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This review summarizes some of the recently published results concerning the acid sites in the zeolites ZSM-5 and Y studied by temperature-programmed desorption (TPD) and adsorption calorimetry using different probe molecules NH3, CO, N2O and n-hexane. For the first time it has been shown that the acid sites in hydrated zeolites are accessible for n-hexane adsorption.

The first model of a multifunctional externally powered hand prosthesis known as the ‘Belgrade Hand Prosthesis’ was developed in the Institute ‘Mihailo Pupin’ in Belgrade in 1964, and in the course of 1966–67 an improved model was developed. The further programme of work envisages a two-year engineering and functional evaluation of the prosthesis on the patients. A detailed description of the improved mechanical solution of the ‘Belgrade Hand Prosthesis’ is given in this paper, and two variants of control logic are described.

The adaptive significance of sympatric mitochondrial (mtDNA) variation and the role of selective mechanisms that maintain it are debated to this day. Isofemale lines of Drosophila obscura collected from four populations were backcrossed within populations to construct experimental lines, with all combinations of mtDNA Cyt b haplotypes and nuclear genetic backgrounds (nuDNA). Individuals of both sexes from these lines were then subjected to four fitness assays (desiccation resistance, developmental time, egg-to-adult viability and sex ratio) on two experimental temperatures to examine the role of temperature fluctuations and sex-specific selection, as well as the part that interactions between the two genomes play in shaping mtDNA variation. The results varied across populations and fitness components. In the majority of comparisons, they show that sympatric mitochondrial variants affect fitness. However, their effect should be examined in light of interactions with nuDNA, as mito-nuclear genotype was even more influential on fitness across all components. We found both sex-specific and temperature-specific differences in mitochondrial and mito-nuclear genotype ranks in all fitness components. The effect of temperature-specific selection was found to be more prominent, especially in desiccation resistance. From the results of different components tested, we can also infer that temperature-specific mito-nuclear interactions rather than sex-specific selection on mito-nuclear genotypes have a more substantial role in preserving mtDNA variation in this model species.

In this work Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) study has been applied to study the adsorption of carbon monoxide on transition metal (Mn2+, Co2 Ni2+) ion-exchanged zeolites type Y, X and mordenites. The adsorption of CO at room temperature produces overlapping IR absorption bands in the 2120?2200 cm-1 region. The frequency of the band around 2200 cm-1 is found to be dependent not only on the charge-balancing transition metal cation but also on the framework composition. The frequencies of the band near 1600 cm-1 was found to be dependent on the Si/Al ratio of the investigated zeolites.