bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Time and Phase Resolved Optical Spectra of Potentially Hazardous Asteroid 2014 JO25
Authors: Venkataramani Kumar , Ganesh Shashikiran , Rai Archita , Husárik Marek , Baliyan K. S. , Joshi U. C.
Published: April 2019

The asteroid 2014 JO25, considered to be potentially hazardous by the Minor Planet Center, was spectroscopically followed during its close-Earth encounter on 2017 April 19 and 20. The spectra of the asteroid were taken with the low-resolution spectrograph (LISA), mounted on the 1.2 m telescope at the Mount Abu Infrared Observatory, India. Coming from a region close to the Hungaria population of asteroids, this asteroid follows a comet-like orbit with a relatively high inclination and large eccentricity. Hence, we carried out optical spectroscopic observations of the asteroid to look for comet-like molecular emissions or outbursts. However, the asteroid showed a featureless spectrum, devoid of any comet-like features. The light curve of the asteroid was analyzed using V-band magnitudes derived from the spectra and the most likely solution for the rotation of the asteroid was obtained. The absolute magnitude H and the slope parameter G were determined for the asteroid in the V filter band using the IAU accepted standard two-parameter H–G model. A peculiar, rarely found result from these observations is its phase bluing trend. The relative B–V color index seems to decrease with increasing phase angle, which indicates a phase bluing trend. Such trends have seldom been reported in the literature. However, phase reddening in asteroids is very common. The asymmetry parameter g and the single-scattering albedo w were estimated for the asteroid by fitting the Hapke phase function to the observed data. The asteroid shows a relatively large value for the single-scattering albedo and a highly back-scattering surface.
The California-Kepler Survey. VIII. Eccentricities of Kepler Planets and Tentative Evidence of a High-metallicity Preference for Small Eccentric Planets
Authors: Mills Sean M. , Howard Andrew W. , Petigura Erik A. , Fulton Benjamin J. , Isaacson Howard , Weiss Lauren M.
Published: April 2019

Characterizing the dependence of the orbital architectures and formation environments on the eccentricity distribution of planets is vital for understanding planet formation. In this work, we perform statistical eccentricity studies of transiting exoplanets using transit durations measured via Kepler combined with precise and accurate stellar radii from the California-Kepler Survey and Gaia. Compared to previous works that characterized the eccentricity distribution from transit durations, our analysis benefits from both high-precision stellar radii (∼3%) and a large sample of ∼1000 planets. We observe that systems with only a single observed transiting planet have a higher mean eccentricity (

) than systems with multiple transiting planets (

), in agreement with previous studies. We confirm the preference for high- and low-eccentricity subpopulations among the single transiting systems. Finally, we show suggestive new evidence that high-e planets in the Kepler sample are preferentially found around high-metallicity ([Fe/H] > 0) stars. We conclude by discussing the implications on planetary formation theories.
Ohmic Heating of Asteroids around Magnetic Stars
Authors: Bromley Benjamin C. , Kenyon Scott J.
Published: April 2019

We consider the impact of electromagnetic induction and ohmic heating on a conducting planetary object that orbits a magnetic star. Power dissipated as heat saps orbital energy. If this heat is trapped by an insulating crust or mantle, interior temperatures increase substantially. We provide a quantitative description of this behavior and discuss the astrophysical scenarios in which it might occur. Magnetic fields around some main-sequence stars and white dwarfs are strong enough to cause the decay of close-in orbits of asteroids and dwarf planets, drawing them through the Roche limit on megayear timescales. We confirm that ohmic heating around neutron stars is driven by the rotation of the stellar magnetic dipole, not orbital dynamics. In any case, heating can raise interior temperatures of asteroids or dwarf planets on close-in orbits to well above liquidus. Hot material escaping to the surface may lead to volcanic ejections that can obscure the host star (as in the light curve of KIC 8462852) and pollute its atmosphere (as observed with metal-rich white dwarfs). We speculate that mixing of a volatile-rich mantle or crust with material from an induction-heated core may lead to an explosion that could destroy the asteroid prior to tidal breakup.
Steve: A Hierarchical Bayesian Model for Supernova Cosmology
Authors: Hinton S. R. , Davis T. M. , Kim A. G. , Brout D. , D’Andrea C. B. , Kessler R. , Lasker J. , Lidman C. , Macaulay E. , Möller A. , Sako M. , Scolnic D. , Smith M. , Wolf R. C. , Childress M. , Morganson E. , Allam S. , Annis J. , Avila S. , Bertin E. , Brooks D. , Burke D. L. , Rosell A. Carnero , Kind M. Carrasco , Carretero J. , Cunha C. E. , Costa L. N. da , Davis C. , Vicente J. De , DePoy D. L. , Doel P. , Eifler T. F. , Flaugher B. , Fosalba P. , Frieman J. , García-Bellido J. , Gaztanaga E. , Gerdes D. W. , Gruendl R. A. , Gschwend J. , Gutierrez G. , Hartley W. G. , Hollowood D. L. , Honscheid K. , Krause E. , Kuehn K. , Kuropatkin N. , Lahav O. , Lima M. , Maia M. A. G. , March M. , Marshall J. L. , Menanteau F. , Miquel R. , Ogando R. L. C. , Plazas A. A. , Sanchez E. , Scarpine V. , Schindler R. , Schubnell M. , Serrano S. , Sevilla-Noarbe I. , Soares-Santos M. , Sobreira F. , Suchyta E. , Tarle G. , Thomas D. , Vikram V. , Zhang Y.
Published: April 2019

We present a new Bayesian hierarchical model (BHM) named Steve for performing Type Ia supernova (SN Ia) cosmology fits. This advances previous works by including an improved treatment of Malmquist bias, accounting for additional sources of systematic uncertainty, and increasing numerical efficiency. Given light-curve fit parameters, redshifts, and host-galaxy masses, we fit Steve simultaneously for parameters describing cosmology, SN Ia populations, and systematic uncertainties. Selection effects are characterized using Monte Carlo simulations. We demonstrate its implementation by fitting realizations of SN Ia data sets where the SN Ia model closely follows that used in Steve. Next, we validate on more realistic SNANA simulations of SN Ia samples from the Dark Energy Survey and low-redshift surveys (DES Collaboration et al. 2018). These simulated data sets contain more than 60,000 SNe Ia, which we use to evaluate biases in the recovery of cosmological parameters, specifically the equation of state of dark energy, w. This is the most rigorous test of a BHM method applied to SN Ia cosmology fitting and reveals small w biases that depend on the simulated SN Ia properties, in particular the intrinsic SN Ia scatter model. This w bias is less than 0.03 on average, less than half the statistical uncertainty on w. These simulation test results are a concern for BHM cosmology fitting applications on large upcoming surveys; therefore, future development will focus on minimizing the sensitivity of Steve to the SN Ia intrinsic scatter model.
Characterizing the Gravitational Wave Signal from Core-collapse Supernovae
Authors: Radice David , Morozova Viktoriya , Burrows Adam , Vartanyan David , Nagakura Hiroki
Published: April 2019

We study the gravitational wave (GW) signal from eight new 3D core-collapse supernova simulations. We show that the signal is dominated by f- and g-mode oscillations of the protoneutron star (PNS) and its frequency evolution encodes the contraction rate of the latter, which, in turn, is known to depend on the star’s mass, on the equation of state, and on transport properties in warm nuclear matter. A lower-frequency component of the signal, associated with the standing accretion shock instability, is found in only one of our models. Finally, we show that the energy radiated in GWs is proportional to the amount of turbulent energy accreted by the PNS.
Rate of Spontaneous Resolution of Congenital Nasolacrimal Duct Obstruction Prior to Scheduled Probing in Children Older Than 1 Year
Authors: Anhalt John , Liu Grace T. , Weiss Stephanie J. , Wajda Brynn N. , Schnall Bruce M.
Published: April 2019

The authors conducted a 10-year retrospective review of all patients within one physician's practice to determine the frequency of spontaneous resolution of congenital nasolacrimal duct obstruction in children older than 1 year during the interval between scheduling and date of probing. This review found 4.4% of eyes resolved within an average interval period of 39 days.

[
J Pediatr Ophthalmol Strabismus
. 2019;56:e31–e33.]
Slipped Medial Rectus Muscle With Stretched Scar After Pterygium Surgery
Authors: Sen Pradhnya , Kumar Amit , Jain Elesh , Mohan Amit
Published: April 2019

The authors report a rare case of slipped medial rectus muscle with stretched scar in the left eye of a 45-year-old woman following pterygium surgery. There was total limitation of adduction in her left eye with complaints of diplopia in all gazes with maximum separation of images in dextroversion on diplopia charting. Hess charting showed underaction of the medial rectus muscle of the left eye and overaction of the lateral rectus muscle of the right eye. Based on the history and findings, a diagnosis of medial rectus muscle disinsertion of the left eye during pterygium surgery was made. Medial rectus muscle exploration was done and the slipped medial rectus muscle was found attached to its original insertion site via pseudotendon/stretched scar. The capsule was dissected, the scar tissue was excised, and the slipped medial rectus muscle was identified, hooked, and secured with sutures. The muscle was reattached with advancement. Postoperatively, the patient was orthotropic and there was no diplopia. Accidental medial rectus muscle disinsertion during pterygium surgery is a rare but serious complication. Proper care should be taken intraoperatively during pterygium surgery to avoid this complication. However, meticulous surgical exploration and reattachment of the muscle yields satisfactory results.

[
J Pediatr Ophthalmol Strabismus
. 2019;56:e34–e37.]
La ceinture ferroviaire est de Bruxelles : barrière de croissance aux 19e et 20e siècles ? (1855-1950)
Authors: Sacré Alix
Published: April 2019

Quel a été l’impact du développement du chemin de fer sur la morphologie urbaine des faubourgs de Bruxelles ? Pour tenter d’apporter une première réponse à cette vaste question, ce texte examine le rôle des infrastructures ferroviaires de la ligne de ceinture est de Bruxelles (l’actuelle ligne 161). Il propose surtout de démontrer que, contrairement à une idée reçue et encore largement diffusée, la formidable croissance du réseau ferroviaire dans la deuxième moitié du 19e siècle a parfois pu constituer un redoutable obstacle à l’urbanisation de certains quartiers en érigeant au beau milieu de ce ceux-ci ce que l’on pourrait appeler des « barrières de croissance ». Croisant des archives de différentes natures et notamment cartographiques (issues principalement des fonds d’archives communaux) et divers travaux sur l’évolution de la morphologie urbaine, cette étude montre, à travers l’exemple de cette ligne de ceinture que, si les gares ont souvent favorisé le développement urbain comme pôles économiques de croissance, les voies ferrées traversant la ville ont par contre joué le rôle inverse, en constituant parfois des entraves à la croissance de certains quartiers.
Study of Augmented Reality Applications Use in Education and Its Effect on the Academic Performance
Authors: Kaya Omer Sami , Bicen Huseyin
Published: April 2019

Augmented reality (AR) applications can be used in almost all education and training environments. In this study, it reveals the relationship between perceived usefulness, utility and attitudes regarding the use of AR applications in educational environments as well as the relationship between attitude levels and academic achievements. It also reveals the effect of AR application use on academic achievement in education. According to the findings obtained in the study, the followings have been found: the perceived ease of use of students regarding AR applications in educational environments has a strong positive effect on perceived benefit; the perceived benefit and ease of use influence the attitude levels strongly in the positive direction; there is no semantic relation between attitude levels and academic achievement; and the use of AR applications in educational processes increases the academic achievement of students.
Realm Towards Service Optimization in Fog Computing
Authors: Tiwari Ashish , Sharma Rajeev Mohan
Published: April 2019

Fog Computing provides resources as a service. Various providers are providing the best form of Quality of Services (QoS) which works in the principal of pay per use. Now it is important to connect the Internet of Things (IoT) services in fog computing. The strategy for choosing a service provider is assessed by which cloud provider provides what.
The Social Facilitation of Performance, Engagement and Affect in a Complex Videogame
Authors: Williams Russell Blair
Published: April 2019

The objective of this study is to analyze the social facilitation of performance, intrinsic engagement, state hostility, and targeted affects in a computer-based driving game where social actors are competitors. This is a quasi-experimental study with 97 Gulf Arab women. Social facilitation of absolute performance does not take place while it does for relative performance. There is no difference in state hostility based on social facilitation, but there is in targeted affect. Intrinsic engagement and extrinsic motivation are both facilitated by human opponents. There is a negative relationship between intrinsic engagement and state hostility across conditions. There is evidence that the experience of playing a game character and playing a person is substantially different. The two most powerful predictors of performance and affect are intrinsic engagement and videogame interest when playing a person. Weekly hours of console play are added to those two when playing a game character.
Modeling Games in the K-12 Science Classroom
Authors: Krinks Kara D. , Sengupta Pratim , Clark Douglas B.
Published: April 2019

Digital games can be used as a productive and engaging medium to foster scientific expertise and have shown promise in supporting the co-development of scientific concepts and representational practices. This study focuses on the integration of a disciplinarily-integrated game, SURGE NextG, with complementary model-based activities to support the development of scientific modeling in Newtonian mechanics. Two pedagogical approaches were designed. Students in both approaches modeled the motion of an object inside and outside the game environment. One approach involved the material integration of virtual game play through a physical modeling activity in the classroom. The second approach involved a complementary modeling tool using an agent-based computational programming platform. While both modeling activities demonstrated affordances to support productive student learning, this study highlights the significance of designing multiple complementary representations of the same phenomenon as a core element of game play and related modeling activities.
Software Cost Estimation
Authors: Chatzipetrou Panagiota
Published: April 2019

Software cost estimation (SCE) is a critical phase in software development projects. A common problem in building software cost models is that the available datasets contain projects with lots of missing categorical data. There are several techniques for handling missing data in the context of SCE. The purpose of this article is to show a state-of-art statistical and visualization approach of evaluating and comparing the effect of missing data on the accuracy of cost estimation models. Five missing data techniques were used: multinomial logistic regression, listwise deletion, mean imputation, expectation maximization and regression imputation; and compared with respect to their effect on the prediction accuracy of a least squares regression cost model. The evaluation is based on various expressions of the prediction error. The comparisons are conducted using statistical tests, resampling techniques and visualization tools like the regression error characteristic curves.
Nuovi dati sulla lepidotterofauna italiana (Lepidoptera)
Authors: Bisi Alessandro , Lupi Maurizio
Published: April 2019

Vengono riportati alcuni dati di ritrovamento di Lepidotteri interessanti per la fauna italiana: Heteropterus morpheus (pallas, 1771) e Ipimorpha retusa (Linnaeus, 1761) sono segnalate per la prima volta per la Liguria. Pandesma robusta (Walker, 1858) costituisce una novità per la sardegna, Malacosoma alpicola staudinger, 1870 è segnalata per la prima volta del Veneto e Solitanea mariae (stauder, 1921) per il Piemonte. Inoltre si confermano con reperti recenti vecchie segnalazioni, e si forniscono ulteriori dati che consentono di ampliare l’areale di altre 7 specie.
A health economic evaluation of using N-terminal pro brain natriuretic peptide for the management of acute heart failure: A pilot study in an Indonesian tertiary referral hospital
Authors: Almazini Prima , Siswanto Bambang Budi , Meyer Markus , Nadjib Mardiati , Firdaus Isman , Fuady Ahmad , Antonini Paola , Di Somma Salvatore
Published: April 2019

Heart failure represents a major health problem and economic burden also in development countries such as Indonesia. Based on current guidelines, the use of natriuretic peptides can improve diagnosis, risk stratification, and decrease in hospital length of stay. However, mostly due to the related high costs, many Indonesian physicians currently do not routinely use these biomarkers in their daily clinical practice. By comparing the results of guidance with N-terminal pro brain natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) and without NT-proBNP, this pilot study was aimed to determine the clinical effectiveness and costs of using natriuretic peptides in the management of acute heart failure (AHF) patients admitted at National Cardiovascular Center Harapan Kita Hospital, a tertiary referral hospital in Jakarta, Indonesia. This was a health economic evaluation using a single-blind, randomized controlled trial. AHF patients adjudicated following European Society of Cardiology guidelines were randomly assigned to the 2 groups: NT-proBNP group (group A) and control group (group B). In the group A, NT-proBNP level was obtained at admission and pre-discharge, with the target of achieving a decrease of ≥30%. Randomised patients were followed up to 90 days post-discharge to assess short-term outcomes and costs. In total, one hundred and twelve patients were enrolled, of whom 56 were randomized in group A and 56 patients in group B. Compared to Group B, in Group A the total costs of patients management resulted to be significantly higher (P<0.05), while no significant difference between the 2 groups was observed for inhospital length of stay, total mortality rate, rehospitalization, and emergency department visits within 90 days post-discharge. In this pilot study for the management of AHF at an Indonesian National Cardiovascular Center, the routine use of NT-proBNP compared to the non use, at hospital admission and discharge resulted into a significant increase of medical cost without any evident favourable impact on patients outcomes. Larger study in greater Asia Pacific populations should be performed to confirm these preliminary results.
LANGERANS CELL HISTIOCYTOSIS: SINGLE CENTER EXPERIENCE OF 25 YEARS
Authors: Tuysuz Gulen , Yildiz İnci , Ozdemir Nihal , Adaletli Ibrahim , Kurugoglu Sebuh , Apak Hilmi , Dervisoglu Sergulen , Bozkurt Selen , Celkan Tiraje
Published: April 2019

Objectives: To review a single center outcome of patients with Langerhans Cell Histiocytosis diagnosed at a referral tertiary hospital from Turkey.Methods: The files between 1989 and 2014 of 80 patients with LCH were retrospectively analyzed. Results: During the 25 year period, 80 patients were diagnosed with LCH. The median age at diagnosis was 53 months (2-180 months) and median follow-up time of patients was 10 years and 9 months (24 months-25 years). Bone was the most frequently affected organ (n:60, 75%). Initially, 43 patients (54%) had single system (SS) disease, 20 patients (25%) had multisystem (MS) disease without risk organ involvement (MS-RO-), and 17 patients (21%) had multisystem disease with risk organ involvement (MS-RO+). The overall survival (OS) rate was 91% and event-free survival (EFS) rate was 67% at 10 years. The overall survival rate was lower in patients with RO involvement (p=<0.001), lack of response to systemic chemotherapy on 12th week (p=<0.001), younger age (<2 years) at presentation (p=<0.02), and skin involvement (<0.001). Discussion: Besides the known risk factors like younger age (<2 years) at presentation, multi system risk organ involvement, and lack of response to initial chemotherapy, skin involvement was also associated with unfavorable outcome in our cohort. Evaluation of large cohorts of patients is needed to investigate this further.
Source attribution of European surface O3 using a tagged O3 mechanism
Authors: Lupaşcu Aurelia , Butler Tim
Published: April 2019

Abstract. Tropospheric ozone (O3) is an important air pollutant that affects human health, ecosystems and climate. The contributions of O3 precursor emissions from different geographical source regions to the O3 concentration can help to quantify the effects of local versus remote transported precursors on the O3 concentration in a certain area. This study presents a “tagging” approach within the WRF-Chem model that attributes O3 concentration in several European receptor regions to nitrogen oxides (NOx) emissions from within and outside of Europe during April–September 2010.We also examine the contribution of these different precursor sources to various O3 metrics, and their exceedance events. Firstly, we show that the spatial distributions of simulated monthly mean MDA8 from tagged O3 sources regions and types for late spring, summer and early autumn 2010 varies with season. For summer conditions O3 production is dominated by national and intra-European sources, while in the late spring and early autumn intercontinental transported O3 is an important contributor to the total O3 concentration. We have also identified shipping activities in the Mediterranean Sea as an important source of O3 for the Mediterranean countries, as well as the main contributor to high MDA8 O3 concentration, modelled in the Mediterranean basin itself. Secondly, to have a better understanding of the origin of MDA8 O3 exceedances, we compare modelled and observed values of MDA8 O3 concentration in the “Alps” and “Germany-Benelux” receptor regions, revealing that the contribution from local sources is about 45 % and 38 % of modeled MDA8 O3 during the exceedances days respectively. By examining the relative contributions of remote NOx sources to modelled and observed O3 exceedance events, we determine that model underrepresentation of long-range O3 transport could be contributing to a general underestimation of modelled O3 exceedance events in the Germany-Benelux receptor region. Thirdly, we quantify the impact of local vs. non local NOx precursors on O3 production for each European receptor region using different O3 metrics. The comparison between mean, MDA8 and 95th percentile O3 metrics accentuate the importance of large contributions from locally-emitted NOx precursors to the high-end of the O3 distribution. When we compare the vegetation and health metrics, we notice that the SOMO35 and AOT40 indexes exhibit a rather similar behaviour, while the W126 index accentuates the importance of local emissions. Overall, this study highlights the importance of a tagging approach to quantify the contribution of local and remote sources to the MDA8 O3 concentration during several periods as well to different O3 metrics. Moreover, this method could be applied to assess different mitigation options.
Impact of convectively lofted ice on the seasonal cycle of tropical
lower stratospheric water vapor
Authors: Wang Xun , Dessler Andrew E. , Schoeberl Mark R. , Yu Wandi , Wang Tao
Published: April 2019

Abstract. We use a forward Lagrangian trajectory model to diagnose mechanisms that produce the tropical lower stratospheric (LS) water vapor seasonal cycle observed by the Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS) and reproduced by the Goddard Earth Observing System Chemistry Climate Model (GEOSCCM) in the tropical tropopause layer (TTL). We confirm in both the MLS and GEOSCCM that the seasonal cycle of water vapor is primarily determined by the seasonal cycle of TTL temperatures. However, we find that the seasonal cycle of temperature predicts a smaller seasonal cycle of LS water vapor between 10° N–40° N than observed by MLS. We show that including evaporation of convectively lofted ice in the trajectory model increases the simulated maximum value in the 10° N–40° N water vapor seasonal cycle by 1.9 ppmv (47 %) and increases the seasonal amplitude by 1.26 ppmv (123 %), which improves the prediction of LS water vapor annual cycle. We conclude that the moistening effect from convective ice evaporation in the TTL plays a key role regulating and maintaining the tropical LS water vapor seasonal cycle. Most of the convective moistening in the 10° N–40° N range comes from convective ice evaporation occurring at the same latitudes. A small contribution to the moistening comes from convective ice evaporation occurring between 10° S–10° N. Within 10° N–40° N, the Asian monsoon region is the most important region for convective ice evaporation and convective moistening during boreal summer and autumn.
Ozone Profile Climatology for Remote Sensing Retrieval Algorithms
Authors: Yang Kai , Liu Xiong
Published: April 2019

Abstract. New ozone (O3) profile climatologies are created from the Modern-Era Retrospective Analysis for Research and Applications version 2 (MERRA-2) O3 record between 2005 and 2016, within the period of Aura Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS) and Aura Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) assimilation. These two climatologies consist of local solar time, longitudinal (15°), and latitudinal (10°) dependent monthly mean O3 profiles and the corresponding covariances, which are parameterized respectively by tropopause pressure and total O3 column. They are validated through comparisons, which show good agreements with previous O3 profile climatologies. Compared to a monthly zonal mean climatology, both tropopause- and column-dependent climatologies provide improved a priori information for profile and total O3 retrievals from remote sensing measurements. Furthermore, parameterization of O3 profile with total column usually reduces the natural variability of the resulting climatological profile in the upper stratosphere further than the tropopause parameterization, which usually performs better in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere (UTLS). Therefore tropopause-dependent climatology is more appropriate for profile O3 retrieval for complementing the vertical resolution of backscattered ultraviolet (UV) spectra, while the column-dependent climatology is more suited for use in total O3 retrieval algorithms, with an advantage of complete profile specification without requiring ancillary information. Compared to previous column-dependent climatologies, the new MERRA-2 column-dependent climatology better capture the diurnal, seasonal, and spatial variations and dynamical changes of O3 profiles with higher resolutions in O3, latitude, longitude, and season. The new MERRA-2 climatologies contain first quantitative characterization of O3 profile covariances, which facilitate a new approach to improve O3 profiles using the most probable patterns of profile adjustments represented by the empirical orthogonal functions (EOFs) of the covraniance matrices. The MERRA-2 daytime column-dependent climatology is used in the combo O3 and SO2 algorithm for retrieval from the Earth Polychromatic Imaging Camera (EPIC) onboard the Deep Space Climate Observatory (DSCOVR) satellite, the Ozone Mapping and Profiler Suite Nadir Mapper (OMPS-NM) on the Suomi National Polar Partnership (SNPP), and the Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) on the Aura spacecraft.
Using ground radar overlaps to verify the retrieval of calibration bias estimates from spaceborne platforms
Authors: Crisologo Irene , Heistermann Maik
Published: April 2019

Abstract. Many institutions struggle to tap the potential of their large archives of radar reflectivity: these data are often affected by miscalibration, yet the bias is typically unknown and temporally volatile. Still, relative calibration techniques can be used to correct the measurements a posteriori. For that purpose, the usage of spaceborne reflectivity observations from the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) and Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) platforms has become increasingly popular: the calibration bias of a ground radar is estimated from its average reflectivity difference to the spaceborne radar (SR). Recently, Crisologo et al. (2018) introduced a formal procedure to enhance the reliability of such estimates: each match between SR and GR observations is assigned a quality index, and the calibration bias is inferred as a quality-weighted average of the differences between SR and GR. The relevance of quality was exemplified for the Subic S-band radar in the Philippines which is much affected by partial beam blockage. The present study extends the concept of quality-weighted averaging by accounting for path-integrated attenuation (PIA), in addition to beam blockage. This extension becomes vital for radars that operate at C- or X-band. Correspondingly, the study setup includes a C-band radar which substantially overlaps with the S-band radar. Based on the extended quality-weighting approach, we retrieve, for each of the two ground radars, a time series of calibration bias estimates from suitable SR overpasses. As a result of applying these estimates to correct the ground radar observations, the consistency between the ground radars in the region of overlap increased substantially. Furthermore, we investigated if the bias estimates can be interpolated in time, so that ground radar observations can be corrected even in the absence of prompt SR overpasses. We found that a moving average approach was most suitable for that purpose, although limited by the absence of explicit records of radar maintenance operations.
Sensitivity of ocean biogeochemistry to the iron supply from the Antarctic ice sheet explored with a biogeochemical model
Authors: Person Renaud , Aumont Olivier , Madec Gurvan , Vancoppenolle Martin , Bopp Laurent , Merino Nacho
Published: April 2019

Abstract. Iron (Fe) delivery by the Antarctic Ice Sheet (AIS) through ice shelf and iceberg melting enhances primary productivity in the largely iron-limited Southern Ocean (SO). To explore this fertilization capacity, we implemented a simple representation of the AIS iron source in the global ocean biogeochemical model NEMO-PISCES. We evaluated the response of Fe, surface chlorophyll, primary production and carbon export to the magnitude and hypothesized vertical distributions of the AIS Fe fluxes. Surface Fe and chlorophyll concentrations are increased up to 25 % and 12 %, respectively, over the whole SO. The AIS Fe delivery is found to have a relatively modest impact on SO primary production and C export which are increased by 0.063 ± 0.036 PgC yr−1 and 0.028 ± 0.016 PgC yr−1, respectively. However, in highly fertilized areas, primary production and C export can be increased by up to 30 % and 42 %, respectively. Icebergs are predicted to have a much larger impact on Fe, surface chlorophyll and primary productivity than ice shelves in the SO. The response of surface Fe and chlorophyll is maximum in the Atlantic sector, northeast of the tip of the Antarctic Peninsula, and along the East Antarctic coast. The iceberg Fe delivery below the mixed layer may, depending on its assumed vertical distribution, fuel a non-negligible subsurface reservoir of Fe. The Fe supply is effective all year round and seasonal variations in iceberg melting have regional impacts which are almost negligible for annual-mean primary productivity and C export at the scale of the SO.
Long-term variability of drought indices in the Czech Lands and effects of external forcings and large-scale climate variability modes
Authors: Mikšovský Jiří , Brázdil Rudolf , Trnka Miroslav , Pišoft Petr
Published: April 2019

Abstract. While a considerable number of records document the temporal variability of
droughts for central Europe, the understanding of its underlying causes remains
limited. In this contribution, time series of three drought indices (Standardized Precipitation Index –
SPI; Standardized Precipitation Evapotranspiration Index – SPEI; Palmer Drought Severity Index – PDSI) are analyzed with regard to mid- to long-term drought variability
in the Czech Lands and its potential links to external forcings and internal
climate variability modes over the 1501–2006 period. Employing instrumental
and proxy-based data characterizing the external climate forcings (solar and
volcanic activity, greenhouse gases) in parallel with series representing the
activity of selected climate variability modes (El Niño–Southern
Oscillation – ENSO; Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation – AMO; Pacific
Decadal Oscillation – PDO; North Atlantic Oscillation – NAO), regression
and wavelet analyses were deployed to identify and quantify the temporal
variability patterns of drought indices and similarity between individual
signals. Aside from a strong connection to the NAO, temperatures in the AMO
and (particularly) PDO regions were disclosed as one of the possible drivers
of inter-decadal variability in the Czech drought regime. Colder and wetter
episodes were found to coincide with increased volcanic activity, especially
in summer, while no clear signature of solar activity was found. In addition
to identification of the links themselves, their temporal stability and
structure of their shared periodicities were investigated. The oscillations
at periods of approximately 60–100 years were found to be potentially
relevant in establishing the teleconnections affecting the long-term
variability of central European droughts.
Error in hydraulic head and gradient time-series measurements: a quantitative appraisal
Authors: Rau Gabriel C. , Post Vincent E. A. , Shanafield Margaret A. , Krekeler Torsten , Banks Eddie W. , Blum Philipp
Published: April 2019

Abstract. Hydraulic head and gradient measurements underpin practically all investigations in hydro(geo)logy. There is sufficient information in the literature to suggest that head measurement errors may be so large that flow directions can not be inferred reliably, and that their magnitude can have as great an effect on the uncertainty of flow rates as the hydraulic conductivity. Yet, educational text books contain limited content regarding measurement techniques and studies rarely report on measurement errors. The objective of our study is to review currently-accepted standard operating procedures in hydrological research and to determine the smallest head gradients that can be resolved. To this aim, we first systematically investigate the systematic and random measurements errors involved in collecting time series information on hydraulic head at a given location: (1) geospatial position, (2) point of head, (3) depth to water, and (4) water level time series. Then, by propagating the random errors, we find that with current standard practice, horizontal head gradients
Designing Malaysia’s Tax Structure to Achieve Higher Income Country
Authors: Fah Chung Tin
Published: April 2019

After four decades of rapid, inclusive growth averaging 6.4% pa since 1970, due to successful transformation of the economy from agriculture to a modern and open economy, Malaysia needs to embark on painstaking reforms to launch its trajectory to a higher growth path. Malaysia has a lower tax burden when compared to most G8 and BRIC economies. It collects about 16.9% of GDP in tax revenues, compared with the OECD average of 34.3% in 2016 (OECD, 2015). Among the urgent reforms are taxes which need a restructuring from direct and commodity taxes with overdependence on oil and gas to a more diversified tax base. Its tax dependence on the oil and gas sectors for revenue reached a 41% high of GDP in 2009, before settling to 14% with the introduction of GST/SST. The long-run elasticity of tax burden is -0.25, which implies that GDP growth will be reduced by 0.25% for every 1% increase in tax burden, compared with -0.27 for OECD countries (Arnold, 2012). In general, taxes are negatively correlated with economic growth, even after taking into account the different types of taxes. The structure of taxation showed that GST is most sensitive to economic growth and has the highest impact. Among taxes, GST, PIT and CIT are negatively correlated to growth whereby for every 1% increase in taxes, economic growth will be reduced by 0.17%, 0.06% and 0.06% respectively. PROTAX and OTHTAX are positively related to GDP growth. Tax reforms are needed to broaden the overall tax base, resize the sources to uncover additional resources to fund needed programs for inclusive growth. Over the medium time-span, it is important that the government focus on strengthening its tax collection administration to cut off leakage and in reducing the number of tax exempt items, inevitably looking into indirect taxes and a broader tax base to contribute to a progressive income tax system in its tax reform agenda.
El género de los cuidados repertorios emocionales y bases morales de la microsolidaridad
Authors: Serrano-Pascual: Amparo , Artiaga-Leiras Alba , Crespo Eduardo
Published: April 2019

Un eje fundamental de la reproducción de las divisiones sociales y políticas entre hombres y mujeres tiene que ver con la cultura emocional. El objetivo de este artículo es el análisis de las convenciones que regulan el intercambio emocional en los cuidados y cómo se hace género en estas tramas de sentir. A partir de entrevistas en profundidad a varones y mujeres cuidadoras, se ha analizado la producción de estructuras diferenciadoras de género en la práctica emocional del cuidado a partir de dos ejes: por un lado, la organización moral del cuidado a partir del lugar desde el que uno habla (topografía emocional) y, por otro, los campos discursivos del cuidado que articulan la performatividad del género —cuidado como conquista, como deuda o como expresión de una cualidad moral.
Developing Disposable Hair Washing Pad for Bedridden Patients Using Mixed Methods Research
Authors: Makabe Sachiko , Maeda Katsushi , Izumori Sayaka , Konno Emiko , Sato Yayoi , Yoshioka Nana , Shirakawa Hideko , Ando Kenji
Published: April 2019

In Japan, diapers are often used to wash bedridden patients’ hair by placing the diaper under the patient’s head for ease of use and efficiency. However, using diapers for the head is an ethical problem as diapers are originally used for elimination care. Developing better equipment to wash hair is necessary to comfort patients and reduce nurses’ workload. Our industry-academia-clinical collaboration team developed a disposable absorbent pad particularly for washing patients’ hair in bed. This study aimed to evaluate this pad developed for bedridden patients. The trial was conducted in five departments at a university hospital between May and August 2016. The post-trial cross-sectional survey for nurses contained demographic data, evaluation of the pad with rating score as quantitative data, free comments as qualitative data, and comparison with diaper used experience. As this study involved development of an equipment and thus to facilitate data triangulation, mixed methods were used. The results revealed that 36 nurses participated (90% response rate). Most were in their 20s (69%). The overall evaluation was “good” (91%). Good water absorption, no water leakage, and easy usage were reported. In a comparison with diapers using experience, the majority preferred the developed pad (81%). Better structure, usage, and resolution of ethical issues were also confirmed in a comparison with diapers. The developed disposable hair washing pad is an efficient tool for nurses to wash bedridden patients’ hair. As it is disposable, infections are also controlled well. Further manufacturing aspects need to be considered for mega production.
Reviewer Acknowledgements for International Education Studies, Vol. 12, No. 5
Authors: Lee Chris
Published: April 2019

Reviewer acknowledgements for International Education Studies, Vol. 12, No. 5, 2019.
Co-Teaching in the “Academia Class”: Evaluation of Advantages and Frequency of Practices
Authors: Neifeald Edni , Nissim Yonit
Published: April 2019

This article constitutes the continuation of a research process that investigated models and methods for co-teaching in the “Academia Class” program in the Ohalo Academic College (Nissim & Naifeld, 2018). The article focuses on the contribution of this program to all those who participated in it, identifying co-teaching practices and the connections between the sense of contribution and identification of those practices. The research relied on the collection and analysis of quantitative data. The research population included 125 respondents, 51 (40.8%) schoolteachers, 36 (28.8%) student-teachers studying general education, 18 (14.4%) kindergarten teachers and 20 (16.0%) student-teachers studying early childhood education.

Three main research questions guided the investigation:

1) To what extent does each group of participants in the program estimate that co-teaching methods are advantageous for the teachers/kindergarten teachers, student teachers and pupils?

2) Which prevalent co-teaching practices are used in the Academia Class program?

3) Is there a correlation between the respondents’ attitudes concerning the advantages of co-teaching and the practices prevalent in the Academia Class program?

The responses to these questions indicate the extent of success or lack of success of co-Teaching. The main finding indicates that the trainer teachers and the student teachers agreed that there were many advantages to co-teaching and that it contributed to school pupils and the kindergarten children. Thus, it seems that the Academia Class program has an influence beyond mere training processes, on the learning processes in the classes and school pupils. With regard to the advantages of the co-teaching for the school teachers and kindergarten teachers.
Sequence of Workable Days for Mechanized Harvest of Sugarcane in Southern Brazil
Authors: Vieira Luciano H. S. , Sentelhas Paulo C. , Pereira André B.
Published: April 2019

The probabilities of workable days (WD), as well as probability of having a given sequence of days for sugarcane mechanized harvest in Southern Brazil is a very useful information for planning of such operation. Thus, the aim of this study was to determine the simple and conditional probabilities of WD for the abovementioned field operation in the State of São Paulo, Brazil, by means of the Markov Chain, to define the probabilities of sequences of WD. The number of WD (NWD) was determined for 32 years for ten sites using as criteria soil water holding capacity of 40 mm, rainfall ≤ 3 mm and relative soil water storage ≤ 90%. Based on NWD dataset, the simple probabilities of WD and non-workable (NW) days, as well as the conditional probabilities were determined. Finally, the probability of sequences of WD per ten-day period was obtained by the Markov chain. The results showed that Western, Northwestern and Northern, on average, were more likely to have WD compared to Southern and Eastern regions of the state. In addition, the most likely periods of WD were between April and September, being the first ten-day period of July the one with the highest possible probability (≥ 90%). The probability of having a workable day given that the previous day was workable always remained at a minimum of roughly 50% along with a maximum close to 90% at all assessed sites. Finally, the probability of a sequence of eight or more WD per ten-day period was always below 40% along the year, showing that is difficult to have such a long period available for planning sugarcane mechanized harvest in the assessed locations. Therefore, we recommend that fleets sizing should be defined as a function of NWD in conjunction with the probability of the sequence of WD at a given ten-day period.
Elaboration of Aromatic Extracts From the Industrial Waste of White Shrimp
Authors: Bernadino Filho R. , Silva Osvaldo S. , Navarro Lucivânia A. O. , Queiroga Artur X. M. de , Oliveira Silvana N. , Oliveira Marcela N. , Vasconcelos Ubieli A. A.
Published: April 2019

The objective of this research was the elaboration of extracts from the solid industrial waste of Litopenaeus vannamei shrimp and to define the extract with the highest acceptance rate and highest extraction yield through physicochemical, microbiological and sensorial analysis. The extracts were obtained through a process of lyophilization of the liquid extracts from the baking of the waste. Three types of extracts were prepared with different raw materials: Ecasca (shells), Ecefa (cephalothorax) and Emix (50% shells±50% cephalothorax). With the exception of humidity, all other physical-chemical parameters presented significant differences between them. All data from the microbiological analysis were within the limits required by current Brazilian legislation. In the sensory evaluation, all the extracts were well accepted, the Ecefa being the treatment that obtained the highest index of acceptability for the aroma and flavor. The Ecefa treatment obtained the highest extraction yield. In view of the obtained data, it was possible to determine that the Ecefa treatment would have a greater potential as an extract to be applied in foods that can present shrimp aroma and flavor, thus contributing to the use of shrimp industry waste in the offer of a natural aromatic extract and for the preservation of the environment by avoiding the disposal of such waste improperly.
Managing Stink Bugs on Soybean Fields: Insights on Chemical Management
Authors: Marques Rafael P. , Filho Alberto Cargnelutti , Melo Adriano A. , Guedes Jerson V. C. , Carli Cristiano De , Rohrig Alberto , Pozebon Henrique , Perini Clérison R. , Ferreira Dener R. , Bevilaqua Júlia G. , Patias Leonardo S. , Forgiarini Sarah E. , Padilha Guilherme , Leitão João V. , Moro Daniela , Hahn Lucas , Arnemann Jonas A.
Published: April 2019

Stink bugs are a major concern for pest management in soybean crops. With agricultural frontiers expanding in Brazil and cultivation techniques being heavily intensified, stink bug populations have become increasingly dispersed and hard to control, causing severe economic losses to soybean growers across the country. Chemical insecticides known as neonicotinoids, organophosphates and pyrethroids currently represent the main control strategy for this pest, being often mixed together in order to enhance control efficacy and prevent resistance development. Each of these chemical groups is characterized by a different mode of action inside the insect’s body, which determines if the insecticide will provide a fast knockdown effect or a long residual control effect. The aim of this work was to evaluate the knockdown and residual control effects delivered by these groups of insecticides under field conditions and during two cropping seasons, both in isolated and combined use, determining the most efficient strategy for chemical management of stink bugs on soybean crops. The pyrethroid lambda-cyhalothrin (250 g L-1) had the best knockdown effect, while the neonicotinoid imidacloprid (700 g kg-1) provided the longest residual control. The highest control efficacy was obtained with the combination of lambda-cyhalothrin + thiamethoxam (106 + 141 g L-1), which resulted in 84.8% of stink bug control.