bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Antiinflammatory effect of Daesiho, a Korean traditional prescription for cerebral infarct patients
Authors: Kim Yunha , So Hong‐Seob , Kim Se‐Jin , Youn Myung‐Ja , Lee Jeong‐Han , Kim Nam‐Song , Lee Jeong‐Ho , Woo Won‐Hong , Lee Dong Wook , Cho Kwang‐Ho , Moon Byung‐Soon , Park Raekil
Published: April 2008

Daesiho, a prescription composed of eight herbal mixtures, has been widely used in the treatment of cerebral infarct in Oriental medicine. However, the mechanisms by which the formula affects the production of pro‐inflammatory cytokines in cerebral infarct patients remains unknown. The levels of secretory protein pro‐inflammatory cytokines, including tumor necrosis factor (TNF)‐α, interleukin (IL)‐1β and IL‐6, were significantly increased in both lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and phytohemagglutinin (PHA)‐stimulated peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from cerebral infarct patients and LPS‐stimulated THP‐1 differentiated macrophage‐like cells (THP‐1/M). However, pretreatment with Daesiho significantly inhibited the secretion of pro‐inflammatory cytokines, including TNF‐α, IL‐1β, and IL‐6, in stimulated PBMCs and THP‐1/M cells. In addition, Daesiho significantly suppressed mRNA expression of pro‐inflammatory cytokines. Therefore, these data indicate that Daesiho may be beneficial in the cessation of inflammatory processes of cerebral infarction through suppression of the production of pro‐inflammatory cytokines via inhibition of mRNA expression. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Multi‐class, multi‐residue liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry screening and confirmation methods for drug residues in milk
Authors: Turnipseed Sherri B. , Andersen Wendy C. , Karbiwnyk Christine M. , Madson Mark R. , Miller Keith E.
Published: April 2008

This paper describes the development and optimization of a multi‐residue veterinary drug screening method for whole milk. The drug residues of regulatory interest in milk include β‐lactams, sulfonamides, tetracyclines, fluoroquinolones, and macrolides. Milk samples were extracted with acetonitrile and the samples were then subjected to a clean‐up procedure using a bonded solid‐phase extraction cartridge and a molecular weight cut‐off filter. Liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS) triple quadrupole electrospray methods were developed to monitor for the drugs in milk. Since established tolerance levels are set for most of these drugs in milk, the initial screening procedure was semi‐quantitative, where samples were compared to the response of a positive control. The positive control, consisting of an extract from a portion of milk fortified with the drugs at half their allowed levels, was used to set the laboratory's minimum response criteria for unknown samples. Confirmatory analyses, with additional ion transitions for each residue, were performed on the same extracts. Published in 2008 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
New amphoteric surfactants containing a 2‐hydroxyalkyl group: IV. Performance of amphoteric surfactant/soap blends
Authors: Takai M. , Hidaka H. , Ishikawa S. , Takada M. , Moriya M.
Published: April 2008

The performance of new amphoteric surfactants,N‐(2‐hydroxyethyl)‐N‐(2‐hydroxyalkyl)‐β‐alanines (HAA) and their oxyethylated derivatives (HAA‐nEO) was studied in blends with a fatty acid soap. The solubility, foaming power and fabric detergency were measured for blends of (Na‐HAA or Na‐HAA‐nEO)/soap. Furthermore, lime soap dispersing power, toxicity to fish and biodegradability for HAA or HAA‐nEO homologs were examined and evaluated. The blend of tallow soap and not less than 10% of C12–14‐Na‐HAA exhibited better solubility behavior than tallow soap or tallow/coconut oil soap alone. Fabric detergency was improved by blending Na‐HAA with soap. Soil deposition in Na‐HAA/soap or Na‐HAA/soap/Na2CO3 solution was measured. On the basis of the results for: (a) the measurements of redeposition; (b) interfacial tension between oil and water and (c) contact angle between oil and fabric in water, it was presumed that since Na‐HAA adsorbed more or less in preference to soap on the surface of fabric in water, soil redeposition would be prevented in the Na‐HAA/soap detergent solution.
Gas chromatography‐mass spectrometry of methyl esters of unsaturated oxygenated fatty acids
Authors: Kleiman R. , Spencer G. F.
Published: April 2008

Silylation of hydroxyl groups in methyl esters of unsaturated hydroxy acids provides compounds that give mass spectra which can be readily interpreted, whereas spectra of underivatized esters are extremely difficult to evaluate. The relationship of the double bond(s) to the trimethylsiloxy (TMS) group results in specific mass spectral patterns. In esters that have the TMS group separated from the double bond by one methylene group, the ions caused byα‐cleavage at the TMS group on the side closest to the olefinic group are much more abundant than those produced fromα‐cleavage on the other side of the TMS group. In esters that have the TMS group and the double bond separated by two methylene groups,α‐cleavage ions are approximately equal. When the TMS group and the double bond are allylic, no fragmentation results between them. Cleavage does occur on either side of this system, and those ions resulting from cleavage alpha to the TMS group are in greatest abundance. Silylation of esters that have a conjugated diene or ene‐yne system adjacent to a hydroxyl group also gives derivatives amenable to gas chromatographymass spectrometry. In these esters, large peaks are observed that arise fromα‐cleavage at the TMS group and at the other end of the olefinic system. No fragmentation between the TMS group and the sites of unsaturation occurs. Unsaturated epoxy methyl esters produce spectra difficult to interpret. When the epoxide is converted to methoxy‐hydroxy derivatives by BF3‐methanol, the spectrum locates the position of the epoxide group. Silylation of the hydroxyl group produces a compound that gives a less complicated spectrum which also locates the original epoxy group. Mass spectrometry of a series of unsaturated keto‐esters, without derivatization, provides spectra that are easily interpretable.
INFLUENCE OF SOWING DATE AND ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS ON THE DEVELOPMENT AND YIELD OF BAMBARA GROUNDNUT (VIGNA SUBTERRANEA) LANDRACES IN A SUB-TROPICAL REGION
Authors: SESAY A. , MAGAGULA C. N. , MANSUETUS A. B.
Published: April 2008

Bambara groundnut (Vigna subterranea) is a grain legume crop, which is increasingly popular as food in rural areas across the African continent. However, reliable information pertaining to management of the crop is limited. Field experiments were conducted in Swaziland in the 1998/99 and 1999/2000 cropping seasons to determine the influence of sowing date and environmental factors on the growth, development and yield of bambara groundnut. In the 1998/99 season, seeds of one local landrace were sown on six dates between mid-September 1998 and mid-February 1999. In 1999/2000, seeds of two local landraces were sown on six dates between mid-October 1999 and late January 2000. The highest pod yield and total dry matter production were achieved in November sowings, with maximum pod yields of 1.3 and 0.64 t ha−1 for the 1998/99 and 1999/2000 seasons, respectively. Earlier sowing and successive delays in sowing from November caused substantial yield declines of as much as 72–75%. Sowing date influenced yields of bambara groundnut through the effect of temperature and daylength on plant development. For the landraces used in the study, while the rate of progress from sowing to flowering was influenced by temperature, the rate of progress from flowering to podding was influenced largely by daylength. The practical implications of the results for increased bambara groundnut production are discussed.
BREEDING NEW COTTON VARIETIES TO FIT THE DIVERSITY OF CROPPING CONDITIONS IN AFRICA: EFFECT OF PLANT ARCHITECTURE, EARLINESS AND EFFECTIVE FLOWERING TIME ON LATE-PLANTED COTTON PRODUCTIVITY
Authors: SEKLOKA EMMANUEL , LANÇON JACQUES , GOZE ERIC , HAU BERNARD , LEWICKI-DHAINAUT SYLVIE , THOMAS GRÉGOIRE
Published: April 2008

In most cotton-growing regions of West and Central Africa where rainfed conditions prevail, cropping conditions are highly diversified since the crop is planted over an extended period. We studied production and development patterns in 10 cotton (Gossypium hirsutum) varieties to determine the most efficient strategies that could be transformed into breeding traits. Four trials were carried out between 2002 and 2003 in two cotton-growing areas in Benin to compare the 10 varieties at three stand densities and two planting dates. The parameters monitored were the mean first flower opening date (FF), effective flowering time (EFT), plant height at harvest (HH), height to node ratio (HNR), length of fruiting branch (LFB), number of vegetative branches (NVB) and average boll retention at the first position of the fruiting branches (RP1). We identified two ideotypes that yielded better than the others: (i) Mar 88-214 performed well under late planting–high stand density conditions and was characterized by low vegetative growth and early flowering onset, a short flowering period and low RP1; (ii) H 279-1 performed especially well under early planting–low stand density conditions and was characterized by high vegetative growth, late flowering, long EFT and high RP1. We propose a breeding strategy for both ideotypes based on seven indicators with high heritability (FF, HH, HNR, and LFB) or medium heritability (NVB, EFT, and RP1).
ROOT DISTRIBUTION OF YAM (DIOSCOREA ALATA) DETERMINED BY STRONTIUM TRACER
Authors: O'SULLIVAN JANE N.
Published: April 2008

Strontium was used as a tracer to detect root activity of yam (Dioscorea alata) at distances from 0.5 to 5.5 m from the plant's crown, and at depths of 7, 15, 25 and 40 cm, in field plantings separated by plastic root barriers. Tracer bands were installed at planting, and leaves were sampled at intervals throughout the growing season. Background Sr concentrations in leaves were found to be closely related to leaf Ca concentrations, allowing the expected background Sr to be calculated from the Ca concentration in each sample. The ratio of observed to expected Sr did not alter significantly with time of sampling or leaf age for control plants providing a robust parameter for comparison across harvests. Plants at all horizontal distances from the Sr placement up to 5.5 m showed significant elevation of leaf Sr by 13 weeks after planting (WAP). The depth placement at 15 cm showed earliest Sr elevation, followed by the 7 cm placement. However, both 25 cm and 40 cm placements resulted in significant leaf Sr elevation by 13 WAP, and their final Sr concentrations at 27 WAP did not differ significantly from those of shallower placements. Three fertilizer placement options were compared with respect to Sr uptake by the treated plants and by those in adjacent rows. Placement in a ring around the crown of the seed sett resulted in high leaf Sr concentration at 5 WAP, declining considerably at subsequent samplings. Placement underneath the seed sett produced a similar pattern but at lower concentrations. Banding midway between the plant rows, 0.5 m from plants, yielded a small increase at 5 WAP increasing to 13 WAP, and ultimately attaining similar concentrations to the other two placements. Plants in adjacent rows significantly accessed all three placements by 13 WAP. The results indicate greater reach of yam roots, both horizontally and vertically, than has been previously reported, and raise concerns about the adequacy of treatment separation in previously published fertilizer experiments with yams.
INTEGRATING GENETICS AND NATURAL RESOURCE MANAGEMENT FOR TECHNOLOGY TARGETING AND GREATER IMPACT OF AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH IN THE SEMI-ARID TROPICS
Authors: TWOMLOW STEVE , SHIFERAW BEKELE , COOPER PETER , KEATINGE J. D. H.
Published: April 2008

Good management of natural resources is the key to good agriculture. This is true everywhere – and particularly in the semi-arid tropics, where over-exploitation of fragile or inherently vulnerable agro-ecosystems is leading to land and soil degradation, productivity decline, and increasing hunger and poverty. Modern crop varieties offer high yields, but the larger share of this potential yield can only be realized with good crop management. The International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), working over a vast and diverse mandate area, has learned one key lesson: that technologies and interventions must be matched not only to the crop or livestock enterprise and the biophysical environment, but also with the market and investment environment, including input supply systems and policy. Various Natural Resource Management (NRM) technologies have been developed over the years, but widespread adoption has been limited for various reasons: technical, socio-economic and institutional. To change this, ICRISAT hypothesizes that ‘A research approach, founded on the need to integrate a broad consideration of technical, socio-economic and institutional issues into the generation of agricultural innovations will result in a higher level of adoption and more sustainable and diverse impacts in the rainfed systems of the semi-arid tropics.’ Traditionally, crop improvement and NRM were seen as distinct but complementary disciplines. ICRISAT is deliberately blurring these boundaries to create the new paradigm of IGNRM or Integrated Genetic and Natural Resource Management. Improved varieties and improved resource management are two sides of the same coin. Most farming problems require integrated solutions, with genetic, management-related and socio-economic components. In essence, plant breeders and NRM scientists must integrate their work with that of private and public sector change agents to develop flexible cropping systems that can respond to rapid changes in market opportunities and climatic conditions. The systems approach looks at various components of the rural economy – traditional food grains, new potential cash crops, livestock and fodder production, as well as socio-economic factors such as alternative sources of employment and income. Crucially the IGNRM approach is participatory, with farmers closely involved in technology development, testing and dissemination. ICRISAT has begun to use the IGNRM approach to catalyse technology uptake and substantially improve food security and incomes in smallholder farm communities at several locations in India, Mali, Niger, Vietnam, China, Thailand and Zimbabwe.
Dual task performance in early Alzheimer's disease, amnestic mild cognitive impairment and depression
Authors: Lonie J. A. , Tierney K. M. , Herrmann L. L. , Donaghey C. , O'Carroll R. E. , Lee A. , Ebmeier K. P.
Published: April 2008

Background

The dual task paradigm (Baddeleyet al.1986; Della Salaet al.1995) has been proposed as a sensitive measure of Alzheimer's dementia, early in the disease process.

Method

We investigated this claim by administering the modified dual task paradigm (utilising a pencil-and-paper version of a tracking task) to 33 patients with amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI) and 10 with very early Alzheimer's disease, as well as 21 healthy elderly subjects and 17 controls with depressive symptoms. All groups were closely matched for age and pre-morbid intellectual ability.

Results

There were no group differences in dual task performance, despite poor performance in episodic memory tests of the aMCI and early Alzheimer's disease groups. In contrast, the Alzheimer patients were specifically impaired in the trail-making test B, another commonly used test of divided attention.

Conclusions

The dual task paradigm lacks sensitivity for use in the early differential diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease.
Designing a project
Authors: Hawley Peter
Published: April 2008

How might one construct a design studio project? In addition to achieving educational objectives, it must engage both the student and his or her teachers, but if it also involves the whole year as a group it can prove especially rewarding. Last session I looked for an Honours year programme whereby each student could evolve a project that would have similarities with those of their colleagues but that would also be different. If a project were to start with something conceptual – for example, a thematic thread – then there could be both common generic facilities and uniquely different facilities arising from data collected during field studies in particular locations. I've discovered that this sort of idea works well when a large group is doing a project over a whole academic year. On the one hand there is always a common level of interest across the studio because every student feels they are in the same boat as their mates, but on the other hand their own project has unique characteristics. This means that the type of collaboration between students isn't suffocating because no one is ever actually doing the same thing in the same place; everyone is doing both similar and different things in similar but different places. The title of the programme that emerged was ‘Stretched City – East meets West’.
Does funding of pensions stimulate economic growth?
Authors: DAVIS E. PHILIP , HU YU-WEI
Published: April 2008

Debate over superiority of pension funding over pay-as-you-go links notably to the question whether funding improves economic performance sufficiently to generate additional resources to meet the needs of an ageing population. To address this issue, we design a modified Cobb–Douglas production function with pension assets as a shift factor, and investigate the direct link between pension assets and economic growth employing a dataset covering up to 38 countries, using a variety of appropriate econometric methods. We find positive results for both OECD countries and Emerging Market Economies (EMEs), with consistent evidence for a larger effect for EMEs than OECD countries.
Emergence of Ideal Membrane Cascades for Downstream Processing
Authors: Lightfoot Edwin N. , Root Thatcher W. , L. O'Dell Jane
Published: April 2008

An algorithm is developed for describing ideal membrane cascades for fractionation of binary and pseudo‐binary mixtures. It is shown that solvent management plays a key role in determining both purification and yield. Development of efficient diafilters is needed if membrane cascades are to achieve their full potential in competing with both chromatography and simulated moving bed operations in downstream processing of proteins. Such a replacement will also be important for fractionation of higher titers and larger substrates, such as plasmids, viruses, and even whole cells.
Sliding episodes during the 2002–2003 Stromboli lava effusion: Insights from seismic, volcanic, and statistical data analysis
Authors: Falsaperla S. , Maiolino V. , Spampinato S. , Jaquet O. , Neri M.
Published: April 2008

Repeated phenomena of flank instability accompanied the 28 December 2002 to 21 July 2003 eruption of Stromboli volcano. The major episodes were two tsunamigenic landslides on 30 December 2002, 2 d after the volcano unrest. After 30 December, sliding processes remodeled the area affected by slope instability. We propose analyses of 565 sliding episodes taking place from December 2002 to February 2003. We try to shed light on their main seismic features and links with the ongoing seismic and volcanic activity using variogram analysis as well. A characterization of the seismic signals in the time and frequency domains is presented for 185 sliding episodes. Their frequency content is between 1 Hz and 7 Hz. On the basis of the dominant peaks and shape of the spectrum, we identify three subclasses of signals, one of which has significant energy below 2 Hz. Low‐frequency signatures were also found in the seismic records of the landslides of 30 December, which affected the aerial and submarine northwestern flank of the volcano. Accordingly, we surmise that spectral analysis might provide evidence of sliding phenomena with submarine runouts. We find no evidence of sliding processes induced by earthquakes. Additionally, a negative statistical correlation between sliding episodes and explosion quakes is highlighted by variogram analysis. Variograms indicate a persistent behavior, memory, of the flank instability from 5 to 10 d. We interpret the climax in the occurrence rate of the sliding processes between 24 and 29 January 2003 as the result of favorable conditions to slope instability due to the emplacement of NW‐SE aligned, dike‐fed vents located near the scarp of the landslide area. Afterward, the stabilizing effect of the lava flows over the northwestern flank of the volcano limited erosive phenomena to the unstable, loose slope not covered by lava.
Reconstruction of a magnetic flux rope from THEMIS observations
Authors: Lui A. T. Y. , Sibeck D. G. , Phan T. , Angelopoulos V. , McFadden J. , Carlson C. , Larson D. , Bonnell J. , Glassmeier K.‐H. , Frey S.
Published: April 2008

We investigate a magnetic flux rope (MFR) observed by THEMIS near the duskside magnetopause on 20 May 2007 using the reconstruction technique based on solving the Grad‐Shafranov equation. The MFR has characteristics distinct from the adjacent magnetosheath and magnetosphere regions. In spite of these differences, the reconstruction result shows that the MFR is connected simultaneously with both the magnetosheath and the magnetosphere in terms of the magnetic vector potential characteristics. This result provides strong evidence that the MFR represents the union of these two regions. It has a small spatial dimension of ∼0.5 RE, a strong core magnetic field of >50 nT, and an intense axial current density of >40 nA/m2 with non‐negligible current densities transverse to its axis.
Interpreting H2O isotope variations in high‐altitude ice cores using a cyclone model
Authors: Holdsworth Gerald
Published: April 2008

Vertical profiles of isotope (δ18O or δD) values versus altitude (z) from sea level to high altitude provide a link to cyclones, which impact most ice core sites. Cyclonic structure variations cause anomalous variations in ice core δ time series which may obscure the basic temperature signal. Only one site (Mount Logan, Yukon) provides a complete δ versus z profile generated solely from data. At other sites, such a profile has to be constructed by supplementing field data. This requires using the so‐called isotopic or δ thermometer which relates δ to a reference temperature (T). The construction of gapped sections of δ versus z curves requires assuming a typical atmospheric lapse rate (dT/dz), where T is air temperature, and using the slope (dδ/dT) of a site‐derived δ thermometer to calculate dδ/dz. Using a three‐layer model of a cyclone, examples are given to show geometrically how changes in the thickness of the middle, mixed layer leads to the appearance of anomalous δ values in time series (producing decalibration of the δ thermometer there). The results indicate that restrictions apply to the use of the δ thermometer in ice core paleothermometry, according to site altitude, regional meteorology, and climate state.
A reexamination of the QBO period modulation by the solar cycle
Authors: Fischer P. , Tung K. K.
Published: April 2008

Using the updated Singapore wind from 1953 to 2007 for the lower stratosphere 70–10 hPa, courtesy of Barbara Naujokat of Free University of Berlin, we examine the variation of the period of the Quasi‐Biennial Oscillation (QBO) as a function of height and its modulation in time by the 11‐year solar cycle. The analysis is supplemented by the ERA‐40 reanalysis up to 1 hPa. Previously, it was reported that the descent of the easterly shear zone tends to stall near 30 hPa during solar minimum, leading to a lengthened QBO westerly duration near 44–50 hPa and the reported anticorrelation of the westerly duration and the solar cycle. Using an objective method, continuous wavelet transform (CWT), for the determination of local QBO period, we find that the whole QBO period is almost invariant with respect to height, so that the stalling mechanism affects only the partition of the whole period between easterly and westerly durations. Using this longest data set available for equatorial stratospheric wind, which spans five and half solar cycles (six solar minima), we find that in three solar minima, the QBO period is lengthened, while in the remaining almost three solar cycles, the QBO period is lengthened instead at solar maxima. We suggest that the decadal variation of the QBO period originates in the upper stratosphere, where the solar‐ozone radiative influence is strong. The solar modulation of the QBO period is found to be nonstationary; the averaged effect cannot be determined unless the data record is much longer. In shorter records, the correlation can change sign, as we have found in segments of the longest record available, with or without lag.
Modeling the transport and optical properties of smoke plumes from South American biomass burning
Authors: Matichuk R. I. , Colarco P. R. , Smith J. A. , Toon O. B.
Published: April 2008

This study investigates the transport and optical properties of smoke plumes from South American biomass burning by using an aerosol transport and microphysical model. In general, the model can reproduce the smoke aerosol optical properties observed by satellite and ground‐based instruments during the Large‐Scale Biosphere‐Atmosphere Experiment in Amazonia ‐ Smoke Aerosols, Clouds, Rainfall and Climate (LBA‐SMOCC) campaign. The simulated spatial distribution of smoke aerosol loading over South America also compares well to satellite observations, suggesting that the transport processes in the model are adequate over this region. The results further suggest that the emissions provided by version 2 of the Global Fire Emissions Database are too low over South America. However, wet deposition may be too aggressive in the model. Since the model wet deposition does not include the feedback smoke may have on cloud formation and precipitation suppression, too many aerosols may be removed. Surprisingly, given the different vegetation types, the model simulations also suggest that similar initial particle size distributions and aerosol optical properties can be used to simulate smoke from both African savanna and South American forest fires. However, to reproduce the observed smoke aerosol optical properties over South America, humidification of smoke aerosols needs to be considered. Model results and observations both suggest that the typical single scattering albedo of smoke over South America and Africa differ because of relative humidity, not vegetation type. Overall, this work suggests strategies for improved treatment of South American smoke plumes in climate and microphysical models.
Trace gas and aerosol interactions in the fully coupled model of aerosol‐chemistry‐climate ECHAM5‐HAMMOZ: 1. Model description and insights from the spring 2001 TRACE‐P experiment
Authors: Pozzoli L. , Bey I. , Rast S. , Schultz M. G. , Stier P. , Feichter J.
Published: April 2008

In this paper, we introduce the ECHAM5‐HAMMOZ aerosol‐chemistry‐climate model that includes fully interactive simulations of Ox‐NOx‐hydrocarbons chemistry and of aerosol microphysics (including prognostic size distribution and mixing state of aerosols) implemented in the General Circulation Model ECHAM5. The photolysis rates used in the gas chemistry account for aerosol and cloud distributions and a comprehensive set of heterogeneous reactions is implemented. The model is evaluated with trace gas and aerosol observations provided by the TRACE‐P aircraft experiment. Sulfate concentrations are well captured but black carbon concentrations are underestimated. The number concentrations, surface areas, and optical properties are reproduced fairly well near the surface but underestimated in the upper troposphere. CO concentrations are well reproduced in general while O3 concentrations are overestimated by 10–20 ppbv. We find that heterogeneous chemistry significantly influences the regional and global distributions of a number of key trace gases. Heterogeneous reactions reduce the ozone surface concentrations by 18–23% over the TRACE‐P region and the global annual mean O3 burden by 7%. The annual global mean OH concentration decreases by 10% inducing a 7% increase in the global CO burden. Annual global mean HNO3 surface concentration decreases by 15% because of heterogenous reaction on mineral dust. A comparison of our results to those from previous studies suggests that the choice of uptake coefficients for a given species is the critical parameter that determines the global impact of heterogeneous chemistry on a trace gas (rather than the description of aerosol properties and distributions). A prognostic description of the size distribution and mixing state of the aerosols is important, however, to account for the effect of heterogeneous chemistry on aerosols as further discussed in the second part of this two‐part series.
Aerosol processing in mixed‐phase clouds in ECHAM5‐HAM: Model description and comparison to observations
Authors: Hoose C. , Lohmann U. , Stier P. , Verheggen B. , Weingartner E.
Published: April 2008

The global aerosol‐climate model ECHAM5‐HAM has been extended by an explicit treatment of cloud‐borne particles. Two additional modes for in‐droplet and in‐crystal particles are introduced, which are coupled to the number of cloud droplet and ice crystal concentrations simulated by the ECHAM5 double‐moment cloud microphysics scheme. Transfer, production, and removal of cloud‐borne aerosol number and mass by cloud droplet activation, collision scavenging, aqueous‐phase sulfate production, freezing, melting, evaporation, sublimation, and precipitation formation are taken into account. The model performance is demonstrated and validated with observations of the evolution of total and interstitial aerosol concentrations and size distributions during three different mixed‐phase cloud events at the alpine high‐altitude research station Jungfraujoch (Switzerland). Although the single‐column simulations cannot be compared one‐to‐one with the observations, the governing processes in the evolution of the cloud and aerosol parameters are captured qualitatively well. High scavenged fractions are found during the presence of liquid water, while the release of particles during the Bergeron‐Findeisen process results in low scavenged fractions after cloud glaciation. The observed coexistence of liquid and ice, which might be related to cloud heterogeneity at subgrid scales, can only be simulated in the model when assuming nonequilibrium conditions.
Changes in surface albedo after fire in boreal forest ecosystems of interior Alaska assessed using MODIS satellite observations
Authors: Lyons Evan A. , Jin Yufang , Randerson James T.
Published: April 2008

We assessed the multidecadal effects of boreal forest fire on surface albedo using Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) satellite observations within the perimeters of burn scars in interior Alaska. Fire caused albedo to increase during periods with and without snow cover. Albedo during early spring had a mean of 0.50 ± 0.03 for the first three decades after fire, substantially higher than that observed in evergreen conifer forests (0.34 ± 0.04). In older stands between 30 and 55 years, albedo showed a decreasing trend during early spring, probably from a growing spruce understory that masked surface snow and caused increases in both simple ratio (SR) and enhanced vegetation index (EVI). During summer, albedo decreased by 0.012 ± 0.005 in the year immediately after fire (from 0.112 ± 0.005 to 0.100 ± 0.010). In subsequent years, summer albedo increased rapidly at first and then more gradually, reaching a broad maximum in 20–35 year stands (0.135 ± 0.006). These measurements provide evidence for a well‐developed deciduous shrub and tree phase during intermediate stages of succession. Averaged over the first 5 decades, shortwave surface forcing from fires was −6.2 W m−2relative to an evergreen conifer control and −3.0 W m−2relative to a control constructed from 2000 to 2003 preburn observations. These forcing estimates had a magnitude substantially smaller than previous estimates and suggest that, at a regional scale, evergreen conifer stand density may be lower than that inferred from chronosequence studies.
Continued Earthquake Hazard in Northern Sumatra
Authors: Sørensen Mathilde B. , Atakan Kuvvet
Published: April 2008

The occurrence of two large earthquakes (Mw = 8.4 and Mw = 7.9) along the Sumatran west coast on 12 September 2007 as well as an Mw = 7.4 event on 20 February 2008 have again put the high earthquake hazard of this region into focus. These events are the most recent in a series of major subduction zone earthquakes that began with the great Mw = 9.3 event of 26 December 2004 followed by an Mw = 8.7 event on 28 March 2005 [Bilham, 2005; Lay et al., 2005; Stein and Okal, 2005]. The major subduction zone earthquakes have been propagating southward along the Sunda trench, and the remaining stress is expected to be released along the subduction zone in a long stretch from the Andaman Sea in the north to the southernmost extension of the recent ruptures, especially in the southernmost part close to the Sunda Strait (Figure 1). Also, there is an additional and significant hazard due to potential earthquakes along the Great Sumatran Fault (GSF), a major rightlateral strike‐slip fault parallel to the western coast of Sumatra. The GSF accommodates the component of plate convergence parallel to the trench, where strain partitioning is a result of the oblique collision along the Sunda trench.
A New Long Coring System for R/V Knorr
Authors: Curry William , Broda James , Keigwin Lloyd , Mountain Gregory , Pisias Nicklas
Published: April 2008

A new 46‐meter‐long coring system was tested successfully during cruise 191 of research vessel (R/V) Knorr in September 2007. During sea trials in water depths of 4.6 kilometers on the Bermuda Rise, coring operations from the vessel—operated by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI)—successively recovered piston cores increasing in length from 26 to 38 meters, with sediment recovery at 85–89% of the core barrel length. An additional 25‐meter core was recovered in 670 meters of water on the upper continental slope off New Jersey.

The Bermuda Rise location, which is a well‐sedimented drift deposit at the northeastern margin of the rise, has been cored many times previously, including by R/V Knorr's giant piston corer in 1973, by R/V Marion Dufresne's Calypso corer in 1995, and by the Ocean Drilling Program's advanced piston corer (ODP/APC) in 1997. In comparing the sediment recovery of the systems, we determined that the WHOI long core recovered the stratigraphic section without any indication of stretching, effectively duplicating the results of the ODP/APC but without the unavoidable breaks between APC cores every 9.5 meters. In three deployments of the new corer, vertical compression occurred in the lower fourth of the core, while in two other deployments sediment recovery was undeformed for the full 38 meters of recovered sediment.
Making Undergraduate Geoscience Quantitative
Authors: Manduca Cathryn A. , Baer Eric , Hancock Greg , Macdonald R. Hearther , Patterson Sam , Savina Mary , Wenner Jennifer
Published: April 2008

Modern geoscience uses equations, models, and numbers in conjunction with observations, maps, and words as fundamental tools for investigating Earth. Yet the U.S. public persists in viewing the study of Earth processes as highly qualitative and, in many states, as a remedial science course that is not accepted as appropriate preparation for admission to U.S. colleges and universities. Geoscience teachers and faculty are working to change this perception by increasing the quantitative content of the geoscience curriculum.

From the most mathematical of senior theses to the most basic of introductory courses, geoscience instructors can make these courses more reflective of the full range of tools used in the geosciences by including the quantitative content and methods that pervade geoscience. In addition to being provided with a more realistic perception of our science, college students whose major study is the Earth sciences will be better prepared for geoscience careers and all of our students will be more quantitatively literate.
A Pilot Project Using Seawater to Uplift Venice Anthropogenically
Authors: Ferronato Massimiliano , Gambolati Giuseppe , Putti Mario , Teatini Pietro
Published: April 2008

Recent field measurements based on satellite technology provide evidence that pumping fluid underground may cause land to rise by 20–30 centimeters over a few months to a few years, depending on a number of factors. For example, an anthropogenic uplift of 29 centimeters due to steam injection was recorded at Cold Lake, Alberta, Canada, over approximately 3 months [Stancliffe and van der Kooij, 2001].

Such evidence supports the results of new modeling studies that rely on updated information from the northern Adriatic basin, which suggests that injecting seawater into a 600‐ to 800‐meter‐deep brackish aquifer underlying the Venice Lagoon might induce a city upheaval of 25–30 centimeters over 10 years [Comerlati et al., 2003, 2004]. This could provide Venice with an important innovative defense from the “acqua alta,” the flood that periodically plagues Venice, and it could also provide a substantial mitigation of the floods occurrence.
Familial Aggregation of Amount and Distribution of Subcutaneous Fat and Their Responses to Exercise Training in the HERITAGE Family Study
Authors: Pérusse Louis , Rice Treva , Province Michael A. , Gagnon Jacques , Leon Arthur S. , Skinner James S. , Wilmore Jack H. , Rao D. C. , Bouchard Claude
Published: April 2008

Objective: Investigate the familial aggregation of amount and distribution of subcutaneous fat and their changes in response to endurance training.

Research Methods and Procedures: A total of 483 sedentary subjects from 99 nuclear families were recruited, trained for 20 weeks of exercising on cycle ergometers, and measured before and after training for the following indicators of subcutaneous fat and fat distribution: trunk fat (TRUNK = sum of abdominal, subscapular, suprailiac, and midaxillary skinfolds), extremity fat (EXTREM = sum of biceps, triceps, thigh, and calf skinfolds), subcutaneous fat (SF8 = sum of the eight skinfolds), the trunk to extremity skinfolds ratio adjusted for SF8 (TER) and waist girth adjusted for body mass index (WAIST). The familial aggregation of the age‐ and sex‐adjusted baseline phenotypes and their responses to training (Δ) after adjustment for the baseline values was investigated using a familial correlation model.

Results: Significant familial aggregation was observed for all the phenotypes measured at baseline and for ΔTRUNK and ΔWAIST. Transmissibility estimates reached about 30% to 35% for TRUNK, EXTREM, and SF8 and 50% for TER and WAIST. The transmissibilities of the response phenotypes were lower, ranging from 0% for ΔWAIST to 21% for ΔTRUNK and the pattern of familial correlations suggested a greater within‐ than between‐generation resemblance in the response.

Discussion: This study suggests that the amount and distribution of subcutaneous fat strongly aggregates in families, whereas the response to exercise training is characterized by a moderate and more complex pattern of familial resemblance. We conclude that familial/genetic factors are more important in determining the amount and distribution of subcutaneous fat than their responses to exercise training.
Tumor Necrosis Factor‐α Stimulates Cell Proliferation in Adipose Tissue‐Derived Stromal‐Vascular Cell Culture: Promotion of Adipose Tissue Expansion by Paracrine Growth Factors
Authors: Kras Krystyna M. , Hausman Dorothy B. , Martin Roy J.
Published: April 2008

Objective: Elevated levels of tumor necrosis factor‐α (TNF‐α) protein and mRNA have been reported in adipose tissue from obese humans and rodents. However, TNF‐α has catabolic and antiadipogenic effects on adipocytes. Addressing this paradox, we tested the hypothesis that paracrine levels of TNF‐α, alone or together with insulin‐like growth factor‐I (IGF‐I), support preadipocyte development.

Research Methods and Procedures: Cultured stromal‐vascular cells from rat inguinal fat depots were exposed to serum‐free media containing insulin and 0.2 nM TNF‐α, 2.0 nM TNF‐α, or 0.2 nM TNF‐α + 1.0 nM IGF‐I at different times during 7 days of culture.

Results: TNF‐α inhibited adipocyte differentiation as indicated by a reduction in both immunocytochemical reactivity for the preadipocyte‐specific antigen (AD3; early differentiation marker) and glycerol‐3‐phosphate dehydrogenase activity (late differentiation marker). Early exposure (Days 1 through 3 of culture) to 0.2 nM TNF‐α did not have a long term effect on inhibiting differentiation. Continuous exposure to 0.2 nM TNF‐α from Days 1 through 7 of culture resulted in a 75% increase in cell number from control. There was a synergistic effect of 0.2 nM TNF‐α + 1 nM IGF‐I on increasing cell number by Day 7 of culture to levels greater than those observed with either treatment applied alone.

Discussion: These data suggest that paracrine levels (0.2 nM) of TNF‐α alone or in combination with IGF‐I may support adipose tissue development by increasing the total number of stromal‐vascular and/or uncommitted cells within the tissue. These cells may then be recruited to become preadipocytes or may alternatively serve as infrastructure to support adipose tissue growth.
Care Giver Perception of Children's Obesity‐Related Health Risk: A Study of African American Families
Authors: Young‐Hyman Deborah , Herman Leanna J. , Scott Dawnavan L. , Schlundt David G.
Published: April 2008

Objective: To examine care giver perception of children's weight‐related health risk in African American families.

Research Methods and Procedures: One‐hundred and eleven families (representing 48 boys and 63 girls) screened for participation in a diabetes prevention study participated. Care givers completed a health awareness questionnaire that assessed their perception of the child's weight, eating habits, appearance, exercise habits, and health risk. The care givers also reported each subject's family history of obesity, diabetes, and other chronic diseases. After a physical examination, height and weight were used to compute an age‐ and sex‐adjusted body mass index for each child.

Results: Despite the fact that a substantial number of children were obese (57%) and super‐obese (12%), only 44% of the care givers perceived the child's weight to be a potential health problem. Regression analysis showed that 21% of the variance in parental perception of obesity‐related health risk could be predicted by child age, body mass index, perception of frame size, and perception of exercise habits.

Discussion: A number of reasons for the apparent minimization of child health risk are discussed, including cultural differences in the acceptance of a large body habitus, lack of knowledge about the connection between childhood obesity and future health risk, and an optimistic bias in the perception of personal health risk.
The “Good Enough” Body Size as Judged by People of Varying Age and Weight
Authors: Rand Colleen S. W. , Resnick Jaquelyn Liss
Published: April 2008

Objective: To examine the concept of the “good enough” body size acceptability across a wide range of ages and weight status.

Research Methods and Procedures: Subjects were 303 children, 427 adolescents, 261 young adults, and 326 middle‐age adults who selected acceptable body sizes from an array of drawings representing their own age and gender. They also selected body sizes representing their own actual and ideal size.

Results: A large majority (87%) of subjects considered their own body size socially acceptable. This finding applied to both genders in all age groups and to underweight, normal weight, and overweight subjects. Even among obese subjects, 48% considered their own body size socially acceptable. For the large percentage of subjects who reported a discrepancy between their actual and ideal body sizes, most considered their own body size acceptable. This finding also applied to both genders in all age groups and to underweight, normal weight, and overweight subjects.

Discussion: Most male and female subjects across a wide range of ages and status considered their own body size to be within the range of socially acceptable body sizes even though, for many, it did not match their ideal. The implications of expanding body size research to include the conceptual framework of body size acceptability is discussed in terms of contributing to a paradigm of positive psychology.
Central Exendin‐4 Infusion Reduces Body Weight without Altering Plasma Leptin in (fa/fa) Zucker Rats
Authors: Al‐Barazanji Kamal A. , Arch Jonathan R. S. , Buckingham Robin E. , Tadayyon Mohammad
Published: April 2008

Objective: To investigate whether chronic administration of the long‐acting glucagon‐like peptide‐1 receptor agonist exendin‐4 can elicit sustained reductions in food intake and body weight and whether its actions require an intact leptin system.

Research Methods and Procedures: Male lean and obese Zucker (fa/fa) rats were infused intracerebroventricularly with exendin‐4 using osmotic minipumps for 8 days.

Results: Exendin‐4 reduced body weight in both lean and obese Zucker rats, maximum suppression being reached on Day 5 in obese (8%) and Day 7 in lean (16%) rats. However, epididymal white adipose tissue weight was not reduced, and only in lean rats was there a reduction in plasma leptin concentration. Food intake was maximally suppressed (by 81%) on Day 3 in obese rats but was reduced by only 18% on Day 8. Similarly, in lean rats food intake was maximally reduced (by 93%) on Day 4 of treatment and by 45% on Day 8. Brown adipose tissue temperature was reduced from Days 2 to 4. Plasma corticosterone was elevated by 76% in lean but by only 28% in obese rats.

Discussion: Chronic exendin‐4 treatment reduced body weight in both obese and lean Zucker rats by reducing food intake: metabolic rate was apparently suppressed. These effects did not require an intact leptin system. Neither does the absence of an intact leptin system sensitize animals to exendin‐4. Partial tolerance to the anorectic effect of exendin‐4 in lean rats may have been due to elevated plasma corticosterone and depressed plasma leptin levels, but other counter‐regulatory mechanisms seem to play a role in obese Zucker rats.