Sunday, March 22, 2020

Study reveals secret of 18th century portrait

by Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology

Left: The red circles indicate where samples were taken. The team avoided

sampling from the central part of the portrait. The areas noninvasively

examined via X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy are marked in white.

Right: The quality of the two seams seen on the back of the painting is different.

Credit: Nikolay Simonenko et al./Heritage ScienceRussian researchers from the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology, Kurnakov Institute of General and Inorganic Chemistry of RAS, and Russia's famed Tretyakov Gallery have conducted a comprehensive preconservation study of "The Portrait of F.P. Makerovsky in a Masquerade Costume" (1789) by the Russian painter Dmitry Levitsky. The paper was published in the journal Heritage Science.

The portrait analyzed in the study is one of the masterpieces of the renowned painter's mature period and a rare example of a children's dress-up portrait in Russian art. However, rough restoration interventions of a century ago, thick layers of old yellowed varnish, and damage to the paint layer of unknown origin distorted the aesthetic perception of the image. The conservator, Tatiana Seregina, faced the difficult task of bringing the portrait as close to its original state as possible today, without affecting the painter's work.

"Our laboratory and the gallery's research team maintain a long-standing methodological collaboration, which manifested itself in a 2017 agreement between MIPT and the Tretyakov Gallery, with the support of its chief curator Tatiana Gorodkova," said Viktor Ivanov, the head of the Center for Functional Materials Testing at MIPT. "Under that agreement, we jointly develop approaches for comprehensive studies of artworks using modern methods for local analysis of materials and nanomaterials. The methodological expertise that we accumulated enabled us to participate in a preconservation study of the painting by Dmitry Levitsky and establish the unity of the paint layers across the entire canvas."

The research team comprised numerous physicists, chemists, art specialists, and conservators from MIPT, IGIC RAS, and the State Tretyakov Gallery.

Besides enabling more grounded decisions regarding the conservation techniques to be used, the analysis of the art materials also resolved a long-standing mystery. Levitsky's painting consists of three fragments, and while there were never any doubts concerning the authorship of the main part, it remained unknown when the two horizontal extension pieces with the figure from the knees down had been sewn to the canvas. While the extension pieces are visible in early-20th-century photographs, there were reservations about the earlier period in the painting's history, because of a distinct structure of the seams connecting the three fragments: While the upper seam is very neat, the lower one is much coarser.

"The last time the portrait underwent conservation was in 1914," study co-author Nikolay Simonenko from IGIC RAS and MIPT said. "We conducted a comprehensive preconservation analysis of art materials composition. This allowed us to establish that the extension pieces were indeed painted by Levitsky."

Painter in a hurry?

By analyzing the ground layers, the team first revealed a distinction between the main canvas and the extension pieces. The two layers of ground, customarily used by the painter, were only found in the main canvas. However, a closer look revealed the structure and composition of the ground in the two extensions to be alike. It also proved similar to the lower of the two ground layers of the main canvas.

The authors of the paper suggest that the painter might have had more time at the outset to thoroughly prepare the canvas. It is likely, the researchers hypothesize, that Levitsky's concept of the painting evolved as the work progressed, necessitating a bigger canvas. To accommodate his new vision, the painter first added one extension piece and then another.

Malachite pigment

By examining the paint layers, the team could show their similar composition across the entire painting, including the two extension pieces. Specifically, the green pigment is present in each of the three fragments and has a common nature: Infrared spectroscopy revealed it was malachite.

Interestingly, none of the other 10 or so analytic techniques used in the study could identify malachite, although elemental analysis did provide an indirect confirmation by detecting copper in the green paint. This is why the researchers had to employ such a wide range of tools in their study.

The common origin of the two extension pieces was also confirmed by the analysis of the brown pigment, which involved infrared and Raman spectroscopy, and scanning electron microscopy combined with energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy.

By investigating the painted layer, the team established that it belonged to Levitsky in its entirety, confirming the hypothesis that a single artistic process united all three parts of the canvas.

Fine arts and hard sciences

In a research project like this, the chemists and physicists are after great detail in the results, which may in part go against the wish of the museum workers and conservators to preserve the work of art fully intact.

"In my opinion, the presence of art historians, chemists, and physicists in one team was key to the success of this endeavor," said Ivan Volkov, a chief researcher at the MIPT lab involved in the study. "We held regular meetings featuring both the Tretyakov Gallery team and us, materials scientists. We had to slowly work out a common language, but it was worth it. There was also an arrangement for the sampling methods and tools to be approved by the gallery staff."

With no room for error, the team needed to be very careful in taking samples, and extract maximum information from each of them. The researchers sought a middle ground to draw information from the portrait without damaging it. For example, some of the samples were taken from the edges of the painting.

New discoveries

This is the first time such a detailed and comprehensive study of a painting by Levitsky has been carried out. According to art specialists from the Tretyakov Gallery, the study has not only been important for preparing the conservation task, but also expanded the understanding of Levitsky's oeuvre and the late 18th-century art practice in Russia.

Now that the methodology has been developed and successfully tested, it can be applied to other works. Meanwhile, the conservation of Makerovsky's portrait is in its final stages, and it will soon return to the main exhibition. The conservation began long before the publication in Heritage Science and lasted about a year and a half.

More information: Nikolay P. Simonenko et al, A study of "The Portrait of F.P. Makerovsky in a Masquerade Costume" by Dmitry Levitsky from the collection of the State Tretyakov Gallery, Heritage Science (2020). DOI: 10.1186/s40494-020-0351-1

Secrets of Lucretia painting closer to being revealed

by Northumbria University

"The Death of Lucretia." Credit: The Bowes Museum

The mystery of who painted a centuries-old artwork, and when, is closer to being revealed thanks to the work of art conservation and forensic science experts from Northumbria University, in Newcastle upon Tyne.

"The Death of Lucretia" painting has been owned by the Bowes Museum in County Durham since the 1840s and has recently gone on display as part of an exhibition dedicated to the works of Italian Baroque master Guido Reni.

However, the origins of the painting are shrouded in mystery—it is believed the piece could be from the studio of Guido Reni, or at least painted during the same period in the seventeenth century, before then being significantly changed during a re-paint some 200 years later.

Now art conservator and Senior Lecturer Nicky Grimaldi and forensic scientist Dr. Michelle Carlin, both of Northumbria University, have worked in partnership with The Bowes Museum to help shed light on the history of the painting.

Using state-of-the-art technology and techniques, they have been able to look under the layer of paint which is visible to the naked eye—revealing a very different painting underneath the present day image.

Thanks to forensic techniques such as chemical analysis of the paint pigment, the pair have been able to identify when the different layers were painted and start to put together a picture of how and when the painting was created.

As Nicky Grimaldi explains: "When we first started working on this painting we had no idea what lay beneath, it was quite a revelation to find that there was essentially a whole other painting under the one we see today.

"The torso in the current version has been completely changed at some point, in the original version Lucretia was depicted wearing an elaborate bodice, which is now hidden.

"We believe the original version was probably left incomplete, but was then likely significantly repainted in the nineteenth century, before being sold through an art dealer in London and then arriving at Bowes Museum."

Chemical analysis of paint from the different layers has helped to date the painting, with the earlier paint containing much coarser particles than the paint added later.

As Dr. Michelle Carlin explains: "There was a clear difference in the particle size between the layers. The paint added at a later date was produced post-industrialization, by which time the process had become mechanized, meaning the particles were ground much finer. In contrast the particles in the paint underneath were much less refined.

"Similarly we were able to analyze the materials used to make the paint in the two layers and match this with what we know was available at the time to help determine when each layer was painted."

One of the most unexpected finds during the investigations was the presence of gold on the torso area of the painting, discovered by using a portable X-ray fluorescence spectrometry. This suggests the original bodice might have contained gold braid detailing.

Also discovered was the presence of titanium white in the panting, a pigment used by art conservators during the 20th century, suggesting the painting has been subject to conservation efforts in the past.

This ability to bring together experts in both art conservation and forensic science has led to Northumbria University developing an international reputation for this kind of specialist research.

The University has a long-standing relationship with The Bowes Museum, with the investigations into "The Death of Lucretia" carried out to coincide with the museum's new exhibition—"The Power and the Virtue: Guido Reni's The Death of Lucretia."

This exhibition has been conceived and developed by Bernadette Petti, Project Curator, who initiated the collaboration with Northumbria University and colleagues at The Hunterian and National Gallery.

Lucretia was an ancient Roman women who killed herself after being raped by the son of King Lucius Tarquinius Superbus. Her tragic death has been portrayed by many artists, with Lucretia often seen clutching a dagger to her chest.

Guido Reni (1575—1642) is the most famous Italian artist of his generation, with many of his works depicting female heroines, including Cleopatra, Mary Magdalene, Deianira and Lucretia.

The Bowes Museum exhibition presents works by Guido Reni from prestigious public and private collections, including The National Gallery and The Royal Collection.

Despite what Nicky Grimaldi and Dr. Michelle Carlin have already discovered, the mystery doesn't end there.

It is believed there is an almost identical copy of "The Death of Lucretia" in existence, suspected to be the original Reni painting from which the Bowes later repaint was copied from.

This painting could hold the answer to many of the questions the Northumbria researchers still have. However, it is believed the painting hasn't been in circulation since the early twentieth century and its whereabouts is presently unknown.

As Nicky Grimaldi explains: "It is quite common for copies of paintings to be made, sometimes by the original artists and sometimes by their studio apprentices or by other unrelated artists.

"We know there is another version of the image of Lucretia we see portrayed in the Bowes today. We suspect the other painting is still in Italy and has almost the same dimensions and composition, though unfortunately we don't know its exact location.

"If we could track this painting down it could be the missing piece of the puzzle and help us to fill in some of the gaps we have around the Bowes painting.

The importance of creative problem-solving in the workplace

by University of Jyväskylä

Creativity in working life can be approached as a learning process. Researchers Soila Lemmetty and Kaija Collin from the University of Jyväskylä, Department of Education investigated what it means to be creative for experts in technology sector. By observing and interviewing tens of employees, they found that creativity is an important element of employees' everyday practices.

The importance of creativity for organizations' competitiveness has long been discussed. Creativity is often connected to innovations and novel products. Creativity is also often linked to the creative arts and individual personalities. However, at the same time, there is an emerging need to see that creativity is important in every kind of job, and it should be more strongly connected to everyday problem solving.

"The starting point of our study was that anyone can act creatively at work, and it could even be a desired activity, at least for the experts," Lemmetty says, explaining the background of the research. "Creativity is not dependent only on an individual's will or the decision to be creative though. Instead, many other factors outside of the individual affect the creative process."

How to arrive at a creative solution depends on the situation and the nature of the problem at hand.

After all, it is all about learning. The problem-solver, in the other words the creative actor, is a learner in the process. The learner assesses the learning needs and methods in the situation and the quality of the solution required by the problem. However, learning does not need to be a lonely process, but colleagues and supervisors should support and help, by, for example, searching for information and sharing it.

Sometimes, especially in software development, problem-solving looks like a boring effort, but in reality, there are many kinds of processes occurring on the screen and under the surface. Actually, many of these processes relate to looking for information by discussing with colleagues, reading blogs, or testing different solutions.

"Googling was said to be one of the most important means for learning. Simultaneously, source critique, competence and experience were also called for," Lemmetty says.

However, Googling is not enough for a job to be creative, but to be creative the process should fulfil certain criteria: in a beautiful solution, for example, the code should be clear, simple and understandable by people other than experts themselves, such as by colleagues and clients.

"We cannot talk about creativity until there is an outcome. If the outcome is 'a mess' that cannot be understood, the process itself obviously cannot be creative either. Also copying the available solution was perceived as producing new problems rather than as solving them."

According to the study, it is not possible to support creativity in the technology sector just by hiring creative people, but by paying attention to the circumstances and frames of work. Essential elements of the creative learning process include the prevailing supervision and culture, experience sharing and clear aims. At the same time, however, there should be enough freedom to make decisions concerning one's own job and flexibility in scheduling and organizing work.

Why is it important to understand the nature of creative activity in the workplace? Different kinds of expert work will increase in the future, and a variety of technology will be a part of everybody's work. Therefore, it is expected that creative activity will be emphasized even more. This is why it is important to understand creative activity as an essential process of the work itself, alongside continuous learning and coping at work.

"It is fortunate that there are many kinds of people in the workplace: both inquisitive young people who are used to Googling to find solutions and more experienced employees who are familiar with sparring and guiding others," says Lemmetty. "When these younger and more experienced practitioners are part of the same team, the possibilities for creative and successful outcomes increase."

For the article published in Journal of Creative Behavior, altogether 46 employees from three Finnish technology enterprises were interviewed. In addition, employees were observed in their work for nearly 150 hours. The study was conducted as part of HeRMo, a larger research project funded by the Finnish Work Environment Fund. Soila Lemmetty works as a doctoral student and examines self-directed learning in the technology sector, while Kaija Collin is a senior researcher at the University of Jyväskylä.

Technology in higher education: learning with it instead of from it

More information: Abraham Carmeli et al. Transformational Leadership and Creative Problem-Solving: The Mediating Role of Psychological Safety and Reflexivity, The Journal of Creative Behavior (2013). DOI: 10.1002/jocb.43

CLIMATE CRISIS
Water theft a growing concern in increasingly-dry Spain

by Daniel Bosque

The digging of illegal wells to irrigate crops has been a widespread practice in Spain as water becomes increasingly scarce

Inside her greenhouse, Emilia Gomez bends down to see how her strawberries are faring following a difficult season with barely any water after her farm's illegal well was shut down.

Digging an illegal well to irrigate crops is a widespread practice in Spain as water becomes increasingly scarce.

But around 100 such boreholes have been blocked off recently around Lucena del Puerto, a small town some 70 kilometres (45 miles) west of Seville in southern Spain, which has won notoriety for being the epicentre of groundwater theft.

"We've been growing fruit for 40 years and it's always been with water from the well. We've tried to legalise it many times but have always fallen at the last hurdle," says Gomez, 50, who manages the 20-hectare (50-acre) plot with her two sisters.

"And now they've shut down our wells without giving us another solution," she mutters, picking the strawberries that are normally on supermarket shelves across Europe within 48 hours.

Between the pine-covered hills of Lucena where a sea of white plastic greenhouses stretches many hundreds of acres, it's easy to find blocked-off wells and illegal irrigation ponds that just a few months ago were watering fields of strawberries, raspberries and blueberries.

In some cases, these boreholes are just metres away from Andalusia's Donana National Park, a protected natural reserve known for its wetlands which are fed by the same underground aquifers.

Around 100 illegal wells have been blocked off recently around Lucena del Puerto, west of Seville

Exposed by a tragedy

Such practices have been going on for decades but only came into the spotlight a year ago when a two-year-old boy fell down an illegal well near Malaga.

For two weeks, the country was on tenterhooks as rescuers staged a complex operation to find him, eventually recovering his tiny, lifeless body.

Illegal drilling "is becoming more and more common," says Ana Prieto, spokeswoman for the police's environmental crimes unit, Seprona.

"Climate change, rising temperatures and the change from rain-fed to irrigated agriculture has all led to an overexploitation of important aquifers and to more illegal water extraction," she told AFP.

During a five-month nationwide operation last year, the unit discovered 1,400 wells and illegal boreholes, but there is little official data showing the extent of the problem.

In Spain, where two-thirds of the country is at risk of desertification, subterranean water reserves are crucial for surviving periods of scarcity

In 2006, the government estimated there were half a million illegal wells in use.

But in a recent study, Greenpeace estimated there were twice as many, calculating that the quantity of stolen water was equivalent to that used by 118 million people—two-and-a-half times the population of Spain.

A crucial resource

In Spain, where two-thirds of the country is at risk of desertification, subterranean water reserves are crucial for surviving periods of scarcity.

"If we don't take care of these reserves, we're going to get an unpleasant surprise when we really need them and find there's none left or that the water is contaminated," said Julio Barea, of Greenpeace Spain.

Overextraction can be particularly damaging for areas like the Tablas de Daimiel wetlands in central Spain or the crisis-hit Mar Menor saltwater lagoon in the southeast.

The EU last year reproached Spain over the illegal wells around the Donana National Park, home to a multitude of birds and the Iberian lynx the Donana national park

Last year, the European Union reproached Spain over the illegal wells around the Donana National Park, which is home to a multitude of birds and the Iberian lynx.

During the summer, the Water Alliance of the Guadalquivir River, whose estuary crosses the Donana marshlands, toughened its stance, shutting down around 120 illegal wells.

"We will continue doing so because we mustn't kill the goose that lays the golden eggs," said Alliance president Joaquin Paez, referring to crucial subterranean water resources.

The Guadalquivir basin "is very sensitive to climate change" with this year's water input "40 percent lower than the average for the past 25 years," he said.

In times of water scarcity, the subterranean reserves are "the main stores" that will allow farming to continue in an area where the sector employs some 80,000 people.

Huelva province produces 90 percent of red fruit crops in Spain, which is the world's top strawberry exporter

Strawberry fields forever?

Huelva province produces 90 percent of red fruit crops in Spain, which is the world's top strawberry exporter.

In 2015, Lucena del Puerto produced around 43 tonnes of fruit with a market value of some 500 million euros ($540 million), says mayor Manuel Mora.

But with the crackdown on illegal wells, around half of these crops could be lost.

"If all these fields are put out of action, the town will hit the wall," he says.

They have been growing fruit here since the mid 20th century and although they have long been promised water from a neighbouring river basin, nothing has happened, prompting farmers to seek their own solutions.

Romualdo Macias, president of the area's irrigation association, says they would happily shut down the wells "but not before we have access to surface water".

In the hills of Lucena, it's easy to find blocked-off wells and illegal irrigation ponds that just a few months ago were watering fields of strawberries, raspberries and blueberries

Without her well, Emilia Gomez has switched to a hydroponic system which minimises water use and doesn't rely on soil. But even so, she knows her farm's future "is highly uncertain".

"If it doesn't rain this year, I will have to reduce my plot," she says.

'Pirate-like farmers'

Ecological associations say local authorities have spent years looking the other way.

"For a long time, it seemed like anyone could just take water and use the land with impunity," says Juanjo Carmona, World Wildlife Fund's coordinator for Donana National Park.

Donana has five subterranean reserves, but three now contain very little water while a fourth has reserves that are polluted, he says, blaming the area's "pirate-like farmers".

"In many parts of the aquifer, there is no water left," he added, suggesting the growth of irrigation was overstretching the country's limited resources.

Last year, 1,400 wells and illegal boreholes were discovered but little official data exists showing the extent of the problem

"Instead of reducing the 'irrigation bubble', we keep inflating it with more and more hectares."

But in Lucena's main square, standing between the town hall and the white-and-ochre church facade, the mayor is adamant in his defence of the need for irrigation.

"Obviously, the crops are not what they used to be. But they can't ask us to go back to growing wheat and going hungry, as we did in the 1950s."

Green groups pressure Spain over 'at risk' wetlands

Panic buying, ignoring safety measures: The social psychology of crises

by Saralyn Cruickshank, Johns Hopkins University The social psychology of crises

Credit: Will Kirk / Johns Hopkins University

Times of crisis can bring out the best in people. It can also reveal the strangest parts of human nature.

While restaurants in six states are offering free toilet paper to those in need in response to the barren toilet paper shelves in many local grocery stores, U.S. Today reports that a police department in Newport, Oregon, issued an urgent request for residents to stop calling 911 when they run out of toilet paper. "You will survive without our assistance," the department stated.

Meanwhile, as the New York Times reports young people are continuing to travel despite restrictions and state and local governments are closing businesses to prevent people from congregating in public, groups of older adults, including an enclave of retirees in Florida and the parents of one New Yorker writer, are largely resisting the very social distancing behaviors that may protect their health.

Why?

"This outbreak is a classic example of a social dilemma," says Stephen Drigotas, a teaching professor and co-director of undergraduate studies in the Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences at Johns Hopkins. He is an expert in social psychology, and he says he'll likely draw from these news reports for material to include in his introductory course.

In the case of people panicking about toilet paper shortages, there are two phenomena in play, Drigotas explains.

First, panic buying during a pandemic is a classic example of a social dilemma: an inherent conflict between a person's individual self-interest and the good of the group as a whole. In this case, stockpiling goods is an example of the commons dilemma, which is based on 19th-century accounts of farmers who overgrazed public land set aside for their use by the government. Farmers could bring as much livestock to graze as they wanted, but many farmers came too often or with too many animals, and soon the land was stripped, requiring a season of no grazing in order to regrow and replenish.

"For an individual farmer, the dilemma was that they wanted to maximize the amount of grazing for their herd and ensure their livestock were all well-fed, but if too many farmers acted that way, the resource would be depleted for everybody," Drigotas explains.

During this outbreak of COVID-19, he says, common resources like food, toilet paper, and other essentials can become depleted if people don't show restraint.

"The problem occurs when people start to think that they're the ones sacrificing or missing out and they see other people benefiting," Drigotas says. "It inherently changes their mindset, and they'll actually start to feel that they're being taken advantage of. It causes people to react—panic might be a strong word—but it changes their motivation to become more selfish or overestimate what they need. In this case, it's toilet paper, of all things."

Another element at play is called the law of scarcity, which relates to how consumers think about goods that are in limited supply or available for a limited time, Drigotas says. Marketers will often use that sense of urgency to inspire people to make purchases they otherwise wouldn't. People are especially susceptible to the law of scarcity when they don't put much cognitive energy into their decision making, such as during late-night infomercials, or during a stressful, last-minute trip to the grocery store.

The challenge here, Drigotas explains, is inspiring people to resist the influence of the law of scarcity on their thinking and practice restraint in their purchasing.

"The more messages that get out there about how we should behave and how we should respond to this dilemma of the coronavirus outbreak, the more we'll understand that practicing restraint is the right thing to do," Drigotas says. "Moreover, if you can see evidence of other people showing restraint, people will be more likely to say yes, we can all work together in the face of this crisis."

Important groups of people may be ignoring these key messages about restraint, however. Business Insider reports that millennials are "snapping up" inexpensive flights despite travel warnings from the U.S. State Department and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Drigotas says a fair amount of these behaviors can be chalked up to the recklessness of youth, but there may be another phenomenon at work here. "The probability is that if you're young, you aren't likely to experience poor outcomes from contracting this disease," he says. "I suspect that as we start to see more evidence of how this disease affects people and younger people start knowing people who get infected, they will start to show a little more restraint in their actions."

But paradoxically, media reports have also emerged indicating that many baby boomers are unwilling to cancel cruises or practice social distancing measures despite being at higher risk of developing severe illness if they contract COVID-19.

"Humans aren't good at doing probability estimates," Drigotas says. "There may be a mindset within this population that contracting COVID-19 is high consequence but low probability. For young people, the estimate would be that contracting COVID-19 is high probability but low consequence. This could explain why these two groups might eschew social distancing measures."

Drigotas cautions that it's not clear yet how statistically relevant these reports about baby boomer and millennial behaviors are—there's still much to learn and study, he says. He plans to continue to monitor the outbreak and look for evidence of the principles of social psychology at play, but he, like his Johns Hopkins colleagues, will be doing it from the comfort—and safety—of his home.

Panicked consumers seek control amid the crisis

POST MODERN ALCHEMY

Electric jolt to carbon makes better water purifier

by Nagoya University

Synthesis process of nanocarbon adsorbent. Credit: Nagahiro Saito

Nagoya University scientists have developed a one-step fabrication process that improves the ability of nanocarbons to remove toxic heavy metal ions from water. The findings, published in the journal ACS Applied Nano Materials, could aid efforts to improve universal access to clean water.

Various nanocarbons are being studied and used for purifying water and wastewater by adsorbing dyes, gases, organic compounds and toxic metal ions. These nanocarbons can adsorb heavy metal ions, like lead and mercury, onto their surfaces through molecular attraction forces. But this attraction is weak, and so they aren't very efficient adsorbents on their own.

To improve adsorption, scientists are considering adding molecules to the nanocarbons, like amino groups, that form stronger chemical bonds with heavy metals. They are also trying to find ways to use all available surfaces on nanocarbons for metal ion adsorption, including the surfaces of their inner pores. This would enhance their capacity to adsorb more metal ions at a time.

Materials scientist Nagahiro Saito of Nagoya University's Institute of Innovation for Future Society and colleagues developed a new method for synthesizing an "amino-modified nanocarbon" that more efficiently adsorbs several heavy metal ions compared to conventional methods.

They mixed phenol, as a source of carbon, with a compound called APTES, as a source of amino groups. This mixture was placed in a glass chamber and exposed to a high voltage, creating a plasma in liquid. The method they used, called "solution plasma process," was maintained for 20 minutes. Black precipitates of amino-modified carbons formed and were collected, washed and dried.

A variety of tests showed that amino groups had evenly distributed over the nanocarbon surface, including into its slit-like pores.

"Our single-step process facilitates the bonding of amino groups on both outer and inner surfaces of the porous nanocarbon," says Saito. "This drastically increased their adsorption capacity compared to a nanocarbon on its own."

They put the amino-modified nanocarbons through ten cycles of adsorbing copper, zinc and cadmium metal ions, washing them between each cycle. Although the capacity to adsorb metal ions decreased with repetitive cycles, the reduction was small, making them relatively stable for repetitive use.

Finally, the team compared their amino-modified nanocarbons with five others synthesized by conventional methods. Their nanocarbon had the highest adsorption capacity for the metal ions tested, indicating there are more amino groups on their nanocarbon than the others.

"Our process could help reduce the costs of water purification and bring us closer to achieving universal and equitable access to safe and affordable drinking water for all by 2030," says Saito.The subtle role of surfaces in ion stickiness

More information: Mongkol Tipplook et al. Liquid-Phase Plasma-Assisted in Situ Synthesis of Amino-Rich Nanocarbon for Transition Metal Ion Adsorption, ACS Applied Nano Materials (2019). DOI: 10.1021/acsanm.9b01915

Research shows most bird feed contains troublesome weed seeds

by Cambridge University Press

When researchers examined the contents of 98 commercially available bird feed mixes, they uncovered several significant findings:

The mixes contained seeds from 29 weed species.
96 percent of the mixes contained seeds for pigweed species weeds, which can represent a significant threat to agriculture.
One in 10 contained Palmer amaranth or waterhemp seeds that demonstrated resistance to glyphosate in a greenhouse screening.
Seeds from kochia, common ragweed, foxtail species and wild buckwheat were also found in many of the mixes.

The researchers also explored which harvested bird feed ingredients contributed most to weed seed contamination. They found that proso millet grain was closely linked to the presence of pigweed species weeds, while safflower and sunflower contributed most to the presence of kochia and common ragweed, respectively.

"While it is difficult to estimate the precise role commercial bird feed plays, there is a distinct possibility it may be an overlooked pathway for spreading troublesome weed species into new regions," says Eric Oseland of the University of Missouri.

To mitigate the risks, researchers recommend careful weed management in crop fields designated for bird feed, as well as the use of sieving during packaging to reduce weed seed contamination. They also point to the proven effectiveness of regulatory measures adopted in Europe to limit weed seed content in bird feed.

IN CANADA WE HAVE FOUND OUR COMMERCIAL NON SPECIALTY BIRD FEED TO BE PREDOMINATELY MILLET AS FILLER, WHICH EVEN THE MOST COMMON SPARROW THROWS TO THE GROUND LOOKING FOR THE 'GOOD STUFF' AND THE MILLET IS NOT STERILIZED SO IT GROWS.Research validates new control tactic for herbicide-resistant weeds in US soybean crops

More information: Eric Oseland et al, Examination of Commercially-Available Bird Feed for Weed Seed Contaminants, Invasive Plant Science and Management (2020). DOI: 10.1017/inp.2020.2

Asia steps up virus efforts as second wave of infections strikes

COVID-19, coronavirus — 3D print of a spike protein of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19--in

From Australia's Bondi Beach to the streets of New Delhi, authorities across Asia have ramped up efforts to stem the spread of the deadly novel coronavirus amid fears of a second wave of infections in places where outbreaks had appeared under control.

Tighter travel restrictions were imposed in several countries as the number of cases in the region soared past 95,000—a third of the world's infections, an AFP tally shows.

Outside China—where the virus was first detected in December and infected more than 80,000 people—South Korea is the hardest-hit country in Asia with more than 8,500 cases.

While the number of infections in China has been falling for weeks, other countries are seeing the toll gather pace from spread of the highly contagious virus.

Cases rose by roughly a third in Thailand overnight to nearly 600, fueling scepticism about claims in neighbouring Myanmar and Laos of zero infections.

Three doctors treating virus patients in Indonesia died, taking the country's death toll to 48 with 514 confirmed infections.

Most cases are in Jakarta, where businesses have been ordered closed for two weeks.

After shutting its borders to foreigners and non-residents, Australia told citizens to also cancel domestic travel plans, with the number of cases topping 1,300.

Bondi Beach and several other popular swimming spots were closed after crowds of sunbathers defied a ban on large outdoor gatherings.

Pubs, casinos, cinemas and places of worship will be shuttered for up to six months starting Monday.

India curfew

Pakistan suspended international flights in a bid to prevent the virus spreading.

Officials in Sindh—the country's second-most populous province—ordered a lockdown effective midnight.

Pakistan has reported 5,650 suspected cases, 646 confirmed infections, and three deaths from the virus.

In nearby Bangladesh, however, only 27 cases have been reported, with two deaths.

Millions of people in India were in lockdown Sunday as the government tested the country's ability to fight the pandemic.

Officials said every private sector worker in New Delhi must work from home this week unless they are providing an essential service. Most public transport will also be halted.

Billionaire Anand Mahindra, whose vast Mahindra Group business empire includes cars and real estate, said his manufacturing facilities would try to repurpose to make ventilators.

Testing has expanded in the country of 1.3 billion people amid concerns that the 360 reported cases, including seven deaths, vastly understates the true scale of the crisis.

People took to their balconies in major cities after Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged Indians to thank medical workers and emergency personnel by clapping or banging pots and pans for five minutes at 5:00 pm Sunday.

The World Health Organization has called for "aggressive" action in Southeast Asia, fearing that a major outbreak could cripple the region's often decrepit health care systems.

Second wave

Authorities are now dealing with a second wave of infections in places where outbreaks appeared to have been brought under control as people return from abroad.

Singapore is banning all short-term visitors to the densely populated city-state after a surge of imported cases took its total to 445—including its first two deaths on Saturday.

In Hong Kong, where the worst had appeared to be over, the number of cases nearly doubled in the past week as more people fly back to the financial hub.

Infections in Malaysia hit 1,306—more than half linked to an international Islamic gathering held last month, with attendees later returning to Singapore and Indonesia with the virus.

In Sri Lanka, where 82 cases were reported, guards fired on inmates in a northern prison when they tried to break out, angry over a ban on family visits to prevent the spread of the virus.

Two convicts were killed and six others wounded.

Authorities also put restrictions on the sale of two malaria treatments amid fears of a run on the drugs after US President Donald Trump said that they might be effective to prevent a COVID-19 virus infection—though scientists agree that only more trials would determine if chloroquine really works and is safe.

Papua New Guinea, which has one confirmed infection, declared a 30-day state of emergency and halted domestic flights and public transport for two weeks.

Guam, which has 15 cases, confirmed a 68-year-old woman had died of COVID-19—the first virus-related death in the Pacific.

Crisis-hit Venezuelans turn to homemade remedies to fight virus

Faced with the coronavirus pandemic on top of an economic crisis that has left shortages of medicines and medical supplies, Venezuelans are turning to homemade remedies to protect themselves.

Whether it's hot drinks infused with lemon, salt, garlic or onions, cash-strapped Venezuelans are cooking up concoctions handed down from one generation to another.

No sooner had Venezuela announced its first coronavirus cases than Dilia Zorrilla ran to the shops to buy face masks, anti-bacterial gel, alcohol and chlorine, but also onions for the hostel she runs in Guiria, a remote village in the northwest, 600 kilometers (370 miles) east of the capital Caracas.

She asked her employees to place the onions in a glass bowl at the feet of a statue of the Virgin Mary, who is particularly venerated on the Caribbean coast.

"And that is not too many," she said. Local legend has it that onions can ward off illnesses.

When new guests arrive at the hostel, which smells of onions, Zorrilla puts a drop of antiseptic gel in their hands and advises them to go out and buy gloves and face masks.

She also serves them a citric herbal tea. "You must drink it," she orders.

In this remote area, Zorrilla feels cut off from information. Television and telephone signals are unreliable.

"Here, everything we know has come from social media," the 42-year-old told AFP.

'Part of the desperation'

In this region infested with drug-traffickers and armed groups, these elixirs form part of the secrets handed down from one generation to the next.

For surgeon Jaime Lorenzo from the United Doctors NGO "these measures are part of the desperation" caused by a pandemic that has already killed 13,000 people worldwide, but which has affected just 42 people so far in Venezuela.

"As scientists, all remedies need to be based on scientific evidence," Lorenzo told AFP.

While these concoctions may have been passed down through generations, none of them has been scientifically tested, Lorenzo said.

The best advice, as espoused by President Nicolas Maduro, is to stay at home.

Since the beginning of the week, Venezuela has been under a near-total lockdown.

People are only allowed out to buy food or medicines. Schools are closed and most air transport links suspended.

Police and soldiers patrol the roads to ensure the decree is respected.

But long before COVID-19 arrived in Venezuela, the health system had already collapsed and it was often hard to get hold of medicines, either due to their exorbitant cost or scarcity in pharmacies.

'We're not prepared'

People have turned to homemade remedies even to treat cancer.

So "we're just not prepared" to face a pandemic, said 53-year-old trader Alodia Anton, who turned up at the Guiria hospital to have her blood pressure taken.

But it wasn't possible "because they don't have a blood pressure meter on the emergency ward."

Her biggest fear is that she or someone close to her would need emergency medical care: the main hospital in the region is in Cumana, a six-hour drive away on poorly surfaced roads.

So Anton makes do with "advice" her sister sends her by WhatsApp from the United States, such as "drink hot tea" with lemon, camomile or "whatever," wash the floor with vinegar and keep onions in her room.

Lorenzo warns against believing "myths" that hot drinks can weaken COVID-19, but that message isn't getting through.

"We're drinking boiled water with garlic and lemon," says a tearful Rosa Solangel through a face mask.

The 56-year-old cook fears for the health of her three children who have left the country for Brazil, Peru and Colombia—4.9 million people have fled Venezuela's economic meltdown since the end of 2015 according to UN data.

Follow the latest news on the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak

Welcome to the first social media pandemic.

Here are 8 ways you can stop the spread of

coronavirus misinformation.

by Jessica Guynn

Credit: CC0 Public Domain

The alarming messages ping our laptops and phones and parachute into our social media feeds, text messages and private chat groups.

Be prepared for a national quarantine. Martial law is coming.

The coronavirus was cooked up in a bioweapons lab by the CIA, or the pharmaceutical industry, or was funded by the the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to boost vaccine sales.

Sip water every 15 minutes, gargle with ethanol or eat raw garlic to ward off infection.

None of it is true, but, as public fear and uncertainty grow with the rise in deaths and confirmed cases across the U.S., we are becoming increasingly susceptible to these wildly false and sometimes hazardous claims that tap into our urgent need for the latest information about how to protect ourselves and our families.

Too often we pass along the misinformation we pick up, unwittingly exposing our loved ones to a flood of conspiracy theories, hoaxes and falsehoods that could mislead or even harm them.

So much misinformation is being transmitted from person to person that the scale is unprecedented, public health experts say. Unlike localized disasters such as hurricanes or mass shootings, the coronavirus outbreak is dominating the public conversation on every single social media platform.

COVID-19 is the world's first social media pandemic

"This is our first social media pandemic," says Carl Bergstrom, a professor of biology at the University of Washington who researches disinformation. "This is the first time we've had a pandemic where the population is relying heavily on social media for information."

Shelter-in-place orders and other restrictions on our daily lives have only exacerbated the spread of misinformation, public health experts warn.

Hunkered down in their homes and isolated from their jobs and communities, people are connecting with friends and family on social media as they search for answers in a rapidly-evolving global public health crisis.

What they encounter instead: profiteers hawking "cures," cyber thieves trying to steal their personal information, ideologues who distrust science or troublemakers intent on sowing confusion and distrust.

"There's a high degree of uncertainty and obviously a lot of fear and that creates a kind of perfect storm," says Peter Adams, senior vice president of education at the News Literacy Project. "Really well-intentioned people are trying to make sense of this and help friends and family to the greatest degree possible so they just sort of share everything they see and that turns into this over abundance of information, a lot of which isn't true."

The World Health Organization was so alarmed that, in February, it warned of a massive "infodemic," shorthand for information epidemic, "an overabundance of information—some accurate and some not—that makes it hard for people to find trustworthy sources and reliable guidance when they need it."

The 'life-and-death consequences' of misinformation during coronavirus

"This is a moment where misinformation can have real consequences, beyond what we have seen in elections," says Dhavan Shah, the Louis A. & Mary E. Maier-Bascom professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, director of the university's Mass Communication Research Center and scientific director of the Center for Health Enhancement System Studies. "This is a moment where misinformation can have life-and-death consequences."

Kathleen M. Carley, who directs Carnegie Mellon's Center for Computation Analysis of Social and Organizational Systems, has been researching the spread of coronavirus misinformation since January. She has identified three types of misinformation so far:

Fake cures or preventative measures such as taking colloidal silver, steroids, acetic acid, essential oils and cocaine; gargling with salt water; spraying chlorine on your body and avoiding ice cream.
False information about the nature of the virus such as COVID-19 is just a cold or a normal flu and children cannot catch it.
Conspiracy theories such as COVID-19 was bioengineered by a Russian bioweapons lab or was caused when an infected rat bit a student in a bioweapons lab in China.

Carley expects new sorts of misinformation to emerge around topics like coronavirus testing " to incite panic and sow confusion."

Who's fighting back against coronavirus misinformation?

Groups like Carley's are analyzing the waves of misinformation and informing the public. Fact-checking groups are debunking fake coronavirus cures, false news reports and conspiracy theories.

The WHO is working with Facebook, Twitter and other platforms to crack down on coronavirus misinformation. Influencers on Facebook-owned Instagram and Google-owned YouTube are being drafted to spread accurate news about the virus.

On Monday, Facebook joined seven other platforms—Google, Microsoft, Twitter, Reddit, YouTube and Microsoft's LinkedIn—in pledging to crack down on coronavirus misinformation as a direct threat to public welfare. And CEO Mark Zuckerberg told reporters Wednesday that Facebook is launching an information hub that will appear at the top of everyone's news feeds to counteract misinformation with facts about COVID-19.

Also on Wednesday, Facebook-owned WhatsApp announced it would give $1 million to support the International Fact-Checking Network in its fight against COVID-19 misinformation.

"The top priority and focus for us has been making sure people can get access to good authoritative information from trusted health sources," Zuckerberg said.

So, how can you practice better information hygiene? Here are some tips:

Arm yourself with the facts

We are all susceptible to misinformation. As the saying goes, "A lie can travel halfway around the world while the truth is still putting on its shoes." The peddlers pushing false or misleading content prey on our biases and our behavior, especially in a crisis.

"As people turn from traditional media sources, governmental agencies, NGOs to whatever is flying around this hour on social media, we feel like we are getting better and better information because it's more recent, but we are actually getting much worse information because it hasn't been adequately vetted," Bergstrom says. "The hunger for knowing what's happening up to the minute is driving people into the arms of people who are spreading rumors and disinformation on the internet."

Turn instead to public health officials such as The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organization for information on the virus. What are the symptoms? How does it spread? The more information you know, the easier it will be to identify misinformation.

Treat anything not clearly attributed and linked back to one of those organizations with suspicion. "Above all else, what we are really urging people to do is consider the source," Adams says.

Take 20 seconds to research before sharing

Just like washing your hands for 20 seconds, take 20 seconds to research each piece of information you come across before passing it on.

"You can do a lot in 20 seconds when you encounter something in a social media feed," Adams says. "Check the comments to see if anyone has posted a link to a fact check of the claim or open a new tab and do a quick Google search for the claim 'does garlic help prevent coronavirus' and you will quickly turn up fact checks from credible fact-checking organizations."

Do not spread misinformation about prevention or cures

Bogus tips on how to prevent or cure coronavirus are blazing across social media. Some tips are harmless, like eating raw garlic to prevent infection. Others are dangerous and potentially life-threatening. You can debunk these tips by checking with the CDC or WHO. Don't share posts that could physically harm others.

Beware posts that traffic in fear

Research social media posts and messages that deliberately incite fear, strain credulity or are just too reassuring or comforting to be true. Ask yourself: Why is someone trying to make me feel this way?

Don't trust everything you see

We instinctively trust images and video, but they can be taken out of context, edited or digitally manipulated to mislead us. So check with trusted sources of information such as health experts. Or do a Google search or a Google image search to research if images and videos have been manipulated.

Don't join the crowd

Misinformation needs a crowd, the bigger the better. Sure, Kremlin-linked operatives produce shady content. Bots pepper social media with automated posts. But effective misinformation campaigns thrive by recruiting unsuspecting members of the public who don't realize they are amplifying and legitimizing falsehoods or posts seeking to inflame tensions or disrupt American life. Cross check information with the CDC or WHO before sharing it with others.

Keep partisan politics out of it

We live in a deeply partisan world with bitter divisions between the political right and left, especially in the run-up to the 2020 presidential election. Be wary of efforts to downplay or exaggerate the threat of the coronavirus to attack one side or the other.

Uncertainty sucks, get used to it

Scientists are learning more each day about the virus and its spread, but it may take weeks, possibly months, for them to responsibly answer all of our questions. Don't fill the vacuum with unreliable information, Bergstrom advises.

"My hope is as this progresses, people will realize, 'Boy, I get burned every time I follow some credible-seeming anonymous thread on the internet, but when I read an article in U.S. TODAY, I haven't been burned yet," he said. "I hope that people would eventually start to figure that out.

Coronavirus outbreak: Social media platforms scramble to contain misinformation

LA REVUE GAUCHE - Left Comment