bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Alternative Care Sites During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Policy Implications for Pandemic Surge Planning
Authors: Bell Sue Anne , Krienke Lydia , Quanstrom Kathryn
Published: July 2021

Alternative care sites (ACS) across the United States were widely underutilized during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, while the volume and severity of COVID-19 cases overwhelmed health systems across the United States. The challenges presented by the pandemic have shown the need to design surge capacity principles with consideration for demand that strains multiple response capabilities. We reviewed current policy and previous literature from past ACS as well as highlighted challenges from the COVID-19 pandemic, to make recommendations that can inform future surge capacity planning. Our recommendations include: (1) Preparedness actions need to be continuous and flexible; (2) staffing needs must be met as they arise with solutions that are specific to the pandemic; 3) health equity must be a focus of ACS establishment and planning; and (4) ACS should be designed to function without compromising safe and effective care. A critical opportunity exists to identify improvements for future use of ACS in pandemics.
Developing a Public Interest Response to State-Orchestrated Corruption
Authors: Gillespie John
Published: July 2021

As conventionally understood, anti-corruption programs rely on legal rules to define and control the abuse of official power for private gain. This study explores the limits to law-based standards of corruption where state officials obscure bribery and the abuse of power beneath a veneer of legality. Drawing on an empirical study of two public-private partnerships (PPPs) in Vietnam, it asks whether the failure of anti-corruption laws to curb malfeasance in PPPs is attributable to insufficient enforcement, to targeting the wrong behavior, or to both of these issues. It argues that if anti-corruption laws are blind to the opportunistic manipulation of laws in PPPs, then we must consider other ways of conceptualizing and controlling corruption. This argument links the way in which corruption is conceptualized to the efficacy of policy instruments used to curb corruption in PPPs. In particular, it examines whether public interest corruption provides a framework that makes malfeasance in PPPs visible and thus offers a mechanism for holding officials accountable. This study concludes that public interest corruption broadens the analysis of corruption in PPPs from transgressions of legal boundaries to an examination of public inclusion and exclusion from decision making.
Reducing Model Misspecification and Bias in the Estimation of Interactions
Authors: Blackwell Matthew , Olson Michael P.
Published: July 2021

Analyzing variation in treatment effects across subsets of the population is an important way for social scientists to evaluate theoretical arguments. A common strategy in assessing such treatment effect heterogeneity is to include a multiplicative interaction term between the treatment and a hypothesized effect modifier in a regression model. Unfortunately, this approach can result in biased inferences due to unmodeled interactions between the effect modifier and other covariates, and including these interactions can lead to unstable estimates due to overfitting. In this paper, we explore the usefulness of machine learning algorithms for stabilizing these estimates and show how many off-the-shelf adaptive methods lead to two forms of bias: direct and indirect regularization bias. To overcome these issues, we use a post-double selection approach that utilizes several lasso estimators to select the interactions to include in the final model. We extend this approach to estimate uncertainty for both interaction and marginal effects. Simulation evidence shows that this approach has better performance than competing methods, even when the number of covariates is large. We show in two empirical examples that the choice of method leads to dramatically different conclusions about effect heterogeneity.
Why We Should Use the Gini Coefficient to Assess Punctuated Equilibrium Theory
Authors: Kaplaner Constantin , Steinebach Yves
Published: July 2021

Punctuated Equilibrium Theory posits that policy-making is generally characterized by long periods of stability that are interrupted by short periods of fundamental policy change. The literature converged on the measure of kurtosis and L-kurtosis to assess these change patterns. In this letter, we critically discuss these measures and propose the Gini coefficient as a (1) comparable, but (2) more intuitive, and (3) more precise measure of “punctuated” change patterns.
Asymptotic stability of rarefaction wave for the compressible Navier‐Stokes‐Korteweg equations in the half space
Authors: Li Yeping , Tang Jing , Yu Shengqi
Published: July 2021

In this study, we are concerned with the asymptotic stability towards a rarefaction wave of the solution to an outflow problem for the Navier-Stokes Korteweg equations of a compressible fluid in the half space. We assume that the space-asymptotic states and the boundary data satisfy some conditions so that the time-asymptotic state of this solution is a rarefaction wave. Then we show that the rarefaction wave is non-linearly stable, as time goes to infinity, provided that the strength of the wave is weak and the initial perturbation is small. The proof is mainly based on $L^{2}$-energy method and some time-decay estimates in $L^{p}$-norm for the smoothed rarefaction wave.
Late Quaternary deglaciation of Prince William Sound, Alaska
Authors: Haeussler Peter J. , Matmon Ari , Arnold Maurice , Aumaître Georges , Bourlès Didier , Keddadouche Karim
Published: July 2021

To understand the timing of deglaciation of the northernmost marine-terminating glaciers of the Cordilleran Ice Sheet (CIS), we obtained 2610Be surface-exposure ages from glacially scoured bedrock surfaces in Prince William Sound (PWS), Alaska. We sampled six elevation transects between sea level and 620 m and spanning a distance of 14 to 70 km along ice flow paths. Most transect age–elevation patterns could not be explained by a simple model of thinning ice; the patterns provide evidence for lingering ice cover and possible inheritance. A reliable set of 20 ages ranges between 17.4 ± 2.0 and 11.6 ± 2.8 ka and indicates ice receded from northwestern PWS around 14.3 ± 1.6 ka, thinned at a rate of ~120–160 m/ka, and retreated from sea-level sites at 12.9 ± 1.1 ka at a rate of 20 m/yr. The retreat rate likely slowed as glaciers retreated into northern PWS. These results are consistent with the growing body of reported deglacial constraints on collapse of ice sheets along the Alaska margin indicating collapse of the CIS soon after 17 ka. These data are consistent with paleotemperature data indicating that a warming North Pacific Ocean caused catastrophic collapse of this part of the CIS.
Adherence to the Mediterranean diet during pregnancy is associated with lower odds of excessive gestational weight gain and postpartum weight retention: results of the Mother-Infant Study Cohort
Authors: Radwan Hadia , Hashim Mona , Hasan Hayder , Abbas Nada , Obaid Reyad R. Shaker , Al Ghazal Hessa , Naja Farah
Published: July 2021

During the first 1000 d of life, gestational weight gain (GWG) and postpartum weight retention (PPWR) are considered critical determinants of nutritional status. This study examined the effect of adherence to the Mediterranean diet (MD) during pregnancy on GWG and PPWR at 2 and 6 months among women in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), using data from the Mother-Infant Study Cohort. The latter is a prospective study, for which pregnant women were recruited (n 243) during their third trimester and were followed up for 18 months. Data on socio-demographic characteristics and anthropometric measurements were obtained. An eighty-six-item FFQ was used to examine dietary intake during pregnancy. Adherence to the MD was assessed using the alternate MD (aMED) and the Lebanese MD (LMD). Adherence to the MD, PPWR2 (2 months) and PPWR6 (6 months) were considered high if participants belonged to the third tertile of the respective measures. Results indicated that 57·5 % of participants had excessive GWG while 50·7 % and 45 % retained ≥ 5 kg at 2 and 6 months postpartum, respectively. After adjustment, adherence to both MD scores was associated with lower odds of excessive GWG (aMED, OR:0·41, 95 % CI:0·18, 0·93; LMD, OR:0·40, 95 % CI: 0·16, 0·98). Adherence to MD was also associated with PPWR2 (aMED: OR: 0·23, 95 % CI: 0·06, 0·88) and PPWR6 (aMED OR:0·26; 95 % CI:0·08–0·86; LMD, OR:0·32; 95 % CI: 0·1, 0·98). The findings of this study showed that adherence to the MD may reduce GWG and PPWR and, hence, underscored the importance of promoting the MD for better health of the mother and infant.
Constraints of magmatism on the Ergu Fe–Zn polymetallic metallogenic system in the central Lesser Xing’an Range, NE China: evidence from geochronology, geochemistry and Sr–Nd–Pb–Hf isotopes
Authors: Zhao Chuntao , Sun Jinggui , Liu Yang , Chu Xiaolei , Xu Zhikai , Han Jilong , Li Wenqing , Ren Liang , Bai Chenglin
Published: July 2021

The medium-sized Ergu Fe–Zn polymetallic skarn deposit is located in the central Lesser Xing’an Range, NE China. The ore bodies are mainly hosted in the contact zone between granodiorite intrusions and lower Cambrian dolomitic crystalline limestones or skarns. To reveal the magmatic influence on the mineralization, resource potential and metallogenic geodynamic process of this deposit, a systematic study of the geology, petrology, zircon U–Pb dating, element geochemistry, amphibole geochemistry and Sr–Nd–Pb–Hf isotopes of the Ergu deposit intrusives was conducted. The results show the following: (1) The major rock types in the mine area are medium-grained granodiorite and porphyritic granite, and the rock related to mineralization is medium-grained granodiorite. Zircon U–Pb dating suggests that the granodiorite and porphyritic granite formed at 181.9–183.8 Ma and 182.7 Ma, respectively. Thus, an Early Jurassic magmatic event led to the formation of the Ergu deposit. (2) The granodiorite and porphyritic granite are high-K calc-alkaline I-type granites that formed by comagmatic evolution with varying degrees of fractional crystallization and were likely derived from partial melting of the lower crust. The Ergu deposit occurred in an active continental-margin tectonic setting. (3) The high water content (5.69 wt % H2O), high oxygen fugacity (ΔFMQ = +1.75 to +1.82) and intermediate-plutonic emplacement (3.13 km) of the granodioritic magma are key factors in the formation of the Ergu deposit. The porphyry granite is characterized by high water content (>4 wt % H2O), reduced oxygen fugacity (ΔFMQ = −0.47) and shallow emplacement (<3 km).
Natural Disaster Effects on Popular Sentiment Toward Finance
Authors: Jha Manish , Liu Hongyi , Manela Asaf
Published: July 2021

We use a text-based measure of popular sentiment toward finance to study how finance sentiment responds to rare historical disasters and to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Finance sentiment declines after epidemics and earthquakes but rises following severe droughts, floods, and landslides. These heterogeneous effects suggest finance sentiment responds differently to the realization of insured versus uninsured risks. Finance sentiment declines at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, but recovers in countries that experienced high stock markets returns and that responded with large fiscal spending. Finance sentiment seems to depend on the insurance provided by private markets and by public finance.
Thailand's First Revolution? The role of religious mobilization and ‘the people’ in the Ayutthaya rebellion of 1688
Authors: Strathern Alan
Published: July 2021

In the 1680s, King Narai, ruler of the cosmopolitan kingdom of Ayutthaya, was the subject of competing French and Persian attempts to convert him to monotheism. These attempts were not only embarrassing failures; they also helped to precipitate a coup in 1688, in which Phetracha forcefully intervened to place himself on the throne and eject French influence from the realm. But to what extent did the execution of the coup depend on popular involvement? And what ideals and emotions seem to have animated this participation? After pondering the role of ethnicity and xenophobic sentiment, this article considers the construction of powerful discourses of Buddhist intellectual opposition to Christianity, the role of the sangha in the orchestration of the coup itself, and then considers in more detail the extent to which ‘the people’ demonstrated some kind of autonomous political agency. Lastly, it considers whether the events of the coup and its immediate aftermath were shaped by anti-Christian emotion. As a movement with conservative and restorative aims, 1688 was not a ‘revolution’ in the modern sense, but it may have ushered in an enlarged sense of popular investment in the legitimation of royal contenders associated with the defence of Buddhism.
Development of ‘ibuki’ an electrically actuated childlike android with mobility and its potential in the future society
Authors: Nakata Yoshihiro , Yagi Satoshi , Yu Shiqi , Wang Yifei , Ise Naoki , Nakamura Yutaka , Ishiguro Hiroshi
Published: July 2021

In this paper, we present an electrically driven childlike android named ibuki equipped with a wheeled mobility unit that enables it to move in a real environment. Since the unit includes a vertical oscillation mechanism, the android can replicate the movements of the human center of mass and can express human-like upper-body movements even when moving by wheels. Moreover, providing 46 degrees of freedom enables it to perform various human-like physical expressions. The development of ibuki, as well as the implementation and testing of several functions, is described. Finally, we discuss the potential advantages and future research direction of a childlike mobile android.
K+-dependent Müller cell-generated components of the electroretinogram
Authors: Dmitriev Andrey V. , Dmitriev Alexander A. , Linsenmeier Robert A.
Published: July 2021

The electroretinogram (ERG) has been employed for years to collect information about retinal function and pathology. The usefulness of this noninvasive test depends on our understanding of the cell sources that generate the ERG. Important contributors to the ERG are glial Müller cells (MCs), which are capable of generating substantial transretinal potentials in response to light-induced changes in extracellular K+ concentration ([K+]o). For instance, the MCs generate the slow PIII (sPIII) component of the ERG as a reaction to a photoreceptor-induced [K+]o decrease in the subretinal space. Similarly, an increase of [K+]o related to activity of postreceptor retinal neurons also produces transretinal glial currents, which can potentially influence the amplitude and shape of the b-wave, one of the most frequently analyzed ERG components. Although it is well documented that the majority of the b-wave originates from On-bipolar cells, some contribution from MCs was suggested many years ago and has never been experimentally rejected. In this work, detailed information about light-evoked [K+]o changes in the isolated mouse retina was collected and then analyzed with a relatively simple linear electrical model of MCs. The results demonstrate that the cornea-positive potential generated by MCs is too small to contribute noticeably to the b-wave. The analysis also explains why MCs produce the large cornea-negative sPIII subcomponent of the ERG, but no substantial cornea-positive potential.
Spectral gap in random bipartite biregular graphs and applications
Authors: Brito Gerandy , Dumitriu Ioana , Harris Kameron Decker
Published: July 2021

We prove an analogue of Alon’s spectral gap conjecture for random bipartite, biregular graphs. We use the Ihara–Bass formula to connect the non-backtracking spectrum to that of the adjacency matrix, employing the moment method to show there exists a spectral gap for the non-backtracking matrix. A by-product of our main theorem is that random rectangular zero-one matrices with fixed row and column sums are full rank with high probability. Finally, we illustrate applications to community detection, coding theory, and deterministic matrix completion.
Comparison of dietary trends between two counties with and without a cardiovascular prevention programme: a population-based cross-sectional study in northern Sweden
Authors: Törmä Johanna , Lundqvist Robert , Eliasson Mats , Nilsson Lena Maria , Oskarsson Viktor , Wennberg Maria
Published: July 2021

Objective:

To compare temporal trends, over a 20-year period, in dietary habits between a county (Västerbotten) with a CVD prevention programme and a county (Norrbotten) without such a programme.

Design:

Cross-sectional data from the Northern Sweden MONICA study (survey period 1994, 1999, 2004, 2009 and 2014). Dietary habits were assessed by a semi-quantitative FFQ.

Setting:

Counties of Norrbotten and Västerbotten, Northern Sweden.

Participants:

Five thousand four hundred Swedish adults (mean age 56·9 years; 51·2 % women) from Västerbotten (47 %) and Norrbotten (53 %).

Results:

No differences in temporal trend for estimated percentage of energy intake from total carbohydrates, total fat, total protein and alcohol were observed between the counties (Pfor interaction ≥ 0·33). There were no between-county difference in temporal trends for overall diet quality (assessed by the Healthy Diet Score; Pfor interaction = 0·36). Nor were there any between-county differences for the intake of whole grain products, fruits, vegetables, fish, sweetened beverages or fried potatoes (Pfor interaction ≥ 0·09). Consumption of meat (Pfor interaction = 0·05) increased to a greater extent in Norrbotten from 2009 and onwards, mainly in men (sex-specific analyses, Pfor interaction = 0·04). Men in Västerbotten decreased their intake of sweets to a greater extent than men in Norrbotten (Pfor interaction < 0·01).

Conclusions:

Over a 20-year period in northern Sweden, only small differences in dietary habits were observed in favour of a county with a CVD prevention programme compared with a county without such a programme.
Sinking of Four Species of Living Diatom Cells Directly Observed by a “Tumbled” Optical Microscope
Authors: Hamano Ryo , Shoumura Shingo , Takeda Yuto , Yamazaki Tokio , Hirayama Kota , Hanada Yasutaka , Mayama Shigeki , Takemura Masaharu , Lin Han-Jia , Umemura Kazuo
Published: July 2021

The study of the sinking phenomenon of diatom cells, which have a slightly larger specific gravity (~1.3) compared to that of water, is an important research topic for understanding photosynthetic efficiency. In this study, we successfully demonstrated the observation of the sinking behaviors of four different species of diatom using a homemade “tumbled” optical microscope. A homemade 1 mm3 microchamber was employed to decrease the effects of convection currents. In the microchamber, diatom cells were basically settled in a linear manner without floating, although some of the cells were rotated during their sinking. Sinking speeds of the four species of diatom cells, Nitzschia sp., Pheodactylum tricornutum, Navicula sp., and Odontella aurita, were 0.81 ± 5.56, 3.03 ± 10.17, 3.29 ± 7.39, and 11.22 ± 21.42 μm/s, respectively, based on the automatic tracking analysis of the centroids of each cell. Manual analysis of a vector between two longitudinal ends of the cells (two-point analysis) was effective for quantitatively characterizing the rotation phenomenon; therefore, angles and angular velocities of rotating cells were well determined as a function of time. The effects of the cell shapes on sinking velocity could be explained by simulation analysis using the modified Stokes’ law proposed by Miklasz et al.
Transmission Electron Microscopy Analysis on Microbial Ultrathin Sections Prepared by the Ultra-Low Lead Staining Technique
Authors: Jiang Zhongquan , Sun Danqing , Guan Huize , Sun Yutong , Ye Menglei , Zhang Lin , Gu Tingting , Chen Jiani , Wang Shujie , Zhang Chunhua , Wang Shimei , Zhou Zhenlei , Ge Ying , Li Zhen
Published: July 2021

The staining procedure is critical for investigating intra- and extra-cellular ultrastructure of microorganisms by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Here, we propose a new ultra-low lead staining (ULLS) technique for preparing the ultrathin sections for TEM analysis. Sections of Enterobacter sp. (bacteria), Aspergillus niger (filamentous fungi), Rhodotorula mucilaginosa (fungi), and Chlamydomonas reinhardtii (microalgae) were tested. Compared with the sections prepared by the typical double-staining technique, ULLS-based sections showed evident advantages: (i) the staining process only required the addition of Pb(NO3)2; (ii) the Pb level during incubation was set as low as 1 mg/L, which had negligible toxicity to most microbial cells; (iii) the Pb cations were added during microbial culture, which avoided complicated sample preparation as in typical double staining. Taking C. reinhardtii as an example, the ULLS technique allowed fine investigation of microbial ultrastructure, e.g., starch granule, mitochondrion, Golgi apparatus, vacuole, and vesicle. Meanwhile, the physiological processes of the cells such as cell lysis and exocytosis were successfully captured, with relatively high contrast. This study hence shows a bright future on preparation of the high-quality ultrathin sections of microbial cells by the ULLS technique.
Primär- und Sekundärprävention des Hirnschlags: Körperliche Aktivität
Authors: Padlina Giovanna , Scutelnic Adrian , Salmen Stephan
Published: July 2021

Zusammenfassung. Die Evidenz für günstige Effekte der körperlichen Aktivität sowohl in der Primär- als auch in der Sekundärprävention des Hirnschlags ist in den letzten Jahren gestiegen. Es konnte gezeigt werden, dass regelmässige körperliche Aktivität günstige Einflüsse auf die meisten vaskulären Risikofaktoren (wie z. B. auf das Übergewicht, die arterielle Hypertonie, das Vorhofflimmern etc.) hat. Nach einem Hirnschlag ist es eines der wichtigsten Ziele, das Risiko eines erneuten Hirnschlags und seine möglichen Konsequenzen zu vermindern. Andere wichtige Ziele sind das Verbessern der beeinträchtigten Hirnfunktionen, der Lebensqualität, der Selbständigkeit in den Alltagsaktivitäten sowie die Reintegration in der Gesellschaft [1]. Die durch den Hirnschlag eingeschränkten Hirnfunktionen können neben motorischen, sensiblen, visuellen und sprachlichen Einschränkungen auch kognitive Einschränkungen, sowie Störungen der Stimmung beinhalten. Diese Defizite wirken sich auf die körperliche Aktivität aus [2]. Art, Menge und Intensität der körperlichen Aktivität müssen an die Komorbiditäten und, falls vorhanden, an die nach einem Hirnschlag vorhandenen residuellen neurologischen Defizite angepasst werden.
Using Differential Item Functioning to Analyze the Domain Generality	of a Common Scientific Reasoning Test
Authors: Opitz Ansgar , Heene Moritz , Fischer Frank
Published: July 2021

Abstract. A significant problem that assessments of scientific reasoning face at the level of higher education is the question of domain generality, that is, whether a test will produce biased results for students from different domains. This study applied three recently developed methods of analyzing differential item functioning (DIF) to evaluate the domain generality assumption of a common scientific reasoning test. Additionally, we evaluated the usefulness of these new, tree- and lasso-based, methods to analyze DIF and compared them with methods based on classical test theory. We gave the scientific reasoning test to 507 university students majoring in physics, biology, or medicine. All three DIF analysis methods indicated a domain bias present in about one-third of the items, mostly benefiting biology students. We did not find this bias by using methods based on classical test theory. Those methods indicated instead that all items were easier for physics students compared to biology students. Thus, the tree- and lasso-based methods provide a clear added value to test evaluation. Taken together, our analyses indicate that the scientific reasoning test is neither entirely domain-general, nor entirely domain-specific. We advise against using it in high-stakes situations involving domain comparisons.
Upgrading Land‐Cover and Vegetation Seasonality in the ECMWF Coupled System: Verification With FLUXNET Sites, METEOSAT Satellite Land Surface Temperatures, and ERA5 Atmospheric Reanalysis
Authors: Nogueira Miguel , Boussetta Souhail , Balsamo Gianpaolo , Albergel Clément , Trigo Isabel F. , Johannsen Frederico , Miralles Diego G. , Dutra Emanuel
Published: July 2021

In this study, we show that limitations in the representation of land cover and vegetation seasonality in the European Centre for Medium‐Range Weather Forecasting (ECMWF) model are partially responsible for large biases (up to ∼10°C, either positive or negative depending on the region) on the simulated daily maximum land surface temperature (LST) with respect to satellite Earth Observations (EOs) products from the Land Surface Analysis Satellite Application Facility. The error patterns were coherent in offline land‐surface and coupled land‐atmosphere simulations, and in ECMWF's latest generation reanalysis (ERA5). Subsequently, we updated the ECMWF model's land cover characterization leveraging on state‐of‐the‐art EOs—the European Space Agency Climate Change Initiative land cover data set and the Copernicus Global Land Services leaf area index. Additionally, we tested a clumping parameterization, introducing seasonality to the effective low vegetation coverage. The updates reduced the overall daily maximum LST bias and unbiased root‐mean‐squared errors. In contrast, the implemented updates had a neutral impact on daily minimum LST. Our results also highlighted the complex regional heterogeneities in the atmospheric sensitivity to land cover and vegetation changes, particularly with issues emerging over eastern Brazil and northeastern Asia. These issues called for a re‐calibration of model parameters (e.g., minimum stomatal resistance, roughness length, rooting depth), along with a revision of several model assumptions (e.g., snow shading by high vegetation).
Performance Assessment of Geophysical Instrumentation Through the Automated Analysis of Power Spectral Density Estimates
Authors: Koymans M. R. , Domingo Ballesta J. , Ruigrok E. , Sleeman R. , Trani L. , Evers L. G.
Published: July 2021

This study describes an automated data quality verification procedure supported by a database of power spectral densities (PSD) estimates for geophysical waveform data. The Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute (KNMI) manages a 100‐TB archive of continuous geophysical data collected from accelerometers, geophones, broadband seismometers, and infrasonic arrays deployed across the continental and Caribbean Netherlands. This rapidly expanding network at a scale of over 700 instruments makes the manual evaluation of data quality impractical and must be supported by data policies and automated methods. A technique is presented to compress and store PSD estimates in a database with a storage footprint of less than 0.05% of the raw data archive. Every week, the instrument performance is validated by comparing statistical properties of its latest monthly probabilistic PSD distribution to strict quality metrics. The criteria include thresholds based on global noise models, datalogger quantization noise models, constraints imposed by ambient noise conditions, and confidence intervals based on PSD estimates calculated from validated archived data. When a threshold is crossed, the station operator is alerted of the suspected degraded instrument performance, severely limiting the required amount of manual labor and associated human errors. The automated PSD assessment technique is applicable to accelerometers, geophones, broadband seismometers, infrasonic stations, and is demonstrated to be extendable to hydrophones, gravimeters, tiltmeters, and Global Navigation Satellite System receivers. The approach is therefore suitable for other geophysical monitoring infrastructures, for example, observational networks dedicated to continuous volcano monitoring. It is shown that it possible to detect degraded instrument performance that may otherwise remain undetected.
New Marine Ecology Tool Corrects for Effects of Fossil Fuel Emissions
Authors: Thomasy Hannah
Published: July 2021

Standardizing these corrections will help scientists understand ocean ecosystems.
Denoising Surface Waves Extracted From Ambient Noise Recorded by 1‐D Linear Array Using Three‐Station Interferometry of Direct Waves
Authors: Qiu Hongrui , Niu Fenglin , Qin Lei
Published: July 2021

We develop an automatic workflow for enhancing surface wave signals in ambient noise cross correlations (ANCs) calculated for a one‐dimensional (1‐D) linear array. The proposed array‐based method is applied to a 1.6 km‐long dense linear nodal array crossing surface traces of the San Jacinto fault near Anza, California. Fundamental and higher modes of surface waves are observed in ANCs of the nodal array. After attenuating the surface wave overtones by applying a frequency‐dependent tapering window to the ANCs, signals dominated by the fundamental mode surface wave are then enhanced through a denoising process based on three‐station interferometry of direct waves. The signal‐to‐noise ratio is significantly increased at high frequencies (>2 Hz) after denoising. Phase travel times are extracted reliably in the frequency domain for the period ranges of 0.3–1.2 s and 0.3–1.6 s for Rayleigh and Love waves, respectively. The corresponding period‐dependent phase velocity profiles derived from the eikonal equation reveal high‐resolution details of fault zone internal structures beneath the array. A broad (500–1,000 m) low‐velocity zone that narrows with increasing period is observed, illuminating a flower‐shaped structure of the San Jacinto fault damage zone.
Permeability Evolution of Fractures in Shale in the Presence of Supercritical CO2
Authors: Hashemi Sam S. , Zoback Mark D.
Published: July 2021

We experimentally examined the impact of supercritical carbon dioxide (scCO2) on fracture permeability and fracture surface characteristics in shales of various compositions. We measured permeability and fracture normal displacement at different effective stresses using both argon and scCO2 as pore fluids. Both natural fractures and saw cuts in intact samples were used in our study. The permeability and fracture normal displacement decrease after multiple loading/unloading cycles, apparently as the result of inelastic compaction. In samples with high carbonate content, we observe an increase in permeability and fracture surface degradation after more than 3.5 days of exposure to scCO2, apparently due to carbonate dissolution. We demonstrate that the sensitivity of permeability to effective normal stress correlates well with the fracture normal displacement. The dependence of permeability on effective normal stress increases after exposure to scCO2 as the fracture surface became more compliant.
Viscous Effects on the Particle Size Segregation in Geophysical Mass Flows: Insights From Immersed Granular Shear Flow Simulations
Authors: Cui Kahlil F. E. , Zhou Gordon G. D. , Jing Lu
Published: July 2021

Size segregation is a common feature in geophysical mass flow deposits and is an active process during motion. The presence of interstitial fluids in such flows affect the motion of constituent particles and result in complex segregation behaviors. Effects of the viscosity and density of various interstitial fluids on the rate of particle size segregation are investigated through coupled granular‐fluid simulations of immersed plane‐sheared flows. The segregation rate decreases as the fluid viscosity increases, but remains constant when the viscosity is below certain threshold values. In the low viscosity limit, segregation is affected only by the relative density between the particles and the fluid, and by flow inertial conditions. Analysis of segregation forcing terms based on the mixture theory of segregation reveals that the decrease of segregation rates with the viscosity is due to the increase of fluid drag forces, which effectively weaken the contact stress gradients responsible for driving the large particles to migrate upward. Viscous damping also diminishes velocity fluctuations and thereby inhibits the migration of particles throughout the mixture. The transition in the viscosity dependence is shown to correspond to the transition between granular‐fluid flow regimes. An empirical scaling formula is developed which accounts for the effects of fluid viscosity and the relative density on size segregation immersed in different fluids.
Factors Affecting Entrainment Rate in Deep Convective Clouds and Parameterizations
Authors: Xu Xiaoqi , Sun Cheng , Lu Chunsong , Liu Yangang , Zhang Guang Jun , Chen Qian
Published: July 2021

The parameterization of cloud entrainment rate has been problematic for many years, hindering the accurate representation of convective processes in large‐scale models. Here, we extend our previous work on individual shallow convection to ensemble deep convection. Entrainment rate is estimated based on three‐dimensional convective clouds from August 19 to 20, 1999, during the Kwajalein Experiment, simulated using a high‐resolution cloud‐resolving model. They are found to be negatively correlated with both vertical velocity and buoyancy, and positively correlated with the vertical divergence of the vertical velocity and with the reciprocal of cloud radii. The physical mechanisms underlying these relationships are interpreted. It is found that the parameterizations with multiple properties perform better than those with a single property. Entrainment rate and relative humidity of entrained air are positively correlated at temperature higher than 0°C, but negatively correlated at temperature lower than 0°C. Relative humidity is also included in the parameterization of entrainment rate, which differs from our previous work on shallow cumulus clouds and other studies. Finally, two forms of parameterization for entrainment rate are recommended. The first treats the entrainment rate as a function of the vertical velocity and buoyancy for temperature higher than 0°C, but as a function of relative humidity and buoyancy for temperature lower than 0°C. The second involves an equation that relates entrainment rate to vertical velocity and buoyancy regardless of temperature.
Gravity Wave Activity in the Martian Atmosphere at Altitudes 20–160 km From ACS/TGO Occultation Measurements
Authors: Starichenko Ekaterina D. , Belyaev Denis A. , Medvedev Alexander S. , Fedorova Anna A. , Korablev Oleg I. , Trokhimovskiy Alexander , Yiğit Erdal , Alday Juan , Montmessin Franck , Hartogh Paul
Published: July 2021

The paper presents observations of gravity wave‐induced temperature disturbances in the Martian atmosphere obtained with the mid‐infrared (MIR) spectrometer, a channel of the Atmospheric Chemistry Suite instrument on board the Trace Gas Orbiter (ACS/TGO). Solar occultation measurements of aabsorption band at 2.7m were used for retrieving density and temperature profiles between heights of 20 and 160 km with vertical resolution sufficient for deriving small‐scale structures associated with gravity waves. Several techniques for distinguishing disturbances from the background temperature have been explored and compared. Instantaneous temperature profiles, amplitudes of wave packets and potential energy have been determined. Horizontal momentum fluxes and associated wave drag have been estimated. The analyzed data set of 144 profiles encompasses the measurements made over the second half of Martian Year 34, from the Solar longitudethrough. We observe enhanced gravity wave dissipation/breaking in the mesopause region of 100–130 km. Our analysis shows no direct correlation between the wave amplitude and Brunt‐Väisälä frequency. It may indicate that convective instability may not be the main mechanism limiting gravity wave growth in the middle atmosphere of Mars.
Spectrum Monitoring of Radio Digital Video Broadcasting Based on an Improved Generative Adversarial Network
Authors: Wang X. Y. , Yang J. J. , Zhang L. , Lu Q. N. , Huang M.
Published: July 2021

Due to the inherent broadcast nature of wireless communication systems, instances of radio jamming are common, such as natural interference and man‐made interference, resulting in increasing demands for radio monitoring. A spectrum monitoring method based on a generative adversarial network model that is one of the most promising approaches of learning any kind of data distribution using unsupervised learning was proposed in this paper for the detection of anomaly spectrum with impulse noise. To validate the performance of the proposed model, both the simulated data set and the measured data set of radio digital video broadcasting were used to train and test the model. Experiments on the two data sets reached a consistent conclusion: as long as the energy of the interference is greater than a certain threshold, the detection accuracy increases with the increase of the interference power and pulse width. Compared with the existing anomaly detection models, our model was faster and more stable.
Exploiting lipotoxicity for the treatment of liver cancer
Authors: Rudalska Ramona , Zender Lars , Dauch Daniel
Published: July 2021

Metabolic alterations occur frequently in solid tumours, but metabolic cancer therapies are limited by the complexity and plasticity of metabolic networks. We could recently show that activation of the liver X receptor alpha (LXRα) and inhibition of a Raf-1-SCD1 protein complex induces an intracellular accumulation of saturated free fatty acids leading to lethal lipotoxicity in tumour cells and allows for an efficient treatment of liver carcinomas.
SMYD3 promotes hepatocellular carcinoma progression by methylating S1PR1 promoters
Authors: Zhang Heyun , Zheng Zhangyu , Zhang Rongqin , Yan Yongcong , Peng Yaorong , Ye Hua , Lin Lehang , Xu Junyao , Li Wenbin , Huang Pinbo
Published: July 2021

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most common malignancies worldwide. SET and MYND domain-containing protein 3 (SMYD3) has been shown to promote the progression of various types of human cancers, including liver cancer; however, the detailed molecular mechanism is still largely unknown. Here, we report that SMYD3 expression in HCC is an independent prognostic factor for survival and promotes the proliferation and migration of HCC cells. We observed that SMYD3 upregulated sphingosine-1-phosphate receptor 1 (S1PR1) promoter activity by methylating histone 3 (H3K4me3). S1PR1 was expressed at high levels in HCC samples, and high S1PR1 expression was associated with shorter survival. S1PR1 expression was also positively correlated with SMYD3 expression in HCC samples. We confirmed that SMYD3 promotes HCC cell growth and migration in vitro and in vivo by upregulating S1PR1 expression. Further investigations revealed that SMYD3 affects critical signaling pathways associated with the progression of HCC through S1PR1. These findings strongly suggest that SMYD3 has a crucial function in HCC progression that is partially mediated by histone methylation at the downstream gene S1PR1, which affects key signaling pathways associated with carcinogenesis and the progression of HCC.
25-Hydroxyvitamin D reference percentiles and the role of their determinants among European children and adolescents
Authors: Wolters Maike , Intemann Timm , Russo Paola , Moreno Luis A. , Molnár Dénes , Veidebaum Toomas , Tornaritis Michael , De Henauw Stefaan , Eiben Gabriele , Ahrens Wolfgang , Floegel Anna
Published: July 2021

Background/objectives

To provide age- and sex-specific percentile curves of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) by determinants from 3-<15 year-old European children, and to analyse how modifiable determinants influence 25(OH)D.

Subjects/methods

Serum samples were collected from children of eight European countries participating in the multicenter IDEFICS/I.Family cohort studies. Serum 25(OH)D concentrations were analysed in a central lab by a chemiluminescence assay and the values from 2171 children (N = 3606 measurements) were used to estimate percentile curves using the generalized additive model for location, scale and shape. The association of 25(OH)D with time spent outdoors was investigated considering sex, age, country, parental education, BMI z score, UV radiation, and dietary vitamin D in regressions models.

Results

The age- and sex-specific 5th and 95th percentiles of 25(OH)D ranged from 16.5 to 73.3 and 20.8 to 79.3 nmol/l in girls and boys, respectively. A total of 63% had deficient (<50 nmol/l), 33% insufficient (50-<75 nmol/l) and 3% sufficient (≥75 nmol/l) levels. 25(OH)D increased with increasing UV radiation, time spent outdoors, and vitamin D intake and slightly decreased with increasing BMI z score and age. The odds ratio (OR) for a non-deficient 25(OH)D status (reference category: deficient status) by one additional hour spent outdoors was 1.21, 95% CI [1.12–1.31], i.e., children who spent one more hour per day outdoors than other children had a 21% higher chance of a non-deficient than a deficient status.

Conclusion

A majority of children suffer from deficient 25(OH)D. UV radiation, outdoor time, and dietary vitamin D are important determinants of 25(OH)D.
YAP1 nuclear efflux and transcriptional reprograming follow membrane diminution upon VSV-G-induced cell fusion
Authors: Feliciano Daniel , Ott Carolyn M. , Espinosa-Medina Isabel , Weigel Aubrey V. , Benedetti Lorena , Milano Kristin M. , Tang Zhonghua , Lee Tzumin , Kliman Harvey J. , Guller Seth M. , Lippincott-Schwartz Jennifer
Published: July 2021

Cells in many tissues, such as bone, muscle, and placenta, fuse into syncytia to acquire new functions and transcriptional programs. While it is known that fused cells are specialized, it is unclear whether cell-fusion itself contributes to programmatic-changes that generate the new cellular state. Here, we address this by employing a fusogen-mediated, cell-fusion system to create syncytia from undifferentiated cells. RNA-Seq analysis reveals VSV-G-induced cell fusion precedes transcriptional changes. To gain mechanistic insights, we measure the plasma membrane surface area after cell-fusion and observe it diminishes through increases in endocytosis. Consequently, glucose transporters internalize, and cytoplasmic glucose and ATP transiently decrease. This reduced energetic state activates AMPK, which inhibits YAP1, causing transcriptional-reprogramming and cell-cycle arrest. Impairing either endocytosis or AMPK activity prevents YAP1 inhibition and cell-cycle arrest after fusion. Together, these data demonstrate plasma membrane diminishment upon cell-fusion causes transient nutrient stress that may promote transcriptional-reprogramming independent from extrinsic cues.
Visualization of gaseous iodine adsorption on single zeolitic imidazolate framework-90 particles
Authors: Lei Yuting , Zhang Guihua , Zhang Qinglan , Yu Ling , Li Hua , Yu Haili , He Yi
Published: July 2021

Zeolitic imidazolate frameworks (ZIFs) are very useful as high-capacity iodine (I2) adsorbents. The adsorption performance is usually probed by measuring a statistical average property over an entire sample consisting of a large number of ZIF particles, leaving the interparticle heterogeneity information among individuals. Here we report a dark-field microscopy (DFM) method to visualize gaseous I2 adsorption on single ZIF-90 particles in situ and in real time. The adsorption of I2 is found to alter the scattering spectrum of ZIF-90 particles, inducing a distinct color change from bluewhite to yellow. According to correlating the adsorption amount of gaseous I2 with the change of B value from DFM images, we quantitatively image the adsorption process and estimate the related kinetic parameters at the single particle level. Single particle measurements clarify the large particle-to-particle heterogeneity in adsorption reactivity and significant adsorption activity improvement of ZIF-90 after introduction of linker defects, which provides a microscopic understanding of the structure-activity relationship. We further demonstrate the capacity of this strategy for studying gaseous I2 adsorption on single ZIF-91 particle as a derivative of ZIF-90 to illustrate the generality.
Soft-mode dynamics in the ferroelectric phase transition of GeTe
Authors: Wang Chen , Wu Jiangtao , Zeng Zezhu , Embs Jan , Pei Yanzhong , Ma Jie , Chen Yue
Published: July 2021

GeTe that exhibits a strong anharmonicity and a ferroelectric phase transition between the rhombohedral and cubic structures has emerged as one of the leading thermoelectric materials. Herein, combining molecular dynamics simulations and inelastic neutron scattering measurements, the lattice dynamics in GeTe have been investigated to reveal the soft-mode mechanisms across the phase transition. We have constructed a first-principles-based machine-learning interatomic potential, which successfully captures the dynamical ferroelectric phase transition of GeTe by adopting the neural network technique. Although the low-energy acoustic phonons remain relatively unaffected at elevated temperatures, the high-energy optical, and longitudinal acoustic phonons demonstrate strong renormalizations as evidenced from the vibrational phonon spectra, which are attributed to the large anharmonicity accompanying the phase transition. Furthermore, our results reveal a nonmonotonic temperature dependence of the soft-modes beyond the perturbative regime. The insight provided by this work into the soft-modes may pave the way for further phonon engineering of GeTe and the related thermoelectrics.
A quantum material spintronic resonator
Authors: Xu Jun-Wen , Chen Yizhang , Vargas Nicolás M. , Salev Pavel , Lapa Pavel N. , Trastoy Juan , Grollier Julie , Schuller Ivan K. , Kent Andrew D.
Published: July 2021

In a spintronic resonator a radio-frequency signal excites spin dynamics that can be detected by the spin-diode effect. Such resonators are generally based on ferromagnetic metals and their responses to spin torques. New and richer functionalities can potentially be achieved with quantum materials, specifically with transition metal oxides that have phase transitions that can endow a spintronic resonator with hysteresis and memory. Here we present the spin torque ferromagnetic resonance characteristics of a hybrid metal-insulator-transition oxide/ ferromagnetic metal nanoconstriction. Our samples incorporate $${\mathrm {V}}_2{\mathrm {O}}_3$$

V
2

O
3

, with Ni, Permalloy ($${\hbox {Ni}}_{80}{\hbox {Fe}}_{20}$$

Ni
80

Fe
20

) and Pt layers patterned into a nanoconstriction geometry. The first order phase transition in $${\mathrm {V}}_2{\mathrm {O}}_3$$

V
2

O
3

is shown to lead to systematic changes in the resonance response and hysteretic current control of the ferromagnetic resonance frequency. Further, the output signal can be systematically varied by locally changing the state of the $${\mathrm {V}}_2{\mathrm {O}}_3$$

V
2

O
3

with a dc current. These results demonstrate new spintronic resonator functionalities of interest for neuromorphic computing.