Search

Coral reef environments are currently experiencing a global crisis. For restoration and conservation of such environments, substratum suitable for coral recruitment is important. Herbivorous fishes are likely to facilitate the survival and growth of coral reefs by removing sediment and epilithic algae on corals in the course of their feeding behavior. However, this facilitative function can be greatly impaired by anthropogenic stressors such as overfishing, which decreases the biomass of fishes, and by excessive sediment deposition due to land development, which might decrease the frequency of feeding. To examine these hypotheses, we conducted observations and experiments at 4 reefs with different degrees of anthropogenic stress in subtropical Japan. Our findings were as follows: (1) Underwater visual censuses, sediment trap surveys, and an analysis of fishery statistics revealed that biomass, population density, and species richness of herbivorous fishes were generally lower in reefs with high densities of fishermen and high sedimentation rates. (2) Caging experiments showed that, compared to control plots, caged plots inaccessible to herbivorous fishes had greater accumulation of sediment and epilithic algae. (3) Sediment removal experiments found that, compared to control plots, experimental plots with the sediment removed were more heavily grazed by some functional groups of herbivorous fishes (grazers). These results suggest that excessive deposition of sediment and overfishing depress the facilitative function of herbivorous fishes, which can further exacerbate the deposition of sediment.

The time to return to sport from acute hamstring strain injuries is associated with several functional and structural impairments. However, not all previous studies assessed the preinjury level before acute hamstring strain injuries directly. The purpose of this study was to examine the associations of the time to return to performance following acute hamstring strain injuries with deficits in running biomechanics, hamstring function and structure in collegiate sprinters by a prospective study.Using a prospective cohort design, 72 participants were recruited from a collegiate track and field team. At the preinjury assessment, a 60-m running-specific test, passive straight leg raise test and isometric knee flexion strength test were assessed at the beginning of the competitive season for three consecutive years (2017-2019). Afterwards, postinjury examinations were performed only in sprinters with acute hamstring strain injuries.Twelve sprinters strained their hamstring muscle (incidence rate of hamstring strain injuries: 16.7%); the majority (n = 10) were classified as grades 0-2. The running speed deficit of the running-specific test was associated with the time to return to performance as well as the passive straight leg raise test deficit. In the running-specific test, lower-limb kinetic deficits were more strongly associated with the time to return to performance compared to lower-limb kinematic deficits.A running-specific test may be considered one of the most convenient and valid tests for assessing rehabilitation progress after acute hamstring strain injuries.

A multipixel photon counter (MPPC) features excellent photon-counting capability as a radiation detector. In particular, a two-plane Compton camera consisting of Ce:GAGG scintillators coupled with MPPC arrays has significant application potential owing to its compact size and low weight. For example, the camera can be easily mounted on a commercial drone to identify radiation hot spots from the sky. In Fukushima, we demonstrated that a 137 Cs distribution within a 100 m diameter can be mapped correctly within a couple of tens of minutes. The advanced use of the Compton camera is also anticipated in the field of proton therapy. We evaluated an image of 511 keV annihilation gamma-rays emitted from a PMMA phantom irradiated by 200 MeV protons to mimic an in-beam monitor for proton therapy. Finally, we developed an ultracompact Compton camera (weight = 580 g), for 3-D multicolor molecular imaging. In order to demonstrate the performance capabilities of the device, 131 I (365 keV) , 85 SrCl 2 (514 keV), and 65 ZnCl 2 (1116 keV) were injected into a living mouse and the data were taken from 12 angles with a total acquisition time of 2 h. We confirmed that all tracers had accumulated on the target organs of the thyroid, bone, and liver, and that the obtained 3-D image was quantitatively correct with an accuracy of ± 20%.

Single-mode fiber lasers with excellent beam quality and several-kilowatts output power are expected to realize both extraordinary processing speed and high aspect ratio in the material processing field. In this paper, we report an 8-kW output single-stage Yb-doped fiber laser with a BPP of 0.50 mm-mrad. The laser has a delivery fiber with a length of 3 m. To realize an 8-kW single-mode output without excess a stimulated Raman scattering threshold, fibers with a considerably large effective core area are employed. An ytterbium doped fiber is directly pumped by newly developed high-power laser diode modules with a total available pump power over 10 kW through a bi-directional pumping scheme. The laser has a high slope efficiency of 81%. The power of the SRS light around 1120 nm was 22 dB smaller than the fundamental laser power at 1070 nm. To the best of our knowledge, it is the smallest BPP with more than 8 kW output power pumped by an end-pumping regime. We believe the laser will contributes laser processing using a galvano scanner for high speed and high aspect ratio welding.

Proton therapy causes less damage to healthy tissue compared to other radiation therapies ; however, the possible damage caused by secondary, fast neutrons is almost unknown. In some simulations, neutron dose amounts to 10% of the proton dose; therefore, a real-time visualization of the neutron dose is needed. We have developed a neutron camera that can visualize the direction and intensity of fast neutron sources . The camera consists of eight units of a plastic scintillator (EJ-299-34) coupled with a compact PMT (R9880U). We demonstrate that a 252Cf neutron source is correctly imaged with an angular resolution of 15.5 deg (FWHM). In addition, fast neutrons emitted from the brass block irradiated by 70 MeV were successfully monitored in real time. Finally, we present our prospects for future clinical applications.

Proton therapy is a widely used and effective treatment for cancer. A high-dose concentration of proton beam reduces damage to normal tissues. However, it also requires a high accuracy of irradiation. PET is generally used to verify the proton range after irradiation, but, the distributions of positrons and the energy deposited by protons are not similar to each other. Recently, prompt gamma-ray imaging has attracted attention as a new, online imaging technique. In particular, 4.4 MeV gamma rays emitted from 12 C* is one of the best probes to monitor the proton dose, however imaging techniques are far from established. We have developed a novel, 3-D position sensitive Compton camera based on Ce:GAGG scintillators coupled with multi-pixel photon counter (MPPC) arrays, thus making it optimized for imaging in the 1–10 MeV range. The angular resolution is 5 degrees (FWHM) at 4.4 MeV. We have established various methods to discriminate multiple-Compton and escape events, both of which can be critical backgrounds for precise imaging of prompt gamma rays. By irradiating a 70 MeV proton beam on the PMMA phantom, we demonstrated that 4.4 MeV gamma ray image is sharply concentrated on the Bragg peak, as was expected from the PHITS simulation.

The Renge Belt is a rare subduction-related metamorphic belt that contains blocks of eclogites, meta-gabbros, schists and other rocks in a serpentinite melange that formed in the early-to-middle Paleozoic of proto-Japan. We report here a detailed geochemical and Sr–-Nd isotope study of two major groups of rocks within the Omi serpentine melange: 1. medium-grade metamorphosed blocks of meta-gabbros, and 2. high-pressure low-temperature eclogites and mafic schists. Bulk rock geochemistry of the meta-gabbros reveals that they have prominent Nb, Ta and Ti negative anomalies, suggesting an arc origin. In contrast, the eclogites, and mafic schists have trace element spider diagrams and REE patterns that resemble modern oceanic crust. The Sr– Nd isotopic compositions also show concomitant variations with a highly depleted source for the meta-gabbros (eNd values of +1.3 − +9.6 and Sriratios of 0.70301–0.70460) compared with a MORB/OIB-like source of the eclogites and mafic schists (eNd values of −1.94 – +4.83), although the latter have Sr isotopes variably affected by seawater interaction (Sriratios of 0.70518–0.71050). Altogether, the geochemical features suggest that the meta-gabbros were part of a magmatic arc, which developed in the Cambrian and was tectonically eroded and subducted together with oceanic crust and sediments in the Devonian–Carboniferous. The ages of detrital zircons in the pelitic schist (3200–600 Ma) suggests that the South China Craton and northeastern fringes of Gondwana were potential source regions and that the sedimentation occurred most likely in a trench. The abundant Early Paleozoic (peak around ca. 470 Ma) detrital zircons were derived from an active subduction-related arc. The protoliths of meta-gabbros are lower crustal equivalents of an infant arc, which was subducted via subduction erosion in the Devonian–Carboniferous and reached a HP metamorphic depth in the Tournasian. Our results suggest that the formation of proto-Japan was related to the initiation of intra-oceanic arc as early as Cambrian. Following tectonic erosion, the remnant mafic rocks were amalgamated with trench-fill sediments during incorporation in an accretionary complex. Subduction erosion was active where sediment supply was low and where the arc was immature. Subduction of oceanic crust was continuing to at least the middle Carboniferous, when the eclogites and blueschists were formed and later exhumed along with the meta-gabbros in serpentinite diapirs in the mid–late Paleozoic.

Imaging of nuclear gamma-ray lines in the 1-10 MeV range is far from being established in both medical and physical applications. In proton therapy, 4.4 MeV gamma rays are emitted from the excited nucleus of either 12^C^* or 11^B^* and are considered good indicators of dose delivery and/or range verification. Further, in gamma-ray astronomy, 4.4 MeV gamma rays are produced by cosmic ray interactions in the interstellar medium, and can thus be used to probe nucleothynthesis in the universe. In this paper, we present a high-precision image of 4.4 MeV gamma rays taken by newly developed 3-D position sensitive Compton camera (3D-PSCC). To mimic the situation in proton therapy, we first irradiated water, PMMA and Ca(OH)_2 with a 70 MeV proton beam, then we identified various nuclear lines with the HPGe detector. The 4.4 MeV gamma rays constitute a broad peak, including single and double escape peaks. Thus, by setting an energy window of 3D-PSCC from 3 to 5 MeV, we show that a gamma ray image sharply concentrates near the Bragg peak, as expected from the minimum energy threshold and sharp peak profile in the cross section of 12^C(p,p)12^C^*., 11 pages, 7 figures; accepted for publication in Nature Scientific Reports

The blistering problem due to high power proton irradiation is a crucial issue for any neutron generation target. When a proton beam irradiates a metal, the protons stopped inside capture free electrons in the metal to form a hydrogen gas. Eventually, blisters and/or flakes appear on the surface as the pressure of the hydrogen gas rises enough to cause ruptures. An experimental setup for observation of the metal surface that would have high sensitivity and high spatial resolution was proposed, designed and implemented. The system observes light-polarization and reflectivity and has successfully detected blistering surface dynamics.

Retina is a highly vascularized tissue with a high oxygen and metabolic demand receiving light located in the back of the eye. The development and the maintenance of the retinal vasculature are important to regulate the homeostasis in the tissue. α Subunits of hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF) are key molecules in hypoxia response inducing genes required for cell survival such as vascular endothelial growth factor under hypoxia. Neurons, glia, and vascular endothelium cells interdependently form neurovascular unit in the retina tightly regulated by hypoxia response via HIF expression. A corruption of the precise hypoxia response in the developmental or matured retinal tissue may lead congenital vascular anomalies or adult neovascular ocular diseases. To regulate hypoxia response through HIF activity would be an ideal therapeutic target for these vision-threatening eye diseases.

ObjectiveTo examine the 17-year clinical outcome of schizophrenia and its predictors in Bali.MethodsSubjects were 59 consecutively admitted first-episode schizophrenia patients. Their clinical outcome was evaluated by standardized symptomatic remission criteria based on Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) scores and operational functional remission criteria at 17-year follow-up. The standardized mortality ratio (SMR) over 17 years was also calculated as another index of clinical outcome.ResultsAmong these 59 patients, 43 (72.9%) could be followed-up, 15 (25.4%) had died, and one (1.7%) was alive but refused to participate in the study. Combined remission (i.e. symptomatic and functional remission) was achieved in 14 patients (23.7% of original sample). Duration of untreated psychosis (DUP) was a significant baseline predictor of combined remission. Mean age at death of deceased subjects was 35.7, and SMR was 4.85 (95% CI: 2.4–7.3), indicating that deaths were premature. Longer DUP was associated with excess mortality.ConclusionsThe long-term outcome of schizophrenia in Bali was heterogeneous, demonstrating that a quarter achieved combined remission, half were in nonremission, and a quarter had died at 17-year follow-up. DUP was a significant predictor both for combined remission and mortality.

A practical transmission positron microscope (TPM) JEM-1011B has been developed to survey differences in the interaction of positron and electron beams with materials, and is installed in the Slow Positron Facility of High Energy Accelerator Research Organization (KEK). The TPM can share positron and electron beams, and can also be used as a transmission electron microscope (TEM). Positron transmission images up to magnification 10,000× (resolution: 50 nm) and positron diffraction patterns up to 044 family were successfully obtained by the TPM comparing them with those of electrons. The differences in material transmittances for both beams have been measured, and can be explained by the calculated results of the Monte Carlo simulation code PENELOPE-2008.

– We performed a battery of analyses on 17 samples of the Almahata Sitta meteorite, identifying three main lithologies and several minor ones present as clasts. The main lithologies are (1) a pyroxene-dominated, very porous, highly reduced lithology, (2) a pyroxene-dominated compact lithology, and (3) an olivine-dominated compact lithology. Although it seems possible that all three lithologies grade smoothly into each other at the kg-scale, at the g-scale this is not apparent. The meteorite is a polymict ureilite, with some intriguing features including exceptionally variable porosity and pyroxene composition. Although augite is locally present in Almahata Sitta, it is a minor phase in most (but not all) samples we have observed. Low-calcium pyroxene (

Coefficients of friction were measured at elevated temperatures using a hot flat strip drawing test machine newly developed by the authors for the purpose of confirming the coefficients of friction used for the FEM simulation of hot stamping. To examine the functions of the tribo-simulator, the coefficients of friction are measured using hot rolling oil with an emulsion, which is supplied continuously, while varying the drawing speed, drawing pressure and temperature. From the experimental results, it was shown that the coefficient of friction in hot stamping can be measured using this tribo-simulator. The measured coefficients of friction can be used as values in the FEM simulation of hot stamping. Moreover, the tribological behavior at the interface between the die and strip in hot stamping can be evaluated from the coefficient of friction, because it is one of the quantitative values used to represent the tribological behavior between the die and blank.

Considerable amounts of radioactive substances (mainly 137Cs and 134Cs) were released into the environment after the Japanese nuclear disaster in 2011. Some restrictions on residence areas were lifted in April 2017, owing to the successive and effective decontamination operations. However, the distribution of radioactive substances in vast areas of mountain, forest and satoyama close to the city is still unknown; thus, decontamination operations in such areas are being hampered. In this paper, we report on the first aerial gamma-ray imaging of a schoolyard in Fukushima using a drone that carries a high sensitivity Compton camera. We show that the distribution of 137Cs in regions with a diameter of several tens to a hundred meters can be imaged with a typical resolution of 2–5 m within a 10–20 min flights duration. The aerial gamma-ray images taken 10 m and 20 m above the ground are qualitatively consistent with a dose map reconstructed from the ground-based measurements using a survey meter. Although further quantification is needed for the distance and air-absorption corrections to derive in situ dose map, such an aerial drone system can reduce measurement time by a factor of ten and is suitable for place where ground-based measurement are difficult.

Eighteen Swedish patients with familial amyloidotic polyneuropathy were tested for the met30 mutation of the transthyretin (TTR) (prealbumin) gene by RFLP analysis of genomic DNA using the restriction enzyme NsiI. The results confirmed previous findings that the Swedish variant of familial polyneuropathy has the same valine by methionine substitution at position 30, as seen in patients with FAP from Japan, Portugal or patients of Swedish descent from USA. However, two of the patients were homozygous, totally lacking the wild type allele. Measurable serum values for the variant transthyretin (TTR) was detected with a RIA-method in all the 18 Swedish FAP patients studied with a mean concentration of 12.1 +/- 5.1 (SD) mg/100 ml, (11.0 +/- 4.1 when the two homozygotes were excluded). In 45 Japanese patients the mean was 9.2 +/- 2.7 mg/100 ml. The variant TTR was not detected in the healthy controls. The value for the variant TTR was nearly twice that high in the two homozygous patients, 21.14 and 21.16 mg/100 ml, respectively. There was no correlation between the serum levels of variant TTR and the duration of disease or levels of serum albumin in the FAP-patients.

In Japan, drivers over the age of 65 years are classified as ‘older drivers’. On 1 October 2006, people over the age of 65 years comprised 20.8 per cent of the population, and 13.1 per cent of these are licensed drivers. Ageing causes a decrease in both physical and psychomotor abilities. Older drivers tend to cause traffic accidents owing to complex traffic conditions. The major goals of this study are to investigate the characteristics of older drivers' eye fixation movement and responses under heavy traffic volume at an intersection with a traffic signal. A personal-computer-based driving simulator was used to evaluate driver behaviours and to reproduce unexpected roadway hazards and realistic four-step traffic volume. An eye position recorder on a near-infrared system was used to collect eye movement data. The drivers' initial cognition ability was determined on the basis of reaction time tests under three different conditions. The older driver group in this study shows the following characteristics: first, as the task complexity increases, the reaction time increases (i.e. a slowed reaction); second, as the drivers become older, the time interval between recognition of a hazard and avoidance of the hazard increases; third, as the traffic volume increases, the driver has fewer eye fixations, shorter mean fixation time, and slower fixation speed compared with the younger drivers' group; fourth, traffic volume is one of the most important factors that complicates the driving task and causes hesitation in decision making. These results provide basic data to improve traffic services to make them suitable for older drivers in an ageing society.

In 2004, we searched for very high energy (VHE) gamma-ray emission from the Galactic Plane using the CANGAROO-III stereoscopic observation system. Two different longitude regions (l = −19°.5 and l = +13°.0) on the Galactic Plane were observed during July and August 2004. We analyzed events that triggered three telescopes aiming to measure the diffuse emission component. No significant signal associated with the Galactic Plane was found from either of the regions. Assuming that the gamma-ray spectrum is described by a single power-law for energies ranging between a few GeV and TeV, lower limits of the power-law spectral indices were found to be 2.2 for both of the regions with a 99.9% confidence level. This result is consistent with the other VHE measurements and constrains a hypothesis in which a very hard (∼2.0) cosmic ray electron spectrum was introduced to explain the EGRET GeV anomaly.

Y000027, Y000047, and Y000097 are new lherzolitic shergottites that show a poikilitic texture with interstitial non-poikilitic basaltic areas. They have identical mineral compositions and petrography, confirming their pairing. The Y00 shergottites first crystallized olivine and chromite, which were then partially enclosed by low-Ca pyroxenes. Interstitial areas of melt then formed as a result of oikocryst accumulation. Plagioclase and Fe-rich pyroxene crystallized from the interstitial melt, forming the non-poikilitic basaltic areas. The cooling rate during crystallization of the basaltic area was fast enough to preserve chemical zoning within olivine and pyroxene in poikilitic areas. The Y00s have similar petrology and mineralogy to other lherzolitic shergottites: all are likely to have originated from the same igneous block on Mars. The subtle mineralogical differences that exist are probably due to spatially variable cooling rates during crystallization of the basaltic area. In terms of mineral composition, the Y00s are most similar to (although distinct from) LEW88516, Y-793605, and NWA1950. Olivine and pyroxene compositions within interstitial areas may be related to the abundance of intercumulus melt, which, as with the nakhlite case, varied spatially in the igneous block. Although the Y00s and other lherzolitic shergottites (ALH77005, LEW88516, Y-793605, GRV99027, GRV020900, and NWA1950) were located within deeper levels of the block, RBT04262, a new shergottite similar in petrology and mineralogy to lherzolitic shergottites, may have been located at a slightly shallower level characterized by abundant, evolved interstitial melts.

Annihilation characteristics of positrons and positronium (Ps) in thin metal and polymer films were studied. Monoenergetic positrons were implanted into free-standing thin W and Au films and the annihilation γ-rays of positron–electron pairs were measured as a function of the incident energy of positrons. At the front-side surfaces of the films, an emission of Ps into vacuum and a resultant self-annihilation of ortho-Ps ( o -Ps) were observed. At the backside surfaces, the Ps emission was found to be enhanced by an increase in the numbers of epithermal positrons and/or secondary electrons introduced by the impact of energetic positrons. For thin polymer films (polyester and polystyrene), the emission rate of o -Ps from the backside surfaces was higher than that from the metal films, which was attributed to the out-diffusion of o -Ps formed in the films. Those results suggested that the emission rate of Ps into vacuum was sensitive to the Ps formation process in the bulk and at the surface.

An L/S-band 330-W distortion-cancelled Doherty GaAs field-effect transistor (FET) amplifier has been successfully developed optimizing the main and peak amplifiers load impedance shift. The amplifier employed a pair of 28-V operation 150-W GaAs heterojunction FETs. It demonstrated low third-order intermodulation of -37 dBc with a drain efficiency of 42% at an output power of 49 dBm around 6-dB backoff level under the two-carrier wideband code-division multiple-access (W-CDMA) signals of 2.135 and 2.145 GHz. To our knowledge, these represent the best results ever reported among the simple high-power FET amplifiers for W-CDMA base stations. In addition, we proposed the evaluation techniques to obtain each AM-AM and AM-PM characteristics of the main and peak amplifiers in an operating Doherty amplifier, and have experimentally proven the distortion cancellation effect in the GaAs FET Doherty amplifier

The docking protein FRS2alpha is a major mediator of fibroblast growth factor (FGF) signaling. However, the physiological role of FRS2alpha in vivo remains unknown. In this report, we show that Frs2alpha-null mouse embryos have a defect in anterior-posterior (A-P) axis formation and are developmentally retarded, resulting in embryonic lethality by embryonic day 8. We demonstrate that FRS2alpha is essential for the maintenance of self-renewing trophoblast stem (TS) cells in response to FGF4 in the extraembryonic ectoderm (ExE) that gives rise to tissues of the placenta. By analyzing chimeric embryos, we found that FRS2alpha also plays a role in cell movement through the primitive streak during gastrulation. In addition, experiments are presented demonstrating that Bmp4 expression in TS cells is controlled by mitogen-activated protein kinase-dependent FGF4 stimulation. Moreover, both the expression of Bmp4 in ExE and activation of Smad1/5 in epiblasts are reduced in Frs2alpha-null embryos. These experiments underscore the critical role of FRS2alpha in mediating multiple processes during embryonic development and reveal a potential new link between FGF and Bmp4 signaling pathways in early embryogenesis.

著者人数: 51名, Accepted: 2004-12-10, 資料番号: SA1003414000

著者人数: 51名, Accepted: 2004-03-24, 資料番号: SA1003408000

著者人数: 51名, 資料番号: SA1003983000

Intertidal endobenthic bivalves are often dislodged from sediments by hydrodynamic forces. As a result, they encounter the dangers of predation and desiccation, which are generally harsh near the sediment surface. To cope with such dangers, the bivalves possibly possess: (1) a strong body to endure predation and desiccation stress, (2) quick mobility to avoid the stresses, or (3) a high growth rate for attaining a size refuge. The present study examined which of these modes are adopted by the subtropical cobbled-shore Venus clams Gafrarium tumidum (Roding, 1798) and Ruditapes variegatus (Sowerby, 1852), revealing the following interspecific differences. (1) G. tumidum survived better than R. variegatus did in harsh experimental conditions, namely: the experimental cages exposed to predation and desiccation on a cobbled shore; a laboratory aquarium with a predatory crab Scylla serrata; and ovens with high temperatures (27°C and 34°C). (2) R. variegatus was more mobile than G. tumidum was, digging into the sediment on a cobbled shore more rapidly at both high and low tides. (3) The two species with shell lengths 20–30 mm showed similar growth rates (median: −0.2 to 44.5 μm day−1) in seasonal mark–recapture surveys over 2 years. Overall, to cope with the dangers of predation and desiccation G. tumidum appears to have a strong body, while R. variegatus displays rapid mobility, and neither species seems to attain a size refuge through rapid growth. Such species-specific modes are discussed in relation to the interspecific differences found in shell morphology.

A new type of tracking device using large area nuclear emulsion sheets was developed for the short baseline neutrino oscillation experiment, CERN-WA95/CHORUS. The emulsion tracker is made of three layers, each 25 mm thick including support, and covering an area of about 5 m 2 . Two layers were installed upstream and one downstream of the hexagonal magnet of the CHORUS hadron spectrometer. The achieved position resolution over the whole area is 25 μm, which keeps the momentum resolution of the spectrometer below 30% up to momenta of about 15 GeV/ c .

Aedes albopictus (Skuse), a mosquito vector of the dengue fever virus, is prevalent in Japan, distributed widely in Honshu Island with its northern limits between latitude 38° to 40°degrees north. The factors affecting distribution of the species in the northern part of Japan were studied using the geographical information system (GIS). During 1998–2000, larval surveillance was carried out in 26 urban and rural areas in the Tohoku district, in the northern part of Honshu Island, by collecting larvae from artificial and natural habitats. Climatological analysis, using the GIS, showed that the following conditions accounted for the current distribution of Ae. albopictus: an annual mean temperature higher than 11°C and a mean temperature of the coldest month, January, higher than −2°C. A period with temperature above 11°C in the confirmed area of the mosquito successively continues for more than 186 d per year. The accumulated temperature calculated from a temperature of 11°C, which may be close to the developmental zero of Ae. albopictus, was over 1,350 degree-days. The relationship between the beginning of short-daylength, inducing egg diapause, and the monthly mean temperature during September and October necessary for successful larval development in the Tohoku district is also discussed. We also show the relationship between the current distribution of Ae. albopictus and the annual mean temperature in the United States. From these results it is predicted that Ae. albpictus will be established in some cities in northeast United States.

Characteristics of bubble flow are influenced by bubble motion, liquid flow and interactions between bubbles, and between a bubble and liquid phase. Thus because behavior of a single bubble and liquid around it is regarded as one of the basic elements characterizing bubble flow, the single bubble motion in stagnant water was investigated experimentally by using flow visualization and image processing methods. The bubble motion is influenced by several factors, that is, bubble size, density difference between gas and liquid, bubble shape and deformation in motion. In order to separate the effect of each factor, some solid particles with different size, shape and/or density were also measured and the characteristic of each factor was discussed. Two-dimensional water velocity field and the motion of a rising particle/bubble in the water were simultaneously measured by PIV (Particle Image Velocimetry) and PTV (Particle Tracking Velocimetry), respectively (Hybrid PIV). The experimental results showed that the large density difference between a particle and water caused high relative velocity and induced zigzag motion of the particle. Furthermore, the turbulence intensity of a bubble was about twice in the case of the spherical solid particle of similar diameter.