The thermal phase transformation of the iron-manganese phase of the PacificOcean manganese nodules were studied by the differential thermal and X-ray diffractionmethods. X-ray powder patterns of the heated samples at the temperature of 600°C to 1000°C show the occurrence of hematite, bixbyite and cubic and tetragonal (Fe, Mn) ₃O₄. Bixbyiteproduced by the heat treatment of the iron-manganese phase gives an abnormal X-ray patternin comparison with the standard sample of bixbyite. Cubic (Fe, Mn) ₃O₄ is produced notonly by the reaction of bixbyite with hematite over 900°C, but also at the lower temperature, such as 600°C. While, tetragonal (Fe, Mn) ₃O₄ is a reaction product of cubic (Fe, Mn) ₃O₄with bixbyite over 900°C in the case of manganese rich nodules. The species and quantitiesof the products after the heat treatment are assumed to be mostly influenced by the relativecontents of iron and manganese in the manganese nodule.

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It is widely recognized that the geostrophic flows computed by the dynamic methodof Bjerknes and collaborators represent the actual currents pretty faithfully. However, whatwould be the reason that a geostrophic current derived by only retaining the terms of Coriolisand the pressure gradient forces in the hydrodynamical equations agrees so closely with theactual ocean current of the same area? In this attempt was assumed an imaginative oceanof homogeneous water and uniform depth on a rotating earth but with neither continent norislands. The average wind distribution observed along several meridians over the Pacific Ocean was assumed to prevail in this sea throughout with no variation in east-west direction.Taking the curvature of the earth surface, rotation of the earth, Coriolis forces, pressuregradients and the horizontal and vertical eddy viscosity into account, the equations of motionwere solved and velocity components were derived for all latitudes. A comparison of the eastwestcomponents thus obtained with the corresponding components of the geostrophic flows, reveals that they agree well in higher latitudes but there appears a remarkable disagreementin lower latitudes. This means that a special care must be taken in replacing the existingcurrents with the geostrophic flows at lower latitudes.

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Vibrio marinus, an obligately psychrophilic marine bacterium, deaminated nineof 17 amino acids tested with both L-glutamine and L-serine displaying the greatest deaminationrates.
The L-serine deamination temperature response of washed cells depended upon the growthtemperature of V. marinus MP-1. Cells grown at 15°C displayed optimum activity at 40°C, and a shoulder at 15°C, whereas 4°C grown cells revealed two temperature optima, one at 38and the other at 11°C, this suggests that the 4°C grown cells are physiologicallydifferent thanthe 15°C grown cells.
It is suggested that these peaks in deamination of L-serine at different temperatures mightbe due to the loss of permeability control above the maximum growth temperature (20°C) of the organism.
Hydrostatic pressure stimulated or suppressed L-serine deamination by washed cellsdepending upon the temperature at which the cells were grown and the incubation temperatureof the reaction mixture. Cells grown at 15 or 4°C had deamination stimulated under pressurein the following cases:(i) cells grown at 15°C and tested for deamination at 15°C, (ii) cellsgrown at 4°C and tested at 4°C and (iii) cells grown at 4°C and tested at 15°C. When cellswere grown at 15°C and tested at 4°C no stimulation of deamination activity due topressurewas observed.

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The vertical distribution of density, salinity, temperature, dissolved oxygen, apparentoxygen utilization, nutrients, preformed phosphate, pH, alkalinity, alkalinity: chlorinity ratio, “in situ” partial pressure of carbon dioxide, and percent saturation of calciteand aragonite, for the Southeastern Bering Sea, is studied and explained in terms of biologicaland physical processes. Some hydrological interactions between the Bering Sea and theNorth Pacific Ocean are explained. The horizontal distribution of dissolved oxygenat 2000and 2500 m depths, throughout the Bering Sea, indicates that deep water is flowingfrom thePacific, through the Kamchatka Strait, and then northward and eastward in the Bering Sea.Based on the dissolved oxygen distribution we estimate roughly that it takes 20 years for thedeep waters to move from the Kamchatka Strait to the Southeastern part of the easternbasin. The surface concentration of nutrients is higher in the Bering Sea than in the NorthPacific Ocean, probably because of upwelling and intense vertical mixing in the Bering Sea.A multivariable regression analysis of dissolved oxygen as a function of phosphateconcentrationand potential temperature was applied for the region where the potential temperaturesalinitydiagram is straight, and the confidence interval of the PO₄ coefficient, at the 95%probability level, was found consistent with the REDFIELD biochemical oxidation model.The calcium carbonate saturation calculations show that the Bering Sea is supersaturatedwith aragonite in the upper 100 m, and with calcite in the upper 200 m. Below these depthsseawater is undersaturated with respect to these two minerals.

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