Despite the fact that we are witnessing the emergence of a populist Zeitgeist worldwide, we run the danger of developing conceptual and operational definitions of populism that do not meet the theoretical challenges of the phenomenon or the political exigencies of our time. Yet there are sufficient commonalities in what appears to be a cacophonic universe made up by exclusivist movements and parti

A new procedure for the application of the drop volume technique to measurements of the rate of adsorption of proteins at interfaces has been developed. The mode of adsorption of the proteins lysozyme, β-lactoglobulin and bovine serum albumin (BSA) at the air-water interface has been measured with the drop volume method and has been compared to measurements with the Wilhelmy plate technique. Due t

Habitat loss and fragmentation threaten the long-term viability of innumerablespecies of plants and animals. At the same time, habitat fragmentation mayimpose strong natural selection and lead to evolution of life histories with possibleconsequences for demographic dynamics. The Baltic populations of the Glanvillefritillary butterfly (Melitaea cinxia) inhabit regions with highly fragmented habitat

A cDNA clone (Gv1) was isolated from a Medicago truncatula/Glomus versiforme root cDNA library by a differential screening technique. Gv1 represents a full-length G. versiforme mRNA encoding a 99-amino-acid polypeptide. This shares regions of identity with HMP1, a non-histone, cruciform DNA-binding protein from Ustilago maydis. Northern blot analysis indicated that Gv1 transcripts were present in

Mt4 is a cDNA representing a phosphate-starvation-inducible gene from Medicago truncatula that is down-regulated in roots in response to inorganic phosphate (Pi) fertilization and colonization by arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi. Split-root experiments revealed that the expression of the Mt4 gene in M. truncatula roots is down-regulated systemically by both Pi fertilization and colonization by arbuscu

Spores of Frankia strain HFPCcl3 nodulated Casuarina equisetifolia after passage through the digestive tracts of captive parakeets (Melopsittacus undulatus). Parakeets excreted infectious fecal material from 6 to 72 h after ingesting food inoculated with Frankia spores. Air desiccation of spore-containing fecal material reduced its infectious capacity by approximately 90%. Hyphal filaments of this

The ability of Hawaiian volcanic soils to nodulate actinorhizal Myrica cerifera, Casuarina equisetifolia, and Alnus glutinosa was determined using a host-plant bioassay. Myrica-nodulating Frankia occurred in five volcanic deposits with depositional ages ranging from 20 to 162 years before present. The oldest deposit had a mean estimated nodulation capacity from 450 to 1200 times greater than those

Optimization of the in vitro sporulation of Frankia is a prerequisite for the development of spore preparations as a practical inoculum for actinorhizal plants. The in vitro sporulation of Frankia strain HFPCcI3 previously isolated from Casuarina cunninghamiana was increased from 0 to 12 million spores per millilitre of culture medium when nitrogen and phosphorus were excluded from a defined nutri

Coalescence during emulsification has a significant effect on the outcome of the process, especially for the high volume fractions of disperse phase common in food and pharmaceutical processing. Controlling emulsification requires that the extent of coalescence during different conditions can be quantified. The step-down technique is the most commonly used method for measuring coalescence frequenc

Multifractal (MF) analysis is applied for the description of spatial nanoforms which form a relief on a surface of heterostructures of ZnxCd1-xTe solid solution – substrate Si (1 1 1) synthesized by the method of the electron beam with the evaporating anode. The input data for the MF analysis were the AFM (atomic force microscopy) images of the surface of layers. Comparison of parameters of MF spe