Soil erosion is a severe and continuous environmental problem caused mainly by natural factors, which can be enhanced anthropogenic activities. The morphological relief with relatively steep slopes, the dense drainage network, Mediterranean climate are some of factors that render Paleochora region (South Chania, Crete, Greece) particularly prone to soil in cases intense rainfall events. In this...

The problem of accurate determination of the position, orientation and width of involute spur gear teeth using a single front-lit image is addressed. The information is used to compute global measures of tooth concentricity and pitch variations across a gear wheel. The approach is based on the use of specialised filters which make maximum use of the grey level information available in the image...

3-Nitrobenzanthrone (3-NBA), a potent mutagen and suspected human carcinogen, is a common environmental pollutant. The genotoxicity of 3-NBA has been associated with its ability to form DNA adducts, including N-(2'-deoxyguanosin-8-yl)-3-aminobenzanthrone (C8-dG-ABA). To investigate the molecular mechanism of C8-dG-ABA mutagenesis in human cells, we have replicated a plasmid containing a single ...

Trace elements are chemical elements needed in minute amounts for normal physiology. Some of the physiologically relevant trace elements include iodine, copper, iron, manganese, zinc, selenium, cobalt and molybdenum. Of these, some are metals, and in particular, transition metals. The different electron shells of an atom carry different energy levels, with those closest to the nucleus being low...