bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Perspectives on exploration and extraction of seafloor massive sulfide deposits in Norwegian waters
Authors: Bang Rasmus Noss , Trellevik Lars-Kristian Lunde
Published: September 2022

We present a stochastic dynamic simulation model for exploration and extraction of seafloor massive sulfide (SMS) mineral deposits on the Norwegian Continental Shelf (NCS). The model is developed based on selected industry knowledge, expectations, and perceptions elicited through a participatory systems mapping session with 82 participants and 20 in-depth interviews with experts from industry, academia, and the public policy sector. Using the model, we simulate the expected ranges of resource- and economic potential. The simulation results indicate an expected commercial resource base of 1.8 to 3 million tons of copper, zinc, and cobalt, in which copper makes out the most significant part. Relating to the expected commercial resource base, we highlight a discrepancy between academic and industrial expectations, in which the academic expectations are more conservative than the industrial expectations. The corresponding net present values lie in the range of a net present loss of 970 million USD up to a net present gain of 2.53 billion USD, in which the academic expectations are projected to yield a negative net present value, while the industrial expectations are projected to yield a positive net present value. Closer investigation of the results reveals that one of the main challenges regarding SMS exploration and extraction is the initial exploration costs associated with coring operations. These costs are expected to be high with today’s exploration technology. Moreover, they occur relatively early in time compared to revenue-generating activity, which has a significant negative impact on the net present value of the industry due to discounting. Thus, a key focus of the industry should be to find ways to reduce the costs associated with coring operations and/or the time it takes from initial exploration to extraction and generation of revenue.
A Review of Nonaqueous Electrolytes, Binders, and Separators for Lithium-Ion Batteries
Authors: Xing Jiale , Bliznakov Stoyan , Bonville Leonard , Oljaca Miodrag , Maric Radenka
Published: September 2022

Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) are the most important electrochemical energy storage devices due to their high energy density, long cycle life, and low cost. During the past decades, many review papers outlining the advantages of state-of-the-art LIBs have been published, and extensive efforts have been devoted to improving their specific energy density and cycle life performance. These papers are primarily focused on the design and development of various advanced cathode and anode electrode materials, with less attention given to the other important components of the battery. The “nonelectroconductive” components are of equal importance to electrode active materials and can significantly affect the performance of LIBs. They could directly impact the capacity, safety, charging time, and cycle life of batteries and thus affect their commercial application. This review summarizes the recent progress in the development of nonaqueous electrolytes, binders, and separators for LIBs and discusses their impact on the battery performance. In addition, the challenges and perspectives for future development of LIBs are discussed, and new avenues for state-of-the-art LIBs to reach their full potential for a wide range of practical applications are outlined.

Graphic Abstract
Preparing for online interviews during Covid-19: the intricacies of technology and online human interaction
Authors: Samuk Carignani Şahizer , Burchi Sandra
Published: September 2022

How can we guarantee that “extracting data” is realised most respectfully and reciprocally online? How can we receive the most relevant responses from the interviewee in online interviews? These questions have been even more pertinent during the Covid-19 pandemic. In this paper, we aim to demonstrate how the preparation of the research process that involves online interviews with highly skilled Italians abroad, functions when a group of social scientists come together, and take decisions on criteria and modality of virtual fieldwork. The intricacies of the online interviews are numerous. Yet, there is a research gap regarding the details of the process of conducting them. We find that the periods before, during and after online interviews indicate a whole learning process, which is neglected in the current literature. Hence, we argue that organisation, use of time, density of the themes, mindfulness, synchronisation and handling of sensitive issues are the main tenets of the art of doing online interviews. In this paper, we explore and explain each aspect, also in a chronological manner, benefiting from the previous literature and contributing to research with our anthropological and sociological insights about using technology whilst conducting online interviews with highly skilled Italians abroad.
Forecasting the yield of wafer by using improved genetic algorithm, high dimensional alternating feature selection and SVM with uneven distribution and high-dimensional data
Authors: Xu Qiuhao , Xu Chuqiao , Wang Junliang
Published: September 2022

Wafer yield prediction, as the basis of quality control, is dedicated to predicting quality indices of the wafer manufacturing process. In recent years, data-driven machine learning methods have received a lot of attention due to their accuracy, robustness, and convenience for the prediction of quality indices. However, the existing studies mainly focus on the model level to improve the accuracy of yield prediction does not consider the impact of data characteristics on yield prediction. To tackle the above issues, a novel wafer yield prediction method is proposed, in which the improved genetic algorithm (IGA) is an under-sampling method, which is used to solve the problem of data overlap between finished products and defective products caused by the similarity of manufacturing processes between finished products and defective products in the wafer manufacturing process, and the problem of data imbalance caused by too few defective samples, that is, the problem of uneven distribution of data. In addition, the high-dimensional alternating feature selection method (HAFS) is used to select key influencing processes, that is, key parameters to avoid overfitting in the prediction model caused by many input parameters. Finally, SVM is used to predict the yield. Furthermore, experiments are conducted on a public wafer yield prediction dataset collected from an actual wafer manufacturing system. IGA-HAFS-SVM achieves state-of-art results on this dataset, which confirms the effectiveness of IGA-HAFS-SVM. Additionally, on this dataset, the proposed method improves the AUC score, G-Mean and F1-score by 21.6%, 34.6% and 0.6% respectively compared with the conventional method. Moreover, the experimental results prove the influence of data characteristics on wafer yield prediction.
Optimization of furrow irrigation decision variables: the case of wonji shoa sugar estate, Ethiopia
Authors: Adamu Tokuma , Ayana Mekonen , Aregay Gebremeskel
Published: September 2022

Surface irrigation type is one of the most widely used in the world due to its low cost investment. However it is complex method of applying water to soil, because of extreme difficult to achieve good control over the highly variable nature of the movement of water across a soil surface and its infiltration into the soil over a season. This study is attempted to optimize furrow irrigation decision variables at Wonji Shoa sugar estate using field experiment and two simulation models. The field data of experimental site was measured as input for models and simulated using the SIRMOD software and WinSRFR software package. Furrow lengths of 32 m, 48 m and 64 m, slopes of 0.05%, 0.075% and 0.1%and flow rates of 3 l/sec, 4 l/sec and 5 l/sec were analyzed with three replication using volume balance method and two simulation models. The study found optimum decision variables that gave maximum application efficiency and distribution uniformity were slope of 0.1%, furrow length of 32 m and inflow rate of 4 l/sec at cut-off time of 15.79 min. Thus, to improve the performance of furrow irrigation practice, optimal furrow length, inflow rates and cut-off time found by this study should be adopted. Findings from the study would serve as a source of information for use by policy makers and planners during the design and Operation of irrigation development programs. It does not focus on yield related optimization. So, it is open for the future research to conduct yield related optimization of the decision variables.
Performance in a task improves when subjects experience respect, rather than admiration, for those teaching them
Authors: Kondoh Sotaro , Okanoya Kazuo
Published: September 2022

Introduction

One experiences admiration and respect when acknowledging excellence in others. Admiration relates to the person’s superior abilities, whereas respect focuses on the person as a whole. Although previous studies suggest a link between admiration/respect and motivation, it is unclear as to whether these emotions enhance task performance. We investigated the relationship between admiration/respect and task performance.

Method

Forty-two Japanese participants completed an English exam, watched a video, and completed a second exam. In the video, an interviewer asked an English lecturer to provide tips for completing the exam. After the second exam, participants rated the amount of admiration and respect they had for the lecturer and interviewer. We examined whether experiencing admiration/respect enhanced exam scores.

Results

We found that experiencing admiration had no significant effect on exam scores. However, the participants who had stronger respect for the lecturer improved their score (p < 0.001) whereas the score of the other participants did not differ between exams (p = 0.504). Moreover, the analysis showed a positive correlation between score increment and the amount of awe, a subcategory of the Japanese concept of respect (p = 0.014).

Conclusion

The results suggest that respect (particularly awe), rather than admiration, is involved in performance improvement.
Air-breathing electric propulsion: mission characterization and design analysis
Authors: Crandall Patrick , Wirz Richard E.
Published: September 2022

Air breathing electric propulsion (atmosphere-breathing electric propulsion) (ABEP) has attracted significant interest as an enabling technology for long duration space missions in very low Earth orbit (VLEO) altitudes below about 300 km. The ABEP spacecraft and mission analysis model developed allows parametric characterization of key spacecraft geometry and thruster performance parameters such as spacecraft length-to-diameter, the ratio of solar array span to spacecraft diameter, thrust-to-power, effective exhaust velocity, and inlet efficiency. For the missions analyzed ABEP generally outperforms conventional electric propulsion (EP) below 250 km altitude. Using a 6U spacecraft architecture the model shows that below 220 km ABEP is the only viable propulsion option for desirable mission lifetimes. Parametric evaluations of key spacecraft and ABEP characteristics show that the most significant technological improvements to ABEP spacecraft performance and range of applicability for VLEO missions will come from advancements in inlet efficiency, low drag materials, solar array efficiency, and thrust-to-power.
Computational design logics for bio-based design
Authors: Ramsgaard Thomsen Mette
Published: September 2022

This paper examines how the central contributions of the computational design field can be understood as central steppingstones into an age of sustainability to engage with new renewable, regenerative and restorative material systems. By taking departure in the conceptualisation of an extended digital chain by which architecture can address fabrication at the low scales of the material, this paper asks how these methodological innovations can be transferred to new questions arising from a bio-based material paradigm. The paper outlines the three central contributions of the computational design field: advanced information modelling, functional grading and integrated sensing, and suggests how these can be extended to allow new means of instrumentation for bio-based materials characterised by the heterogeneous, the behaving and the living.
The Electoral Imagination
Authors: Puckett Kent
Published: September 2022

What happens when we vote? What are we counting when we count ballots? Who decides what an election should look like and what it should mean? And why do so many people believe that some or all elections are rigged? Moving between intellectual history, literary criticism, and political theory, The Electoral Imagination offers a critical account of the decisions before the decision, of the aesthetic and imaginative choices that inform and, in some cases, determine the nature and course of democratic elections. Drawing on original interpretations of George Eliot and Ralph Ellison, Lewis Carroll and Kenneth Arrow, Anthony Trollope and Arthur Koestler, Richard Nixon and Jean-Jacques Rousseau, the Palm Beach Butterfly Ballot and the Single Transferable Vote, The Electoral Imagination works both to understand the systems we use to move between the one and the many and to offer an alternative to the 'myth of rigging.'
Places of Justice? Representations of Law in Canadian Court Museums
Authors: Harrison William , Walby Kevin , Piché Justin
Published: September 2022

There is little scholarship on museums and heritage sites that memorialize courts, judges, and law. Engaging with literatures on penal history and law and culture, we explore representations of law and power in court museums across Canada. Based on observations and interviews, we examine the meanings of the artifacts curated at court museum sites. In a post-Truth and Reconciliation Commission context, where heritage sites have been called upon to account for the atrocities experienced by Indigenous peoples in colonial institutions, we show how court museums in Canada continue to be curated in ways that naturalize the Canadian state and law, deny colonialism, and reproduce myths regarding the Canadian penal system. In our discussion, we reflect on the implications of our findings for literatures on representations of penality and law. We contend penal history museums must learn from critical, decolonizing trends in museological studies.
Development and implementation of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute COVID-19 common data elements
Authors: Weissman Alexandra , Cheng Alex , Mainor Alex , Gimbel Elizabeth , Nowak Kayla , Pan Huaqin (Helen) , Stratford Jeran , Merkel Alyssa , Taylor Caroline , Meier Heather , Auman Jeanette , Nolen Tracy L. , Lindsell Christopher J. , Huang David T.
Published: September 2022

Background:

Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) instigated a flurry of clinical research activity. The unprecedented pace with which trials were launched left an early void in data standardization, limiting the potential for subsequent data pooling. To facilitate data standardization across emerging studies, the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) charged two groups with harmonizing data collection, and these groups collaborated to create a concise set of COVID-19 Common Data Elements (CDEs) for clinical research.

Methods:

Our iterative approach followed three guiding principles: 1) draw from existing multi-center COVID-19 clinical trials as precedents, 2) incorporate existing data elements and data standards whenever possible, and 3) alignment to data standards that facilitate data sharing and regulatory submission. We also supported rapid implementation of the CDEs in NHLBI-funded studies and iteratively refined the CDEs based on feedback from those study teams

Results:

The NHLBI COVID-19 CDEs are publicly available and being used for current COVID-19 clinical trials. CDEs are organized into domains, and each data element is classified within a three-tiered prioritization system. The CDE manual is hosted publicly at https://nhlbi-connects.org/common_data_elements with an accompanying data dictionary and implementation guidance.

Conclusions:

The NHLBI COVID-19 CDEs are designed to aid data harmonization across studies to achieve the benefits of pooled analyses. We found that organizing CDE development around our three guiding principles focused our efforts and allowed us to adapt as COVID-19 knowledge advanced. As these CDEs continue to evolve, they could be generalized for use in other acute respiratory illnesses.
The State's Duty to Foster Voter Competence
Authors: Giavazzi Michele , Kapelner Zsolt
Published: September 2022

In this paper we discuss an often-neglected topic in the literature on the ethics of voting. Our aim is to provide an account of what states are obligated to do, so that voters may fulfil their role as public decision-makers in an epistemically competent manner. We argue that the state ought to provide voters with what we call a substantive opportunity for competence. This entails that the state ought to actively foster the epistemic capabilities that are necessary to achieve competent participation in political decision-making practices.
Designing a toroidal crystal for monochromatic X-ray imaging of a laser-produced He-like plasma
Authors: Li Miao , Yao Tong , Yang Zuhua , Shi Jun , Wang Feng , Yang Guohong , Wei Minxi , Sun Ao , Li Yang
Published: September 2022

In this study, a toroidal quartz ($20\overline{2}3$) crystal is designed for monochromatic X-ray imaging at 72.3°. The designed crystal produces excellent images of a laser-produced plasma emitting He-like Ti X-rays at 4.75 keV. Based on the simulations, the imaging resolutions of the spherical and toroidal crystals in the sagittal direction are found to be 15 and 5 μm, respectively. Moreover, the simulation results show that a higher resolution image of the source can be obtained by using a toroidal crystal. An X-ray backlight imaging experiment is conducted using 4.75 keV He-like Ti X-rays, a 3 × 3 metal grid, an imaging plate and a toroidal quartz crystal with a lattice constant of 2d= 0.2749 nm. The meridional and sagittal radii of the toroidal α-quartz crystal are 295.6 and 268.5 mm, respectively. A highly resolved image of the microgrid, with a spatial resolution of 10 μm, is obtained in the experiment. By using similar toroidal crystal designs, the application of a spatially resolved spectrometer with high-resolution X-ray imaging ability is capable of providing imaging data with the same magnification ratio in the sagittal and meridional planes.
LAURICELLA HYPERGEOMETRIC FUNCTIONS, UNIPOTENT FUNDAMENTAL GROUPS OF THE PUNCTURED RIEMANN SPHERE, AND THEIR MOTIVIC COACTIONS
Authors: BROWN FRANCIS , DUPONT CLÉMENT
Published: September 2022

The goal of this paper is to raise the possibility that there exists a meaningful theory of ‘motives’ associated with certain hypergeometric integrals, viewed as functions of their parameters. It goes beyond the classical theory of motives, but should be compatible with it. Such a theory would explain a recent and surprising conjecture arising in the context of scattering amplitudes for a motivic Galois group action on Gauss’s
${}_2F_1$
hypergeometric function, which we prove in this paper by direct means. More generally, we consider Lauricella hypergeometric functions and show, on the one hand, how the coefficients in their Taylor expansions can be promoted, via the theory of motivic fundamental groups, to motivic multiple polylogarithms. The latter are periods of ordinary motives and admit an action of the usual motivic Galois group, which we call the local action. On the other hand, we define lifts of the full Lauricella functions as matrix coefficients in a Tannakian category of twisted cohomology, which inherit an action of the corresponding Tannaka group. We call this the global action. We prove that these two actions, local and global, are compatible with each other, even though they are defined in completely different ways. The main technical tool is to prove that metabelian quotients of generalised Drinfeld associators on the punctured Riemann sphere are hypergeometric functions. We also study single-valued versions of these hypergeometric functions, which may be of independent interest.
The environmental impact of data-driven precision medicine initiatives
Authors: Samuel Gabrielle , Lucassen Anneke M.
Published: September 2022

Opportunities offered by precision medicine have long been promised in the medical and health literature. However, precision medicine – and the methodologies and approaches it relies on – also has adverse environmental impacts. As research into precision medicine continues to expand, there is a compelling need to consider these environmental impacts and develop means to mitigate them. In this article, we review the adverse environmental impacts associated with precision medicine, with a particular focus on those associated with its underlying need for data-intensive approaches. We illustrate the importance of considering the environmental impacts of precision medicine and describe the adverse health outcomes that are associated with climate change. We follow this with a description of how these environmental impacts are being addressed in both the health and data-driven technology sector. We then describe the (scant) literature on environmental impacts associated with data-driven precision medicine specifically. We finish by highlighting various environmental considerations that precision medicine researchers, and the field more broadly, should take into account.
Subcortical structures associated with childhood trauma and perceived stress in schizophrenia
Authors: Fan Fengmei , Tan Shuping , Liu Shibo , Chen Song , Huang Junchao , Wang Zhiren , Yang Fude , Li Chiang-Shan R. , Tan Yunlong
Published: September 2022

Background

Childhood trauma influences the clinical features of schizophrenia. In this study, we examined how childhood trauma and perceived stress are associated with clinical manifestations and subcortical gray matter volumes (GMVs) in patients with schizophrenia.

Methods

We recruited 127 patients with schizophrenia and 83 healthy controls for assessment of early childhood trauma, perceived stress, and clinical symptoms. With structural brain imaging, we identified the GMVs of subcortical structures and examined the relationships between childhood trauma, perceived stress, clinical symptoms, and subcortical GMVs.

Results

Compared to controls, patients with schizophrenia showed higher levels of childhood trauma and perceived stress. Patients with schizophrenia showed significantly smaller amygdala and hippocampus GMVs as well as total cortical GMVs than age-matched controls. Childhood trauma score was significantly correlated with the severity of clinical symptoms, depression, perceived stress, and amygdala GMVs. Perceived stress was significantly correlated with clinical symptoms, depression, and hippocampus and amygdala GMVs. Further, the association between childhood trauma (emotional neglect) and stress coping ability was mediated by right amygdala GMV in patients with schizophrenia.

Conclusions

Patients with schizophrenia had more exposure to early-life trauma and poorer stress coping. Both childhood trauma and perceived stress were associated with smaller amygdala volumes. The relationship between early-life trauma and perceived stress was mediated by right amygdala GMV in patients with schizophrenia. These findings together suggest the long-term effects of childhood trauma on perceived stress and the subcortical volumetric correlates of the effects in schizophrenia.
Family language patterns in bilingual families and relationships with children’s language outcomes
Authors: Verhagen Josje , Kuiken Folkert , Andringa Sible
Published: September 2022

Past research shows that family language patterns (i.e., which languages are spoken in the family and by whom) are associated with bilingual children’s language use. However, it is unclear how input properties such as input quantity, parental proficiency, and language mixing may differ across family language patterns. It is also unclear whether the effects of family language patterns on children’s language proficiency remain when differences in input properties are controlled. We investigated (i) which family language patterns occurred in bilingual families in the Netherlands (n = 136), (ii) whether input properties differed across patterns, and (iii) how patterns related to children’s proficiency, once input properties were controlled. Home language situations were assessed through a questionnaire, children’s proficiency in Dutch and the minority language through vocabulary tests and parent ratings. Three language patterns were found: one-parent-one-language, both parents mixed languages or used the minority language. The results showed differences in input properties across all patterns, as well as effects of these patterns on children’s proficiency in Dutch and the minority language that disappeared once input properties were controlled. These findings do not provide robust evidence that family language patterns predict children’s proficiency, but rather, that input quantity is crucial.
Rethinking the Postwar International Migration Regime from the Global South: Venezuela in a Global History of White Immigration
Authors: Huhn Sebastian
Published: September 2022

Between 1947 and early 1952, the International Refugee Organization (IRO), which was established within the framework of the United Nations to “solve” the so-called European refugee problem after the end of the Second World War, resettled one million European refugees—victims of Nazism as well as East European refugees who escaped the Red Army—all over the world. The IRO's resettlement project is regarded as a blueprint for the establishment of the postwar international migration regime, and it was the predecessor of later initiatives such as the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

In this article I argue that the IRO's history as well as the history of the migration regime after the Second World War has, thus far, mainly been written from the perspective of U.S. American and European history. Northern nations are considered agents in this history, while southern countries are considered as passive “destinations.” In the case of Venezuela, the article argues that the Global South's active role in the migration regime must be taken into consideration to understand postwar migration. From the perspective of a connective approach to global history, it shows how Venezuela, as a political agent, was involved in shaping the migration regime; how it perceived itself as an agent within that regime; and how it intervened on a small scale to shape its form and function.
The “One China” Framework at 50 (1972–2022): The Myth of “Consensus” and Its Evolving Policy Significance
Authors: Liff Adam P. , Lin Dalton
Published: September 2022

This lead article surveys the history and evolving policy legacies of the “one China” framework 50 years after US President Richard Nixon's historic 1972 visit to China. It begins by introducing key concepts and highlighting the crucial difference between Beijing's self-defined “one-China principle” and the US's, Japan's and key other countries’ variable “one China” policies as it relates to Taiwan. It argues that three seminal 1970s developments consolidated the “one China” framework as an informal institution of international politics. The ambiguity baked in by Cold War-era geopolitical necessity provided flexibility sufficient to enable diplomatic breakthroughs between erstwhile adversaries, but also planted seeds for deepening contestation and frictions today. Recent developments – especially Taiwan's democratization and Beijing's increasingly bold and proactive assertion of its claim to sovereignty over Taiwan – have transformed incentive structures in Taipei and for its major international partners. The net effect is that the myth of “consensus” and the ambiguities enabling the framework's half-century of success face unprecedented challenges today.
THE STABLE LIMIT DAHA AND THE DOUBLE DYCK PATH ALGEBRA
Authors: Ion Bogdan , Wu Dongyu
Published: September 2022

We study the compatibility of the action of the DAHA of type GL with two inverse systems of polynomial rings obtained from the standard Laurent polynomial representations. In both cases, the crucial analysis is that of the compatibility of the action of the Cherednik operators. Each case leads to a representation of a limit structure (the +/– stable limit DAHA) on a space of almost symmetric polynomials in infinitely many variables (the standard representation). As an application, we show that the defining representation of the double Dyck path algebra arises from the standard representation of the +stable limit DAHA.
Music-Making as Witness in the Mexican–American War: Testimony, Embodiment and Trauma
Authors: Morgan Elizabeth
Published: September 2022

During the two years of the Mexican–American War (1846–48) and in its immediate aftermath, American composers and publishers produced numerous pieces on topics related to the conflict. Many of these were written for solo piano or voice with keyboard accompaniment and marketed as popular entertainment to amateur musicians performing in the home. This repertoire comprises lament songs, battle pieces and patriotic songs and dances. Works include musical depictions of violent and tragic scenes, but most pieces are in major keys, featuring lyrical melodies and upbeat dance rhythms – the typical fare of parlour music of the period.
Hydrograph Shape Impact on Sand Infiltration and Sediment Transport Dynamics in Gravel‐Bed Rivers
Authors: Ravazzolo D. , Mao L. , Friedrich H.
Published: September 2022

Sand (i.e., < 2 mm) infiltration into a gravel bed is recognized to affect sediment dynamics of coarser fractions (i.e., entrainment and transport rate), near‐bed velocities, bed morphology, and to pose significant engineering and ecological issues. Local hydraulics, sediment dynamics, and sand infiltration into the gravel matrix are related and mutually affect each other in gravel‐bed rivers. However, relatively little research has been done to explore sediment dynamics and sand infiltration in a mobile gravel‐bed under unsteady flow conditions. In the present study, we experimentally simulated three hydrographs of different durations of rising and falling limbs, and monitored sand infiltration over beds with a coarse and a fine grain size distribution. Results confirmed that the addition of sand enhances sediment dynamics. Moreover, the shape of the rising limb of the hydrograph was responsible for altering identified sand infiltration processes and bedload rate. Short time‐to‐peak floods (i.e., short time from the start to the peak of the hydrograph) experienced higher sediment transport rates during the falling limb than the rising limb of the hydrograph, favoring sand infiltration. In contrast, long time‐to‐peak floods (i.e., long time from the start to the peak of the hydrograph) experienced higher sediment transport rates during the rising limb than the falling limb of the hydrograph, resulting in reduced sand infiltration.
Upscaling Hillslope‐Scale Subsurface Flow to Inform Catchment‐Scale Recession Behavior
Authors: Ranjram M. , Craig J. R.
Published: September 2022

The subsurface flow contribution to a basin hydrograph is often conceptualized as a single lumped reservoir parameterized by a power law function fit through the observed recession behavior of the basin. However, basins may be better represented as multiple independent subsurface hillslope reservoirs characterized with variable, transient recession behavior as a function of the time history of recharge. In this work, we unify the latter, more complex understanding of the subsurface with the large‐scale power law recession behavior convenient in hydrologic modeling applications. This unification is achieved by deriving upscaling relationships capable of converting simple metrics of basin hillslope topography into a signature basin response characterizing the subsurface‐flow‐induced recession from a single recharge event. Event superposition may then be used to simulate the application of a time series of recharge and a simple scaling relationship may be used to handle basins with homogeneous conductivity. The signature response is informed by numerical simulations of the hillslope‐storage Boussinesq equation for unconfined saturated flow through sloping hillslopes applied to 30 basins in the CAMELS database. The efficacy of the upscaled signature response in replicating numerical simulations in 50 CAMELS basins is demonstrated, as is the practical efficacy of the upscaling relationships for predicting transient recession in 17 of these basins. The upscaled signature response method thus provides a tool for hydrologic modelers to estimate transient recession parameters using the insights of subsurface flow modeling, although the predictions made by this method are unable to capture the full variability of observed recession behavior.
The Age of Evapotranspiration: Lower‐Bound Constraints From Distributed Water Fluxes Across the Continental United States
Authors: Hahm W. J. , Lapides D. A. , Rempe D. M. , McCormick E. L. , Dralle D. N.
Published: September 2022

Unlike streamflow, which can be sampled in aggregate at the catchment outlet, evapotranspiration (ET) is spatially dispersed, challenging large‐scale age estimation. Here, we introduce an approach for constraining the age of ET via mass balance and present the minimum flux‐weighted age of ET across the continental United States using distributed, publicly available water flux data sets. The lower‐bound constraint on ET age can be calculated by assuming that ET is preferentially sourced from the most recent precipitation through a last‐in, first‐out algorithm. From 2012 to 2017, ET was at least several months old across large areas of the western continental United States, including in Mediterranean and (semi‐)arid climate zones and shrub and evergreen needleleaf plant communities. The primary limitation of this approach is that it provides only a minimum flux‐weighted average age to satisfy the mass balance of outgoing fluxes; true ET fluxes are composed of distributions of ages and may be composed of much older water. The primary advantage of the approach is that flux time series of precipitation and ET are sufficient to constrain ET age, and model parameterization is unnecessary. ET ages can be used to validate tracer‐aided and modeling approaches and inform studies of biogeochemistry, water‐rock interactions, and plant water sourcing under drought.
Association between vegetable, fruit, and flavonoid-rich fruit consumption in midlife and major depressive disorder in later life: the JPHC Saku Mental Health Study
Authors: Narita Zui , Nozaki Shoko , Shikimoto Ryo , Hori Hiroaki , Kim Yoshiharu , Mimura Masaru , Tsugane Shoichiro , Sawada Norie
Published: September 2022

We evaluated the association between vegetable and fruit consumption – particularly flavonoid-rich fruits – in mid-life and major depressive disorder (MDD) in later life. We also evaluated the association of nutrients in fruits and vegetables with MDD. Vegetable and fruit consumption and nutrient intake for 1204 individuals were averaged from data obtained in 1995 and 2000. MDD was diagnosed by certified psychiatrists in 2014–2015. Logistic regression was used to examine the odds of MDD according to quintile of vegetable and fruit consumption and quartile of nutrient intake. We fitted two regression models, using hierarchical adjustment for age, sex, employment status, alcohol consumption, current smoking, and physical activity. Bias-corrected and accelerated bootstrap confidence intervals were used to obtain accurate information. In fully adjusted models, the highest quintile of total fruit consumption excluding juice and flavonoid-rich fruit consumption showed decreased odds of MDD compared with the lowest quintile (OR = 0.34, 95% CI = 0.15–0.77; OR = 0.44, 95% CI = 0.20–0.97, respectively). No significant association was found for total vegetables and fruits, total vegetables, or total fruits. No significant association was found for any nutrient. This study provides novel information on the association between MDD and flavonoid-rich fruits.
Elevated SFXN2 limits mitochondrial autophagy and increases iron-mediated energy production to promote multiple myeloma cell proliferation
Authors: Chen Ying , Qian Jinjun , Ding Pinggang , Wang Wang , Li Xinying , Tang Xiaozhu , Tang Chao , Yang Ye , Gu Chunyan
Published: September 2022

Human sideroflexin 2 (SFXN2) belongs to the SFXN protein family, which is a mitochondrial outer membrane protein involved in mitochondrial iron metabolism. Mitochondria are indispensable for cellular energy production and iron metabolism. However, it remains elusive how SFXN2 modulates mitochondrial homeostasis and cellular iron metabolism in multiple myeloma (MM). In this study, we first found that SFXN2 was significantly elevated and correlated to poor outcomes in MM patients from clinical datasets. SFXN2 overexpression promoted MM cell proliferation and suppressed starvation-induced autophagy/mitophagy, while SFXN2 knockdown aggravated mitochondria damage and autophagic processes in ARP1 and H929 MM cell lines. Furthermore, inhibition of SFXN2 exerted effectively anti-myeloma activity in vivo by using myeloma xenograft model. Mechanism studies indicated that heme oxygenase 1 (HO1) with anti-oxidant function contributed to the process of autophagy suppression and cellular proliferation mediated by SFXN2. Our study revealed the critical role of SFXN2 in regulating mitochondrial bioenergetics, mitophagy, cellular iron metabolism, and redox homeostasis in interconnected and intricate way. Collectively, these findings not only provide insights into the metabolic reprogramming of tumor cells, but also highlight the therapeutic potential of SFXN2 in combination with iron metabolism as target for prognosis and treatment in MM patients.
USP15 regulates p66Shc stability associated with Drp1 activation in liver ischemia/reperfusion
Authors: Tian Xinyao , Zhao Yan , Yang Zhe , Lu Qianrang , Zhou Lin , Zheng Shusen
Published: September 2022

Liver ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury is a major clinical concern of liver transplantation, which accounts for organ rejection and liver dysfunction. The adaptor protein p66Shc acts as a crucial redox enzyme and is implicated in liver I/R. Elevated p66Shc expression is associated with hepatocellular apoptosis in liver I/R, but the molecular mechanisms of p66Shc responsible for its aberrant expression and function remain unknown. In the present study, hepatocyte-specific p66Shc-knockdown mice exhibited clear inhibition in hepatocellular apoptosis and oxidative stress under liver I/R, while hepatocyte-specific p66Shc overexpression mice displayed the deteriorative impairment. Mechanistically, p66Shc-triggered mitochondrial fission and apoptosis in liver I/R by mediating ROS-driven Drp1 activation. Furthermore, a screening for p66Shc-interacting proteins identified ubiquitin-specific protease 15 (USP15) as a mediator critical for abnormal p66Shc expression. Specifically, USP15 interacted with the SH2 domain of p66Shc and maintained its stabilization by removing ubiquitin. In vivo, p66Shc knockdown abrogated USP15-driven hepatocellular apoptosis, whereas p66Shc overexpression counteracted the antiapoptotic effect of USP15 silencing in response to liver I/R. There was clinical evidence for the positive association between p66Shc and USP15 in patients undergoing liver transplantation. In summary, p66Shc contributes to mitochondrial fission and apoptosis associated with Drp1 activation, and abnormal p66Shc expression relies on the activity of USP15 deubiquitination under liver I/R. The current study sheds new light on the molecular mechanism of p66Shc, and identifies USP15 as a novel mediator of p66Shc to facilitate better therapeutics against liver I/R.
Miniature optoelectronic compound eye camera
Authors: Hu Zhi-Yong , Zhang Yong-Lai , Pan Chong , Dou Jian-Yu , Li Zhen-Ze , Tian Zhen-Nan , Mao Jiang-Wei , Chen Qi-Dai , Sun Hong-Bo
Published: September 2022

Inspired by insect compound eyes (CEs) that feature unique optical schemes for imaging, there has recently been growing interest in developing optoelectronic CE cameras with comparable size and functions. However, considering the mismatch between the complex 3D configuration of CEs and the planar nature of available imaging sensors, it is currently challenging to reach this end. Here, we report a paradigm in miniature optoelectronic integrated CE camera by manufacturing polymer CEs with 19~160 logarithmic profile ommatidia via femtosecond laser two-photon polymerization. In contrast to μ-CEs with spherical ommatidia that suffer from defocusing problems, the as-obtained μ-CEs with logarithmic ommatidia permit direct integration with a commercial CMOS detector, because the depth-of-field and focus range of all the logarithmic ommatidia are significantly increased. The optoelectronic integrated μ-CE camera enables large field-of-view imaging (90°), spatial position identification and sensitive trajectory monitoring of moving targets. Moreover, the miniature μ-CE camera can be integrated with a microfluidic chip and serves as an on-chip camera for real-time microorganisms monitoring. The insect-scale optoelectronic μ-CE camera provides a practical route for integrating well-developed planar imaging sensors with complex micro-optics elements, holding great promise for cutting-edge applications in endoscopy and robot vision.
Zymoseptoria tritici white-collar complex integrates light, temperature and plant cues to initiate dimorphism and pathogenesis
Authors: Kilaru Sreedhar , Fantozzi Elena , Cannon Stuart , Schuster Martin , Chaloner Thomas M. , Guiu-Aragones Celia , Gurr Sarah J. , Steinberg Gero
Published: September 2022

Transitioning from spores to hyphae is pivotal to host invasion by the plant pathogenic fungus Zymoseptoria tritici. This dimorphic switch can be initiated by high temperature in vitro (~27 °C); however, such a condition may induce cellular heat stress, questioning its relevance to field infections. Here, we study the regulation of the dimorphic switch by temperature and other factors. Climate data from wheat-growing areas indicate that the pathogen sporadically experiences high temperatures such as 27 °C during summer months. However, using a fluorescent dimorphic switch reporter (FDR1) in four wild-type strains, we show that dimorphic switching already initiates at 15–18 °C, and is enhanced by wheat leaf surface compounds. Transcriptomics reveals 1261 genes that are up- or down-regulated in hyphae of all strains. These pan-strain core dimorphism genes (PCDGs) encode known effectors, dimorphism and transcription factors, and light-responsive proteins (velvet factors, opsins, putative blue light receptors). An FDR1-based genetic screen reveals a crucial role for the white-collar complex (WCC) in dimorphism and virulence, mediated by control of PCDG expression. Thus, WCC integrates light with biotic and abiotic cues to orchestrate Z. tritici infection.
The augmin complex architecture reveals structural insights into microtubule branching
Authors: Zupa Erik , Würtz Martin , Neuner Annett , Hoffmann Thomas , Rettel Mandy , Böhler Anna , Vermeulen Bram J. A. , Eustermann Sebastian , Schiebel Elmar , Pfeffer Stefan
Published: September 2022

In mitosis, the augmin complex binds to spindle microtubules to recruit the γ-tubulin ring complex (γ-TuRC), the principal microtubule nucleator, for the formation of branched microtubules. Our understanding of augmin-mediated microtubule branching is hampered by the lack of structural information on the augmin complex. Here, we elucidate the molecular architecture and conformational plasticity of the augmin complex using an integrative structural biology approach. The elongated structure of the augmin complex is characterised by extensive coiled-coil segments and comprises two structural elements with distinct but complementary functions in γ-TuRC and microtubule binding, linked by a flexible hinge. The augmin complex is recruited to microtubules via a composite microtubule binding site comprising a positively charged unordered extension and two calponin homology domains. Our study provides the structural basis for augmin function in branched microtubule formation, decisively fostering our understanding of spindle formation in mitosis.
RAS oncogenic activity predicts response to chemotherapy and outcome in lung adenocarcinoma
Authors: East Philip , Kelly Gavin P. , Biswas Dhruva , Marani Michela , Hancock David C. , Creasy Todd , Sachsenmeier Kris , Swanton Charles ,   TRACERx consortium, Downward Julian , de Carné Trécesson Sophie
Published: September 2022

Activating mutations in KRAS occur in 32% of lung adenocarcinomas (LUAD). Despite leading to aggressive disease and resistance to therapy in preclinical studies, the KRAS mutation does not predict patient outcome or response to treatment, presumably due to additional events modulating RAS pathways. To obtain a broader measure of RAS pathway activation, we developed RAS84, a transcriptional signature optimised to capture RAS oncogenic activity in LUAD. We report evidence of RAS pathway oncogenic activation in 84% of LUAD, including 65% KRAS wild-type tumours, falling into four groups characterised by coincident alteration of STK11/LKB1, TP53 or CDKN2A, suggesting that the classifications developed when considering only KRAS mutant tumours have significance in a broader cohort of patients. Critically, high RAS activity patient groups show adverse clinical outcome and reduced response to chemotherapy. Patient stratification using oncogenic RAS transcriptional activity instead of genetic alterations could ultimately assist in clinical decision-making.
Respiratory loss during late-growing season determines the net carbon dioxide sink in northern permafrost regions
Authors: Liu Zhihua , Kimball John S. , Ballantyne Ashley P. , Parazoo Nicholas C. , Wang Wen J. , Bastos Ana , Madani Nima , Natali Susan M. , Watts Jennifer D. , Rogers Brendan M. , Ciais Philippe , Yu Kailiang , Virkkala Anna-Maria , Chevallier Frederic , Peters Wouter , Patra Prabir K. , Chandra Naveen
Published: September 2022

Warming of northern high latitude regions (NHL, > 50 °N) has increased both photosynthesis and respiration which results in considerable uncertainty regarding the net carbon dioxide (CO2) balance of NHL ecosystems. Using estimates constrained from atmospheric observations from 1980 to 2017, we find that the increasing trends of net CO2uptake in the early-growing season are of similar magnitude across the tree cover gradient in the NHL. However, the trend of respiratory CO2loss during late-growing season increases significantly with increasing tree cover, offsetting a larger fraction of photosynthetic CO2uptake, and thus resulting in a slower rate of increasing annual net CO2uptake in areas with higher tree cover, especially in central and southern boreal forest regions. The magnitude of this seasonal compensation effect explains the difference in net CO2uptake trends along the NHL vegetation- permafrost gradient. Such seasonal compensation dynamics are not captured by dynamic global vegetation models, which simulate weaker respiration control on carbon exchange during the late-growing season, and thus calls into question projections of increasing net CO2uptake as high latitude ecosystems respond to warming climate conditions.