bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The Lake Urmia vignette: a tool to assess understanding of complexity in socio‐environmental systems
Authors: Davis Kirsten , Ghaffarzadegan Navid , Grohs Jacob , Grote Dustin , Hosseinichimeh Niyousha , Knight David , Mahmoudi Hesam , Triantis Konstantinos
Published: August 2020

We introduce the Lake Urmia Vignette (LUV) as a tool to assess individuals' understanding of complexity in socio‐environmental systems. LUV is based on a real‐world case and includes a short vignette describing an environmental catastrophe involving a lake. Over a few decades, significant issues have manifested themselves at the lake because of various social, political, economic, and environmental factors. We design a rubric for assessing responses to a prompt. A pilot test with a sample of 30 engineering graduate students is conducted. We compare responses to LUV with other measures. Our findings suggest that students' understanding of complexity is positively associated with their understanding of systems concepts such as feedback loops but not with other possible variables such as self‐reported systems thinking skills or systems‐related coursework. Based on the provided instructions, researchers can use LUV as a novel assessment tool to examine understanding of complexity in socio‐environmental systems.

© 2020 System Dynamics Society
SnOx thin films with tunable conductivity for fabrication of p–n homo‐junction
Authors: Garzon‐Fontecha Angelica , Castillo Harvi A. , Curiel Mario , Montaño‐Figueroa Ana Gabriela , Quevedo‐Lopez Manuel A. , Cota‐Araiza Leonel , De La Cruz Wencel
Published: August 2020

Tin oxide (SnOx) has been widely used for the fabrication of transparent and flexible devices because of its excellent optical and electronic properties. In this work, we established a methodology for the synthesis of SnOx thin films with p‐type and n‐type tunable conductivity by direct currecnt (DC) magnetron sputtering. The SnOx thin films changed from p‐type to n‐type by increasing the relative oxygen partial pressure (ppO2) from 4.8% to 18.5% and by varying the working pressure between 1.8 and 2.5 mTorr. The SnOx thin films were annealed at 160°C, 180°C, and 200°C for 30 min to promote the formation of the desired crystalline structures. At the annealing temperature of 180°C in air ambient, the SnOx thin films showed a tetragonal structure with Sn traces. Having found the optimal conditions, we deposited both types of SnOx thin films with the same tetragonal structure and similar chemical stoichiometry. Also, the conditions to obtain thin films with the highest mobility values for p‐type (1.10 cm2/Vs) and n‐type (22.20 cm2/Vs) were used for fabricating the device. Finally, the implementation of a SnOx‐based p–n diode was demonstrated using transparent SnOx thin films developed in this work, illustrating their potential use in transparent electronics.
A hidden Markov model for population‐level cervical cancer screening data
Authors: Soper Braden C. , Nygård Mari , Abdulla Ghaleb , Meng Rui , Nygård Jan F.
Published: August 2020

The Cancer Registry of Norway has been administrating a national cervical cancer screening program since 1992 by coordinating triennial cytology exam screenings for the female population between 25 and 69 years of age. Up to 80% of cancers are prevented through mass screening, but this comes at the expense of considerable screening activity and leads to overtreatment of clinically asymptomatic precancers. In this article, we present a continuous‐time, time‐inhomogeneous hidden Markov model which was developed to understand the screening process and cervical cancer carcinogenesis in detail. By leveraging 1.7 million individual's multivariate time‐series of medical exams performed over a 25‐year period, we simultaneously estimate all model parameters. We show that an age‐dependent model reflects the Norwegian screening program by comparing empirical survival curves from observed registry data and data simulated from the proposed model. The model can be generalized to include more detailed individual‐level covariates as well as new types of screening exams. By utilizing individual screening histories and covariate data, the proposed model shows potential for improving strategies for cancer screening programs by personalizing recommended screening intervals.
High Performance Lithium‐Ion Batteries Using Layered 2H‐MoTe2 as Anode
Authors: Panda Manas Ranjan , Gangwar Rashmi , Muthuraj Divyamahalakshmi , Sau Supriya , Pandey Dhanshree , Banerjee Arup , Chakrabarti Aparna , Sagdeo Archna , Weyland Matthew , Majumder Mainak , Bao Qiaoliang , Mitra Sagar
Published: August 2020

The major challenges faced by candidate electrode materials in lithium‐ion batteries (LIBs) include their low electronic and ionic conductivities. 2D van der Waals materials with good electronic conductivity and weak interlayer interaction have been intensively studied in the electrochemical processes involving ion migrations. In particular, molybdenum ditelluride (MoTe2) has emerged as a new material for energy storage applications. Though 2H‐MoTe2 with hexagonal semiconducting phase is expected to facilitate more efficient ion insertion/deinsertion than the monoclinic semi‐metallic phase, its application as an anode in LIB has been elusive. Here, 2H‐MoTe2, prepared by a solid‐state synthesis route, has been employed as an efficient anode with remarkable Li+ storage capacity. The as‐prepared 2H‐MoTe2 electrodes exhibit an initial specific capacity of 432 mAh g−1 and retain a high reversible specific capacity of 291 mAh g−1 after 260 cycles at 1.0 A g−1. Further, a full‐cell prototype is demonstrated by using 2H‐MoTe2 anode with lithium cobalt oxide cathode, showing a high energy density of 454 Wh kg−1 (based on the MoTe2 mass) and capacity retention of 80% over 100 cycles. Synchrotron‐based in situ X‐ray absorption near‐edge structures have revealed the unique lithium reaction pathway and storage mechanism, which is supported by density functional theory based calculations.
SnS Quantum Dot–CsPbBr3 Perovskite Bulk Heterojunction for Enhanced Photoelectrical Conversion Efficiency
Authors: Wang Lian , Fu Lin , Yin Longwei
Published: August 2020

Inorganic cesium lead halide perovskite solar cells (PSCs) have attracted great attention due to their remarkable thermal and moisture stability. However, the low photoelectric conversion efficiency (PCE) of inorganic PSCs due to the high trap state density, high carrier recombination rate, and poor carrier transport kinetics impedes their industrial applications. Herein, a remarkable bulk heterojunction structure coupling SnS quantum dots (QDs) with CsPbBr3 is prepared for the first time via a facile spin‐coating process using a SnS‐QD‐dispersed toluene solution as an antisolvent. The introduction of SnS QDs provides extra crystallization sites and promotes the crystallization of perovskites along (100) and (200) faces. Meanwhile, the bulk heterojunction structure with matched energy structure can effectively reduce the trap state density of the perovskite film and improves the dynamic performance of carriers, suppressing the charge recombination rate and effectively boosting the PCE of solar cells. As a result, the optimal bulk heterojunction solar cell achieves a PCE of 8.01%, about 52% higher than that of the pristine solar cell. This work provides a low‐cost and facile strategy for preparing high‐performance bulk heterojunction PSCs and an effective method to boost the PCE by nontoxic QDs.
The earliest baleen whale from the Mediterranean: large‐scale implications of an early Miocene thalassotherian mysticete from Piedmont, Italy
Authors: Bisconti Michelangelo , Damarco Piero , Mao Selina , Pavia Marco , Carnevale Giorgio
Published: August 2020

The discovery of an early Miocene chaeomysticete from the Pietra da Cantoni Group in Piedmont (north‐western Italy) allowed for the establishment of Atlanticetus lavei gen. et sp. nov. The new species is represented by a partial skeleton including the periotic and tympanic bullae and has an anatomical resemblance to Atlanticetus patulus (comb. nov.) from the western North Atlantic. The early Miocene age of the new specimen supports the view that it represents the oldest record of Chaeomysticeti from the Mediterranean. A new phylogenetic analysis showed that both A. patulus and A. lavei belong to a radiation of basal thalassotherian taxa. The basal thalassotherians are monophyletic to the exclusion of Cetotheriidae and Balaenopteroidea. The reconstruction of ancestral characters at selected nodes indicates that the group including Atlanticetus and living balaenopterid taxa independently evolved rostra wide at the base, an anterolateral expansion in the tympanic bulla, and a peculiar arrangement of the endocranial foramina of the periotic, exhibiting a noteworthy phenomenon of convergent evolution in feeding and hearing functions with Balaenopteridae. Palaeobiogeographical analysis shows that the North Pacific was the centre of origin of Balaenomorpha (crown mysticetes), Thalassotherii and Balaenoidea. The recurrent invasion of the Mediterranean by balaenomorph mysticetes occurred from both the North Atlantic and North Pacific.
Rapid determination of sulfonamide residues in honey samples using non‐targeted liquid chromatography‐high resolution mass spectrometry
Authors: Kırkan Ertuğ , Tahir Alaa Omar , Bengü Aydın Şükrü , Aslan Hakiye , Çiftçi Mehmet , Aydoğan Cemil
Published: August 2020

Honey is one of the most widespread natural harvest consumed as food and medicine. Many antibacterial groups can be used to protect bees from some bacterial diseases and infections. Among them, sulfonamides are one of the most effective antibacterial drugs used for a long time. While sulfonamides are used by beekeepers, the residues of them may appear in honey with the different levels of residues. These residues in honey at the high level of concentration can be a potential risk to the human body. In this study, a non‐targeted liquid chromatography with high resolution mass spectrometry method was designed to discover known and unknown sulfonamide residues in 13 honey samples. This study includes both sample preparation with a modified Quick, Easy, Cheap, Effective, Rugged, and Safe extraction and liquid chromatography analysis. The influences of the chromatographic separation parameters such as flow rate were studied. The detection of sulfonamides was carried out by a reversed‐phase chromatographic separation column (a Hypersil Gold C18, 100 mm × 2.1 mm I.D., 1.9 µm), with gradient elution mode of mobile phase at a flow rate of 0.3 mL/min. Full MS/all‐ion fragmentation was used for mass spectrometry acquisition mode. The limit of detection of sulfonamides ranged from 0.02 to 0.12 µg/kg while the limit of quantification values was between 0.08 and 0.72 µg/kg. The developed non‐targeted analysis was successfully applied for sulfonamide residue determination in honey samples. This study also shows the analysis of the arylamine groups originated from sulfonamides that is a very relevant issue for the toxic side effect of these compounds.
Vickia, a new genus of tribe Gochnatieae (Compositae)
Authors: Roque Nádia , Sancho Gisela
Published: August 2020

The tribe Gochnatieae is restricted to America. A recent molecular study including over 60% of the species of the tribe was carried out to untangle evolutionary relationships among the taxa. Eight supported clades were recovered as monophyletic genera, while Gochnatia s.l. was revealed as paraphyletic and currently restricted to the Central Andes. Gochnatia rotundifolia was not included in this phylogeny since extracted DNA from few and old collections from Brazil was unusuable. Since Cabrera's treatment of Gochnatia s.l., this species has received special attention due to its distinct morphological characters when compared with the other monophyletic genera of Gochnatieae. Therefore, this paper aims to provide new evidence that supports Gochnatia rotundifolia to be described as a separate monospecific genus based on a morphological study and a maximum parsimony (MP) analysis. A total of 21 species were studied. The leaf venation was analysed using digital X‐ray capture (VIVA–Varian Image viewing & Aquisition). Seventeen morphological characters obtained from vegetative and floral parts of the plants were included in the data matrix. Our results reinforce the placement of Gochnatia rotundifolia within the tribe Gochnatieae. Gochnatia rotundifolia is consistently recovered in a clade as sister to the Cnicothamnus‐Richterago group. The species differs from the other genera of the tribe by an actinodromous basal leaf venation with three primary veins, and pappus elements composed by (50–)60–75 bristles, sometimes almost flat setae, arranged in 2 or 3 series, unequal in length. Our results support Gochnatia rotundifolia as the sole species Vickia rotundifolia comb. nov. in a new genus of Gochnatieae, Vickia gen. nov. The new genus is described, illustrated, and a generic identification key for the tribe Gochnatieae is provided.
Non‐invasive Measurement of Blood Glucose by Breath Analysis
Authors: Mansouri Sofiene , Boulares Souhaila , Alhadidi Tareq
Published: August 2020

The determination of blood glucose is usually performed in the laboratory or using invasive glucose meters. Unusual, fruity, or bad breath odor can be a sign of metabolic disease. The objective is the estimation of the blood glucose by breath analysis. To do that, we designed a three‐gas prediction model (alcohol, acetone, and propane). We exhaled in front of the three gas sensors and then recorded the concentrations of the three volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in a database. This database included the measurements of 200 volunteer people. We then systematically studied the correlation between the glucose level obtained by blood analysis and each of these three gases. We also studied the different possible combinations of two and three gases. The best correlation was obtained for the non‐diabetic subjects with a correlation coefficient (r = 0.97), for the diabetic subjects (r = 0.35). We implemented these two linear regressions and we used the validation set to estimate the accuracy of the prototype. For the non‐diabetic subjects, the relative error of the measurement of the glycemia was equal to 3.93%. For the diabetic subjects, the error = 13.42%. The results have shown that the determination of glycemia by breath analysis can become a serious alternative. © 2020 Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan. Published by Wiley Periodicals LLC.
Counterfactuals and double prevention
Authors: Turon David ,   Philosophy Documentation Center
Published: August 2020

Some have argued that no analysis of counterfactual conditionals can succeed without appealing to causal notions. Such authors claim that, in determining what would transpire had some events gone differently, we hold fixed everything that is causally independent from those events. Call this view Causal Independence. Some have argued that we need Causal Independence to accommodate intuitive judgments about certain kinds of counterfactuals in indeterministic worlds. The aim of this paper is to show that, contra these authors, Causal Independence systematically delivers counterintuitive results for a certain subset of such counterfactuals-namely, those involving causation by double prevention. I conclude that intuitions about such counterfactuals do not motivate Causal Independence, at least in any form in which it has thus far been articulated. However, I suggest that a refined Causal Independence thesis that presupposes a kind of causal pluralism might be able to accommodate these intuitions, though such a refined version of Causal Independence may not conflict with reductive analyses of causal notions that appeal to counterfactuals after all.
Kolaviron ameliorates hepatic and renal dysfunction associated with multiwalled carbon nanotubes in rats
Authors: Awogbindin Ifeoluwa O. , Maduako Ikenna C. , Adedara Isaac A. , Owumi Solomon E. , Ajeleti Akinola O. , Owoeye Olatunde , Patlolla Anita K. , Tchounwou Paul B. , Farombi Ebenezer O.
Published: August 2020

The increase in the exposure to carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and their incorporation into industrial, electronic, and biomedical products have required several scientific investigations into the toxicity associated with CNTs. Studies have shown that the metabolism and clearance of multiwalled CNTs (MWCNTs) from the body involve biotransformation in the liver and its excretion via the kidney. Since oxidative stress and inflammation underlines the toxicity of MWCNT, we investigated the ameliorative effect of kolaviron (KV), a natural antioxidant and anti‐inflammatory agent, on hepatorenal damage in rats. Exposure to MWCNTs for 15 days significantly increased serum activities of aspartate aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase, alkaline phosphatase, and lactate dehydrogenase thereby suggesting hepatic dysfunction. Kidney function, which was monitored by urea and creatinine levels, was also impaired by MWCNTs. Additionally, MWCNTs markedly increased myeloperoxidase activity, nitric oxide level, reactive oxygen and nitrogen species, and tumor necrosis factor level in both tissues. However, KV in a dose‐dependent manner markedly attenuated MWCNT‐induced markers of hepatorenal function in the serum and MWCNT‐associated inflammation in the liver and kidney. Also, MWCNTs elicited significant inhibition of superoxide dismutase, catalase, glutathione peroxidase, and glutathione‐S‐transferase activities. There was a significant diminution in glutathione level (GSH) and enhanced production of malondialdehyde (MDA) in MWCNTs‐exposed rats. KV treatment was able to significantly increase the antioxidant enzymes and enhance the GSH level with a subsequent reduction in the MDA level. Taken together, KV elicited ameliorative effects against hepatorenal damage via its anti‐inflammatory and antioxidant properties. Thus, KV could be an important intervention strategy for the hepatorenal damage associated with MWCNTs exposure.
A dyadic perspective on assessment in Alzheimer's dementia: Supporting both care partners across the disease continuum
Authors: Orsulic‐Jeras Silvia , Whitlatch Carol J. , Powers Sara M. , Johnson Justin
Published: August 2020

Written from a dyadic strength‐based perspective, this article first provides a brief overview of the Education, Information, and Support section of the 2018 Alzheimer's Disease Dementia Care Practice Recommendations.1 Subsequent sections present a comprehensive overview of available valid and reliable psychosocial measures that assess a selection of important domains for dementia care planning that can be used by families from early stage until end‐of‐life. Measures selected for the purposes of this article will focus on concepts that are strength‐based and most relevant to care dyads as they navigate the difficult disease trajectory: readiness, knowledge, coping, dyadic relationship, care values and preferences. We will also highlight measures that have traditionally targeted the family care partner but can potentially be considered for use with the care partner with dementia, with adjustments, beyond the early stages. Part of this discussion will include various strategies for including persons with dementia in all aspects of their own care using a strength‐based perspective, potentially enabling them to answer questions more reliably across disease stages. Last, gaps in existing measures will be identified to provide options to better assess areas of need most meaningful to families, and in ways that positively contribute to the successful aging of those living with dementia and their care partners.
Approximating dementia prevalence in population‐based surveys of aging worldwide: An unsupervised machine learning approach
Authors: Cleret de Langavant Laurent , Bayen Eléonore , Bachoud‐Lévi Anne‐Catherine , Yaffe Kristine
Published: August 2020

Introduction

Ability to determine dementia prevalence in low‐ and middle‐income countries (LMIC) remains challenging because of frequent lack of data and large discrepancies in dementia case ascertainment.

Methods

High likelihood of dementia was determined with hierarchical clustering after principal component analysis applied in 10 population surveys of aging: HRS (USA, 2014), SHARE (Europe and Israel, 2015), MHAS (Mexico, 2015), ELSI (Brazil, 2016), CHARLS (China, 2015), IFLS (Indonesia, 2014–2015), LASI (India, 2016), SAGE‐Ghana (2007), SAGE‐South Africa (2007), SAGE‐Russia (2007–2010). We approximated dementia prevalence using weighting methods.

Results

Estimated numbers of dementia cases were: China, 40.2 million; India, 18.0 million; Russia, 5.2 million; Europe and Israel, 5.0 million; United States, 4.4 million; Brazil, 2.2 million; Mexico, 1.6 million; Indonesia, 1.3 million; South Africa, 1.0 million; Ghana, 319,000.

Discussion

Our estimations were similar to prior ones in high‐income countries but much higher in LMIC. Extrapolating these results globally, we suggest that almost 130 million people worldwide were living with dementia in 2015.
Enhancers in polymeric nonviral gene delivery systems
Authors: Yang Zhiyu , Guo Zhaopei , Tian Huayu , Chen Xuesi
Published: August 2020

Gene therapy is a promising therapeutic tool for cancers and inherited diseases. For successful gene therapy, gene delivery systems must be designed reasonably to allow DNA or other nuclear acids to be taken up by the cancer cells and then transported to target location for function. In the research of gene delivery systems, polymeric nonviral carriers for genes have attracted much attention. However, polymeric gene delivery systems suffer from low transfection efficiency. Various strategies have been developed for improving efficacy of polymeric gene delivery systems. These strategies can be categorized into covalent strategies and noncovalent strategies according to the way how the functional unit is combined with the carrier. Noncovalent strategies in improving gene transfection efficiency are simply mixing additional functional components with carriers. These relatively independent functional materials are named gene delivery enhancers here. In this review, we focus on enhancers in polymeric gene delivery systems. We discuss structures and enhancement mechanisms of enhancers in the order of the stages in which they function in gene delivery process. Barriers of in vitro gene delivery are also reviewed briefly.
Effect of feeding wheat middlings and calcium lignosulfonate as pellet binders on pellet quality growth performance and lipid peroxidation in broiler chickens
Authors: Saleh Ahmed A. , Elnagar Ayman M. , Eid Yahya Z. , Ebeid Tarek A. , Amber Khairy A.
Published: August 2020

Basal diets supplemented with 4 kg Ca‐LS/ton of diet. Pellet quality characteristics (per cent fines, the present study was conducted to evaluate the influence of wheat middlings (WM) and calcium lignosulfonate (Ca‐LS) as pellet binders on the pellet quality characteristics, growth performance, blood parameters, nutrients digestibilities, lipid peroxidation and muscle fatty acids profile in Egyptian broiler strain. A total of 3,120 broiler chicks at 1‐day of age were divided randomly into three experimental treatments with eight replicates (130 each). The first treatment was fed the basal pelleted diets without any additives, the second treatment was fed diets including 50 kg WM/ton of diet and the third treatment was fed per cent pellets, and pellet durability index) were significantly improved in WM and Ca‐LS treatments compared with the control. Body weight gain was significantly increased, while feed intake was significantly decreased resulting in improving of feed conversion ratio significantly in WM group in comparison with control and Ca‐LS groups (p < .05). Nutrients apparent digestibility (dry matter, crude protein and crude fibre) were significantly improved by inclusion of WM compared with control and Ca‐LS. Plasma total cholesterol, and uric acid concentrations were significantly decreased by dietary WM in comparison with control and Ca‐LS experimental groups. Furthermore, linoleic, alpha‐linolenic and arachidonic acids contents in breast muscle were significantly increased by WM and Ca‐LS, while, muscle malondialdehyde concentration was significantly decreased. It could be concluded that inclusion of WM and Ca‐LS can improve pellet quality characteristics, and WM (at a level of 50 kg/ton) had positive effects on growth performance, nutrients digestibilities, lipid peroxidation and fatty acids profile in Egyptian broiler strain.
River ecosystem conceptual models and non‐perennial rivers: A critical review
Authors: Allen Daniel C. , Datry Thibault , Boersma Kate S. , Bogan Michael T. , Boulton Andrew J. , Bruno Daniel , Busch Michelle H. , Costigan Katie H. , Dodds Walter K. , Fritz Ken M. , Godsey Sarah E. , Jones Jeremy B. , Kaletova Tatiana , Kampf Stephanie K. , Mims Meryl C. , Neeson Thomas M. , Olden Julian D. , Pastor Amandine V. , Poff N. LeRoy , Ruddell Benjamin L. , Ruhi Albert , Singer Gabriel , Vezza Paolo , Ward Adam S. , Zimmer Margaret
Published: August 2020

Conceptual models underpin river ecosystem research. However, current models focus on continuously flowing rivers and few explicitly address characteristics such as flow cessation and drying. The applicability of existing conceptual models to nonperennial rivers that cease to flow (intermittent rivers and ephemeral streams, IRES) has not been evaluated. We reviewed 18 models, finding that they collectively describe main drivers of biogeochemical and ecological patterns and processes longitudinally (upstream‐downstream), laterally (channel‐riparian‐floodplain), vertically (surface water‐groundwater), and temporally across local and landscape scales. However, perennial rivers are longitudinally continuous while IRES are longitudinally discontinuous. Whereas perennial rivers have bidirectional lateral connections between aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems, in IRES, this connection is unidirectional for much of the time, from terrestrial‐to‐aquatic only. Vertical connectivity between surface and subsurface water occurs bidirectionally and is temporally consistent in perennial rivers. However, in IRES, this exchange is temporally variable, and can become unidirectional during drying or rewetting phases. Finally, drying adds another dimension of flow variation to be considered across temporal and spatial scales in IRES, much as flooding is considered as a temporally and spatially dynamic process in perennial rivers. Here, we focus on ways in which existing models could be modified to accommodate drying as a fundamental process that can alter these patterns and processes across spatial and temporal dimensions in streams. This perspective is needed to support river science and management in our era of rapid global change, including increasing duration, frequency, and occurrence of drying.

This article is categorized under:

Water and Life > Nature of Freshwater Ecosystems

Water and Life > Stresses and Pressures on Ecosystems

Science of Water > Hydrological Processes
Water in war: Understanding the impacts of armed conflict on water resources and their management
Authors: Schillinger Juliane , Özerol Gül , Güven‐Griemert Şermin , Heldeweg Michiel
Published: August 2020

Armed conflict has the potential to disrupt water systems that are crucial to environmental and human wellbeing. Yet there is no comprehensive overview of scientific evidence on the impact of armed conflicts on water resources and their management. This paper assesses the relevant scientific evidence through a systematic literature review. We discern conceptual, empirical, and methodological approaches adopted in the reviewed publications and synthesize the overarching research results. Common research topics across the body of literature include the role of water resources in armed conflicts, either as a casualty or as a weapon used by conflict parties, and the implications of armed conflict on water resources management, such as basic service provision and water governance. The analysis also pinpoints the research field's focus on empirical studies based on a small number of cases, and highlights a lack of conceptual engagement with the notion of armed conflict. Future research on water resources and their management in conflict settings needs to be more transparent on conceptual frameworks and assumptions to facilitate knowledge integration across different studies.

This article is categorized under:

Planning Water > Engineering Water

Water Governance > Human Water
Variations in dew moisture regimes in desert ecosystems and their influencing factors
Authors: Yu Ruihong , Zhang Zhuangzhuang , Lu Xixi , Chang I‐Shin , Liu Tingxi
Published: August 2020

As an important source of non‐rainfall input of land–surface liquid water, dew has considerable ecological and hydrological significance in desert ecosystems. Dew moisture regime is commonly used for characterizing available dew. It discloses not only the contributions of dew to plants, small animals, and biological crusts but also the mechanism by which desert organisms adapt to extreme climates. By reviewing the existing researches on dew moisture regimes in desert ecosystems, this study reveals the variations in the amount and duration of dew, as well as its influencing factors at site‐, catchment‐, and regional scales, based on the radiation cooling theory and the physical mechanisms of dew formation. Furthermore, it compares the differences in dew moisture between various sites and catchments, illustrates the trends in daily and annual dew moisture in various deserts, and identifies the existing problems of researches on dew moisture regimes amid climate change. The findings of this study enhance preliminary knowledge on the reasonable utilization of dew water, worldwide.

This article is categorized under:

Science of Water > Hydrological Processes

Water and Life > Nature of Freshwater Ecosystems
Imagination, the Brain’s Default Mode Network, and Imaginative Verbal Artifacts
Authors: Carroll Joseph
Published: August 2020

The purpose of this chapter is to explain how imaginative verbal artifacts are produced by the imagination and in turn influence the imagination. Assimilating recent neuroscientific research on the evolution of modern brain shape and on the brain’s default mode network, we can now say with confidence that the imagination is a neurological reality, that it is lodged in specific parts of the brain, that it consists of an identifiable set of components and processes, that these components and processes have adaptive functions, and that in fulfilling its functions imagination has been a major causal factor in making Homo sapiens the dominant species on earth. The first section of the chapter defines the main terms in this argument. The second section describes the evolution of modern brain shape and suggests the role imagination has played in producing the complex of behaviors that characterize neurologically modern Homo sapiens. The third section describes the current neuroscientific understanding of the brain’s default mode network—the neurological locus of imagination. The fourth section describes three core processes of imagination used in constructing imaginative verbal artifacts: simulation, mental time travel, and perspective taking (also known as “Theory of Mind” and “mentalizing”). The three processes are illustrated with reference to a modern American novel, Wallace Stegner’s Angle of Repose. The fifth section describes four specialized forms of imagination that deploy the core processes: dreaming, mind-wandering, autobiographical narratives, and counterfactual thinking. That section explains how these forms are involved in writing or reading literature and identifies a few literary works that illustrate them. The final section sums up the argument for the adaptive functions of literature.
The Role of Aesthetic Style in Alleviating Anxiety About the Future
Authors: Carney James
Published: August 2020

Though few would dispute that aesthetic style is a vehicle for cognitive effects, there is little systematic work that views style from anything other than a historical perspective. This chapter will outline how style, broadly conceived, can be understood as an attempt to avoid anxiety by gaining predictive traction on the future. The central claim will be that style evolved as complexity reduction device, to the extent that it is a predictive scheme that balances explanatory simplicity against model accuracy. I shall show that every given style achieves this by saturating the perceptual environment with evidence for a particular model of the world. This account of style explains several features of its target phenomenon, including its normative character, its polemical nature, and its transitory duration. It also allows for style to be seen as continuous with other complexity reduction strategies on the part of biological agents more generally. The discussion will be supported by a historical appreciation of how style has been theorized in the past, but my overall framework will be provided by information theory.
Engineering Academisation: The Transition of Lower Level Engineering Education from Upper Secondary School Level to Higher Education
Authors: Fagrell Per , Geschwind Lars
Published: August 2020

In Sweden, engineering education at the upper secondary school level was transformed in the early 1990s into a 2-year programme at the higher education level. This development could be seen as an opportunity for higher education institutions to expand the volume of engineering programmes, but also as a sign of external pressure for changes in organisational structure and identity. The main aim of this chapter is to analyse and understand how technical universities acted upon and responded to the proposals to change the system of engineering education in Sweden. The study underlying this chapter is a historical documentary research study, complemented by a select number of semi-structured elite interviews. The results show that while the university colleges embraced the idea of transformation, the leading technical universities were less supportive. In fact, three of the four leading technical universities/faculties structured their new engineering programmes as a dual system within the framework of a seemingly unified system. One reason was to protect the core of the organisations’ identities as strongly anchored in their research and master’s programmes. In reality, they used the change process as a way to preserve or even strengthen their existing identity, without adding or removing anything.
Double Degree Programmes in Engineering and Education: Two Cases from Swedish Technical Universities
Authors: Cronhjort Mikael , Geschwind Lars
Published: August 2020

Some technical universities offer programmes where students receive two degrees: one in engineering and one in education. This is a rather novel phenomenon that occurs in, for example, Sweden, Finland, Germany, Greece, and Israel. Degree programmes in education challenge the boundaries of what technical universities have regarded as their sphere of interest. We investigated two such programmes in Sweden, at KTH Royal Institute of Technology and Chalmers University, to study the reasons for offering these programmes and how competence has been built in this field. We also explored whether the programmes are given in cooperation with other partners and where in the organisation they belong. We investigated these questions by analysing documents and interviewing people who were involved as initiators or programme directors. Key motivations for introducing the programmes were found to be ambitions related to long-term student recruitment, by focusing on teachers and the teaching profession. One ambition that we identified was to improve mobility between engineering and teaching, in both directions. Other ambitions included increasing future teachers’ subject knowledge, and improving integration of different parts within teacher education to make it more holistic. The significance of the engineering context and the self-image of the technical university are discussed.
Are Some Technical Universities Better Than Others?
Authors: Benner Mats
Published: August 2020

Technical universities is an omnibus concept, which may conceal variations. This is the fundamental assumption of this chapter, which deals with three technical universities in three European countries: KTH in Sweden, DTU in Denmark, and EPFL in Switzerland. Based on an analysis of scientific impact profiles and their alignment with government steering, funding and internal organisation and leadership, it is concluded that there are marked variations between the three technical universities. It cannot be said that one technical university is better than others; only that they configure tasks and roles differently.
The Position of Technical Universities Within Changing Frameworks of Institutional Organisation and Steering: The Case of the Norwegian University of Science and Technology
Authors: Vabø Agnete , Langfeldt Liv
Published: August 2020

In Norway, the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) is regarded as the preeminent technological university. Within the framework of the massification of higher education, the institution’s status and autonomy have been challenged by changing state governance and social conditions. The period from 1980 onwards has also been characterised by high demand in subjects other than the technological. This chapter establishes a sociological-historical perspective and concepts to highlight dimensions that are important for NTNU to reproduce its status under changing governance regimes – for example, in the form of closure mechanisms and close links to specific groups in the social class structure. NTNU is understood as part of an academic field (Bourdieu P, Homo Academicus. Stanford University Press, Stanford, 1988) with unequal strengths and distribution of power between subjects and actors – which has an impact on how state governance and other external issues are interpreted and translated into the NTNU organisation. It is argued that NTNU’s choice of management model, principal and external chair of the university board symbolises dominant positions in the field as well as legitimises institutional strategies both internally and in relation to the significant external relationships.
Integrating the Academic and Professional Values in Engineering Education – Ideals and Tensions
Authors: Edström Kristina
Published: August 2020

Higher engineering education is simultaneously academic, emphasising theory in a range of subjects, and professional, preparing students for engineering practice. While technical universities hold this “dual nature” as an ideal, it is also a source of tensions. The pursuit of the ideal in curriculum reform is here represented by the CDIO Initiative. It was founded in the year 2000 by MIT, Chalmers University of Technology, KTH Royal Institute of Technology and Linköping University, and presently engages some 150 institutions worldwide. The CDIO community challenges zero-sum interpretations of the academic-professional tension, and advocates an integrated curriculum with theoretical and professional aspects in a meaningful relationship. The approach is illustrated here by the case of the Mechanical Engineering programme at Chalmers. Then, taking a critical view, the organisational conditions for the integrated curriculum are analysed with an institutional logics perspective. It is proposed that engineering education is influenced by the logics of two professions: one is the engineering profession that we educate for, and the other is the academic profession of the educators. Tensions are located both in the curriculum and in the technical university organisation. Finally, the CDIO Initiative is described as a driver of institutional innovation in the organisational field.
Einleitung
Authors: Seibert Simon P. , Auerswald Karl
Published: August 2020

Steigende Hochwasserschäden durch Klimaänderungen und Landnutzungsänderungen erfordern, den Wasser- und Stoffrückhalt in der Landschaft zu verbessern. Dazu muss man die Wasserflüsse in der Landschaft und die vielfältigen Einflüsse des Menschen kennen, und vor allem muss man sie quantitativ beschreiben können. Erstes Ziel dieses Handbuchs besteht daher darin, Methoden zur Quantifizierung von Wasserflüssen für die Flur- und Landschaftsgestaltung und die Beratung der Landnutzer aufzubereiten. Zweites Ziel ist die Beschreibung und Quantifizierung von Maßnahmen, die den Abflussscheitel dämpfen. Dies schließt die Lücke zwischen den klassischen, in der Wasserwirtschaft etablierten Bemessungsansätzen und den Maßnahmen des dezentralen Wasserrückhalts, die in der bestehenden Literatur fast ausschließlich qualitativ beschrieben werden, damit in der Wirkung ungewiss erscheinen und sich einer Kosten-Nutzen-Analyse entziehen. Das Handbuch richtet sich an Planer und Ingenieure und weitere in der Flur tätigen Akteure wie Wasser- und Anbauberater, Pflege- und Zweckverbände, Hochschulangehörige, Fachinstitute und Entscheidungsträger an Behörden.
Grundlagen der Abflussentstehung, Sturzfluten und dezentralen Hochwasserschutzmaßnahmen
Authors: Seibert Simon P. , Auerswald Karl
Published: August 2020

Dieses Kapitel beschreibt den Landschaftswasserhaushalt und wesentliche Begriffe, Komponenten und Prozesse, die beim Niederschlag-Abfluss-Prozess von Bedeutung sind. Dabei werden insbesondere die drei wesentlichen Vorgänge erläutert, nämlich i) die Abflussbildung auf der Fläche (Entstehung von Oberflächenabfluss), ii) die Bündelung des Abflusses in der Fläche (Abflusskonzentration) und iii) der Fließprozess in Gerinnen und Gewässern (Wellenablauf). Darüber hinaus werden Einzugsgebiete charakterisiert, da sie die wesentliche räumliche Bezugsgröße zur Bilanzierung von Wasserflüssen darstellen. Eine Übersicht wichtiger Begriffe und Definitionen ist glossarartig zusammengestellt.
Optical tweezers-based velocimetry: a method to measure microscale unsteady flows
Authors: Dehnavi P. Ghoddoosi , Wei D. , Aubin-Tam M.-E. , Tam D. S. W.
Published: August 2020

In the study of micro-scale biological flows, velocimetry methods based on passive tracers, such as micro-PIV and micro-PTV, are well established to characterize steady flows. However, these methods become inappropriate for measuring unsteady flows of small amplitude, because, on these scales, the motion of passive tracers cannot be distinguished from Brownian motion. In this study, we use optical tweezers (OTs) in combination with Kalman filtering, to measure unsteady microscopic flows with high temporal accuracy. This method is referred to as optical tweezers-based velocimetry (OTV). The OTV method measures the nanometric displacements of a trapped bead, and predicts the instantaneous velocity of the flow by employing a Kalman filter. We discuss the accuracy of OTV in measuring unsteady flows with 1.5–70 $$\upmu$$
μ
m s$$^{-1}$$

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1

amplitudes and 10–90 Hz frequencies. We quantify how the bead size and the laser power affect the velocimetry accuracy, and specify the optimal choices for the bead size and laser power to measure different unsteady flows. OTV accurately measures unsteady flows with amplitudes as small as 3–6 $$\upmu$$
μ
m s$$^{-1}$$

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1

. We compare the accuracy of OTV and micro-PTV, and characterize the flow regime for which OTV outperforms micro-PTV. We also demonstrate the robustness of OTV by measuring the unsteady flow created by the cilia of green alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii, and comparing with numerical predictions based on Stokes equations. An open-source implementation of the OTV software in Matlab is available through the 4TU.Centre for Research Data.

Graphic abstract
Gut microbiota in inflammatory bowel diseases: moving from basic science to clinical applications
Authors: Collij Valerie , Klaassen Marjolein A. Y. , Weersma Rinse K. , Vila Arnau Vich
Published: August 2020

In recent years, large efforts have been made to unravel the role of the gut microbiota in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), which is a chronic inflammatory disorder of the gastro-intestinal tract. Considering the heterogeneity patients with IBD display in their disease course and response to treatment, there is a big need in translating these findings towards clinical practise. In this perspective article, we discuss strategies to facilitate the transition from basic science on gut microbiota in IBD to clinical applications. We suggest that setting gold standards, improving and increasing the biobanking efforts, and studying other members of the gut microbiota are a necessary step to reveal the exact role of the gut microbiota in IBD. In addition, we discuss the potential of the gut microbiome as a clinical tool for the diagnoses, prediction and/or treatment of the disease. We believe that the growing interest in the gut microbiota will reveal its potential in the management of IBD in a not too distant future.
Current distribution and voltinism of the brown marmorated stink bug, Halyomorpha halys, in Switzerland and its response to climate change using a high-resolution CLIMEX model
Authors: Stoeckli Sibylle , Felber Raphael , Haye Tim
Published: August 2020

Climate change can alter the habitat suitability of invasive species and promote their establishment. The highly polyphagous brown marmorated stinkbug, Halyomorpha halys Stål (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae), is native to East Asia and invasive in Europe and North America, damaging a wide variety of fruit and vegetable crops. In Switzerland, crop damage and increasing populations have been observed since 2017 and related to increasing temperatures. We studied the climatic suitability, population growth, and the number of generations under present and future climate conditions for H. halys in Switzerland, using a modified version of the bioclimatic model package CLIMEX. To address the high topographic variability in Switzerland, model simulations were based on climate data of high spatial resolution (approx. 2 km), which significantly increased their explanatory power, and identified many more climatically suitable areas in comparison to previous models. The validation of the CLIMEX model using observational records collected in a citizen science initiative between 2004 and 2019 revealed that more than 15 years after its accidental introduction, H. halys has colonised nearly all bioclimatic suitable areas in Switzerland and there is limited potential for range expansion into new areas under present climate conditions. Simulations with climate change scenarios suggest an extensive range expansion into higher altitudes, an increase in generations per year, an earlier start of H. halys activity in spring and a prolonged period for nymphs to complete development in autumn. A permanent shift from one to two generations per year and the associated population growth of H. halys may result in increasing crop damages in Switzerland. These results highlight the need for monitoring the spread and population development in the north-western part of Switzerland and higher altitudes of the valleys of the south.