing potential of these resources, distributed over a huge area of the country. The purpose of the article is to substantiate the possibilities of using the economic availability of forest resources in the practice of forestry in the Russian Federation. The article presents an analysis of the application of tools based on the economic availability of forest resources. It presents the classification of the forms of forest resources availability and analysis of possible situations that may occur assessing the economic availability of forest resources. The authors analyzed various methods of assessing the economic availability of forest wood resources, formed a criterion of economic availability and considered various conditions of economic availability. The results of calculations of economic availability assessments for the Vilegodskoe forestry located in the southeastern part of the Arkhangelsk region, according to which 19.1% of the analyzed plots were recognized as economically unavailable, are presented. The analysis of the characteristics of economically unavailable forest wood resources in the studied object has been carried out. Proposals have been developed on the spheres of the possible use of the toolkit for the economic availability of forest wood resources. The economic availability of forest resources can be widely used in the forestry practice of the Russian Federation in the areas of pricing and forest exploitation optimization. Its application will increase the level of payments for forest resources, due to the withdrawal of excess profits of loggers, and will also ensure the formation of more realistic forest plans.

Platinum-Group Minerals in the Placer of the Kitoy River, East Sayan, Russia

The platinum-group minerals (PGM) in placer deposits provide important information on the types of their primary source rocks and ores and formation and alteration conditions. The article shows for the first time the results of a study of placer platinum mineralization found in the upper reaches of the Kitoy River (the southeastern part of the Eastern Sayan (SEPES)). Using modern methods of analysis (scanning electron microscopy), the authors studied the microtextural features of platinum-group minerals (PGM), their composition, texture, morphology and composition of microinclusions, rims, and other types of changes. The PGM are Os‑Ir‑Ru alloys with a pronounced ruthenium trend. Many of the Os‑Ir‑Ru grains have porous, fractured, or altered rims that contain secondary PGE sulfides, arsenides, sulfarsenides, Ir-Ni-Fe alloys, and rarer selenides, arsenoselenides, and tellurides of the PGE. The data obtained made it possible to identify the root sources of PGM in the placer and to make assumptions about the stages of transformation of primary igneous Os-Ir-Ru alloys from bedrock to placer. We assume that there are several stages of alteration of high-temperature Os-Ir-Ru alloys. The late magmatic stage is associated with the effect of fluid-saturated residual melt enriched with S, As. The post-magmatic hydrothermal stage (under conditions of changing reducing conditions to oxidative ones) is associated with the formation of telluro-selenides and oxide phases of PGE. The preservation of poorly rounded and unrounded PGM grains in the placer suggests a short transport from their primary source. The source of the platinum-group minerals from the Kitoy River placer is the rocks of the Southern ophiolite branch of SEPES and, in particular, the southern plate of the Ospa-Kitoy ophiolite complex, and primarily chromitites.

Gambar Cadas Antropomorfik di Kepulauan Maluku

Anthropomorphic Images of Rock Art In Moluccas Archipelago, Indonesia (Case Study In Kaimear and Kisar Island, Maluku). The Maluku Islands Cluster consists of a group of large and small islands located horizontally and vertically between the equator. These geographical conditions make the Maluku Islands as one of the characters of archipelagic rock image sites in Indonesia. This paper presents the shape and distribution of anthropomorphic rock images in the Maluku Islands in the Wallacea Region. The research location covers the southeastern part of the Maluku Islands, namely Kaimear Island and Kisar Island, Maluku Province. The purpose of this paper is to determine the shape and distribution of anthropomorphic rock images in the Maluku Islands. This study used the descriptive qualitative method. The data used is a combination of data obtained from research in 2014 - 2019. The results show that there are eighty forms of human rock images scattered on sites on Kisar Island, which include the Here Sorot Entapa, Herku, Intutun, Irmula, Kulwasuru, Lenhorhorok, Liotitin, Salpuru,Wakurai, Hersorsorot, and one site on Kaimear Island, the Kel lein Site. Abstrak. Gugusan Kepulauan Maluku terdiri atas gugusan pulau-pulau besar dan kecil terletak sejajar secara horizontal dan vertikal di antara garis khatulistiwa. Kondisi geografis tersebut menjadikan Kepulauan Maluku sebagai salah satu karakter situs gambar cadas kepulauan di Indonesia. Tulisan ini menyajikan bentuk dan sebaran gambar cadas motif antropomorfik di Kepulauan Maluku yang berada di Kawasan Wallacea. Lokasi penelitian mencakup wilayah gugusan Kepulauan Maluku bagian tenggara, yaitu Pulau Kaimear dan Pulau Kisar, Provinsi Maluku. Tujuan penulisan ini adalah untuk mengetahui bentuk dan sebaran gambar cadas antropormofik di Kepulauan Maluku. Penelitian ini menggunakan metode deskriptif kualitatif. Data yang digunakan merupakan gabungan antara data yang diperoleh dari penelitian tahun 2014 - 2019. Hasil penelitian menunjukan bahwa terdapat delapan puluh bentuk gambar cadas manusia yang tersebar di situs di Pulau Kisar, yang meliputi Situs Here Sorot Entapa, Herku, Intutun, Irmula, Kulwasuru, Lenhorhorok, Liotitin, Salpuru, Wakurai, Hersorsorot, dan satu situs di Pulau Kaimear, yaitu Situs Kel lein.

Stoichiometry of carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus in wastewater from Romania

Water resources crisis can lead to a new concept of wastewater treatment. Wastewater cannot be considered waste but can be a renewable or non-renewable energy source. Nutrients from wastewater could be recycled and not disposed of. A circular economy can be created that can be based on the ability of algae to absorb and store nutrients: carbon (C), nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P). This study investigates the stoichiometry between carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus in wastewater from three geographical regions of Romania. The concentrations of inorganic nitrogen, total nitrogen, total phosphorus, and total organic carbon were compared and evaluated. Three wastewater sampling points located in different areas were monitored, in the period 2013-2017 for the sampling point located in the central-northern part of the Romanian Plain and in the period 2015-2017 for the other two studied areas. The obtained results showed very high values of total nitrogen concentrations with values between 28.2 mg/L and 107.2 mg/L for the southeastern part of Romania. The values of the stoichiometric ratio’s C/N, C/P, N/P have varied over time with maximums in the autumn and winter seasons which indicates the existence of significant contamination of wastewater. It may be possible in the future to improve the performance of wastewater treatment by adjusting C, N, and P parameters.