Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Interdecadal Variations in North Atlantic Sea Surface Temperature and Associated Atmospheric Conditions

Abstract Evidence is presented for a distinct Pattern Of ocean-atmosphere relationship associated with interdecadal variability in the North Atlantic region. Using a century of surface marine observations it is shown that middle- and high-latitude sea surface temperature (SST) display a long-term fluctuation with negative anomalies before 1920, and during the 1970s and 1980s. Positive SST conditions prevailed from about 1930 to 1960. The pattern of interdecadal SST variability is constructed by subtracting the average field during 15 cold years from that during a similar interval of warm years. The early-century warming and the more recent cooling display a similar spatial pattern. In both cases the pattern is basin scale and largely of one polarity, with maxima in the vicinity of Iceland, in the Labrador Sea, and northeast of Bermuda. The corresponding differences in surface atmospheric conditions are determined by averaging and subtracting, in the same manner, fields of sea level pressure (SLP) and surf.
Abnormal retinal vascular oxygen tension response to light flicker in diabetic rats.

PURPOSE To test the hypothesis that the intravascular oxygen response to light flicker is abnormal in diabetes. METHODS Ten eyes of normal rats and 10 eyes of rats made diabetic with streptozotocin were examined. Oxygen tension (PO(2)) was measured noninvasively in the retinal arteries and veins on optical section retinal images. PO(2) was estimated based on the quenching by oxygen of the phosphorescence of an intravenously injected palladium porphyrin molecular probe. Measurements were conducted with and without light flicker at 10 Hz. Oxygen saturation (SO(2)) was calculated with adjustment for the arterial pH. RESULTS In the normal rats flicker induced an increase in arterial PO(2) and in the difference in arterial and venous (A-V difference) PO(2) from 51 +/- 5 (mean and SD) to 55 +/- 7 mm Hg and from 22 +/- 3 to 26 +/- 5 mm Hg, respectively (P < 0.002 and 0.015, respectively). Flicker induced an increase of arterial SO(2) and A-V SO(2) difference from 64% +/- 8% to 68% +/- 7% and from 34% +/- 4% to 38% +/- 6%, respectively (P < 0.002 and 0.035, respectively). No changes in PO(2) or SO(2) were observed with flicker in the veins. In the diabetic rats, no significant flicker-induced changes were seen in PO(2) or SO(2) in the retinal arteries, veins, or A-V differences. CONCLUSIONS The diabetic rats lacked the flicker induced increase in arterial PO(2) and SO(2) and also the A-V difference in PO(2) and SO(2) observed in the normal rats. The best explanation appeared to be that diabetes impairs the increase in oxygen consumption normally provoked by light flicker.
Palaeomagnetic data from the Borrowdale Volcanic Group: volcano-tectonics and Late Ordovician palaeolatitudes

Nineteen palaeomagnetic sampling sites from the Borrowdale Volcanic Group between Borrowdale and Langdale (English Lake District) yield high unblocking temperature magnetization components which postdate the structural tilt, and therefore postdate the formation of the broad block-faulted syncline which characterizes this part of the central Lake District. The mean magnetization direction before tilt correction (Dec: 347.2°, Inc:–61.9°, α95: 6.9°) corresponds to a palaeolatitude of 43°S (+ 5°/–7°). The magnetization is associated with pervasive Late Ordovician hydrothermal alteration, and is certainly pre-Devonian based on comparison with available palaeomagnetic data from southern Britain. This implies that the block-faulted synclinal structure of the Borrowdale/Langdale region is pre-Acadian in age, consistent with recent interpretations of Late Ordovician volcano-tectonics based on mapping and volcanological studies.
Adopting a Software Component Model in Real-Time Systems Development

Component-based software engineering (CBSE) and the use of (de-facto) standard component models have gained popularity in recent years, particularly in the development of desktop and server-side software. This paper presents a motivation for applying CBSE to realtime systems and discusses the consequences of adopting a software component model in the development of such systems. Specifically, the consequences of adopting Microsoft's COM, DCOM, and . NET models are analyzed. The most important aspects of these models are discussed in an incremental fashion. The analysis considers both real-time systems in general, and a real-life industrial control system where some aspects the COM model have been adopted. It is concluded that adopting these models makes it possible to meet real-time requirements, but that some overhead must be expected and that special precautions may have to be taken to prevent loss of real-time predictability.
Hydrogen Peroxide and Polyamines Act as Double Edged Swords in Plant Abiotic Stress Responses

The specific genetic changes through which plants adapt to the multitude of environmental stresses are possible because of the molecular regulations in the system. These intricate regulatory mechanisms once unveiled will surely raise interesting questions. Polyamines and hydrogen peroxide have been suggested to be important signaling molecules during biotic and abiotic stresses. Hydrogen peroxide plays a versatile role from orchestrating physiological processes to stress response. It helps to achieve acclimatization and tolerance to stress by coordinating intra-cellular and systemic signaling systems. Polyamines, on the other hand, are low molecular weight polycationic aliphatic amines, which have been implicated in various stress responses. It is quite interesting to note that both hydrogen peroxide and polyamines have a fine line of inter-relation between them since the catabolic pathways of the latter releases hydrogen peroxide. In this review we have tried to illustrate the roles and their multifaceted functions of these two important signaling molecules based on current literature. This review also highlights the fact that over accumulation of hydrogen peroxide and polyamines can be detrimental for plant cells leading to toxicity and pre-mature cell death.
Directional energy spectra of the sea from photographs

The image of the sun reflected by the sea surface is called sun glitter or sun glint. The relationship of the glitter pattern to the distribution of slopes on the surface is well known, but this effect is of little use in determining a wave spectrum because glitter does not provide a continuous representation of a wave parameter. A generalization of the glitter concept, in which the point image of the sun is replaced by a continuous skylight luminance function, is quite effective in providing a linear representation that can be recorded photographically. Then by the use of optical analysis it is possible to resolve the variations of density in the photographic emulsion into the components of the two-dimensional Fourier spectrum of the surface. When a transparency of a surface photograph is placed in one focal plane of a lens, the Fourier transform of the variations appears as light amplitude in the other focal plane. In the transform recording, density distribution represents slope distribution, wave direction is the azimuth angle, and wave number is proportional to the radius from the center. This information, in addition to the height and aspect angle of the camera, allows the energy spectrum of the surf are to be obtained.
A Comparative Performance Analysis of TRMM 3B42 (TMPA) Versions 6 and 7 for Hydrological Applications over Andean–Amazon River Basins

AbstractThe Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission 3B42 precipitation estimates are widely used in tropical regions for hydrometeorological research. Recently, version 7 of the product was released. Major revisions to the algorithm involve the radar reflectivity–rainfall rate relationship, surface clutter detection over high terrain, a new reference database for the passive microwave algorithm, and a higher-quality gauge analysis product for monthly bias correction. To assess the impacts of the improved algorithm, the authors compare the version 7 and the older version 6 products with data from 263 rain gauges in and around the northern Peruvian Andes. The region covers humid tropical rain forest, tropical mountains, and arid-to-humid coastal plains. The authors find that the version 7 product has a significantly lower bias and an improved representation of the rainfall distribution. They further evaluated the performance of the version 6 and 7 products as forcing data for hydrological modeling by comparing .
LAND DEGRADATION IN DOLJ COUNTY, SOUTHERN ROMANIA: ENVIRONMENTAL CHANGES, IMPACTS AND RESPONSES

Central and Eastern Europe is experiencing significant land degradation, at the same time as social, economic and political transformation, and within the broader context of global climate change. This paper uses satellite data, primary field data and secondary information on Romania's social, political and economic dynamics, in a mixed‐method case study analysis of the drivers of, and responses to, environmental change and land degradation over the period 1984–2007. The analytical time frame encompasses the Socialist era, as well as transition to European Union membership, allowing identification of the ways in which the dominant political economic and social systems interact with biophysical factors and play out in the landscape. Although the Socialist era is often portrayed as environmentally destructive, results indicate that management during this time developed a relatively stable landscape, albeit at an economic and social cost. In the lead up to the collapse of Socialist governance, the landscape altered more, resulting in worsening land degradation and land cover change. Responses to land degradation have taken two main routes: land abandonment and tree planting. Although aspects of these responses are now more democratic and participatory, at the same time, they share some common ground with Socialist era approaches. Building on the positive aspects of Socialist management strategies yields important lessons in addressing land degradation challenges more broadly. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
The lobopodian Paucipodia inermis from the Lower Cambrian Chengjiang fauna, Yunnan, China

New specimens of Paucipodia inermis Chen, Zhou & Ramskold, 1995, are described from the Lower Cambrian Chengjiang Lagerstatte in Haikou, Kunming. Details not previously seen in the Chengjiang material appear to be caused by early diagenetic processes. Some features not previously observed in Palaeozoic lobopodians include details of the dermomuscular sac, body cavities, contents of the gut, possible paired ventral nerve ganglia, and a rasping or biting apparatus with teeth. The latter implies a fundamental difference from onychophorans and rules out an ancestral position for Palaeozoic lobopodians. The supposed tail is shown to be the head, and it is shown that this animal possessed nine pairs of lobopods rather than six, as originally stated. The family Paucipodiidae n. fam. is introduced.
Synergistic Enhancement of Cancer Therapy Using a Combination of Ceramide and Docetaxel

Ceramide (CE)-based combination therapy (CE combination) as a novel therapeutic strategy has attracted great attention in the field of anti-cancer therapy. The principal purposes of this study were to investigate the synergistic effect of CE in combination with docetaxel (DTX) (CE + DTX) and to explore the synergy mechanisms of CE + DTX. The 3-(4,5-Dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) and combination index (CI) assay showed that simultaneous administration of CE and DTX with a molar ratio of 0.5:1 could generate the optimal synergistic effect on murine malignant melanoma cell (B16, CI = 0.31) and human breast carcinoma cell (MCF-7, CI = 0.48). The apoptosis, cell cycle, and cytoskeleton destruction study demonstrated that CE could target and destruct the microfilament actin, subsequently activate Caspase-3 and induce apoptosis. Meanwhile, DTX could target and disrupt the microtubules cytoskeleton, leading to a high proportion of cancer cells in G2/M-phase arrest. Moreover, CE plus DTX could cause a synergistic destruction of cytoskeleton, which resulted in a significantly higher apoptosis and a significantly higher arrest in G2/M arrest comparing with either agent alone (p < 0.01). The in vivo antitumor study evaluated in B16 tumor-bearing mice also validated the synergistic effects. All these results suggested that CE could enhance the antitumor activity of DTX in a synergistic manner, which suggest promising application prospects of CE + DTX combination treatment.
Direct observation of Hardy's paradox by joint weak measurement with an entangled photon pair

We implemented a joint weak measurement of the trajectories of two photons in a photonic version of Hardy's experiment. The joint weak measurement has been performed via an entangled meter state in polarization degrees of freedom of the two photons. Unlike Hardy's original argument in which the contradiction is inferred by retrodiction, our experiment reveals its paradoxical nature as preposterous values actually read out from the meter. Such a direct observation of a paradox gives us new insights into the spooky action of quantum mechanics.
Eight-coordinate fluoride in a silicate double-four-ring

Significance Although strain and bonding are often antagonists in chemistry, they may also work together. When fluoride enters a silicate double-four-ring (D4R), their conjoined effect leads to fluoride binding to 8 silicon atoms. The strain comes from D4R, a molecular unit that acts (and looks) like a box. And, as we can expect from that geometrical constraint, it experiences strain when being deformed. Avoiding such deformation, the box pushes fluoride toward its center. Yet even there, fluoride engages in orbital overlap (hypervalent bonding) with the highly delocalized antibonding orbitals of D4R, and significant charge transfer occurs. The unusual number of bonds, around the smallest existing anion, leaves us pondering the limits of hypervalence. Fluoride, nature’s smallest anion, is capable of covalently coordinating to eight silicon atoms. The setting is a simple and common motif in zeolite chemistry: the box-shaped silicate double-four-ring (D4R). Fluoride seeks its center. It is the strain of box deformation that keeps fluoride in the middle of the box, and freezes what would be a transition state in its absence. Hypervalent bonding ensues. Fluoride’s compactness works to its advantage in stabilizing the cage; chloride, bromide, and iodide do not bring about stabilization due to greater steric repulsion with the box frame. The combination of strain and hypervalent bonding, and the way they work in concert to yield this unusual case of multiple hypervalence, has potential for extension to a broader range of solid-state compounds.
Transmission of solar radiation through clouds on melting glaciers: a comparison of parameterizations and their impact on melt modelling

Abstract We explore the robustness and transferability of parameterizations of cloud radiative forcing used in glacier melt models at two sites in the Swiss Alps. We also look at the rationale behind some of the most commonly used approaches, and explore the relationship between cloud transmittance and several standard meteorological variables. The 2 m air-temperature diurnal range is the best predictor of variations in cloud transmittance. However, linear and exponential parameterizations can only explain 30–50% of the observed variance in computed cloud transmittance factors. We examine the impact of modelled cloud transmittance factors on both solar radiation and ablation rates computed with an enhanced temperature-index model. The melt model performance decreases when modelled radiation is used, the reduction being due to an underestimation of incoming solar radiation on clear-sky days. The model works well under overcast conditions. We also seek alternatives to the use of in situ ground data. However, outputs from an atmospheric model (2.2 km horizontal resolution) do not seem to provide an alternative to the parameterizations of cloud radiative forcing based on observations of air temperature at glacier automatic weather stations. Conversely, the correct definition of overcast conditions is important.
Loss of PKCλ/ι impairs Th2 establishment and allergic airway inflammation in vivo

The differentiation of T cells along different lineages is central to the control of immunity. Here we have used a conditional gene knockout system to delete PKCλ/ι selectively in activated T cells. With this system we have demonstrated that PKCλ/ι is necessary for T-helper cell (Th2) cytokine production and optimal T-cell proliferation and allergic airway inflammation in vivo. Our data demonstrate that the activation of the transcription factors nuclear factor of activated T cells and NF-κB is impaired in PKCλ/ι-deficient activated T cells. In addition, we present genetic knockout evidence in ex vivo experiments with primary T cells that PKCλ/ι is critical for the control of cell polarity during T-cell activation. Therefore PKCλ/ι emerges as a critical regulator of Th 2 activation.
UvA-DARE ( Digital Academic Repository ) Proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy in 22 q 11 deletion syndrome

Objective: People with velo-cardio-facial syndrome or 22q11 deletion syndrome (22q11DS) have behavioral, cognitive and psychiatric problems. Approximately 30% of affected individuals develop schizophrenia-like psychosis. Glutamate dysfunction is thought to play a crucial role in schizophrenia. However, it is unknown if and how the glutamate system is altered in 22q11DS. People with 22q11DS are vulnerable for haploinsufficiency of PRODH, a gene that codes for an enzyme converting proline into glutamate. Therefore, it can be hypothesized that glutamatergic abnormalities may be present in 22q11DS. Method: We employed proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (H-MRS) to quantify glutamate and other neurometabolites in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) and hippocampus of 22 adults with 22q11DS (22q11DS SCZ+) and without (22q11DS SCZ2) schizophrenia and 23 age-matched healthy controls. Also, plasma proline levels were determined in the 22q11DS group. Results: We found significantly increased concentrations of glutamate and myo-inositol in the hippocampal region of 22q11DS SCZ+ compared to 22q11DS SCZ2. There were no significant differences in levels of plasma proline between 22q11DS SCZ+ and 22q11DS SCZ2. There was no relationship between plasma proline and cerebral glutamate in 22q11DS. Conclusion: This is the first in vivo H-MRS study in 22q11DS. Our results suggest vulnerability of the hippocampus in the psychopathology of 22q11DS SCZ+. Altered hippocampal glutamate and myo-inositol metabolism may partially explain the psychotic symptoms and cognitive impairments seen in this group of patients. Citation: da Silva Alves F, Boot E, Schmitz N, Nederveen A, Vorstman J, et al. (2011) Proton Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy in 22q11 Deletion Syndrome. PLoS ONE 6(6): e21685. doi:10.1371/journal.pone. 0021685 Editor: Takeo Yoshikawa, Rikagaku Kenkyūsho Brain Science Institute, Japan Received December 23, 2010; Accepted June 7, 2011; Published June 30, 2011 Copyright: 2011 da Silva Alves et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. Funding: The study was funded by the Dutch Brain Foundation. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript. Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist. * E-mail: F.daSilvaAlves@amc.nl
Compressibility of the Carotid Artery in Patients With Pseudoxanthoma Elasticum

The arterial wall has generally been considered as noncompressible in in vitro studies. However, compressibility of the arterial wall (CAW) has never been studied in vivo in humans. Large interstitial proteoglycans play a major role in sustaining the compression generated by pulsatile forces. The aims of the present study were to develop an experimental methodology for the assessment of CAW in vivo in humans and to study CAW in patients with pseudoxanthoma elasticum (PXE), a genetic disease characterized by proteoglycan accumulation and fragmented, swollen, and calcified elastic fibers in connective tissues. We studied 19 female patients with PXE and 15 normal female control subjects matched for age and blood pressure. A high-resolution echo-tracking system was used for the continuous determination of internal diameter and wall thickness at the site of the common carotid artery. Matrices of the radiofrequency signal were analyzed with a dedicated software to measure carotid wall cross-sectional area every 4 milliseconds during 4 to 6 cardiac cycles. CAW was calculated as the stroke change in cross-sectional area. CAW was 44% higher in patients with PXE than in control subjects (6.8±2.6% versus 4.7±2.7%, respectively;P <0.05). In control subjects, CAW decreased with age in a linear manner (r =−0.75, P <0.01). In PXE patients, the relationship with age was not homogeneous: CAW tended to increase with age before 40 years (P =0.07) and significantly decreased with age in older patients (P <0.01). Carotid geometry and elastic properties did not differ between PXE patients and control subjects. In conclusion, CAW was measurable in vivo and noninvasively in humans. The higher CAW of PXE patients compared with that of control subjects suggests that proteoglycans are important determinants of compressibility.
The Interaction of Large Amplitude Internal Seiches with a Shallow Sloping Lakebed: Observations of Benthic Turbulence in Lake Simcoe, Ontario, Canada

Observations of the interactions of large amplitude internal seiches with the sloping boundary of Lake Simcoe, Canada show a pronounced asymmetry between up- and downwelling. Data were obtained during a 42-day period in late summer with an ADCP and an array of four thermistor chains located in a 5 km line at the depths where the thermocline intersects the shallow slope of the lakebed. The thermocline is located at depths of 12–14 m during the strongly stratified period of late summer. During periods of strong westerly winds the thermocline is deflected as much as 8 m vertically and interacts directly with the lakebed at depth between 14–18 m. When the thermocline was rising at the boundary, the stratification resembles a turbulent bore that propagates up the sloping lakebed with a speed of 0.05–0.15 m s−1 and a Froude number close to unity. There were strong temperature overturns associated with the abrupt changes in temperature across the bore. Based on the size of overturns in the near bed stratification, we show that the inferred turbulent diffusivity varies by up to two orders of magnitude between up- and downwellings. When the thermocline was rising, estimates of turbulent diffusivity were high with KZ ∼10−4 m2s−1, whereas during downwelling events the near-bed stratification was greatly increased and the turbulence was reduced. This asymmetry is consistent with previous field observations and underlines the importance of shear-induced convection in benthic bottom boundary layers of stratified lakes.