Alabama Agricultural and Mechanical University

Abstract Wild pigs ( Sus scrofa ; feral pigs, feral swine, wild boar) are invasive animals that disturb and damage native ecosystems, threatening biodiversity, especially in forests. In North America, wild pigs are now widespread throughout the southeastern United States, where prescribed fire has become a common tool in forest management. Recently burned areas often attract wildlife, so managers need to know how prescribed fire may affect wild pig habitat use. From 2014 to 2016, we visually surveyed for pig sign using strip transects in 8 burned and 9 unburned forest stands in the Black Warrior Wildlife Management Area and the Sipsey Wilderness, within the William B. Bankhead National Forest (BNF) in Alabama, USA. On each transect we measured several habitat variables, including vertical forest structure from ground cover to canopy cover, to determine features associated with wild pig habitat use and prescribed fire. Signs of pig activity were most often present in unburned stands adjacent to the Sipsey Wilderness boundary. Where present, pig sign was more abundant where there was greater overstory tree species evenness, fine woody debris cover, understory deciduous species composition, and leaf litter cover. Our results indicated that wild pig activity was lower in stands managed under a 3‐year prescribed burn regimen, while activity and associated damage were higher in and near the Sipsey Wilderness. Natural resource managers should consider how management activities, like prescribed burning, may alter wild pig habitat use and should be mindful to protect ecologically sensitive areas, like wildernesses.

In this paper we show that the use of a resonant cavity filled with a lossy dielectric can overcome the negative energy density requirement in Alcubierre’s warp field equations. By using an imaginary part equal to or greater than the real part in the shaping function we generate a positive, non-exotic energy density requirement to generate and sustain the warp bubble necessary to transport a craft through space. We show simulation results for various shaping functions, the resulting Yorke time deformation, and the energy density over the warp bubble required. We discuss potential realizations of a device which generates such a field using electromagnetic and rf theory. Finally, we propose and show results of a simple experiment that uses these principles.

The single-stranded DNA binding protein of bacteriophage T4, gp32, has important roles in replication, recombination, and repair. gp32 possesses three domains: the central (core) domain which contains the binding trough for single-stranded DNA, the N-terminal domain, which interacts with the core domain of an adjacent ssDNA-bound protein, bringing about binding cooperativity, and the C-terminal domain, which interacts with other proteins involved in replication, recombination, and repair. The essential residues within the N-domain for the association with the adjacent DNA bound gp32, Lys-Arg-Lys-Ser-Thr, the “LAST Motif”, is almost identical to the ssDNA-interactive residues within the core domain binding trough, and was the basis of a model in which a “closed” ⇄ “open” conformational change within core domain controls DNA binding. In this study, we show that alteration of the core domain LAST sequence, while maintaining its composition, can have an effect on the binding parameters, and may be the result of a shift in the closed-open equilibrium. Additionally, utilizing a gp32 truncated at residue 227, as well as amino acid substituted variants, we have further localized the residues within the core domain responsible for the protein-protein association leading to cooperative ssDNA binding. Truncation leads to an increase in the non-cooperative affinity for single-stranded nucleic acids, which can be explained by the absence of a closed conformation in this variant. The truncated protein forms a tight complex with core domain on a 12-residue oligonucleotide, a potential candidate for further structural study.

ABSTRACT At the end of World War II, the British Empire in Asia found itself in terminal decline. British officials planned for their retreat, but they would not leave before ‘reasonable parties’ could take their place and serve their two key interests: maintaining the extractive capitalist market and ensuring a continued British geo-strategic presence. By doing a comparative study between Burma and Malaya between 1945 and 1948, this article finds that, in both cases, colonial officials preferred anti-immigrant ethnonationalist parties. It argues that the British logic here was the logic of passive revolution. The Myochit Party in Burma and the United Malays National Organization in Malaya both promoted the ‘immigrant problem’ as the foremost issue. Both demonstrated that neither had any interest in reforming extractive capitalism or even in resisting British influence, but simply in replacing the British at the top of the political and economic hierarchy in their countries. Therefore, these parties could retain existing structures while harnessing revolutionary energy into persecuting scapegoats. The article’s intervention is to use the framework of passive revolution to explain why ethnonationalism has been the most successful form of anti-communism in the twentieth century, and to make progress toward explaining its worldwide prevalence today.

Potassium barium borate glasses (KBBO) embedded with europium and/or silver were made by the melt quenching technique. Silver metallic particles were induced by the heat-treatment technique. The average size of the particles is 4 nm. The influence of silver metallic particles (Ag MPs) on the luminescence characteristics of Eu3+-doped glass samples was examined by absorption, emission and excitation spectral measurements after each heat treatment. Under UV excitation Eu3+ emission intensity increased significantly in KBBO:EuAg co-doped glass due to efficient energy transfer and plasmonic coupling between Ag particles and Eu3+ ions. Energy transfer from Ag clusters to Eu3+ was demonstrated experimentally. Samples annealed in a reduced atmosphere revealed the presence of Eu2+ ions in the KBBO glass. The Eu doped sample annealed in a reduced atmosphere glowed bright white under 375 nm laser excitation. Color coordinates, color temperature and color rendering index (CRI) were measured for the glass which indicated that this material is suitable for the development of white light generating phosphor coatings for LED bulbs. The Judd–Ofelt (J–O) intensity parameters, radiative transition probabilities, branching ratios and emission cross-sections were estimated for these glasses. This study has provided valuable insights into the interaction between Ag particles and Eu3+ ions. The data indicates that Eu2+, Eu3+-doped glasses are suitable for the development of optically pumped solid state lasers and nonlinear optical devices.

We report that poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) matrices facilitate nanosecond photoinduced electron transfer (PET) from cyanine dyes to CaTiO3 nanocrystals, yielding distinct radical cation excited-state absorption (ESA) with well-resolved D0→D1 and D1→D2 transitions. In dye-only PVA films, UV hole-burning produces a minority radical cation population, evidenced by a blue-shifted ESA band mirroring the D1→D2 manifold. Kinetic analysis of the ternary PVA–dye–CaTiO3 system reveals a shared nanosecond decay (τ2 ≈ 4–7 ns) for both oxide ESA and radical cation transitions, confirming coupled charge-separated states. These results establish orbital-level insight into how polymer matrices regulate PET and radical stabilization, providing a mechanistic foundation for programmable hybrid photonic devices.

Agricultural exports in Nigeria have been adversely affected by fluctuations in macroeconomic indicators. Insufficient private agricultural investment and limited public expenditure directed toward the sector have resulted in inadequate productivity and suboptimal export performance. This study investigates the macroeconomic determinants of agricultural exports in Nigeria. A multiple regression model is specified, with agricultural exports (as a percentage of total merchandise exports) as the dependent variable. The independent variables are national output (economic growth rate), inflation rate, interest rate, exchange rate, and tariff rate. The analysis employs descriptive statistics, correlation, stationarity, and cointegration tests. After confirming the absence of multicollinearity, heterogeneity, autocorrelation, and nonstationarity in the time series data, the variables are deemed suitable for regression analysis. The model is estimated using ordinary least squares, and the results are interpreted at the 5% significance level. The findings indicate that all macroeconomic indicators, except the tariff rate, significantly influence agricultural exports. It is recommended that Nigerian policymakers reassess the effects of macroeconomic policies on the country's external balance, with particular attention to agricultural exports.