The most important and sensitive level in the modification of rangelands surrounding the mine is the initial seedling establishment of plants, which often faces failure due to adverse environmental conditions, poor soil nutrients, disturbance of soil different layers and its instability and unstable soil around the mines. New methods of rangeland improvement using biological and non-biological ...

Two modes of plastic flow localization commonly occur in the ductile fracture of structural metals undergoing damage and failure by the mechanism involving void nucleation, growth and coalescence. The first mode consists of a macroscopic localization, usually linked to the softening effect of void nucleation and growth, in either a normal band or a shear band where the thickness of the band is ...

Cells in a variety of developmental contexts sense extracellular cues that are given locally on their surfaces, and subsequently amplify the initial signal to achieve cell polarization. Drosophila wing cells acquire planar polarity along the proximal-distal (P-D) axis, in which the amplification of the presumptive cue involves assembly of a multiprotein complex that spans distal and proximal bo...

We have analyzed the spontaneous symmetry breaking and initiation of actin-based motility in keratocytes (fish epithelial cells). In stationary keratocytes, the actin network flow was inwards and radially symmetric. Immediately before motility initiation, the actin network flow increased at the prospective cell rear and reoriented in the perinuclear region, aligning with the prospective axis of...

Nuclear movement often requires interactions between the cell cortex and microtubules. A new study has revealed a novel protein interaction linking microtubule plus-ends with the cortex and a role for dynein in microtubule shrinkage-coupled movement.

A diverse group of developmental biologists who study cell polarity gathered in late March 2009 at the RIKEN Center for Developmental Biology in Kobe, Japan, for a symposium entitled ;Shape and Polarity'. The organizers, Masatoshi Takeichi, Fumio Matsuzaki, Hitoshi Sawa [RIKEN Center for Developmental Biology (CDB), Kobe, Japan] and Carl-Philipp Heisenberg (Max Planck Institute, Dresden, German...

The paper presents new results on the localization and transmission of flexural waves in a structured plate containing a semi-infinite two-dimensional array of rigid pins. In particular, localized waves are identified and studied at the interface boundary between the homogeneous part of the flexural plate and the part occupied by rigid pins. A formal connection has been made with the dispersion...

We extend the analytical theory of propagating concentration polarization (CP) to describe and compare the effects of constant-voltage versus constant-current conditions on the transient development of CP enrichment and depletion zones. We support our analysis with computational and experimental results. We find that at constant voltage, enrichment and depletion regions spread as t(1/2) as oppo...

Many mathematical models have been proposed for the process of cell polarization. Some of these are 'functional models' that capture a class of dynamical behaviour, whereas others are derived from features of signalling molecules. Some mechanistic models are detailed, and therefore complex, whereas others are simplified. Each type contributes to our understanding of cell polarization. However, ...