bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Three Algorithms for Grouping Students: A Bridge Between Personalized Tutoring System Data and Classroom Pedagogy
Authors: Lechuga Christopher G. , Doroudi Shayan
Published: September 2022

Computer-assisted instructional programs such as intelligent tutoring systems are often used to support blended learning practices in K-12 education, as they aim to meet individual student needs with personalized instruction. While these systems have been shown to be effective under certain conditions, they can be difficult to integrate into pedagogical practices. In this paper, we introduce three group formation algorithms that leverage learning data from the adaptive intelligent tutoring system ALEKS to support pedagogical and collaborative learning practices with ALEKS. Each grouping method was devised for different use cases, but they all utilize a fine-grained multidimensional view of student ability measured across several hundred skills in an academic course. As such, the grouping algorithms not only identify groups of students, but they also determine what areas of ALEKS content each group should focus on. We then evaluate each of the three methods against two alternative baseline methods, which were chosen for their plausibility of being used in practice—one that groups students randomly and one that groups students based on a unidimensional course score. To evaluate these methods, we establish a set of practical metrics based on what we anticipate teachers would care about in practice. Evaluations were performed by simulating mock groupings of students at different time periods for real ALEKS algebra classes that occurred between 2017 and 2019. We show that each devised method obtains more favorable results on the specified metrics than the alternative methods under each use-case. Moreover, we highlight examples where our methods lead to more nuanced groupings than grouping based on a unidimensional measure of ability.
Causal Inference of Social Experiments Using Orthogonal Designs
Authors: Heckman James J. , Pinto Rodrigo
Published: September 2022

Orthogonal arrays are a powerful class of experimental designs that has been widely used to determine efficient arrangements of treatment factors in randomized controlled trials. Despite its popularity, the method is seldom used in social sciences. Social experiments must cope with randomization compromises such as noncompliance that often prevent the use of elaborate designs. We present a novel application of orthogonal designs that addresses the particular challenges arising in social experiments. We characterize the identification of counterfactual variables as a finite mixture problem in which choice incentives, rather than treatment factors, are randomly assigned. We show that the causal inference generated by an orthogonal array of incentives greatly outperforms a traditional design.
Modelling of free bubble growth with Interface Capturing Computational Fluid Dynamics
Authors: Giustini Giovanni , Issa Raad I.
Published: September 2022

This paper presents simulations of the growth of stationary and rising vapour bubbles in an extend pool of liquid using an Interface Capturing Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) methodology coupled with a method for simulating interfacial mass transfer at the vapour-liquid interface. The model enables mechanistic prediction of the local rate of phase change at the vapour-liquid interface and is applicable to realistic cases involving two-phase mixtures with large density ratios. The simulation methodology is based on the Volume of Fluid (VOF) representation of the flow, whereby an interfacial region in which mass transfer occurs is implicitly identified by a phase indicator, in this case the volume fraction of liquid, which varies from the value pertaining to the “bulk” liquid to the value of the bulk vapour. The novel methodology proposed here has been implemented using the Finite Volume framework and solution methods typical of “industrial” CFD practice embedded in the OpenFOAM CFD toolbox. Simulations are validated via comparison against experimental observations of spherical bubble growth in zero gravity and of the growth of a rising bubble in normal gravity. The validation cases represent a severe test for Interface Capturing methodologies due to large density ratios, the presence of strong interfacial evaporation and upward bubble rise motion. Agreement of simulation results with measurements available in the literature demonstrates that the methodology detailed herein is applicable to modelling bubble growth driven by phase-change in real fluids.
Evaluation of the impact of electron beam welding parameters on the mechanical properties and microstructure of the resulting joint for 39CrMoV13 and M50NiL steel grades
Authors: Wencel Zbigniew , Wiewiórowska Sylwia , Wieczorek Paweł , Michalczyk Jacek , Gontarz Andrzej
Published: September 2022

The paper covers a study consisting on the implementation of the electron beam welding process of two steel grades: 39CrMoV13 and M50NiL. The welding process was carried out for two values of electron beam debunching, obtaining a joint having different widths. Then, for the samples, after each welding variant, heat treatment was carried out consisting of double tempering at 520 °C for 3 h, and single freezing at − 84 °C for 3 h, combined with single tempering at 520 °C for 3 h. The impact of the parameters of the electron beam welding process and the subsequent heat treatment process on the mechanical properties and microstructure of the resulting joint was analysed. The conducted tests allowed to select the optimum welding technology combined with the heat treatment process for the tested steel grades ensuring that a weld is obtained in which the level of mechanical properties was close to the level of values obtained for the base material.
Recursive quality optimization of a smart forming tool under the use of perception based hybrid datasets for training of a Deep Neural Network
Authors: Feldmann S. , Schmiedt M. , Schlosser J. M. , Rimkus W. , Stempfle T. , Rathmann C.
Published: September 2022

In industrial metal forming processes, the generation of datasets for inline and optical quality assessment is expensive and time-consuming. Within the research project SimKI, conventional metal forming plants were digitalized under the use of perception-based 3D-sensors in combination with a completely redesigned forming tool. The integration of optical quality observation methods connected with a retrofitting approach of the press tool provides the opportunity to generate an information-feedback loop that predicts part defects before their occurrence. Additionally, the SimKI-method combines conventional statistical measurement methods with AI-based defect detection algorithms that are trained by generic datasets of a finite-element simulation, real component images of a 3D imaging device, and a combination of both. The generated datasets are used to accelerate the training of a DNN-based algorithm to identify the position and deviation from the agreed quality. The high degree of innovation is based on obtaining real-time component quality information under the use of AI-based optical quality assessment, which in turn provides information to the control algorithm of the smart forming tool.
How to Answer Dworkin’s Argument from Theoretical Disagreement Without Attributing Confusion or Disingenuity to Legal Officials
Authors: Watson Bill
Published: September 2022

Ronald Dworkin’s argument from theoretical disagreement remains a pressing challenge for legal positivists. In this paper, I show how positivists can answer Dworkin’s argument without having to attribute confusion or disingenuity to legal officials. I propose that the argument rests on two errors. The first is to assume that positivism requires legal officials to converge on precise grounds of law when convergence on more general grounds will do. The second is to construe judicial speech too literally. If we pay attention to the pragmatics of judicial speech, we see that judges do not disagree over what the grounds of law are; they at most disagree over how courts should proceed when agreed-upon, though imprecise, grounds of law underdetermine what the content of the law directs in the case at hand.
Memorandum of understanding between the government of the United Kingdom of great Britain and northern Ireland and the government of the Republic of Rwanda
Authors: Goodwin-Gill Guy S.
Published: September 2022

The Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was signed in Kigali, Rwanda on April 13, 2022 by the United Kingdom's Secretary of State for the Home Department, Priti Patel, and the Rwandan Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Co-operation, Vincent Biruta. It is part of the UK Government's strategy to deal with asylum seekers, particularly those deemed to arrive “irregularly,” under which Rwanda will take responsibility for those deported in return for payments from the United Kingdom, including an upfront payment of £120 million. The United Kingdom will also pay the processing and integration costs for each relocated person.
Judicial Loyalty to the Military in Authoritarian Regimes: How the Courts Are Militarized in Myanmar
Authors: Crouch Melissa
Published: September 2022

While scholars have considered the role of courts in authoritarian regimes generally, less attention has been paid to judicial-military relations. In this article I consider how courts are militarized and made subordinate and loyal to military rule. In military regimes, the courts are at risk of militarization and the process of rendering judges loyal to the military through practices such as career path socialization, selection, and restructuring of the courts. This raises an entry-exit dilemma for judges. The dilemma lies in the fact that if judges committed to civilian rule do not join the bench, they are potentially leaving the judiciary to military partisans with little prospect for reform. Yet joining the judiciary means the danger of being co-opted and adding legitimacy to the military regime or the risk of being forced out if politics shifts from civilian to military rule. Through a case study of judicial profiles in Myanmar, I explore how the loyalty of judges to the military depends on whether they are military insiders, military affiliates, civilian affiliates, or civilian outsiders. The case of Myanmar is a vivid reminder to scholars of judicial behavior that in military authoritarian regimes, judges face an entry-exit dilemma.
Characterising Dutch forests, wetlands and cultivated lands on the basis of phytolith assemblages
Authors: de Wolf Iris K. , McMichael Crystal N.H. , Philip Annemarie L. , Gosling William D.
Published: September 2022

Palaeoecological reconstructions in the Netherlands are commonly based on pollen and macrofossil analysis, but can be limited if the preservation of organic material is poor. Phytoliths, biogenic silica, do not have this limitation and preserve in settings where other macro- and microfossils do not. Little is known about how phytolith assemblages preserved in soils and sediments reflect the parent vegetation in north-western European systems, so it is currently difficult to contextualise past environments. Here, we characterise phytolith assemblages for soil samples recovered from three major vegetation types in the Netherlands to provide reference data for future reconstructions of past vegetation change. We collected 42 soil surface samples from forests, wetlands and agricultural fields across the Netherlands and characterised the phytolith assemblages they contained. We identified the different phytolith morphotypes and quantified the percentages and concentrations (#phytoliths/cm3 soil) in each sample. We used non-metric multidimensional scaling to assess the variation in phytolith assemblage composition within, and between, the three vegetation types. The phytolith assemblages analysed from the forests, wetlands and agricultural fields were clearly distinguishable from each other. Agricultural fields were dominated by four phytolith morphotypes of grass silica short cells (GSSCs): rondel (tabular), cross type 1 (>15 µm), rondel (elongated) and disturbance or crop phytoliths. Forests settings had significantly higher amounts of different arboreal phytoliths (large and small spheroid rugose) compared with other vegetation types. Wetlands could be identified by significantly higher amounts of Cyperaceae phytoliths (papillate) and other GSSCs (saddle and bilobates with thick castula). Phytolith assemblages could distinguish different subtypes of vegetation within forest and wetland areas, while differences between agricultural systems could not be identified. Our study demonstrates that phytoliths preserved in soils or sediments can be used to separate major vegetation types across the Netherlands. Thus, these results support the hypothesis that phytoliths can be used to infer past environmental conditions in palaeoecological reconstructions. We suggest that future work should: (1) focus on characterising which phytolith types are produced by the commonest tree, wetland, shrub and herb species in the Netherlands and (2) characterise phytolith assemblages across a wider array of vegetation types in north-western European systems to increase the capability for quantitative reconstructions using phytolith assemblages.
A pedagogical review of the vacuum retarded dipole model of pulsar spin down
Authors: Satherley J. C. , Gordon C.
Published: September 2022

Pulsars are rapidly spinning highly magnetised neutron stars. Their spin period is observed to decrease with time. An early analytical model for this process was the vacuum retarded dipole (VRD) by Deutsch (1955, AnAp, 18). This model assumes an idealised star and it finds that the rotational energy is radiated away by the electromagnetic fields. This model has been superseded by more realistic numerical simulations that account for the non-vacuum like surroundings of the neutron star. However, the VRD still provides a reasonable approximation and is a useful limiting case that can provide some qualitative understanding. We provide detailed derivations of the spin down and related electromagnetic field equations of the VRD solution. We also correct typographical errors in the general field equations and boundary conditions used by Deutsch (1955, AnAp, 18).
Varieties of Dramatic Criticism
Authors: Crane R. S.
Published: September 2022

There is a sentence in Arthur Mizener's preface to Volume I of the
Carleton Drama Bulletin which may serve to
point the direction of my remarks this evening. It is our ambition, he says,
“to pull together the drama as a thing alive on the stage and the drama as a
thing read, contemplated, and discussed“—in other words, to conjoin drama in
the concrete, as presented to our eyes, ears, and emotions by producers and
actors, with drama in the abstract, as brought to our minds through the
concepts and reasonings of dramatic critics. The chief concern of Mr.
Mizener was properly with the kinds of plays that would best promote a union
of the living stage and the stage as a formulated art. My concern, on the
other hand, will be with the second element in the combination: namely, with
the conditions under which, in such a program, the reading and study of
dramatic criticism may help to advance rather than to hinder the realization
of its double aim.
The Theatre of Genet: A Sociological Study
Authors: Goldmann Lucien
Published: September 2022

Until a few years ago, aestheticians, critics, and literary historians
accorded sociology only marginal status. However, the availability of Georg
Lukacs’ early work, the psychological and epistemological researches of Jean
Piaget, and the acceptance of the dialectic as genetic structuralism has
changed all that.

Traditional sociology —which still dominates university teaching — tried
to relate the content of a literary work to the
content of the collective unconscious: how
men think and act in daily life. Such criticism becomes more effective the
more mundane is the writer being studied, content merely to relate his
experiences without imaginatively transposing them. Structural sociology
begins from premises that exclude those of traditional sociology.
Transfer of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans (PCDD/Fs) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) from oral exposure into cow’s milk – Part I: state of knowledge and uncertainties
Authors: Krause Torsten , Moenning Jan-Louis , Lamp Julika , Maul Ronald , Schenkel Hans , Fürst Peter , Pieper Robert , Numata Jorge
Published: September 2022

Polychlorinated dibenzo-para-dioxins (PCDDs) and dibenzofurans (PCDFs) (collectively and colloquially referred to as ‘dioxins’) as well as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are persistent and ubiquitous environmental contaminants that may unintentionally enter and accumulate along the food chain. Owing to their chronic toxic effects in humans and bioaccumulative properties, their presence in feed and food requires particular attention. One important exposure pathway for consumers is consumption of milk and dairy products. Their transfer from feed to milk has been studied for the past 50 years to quantify the uptake and elimination kinetics. We extracted transfer parameters (transfer rate, transfer factor, biotransfer factor and elimination half-lives) in a machine-readable format from seventy-six primary and twenty-nine secondary literature items. Kinetic data for some toxicologically relevant dioxin congeners and the elimination half-lives of dioxin-like PCBs are still not available. A well-defined selection of transfer parameters from literature was statistically analysed and shown to display high variability. To understand this variability, we discuss the data with an emphasis on influencing factors, such as experimental conditions, cow performance parameters and metabolic state. While no universal interpretation could be derived, a tendency for increased transfer into milk is apparently connected to an increase in milk yield and milk fat yield as well as during times of body fat mobilisation, for example during the negative energy balance after calving. Over the past decades, milk yield has increased to over 40 kg/d during high lactation, so more research is needed on how this impacts feed to food transfer for PCDD/Fs and PCBs.
The Peculiar Case of a Royal Peculiar: A Problem of Faculty at the Tower of London
Authors: Hawkins Alfred R J
Published: September 2022

Her Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress the Tower of London, less formally known as the Tower of London or simply ‘the Tower’, was the seat of royal power in England for several centuries following its construction by William the Conqueror in 1078. While now a popular tourist attraction, it remains the home of the Crown Jewels, is a working barracks and maintains many ceremonial traditions of state. Two chapels are located within its walls. Foremost of these is the late eleventh-century chapel of St John the Evangelist (St John's), located within the White Tower, noted as a rare surviving example of early Anglo-Norman ecclesiastic architecture. To the north-west, the Chapel of St Peter ad Vincula (St Peter's) has an equally remarkable history and is a building of singular importance even within the Tower complex. Its origins may be traced, like many London parish churches, to a small, private house-church in the ninth century, before being subsumed within the boundaries of the fortress. The chapel, the latest of three documented iterations, was constructed between 1519 and 1520 and is the burial place of many notable figures, including the sixteenth-century queens Anne Boleyn, Catherine Howard and Lady Jane Grey, together with Cardinal John Fisher and the former Lord Chancellor Sir Thomas More, both now venerated as martyrs and saints in the Roman Catholic Church.
Prevalence of neurodevelopmental disorders in a clinically referred sample of children with CHD
Authors: Loblein Hayley J. , Vukmirovich Patrick W. , Donofrio Mary T. , Sanz Jacqueline H.
Published: September 2022

Youth with CHD are at greater risk for neurodevelopmental disorders compared to healthy controls. The aetiology is multi-factorial but includes medical and demographic factors. We sought to characterise the prevalence of neurodevelopmental disorders in patients with CHD. Our population included 206 patients with CHD, aged 3–21, who were referred for neuropsychological evaluation. Neurodevelopmental diagnoses were determined by a licensed psychologist. Rates of neurodevelopmental diagnoses were compared to national prevalence rates. Exploratory analyses (chi-square) examined which medical factors (i.e., cardiac diagnosis, genetic condition, prematurity, seizures, and stroke) were associated with neurodevelopmental diagnosis. There was higher prevalence of neurodevelopmental disorders in CHD when compared to the general population (44%). Rates of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (27.3%), autism spectrum disorder (9.6%), and intellectual disability (5.9%) were notably higher than those seen in the general population (p < .01). Children with a history of aortic obstruction were more likely to be diagnosed with autism (p < .05), and children with genetic conditions were more likely to be diagnosed with an intellectual disability (p < .05). Neurodevelopmental diagnoses were not significantly associated with any other specific medical variables (e.g., cardiac diagnosis, seizures, stroke, prematurity, and antenatal diagnosis). School-aged children were more likely to be diagnosed with any neurodevelopmental disorder and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (31.7%; p < .01) than preschool-age children. In summary, our results confirm that children and adolescents with CHD are at high risk for neurodevelopmental disorders and require ongoing monitoring, care, and support. Children with genetic disorders and those with aortic obstruction may be more at risk for certain neurodevelopmental disorders.
Improving aspect-based neural sentiment classification with lexicon enhancement, attention regularization and sentiment induction
Authors: Bao Lingxian , Lambert Patrik , Badia Toni
Published: September 2022

Deep neural networks as an end-to-end approach lack robustness from an application point of view, as it is very difficult to fix an obvious problem without retraining the model, for example, when a model consistently predicts positive when seeing the word “terrible.” Meanwhile, it is less stressed that the commonly used attention mechanism is likely to “over-fit” by being overly sparse, so that some key positions in the input sequence could be overlooked by the network. To address these problems, we proposed a lexicon-enhanced attention LSTM model in 2019, named ATLX. In this paper, we describe extended experiments and analysis of the ATLX model. And, we also try to further improve the aspect-based sentiment analysis system by combining a vector-based sentiment domain adaptation method.
The association between serum folate and gestational diabetes mellitus: a large retrospective cohort study in Chinese population
Authors: Liu Xiao-Hui , Cao Zhi-Juan , Chen Li-Wei , Zhang Dong-Lan , Qu Xiao-Xian , Li Yu-Hong , Tang Yu-Ping , Bao Yi-Rong , Ying Hao
Published: September 2022

Objective:

To investigate the association between folate levels and the risk of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) risk during the whole pregnancy.

Design:

In this retrospective cohort study of pregnant women, serum folate levels were measured before 24 gestational weeks (GW). GDM was diagnosed between 24th and 28th GW based on the criteria of the International Association of Diabetes and Pregnancy Study Groups. General linear models were performed to examine the association of serum folate with plasma glucose (i.e. linear regressions) and risk of GDM (i.e. log-binomial regressions) after controlling for confounders. Restricted cubic spline regression was conducted to test the dosage–response relationship between serum folate and the risk of GDM.

Setting:

A sigle, urban hospital in Shanghai, China.

Participants:

A total of 42 478 women who received antenatal care from April 2013 to March 2017 were included.

Results:

Consistent positive associations were observed between serum folate and plasma glucose levels (fasting, 1-h, 2-h). The adjusted relative risks (RR) and 95 % CI of GDM across serum folate quartiles were 1·00 (reference), 1·15 (95 % CI (1·04, 1·26)), 1·40 (95 % CI (1·27, 1·54)) and 1·54 (95 % CI (1·40, 1·69)), respectively (P-for-trend < 0·001). The positive association between serum folate and GDM remained when stratified by vitamin B12 (adequate v. deficient groups) and the GW of serum folate measurement (≤13 GW v. >13 GWs)

Conclusions:

The findings of this study may provide important evidence for the public health and clinical guidelines of pregnancy folate supplementation in terms of GDM prevention.
Phenology, growth, and seed production of junglerice (Echinochloa colona) in response to its emergence time and populations
Authors: Chauhan Bhagirath S.
Published: September 2022

Junglerice [Echinochloa colona (L.) Link.] is the most important grass weed species in Australian summer cropping systems. Although it is mainly a spring- and summer-emerging weed species, field observations suggest that E. colona is expanding its seasonality. A common garden experiment was conducted at the University of Queensland farm to examine the effect of planting dates on phenology, growth, and fecundity of eight populations of E. colona. All populations were planted every second month from September to July in 2019 to 2020 and 2020 to 2021. Echinochloa colona took the shortest time (4 to 6 d) to emerge when planted in November or January. However, the November population took the longest number of growing degree days to exhibit panicle emergence. In both years, populations differed in height and leaf, tiller, panicle, and seed production in response to planting times. Plants produced significantly greater biomass for the November planting (123 to 147 g plant−1) followed by the January planting and then the September planting. The March planting produced the lowest biomass. In the first year, the lowest number of seeds (3,500 seeds plant−1) was produced by the March planting; however, in the second year, similar numbers of seeds were produced by the March and July plantings. In the first year, seed production (51,000 seeds plant−1) was greatest for the November planting; however, some populations also produced a similar number of seeds for the January planting. In the second year, significantly greater seed production (111,000 seeds plant−1) was observed for the January planting compared with other planting dates. The aboveground biomass and seed production of E. colona were positively correlated. This study reveals variations among E. colona populations and suggests that although greater emphasis must be placed on controlling spring- and summer-emerging plants, management practices need to be extended throughout the year to control E. colona in southeastern Australia.
Factor Structure of the eHEALS
Authors: Reder Maren , Soellner Renate
Published: September 2022

Abstract. The dimensionality of the eHEALS has been the subject of some controversy. Sample populations and language versions vary widely, as do the employed statistical methods to assess dimensionality. In previous research, we assessed the factor structure in two different samples testing 1 vs. 2 and 1 vs. 2 vs. 3 correlated factors. The objective of this reanalysis was to assess whether the 3-factor model fitted better than the 2- and 1-factor models. We analyzed data from a 2009 cross-sectional survey on health literacy in grade 12 ( n = 327) using CFA. All factor models of the eHEALS showed unsatisfactory model fit. A subsequent exploratory bifactor analysis confirmed multidimensionality and indicated that Item 2 was problematic. When this item was excluded from the correlated factor models, model fit improved, and the 3-factor model showed the best fit. The results in our sample of 12th-grade students offer some support to the German eHEALS having a 3-factor structure similar to the results from our previous research in women aged 50. The replicability of the fit pattern in a different sample and setting was limited by diverging results on Item 2.
Continued Warming of the Permafrost Regions Over the Northern Hemisphere Under Future Climate Change
Authors: Hu Guojie , Zhao Lin , Wu Tonghua , Wu Xiaodong , Park Hotaek , Li Ren , Zhu Xiaofan , Ni Jie , Zou Defu , Hao Junming , Li Wangping
Published: September 2022

Surface air temperatures can directly affect the thermal state of permafrost in the permafrost region of the Northern Hemisphere (PRONH). It is necessary to understand the trends in air temperatures and consider actual CMIP future scenario output instead of a linear temperature increase over different permafrost regions. In this study, air temperatures from 23 models of the sixth coupled‐model intercomparison project (CMIP6) are evaluated against observational data from the PRONH. It is shown that most of the models reasonably represent the dominant characteristics of air temperature variations. Under three different future scenarios, air temperature and warming trends are examined using an optimal model ensemble. Results show that mean annual air temperature (MAAT) is higher in sporadic‐permafrost and isolated‐permafrost regions than in continuous‐permafrost regions. MAAT warming rates were 0.10°C/decade and 0.35°C/decade from 1900 to 2014 and from 1980 to 2014, respectively, and were 0.09°C/decade, 0.38°C/decade, and 0.95°C/decade from 2015 to 2100 under the low‐ to high‐emission scenarios. Air temperature varies considerably between the high‐altitude, transitional, and high‐latitude permafrost regions (HLR), and warming trends are the greatest in HLR under future scenarios. Moreover, warming trends in different permafrost classes vary little from the historical values from 1900 to 2014, and with a gradual increase from isolated‐permafrost regions to continuous‐permafrost regions under future scenarios. The results suggested that air temperatures in the PRONH warmed approximately 1.6 times faster than global air temperatures from 1980 to 2014 and under the three future scenarios.
Glacier Contributions to River Discharge During the Current Chilean Megadrought
Authors: McCarthy Michael , Meier Fabienne , Fatichi Simone , Stocker Benjamin D. , Shaw Thomas E. , Miles Evan , Dussaillant Inés , Pellicciotti Francesca
Published: September 2022

The current Chilean megadrought has led to acute water shortages in central Chile since 2010. Glaciers have provided vital fresh water to the region's rivers, but the quantity, timing and sustainability of that provision remain unclear. Here we combine in‐situ, remote sensing and climate reanalysis data to show that from 2010 to 2018 during the megadrought, unsustainable imbalance ablation of glaciers (ablation not balanced by new snowfall) strongly buffered the late‐summer discharge of the Maipo River, a primary source of water to Santiago. If there had been no glaciers, water availability would have been reduced from December through May, with a 31 ± 19% decrease during March. Our results indicate that while the annual contributions of imbalance ablation to river discharge during the megadrought have been small compared to those from precipitation and sustainable balance ablation, they have nevertheless been a substantial input to a hydrological system that was already experiencing high water stress. The water‐equivalent volume of imbalance ablation generated in the Maipo Basin between 2010 and 2018 was 740 × 106 m3 (19 ± 12 mm yr−1), approximately 3.4 times the capacity of the basin's El Yeso Reservoir. This is equivalent to 14% of Santiago's potable water use in that time, while total glacier ablation was equivalent to 59%. We show that glacier retreat will exacerbate river discharge deficits and further jeopardize water availability in central Chile if precipitation deficits endure, and conjecture that these effects will be amplified by climatic warming.
Improving Satellite Monitoring of Armed Conflicts
Authors: Bennett M. M. , Van Den Hoek J. , Zhao B. , Prishchepov A. V.
Published: September 2022

Very‐high resolution (VHR) satellite imagery is increasingly used to visualize the effects of armed conflicts in near‐real time. Yet these data, typically commercial, are generally released selectively or for a fee, impeding scientific and humanitarian applications. Such images also tend to focus on cities or infrastructure, obscuring the effects of war in rural or sparsely populated areas such as forests. To leverage VHR imagery for improved and more holistic conflict monitoring, we call for (a) archiving VHR images for scientific and humanitarian use; (b) producing analysis‐ready, conflict‐wide VHR mosaics to harmonize monitoring; and (c) forming a sustainably funded public VHR satellite program. International coordination on such a satellite could also support the transformation of VHR Earth observation (EO) data into a public good. Taking these three steps promises to revolutionize conflict monitoring, much in the way that opening access to lower‐resolution EO data has stimulated new discoveries about the planet's ecosystems and human impacts. Broadening and standardizing access to and analysis of archived VHR imagery may improve understandings of war, empower and refine responses, and potentially, mitigate future conflicts.
Interplanetary Control of High‐Latitude Thermospheric Winds: Results From HIWIND and Model Simulations
Authors: Tan Yusha , Dang Tong , Lei Jiuhou , Zhang Binzheng , Wang Wenbin , Yang Ziyi , Pham Kevin , Sorathia Kareem
Published: September 2022

Based on the observations from the balloon‐borne instrument High‐altitude Interferometer WIND experiment (HIWIND) and the simulations from the Thermosphere Ionosphere Electrodynamics General Circulation Model (TIEGCM), the Grid Agnostic MHD Environment for Research Applications (GAMERA)‐TIEGCM (GT), and the GAMERA‐TIEGCM‐RCM (GTR), we investigate the variations of summer high‐latitude thermospheric winds and their physical mechanisms from 25 to 30 June, 2018. HIWIND observations show that the meridional winds were the largest at midnight and exhibited strong day‐to‐day variations during the 6‐day period, which were generally reproduced by those three models. The day‐to‐day variations of winds were mainly associated with the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) perturbations, while the magnetic latitude variations also contributed to the large day‐to‐day variations of the winds seen in the observations. Meanwhile, the zonal winds were mostly westward during the daytime, and the wind speed became large, especially in the afternoon, which is related to the westward ion drift velocity. The observed meridional winds tend to turn equatorward during the daytime on some days, while the simulated winds blow mostly poleward except for simulations by the GTR model on 26 June. The GTR model revealed that the equatorward meridional winds on 26 June were associated with strong and negative IMF conditions, which tilts the convection pattern to the prenoon sector. The simulations also revealed that the ring current could contribute to affecting the neutral wind variations, especially under geomagnetically active conditions.
Effects of Covering Layer of Sand Particles on Particle‐Bed Collision and Aeolian Sand Transport
Authors: Zhang C. , Dun H. , Meng X. , Huang N.
Published: September 2022

The movement of sand particles on the desert is the primary mechanism resulting in the development of sandstorms. Scientists have found that the physicochemical environments of terrestrial planets can cause the surface of sand particles to form a peelable covering layer, which may shed gradually during the movement of sand particles and affect the collision process between sand particles and bed surface, and finally affect aeolian sand transport itself. However, only a few studies have investigated these microscopic physical processes and conducted quantitative analysis of the relationship between covering layer mass and its coefficient of restitution (COR) when a particle impact desert surface. In this study, we collected four types of natural sand particles from the Badain Jaran, Mu Us, and Taklimakan deserts and the shoreside of the Yellow River respectively. A hydrochloric acid solution was used to dissolve the surface‐covering layer of sand particles, and high‐speed photography was used to capture the process of particle‐bed collision. The motion characteristics of the sand particles under different covering layers were analyzed using statistical analysis, and the quantitative formula between the COR and the covering layer mass was provided. This calculation result was further incorporated into an aeolian sand transport model to evaluate the effect of the covering layer on sand flux. Considering the ubiquity of covering layer on sand particle, the methodology proposed in this study can be used to simulate sand drift on Earth, Mars, and other terrestrial planets more accurately.
Mud Diapir or Fault‐Related Fold? On the Development of an Active Mud‐Cored Anticline Offshore Southwestern Taiwan
Authors: Wang Yu , Lin Yunung Nina , Ota Yoko , Chung Ling‐Ho , Shyu J. Bruce H. , Chiang Hong‐Wei , Chen Yue‐Gau , Hsu Ho‐Han , Shen Chuan‐Chou
Published: September 2022

There has been a controversial debate about the roles of diapiric folding versus fault‐related folding in mud‐cored anticlines. This study tackles this debate by looking into the structural developments in southwestern Taiwan. Among all the structures, the Liuchiu anticline is the only active structure exposed above sea level and therefore offers a unique opportunity to integrate land and marine data sets. On Liuchiu Island, we obtained the fold core geometry at the surface and identified three terrace groups with age constraints. In the offshore area, we obtained the fold limb geometry from seismic profiles. Given the tight fold shape and the asymmetric terrace tilting, we found that a hybrid fault tip fold‐fault propagation fold model can best explain the geologic and geomorphic features. In this regard, mud diapirism should be a secondary process, possibly along discrete patches of mobile shales to enhance fold amplification. Our model yields decreasing shortening rates from 0.7 mm/yr during the Plio‐Pleistocene to 0.375 mm/yr since 120 ka. The uplift rate however increases since the mid‐Holocene, which we tentatively attribute to larger mobile shale deformation triggered by earthquakes along the fault after the near‐fault fluids are drained. At the regional scale, we further suggest that the remaining plate convergence is absorbed by a few major structures west of Liuchiu Island.
A Thermodynamic Formulation of Water Potential in Soil
Authors: Zhang Chao , Gou Lingyun , Hu Shaojie , Lu Ning
Published: September 2022

In the mid‐20th century, harnessing of thermodynamics in describing water movement in soil, viz the concept of water potential, marks the emergence of modern soil physics, unsaturated soil mechanics, and vadose zone hydrology. Yet to date, a seamless linkage between thermodynamics and water potential is still missing, leading to several long‐lasting dilemmas regarding soil properties, for example, abnormal soil water density, peculiar film water viscosity and relative permittivity, pore water pressure, and water freezing temperature depression. Here, a thermodynamic framework is established by synthesizing recent advancements in soil‐water interaction. The classical thermodynamic concepts are revisited, highlighting the difference between macroscopic systems commonly treated in conventional theories and the intermolecular scale system subject to external fields. Soil water is conceived as an intermolecular scale open thermodynamic system subject to external fields of gravity, osmosis, and adsorption. The formulated thermodynamic framework is verified by reducing to the conventional definition of matric potential and a recently proposed unitary definition. The accuracy of the framework is further justified in terms of mechanical equilibrium criteria. The framework predicts the existence of spatially varied pore water pressure in soil pores and can serve as the theoretical basis for reconciling the physical origin of abnormal soil behavior such as water density, film water viscosity, relative permittivity, and negative or positive pore water pressure.
Communicating with Congress
Authors: Anonymous
Published: September 2022

“The most important thing you can do is make known to your representative and your senators your concern about the national investment in science and technology,” says presidential science advisor D. Allan Bromley, who is quoted in a new pamphlet, “Communicating with Congress,” published by the American Institute of Physics.

Included are tips on writing to a member of Congress, suggesting a brief, one‐page letter with three paragraphs: the first stating the letter's purpose and the writer's credentials, the second elaborating on the issue of concern, and the third asking for action. “Responding to mail is crucial to reelection, and a great deal of congressional staff time is devoted to responding to letters from constituents,” the pamphlet says.
Crustal deformation
Authors: Agnew Dunca Carr
Published: September 2022

One of the lessons of geology, and now one of the tenets of plate tectonics theory, is that most of the Earth's crust does not deform very much. Most of the deformation takes place along the relatively narrow plate boundaries. Working out the details of how this deformation takes place, and the physics of the Earth revealed by it, is a major research enterprise, particularly because the slow deformation between the plates creates the elastic energy released in earthquakes.

Recent developments in measurement and laboratory studies are beginning to bring our picture of crustal deformation into better focus. Since the motion along most plate boundaries is less than 10 cm/year over a width (on the continents) of 100 km or more, the rates of strain to be measured rarely approach 10−6/yr, and are often much less (except when earthquakes occur). Conventional surveying techniques have precisions of 105, so that any motion can only be measured over many decades. Space geodesy, most notably measurements of signals from Global Positioning System (GPS) satellites operated by the U.S. Department of Defense, represent a significant advance over conventional techniques. The precision of GPS appears to be within a few millimeters over distances of hundreds of kilometers, so that rates of deformation can now be measured in a few years.
Nevada told to process Yucca permits
Authors: Bush Susan
Published: September 2022

The U.S. District Court in Nevada ruled this March that the state must begin processing permits that would allow the Department of Energy to conduct scientific studies on Yucca Mountain, the heavily debated proposed location of the nation's nuclear waste repository. The studies will determine the stability of the site, located about 100 miles northwest of Las Vegas.

Carl Gertz, DOE's director of the Yucca Mountain Project, is careful to say that processing the permits does not mean issuing the permits. Beatrice Reilley, of the same office, adds that it is “debatable” whether or not the state is making progress in processing the permits.
Request for comments on research issues
Authors: Anonymous
Published: September 2022

The past year has witnessed an intensifying discussion about the process of research funding in the United States, with issues including big science, little science, directed research, undirected research, centers of excellence, individual initiative, the relative merits of all these, and their relation to one another. Closely coupled to this debate is a perception that U.S. research capabilities are eroding in spite of substantive increases in the research budget. This discussion has primarily occurred through the media, individual letters, and anecdotes and only rarely through specialized reports such as the Lederman Report.

The National Academy of Science'National Research Council Committee on Solar‐Terrestrial Research (CSTR) and Committee on Solar and Space Physics (CSSP) are jointly undertaking a study of these issues as they affect solar, solar‐terrestrial, and space physics research. As part of the study, the CSTR/CSSP is assembling a data base of grant programs and science projects conducted over the past decade by the main funding sources for these communities, allowing a framework within which to view the many sides of the issues.
Eruption under way at Colima, Mexico
Authors: Anonymous
Published: September 2022

Volcanic activity beginning in March at Colima, in southwest Mexico (19.51°N, 103.61°W), has turned into a major eruption that is continuing as of May 1. The following report was provided by the Smithsonian Institution's Global Volcanism Network. All times are local (= UT −6 hours).

“Lava extrusion began on March 1, following increases in seismicity, dome deformation, and thermal activity in late February. By mid‐March, the new lobe was large enough to be visible from Colima city (about 30 km from the volcano). Geologists visiting the summit on March 27 reported that the lava dome was 100 m across, 30–40 m high, and still growing. Some lava flowed into a small depression just northeast of the nearly symmetrical dome. At the time of the visit, the dome margin was 3 m from the southwest crater rim and spawned about 3 avalanches/hour. Advance of the lava was shown by blocks falling from the dome front.
Hagelberg and Doney take Ocean Science Student Honors
Authors: Anonymous
Published: September 2022

The Ocean Sciences Committee has announced the winners of Outstanding Student Paper and Outstanding Student Poster, for presentations given at the AGU held in San Francisco, December 3–7. In the Outstanding Student Paper category, Terri Hagelberg was honored for her examination of new ways of studying paleoclimate time series with high‐order spectral techniques. Scott Doney's results obtained from chlorofluorocarbon measurements made along a zonal hydrographic section extending from Iceland to the equator won the Outstanding Student Poster category.

“Nonlinear response of Plio‐Pleistocene ice volume records to orbital forcing: initial results from bispectral analysis” was Hagelberg's paper. A Ph.D. student at Oregon State University, her use of bispectral and cross‐bispectral analysis provided evidence that variations in Pleistocene global ice volume are coupled to oscillations in the calculated record of orbital forcing. A surprising result was that apparent nonlinearity in the climate system may come largely from nonlinear coupling within the radiative forcing (the orbital system driving modulation of eccentricity, axial tilt, and precession of the equinoxes).
In Memoriam
Authors: Anonymous
Published: September 2022

Arnulf Muan died December 17, 1990, at the age of 67. Born in Løkken, Norway in 1923, Muan received his chemistry degree from the Technical University in Trondheim in 1948, and Ph.D. in geochemistry from Penn State in 1955. His professional association with Penn State began in 1949 as a Norwegian Government Fellow. He was appointed assistant professor of metallurgy in 1955, professor of metallurgy in 1962, professor of mineral sciences from 1966 to 1976, and professor of geochemistry and materials science from 1976 until his death.