The formation of ordered particle arrays plays an essential role in nanotechnology, biological systems, and inorganic photonic structures in the geosphere. Here, we show how ordered arrays of amorphous silica spheres form in deeply weathered lithologies of the Great Artesian Basin (central Australia). Our multi-method approach, using optical and scanning electron microscopy, X-ray microdiffract...

The objective of this study is to elucidate the association between high-arsenic artesian well water and cancers in endemic area of blackfoot disease, a unique peripheral vascular disease related to continuous arsenic exposure. As compared with the general population in Taiwan, both the standardized mortality ratio (SMR) and cumulative mortality rate were significantly high in blackfoot disease...

Microbacterium sp. strain TNHR37B was isolated from a geothermal bore well sample (50°C) collected from a region of coal seam gas extraction activities. The 3.5-Mb genome with a G+C content of 69.9% contained unique genes, and a low similarity value for average nucleotide identity using BLAST was observed with the available 73 Microbacterium sp. genomes.

Australia produces over 90% of the world’s precious opal from highly weathered Cretaceous sedimentary rocks within the Great Artesian Basin. Since opal was first discovered around 1870 until the present day, opal mining has been carried out by private operators working a claim no larger than 50 50 m, usually in the direct vicinity of areas that have yielded precious opal in the past. Currently ...

BACKGROUND Long-term exposure to ingested arsenic has been documented to induce peripheral vascular disease, ischemic heart disease, and cerebral infarction in a dose-response relationship. This study further examined the biological gradient between ingested inorganic arsenic and carotid atherosclerosis. METHODS AND RESULTS We studied 199 male and 264 female adult residents from the southwest...

In order to elucidate the dose-response relationship between ingested inorganic arsenic and internal cancers, a total of 263 patients with blackfoot disease and 2293 healthy residents in the endemic area of arseniasis were recruited and followed up for 7 years. The information on consumption of high-arsenic artesian well water, sociodemographic characteristics, life-style and dietary habits, an...

Supraglacial streams are a significant part of the glacial hydrological system and important for understanding the connection between glacial hydrology and glacier dynamics. Here we determine the factors that influence the development of step-pool formation and pulsating flow in a supraglacial stream on Bylot Island, Nunavut. Results show that during the second week of a 2-week study, multiple ...

Pyrolysis-gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (py-GC/MS) is an analytical tool used to produce a ‘‘fingerprint’’ of dissolved organic matter (DOM) in water. Py-GC/MS fingerprinting was used in this research to lend insight into the complex subsurface hydrology of a permafrost-dominated watershed near Fairbanks, AK. Fingerprinting analysis was conducted on groundwater, artesian spring, and stre...

AIMS Molecular procedures were used to identify Thiothrix spp. in biofilms from sulphide-rich waters in two distinct ecosystems. METHODS AND RESULTS Biofilm samples were obtained from two groundwater-fed systems in central and northern Florida, including an artesian spring and municipal water tank. The 16S rDNA in each sample was directly amplified by polymerase chain reaction. CONCLUSIONS ...