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The article provides a contribution to the glacial geomorphology of tropical high-altitude mountains. It focuses on the diversity of glacial landforms in the Cordillera Blanca (Peru). The landforms are classified as individual landform types as well as in their hypsometric sequence. Their spatial arrangement is depicted in vertical series and summarised in a glacial-morphological altitudinal belt model. The glacial landforms are analysed in a genetic succession from the moraine-delimited glacier forefields to the excessive pedestal moraines and taking account of the topographical conditions in the verticality. The Pleistocene glacial relief formation is considered as one of the dominating factors in the development of the moraine types. The sediments are on the one hand in situ deposition forms and on the other depositions dislocated by mass movements and represent paraglacial landforms. Using the example of the Paron Valley in the Artesonraju-Huandoy Massif and neighbouring valleys, the article provides a typology of the range of glacial and paraglacial landforms based on a holistic glacial landsystem approach with special reference to pedestal moraines. (C) 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Risk-based insurance is a commonly proposed and discussed flood risk adaptation mechanism in policy debates across the world such as in the United Kingdom and the United States of America. However, both risk-based premiums and growing risk pose increasing difficulties for insurance to remain affordable. An empirical concept of affordability is required as the affordability of adaption strategies is an important concern for policymakers, yet such a concept is not often examined. Therefore, a robust metric with a commonly acceptable affordability threshold is required. A robust metric allows for a previously normative concept to be quantified in monetary terms, and in this way, the metric is rendered more suitable for integration into public policy debates. This paper investigates the degree to which risk-based flood insurance premiums are unaffordable in Europe. In addition, this paper compares the outcomes generated by three different definitions of unaffordability in order to investigate the most robust definition. In doing so, the residual income definition was found to be the least sensitive to changes in the threshold. While this paper focuses on Europe, the selected definition can be employed elsewhere in the world and across adaption measures in order to develop a common metric for indicating the potential unaffordability problem.
Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) being an important vegetable is cultivated and used throughout the world. It not only contributes in fulfilling the basic nutritional requirements of the human body but also has many health benefits due to its rich biochemical composition. However, its production at large scale is hampered by many limiting factors such as biotic and abiotic stresses. Among the different abiotic stresses, drought poses drastic impact on tomato yield. Drought stress is genetically regulated by many transcription factors that not only regulate the stress responsive mechanism but also facilitate the growth and development of tomato plants. NAC is an important stress related transcription factor genes family, and the ATAF1 gene, a member of this family, is involved in ABA signaling and stress response. In this study, tomato variety Rio Drande was transformed with drought resistant ATAF1 gene via Agrobacterium mediated gene transformation method. The ATAF1 gene was first cloned in the pK7WFG2 vector having kanamycin selectable marker and then it was introduced in the Agrobacterium tumefaciens strain GV3101 through heat shock method. The tomato cotyledon and hypocotyl ex-plants of variety "Rio Ggrande" were cultured on callus induction medium (MS + 2.5 mg/L IAA + 2 mg/L BAP). The calli were then infected with Agrobacterium tumefaciens strain GV3101 containing ATAF1 gene and selection was carried out on the kanamycin selectable medium (MS + 100 mg/L Kan), and were regenerated on MS medium with 1 mg/L IAA + 1 mg/L BAP. Out of 216 putative transformed calli, 13 calli were able to regenerate on the selection medium. Of the 13 calli, three transgenic tomato plantlets were recovered, and these were confirmed through PCR analysis for the presence of 432 bp fragment of ATAF1 gene. The transformation protocol reported here can be used to generate drought resistant tomato plants in future.
The generation of reactive singlet oxygen under mild conditions is of current interest in chemistry, biology, and medicine. We were able to release oxygen from dipyridylanthracene endoperoxides (EPOs) by using a simple chemical trigger at low temperature. Protonation and methylation of such EPOs strongly accelerated these reactions. Furthermore, the methyl pyridinium derivatives are water soluble and therefore serve as oxygen carriers in aqueous media. Methylation of the EPO of the ortho isomer affords the parent form directly without increasing the temperature under very mild conditions. This exceptional behavior is ascribed to the close contact between the nitrogen atom and the peroxo group. Singlet oxygen is released upon this reaction, and can be used to oxygenate an acceptor such as tetramethylethylene in the dark with no heating. Thus, a new chemical source of singlet oxygen has been found, which is triggered by a simple stimulus.
The purpose of this study was to estimate the optimal body size, limb-segment length, girth or breadth ratios for 100-m backstroke mean speed performance in young swimmers. Sixty-three young swimmers (boys [n = 30; age: 13.98 ± 0.58 years]; girls [n = 33; age: 13.02 ± 1.20 years]) participated in this study. To identify the optimal body size and body composition components associated with 100-m backstroke speed performance, we adopted a multiplicative allometric log-linear regression model, which was refined using backward elimination. The multiplicative allometric model exploring the association between 100-m backstroke mean speed performance and the different somatic measurements estimated that biological age, sitting height, leg length for the lower-limbs, and two girths (forearm and arm relaxed girth) are the key predictors. Stature and body mass did not contribute to the model, suggesting that the advantage of longer levers was limb-specific rather than a general whole-body advantage. In fact, it is only by adopting multiplicative allometric models that the abovementioned ratios could have been derived. These findings highlighted the importance of considering somatic characteristics of young backstroke swimmers and can help swimming coaches to classify their swimmers and enable them to suggest what might be the swimmers’ most appropriate stroke (talent identification).
Context. Among the intermediate-mass magnetic chemically peculiar (MCP) stars, CU Vir is one of the most intriguing objects. Its 100% circularly polarized beams of radio emission sweep the Earth as the star rotates, thereby making this strongly magnetic star the prototype of a class of nondegenerate stellar radio pulsars. While CU Vir is well studied in radio, its high-energy properties are not known. Yet, X-ray emission is expected from stellar magnetospheres and confined stellar winds. Aims. Using X-ray data we aim to test CU Vir for intrinsic X-ray emission and investigate mechanisms responsible for its generation. Methods. We present X-ray observations performed with XMM-Newton and Chandra and study obtained X-ray images, light curves, and spectra. Basic X-ray properties are derived from spectral modelling and are compared with model predictions. In this context we investigate potential thermal and nonthermal X-ray emission scenarios. Results. We detect an X-ray source at the position of CU Vir. With LX approximate to 3 x 10(28) erg s(-1) it is moderately X-ray bright, but the spectrum is extremely hard compared to other Ap stars. Spectral modelling requires multi-component models with predominant hot plasma at temperatures of about T-X = 25MK or, alternatively, a nonthermal spectral component. Both types of model provide a virtually equivalent description of the X-ray spectra. The Chandra observation was performed six years later than those by XMM-Newton, yet the source has similar X-ray flux and spectrum, suggesting a steady and persistent X-ray emission. This is further confirmed by the X-ray light curves that show only mild X-ray variability. Conclusions. CU Vir is also an exceptional star at X-ray energies. To explain its full X-ray properties, a generating mechanism beyond standard explanations, like the presence of a low-mass companion or magnetically confined wind-shocks, is required. Magnetospheric activity might be present or, as proposed for fast-rotating strongly magnetic Bp stars, the X-ray emission of CU Vir is predominantly auroral in nature.
Background
Biomarker-based analyses are commonly reported in observational epidemiological studies; however currently there are no specific study quality assessment tools to assist evaluation of conducted research. Accounting for study design and biomarker measurement would be important for deriving valid conclusions when conducting systematic data evaluation.
Methods
We developed a study quality assessment tool designed specifically to assess biomarker-based cross-sectional studies (BIOCROSS) and evaluated its inter-rater reliability. The tool includes 10-items covering 5 domains: ‘Study rational’, ‘Design/Methods’, ‘Data analysis’, ‘Data interpretation’ and ‘Biomarker measurement’, aiming to assess different quality features of biomarker cross-sectional studies. To evaluate the inter-rater reliability, 30 studies were distributed among 5 raters and intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC-s) were derived from respective ratings.
Results
The estimated overall ICC between the 5 raters was 0.57 (95% Confidence Interval (CI): 0.38–0.74) indicating a good inter-rater reliability. The ICC-s ranged from 0.11 (95% CI: 0.01–0.27) for the domain ‘Study rational’ to 0.56 (95% CI: 0.40–0.72) for the domain ‘Data interpretation’.
Conclusion
BIOCROSS is a new study quality assessment tool suitable for evaluation of reporting quality from cross-sectional epidemiological studies employing biomarker data. The tool proved to be reliable for use by biomedical scientists with diverse backgrounds and could facilitate comprehensive review of biomarker studies in human research.
While of higher plant origin, a specific source assignment of sedimentary leaf wax n-alkanes remains difficult. In addition, it is unknown how fast a changing catchment vegetation would be reflected in sedimentary leaf wax archives. In particular, for a quantitative interpretation of n-alkane C and H isotope ratios in terms of paleohydrological and paleoecological changes, a better understanding of transfer times and dominant sedimentary sources of leaf wax n-alkanes is required. In this study we tested to what extent compositional changes in leaf wax n-alkanes can be linked to known vegetation changes by comparison with high-resolution palynological data from the same archive. We analyzed leaf wax n-alkane concentrations and distributions in decadal resolution from a sedimentary record from Trzechowskie paleolake (TRZ, northern Poland), covering the Late Glacial to early Holocene (13 360-9940 yr BP). As an additional source indicator of targeted n-alkanes, compound-specific carbon isotopic data have been generated in lower time resolution. The results indicated rapid responses of n-alkane distribution patterns coinciding with major climatic and paleoecological transitions. We found a shift towards higher average chain length (ACL) values at the Allerod-Younger Dryas (YD) transition between 12 680 and 12 600 yr BP, co-evaled with a decreasing contribution of arboreal pollen (mainly Pinus and Betula) and a subsequently higher abundance of pollen derived from herbaceous plants (Poaceae, Cyperaceae, Artemisia), shrubs, and dwarf shrubs (Juniperus and Salix). The termination of the YD was characterized by a successive increase in n-alkane concentrations coinciding with a sharp decrease in ACL values between 11 580 and 11 490 yr BP, reflecting the expansion of woodland vegetation at the YD-Holocene transition. A gradual reversal to longer chain lengths after 11 200 yr BP, together with decreasing n-alkane concentrations, most likely reflects the early Holocene vegetation succession with a decline of Betula. These results show that n-alkane distributions reflect vegetation changes and that a fast (i.e., subdecadal) signal transfer occurred. However, our data also indicate that a standard interpretation of directional changes in biomarker ratios remains difficult. Instead, responses such as changes in ACL need to be discussed in the context of other proxy data. In addition, we find that organic geochemical data integrate different ecological information compared to pollen, since some gymnosperm genera, such as Pinus, produce only a very low amount of n-alkanes and for this reason their contribution may be largely absent from biomarker records. Our results demonstrate that a combination of palynological and n-alkane data can be used to infer the major sedimentary leaf wax sources and constrain leaf wax transport times from the plant source to the sedimentary sink and thus pave the way towards quantitative interpretation of compound-specific hydrogen isotope ratios for paleohydrological reconstructions.
It is of major interest to estimate the feedback of arctic ecosystems to the global warming we expect in upcoming decades. The speed of this response is driven by the potential of species to migrate, tracking their climate optimum. For this, sessile plants have to produce and disperse seeds to newly available habitats, and pollination of ovules is needed for the seeds to be viable. These two processes are also the vectors that pass genetic information through a population. A restricted exchange among subpopulations might lead to a maladapted population due to diversity losses. Hence, a realistic implementation of these dispersal processes into a simulation model would allow an assessment of the importance of diversity for the migration of plant species in various environments worldwide. To date, dynamic global vegetation models have been optimized for a global application and overestimate the migration of biome shifts in currently warming temperatures. We hypothesize that this is caused by neglecting important fine-scale processes, which are necessary to estimate realistic vegetation trajectories. Recently, we built and parameterized a simulation model LAVESI for larches that dominate the latitudinal treelines in the northernmost areas of Siberia. In this study, we updated the vegetation model by including seed and pollen dispersal driven by wind speed and direction. The seed dispersal is modelled as a ballistic flight, and for the pollination of ovules of seeds produced, we implemented a wind-determined and distance-dependent probability distribution function using a von Mises distribution to select the pollen donor. A local sensitivity analysis of both processes supported the robustness of the model's results to the parameterization, although it highlighted the importance of recruitment and seed dispersal traits for migration rates. This individual-based and spatially explicit implementation of both dispersal processes makes it easily feasible to inherit plant traits and genetic information to assess the impact of migration processes on the genetics. Finally, we suggest how the final model can be applied to substantially help in unveiling the important drivers of migration dynamics and, with this, guide the improvement of recent global vegetation models.
Wird Schon Stimmen!
(2018)
The article puts forward a novel analysis of the German modal particle schon as a modal degree operator over propositional content. The proposed analysis offers a uniform perspective on the semantics of modal schon and its aspectual counterpart meaning ‘already’: Both particles are analyzed as denoting a degree operator, expressing a scale-based comparison over relevant alternatives. The alternatives are determined by focus in the case of aspectual schon (Krifka 2000), but are restricted to the polar alternatives p and ¬p in the case of modal schon. Semantically, modal schon introduces a presupposition to the effect that the circumstantial conversational background contains more factual evidence in favor of p than in favor of ¬p, thereby making modal schon the not at-issue counterpart of the overt comparative form eher ‘rather’ (Herburger & Rubinstein 2014). The analysis incorporates basic insights from earlier analyses of modal schon in a novel way, and it also offers new insights as to the underlying workings of modality in natural language as involving propositions rather than possible worlds (Kratzer 1977, 2012).
The equatorial electrojet occasionally reverses during morning and afternoon hours, leading to periods of westward current in the ionospheric E region that are known as counter electrojet (CEJ) events. We present the first analysis of CEJ climatology and CEJ dependence on solar flux and lunar phase for the Brazilian sector, based on an extensive ground-based data set for the years 2008 to 2017 from the geomagnetic observatory Tatuoca (1.2 degrees S, 48.5 degrees W), and we compare it to the results found for Huancayo (12.0 degrees S, 75.3 degrees W) observatory in the Peruvian sector. We found a predominance of morning CEJ events for both sectors. The afternoon CEJ occurrence rate in the Brazilian sector is twice as high as in the Peruvian sector. The afternoon CEJ occurrence rate strongly depends on season, with maximum rates occurring during the northern-hemisphere summer for the Brazilian sector and during the northern-hemisphere winter for the Peruvian sector. Significant discrepancies between the two sectors are also found for morning CEJ rates during the northern-hemisphere summer. These longitudinal differences are in agreement with a CEJ climatology derived from contemporary Swarm satellite data and can be attributed in part to the well-known longitudinal wave-4 structure in the background equatorial electrojet strength that results from nonmigrating solar tides and stationary planetary waves. Simulations with the Thermosphere-Ionosphere-Electrodynamics General Circulation Model show that the remaining longitudinal variability in CEJ during northern summer can be explained by the effect of migrating tides in the presence of the varying geomagnetic field in the South Atlantic Anomaly.
One of the crucial components in seismic hazard analysis is the estimation of the maximum earthquake magnitude and associated uncertainty. In the present study, the uncertainty related to the maximum expected magnitude mu is determined in terms of confidence intervals for an imposed level of confidence. Previous work by Salamat et al. (Pure Appl Geophys 174:763-777, 2017) shows the divergence of the confidence interval of the maximum possible magnitude m(max) for high levels of confidence in six seismotectonic zones of Iran. In this work, the maximum expected earthquake magnitude mu is calculated in a predefined finite time interval and imposed level of confidence. For this, we use a conceptual model based on a doubly truncated Gutenberg-Richter law for magnitudes with constant b-value and calculate the posterior distribution of mu for the time interval T-f in future. We assume a stationary Poisson process in time and a Gutenberg-Richter relation for magnitudes. The upper bound of the magnitude confidence interval is calculated for different time intervals of 30, 50, and 100 years and imposed levels of confidence alpha = 0.5, 0.1, 0.05, and 0.01. The posterior distribution of waiting times T-f to the next earthquake with a given magnitude equal to 6.5, 7.0, and7.5 are calculated in each zone. In order to find the influence of declustering, we use the original and declustered version of the catalog. The earthquake catalog of the territory of Iran and surroundings are subdivided into six seismotectonic zones Alborz, Azerbaijan, Central Iran, Zagros, Kopet Dagh, and Makran. We assume the maximum possible magnitude m(max) = 8.5 and calculate the upper bound of the confidence interval of mu in each zone. The results indicate that for short time intervals equal to 30 and 50 years and imposed levels of confidence 1 - alpha = 0.95 and 0.90, the probability distribution of mu is around mu = 7.16-8.23 in all seismic zones.
TDS-1 GNSS Reflectometry
(2018)
This study presents the development and a systematic evaluation study of GNSS reflectometry wind speeds. After establishing a wind speed retrieval algorithm, UK TechDemoSat-1 (TDS-1) derived winds, from May 2015 to July 2017, are compared to the Advanced Scatterometer (ASCAT). ERA-Interim wind fields of the European Centre for Medium-range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) and in situ observation from Tropical Atmosphere Ocean buoy array in the Pacific are taken as reference. One-year averaged TDS-1 global winds demonstrate small differences with ECMWF in a majority of areas as well as discuss under- and overestimations. The pioneering TDS-1 winds demonstrate a root-mean-squared error (RMSE) and bias of 2.77 and -0.33 m/s, which are comparable to the RMSE and bias derived by ASCAT winds, as large as 2.31 and 0.25 m/s, respectively. Using buoys measurements as reference, RMSE and bias of 2.23 and -0.03 m/s for TDS-1 as well as 1.40 and -0.68 m/s for ASCAT are obtained. Utilizing rain microwave-infrared estimates of the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission, rain-affected observation of both ASCAT and TDS-1 are collected and evaluated. Although ASCAT winds show a significant performance degradation resulting in an RMSE and bias of 3.16 and 1.03 m/s, respectively, during rain condition, TDS-1 shows a more reliable performance with an RMSE and bias of 2.94 and -0.21 m/s, respectively, which indicates the promising capability of GNSS forward scattering for wind retrievals during rain. A decrease in TDS-1-derived bistatic radar cross sections during rain events, at weak winds, is also demonstrated.
DNA nanostructures enable the attachment of functional molecules to nearly any unique location on their underlying structure. Due to their single-base-pair structural resolution, several ligands can be spatially arranged and closely controlled according to the geometry of their desired target, resulting in optimized binding and/or signaling interactions. Here, the efficacy of SWL, an ephrin-mimicking peptide that binds specifically to EphrinA2 (EphA2) receptors, increased by presenting up to three of these peptides on small DNA nanostructures in an oligovalent manner. Ephrin signaling pathways play crucial roles in tumor development and progression. Moreover, Eph receptors are potential targets in cancer diagnosis and treatment. Here, the quantitative impact of SWL valency on binding, phosphorylation (key player for activation) and phenotype regulation in EphA2-expressing prostate cancer cells was demonstrated. EphA2 phosphorylation was significantly increased by DNA trimers carrying three SWL peptides compared to monovalent SWL. In comparison to one of EphA2’s natural ligands ephrin-A1, which is known to bind promiscuously to multiple receptors, pinpointed targeting of EphA2 by oligovalent DNA-SWL constructs showed enhanced cell retraction. Overall, we show that DNA scaffolds can increase the potency of weak signaling peptides through oligovalent presentation and serve as potential tools for examination of complex signaling pathways.
Information on structural features of a fracture network at early stages of Enhanced Geothermal System development is mostly restricted to borehole images and, if available, outcrop data. However, using this information to image discontinuities in deep reservoirs is difficult. Wellbore failure data provides only some information on components of the in situ stress state and its heterogeneity. Our working hypothesis is that slip on natural fractures primarily controls these stress heterogeneities. Based on this, we introduce stress-based tomography in a Bayesian framework to characterize the fracture network and its heterogeneity in potential Enhanced Geothermal System reservoirs. In this procedure, first a random initial discrete fracture network (DFN) realization is generated based on prior information about the network. The observations needed to calibrate the DFN are based on local variations of the orientation and magnitude of at least one principal stress component along boreholes. A Markov Chain Monte Carlo sequence is employed to update the DFN iteratively by a fracture translation within the domain. The Markov sequence compares the simulated stress profile with the observed stress profiles in the borehole, evaluates each iteration with Metropolis-Hastings acceptance criteria, and stores acceptable DFN realizations in an ensemble. Finally, this obtained ensemble is used to visualize the potential occurrence of fractures in a probability map, indicating possible fracture locations and lengths. We test this methodology to reconstruct simple synthetic and more complex outcrop-based fracture networks and successfully image the significant fractures in the domain.
Early maternal care may counteract familial liability for psychopathology in the reward circuitry
(2018)
Reward processing is altered in various psychopathologies and has been shown to be susceptible to genetic and environmental influences. Here, we examined whether maternal care may buffer familial risk for psychiatric disorders in terms of reward processing. Functional magnetic resonance imaging during a monetary incentive delay task was acquired in participants of an epidemiological cohort study followed since birth (N = 172, 25 years). Early maternal stimulation was assessed during a standardized nursing/playing setting at the age of 3 months. Parental psychiatric disorders (familial risk) during childhood and the participants’ previous psychopathology were assessed by diagnostic interview. With high familial risk, higher maternal stimulation was related to increasing activation in the caudate head, the supplementary motor area, the cingulum and the middle frontal gyrus during reward anticipation, with the opposite pattern found in individuals with no familial risk. In contrast, higher maternal stimulation was associated with decreasing caudate head activity during reward delivery and reduced levels of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in the high-risk group. Decreased caudate head activity during reward anticipation and increased activity during delivery were linked to ADHD. These findings provide evidence of a long-term association of early maternal stimulation on both adult neurobiological systems of reward underlying externalizing behavior and ADHD during development.
This article focuses on the marginal extremities – the limits – of Shari’a practices in Australia, through the example of a criminal case in which four Sydney-based Muslim men whipped a Muslim convert to punish him for his excessive consumption of drugs and alcohol. The men claimed they acted in line with the doctrines of Shari’a practice to ‘purify’ or absolve the victim of his sins. While the case was tried before a magistrate in a lower court, it is argued in this article that its social and political significance was wider, reaching into contemporary debates around multiculturalism and immigration from non-western, non-liberal and mainly Muslim nations. Mainstream media and political narratives viewed the whipping as an example of the moral dangers of accommodating Shari’a norms, eliding the differences between peaceable Shari’a and its violent extremities, while situating the case at the limits of multicultural accommodation. This article interrogates the objectionable margins of some cultural practices through this limit case. At the same time it questions the limits or limitations of a multiculturalism that homogeneously views the practices of entire ethnic or religious groups as violent and incommensurable with dominant norms, while using these understandings as a justification for marginalising these groups.
Recent studies indicate that the tropical belt has been expanding during recent decades, which can significantly influence precipitation in subtropical climates. Often the location of the tropical border is identified using the Hadley cell edge (HCE) or the subtropical jet stream (STJ), but most studies concentrated on the zonal-mean state, thereby missing regional impacts. Here we detect longitudinal-resolved trends in STJ cores and HCEs over 1979-2016 in both hemispheres at a higher spatial and temporal resolution than previous studies. Besides pronounced regional trend differences in both sign and magnitude, we show that winter HCE and STJ variability increased in the Mediterranean region and decreased over the American and Asian continents. Rainfall variability in these regions changed likewise, and most of those changes can be explained by changes in HCE/STJ variability. This highlights the importance of understanding future tropical belt changes both regionally and in terms of variability. Plain Language Summary We applied a new network-based method to detect motion of the tropical climate border with longitudinal resolution. Depending on the longitudinal position, there are differences in both direction and magnitude of the border motion. In addition, we demonstrate that the rainfall variability is increasing in the Mediterranean region and decreasing over the American and Asian continents, which can be explained by the variability of the tropical belt location.
Same but different
(2018)
The maturation of bacterial molybdoenzymes is a complex process leading to the insertion of the bulky bis-molybdopterin guanine dinucleotide (bis-MGD) cofactor into the apoenzyme. Most molybdoenzymes were shown to contain a specific chaperone for the insertion of the bis-MGD cofactor. Formate dehydrogenases (FDH) together with their molecular chaperone partner seem to display an exception to this specificity rule, since the chaperone FdhD has been proven to be involved in the maturation of all three FDH enzymes present in Escherichia colt. Multiple roles have been suggested for FdhD-like chaperones in the past, including the involvement in a sulfur transfer reaction from the L-cysteine desulfurase IscS to bis-MGD by the action of two cysteine residues present in a conserved CXXC motif of the chaperones. However, in this study we show by phylogenetic analyses that the CXXC motif is not conserved among FdhD-like chaperones. We compared in detail the FdhD-like homologues from Rhodobacter capsulatus and E. colt and show that their roles in the maturation of FDH enzymes from different subgroups can be exchanged. We reveal that bis-MGDbinding is a common characteristic of FdhD-like proteins and that the cofactor is bound with a sulfido-ligand at the molybdenum atom to the chaperone. Generally, we reveal that the cysteine residues in the motif CXXC of the chaperone are not essential for the production of active FDH enzymes.
Email tracking allows email senders to collect fine-grained behavior and location data on email recipients, who are uniquely identifiable via their email address. Such tracking invades user privacy in that email tracking techniques gather data without user consent or awareness. Striving to increase privacy in email communication, this paper develops a detection engine to be the core of a selective tracking blocking mechanism in the form of three contributions. First, a large collection of email newsletters is analyzed to show the wide usage of tracking over different countries, industries and time. Second, we propose a set of features geared towards the identification of tracking images under real-world conditions. Novel features are devised to be computationally feasible and efficient, generalizable and resilient towards changes in tracking infrastructure. Third, we test the predictive power of these features in a benchmarking experiment using a selection of state-of-the-art classifiers to clarify the effectiveness of model-based tracking identification. We evaluate the expected accuracy of the approach on out-of-sample data, over increasing periods of time, and when faced with unknown senders. (C) 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
We use clusters for the modeling of local ion resonances caused by low energy charge carriers in STM-induced desorption of benzene derivates from Si(111)-7 x 7. We perform Born-Oppenheimer molecular dynamics for the charged systems assuming vertical transitions to the charged states at zero temperature, to rationalize the low temperature activation energies, which are found in experiment for chlorobenzene. Our calculations suggest very similar low temperature activation energies for toluene and benzene. For the cationic resonance transitions to physisorption are found even at 0 K, while the anion remains chemisorbed during the propagations. Further, we also extend our previous static quantum chemical investigations to toluene and benzene. In addition, an in depth analysis of the ionization potentials and electron affinities, which are used to estimate resonance energies, is given.
Marine Isotope Stage 3 (MIS 3, 57-27 ka) was characterised by numerous rapid climate oscillations (i.e., Dansgaard-Oeschger (D/O-) events), which are reflected in various climate archives. So far, MIS 3 speleothem records from central Europe have mainly been restricted to caves located beneath temperate Alpine glaciers or close to the Atlantic Ocean. Thus, MIS 3 seemed to be too cold and dry to enable speleothem growth north of the Alps in central Europe. Here we present a new speleothem record from Bunker Cave, Germany, which shows two distinct growth phases from 52.0 (+0.8, -0.5) to 50.9 (+0.6, -1.3) ka and 473 (+1.0, -0.6) to 42.8 (+/- 0.9) ka, rejecting this hypothesis. These two growth phases potentially correspond to the two warmest and most humid phases in central Europe during MIS 3, which is confirmed by pollen data from the nearby Eifel. The hiatus separating the two phases is associated with Heinrich stadial 5 (HS 5), although the growth stop precedes the onset of HS 5. The first growth phase is characterised by a fast growth rate, and Mg concentrations and Sr isotope data suggest high infiltration and the presence of soil cover above the cave. The second growth phase was characterised by drier, but still favourable conditions for speleothem growth. During this phase, the delta C-13 values show a significant decrease associated with D/O-event 12. The timing of this shift is in agreement with other MIS 3 speleothem data from Europe and Greenland ice core data. (C) 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Active source near-vertical reflection (NVR) data from the interdisciplinary project TIPTEQ were used to image and identify structural and petrophysical properties within the Chilean subduction zone at 38.25 degrees S, where in 1960 the largest earthquake ever recorded (M-w 9.5) occurred. Reflection seismic images of the subduction zone were obtained using the post-stack depth migration technique to process the three components of the NVR data, allowing to present P- and S-stacked time sections and depth-migrated seismic reflection images. Next, the reflectivity method allowed to model traveltimes and amplitude ratios of pairs of reflections for two 1D profiles along the studied transect. The 1D seismic velocities that produced the synthetic seismograms with amplitudes and traveltimes that fit the observed ones were used to infer the rock composition of the different layers in each 1D profile. Finally, an image of the subduction zone is given. The Chilean subduction zone at 38.25 degrees S underlies a continental crust with highly reflective horizontal, as well as dipping events. Among them, the Lanalhue Fault Zone (LFZ), interpreted to be east-dipping, is imaged to very shallow depths for the first time. In terms of seismic velocities, the inferred composition of the continental crust is in agreement with field geology observations at the surface along the profile. Furthermore, no measurable amounts of fluids above the plate interface in the continental crust in this part of the Chilean subduction zone are necessary to explain the results. A large-scale anisotropy in the continental crust and upper mantle is qualitatively proposed. However, quantitative studies on this topic in the continental crust of the Chilean subduction zone at 38.25 degrees S do not exist to date.
Background
This cluster-randomised monocentric controlled trial focuses on improving the uptake symptoms of mental health care in adolescents with chronic medical conditions who have been identified by screening to have depression or anxiety. The study aims to determine the efficacy of motivational interviewing (MI) delivered by trained physicians to increase 12- to 20-year-old adolescents’ utilisation of psychological health care for symptoms of anxiety or depression.
Methods/design
In this single-centre approach, n = 1,000 adolescents will be screened (using PHQ-9 and GAD-7), and adolescents with results indicative of anxiety or depressive symptoms (n = 162) will be advised to seek psychological health care in clusters from treating physicians in specialised outpatient departments. Participants who screen positive will receive either two sessions of MI or treatment as usual (TAU; regarded as the typical daily clinical practice), which is focused on recommending them to seek psychological health care for further evaluation. MI efficacy will be compared to the current TAU as the control condition. The primary outcome is the utilisation rate of psychological health care after counselling by an MI-trained physician vs. an untrained physician. Additionally, reasons for not claiming psychological support and changes in disease-related parameters will be evaluated in a 6-month follow-up session.
Discussion
This trial will evaluate the feasibility of MI as a way to improve the utilisation of mental health-care services by adolescents who need further support other than that provided by standard care for chronic diseases. Physicians offering MI to adolescents may serve as a model for optimising health-care management in daily clinical practice, which may improve adolescents’ long-term well-being by improving adherence to medical treatment and preventing negative lifelong consequences into adulthood.
In ferroelectrets, the piezoelectricity stems from the charges of both polarities trapped on the inner surfaces of the cavities in the material, so that its thermal stability is defined by the stability of the respective charges. In the present work, a template-based lamination technique has been employed to fabricate tubular-channel ferroelectrets from fluoroethylenepropylene (FEP) films. It has been shown that the piezoelectricity in FEP ferroelectrets decays at relatively low temperatures due to the inherently lower thermal stability of the positive charge. In order to improve charge trapping, we have treated both FEP films and inner surfaces of the ferroelectret cavities with titanium-tetrachloride vapor, using the atomic-layer-deposition technique. Using surface-potential-decay measurements on FEP films, we have found that the charge-decay curves shift by more than 100 degrees C to the higher temperatures as a result of the surface treatment. Direct measurements of piezoelectric d(33) coefficients as a function of temperature have shown that the piezoelectric stability is likewise improved with the d(33)-decay curves shifted by 60 degrees C to the right. The improvement of electret/ferroelectret properties can be attributed to the formation of the deeper traps on the chemically modified FEP surface. SEM micrographs and EDS analysis reveal island-like structures with titanium- and oxygen-containing species that can be responsible for the deeper trapping of the electret charges. Published by AIP Publishing.
We study the Volterra property of a class of anisotropic pseudo-differential operators on R x B for a manifold B with edge Y and time-variable t. This exposition belongs to a program for studying parabolicity in such a situation. In the present consideration we establish non-smoothing elements in a subalgebra with anisotropic operator-valued symbols of Mellin type with holomorphic symbols in the complex Mellin covariable from the cone theory, where the covariable t of t extends to symbolswith respect to t to the lower complex v half-plane. The resulting space ofVolterra operators enlarges an approach of Buchholz (Parabolische Pseudodifferentialoperatoren mit operatorwertigen Symbolen. Ph. D. thesis, Universitat Potsdam, 1996) by necessary elements to a new operator algebra containing Volterra parametrices under an appropriate condition of anisotropic ellipticity. Our approach avoids some difficulty in choosing Volterra quantizations in the edge case by generalizing specific achievements from the isotropic edge-calculus, obtained by Seiler (Pseudodifferential calculus on manifolds with non-compact edges, Ph. D. thesis, University of Potsdam, 1997), see also Gil et al. (in: Demuth et al (eds) Mathematical research, vol 100. Akademic Verlag, Berlin, pp 113-137, 1997; Osaka J Math 37: 221-260, 2000).
Coupling land-use change and hydrologic models for quantification of catchment ecosystem services
(2018)
Representation of land-use and hydrologic interactions in respective models has traditionally been problematic. The use of static land-use in most hydrologic models or that of the use of simple hydrologic proxies in land-use change models call for more integrated approaches. The objective of this study is to assess whether dynamic feedback between land-use change and hydrology can (1) improve model performances, and/or (2) produce a more realistic quantification of ecosystem services. To test this, we coupled a land-use change model and a hydrologic mode. First, the land-use change and the hydrologic models were separately developed and calibrated. Then, the two models were dynamically coupled to exchange data at yearly time-steps. The approach is applied to a catchment in South Africa. Performance of coupled models when compared to the uncoupled models were marginal, but the coupled models excelled at the quantification of catchment ecosystem services more robustly.
Objective: The aim of the present study was to examine the effect of Cold Water Immersion (CWI) on the recovery of physical performance, hematological stress markers and perceived wellness (i.e., Hooper scores) following a simulated Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) competition. Methods: Participants completed two experimental sessions in a counter-balanced order (CWI or passive recovery for control condition: CON), after a simulated MMAs competition (3 x 5-min MMA rounds separated by 1-min of passive rest). During CWI, athletes were required to submerge their bodies, except the trunk, neck and head, in the seated position in a temperature-controlled bath (similar to 10 degrees C) for 15-min. During CON, athletes were required to be in a seated position for 15-min in same room ambient temperature. Venous blood samples (creatine kinase, cortisol, and testosterone concentrations) were collected at rest (PRE-EX, i.e., before MMAs), immediately following MMAs (POST-EX), immediately following recovery (POST-R) and 24 h post MMAs (POST-24), whilst physical fitness (squat jump, countermovement-jump and 5- and 10-m sprints) and perceptual measures (well-being Hooper index: fatigue, stress, delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS), and sleep) were collected at PRE-EX, POST-R and POST-24, and at PRE-EX and POST-24, respectively. Conclusion: The use of CWI resulted in an enhanced recovery of 10-m sprint performance, as well as improved perceived wellness 24-h following simulated MMA competition.
In recent years, complex network analysis facilitated the identification of universal and unexpected patterns in complex climate systems. However, the analysis and representation of a multiscale complex relationship that exists in the global climate system are limited. A logical first step in addressing this issue is to construct multiple networks over different timescales. Therefore, we propose to apply the wavelet multiscale correlation (WMC) similarity measure, which is a combination of two state-of-the-art methods, viz. wavelet and Pearson’s correlation, for investigating multiscale processes through complex networks. Firstly we decompose the data over different timescales using the wavelet approach and subsequently construct a corresponding network by Pearson’s correlation. The proposed approach is illustrated and tested on two synthetics and one real-world example. The first synthetic case study shows the efficacy of the proposed approach to unravel scale-specific connections, which are often undiscovered at a single scale. The second synthetic case study illustrates that by dividing and constructing a separate network for each time window we can detect significant changes in the signal structure. The real-world example investigates the behavior of the global sea surface temperature (SST) network at different timescales. Intriguingly, we notice that spatial dependent structure in SST evolves temporally. Overall, the proposed measure has an immense potential to provide essential insights on understanding and extending complex multivariate process studies at multiple scales.
Conceptualisation is the first step of speech production and describes the process by which we map our thoughts onto spoken language. Recent studies suggest that some people with language impairments have conceptualisation deficits manifested by information selection and sequencing difficulties. In this study, we examined conceptualisation in the complex picture descriptions of individuals with and without aphasia. We analysed the number and the order of main concepts (ideas produced by >= 60% of unimpaired speakers) and non-main concepts (e.g. irrelevant details). Half of the individuals with aphasia showed a reduced number of main concepts that could not be fully accounted for by their language production deficits. Moreover, individuals with aphasia produced both a larger amount of marginally relevant information, as well as having greater variability in the order of main concepts. Both findings provide support for the idea that conceptualisation deficits are a relatively common impairment in people with aphasia.
The variabilities of the semidiurnal solar and lunar tides of the equatorial electrojet (EEJ) are investigated during the 2003, 2006, 2009 and 2013 major sudden stratospheric warming (SSW) events in this study. For this purpose, ground-magnetometer recordings at the equatorial observatories in Huancayo and Fuquene are utilized. Results show a major enhancement in the amplitude of the EEJ semidiurnal lunar tide in each of the four warming events. The EEJ semidiurnal solar tidal amplitude shows an amplification prior to the onset of warmings, a reduction during the deceleration of the zonal mean zonal wind at 60 degrees N and 10 hPa, and a second enhancement a few days after the peak reversal of the zonal mean zonal wind during all four SSWs. Results also reveal that the amplitude of the EEJ semidiurnal lunar tide becomes comparable or even greater than the amplitude of the EEJ semidiurnal solar tide during all these warming events. The present study also compares the EEJ semidiurnal solar and lunar tidal changes with the variability of the migrating semidiurnal solar (SW2) and lunar (M2) tides in neutral temperature and zonal wind obtained from numerical simulations at E-region heights. A better agreement between the enhancements of the EEJ semidiurnal lunar tide and the M2 tide is found in comparison with the enhancements of the EEJ semidiurnal solar tide and the SW2 tide in both the neutral temperature and zonal wind at the E-region altitudes.
Intestinal release of dietary triglycerides via chylomicrons is the major contributor to elevated postprandial triglyceride levels. Dietary lipids can be transiently stored in cytosolic lipid droplets (LDs) located in intestinal enterocytes for later release. ADP ribosylation factor-related protein 1 (ARFRP1) participates in processes of LD growth in adipocytes and in lipidation of lipoproteins in liver and intestine. This study aims to explore the impact of ARFRP1 on LD organization and its interplay with chylomicron-mediated triglyceride release in intestinal-like Caco-2 cells. Suppression of Arfrp1 reduced release of intracellularly derived triglycerides (0.69-fold) and increased the abundance of transitional endoplasmic reticulum ATPase TERA/VCP, fatty acid synthase-associated factor 2 (FAF2) and perilipin 2 (Plin2) at the LD surface. Furthermore, TERA/VCP and FAF2 co-occurred more frequently with ATGL at LDs, suggesting a reduced adipocyte triglyceride lipase (ATGL)-mediated lipolysis. Accordingly, inhibition of lipolysis reduced lipid release from intracellular storage pools by the same magnitude as Arfrp1 depletion. Thus, the lack of Arfrp1 increases the abundance of lipolysis-modulating enzymes TERA/VCP, FAF2 and Plin2 at LDs, which might decrease lipolysis and reduce availability of fatty acids for triglyceride synthesis and their release via chylomicrons. (C) 2018 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc.
Mechanical and/or chemical removal of material from the subsurface may generate large subsurface cavities, the destabilisation of which can lead to ground collapse and the formation of sinkholes. Numerical simulation of the interaction of cavity growth, host material deformation and overburden collapse is desirable to better understand the sinkhole hazard but is a challenging task due to the involved high strains and material discontinuities. Here, we present 2-D distinct element method numerical simulations of cavity growth and sinkhole development. Firstly, we simulate cavity formation by quasi-static, stepwise removal of material in a single growing zone of an arbitrary geometry and depth. We benchmark this approach against analytical and boundary element method models of a deep void space in a linear elastic material. Secondly, we explore the effects of properties of different uniform materials on cavity stability and sinkhole development. We perform simulated biaxial tests to calibrate macroscopic geotechnical parameters of three model materials representative of those in which sinkholes develop at the Dead Sea shoreline: mud, alluvium and salt. We show that weak materials do not support large cavities, leading to gradual sagging or suffusion-style subsidence. Strong materials support quasi-stable to stable cavities, the overburdens of which may fail suddenly in a caprock or bedrock collapse style. Thirdly, we examine the consequences of layered arrangements of weak and strong materials. We find that these are more susceptible to sinkhole collapse than uniform materials not only due to a lower integrated strength of the overburden but also due to an inhibition of stabilising stress arching. Finally, we compare our model sinkhole geometries to observations at the Ghor Al-Haditha sinkhole site in Jordan. Sinkhole depth / diameter ratios of 0.15 in mud, 0.37 in alluvium and 0.33 in salt are reproduced successfully in the calibrated model materials. The model results suggest that the observed distribution of sinkhole depth / diameter values in each material type may partly reflect sinkhole growth trends.
A rapidly increasing number of systems is identified in which the stochastic motion of tracer particles follows the Brownian law < r(2)(t)> similar or equal to Dt yet the distribution of particle displacements is strongly non-Gaussian. A central approach to describe this effect is the diffusing diffusivity (DD) model in which the diffusion coefficient itself is a stochastic quantity, mimicking heterogeneities of the environment encountered by the tracer particle on its path. We here quantify in terms of analytical and numerical approaches the first passage behaviour of the DD model. We observe significant modifications compared to Brownian-Gaussian diffusion, in particular that the DD model may have a faster first passage dynamics. Moreover we find a universal crossover point of the survival probability independent of the initial condition.
Cool farm tool water
(2018)
The agricultural sector accounts for 70% of all water consumption and poses great pressure on ground water resources. Therefore, evaluating agricultural water consumption is highly important as it allows supply chain actors to identify practices which are associated with unsustainable water use, which risk depleting current water resources and impacting future production. However, these assessments are often not feasible for crop producers as data, models and experiments are required in order to conduct them. This work introduces a new on-line agricultural water use assessment tool that provides the water footprint and irrigation requirements at field scale based on an enhanced FAO56 approach combined with a global climate, crop and soil databases. This has been included in the Cool Farm Tool - an online tool which already provides metrics for greenhouse gas emissions and biodiversity impacts and therefore allows for a more holistic assessment of environmental sustainability in farming and agricultural supply chains. The model is tested against field scale and state level water footprint data providing good results. The tool provides a practical, reliable way to assess agricultural water use, and offers a means to engage growers and stakeholders in identifying efficient water management practices. (C) 2018 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.
During development in human erythrocytes, the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum internalizes a large part of the cellular content of the host cell. The internalized cytosol, consisting largely of hemoglobin, is transported to the parasite’s food vacuole where it is degraded, providing nutrients and space for growth. This host cell cytosol uptake (HCCU) is crucial for parasite survival but the parasite proteins mediating this process remain obscure. Here, we identify P. falciparum VPS45 as an essential factor in HCCU. Conditional inactivation of PfVPS45 led to an accumulation of host cell cytosol-filled vesicles within the parasite and inhibited the delivery of hemoglobin to the parasite's digestive vacuole, resulting in arrested parasite growth. A proportion of these HCCU vesicle intermediates was positive for phosphatidylinositol 3-phosphate, suggesting endosomal characteristics. Thus PfVPS45 provides insight into the elusive machinery of the ingestion pathway in a parasite that contains an endolysosomal system heavily repurposed for protein secretion.
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate whether and how evolving ideas about management control (MC) emerge in research about public sector performance management (PSPM).
Design/methodology/approach
This is a literature review on PSPM research through using a set of key terms derived from a review of recent developments in MC.
Findings
MC research, originating in the management accounting discipline, is largely disconnected from PSPM research as part of public administration and public management disciplines. Overlaps between MC and PSPM research are visible in a cybernetic control approach, control variety and contingency-based reasoning. Both academic communities share an understanding of certain issues, although under diverging labels, especially enabling controls or, in a more general sense, usable performance controls, horizontal controls and control packaging. Specific MC concepts are valuable for future PSPM research, i.e. trust as a complement of performance-based controls in complex settings, and strategy as a variable in contingency-based studies.
Research limitations/implications
Breaking the boundaries between two currently remote research disciplines, on the one hand, might dismantle “would-be” innovations in one of these disciplines, and, on the other hand, may provide a fertile soil for mutual transfer of knowledge. A limitation of the authors’ review of PSPM research is that it may insufficiently cover research published in the public sector accounting journals, which could be an outlet for MC-inspired PSPM research.
Originality/value
The paper unravels the “apparent” and “real” differences between MC and PSPM research, and, in doing so, takes the detected “real” differences as a starting point for discussing in what ways PSPM research can benefit from MC achievements.
Levy walks are continuous time random walks with spatio-temporal coupling of jump lengths and waiting times, often used to model superdiffusive spreading processes such as animals searching for food, tracer motion in weakly chaotic systems, or even the dynamics in quantum systems such as cold atoms. In the simplest version Levy walks move with a finite speed. Here, we present an extension of the Levy walk scenario for the case when external force fields influence the motion. The resulting motion is a combination of the response to the deterministic force acting on the particle, changing its velocity according to the principle of total energy conservation, and random velocity reversals governed by the distribution of waiting times. For the fact that the motion stays conservative, that is, on a constant energy surface, our scenario is fundamentally different from thermal motion in the same external potentials. In particular, we present results for the velocity and position distributions for single well potentials of different steepness. The observed dynamics with its continuous velocity changes enriches the theory of Levy walk processes and will be of use in a variety of systems, for which the particles are externally confined.
We study generalized diffusion-wave equation in which the second order time derivative is replaced by an integro-differential operator. It yields time fractional and distributed order time fractional diffusion-wave equations as particular cases. We consider different memory kernels of the integro-differential operator, derive corresponding fundamental solutions, specify the conditions of their non-negativity and calculate the mean squared displacement for all cases. In particular, we introduce and study generalized diffusion-wave equations with a regularized Prabhakar derivative of single and distributed orders. The equations considered can be used for modeling the broad spectrum of anomalous diffusion processes and various transitions between different diffusion regimes.
Linking deep seismic profiles with regional-scale gravity inversion is a powerful tool to deduce the architecture of rifted margins and their structural evolution. Here we map upper and lower crustal thicknesses of the northern South China Sea (SCS) margin in order to investigate the occurrence of depth-dependent crustal extension from the proximal to the distal margin. By comparing upper and lower crustal stretching factors, we find that the northern margin of the SCS is segmented in three parts: (1) sedimentary basins where upper crust is stretched more than lower crust, (2) distal margin where lower crust is stretched more than upper crust, (3) mostly proximal margin regions where the two layers have similar stretching factors. Our results suggest that sedimentary basins and distal margin prominently feature depth-dependent extension, however accommodated by different processes. While differential thinning within sedimentary basins appears to be governed by lateral pressure variations inducing lower crustal flow, we suggest the distal margin to be affected by a combination of mantle flow-induced lower crustal shearing and sequential fault activity during crustal hyper-extension.
We study the rupture processes of Iquique earthquake 8.1 (2014/04/01) and its largest aftershock 7.7 (2014/04/03) that ruptured the North Chile subduction zone. High-rate Global Positioning System (GPS) recordings and strong motion data are used to reconstruct the evolution of the slip amplitude, rise time and rupture time of both earthquakes. A two-step inversion scheme is assumed, by first building prior models for both earthquakes from the inversion of the estimated static displacements and then, kinematic inversions in the frequency domain are carried out taken into account this prior information. The preferred model for the mainshock exhibits a seismic moment of 1.73 × 1021 Nm ( 8.1) and maximum slip of ∼9 m, while the aftershock model has a seismic moment of 3.88 × 1020 ( 7.7) and a maximum slip of ∼3 m. For both earthquakes, the final slip distributions show two asperities (a shallow one and a deep one) separated by an area with significant slip deficit. This suggests a segmentation along-dip which might be related to a change of the dipping angle of the subducting slab inferred from gravimetric data. Along-strike, the areas where the seismic ruptures stopped seem to be well correlated with geological features observed from geophysical information (high-resolution bathymetry, gravimetry and coupling maps) that are representative of the long-term segmentation of the subduction margin. Considering the spatially limited portions that were broken by these two earthquakes, our results support the idea that the seismic gap is not filled yet.
We studied the effect of three major forest management types (unmanaged beech, selection beech, and age class forests) and stand variables (SMId, soil pH, proportion of conifers, litter cover, deadwood cover, rock cover and cumulative cover of woody trees and shrubs) on bryophyte species richness in 1050 forest plots in three regions in Germany. In addition, we analysed the species richness of four ecological guilds of bryophytes according to their colonized substrates (deadwood, rock, soil, bark) and the number of woodland indicator bryophyte species. Beech selection forests turned out to be the most species rich management type, whereas unmanaged beech forests revealed even lower species numbers than age-class forests. Increasing conifer proportion increased bryophyte species richness but not the number of woodland indicator bryophyte species. The richness of the four ecological guilds mainly responded to the abundance of their respective substrate. We conclude that the permanent availability of suitable substrates is most important for bryophyte species richness in forests, which is not stringently linked to management type. Therefore, managed age-class forests and selection forests may even exceed unmanaged forests in bryophyte species richness due to higher substrate supply and therefore represent important habitats for bryophytes. Typical woodland indicator bryophytes and their species richness were negatively affected by SMId (management intensity) and therefore better indicate forest integrity than the species richness of all bryophytes. Nature conservation efforts should focus on the reduction of management intensity. Moreover, maintaining and increasing a variability of substrates and habitats, such as coarse woody debris, increasing structural heterogeneity by retaining patches with groups of old, mature to over-mature trees in managed forests, maintaining forest climate conditions by silvicultural methods that assure stand continuity, e.g. by selection cutting rather than clear cutting and shelterwood logging might promote bryophyte diversity and in particular the one of woodland indicator bryophytes.
Narcissism and trust
(2018)
Previous research has shown that individuals high in narcissism mistrust others, yet little is known about narcissism's relation to trust. In the current study (N = 727), we aim to close this gap in the literature by examining the relationship between facets of trust (i.e., cognitive bias in the evaluation of others and personal trustworthiness) and facets of grandiose narcissism (i.e., agentic, antagonistic, and communal). We strive to answer the question whether narcissistic individuals believe that others are reliable, honest, and benevolent (how they perceive others) and whether they present themselves as trusting of others (how they perceive themselves). We posit and show that agentic narcissism is not related to any of the studied trust facets, suggesting that the concept of trust is not relevant to their self-image. In contrast, antagonistic narcissism is negatively related to perceiving others and oneself as trustful, and communal narcissism is positively related to these trust facets, purportedly due to communal self-enhancement. We discuss our findings of the Narcissistic Admiration and Rivalry Concept as well as to the Agency-Communion model of grandiose narcissism.
We have developed a genetic circuit in Escherichia coli that can be used to select for protein-protein interactions of different strengths by changing antibiotic concentrations in the media. The genetic circuit links protein-protein interaction strength to beta-lactamase activity while simultaneously imposing tuneable positive and negative selection pressure for beta-lactamase activity. Cells only survive if they express interacting proteins with affinities that fall within set high- and low-pass thresholds; i.e. the circuit therefore acts as a bandpass filter for protein-protein interactions. We show that the circuit can be used to recover protein-protein interactions of desired affinity from a mixed population with a range of affinities. The circuit can also be used to select for inhibitors of protein-protein interactions of defined strength. (C) 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
We review the evidence for a putative early 21st-century divergence between global mean surface temperature (GMST) and Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 (CMIP5) projections. We provide a systematic comparison between temperatures and projections using historical versions of GMST products and historical versions of model projections that existed at the times when claims about a divergence were made. The comparisons are conducted with a variety of statistical techniques that correct for problems in previous work, including using continuous trends and a Monte Carlo approach to simulate internal variability. The results show that there is no robust statistical evidence for a divergence between models and observations. The impression of a divergence early in the 21st century was caused by various biases in model interpretation and in the observations, and was unsupported by robust statistics.
There are 63 known species of Thecaphora (Glomosporiaceae, Ustilaginomycotina), a third of which occur on Asteraceae. These smut fungi produce yellowish-brown to reddish-brown masses of spore balls in specific, mostly regenerative, plant organs. A species of Thecaphora was collected in the flower heads of Anthemis chia (Anthemideae, Asteraceae) on Rhodes Island, Greece, in 2015 and 2017, which represents the first smut record of a smut fungus on a host plant species in this tribe. Based on its distinctive morphology, host species and genetic divergence, this species is described as Thecaphora anthemidis sp. nov. Molecular barcodes of the ITS region are provided for this and several other species of Thecaphora. A phylogenetic and morphological comparison to closely related species showed that Th. anthemidis differed from other species of Thecaphora. Thecaphora anthemidis produced loose spore balls in the flower heads and peduncles of Anthemis chia unlike other flower-infecting species.
Reviews and syntheses
(2018)
The cycling of carbon (C) between the Earth surface and the atmosphere is controlled by biological and abiotic processes that regulate C storage in biogeochemical compartments and release to the atmosphere. This partitioning is quantified using various forms of C-use efficiency (CUE) - the ratio of C remaining in a system to C entering that system. Biological CUE is the fraction of C taken up allocated to biosynthesis. In soils and sediments, C storage depends also on abiotic processes, so the term C-storage efficiency (CSE) can be used. Here we first review and reconcile CUE and CSE definitions proposed for autotrophic and heterotrophic organisms and communities, food webs, whole ecosystems and watersheds, and soils and sediments using a common mathematical framework. Second, we identify general CUE patterns; for example, the actual CUE increases with improving growth conditions, and apparent CUE decreases with increasing turnover. We then synthesize > 5000CUE estimates showing that CUE decreases with increasing biological and ecological organization - from uni-cellular to multicellular organisms and from individuals to ecosystems. We conclude that CUE is an emergent property of coupled biological-abiotic systems, and it should be regarded as a flexible and scale-dependent index of the capacity of a given system to effectively retain C.
Exploring Change
(2018)
Data and metadata in datasets experience many different kinds of change. Values axe inserted, deleted or updated; rows appear and disappear; columns are added or repurposed, etc. In such a dynamic situation, users might have many questions related to changes in the dataset, for instance which parts of the data are trustworthy and which are not? Users will wonder: How many changes have there been in the recent minutes, days or years? What kind of changes were made at which points of time? How dirty is the data? Is data cleansing required? The fact that data changed can hint at different hidden processes or agendas: a frequently crowd-updated city name may be controversial; a person whose name has been recently changed may be the target of vandalism; and so on. We show various use cases that benefit from recognizing and exploring such change. We envision a system and methods to interactively explore such change, addressing the variability dimension of big data challenges. To this end, we propose a model to capture change and the process of exploring dynamic data to identify salient changes. We provide exploration primitives along with motivational examples and measures for the volatility of data. We identify technical challenges that need to be addressed to make our vision a reality, and propose directions of future work for the data management community.
Boric acid and sodium borates are currently classified in the EU-CLP regulation as "toxic to reproduction" under "Category 1B", with hazard statement of H360FD. However, so far field studies on male reproduction in China and in Turkey could not confirm such boron-associated toxic effects. As validation by another independent study is still required, the present study has investigated possible boron-associated effects on male reproduction in workers (n = 212) under different boron exposure conditions. The mean daily boron exposure (DBE) and blood boron concentration of workers in the extreme exposure group (n = 98) were 47.17 +/- 17.47 (7.95-106.8) mg B/day and 570.6 +/- 160.1 (402.6-1100) ng B/g blood, respectively. Nevertheless, boron-associated adverse effects on semen parameters, as well as on FSH, LH and total testosterone levels were not seen, even within the extreme exposure group. With this study, a total body of evidence has accumulated that allows to conclude that male reproductive effects are not relevant to humans, under any feasible and realistic conditions of exposure to inorganic boron compounds.
The presence of extreme horizontal branch (EHB) and blue hook stars in some Galactic globular clusters (GGCs) constitutes one of the remaining mysteries of stellar evolution. While several evolutionary scenarios have been proposed to explain the characteristics of this peculiar population of evolved stars, their observational verification has been limited by the availability of spectroscopic data for a statistically significant sample of such objects in any single GGC. We recently launched the SHOTGLAS project with the aim of providing a comprehensive picture of this intriguing stellar population in terms of spectroscopic properties for all readily accessible GGCs hosting an EHB. In this first paper, we focus on omega Cen, a peculiar, massive GGC that hosts multiple stellar populations. We use non-LTE model atmospheres to derive atmospheric parameters (Te ff, log g and N(He) / N(H)) and spectroscopic masses for 152 EHB stars in the cluster. This constitutes the largest spectroscopic sample of EHB stars ever analyzed in a GGC and represents similar to 20% of the EHB population of omega Cen. We also search for close binaries among these stars based on radial velocity variations. Our results show that the EHB population of omega Cen is divided into three spectroscopic groups that are very distinct in the Te ff helium abundance plane. The coolest sdB-type stars (Te ff. 30 000 K) have a hydrogen-rich atmosphere, populate the theoretical EHB region in the Te ff log g plane, and form 26% of our sample. The hottest sdO-type stars (Te ff & 42 000 K) make up 10% of the sample, have a hydrogen-rich atmosphere and are thought to be in a post-EHB evolutionary phase. The majority of our sample is found at intermediate temperatures and consists of sdOB stars that have roughly solar or super-solar atmospheric helium abundances. It is these objects that constitute the blue hook at V > 18 : 5 mag in the omega Cen color-magnitude diagram. Interestingly, the helium-enriched sdOBs do not have a significant counterpart population in the Galactic field, indicating that their formation is dependent on the particular environment found in omega Cen and other select GGCs. Another major di ff erence between the EHB stars in omega Cen and the field is the fraction of close binaries. From our radial velocity survey we identify two binary candidates, however no orbital solutions could be determined. We estimate an EHB close binary fraction of similar to 5% in omega Cen. This low fraction is in line with findings for other GGCs, but in sharp contrast to the situation in the field, where around 50% of the sdB stars reside in close binaries. Finally, the mass distribution derived is very similar for all three spectroscopic groups, however the average mass (0.38 M fi) is lower than that expected from stellar evolution theory. While this mass conundrum has previously been noted for EHB stars in omega Cen, it so far appears to be unique to that cluster.