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While the video gaming training may enhance visual working memory (VWM), at the same time VWM is a key cognitive function in effective video gaming. In our study we examined the relationship between EEG data obtained during the visual working memory task and a real-time strategy (RTS) video game performance. The training lasted 30 hour, during which participants played StarCraft II, in either a fixed (FEG) or variable environment (VEG) training model, which were made to explore the role of a training complexity as an important factor. An EEG measurement took place before and after the training while performing a visual working memory task. Initial (pre-training) posterior alpha and frontal midline theta power have been specified as predictors of players' in-game advancement. Using a logistic regression model we determined telemetric variables predictive of game output. It turned out that both oscillatory bands were predictive of values of the four of the previously determined telemetric variables, but only in the FEG. Moreover we have seen differences between FEG and VEG in telemetry as well as in the neurophysiological data. Our results show how important is the complexity of the training regimen for observing the predictive power of VWM’s EEG oscillatory indicators.

The aim of this study was the evaluation of the relationship between the presence of tardigrades and various levels of sewage pollution in different tanks of a wastewater treatment plant. The study was carried out in the wastewater treatment plant located near Poznań (Poland) during one research season. The study was conducted in a system consisting of three bioreactor tanks and a secondary clarifier tank, sampled at regular time periods. The presence of one tardigrade species, Thulinius ruffoi, was recorded in the samples. The tardigrades occurred in highest abundance in the tanks containing wastewater with a higher nutrient load. Thulinius ruffoi was mainly present in well-oxygenated activated sludge and its abundance was subject to seasonal fluctuations; however, its preference for more polluted tanks seems to be consistent across the year. Although more detailed experimental study is needed to support the observations, our data indicate that T. ruffoi has a high potential to be used as a bioindicator of nutrient load changes.

The authors acknowledge COST Action ES 1105 "CYANOCOST Cyanobacterial blooms and toxins in water resources: Occurrence impacts and management" and COST Action Global Change Biology ES 1201 NETLAKE -Networking Lake Observatories in Europe" for contributing to this study through networking and knowledge sharing with European experts in the field. We acknowledge the members of the Global Lake Ecological Observatory Network (GLEON) for their collaborative spirit and enthusiasm that inspired the grassroots effort of the EMLS. E.M. was supported by a grant from the Swiss State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation to Bas Ibelings and by supplementary funding from University of Geneva. We thank Wendy Beekman for the nutrient analysis. We thank Pieter Slot for assisting with the pigment analysis. We thank Dr. Ian Jones for valuable feedback on an earlier version of the manuscript. We thank the Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and the Aquatic Microbial Ecology Group for logistic and technical support of J. Fonvielle and H.-P. Grossart, and the Leibniz Association for financial support. H.P. was supported by the US National Science Foundation (1840715, 1831096). A.C.'s work was funded by the Spanish Agencia Estatal de Investigacion and EU funds through the project CLIMAWET (CGL2015-69557-R). The collection of data for Lough Erne and Lough Neagh were funded by the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs, Northern Ireland. We are grateful to Kristiina Vuorio from the Freshwater Centre of the Finnish Environment institute for her help in organizing, collecting and analysing samples by the University of Jyvaskyla and to Gerald Dorflinger from the Water Development Department of Cyprus for his assistance with the sampling in Cyprus and for granting the CUT team permission to use WDD's equipment. Finally, we would like to thank the numerous other assistants that helped realizing each local survey. Open access funding provided by Universite de Geneve., To determine the drivers of phytoplankton biomass, we collected standardized morphometric, physical, and biological data in 230 lakes across the Mediterranean, Continental, and Boreal climatic zones of the European continent. Multilinear regression models tested on this snapshot of mostly eutrophic lakes (median total phosphorus [TP] = 0.06 and total nitrogen [TN] = 0.7 mg L-1), and its subsets (2 depth types and 3 climatic zones), show that light climate and stratification strength were the most significant explanatory variables for chlorophyll a (Chl a) variance. TN was a significant predictor for phytoplankton biomass for shallow and continental lakes, while TP never appeared as an explanatory variable, suggesting that under high TP, light, which partially controls stratification strength, becomes limiting for phytoplankton development. Mediterranean lakes were the warmest yet most weakly stratified and had significantly less Chl a than Boreal lakes, where the temperature anomaly from the long-term average, during a summer heatwave was the highest (+4 degrees C) and showed a significant, exponential relationship with stratification strength. This European survey represents a summer snapshot of phytoplankton biomass and its drivers, and lends support that light and stratification metrics, which are both affected by climate change, are better predictors for phytoplankton biomass in nutrient-rich lakes than nutrient concentrations and surface temperature., European Cooperation in Science and Technology (COST) ES 1105 ES 1201, Swiss State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation, University of Geneva, Leibniz Association, National Science Foundation (NSF) 1840715 1831096, Spanish Agencia Estatal de Investigacion, European Commission CGL2015-69557-R, Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs, Northern Ireland

The impact of action videogame playing on cognitive functioning is the subject of debate among scientists, with many studies showing superior performance of players relative to non-players on a number of cognitive tasks. Moreover, the exact role of individual differences in the observed effects is still largely unknown. In our Event-Related Potential (ERP) study we investigated whether training in a Real Time Strategy (RTS) video game StarCraft II can influence the ability to deploy visual attention measured by the Attentional Blink (AB) task. We also asked whether individual differences in a psychophysiological response in the AB task predict the effectiveness of the video game training. Forty-three participants (non-players) were recruited to the experiment. Participants were randomly assigned to either experimental (Variable environment) or active control (Fixed environment) group, which differed in the type of training received. Training consisted of 30 h of playing the StarCraft II game. Participants took part in two EEG sessions (pre- and post-training) during which they performed the AB task. Our results indicate that both groups improved their performance in the AB task in the post-training session. What is more, in the experimental group the strength of the amplitude of the P300 ERP component (which is related to a conscious visual perception) in the pre training session appeared to be predictive of the level of achievement in the game. In the case of the active control group in-game behaviour appeared to be predictive of a training-related improvement in the AB task. Our results suggest that differences in the neurophysiological response might be treated as a marker of future success in video game acquisition, especially in a more demanding game environment., Attentional blink, Video games, Real-time strategy, Cognitive training, Individual differences, Event-related potentials (ERPs).

Insight into how environmental change determines the production and distribution of cyanobacterial toxins is necessary for risk assessment. Management guidelines currently focus on hepatotoxins (microcystins). Increasing attention is given to other classes, such as neurotoxins (e.g., anatoxin-a) and cytotoxins (e.g., cylindrospermopsin) due to their potency. Most studies examine the relationship between individual toxin variants and environmental factors, such as nutrients, temperature and light. In summer 2015, we collected samples across Europe to investigate the effect of nutrient and temperature gradients on the variability of toxin production at a continental scale. Direct and indirect effects of temperature were the main drivers of the spatial distribution in the toxins produced by the cyanobacterial community, the toxin concentrations and toxin quota. Generalized linear models showed that a Toxin Diversity Index (TDI) increased with latitude, while it decreased with water stability. Increases in TDI were explained through a significant increase in toxin variants such as MC-YR, anatoxin and cylindrospermopsin, accompanied by a decreasing presence of MC-LR. While global warming continues, the direct and indirect effects of increased lake temperatures will drive changes in the distribution of cyanobacterial toxins in Europe, potentially promoting selection of a few highly toxic species or strains. © 2018 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland., The authors acknowledge COST Action ES 1105 “CYANOCOST—Cyanobacterial blooms and toxins in water resources: Occurrence impacts and management” and COST Action ES 1201 “NETLAKE—Networking Lake Observatories in Europe” for contributing to this study through networking and knowledge sharing with European experts in the field. Evanthia Mantzouki was supported by a grant from the Swiss State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation (SERI) to Bas Ibelings and by supplementary funding from the University of Geneva. We thank Clare Ahnlund, Ena Suarez and Irene Gallego for helping out with the Swiss survey. We thank Wendy Beekman and Els J. Faassen for the nutrient and toxin analysis.

Under ongoing climate change and increasing anthropogenic activity, which continuously challenge ecosystem resilience, an in-depth understanding of ecological processes is urgently needed. Lakes, as providers of numerous ecosystem services, face multiple stressors that threaten their functioning. Harmful cyanobacterial blooms are a persistent problem resulting from nutrient pollution and climate-change induced stressors, like poor transparency, increased water temperature and enhanced stratification. Consistency in data collection and analysis methods is necessary to achieve fully comparable datasets and for statistical validity, avoiding issues linked to disparate data sources. The European Multi Lake Survey (EMLS) in summer 2015 was an initiative among scientists from 27 countries to collect and analyse lake physical, chemical and biological variables in a fully standardized manner. This database includes in-situ lake variables along with nutrient, pigment and cyanotoxin data of 369 lakes in Europe, which were centrally analysed in dedicated laboratories. Publishing the EMLS methods and dataset might inspire similar initiatives to study across large geographic areas that will contribute to better understanding lake responses in a changing environment., The authors acknowledge COST Action ES 1105 “CYANOCOST – Cyanobacterial blooms and toxins in water resources: Occurrence impacts and management” and COST Action ES 1201 “NETLAKE – Networking Lake Observatories in Europe” for contributing to this study through networking and knowledge sharing with European experts in the field. Evanthia Mantzouki was supported by a grant from the Swiss State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation (SERI) to Bas Ibelings and by supplementary funding from University of Geneva. We thank Wendy Beekman for the nutrient analysis and the University of Wageningen for covering the costs of this analysis from the personal funding of dr. Miquel Lürling. We thank Pieter Slot for assisting with the pigment analysis and the University of Amsterdam for covering the costs of the analysis through funding from the group of Prof. Jef Huisman and dr. Petra Visser (IBED). We would like to thank the Environmental Data Initiative for covering the cost of archiving the EMLS dataset. We would like to thank the Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries, Dept. of Experimental Limnology and the Aquatic Microbial Ecology Group for logistic and technical support of J. Fonvielle and H.-P. Grossart; and the Leibniz Association for financial support. The collection of data for Lough Erne and Lough Neagh were funded by the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs, Northern Ireland.

We provide a comprehensive list of microorganisms (algae, Archaea, bacteria, cyanobacteria, fungi, and Protista) inhabiting cryoconite holes on glaciers throughout the world, giving an updated taxonomy accompanied by geographic coordinates and localities. The list consists of 370 taxa reported from cryoconite holes (mostly from Arctic and Antarctic regions and European Alps). However, most of the taxa were not identified to the species level. Until now only 39 identified species or subspecies of bacteria and Archaea, 11 fungi, 17 cyanobacteria, 62 algae, and 13 Protista are known from cryoconite holes, which are only about 38% of total number of taxa reported from these ephemeral environments. Almost 62% of the taxa were marked ascf.(confer) or were identified only to the genera or even to the higher taxonomic units (such as families or orders). This wide and detailed review assists other scientists to identify the gaps in our knowledge about cryobionts and indicates directions for further zoogeographical and taxonomical studies in this unique freshwater habitat.

Cyanobacteria of a picoplanktonic cell size (0.2 to 2.0 µm) are common organisms of both freshwater and marine ecosystems. However, due to their small size and relatively short study history, picoplanktonic cyanobacteria, in contrast to the microplanktonic cyanobacteria, still remains a poorly studied fraction of plankton. So far, only little information on picocyanobacteria toxicity has been reported, while the number of reports concerning their presence in ecosystems is increasing. Thus, the issue of picocyanobacteria toxicity needs more researchers’ attention and interest. In this report, we present information on the current knowledge concerning the picocyanobacteria toxicity, as well as their harmfulness and problems they can cause.

Domaniów is a small town in the Oławski region in Lower Silesia. After the Second World War a large group of former residents of Usznia, a small village in the Eastern Borderlands of the Second Polish Republic, settled down in Domaniów. The author presents the accounts of five people who participated in the relocation process. The memories also include the time of their childhood and teenage years. The interviewees described how they remembered their family village, the most significant events from the time of war (German and Russian occupation), the preparation for relocation and the journey to the West – into the unknown. The accounts also show why Domaniów, which was known as Domajewice at that time, was selected as the settlement place, how it looked and what were the relationships with the Germans who still lived there. The author also describes the culture and traditions brought from the East and how they are continued to this day. The memories were set in a historical context based on the subject literature and archival materials.

In sixteen moss, lichen and mixed (moss/lichen) samples, collected from Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, 291 specimens, 48 simplexes, including one exuvium with 6 eggs, and 8 free-laid eggs of eutardigrades were found. In total, 17 species, together with one new to science, were identified (all are new records for the Baltic states): Astatumen bartosi, Diphascon (Adropion) prorsirostre, D. (Diphascon) bullatum, D. (D.) pingue pingue, D. (D.) recamieri, D. (D.) rugosum, Hypsibius convergens, H. dujardini, H. cf. scabropygus, Isohypsibius ronsisvallei, I. sattleri, Macrobiotus harmsworthi harmsworthi, M. hufelandi hufelandi, Milnesium asiaticum, Milnesium tardigradum tardigradum, Minibiotus formosus sp. n. and Paramacrobiotus richtersi. The new species is most similar to Minibiotus gumersindoi, but differs from it mainly by the presence of two types of cuticular pores, the absence of a triangular or pentagonal arrangement of pores above a single large pore on legs, the presence of granulation on all legs and a different macroplacoid length sequence. In this paper we also provide photographs and morphometrics of H. cf. scabropygus.

In this study, stir-bar sorptive extraction and thermal desorption followed by gas chromatography coupled with high resolution mass spectrometry was applied for determination of halo-organic compounds (bromodichloromethane, dibromochloromethane, bromoform, and tetrachloroethylene) in water and human urine samples. Time of extraction and stirring speed were optimized. The results show that the optimum extraction time is 30 min with 600 rpm of stirring speed with Twister of 20 mm in length and 1.0-mm film thickness of PDMS (126 microL). The calibration curves, limits of detection and quantification for all compounds were calculated. This procedure is characterized by very low limits of detection and quantitation: lower than 0.0017 microg/L and good repeatability for all four volatile compounds. This new analytical procedure was identified to be easy, reliable, sensitive, and requires only small amounts of sample. It can constitute a good alternative to well-known procedures based on application of head space and gas chromatography coupled with electron capture detection.

The analysis of volatile organic compounds in samples of biological fluids characterized by complex matrices is highly challenging. This paper presents a comparison of the results obtained in this field using three solvent-free techniques: thin-layer headspace with autogenous generation of liquid sorbent (TLHS) and membrane separation of the trace substances (pervaporation, PV), both of which are coupled to direct aqueous injection gas chromatography-electron capture detection (TLHS-DAI-GC-ECD and PV-DAI-GC-ECD), as well as conventional static headspace analysis followed by GC analysis with ECD detection (HS-GC-ECD). Basic validation parameters of the HS-GC-ECD, TLHS-DAI-GC-ECD and PV-DAI-GC-ECD procedures were calculated for water and urine samples. The calibration curves for all procedures were linear within the concentration range examined. The intermediate precisions of the procedures were good and reached about 10% (for all analytes) for HS-GC-ECD and TLHS-DAI-GC-ECD. The poorest results were obtained for PV-DAI-GC-ECD: about 20% for all analytes. The lowest method detection limits were obtained for the TLHS-DAI-GC-ECD procedure: below 0.0022 microg/L for all analytes. The enrichment factors did not differ significantly between water and urine samples, indicating little or no matrix effect in all procedures.

A review of the membrane extraction methods used in determination of various organic compounds in liquid environmental matrices and biological fluids is presented. Theory and principles, possibility of combining membrane extraction methods with methods of final determination, and applications are discussed in detail.

This publication presents the outcome of the development, optimisation and validation at EU level of a harmonised method for using poly (2,6-diphenyl phenylene oxide, abbreviated PPPO here) which is stipulated in Regulation (EU) No 10/2011 as food simulant E for testing specific migration from plastics into dry foodstuffs. Two methods for fortifying respectively PPPO and a Low Density Polyethylene (LDPE) film with surrogate substances that are relevant to food contact were developed. A protocol for cleaning the PPPO and an efficient analytical method was developed for the quantification of Butylhydroxytoluene (BHT), Benzophenone (BP), Diisobutylphthalate (DiBP), Diethyladipate (DEHA) and 1,2-cyclohexanedicarboxylic acid, diisononyl (DINCH) from PPPO. A protocol for a migration test from plastics using small migration cells was also developed. The harmonised method was validated by an interlaboratory comparison (ILC) with 16 national reference laboratories for food contact materials in the European Union. This allowed to obtain data on precision and laboratory performance for both migration and quantification for the first time. The results showed that the validation ILC was successful even taking into account the complexity of the exercise. The results showed that the method performance was 7-9% repeatability standard deviation (rsd) for most substances (regardless of concentration), with 12% rsd for the high level of BHT and for DiBP at very low levels. The reproducibility results for the 16 EU laboratories were in the range of 20-30% for the quantification from PPPO (for the 3 levels of concentrations of the 5 substances) and 15-40% from migration experiments from the fortified plastic at 60C for 10 days and subsequent quantification. Considering the lack of the data previously available in the literature, this work demonstrated that the validation of a method is possible both for migration and for quantification., JRC.I.1-Chemical Assessment and Testing

Chlorinated hydrocarbon solvents are often used for dry-cleaning clothes in the laun- dry industry. The object of this study was to monitor the occupational exposure of dry-clean employees coming into contact with VOXs. Twenty five workers collected their urine samples before the work shift, after 4 h of work and after the work shift. The analyses of urine sam- ples and solvents used in dry-cleaning were performed using TLHS-DAI-GC-ECD. Chloroform was detected in all urine samples, and dichloromethane and tetrachloroethene in nearly all urine samples collected before and after the work shift. The concentrations of the compounds determined in urine samples were higher at the end of the workday in directly exposed indi- viduals. Concentrations of the compounds determined in urine samples depended mainly on the type of activities carried out at the dry-cleaning establishments.

In this review, the wide spectrum of the techniques of isolation and/or preconcentration and final determination of halogenated volatile organic compounds (HVOCs) in water, air, soil, sediment and biological fluids are presented and discussed. The techniques discussed are solvent microextraction, solid phase extraction, gas extraction (static and dynamic techniques), membrane processes and passive sampling. Also, direct techniques, such as direct aqueous injection into gas chromatography (GC) column and membrane inlet mass spectrometry, are presented. Main attention is paid to the practical application of these techniques during all HVOCs determination.

In two moss samples collected from Turkey four tardigrade species, including a species new for science and a new recordfor the country, were found. The new species, Milnesium beasleyi sp. nov., differs from other known species of the gran-ulatum group by having sparsely distributed cuticular depressions (pseudopores) that do not form an apparent reticulum.In addition to the unique cuticular sculpturing, the new species differs from other congeners also by some morphometriccharacters. Macrobiotus reinhardti Michalczyk & Kaczmarek, 2003 is a new record for Turkey and it is also the first re-cord of this species outside its type locality on Cyprus. The new records raise the number of known Turkish water bearspecies to 50. In this paper, we provide a full list of the known Turkish tardigrade species with their localities. Moreover, we present some zoogeographical and taxonomic issues concerning Turkish tardigrades.