bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Basic Concepts
Authors: Hendricks John S. , Swinhoe Martyn T. , Favalli Andrea
Published: September 2022

This guide for MCNP students and practitioners begins with the simplest possible example: neutrons in a single spherical surface void sphere. Examples are provided for running MCNP and plotting its geometries. Modifications to the starting geometry demonstrate the full combinatorial solid geometry capability of MCNP. Further problem input examples explain materials capabilities and physics options. Standard source capabilities enable modeling of almost any radiation particle source. Output tally and plotting options provide a full description of physical processes in a problem and what detectors see. And every MCNP calculation automatically assesses the statistical convergence of the underlying Monte Carlo sampling.
Secondary prevention in diabetic and nondiabetic coronary heart disease patients: Insights from the German subset of the hospital arm of the EUROASPIRE IV and V surveys
Authors: Ungethüm K. , Wiedmann S. , Wagner M. , Leyh R. , Ertl G. , Frantz S. , Geisler T. , Karmann W. , Prondzinsky R. , Herdeg C. , Noutsias M. , Ludwig T. , Käs J. , Klocke B. , Krapp J. , Wood D. , Kotseva K. , Störk S. , Heuschmann P. U.
Published: September 2022

Background

Patients with coronary heart disease (CHD) with and without diabetes mellitus have an increased risk of recurrent events requiring multifactorial secondary prevention of cardiovascular risk factors. We compared prevalences of cardiovascular risk factors and its determinants including lifestyle, pharmacotherapy and diabetes mellitus among patients with chronic CHD examined within the fourth and fifth EUROASPIRE surveys (EA-IV, 2012–13; and EA-V, 2016–17) in Germany.

Methods

The EA initiative iteratively conducts European-wide multicenter surveys investigating the quality of secondary prevention in chronic CHD patients aged 18 to 79 years. The data collection in Germany was performed during a comprehensive baseline visit at study centers in Würzburg (EA-IV, EA-V), Halle (EA-V), and Tübingen (EA-V).

Results

384 EA-V participants (median age 69.0 years, 81.3% male) and 536 EA-IV participants (median age 68.7 years, 82.3% male) were examined. Comparing EA-IV and EA-V, no relevant differences in risk factor prevalence and lifestyle changes were observed with the exception of lower LDL cholesterol levels in EA-V. Prevalence of unrecognized diabetes was significantly lower in EA-V as compared to EA-IV (11.8% vs. 19.6%) while the proportion of prediabetes was similarly high in the remaining population (62.1% vs. 61.0%).

Conclusion

Between 2012 and 2017, a modest decrease in LDL cholesterol levels was observed, while no differences in blood pressure control and body weight were apparent in chronic CHD patients in Germany. Although the prevalence of unrecognized diabetes decreased in the later study period, the proportion of normoglycemic patients was low. As pharmacotherapy appeared fairly well implemented, stronger efforts towards lifestyle interventions, mental health programs and cardiac rehabilitation might help to improve risk factor profiles in chronic CHD patients.
Attraction versus competition: A tale of two similarity effects in director selection of Chinese firms
Authors: Gao Renfei , Hu Helen Wei , Yoshikawa Toru
Published: September 2022

Extant research has focused primarily on the collaborative side of chair-director similarity in director selection, whereas the potential competitive side remains underexplored. Emphasizing the dual role of directors as both collaborators and competitors, as perceived by chairs, we incorporate both the similarity-attraction logic and the similarity-competition logic in director selection and develop a collaborative-competitive framework to reconcile the tension between them. Based on new director selection data from Chinese listed firms, we find that chair-director similarity in the competitive-oriented political background is negatively related to the likelihood of the director being selected—consistent with the similarity-competition logic, whereas chair-director similarity in the collaborative-oriented technological background is positively related to the likelihood of the director being selected—consistent with the similarity-attraction logic. Furthermore, we reveal how the similarity-derived effects are contingent on within-similarity heterogeneity. Our study advances research on director selection by providing a more fine-grained understanding of chair-director similarity in director selection.
On the number of fixed edges of automorphisms of vertex-transitive graphs of small valency
Authors: Barbieri Marco , Grazian Valentina , Spiga Pablo
Published: September 2022

We prove that, if $$\varGamma $$
Γ
is a finite connected 3-valent vertex-transitive, or 4-valent vertex- and edge-transitive graph, then either $$\varGamma $$
Γ
is part of a well-understood family of graphs, or every non-identity automorphism of $$\varGamma $$
Γ
fixes at most 1/3 of the edges. This answers a question proposed by Primož Potočnik and the third author.
Reconfigurable graphene-based metamaterial polarization converter for terahertz applications
Authors: Mabrouk A. M. , Seliem Asmaa G. , Donkol A. A.
Published: September 2022

This study proposes a high-gain polarization converter using a graphene-based metamaterial array, a rectangular array comprising 20 periodic unit-cell elements. Each graphene-based metamaterial unit-cell element contains a rectangular patch with four triangular-shaped graphene parts at its four corners placed over a rectangular substrate backed with a perfect electric conductor and has a relative permittivity of εsub = 3.38. The metamaterial characteristics of the proposed graphene-based metamaterial unit-cell element are obtained over frequencies of 1.5–2.2 terahertz (THz). The graphene-based metamaterial array is placed over a linearly polarized slot antenna operating at 1.8 THz, with a maximum gain of 5.5 dBi. The linearly polarized wave radiated from the slot antenna can be converted into reconfigurable right-handed or left-handed circular polarizations according to the graphene parts’ biasing states. Moreover, the slot antenna’s operating − 10 dB bandwidth (BW) is increased by 22.2%, and the gain is enhanced to 8 dBi at the same operating frequency. A reconfigurable polarization conversion for the slot antenna can be obtained over a wide 3 dB axial ratio BW from 1.75 to 1.92 THz (20%–3 dB BW).
Identifying key elements for user satisfaction of bike-sharing systems: a combination of direct and indirect evaluations
Authors: Julio Raky , Monzon Andres , Susilo Yusak O.
Published: September 2022

Bike-sharing systems (BSS) are gaining popularity in cities worldwide, as a part of a generalized strategy to mitigate the problems derived from motorized transportation (congestion, pollution, noise, etc.). These systems have proved to have positive effects on cities, moreover, many of them have reached a performance peak and require improvements to attract/retain users and compete against emerging soft mobility alternatives. Whilst there are broad studies evaluating BSS demand and design, less attention has been paid to user satisfaction and the complexities underlying the relationships between the system attributes importance. This study proposes a novel combination of two methodologies for satisfaction assessment that allows decision-makers to identify the most influential system attributes on user satisfaction. The combined methods are the direct, explicit, Importance Performance Analysis (IPA), and the nonlinear, implicit Three-Factor Theory (3FT), which combined generate a three-dimensional scheme that facilitates the comprehension of the results. The combination was applied to a dataset of Madrid´s BSS to identify the attributes that perform poorly, and then assess their implicit influence on satisfaction to establish improvement priorities. The results suggest that station occupancy and bicycle availability and totem functioning are key service attributes to enhance satisfaction. Also, the combination of the two methodologies makes it possible to differentiate that maintenance is a priority for subscribers and network extension for occasional users. The pedelec system is a key attribute that might help overcome Madrid´s unfavorable cycling environment. This user-centric evaluation is a valuable tool that guides precise measure implementation, service operation, future design, and planning oriented to increase ridership.
Employment protection legislation and household formation: evidence from Italy
Authors: Cerruti Gianluca , Mazzarella Gianluca , Migliavacca Mauro
Published: September 2022

While many studies have investigated the determinants of household formation and fertility in young adults, only a few have focused on the impact of employment protection legislation (EPL) on these outcomes. Moreover, to the best of our knowledge, no one has investigated how changes in EPL may alter the intentions of young individuals even before their realization. In this paper, we study the differential impact of the reduction in EPL associated with Italy’s 2015 Jobs Act on the household formation and fertility intentions of young Italians in various districts. We use data from a survey conducted on a sample of young people between the ages of 18-34 for the years 2012, 2015, 2016, and 2017. The identification strategy exploits local variation in the level of efficiency of the courts, measured in terms of the average duration of proceedings, to assess the existence of within-country and across-district heterogeneity in the reform’s impact. Indeed, firing costs used to be relatively greater in districts characterized by a longer duration of labor trials. The Jobs Act, by reducing firing costs and modifying the autonomy of judges, should have had a larger impact in districts with less efficient courts. According to our results, the reform seems to have indirectly leveled out the fertility and household formation intentions of young Italians living in districts with more and less efficient courts. Heterogeneities indicate that the results are mainly driven by older individuals and graduates who live in less disadvantaged areas.
There are no epistemic norms of inquiry
Authors: Thorstad David
Published: September 2022

Epistemic nihilism for inquiry is the claim that there are no epistemic norms of inquiry. Epistemic nihilism was once the received stance towards inquiry, and I argue that it should be taken seriously again. My argument is that the same considerations which led us away from epistemic nihilism in the case of belief not only cannot refute epistemic nihilism for inquiry, but in fact may well support it. These include the argument from non-existence that there are no non-epistemic reasons for belief; the linguistic argument that epistemic norms of belief are needed to capture the semantics of ordinary epistemic talk; and the argument from theoretical roles that epistemic norms are needed to play key theoretical roles for rational belief. I conclude by sketching an alternative Gibbardian picture on which norms of inquiry are all-things-considered norms governing action.
Generic Identifiability of the DINA Model and Blessing of Latent Dependence
Authors: Gu Yuqi
Published: September 2022

Cognitive diagnostic models are a powerful family of fine-grained discrete latent variable models in psychometrics. Within this family, the DINA model is a fundamental and parsimonious one that has received significant attention. Similar to other complex latent variable models, identifiability is an important issue for CDMs, including the DINA model. Gu and Xu (Psychometrika 84(2):468–483, 2019) established the necessary and sufficient conditions for strict identifiability of the DINA model. Despite being the strongest possible notion of identifiability, strict identifiability may impose overly stringent requirements on designing the cognitive diagnostic tests. This work studies a slightly weaker yet very useful notion, generic identifiability, which means parameters are identifiable almost everywhere in the parameter space, excluding only a negligible subset of measure zero. We propose transparent generic identifiability conditions for the DINA model, relaxing existing conditions in nontrivial ways. Under generic identifiability, we also explicitly characterize the forms of the measure-zero sets where identifiability breaks down. In addition, we reveal an interesting blessing-of-latent-dependence phenomenon under DINA—that is, dependence between the latent attributes can restore identifiability under some otherwise unidentifiable <mml:math xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" xmlns:mnf="http://cambridge.org/core/manifest" xmlns:cup="http://contentservices.cambridge.org" xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:m="http://cambridge.org/core/metadata" xmlns:core="http://cambridge.org/core" xmlns:c="http://cambridge.org/core/content">Q\documentclass[12pt]{minimal}\usepackage{amsmath}\usepackage{wasysym}\usepackage{amsfonts}\usepackage{amssymb}\usepackage{amsbsy}\usepackage{mathrsfs}\usepackage{upgreek}\setlength{\oddsidemargin}{-69pt}\begin{document}$${\mathbf {Q}}$$\end{document}-matrix designs. The blessing of latent dependence provides useful practical implications and reassurance for real-world designs of cognitive diagnostic assessments.
Understanding the drivers of woody plant diversity in urban parks in a snow climate city of China
Authors: Ma Zijun , Zhang Peng , Hu Nanlin , Wang Guodong , Dong Yulin , Guo Yujie , Wang Chengcong , Fu Yao , Ren Zhibin
Published: September 2022

Urban parks are an important part of urban ecosystems and play an important role in biodiversity conservation. However, it is still unclear how park characteristics affect plant diversity which could hinder the conservation of urban biodiversity due to the ineffective design of urban parks. The diversity of woody plants in 33 parks of Changchun, China, was measured with plot measurements and linked with urban park characteristics (e.g., size and age of the park) to uncover the relationship between them. The results show that urban woody plant species were abundant, with 98 species belonging to 51 genera and 26 families in the snow climate city of Changchun. The variation in woody plant diversity was largely explained by internal patch characteristics (e.g., size, age, shape), and external factors surrounding the park (e.g., land use type and socioeconomic level) accounted for only 16.0% in our study. For internal patch characteristics, older urban parks with larger areas demonstrated a richer level of plant diversity and increased nonlinearly with increasing park area. The threshold size significantly affecting plant diversity variation was approximately 30 ha. Plant diversity had positive linear relationships with the ages of urban parks, supporting the legacy effect. In addition, woody plant diversity nonlinearly decreased with increasing park shape index, which suggested that the plant diversity could also be increased by optimizing the park shape. Regarding the external factors surrounding parks, the spatial distribution of woody plant diversity varied greatly from the urban center to the suburbs. House prices around the park had positive linear relationships with woody plant diversity in parks, supporting the luxury effect. However, building and road proportions, and green space proportion had no relationship with plant diversity in parks. This study can provide a robust reference for enriching plant diversity in urban parks, thus improving the development of urban sustainable cities.
‘Acute Heart Failure’: Should We Abandon the Term Altogether?
Authors: Straw Sam , Napp Andreas , Witte Klaus K.
Published: September 2022

Purpose of Review

The distinction between ‘acute’ and ‘chronic’ heart failure persists. Our review aims to explore whether reclassifying heart failure decompensation more accurately as an event within the natural history of chronic heart failure has the potential to improve outcomes.

Recent Findings

Although hospitalisation for worsening heart failure confers a poor prognosis, much of this reflects chronic disease severity. Most patients survive hospitalisation with most deaths occurring in the post-discharge ‘vulnerable phase’. Current evidence supports four classes of medications proven to reduce cardiovascular mortality for those who have heart failure with a reduced ejection fraction, with recent trials suggesting worsening heart failure events are opportunities to optimise these therapies.

Abandoning the term ‘acute heart failure’ has the potential to give greater priority to initiating proven pharmacological and device therapies during decompensation episodes, in order to improve outcomes for those who are at the greatest risk.
Bloodlettings in Hemochromatosis Result in Increased Blood Lead (Pb) Concentrations
Authors: Yazdani Mazyar , Distante Sonia , Mørkrid Lars , Ulvik Rune J. , Bolann Bjørn J.
Published: September 2022

Hemochromatosis is a hereditary disorder, most often associated with mutations of the HFE (High FErrum) gene. If left untreated, it can result in severe parenchymal iron accumulation. Bloodletting is the mainstay treatment. We have previously shown that treatment of hemochromatosis by repeated bloodlettings may induce changes in the serum levels of several trace elements. The aim of this work was to evaluate if whole blood concentrations of the environmental pollutants lead (Pb), mercury (Hg), and cadmium (Cd) could be affected by bloodlettings. We recruited 28 patients and 21 healthy individuals (control group). Whole blood and urine levels of Pb, Hg, and Cd were measured before the start and after the completion of treatment using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry, together with serum iron and liver function tests. Concentrations of blood Pb, but not Hg or Cd, were significantly increased after treatment. The increase in Pb was higher in C282Y homozygous patients than in the other patients, and it was positively correlated with the serum concentration of alkaline phosphatase. Bloodlettings in hemochromatosis result in an increase in the blood concentration of Pb. Augmented absorption due to iron loss or Pb mobilization from bone may contribute to the higher blood Pb level.
Public health ethics: critiques of the “new normal”
Authors: Jamrozik Euzebiusz
Published: September 2022

The global response to the recent coronavirus pandemic has revealed an ethical crisis in public health. This article analyses key pandemic public health policies in light of widely accepted ethical principles: the need for evidence, the least restrictive/harmful alternative, proportionality, equity, reciprocity, due legal process, and transparency. Many policies would be considered unacceptable according to pre-pandemic norms of public health ethics. There are thus significant opportunities to develop more ethical responses to future pandemics. This paper serves as the introduction to this Special Issue of Monash Bioethics Review and provides background for the other articles in this collection.
Allergens from house dust and storage mites
Authors: Vrtala Susanne
Published: September 2022

House dust mites are among the most important allergy triggers worldwide. While mites of the genus Dermatophagoides occur almost worldwide, the tropical mite Blomia tropicalis and storage mites are only of importance for certain areas or groups of people. The most important allergens of Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus are Der p 1, Der p 2, and Der p 23 with immunoglobulin E (IgE)-binding frequencies of more than 70% and high allergenic activity. Also of importance are Der p 5, Der p 7, and Der p 21, which have IgE-binding frequencies of about 30%. According to the current state of knowledge, these six allergens are the allergens of clinical relevance which are also required for diagnosis and immunotherapy with individual components.
Activity-driven network modeling and control of the spread of two concurrent epidemic strains
Authors: Burbano Lombana Daniel Alberto , Zino Lorenzo , Butail Sachit , Caroppo Emanuele , Jiang Zhong-Ping , Rizzo Alessandro , Porfiri Maurizio
Published: September 2022

The emergency generated by the current COVID-19 pandemic has claimed millions of lives worldwide. There have been multiple waves across the globe that emerged as a result of new variants, due to arising from unavoidable mutations. The existing network toolbox to study epidemic spreading cannot be readily adapted to the study of multiple, coexisting strains. In this context, particularly lacking are models that could elucidate re-infection with the same strain or a different strain—phenomena that we are seeing experiencing more and more with COVID-19. Here, we establish a novel mathematical model to study the simultaneous spreading of two strains over a class of temporal networks. We build on the classical susceptible–exposed–infectious–removed model, by incorporating additional states that account for infections and re-infections with multiple strains. The temporal network is based on the activity-driven network paradigm, which has emerged as a model of choice to study dynamic processes that unfold at a time scale comparable to the network evolution. We draw analytical insight from the dynamics of the stochastic network systems through a mean-field approach, which allows for characterizing the onset of different behavioral phenotypes (non-epidemic, epidemic, and endemic). To demonstrate the practical use of the model, we examine an intermittent stay-at-home containment strategy, in which a fraction of the population is randomly required to isolate for a fixed period of time.
Protection forestall: Offshore firms against tariffs in their own industry
Authors: Lee Jieun , Osgood Iain
Published: September 2022

Firms that offshore final production should oppose trade barriers “protecting” their own industry. This pits them against onshore firms, especially when comparative disadvantage is most pronounced, and so fundamentally alters trade policy coalitions. The US-China trade war's exclusion process, where US firms could request that tariffs not be applied to a product, provides a golden opportunity to test this contention. We show that coverage by a tariff in the trade war and firm characteristics associated with offshoring—size, multinationality, and heavy imports from China—interacted to generate firm requests for exclusion from the trade war's tariffs. This finding is robust to input-sourcing and fears of export retaliation as alternative explanations, and across multiple measures of firm size, tariff coverage, and exclusion requests. We therefore test a key piece of the firm-centered model of trade politics and show its value in interpreting the US-China trade war.
A spatiotemporal stochastic climate model for benchmarking causal discovery methods for teleconnections
Authors: Tibau Xavier-Andoni , Reimers Christian , Gerhardus Andreas , Denzler Joachim , Eyring Veronika , Runge Jakob
Published: September 2022

Teleconnections that link climate processes at widely separated spatial locations form a key component of the climate system. Their analysis has traditionally been based on means, climatologies, correlations, or spectral properties, which cannot always reveal the dynamical mechanisms between different climatological processes. More recently, causal discovery methods based either on time series at grid locations or on modes of variability, estimated through dimension-reduction methods, have been introduced. A major challenge in the development of such analysis methods is a lack of ground truth benchmark datasets that have facilitated improvements in many parts of machine learning. Here, we present a simplified stochastic climate model that outputs gridded data and represents climate modes and their teleconnections through a spatially aggregated vector-autoregressive model. The model is used to construct benchmarks and evaluate a range of analysis methods. The results highlight that the model can be successfully used to benchmark different causal discovery methods for spatiotemporal data and show their strengths and weaknesses. Furthermore, we introduce a novel causal discovery method at the grid level and demonstrate that it has orders of magnitude better performance than the current approaches. Improved causal analysis tools for spatiotemporal climate data are pivotal to advance process-based understanding and climate model evaluation.
An Illustration of Anthropology’s Contribution to Refugee Law Research
Authors: Bianchini Katia
Published: September 2022

This article contributes to the debates on the role of anthropology in refugee law research by showing the added value of an interdisciplinary approach to the understanding of complex asylum claims related to cultural and religious beliefs that are unfamiliar to the Western perspective. Based on the analysis of asylum claims in UK courts involving witchcraftbased persecution in the country of origin—both applicants who feared becoming victims of witchcraft practices and those who could be accused of having engaged in witchcraft practices—I demonstrate how anthropology can provide the tools for bridging the gaps between the law in the books and its implementation in practice and solving issues that are beyond the scope of the law. In particular, anthropology can feed into a broader legal conceptualization that accounts for the realities of our diverse societies and helps explain how fear of persecution due to witchcraft can indeed be real and connected with serious human rights violations. Moreover, cultural expertise can assist in assessing asylum claims in their cultural, historical, and political contexts, affording the claimant a fairer and better adjudicated outcome. Nevertheless, the use of anthropology inevitably comes with some challenges related to the different fields’ epistemologies, languages, and styles, as well as a lack of appreciation for interdisciplinarity in some areas of academia.
The History of Chinese Studies in Austria Revisited
Authors: Lehner Georg
Published: September 2022

This article traces the origins and developments of Chinese studies in Austria. In addition to factors and institutions that were instrumental in the development of these studies, the lives and works of individuals important to this development are revisited, starting with brief remarks on the scholarly interest in China in eighteenth century Austria and on early efforts to obtain Chinese books and Chinese printing types in the nineteenth century. The achievements of individual scholars are examined against the backdrop of their institutional affiliations and their experiences, if any, in China. In addition, the reasons for the delayed institutionalization of Sinological studies at university level are highlighted.
Design of a flexible robot toward transbronchial lung biopsy
Authors: Zhang Runtian , Xie Dongsheng , Qian Chao , Duan Xingguang , Li Changsheng
Published: September 2022

Transbronchial lung biopsy is an effective and less-invasive treatment for the early diagnosis of lung cancer. However, the limited dexterity of existing endoscopic instruments and the complexity of bronchial access prevent the application of such procedures mainly for biopsy and diagnosis. This paper proposes a flexible robot for transbronchial lung biopsy with a cable-driven mechanism-based flexible manipulator. The robotic system of transbronchial lung biopsy is presented in detail, including the snake-bone end effector, the flexible catheters and the actuation unit. The kinematic analysis of the snake-bone end effector is conducted for the master-slave control. The experimental results show that the end effector reaches the target nodule through a narrow and tortuous pathway in a bronchial model. In conclusion, the proposed robotic system contributes to the field of advanced endoscopic surgery with high flexibility and controllability.
The clash of traditional values: opposition to female monarchs
Authors: Liu Guoer , McElwain Kenneth Mori , Shiraito Yuki
Published: September 2022

The revision of sexist laws is complicated not only by disagreements between progressives and traditionalists but also by opposing views held by different types of traditionalists. We design a two-wave list experiment with information treatments to examine public opinion toward reforming the Japanese monarchy’s male-only patrilineal succession rule, focusing on two strands of traditionalism: conservatism and sexism. We show that conservatism, not sexism, is associated with stronger opposition to the ascension of female monarchs. Moreover, opinions toward gendered succession rules are hard to dislodge, because they are rooted in deep-held values. Treatments that highlight the capability of female heirs, the rarity of current practices in peer nations, and the perils posed by succession crises fail to change respondent preferences. Our study reveals the discordance within traditional values, and how this can impede efforts to reform statutory gender discrimination.
Topographic Degradation Processes of Lunar Crater Walls Inferred From Boulder Falls
Authors: Ikeda Ayame , Kumagai Hiroyuki , Morota Tomokatsu
Published: September 2022

Recent explorations by lunar orbiters have shown that boulder falls are distributed over the entire lunar surface. To quantitatively evaluate the effects of moonquakes and meteorite impacts on boulder falls, we performed detailed surveys at two sites: One in the southern part of the Schrödinger basin (Site 1) and the other in Laue crater (Site 2). Using images and topography data from the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter and KAGUYA, we measured the detailed distributions of boulder falls, small craters, slope angles, and the optical maturity parameter (OMAT) and modeled maximum ground acceleration due to impacts at these sites. In steeply sloping areas at both sites, we found that the density of small craters was low and areas with high OMAT values corresponded to boulder sources, where many boulders exist. At Site 1, the starting points of boulder falls and ground acceleration due to impacts were correlated. In addition, craters with boulder falls at and around Site 2 were distributed independently of the presumable epicentral distance from a shallow moonquake that occurred in 1975 near Site 2, which was previously inferred to have triggered boulder falls at the site. Our results suggest that boulder falls at these sites were triggered not by moonquakes but by meteorite impacts. We propose a model for the generation and transport of boulders and regolith on slopes by meteorite impacts, which may be directly related to the degradation of crater slopes on the Moon.
The Role of Lithospheric‐Deep Mantle Interactions on the Style and Stress Evolution of Arc‐Continent Collision
Authors: Rodríguez Corcho Andrés Felipe , Polanco Sara , Farrington Rebecca , Beucher Romain , Montes Camilo , Moresi Louis
Published: September 2022

We investigate how the mechanical properties of intra‐oceanic arcs affect the collision style and associated stress‐strain evolution with buoyancy‐driven models of subduction that accurately reproduce the dynamic interaction of the lithosphere and mantle. We performed a series of simulations only varying the effective arc thickness as it controls the buoyancy of intra‐oceanic arcs. Our simulations spontaneously evolve into two contrasting styles of collision that are controlled by a 3% density contrast between the arc and the continental plate. In simulations with less buoyant arcs (15–31 km; effective thickness), we observe arc‐transference to the overriding plate and slab‐anchoring and folding at the 660 km transition zone that result in fluctuations in the slab dip, strain‐stress regime, surface kinematics, and viscous dissipation. After slab‐folding occurs, the gravitational potential energy is dissipated in the form of lithospheric flow causing lithospheric extension in the overriding plate. Conversely, simulations with more buoyant arcs (32–35 km; effective thickness) do not lead to arc‐transference and result in slab break‐off, which causes an asymptotic trend in surface kinematics, viscous dissipation and strain‐stress regime, and lithospheric extension in the overriding plate. The results of our numerical modeling highlight the importance of slab‐anchoring and folding in the 660 km transition zone on increasing the mechanical coupling of the subduction system.
Predicting Future Laboratory Fault Friction Through Deep Learning Transformer Models
Authors: Wang Kun , Johnson Christopher W. , Bennett Kane C. , Johnson Paul A.
Published: September 2022

Machine learning models using seismic emissions as input can predict instantaneous fault characteristics such as displacement and friction in laboratory experiments, and slow slip in Earth. Here, we address whether the seismic/acoustic emission (AE) from laboratory experiments contains information about future frictional behavior. The approach uses a convolutional encoder‐decoder containing a transformer model in the latent space, similar to models used for natural language processing. We test the model limits using progressively larger AE input time windows and progressively larger output friction time windows. The results demonstrate that very near‐term friction predictions are indeed contained in the AE signal, and predictions are progressively worse farther into the future. The future predictions by the model of impending failure in the near‐term are remarkably robust. This first effort predicting future fault frictional behavior with machine learning will aid in guiding efforts for applications in Earth.
Predicting Antarctic Net Snow Accumulation at the Kilometer Scale and Its Impact on Observed Height Changes
Authors: Medley B. , Lenaerts J. T. M. , Dattler M. , Keenan E. , Wever N.
Published: September 2022

Sub‐grid‐scale processes occurring at or near the surface of an ice sheet have a potentially large impact on local and integrated net accumulation of snow via redistribution and sublimation. Given observational complexity, they are either ignored or parameterized over large‐length scales. Here, we train random forest (RF) models to predict variability in net accumulation over the Antarctic Ice Sheet using atmospheric variables and topographic characteristics as predictors at 1 km resolution. Observations of net snow accumulation from both in situ and airborne radar data provide the input observable targets needed to train the RF models. We find that local net accumulation deviates by as much as 172% of the atmospheric model mean. The correlation in space between the predicted net accumulation variability and satellite‐derived surface‐height change indicates that surface processes operate differently through time, driven largely by the seasonal anomalies in snow accumulation.
Seasonal Slow Landslide Displacement Is Accommodated by mm‐Scale Stick‐Slip Events
Authors: Finnegan N. J. , Brodsky E. E. , Savage H. M. , Nereson A. L. , Murphy C. R.
Published: September 2022

Like faults, landslides can slip slowly for decades or accelerate catastrophically. However, whereas experimentally derived friction laws provide mechanistically based explanations for similarly diverse behavior on faults, little monitoring exists over the temporal and spatial scales required to more clearly illuminate the mechanics of landslide friction. Here we show that displacement of an active slow landslide is accommodated primarily through mm‐scale stick‐slip events that recur on timescales of minutes to hours on asperities that are small (<100 m) relative to the landslide. The frequency of slip events tracks both landslide velocity and pore fluid pressure. The stick‐slip nature demonstrates by itself that slow slip is governed, at least in part, by velocity‐weakening frictional asperities. This observation, in combination with the sensitivity of slow slip to pore fluid pressure and the small relative scale of asperities, suggests similarities between slow slip in landslides and episodic slow slip along faults.
Ventilation Changes Drive Orbital‐Scale Deoxygenation Trends in the Late Cretaceous Ocean
Authors: Sarr A.‐C. , Donnadieu Y. , Laugié M. , Ladant J.‐B. , Suchéras‐Marx B. , Raisson F.
Published: September 2022

Mechanisms that drive cyclicity in marine sediment deposits during hothouse climate periods in response to Earth's orbit variations remain debated. Orbital cycles fingerprint in the oceanographic records results from the combined effect of terrestrial (e.g., Weathering derived nutrient supply, freshwater discharge) and oceanic (e.g., productivity, oxygenation) processes, whose respective contribution remains to be clarified. Here we investigate the effect of extreme orbital configurations on the oxygenation state of the ocean using marine biogeochemistry simulations with the IPSL‐CM5A2 Earth System Model under Cenomanian‐Turonian boundary conditions. Our simulations show that small changes in ocean ventilation triggered by orbitally induced variations in deep water formation have a strong impact on the spatial distribution of dissolved oxygen. This phenomena is amplified in enclosed and already poorly oxygenated basins, such as the proto‐Atlantic ocean, where up to 50% of the water volume become anoxic for some of the configurations.
Observations and Impacts of Long‐Range Transported Wildfire Smoke on Air Quality Across New York State During July 2021
Authors: Shrestha Bhupal , Brotzge Jerald A. , Wang Junhong
Published: September 2022

Wildfires are a significant source of PM2.5 that adversely affect local and regional air quality. However, tracking wildfire smoke and their impacts are difficult. This study explores how a ground‐based Doppler lidar network can improve monitoring of long‐range transported wildfire smoke. As a case study, this paper reviews the transported wildfire smoke and its impact on air quality across New York State (NYS) during two events: 18–21 and 25–27 July 2021. Observations of wildfire smoke and enhancement of PM2.5 across NYS during those events were consistent across ground‐based sensors, satellites, back trajectory analyses, and model forecasts. However, for some of the days, the model over/under‐forecasted smoke plumes. Overall, this study highlights the value of the NYS Mesonet Profiler Network to monitor wildfire smoke with high spatiotemporal resolution. Such a relatively dense network can be a valuable observational tool for evaluating PM2.5, and aiding satellite measurements and air quality forecasting models.
Non‐Isotropic Contraction and Expansion of Samples in Diamond Anvil Cells: Implications for Thermal Conductivity at the Core‐Mantle Boundary
Authors: Lobanov Sergey S. , Geballe Zachary M.
Published: September 2022

The thermal conductivities of mantle and core materials have a major impact on planetary evolution, but their experimental determination requires precise knowledge of sample thickness at high pressure. Despite its importance, thickness in most diamond anvil cell (DAC) experiments is not measured but inferred from equations of state, assuming isotropic contraction upon compression or assuming isotropic expansion upon decompression. Here we provide evidence that in DAC experiments both assumptions are invalid for a range of mechanically diverse materials (KCl, NaCl, Ar, MgO, silica glass, Al2O3). Upon compression, these samples are ∼30–50% thinner than expected from isotropic contraction. Most surprisingly, all the studied samples continue to thin upon decompression to 10–20 GPa. Our results partially explain some discrepancies among the highly controversial thermal conductivity values of iron at Earth's core conditions. More generally, we suggest that in situ characterization of sample geometry is essential for conductivity measurements at high pressure.
Soft X‐Ray Imaging of Magnetopause Reconnection Outflows Under Low Plasma‐β Solar Wind Conditions
Authors: Matsumoto Yosuke , Miyoshi Yoshizumi
Published: September 2022

We examined soft X‐ray emission by the solar wind charge‐exchange process around the Earth's magnetosphere using a global magnetohydrodynamic simulation model. The dayside magnetopause reconnection heats and accelerates the plasma whereby the X‐ray emission becomes as bright as ∼6 × 10−6 eV cm−3 s−1 under the southward interplanetary magnetic field conditions. In particular, under low plasma‐β solar wind conditions, we found that the X‐ray intensity reflects the bulk motion of outflows from the reconnection region. We propose that this particular solar wind condition would allow visualization of the mesoscale magnetopause reconnection site, as observed in the solar corona.
Thinning of the Magnetotail Current Sheet Inferred From Low‐Altitude Observations of Energetic Electrons
Authors: Artemyev A. V. , Angelopoulos V. , Zhang X.‐J. , Runov A. , Petrukovich A. , Nakamura R. , Tsai E. , Wilkins C.
Published: September 2022

The magnetospheric substorm is a key mode of flux and energy transport throughout the magnetosphere associated with distinct and repeatable magnetotail dynamical processes and plasma injections. The substorm growth phase is characterized by current sheet thinning and magnetic field reconfiguration around the equatorial plane. The global characteristics of current sheet thinning are important for understanding of magnetotail state right before the onset of magnetic reconnection and of the key substorm expansion phase. In this paper, we investigate this thinning at different radial distances using plasma sheet (PS) energetic (>50 keV) electrons that reach from the equator to low altitudes during their fast (∼1 s) travel along magnetic field lines. We perform a multi‐case study and a statistical analysis of 34 events with near‐equatorial observations of the current sheet thinning by equatorial missions and concurrent, latitudinal crossings of the ionospheric projection of the magnetotail by the low‐altitude Electron Losses and Fields Investigation (ELFIN) CubeSats at approximately the same local time sector. Energetic electron fluxes thus collected by ELFIN provide near‐instantaneous (<5 min duration) radial snapshots of magnetotail fluxes. Main findings of this study confirm the previously proposed concepts with low‐altitude energetic electron measurements: (a) Energy distributions of low‐altitude fluxes are quantitatively close to the near‐equatorial distributions, which justifies the investigation of the magnetotail current sheet reconfiguration using low‐altitude measurements. (b) The magnetic field reconfiguration during the current sheet thinning (which lasts ≥ an hour) results in a rapid shrinking of the low‐altitude projection of the entire PS (from near‐Earth, ∼10RE, to the lunar orbit ∼60RE) to 1–2° of magnetic latitude in the ionosphere. (c) The current sheet dipolarization, common during the substorm onset, is associated with a very quick (∼10 min) change of the tail magnetic field configuration to its dipolar state, as implied by a poleward expansion of the PSPS at low altitudes.
Applications of human organoids in the personalized treatment for digestive diseases
Authors: Wang Qinying , Guo Fanying , Jin Yutao , Ma Yanlei
Published: September 2022

Digestive system diseases arise primarily through the interplay of genetic and environmental influences; there is an urgent need in elucidating the pathogenic mechanisms of these diseases and deploy personalized treatments. Traditional and long-established model systems rarely reproduce either tissue complexity or human physiology faithfully; these shortcomings underscore the need for better models. Organoids represent a promising research model, helping us gain a more profound understanding of the digestive organs; this model can also be used to provide patients with precise and individualized treatment and to build rapid in vitro test models for drug screening or gene/cell therapy, linking basic research with clinical treatment. Over the past few decades, the use of organoids has led to an advanced understanding of the composition of each digestive organ and has facilitated disease modeling, chemotherapy dose prediction, CRISPR-Cas9 genetic intervention, high-throughput drug screening, and identification of SARS-CoV-2 targets, pathogenic infection. However, the existing organoids of the digestive system mainly include the epithelial system. In order to reveal the pathogenic mechanism of digestive diseases, it is necessary to establish a completer and more physiological organoid model. Combining organoids and advanced techniques to test individualized treatments of different formulations is a promising approach that requires further exploration. This review highlights the advancements in the field of organoid technology from the perspectives of disease modeling and personalized therapy.
Olaparib synergizes with arsenic trioxide by promoting apoptosis and ferroptosis in platinum-resistant ovarian cancer
Authors: Tang Sangsang , Shen Yuanming , Wei Xinyi , Shen Zhangjin , Lu Weiguo , Xu Junfen
Published: September 2022

Poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) inhibitors are efficacious in treating platinum-sensitive ovarian cancer (OC), but demonstrate limited efficiency in patients with platinum-resistant OC. Thus, further investigations into combined strategies that enhance the response to PARP inhibitors (PARPi) in platinum-resistant OC are required. The present study aimed to investigate the combined therapy of arsenic trioxide (ATO) with olaparib, a common PARPi, and determine how this synergistic cytotoxicity works in platinum-resistant OC cells. Functional assays demonstrated that the combined treatment of olaparib with ATO significantly suppressed cell proliferation and colony formation, and enhanced DNA damage as well as cell apoptosis in A2780-CIS and SKOV3-CIS cell lines. Results of the present study also demonstrated that a combination of olaparib with ATO increased lipid peroxidation and eventually triggered ferroptosis. Consistently, the combined treatment synergistically suppressed tumor growth in mice xenograft models. Mechanistically, ATO in combination with olaparib activated the AMPK α pathway and suppressed the expression levels of stearoyl-CoA desaturase 1 (SCD1). Collectively, results of the present study demonstrated that treatment with ATO enhanced the effects of olaparib in platinum-resistant OC.
HSF2BP protects against acute liver injury by regulating HSF2/HSP70/MAPK signaling in mice
Authors: Bi Jianbin , Zhang Jia , Ke Mengyun , Wang Tao , Wang Mengzhou , Liu Wuming , Du Zhaoqing , Ren Yifan , Zhang Shuqun , Wu Zheng , Lv Yi , Wu Rongqian
Published: September 2022

Heat shock proteins (HSPs) depletion and protein misfolding are important causes of hepatocyte death and liver regeneration disorder in liver injury. HSF2BP, as its name implies, is a binding protein of HSF2, but the specific role of HSF2BP in heat shock response (HSR) remains unknown. The aim of this study is to identify the role of HSF2BP in HSR and acute liver injury. In this study, we found that HSF2BP expression increased significantly within 24 h after APAP administration, and the trend was highly consistent with that of HSP70. hsf2bp-KO and hsf2bp-TG mouse models demonstrated HSF2BP reduced hepatocyte death, ameliorated inflammation, and improved liver function in APAP- or D-GalN/LPS- induced liver injury. Meanwhile, a significant increase of the survival rate was observed in hsf2bp-TG mice after APAP administration. Further studies showed that HSF2BP upregulated the expression of HSF2 and HSP70 and inhibited the activation of Jnk1/2 and P38 MAPK. Additionally, HSP70 siRNA pretreatment abolished the effect of HSF2BP on the MAPK pathway in APAP-treated hepatocytes. The results reveal that HSF2BP is a protective factor in acute liver injury, and the HSF2BP/HSP70/MAPK regulatory axis is crucial for the pathogenesis of liver injury. HSF2BP is a potential therapeutic target for liver injury.