bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Defining “water resilience”: Debates, concepts, approaches, and gaps
Authors: Rodina Lucy
Published: December 2018

Resilience is increasingly applied the context of water systems, and water governance more broadly, in response to climate change impacts, hydrologic variability and uncertainty associated with various dimensions of global environmental change. However, the meanings, applications and implications of resilience as it relates to water governance are still poorly understood. Drawing on a systematic scoping review of the peer‐reviewed academic literature, this paper addresses the questions: how is resilience framed in relation to water systems and water governance, how are diverse resilience framings (re)shaping ideas and trends in water management, and what are the associated implications? The analysis found that the resilience‐informed water governance literature remains fragmented and predominantly centered on conventional approaches and framings of water planning, with a predominant focus on engineering resilience in water supply infrastructure. A recently emerging engagement with resilience in the water governance literature, however, draws on more diverse framings and theories and calls for a shift towards more integrative and ecologically‐centered thinking in water governance. Despite this, significant empirical and conceptual gaps remain, particularly around the integration of the various subsectors of water governance and, more importantly, around the institutional and governance dimensions of building water resilience.

This article is categorized under:

Engineering Water > Planning Water

Human Water > Water Governance
Quantitative detection method for icing of horizontal‐axis wind turbines
Authors: Zhou Zhihong , Yi Xian , Jiang Wentao , Chen Yu , Tian Xiaobao , Li Weibin , Wang Kaichun , Ma Honglin
Published: December 2018

Icing seriously endangers the operational safety of wind turbines, and there has been a lack of research on the quantitative detection and early warning of the icing distribution on a blade. In order to address the present state and specific engineering problems of wind turbines, a method based on external sensor installation is proposed for quantitatively monitoring the icing distribution on a blade through numerical simulation and sensor detection technology. Field tests were performed on 1.5 and 2.0 MW wind turbines in icy weather. The detected distribution and thickness of the blade icing showed good agreement with the field results, which verifies the effectiveness of the detection method. The error between the detected and real ice thicknesses was approximately 20%, which breaks through the limitations of previous qualitative monitoring, and the error for specific ice formations on the blade was within the acceptable range. This new monitoring method can provide a reference for wind turbine icing detection and technical support for the efficient design and effective operation of icing protection facilities.
Spatial characteristics and influencing factors of river pollution in China
Authors: Wang Enru , Li Qian , Hu Hao , Peng Fuli , Zhang Peng , Li Jianjun
Published: December 2018

Based on recent water quality data collected from 763 monitoring sections nationwide, this study examined the concentration of major pollutants in China's major rivers. A spatial autocorrelation analysis confirmed that river pollution was spatially uneven and clustered. While pollution of surface water was a nationwide concern, most serious water pollution happened in the Huai, Hai, Yellow, and Liao river Basins in Northern China. The results of the spatial regression analysis showed that GDP per capita, surface water stock, population, and economic structure were all significantly correlated with surface water pollution, with population having strongest impact, followed by level of economic development. By investigating the common characteristics shared by the “hotspot” cities where serious water pollution occurred, this study recommended a regional or basin approach to assessing water quality and controlling river pollution that cuts across jurisdiction boundaries. While China has made considerable progress in improving water productivity, there is still enormous potential in water conservation. It is also imperative to restructure local economy and develop water‐efficient, less polluting industries and services.

Practitioner points

River pollution in China was spatially uneven and clustered.

Most serious water pollution happened in the Huai, Hai, Yellow, and Liao river basins in Northern China.

GDP per capita, surface water stock, population, and economic structure correlated with surface water pollution, with population having strongest impact.

A regional or basin approach was recommended to assess water quality and controlling river pollution across jurisdiction boundaries.

It is also imperative to restructure local economy and develop water‐efficient, less polluting industries and services.
A review of the potential of the MinION™ single‐molecule sequencing system for forensic applications
Authors: Plesivkova Diana , Richards Rebecca , Harbison SallyAnn
Published: December 2018

The use of new sequencing technologies in forensic biology has been explored recently, particularly using Illumina and Ion Torrent platforms. The MinION™, a single‐molecule nanopore sequencer from Oxford Nanopore Technologies™ could advance the field further due to the portability, lower overall instrument cost, and ease of use. This review focuses on exploring applications and the associated benefits and limitations of this technology relative to those currently used in forensic science. The MinION sequences single molecules directly, without amplification, and has the ability to generate long reads in real time. Due to the large amount of sequencing data that the MinION generates, having systems in place for storage and sophisticated analysis tools needs to be considered. The user is able to stop sequencing when the sought after information has been gathered, decreasing the time from sampling to sequence output. Possible forensic applications for the MinION where long sequence reads would be helpful include sequencing whole mitochondrial and bacterial genomes. Sequencing of short tandem repeats and single nucleotide polymorphisms may prove useful for rapid identification at the crime scene. Limitations of the current technology include accuracy of the base calling that has still not reached the standard required for forensic DNA analysis but can be counteracted by read depth and consensus. In addition, the optimum input sample size is currently greater than most real‐world forensic samples. Given the rapid pace of change, future developments by Oxford Nanopore Technologies are likely to overcome these barriers in the coming years.

This article is categorized under:

Forensic Biology > Forensic DNA Technologies
Vaccination and Herd Immunity: Individual, Collective, and Institutional Responsibilities
Authors: Giubilini Alberto
Published: December 2018

This chapter discusses the relation between collective, individual, and institutional responsibilities with regard to the realization of herd immunity from certain infectious diseases. The argument is put forth that there is a form of collective moral obligation to realize herd immunity, that there is a principle of fairness in the distribution of the burdens of collective obligations, and that such principle entails that each of us has the individual moral responsibility to make their fair contribution to herd immunity through vaccination. These individual moral obligations, in turn, entail a further individual obligation to support policies aimed at realizing herd immunity. The chapter concludes with a suggestion that the individual moral obligations to support such policies generate an institutional responsibility to implement them.
Introduction
Authors: Frampton Sally
Published: December 2018

This introductory chapter provides an overview of the history of ovariotomy and the significance the operation held within medicine and society. It reviews the place of ovariotomy in the historiography and particularly the interest the operation has garnered from scholars working on gender and women’s history. It then examines the distinctiveness of surgical innovation within medicine and shows how innovation might be used as a conceptual focal point to examine the history of ovariotomy more closely. The chapter sets out the structure of the book, arguing for a more chronologically expansive account of the operation, beginning with its roots in eighteenth-century medicine and which then assesses the changing status and identity of the operation throughout the course of the nineteenth century.
The Afterlife of an Operation
Authors: Frampton Sally
Published: December 2018

This chapter argues for a new way of thinking about the history of surgical innovation that moves beyond simplistic dichotomies of diffusion and failure. Instead it offers an exploration of the ‘afterlife’ of ovariotomy, following the controversies that surrounded the operation towards the end of the century. By the 1890s, the term ‘ovariotomy’ had become increasingly uncertain in its meaning, as a range of other terms emerged to refer to new techniques in ovarian surgery that were being practised. Fears were also growing about the long-term effects upon women’s health of removing the ovaries. ‘Afterlife’ also refers to the formation of ovariotomy as an historical phenomenon during this time, even while it remained in contemporary practice. The historical narrative being developed was part of the innovation process rather than separate from it, as surgeons constructed accounts which posited the operation as an invention of their generation.
Conclusion
Authors: Frampton Sally
Published: December 2018

The concluding chapter argues for the need to nuance histories of surgical novelty and innovation beyond simplistic categories of success and failure and for the cultural and technological implications of surgical innovation to be seen as intertwined rather than separate. It addresses the usefulness of ‘innovation’ as an analytical category, responding to works which have critiqued ‘innovation-centric history’. It argues that no aspect of the innovation process can be treated as self-evident; and that which we might initially take for granted as being unambiguous about an innovation: its beginning, its ending, even its definition, are not necessarily so.
Fluence sees continued expansion of applications for its modular desalination system
Authors: Atkinson Simon
Published: December 2018

US-based provider of water and wastewater treatment systems Fluence Corp Ltd is seeing continued expansion of applications worldwide for its modular desalination system NIROBOX™, further increasing the company's recurring revenues. Earlier this year we reported on various deployments of the plant, including in the Philippines and Argentina, and on the island of Mayotte, located off the east coast of Africa, between Madagascar and Mozambique. Here we look at further contracts covering a build, own and operate plant in Peru, a build, own, operate and transfer project in the Bahamas and an order from Egypt.
Open evaporator crystalliser operates at low temperatures to concentrate brine
Authors: Atkinson Simon
Published: December 2018

Canada's Saltworks has developed an evaporator crystalliser that is open to the atmosphere and operates at low temperatures to concentrate brine or achieve zero liquid discharge. The design ensures that air emissions, containing chemicals such as volatile organic compounds, are captured before they are discharged to the atmosphere. This brief article outlines the technology involved.
Psychosocial Consequences Among Nurses in the Affected Area of the Great East Japan Earthquake of 2011 and the Fukushima Complex Disaster: A Qualitative Study
Authors: Sato Hideko , Techasrivichien Teeranee , Omori Atsuko , Ono-Kihara Masako , Kihara Masahiro
Published: December 2018

Objective

The goal of this study was to assess the psychosocial consequences among nurses affected by the Great East Japan Earthquake in order to identify their coping strategies and explore possible countermeasures against complex disasters.

Methods

In 2012, we conducted a qualitative study and screened participants for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

Results

Thirty-eight nurses participated in this study. The result showed a relatively high proportion of probable PTSD (39%). Thirty-two conceptual codes emerged from the data and were grouped into 8 categories: “initial acute stress,” “acute stress turning chronic,” “chronic physical and mental fatigue,” “occupational stress,” “fear of the impact of radiation on children’s health,” “occupational satisfaction,” “positive influences of the disaster experiences,” and “impact of mutual care through interpersonal cognition.”

Conclusions

The study reveals that mutual care may have a positive impact in assisting recovery and enhancing the psychological well-being of nurses. We suggest that disaster management should take into consideration the conflict between professional and family responsibilities. In the light of the chronic impact of the nuclear crisis, enhanced support for interpersonal relationships and human resources, as well as appropriate safety precautions, is urgently needed to help affected nurses. (Disaster Med Public Health Preparedness. 2019;13:519-526)
The onset of dynamic stall at a high, transitional Reynolds number
Authors: Benton S. I. , Visbal M. R.
Published: December 2018

Dynamic stall due to a ramp-type pitching motion is investigated on the NACA 0012 airfoil at chord Reynolds number of $Re_{c}=1.0\times 10^{6}$ through the use of wall-resolved large-eddy simulation. Emphasis is placed on the unsteady boundary-layer interactions that develop as the airfoil approaches stall. At this Reynolds number it is shown that turbulent separation moves upstream across much of the airfoil suction surface. When turbulent separation reaches the leading-edge separation bubble, a bursting event is initiated leading to a strong coherent leading-edge vortex structure. This vortex wraps up the turbulent shear layer to form a large dynamic stall vortex. The use of large-eddy simulation elucidates the roll of the laminar separation bubble in defining the onset of the dynamic stall process. Comparisons are made to identical simulations at lower Reynolds numbers of $Re_{c}=0.2\times 10^{6}$ and $0.5\times 10^{6}$. This comparison demonstrates trends in the boundary-layer mechanics that explain the sensitivity of the dynamic stall process to Reynolds number.
Neritoptyx hogansoninew species (Gastropoda, Mollusca) from the Upper Cretaceous Fox Hills Formation on the Dakota Isthmus, western United States
Authors: Erickson J. Mark
Published: December 2018

In midcontinent North America, the Fox Hills Formation (Upper Cretaceous, upper Maastrichtian) preserves the last marine faunas in the central Western Interior Seaway (WIS).Neritoptyx hogansoninew species, a small littoral snail, exhibited allometric change from smooth to corded ornament and rounded to shouldered shape during growth. Specimens preserve a zig-zag pigment pattern that changes to an axial pattern during growth.Neritoptyx hogansoninew species was preyed on by decapod crustaceans, and spent shells were occupied by pagurid crabs. Dead mollusk shells, particularly those ofCrassostrea subtrigonalis(Evans and Shumard, 1857), provided a hard substrate to which they adhered on the Fox Hills tidal flats. This new neritimorph gastropod establishes a paleogeographic and chronostratigraphic proxy for intertidal conditions on the Dakota Isthmus during the late Maastrichtian. Presence of a neritid extends the marine tropical/temperate boundary in the WIS northward to ~44° late Maastrichtian paleolatitude. Late Maastrichtian closure of the isthmus subsequently altered marine heat transfer by interrupting northward flow of tropical currents from the Gulf Coast by as much as 1 to 1.5 million years before the Cretaceous ended.

UUID:http://zoobank.org/3ba56c07-fcca-4925-a2f0-df663fc3a06b
Street Theater: Building Monumental Avenues in Roman Ephesus and Renaissance Florence
Authors: Ryan Garrett
Published: December 2018

Between the late first and the mid-third century CE, local elites in the eastern provinces of the Roman Empire lined the formerly utilitarian streets of their cities with honorific statues, colonnades, and ornamental buildings. The monumental avenues thus created have usually been interpreted as unplanned products of competitive munificence. This article, by contrast, suggests that the new streets had real political significance. It compares the monumental avenues of Roman Ephesus with a formal analogue from a better-documented historical context: the long, colonnaded courtyard of Florence's Uffizi complex, constructed by Duke Cosimo I in the mid-sixteenth century. Comparison with the Uffizi courtyard illuminates the prominence of “democratic” architectural conventions in Ephesian monumental avenues, the elite-centric vision of civic history implicit in their sculptural displays, and the degree to which public ceremonies reinforced their political messages.
Facing History: Sovereignty and the Spectacles of Justice and Violence in Poland's Capitalist Democracy
Authors: Gökariksel Saygun
Published: December 2018

This article explores the nexus of sovereignty, violence, and transitional justice through an analysis of the public exhibitions of the faces of communist-era secret service officers in Poland. During the rule of right-wing government from 2005 to 2007, the state-run Institute of National Remembrance (IPN) organized exhibitions in public squares across Poland, which stirred much contention. Was it a pursuit of justice or a call for public lynching? Was it a means to ensure public transparency and identify the “faceless” evil of communism, or instead a political instrument of anti-communist nationalists? In some places, like the deindustrialized city of Katowice, the exhibition even met with devastating attacks. Focusing on this event in Katowice, I use media reports, interviews, and other ethnographic material to explore what the IPN-led state spectacles of justice, particularly the figure of the face and the defacement practices they employ, reveal about tensions and contradictions of “post-socialist” sovereignty; how the figure of the (secret) communist agent has come to facialize both the unfinished reckoning with communist-era state violence and the “normalized” violence of capitalist transformation. I argue that past violence, which is the typical object of transitional justice, needs to be approached in a dynamic and relational manner, with a focus on the conjunctures—how different forms of violence become transformed, reproduced, or entangled across time and space. My comparative perspective on transitional justice highlights the problems caused when its nationalist appropriation becomes entangled with capital's violence.
State-Building after Disaster: Jiang Tingfu and the Reconstruction of Post-World War II China, 1943–1949
Authors: Mitter Rana
Published: December 2018

Post-World War II reconstruction in Europe and Asia is a topic of growing interest, but relatively little attention has been paid to the relief and rehabilitation effort in China in the immediate post-1945 period. This article reassesses the postwar program implemented by the Chinese Nationalist (Guomindang) government and the UNRRA (the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration), not just in terms of humanitarian relief, but also as part of a process that led to new thinking about the nature of the postwar state in Asia. It focuses on the ideas and actions of Jiang Tingfu (T. F. Tsiang), head of the Chinese National Relief and Rehabilitation Administration that worked with UNRRA. Chinese ideas for reconstruction in China were simultaneously statist, international, and transnational, and were shaped by high modern ideas drawn from Soviet and American examples. They were also influenced by China's poverty and wartime vulnerability, which made locally directed solutions more relevant in areas such as public hygiene. Success was unlikely because of the incipient Chinese Civil War and the huge demands of reconstruction on a state that was near-destitute, with a destroyed infrastructure. Nonetheless, its characteristics still bear examination as a first, tentative chapter in a longer story of post-imperialist and Cold War state-building that would shape countries in Asia and beyond.
Islam and Culture: Dis/junctures in a Modern Conceptual Terrain
Authors: Jouili Jeanette S.
Published: December 2018

Over the last decades, Europe debates on Islam have been framed increasingly through the lens of cultural difference. In this discursive climate, culture constitutes a crucial terrain of investment for European Muslims in their struggle for inclusion and recognition. Based on two different ethnographic research projects among European Muslims, this essay examines two distinct types of culture discourses. One employs an Islam-versus-culture trope that serves to disconnect Islam from certain patriarchal practices perceived to exist within Muslim communities. The other discourse defends the intrinsic and symbiotic link between Islam and culture, especially in order to elevate the place of artistic practices within Muslim communities. To make sense of these seeming contradictions, I explore the multivalent meanings contained in my interlocutors’ uses of the culture concept by tracing the respective genealogies of these meanings. This includes an investigation of culture's conceptual histories, formulated successively by Enlightenment thinkers, Romanticists, and early anthropologists, as well as by Islamic reformers and their more recent successors. My investigation into these conceptual histories exposes broader concerns about individual freedom and agency on the part of cultural theorists, which have furthermore enabled various claims about modernity and backwardness. While European Muslims creatively integrate various articulations of the culture concept into their world-making projects, I argue that the ontological assumptions underpinning the culture concept continue to haunt and render precarious efforts to demonstrate Muslim belonging to Europe via culture.
Knowledge, attitudes and practices related to dietary salt intake among adults in North India
Authors: Garg Vandana , Shivashankar Roopa , Kondal Dimple , Ghosh Shreeparna , Khandelwal Shweta , Gupta Ruby , Krishnan Anand , Amarchand Ritvik , Prabhakaran Dorairaj , Mohan Sailesh
Published: December 2018

Objective

To assess the knowledge, attitudes and practices related to salt consumption among adults in rural and urban North India.

Design

Data for the study were obtained from a community-based cross-sectional survey using an interviewer-administered questionnaire and 24 h urine samples.

Setting

Data collection was conducted during March–October 2012 in rural Haryana and urban Delhi in North India.

Participants

Adults (n 1635) aged ≥20 years (701 in rural Haryana; 934 in urban Delhi).

Results

Twenty-four per cent of rural and 40·5 % of urban participants knew that a high-salt diet causes high blood pressure. Nearly one-fifth of both rural and urban participants knew that there should be a maximum daily limit for consumption of salt. In rural and urban areas, 46·6 and 45·1 %, respectively, perceived it important to reduce the salt content of their diet; however, only 3·7 and 10·2 %, respectively, reported taking some actions. Participants reported they were consuming ‘too little salt’, ‘just the right amount of salt’ or ‘too much salt’, but their corresponding mean (95 % CI) actual salt consumption (g/d; as measured by 24 h urinary Na excretion) was higher, especially among rural participants (rural: 9·2 (8·13, 10·22), 8·5 (8·19, 8·77) or 8·4 (7·72, 8·99); urban: 5·6 (4·67, 6·57), 5·7 (5·32, 6·01) or 4·6 (4·10, 5·14), respectively).

Conclusions

Knowledge about the deleterious health impact of excess salt consumption is low in this population. Tailored public education for salt reduction is warranted with a particular focus on rural residents.
The Post-Brexit Declaration on Social Quality in Europe
Authors: Walker Alan , Corbett Steve
Published: December 2018

Twenty years ago, at a public ceremony in Amsterdam, a group of European academics made a solemn declaration on the future of the European Union (EU). Eventually over 1000 scholars and policy makers signed the Amsterdam Declaration on the Social Quality of Europe and it was translated into sixteen languages. The main intention behind the declaration was to remind policy makers and citizens about the unique nature of the western European model of development, comprising aspirations for economic growth, competitiveness and social justice. The risk being warned against was that, in the process of Economic and Monetary Union, the politics of integration would neglect what was then labelled the ‘social dimension’ and, among other far-reaching consequences, this would lead to a loss of legitimacy for the whole European project. As the Comité des Sages put it, bluntly, in 1996, ‘Europe will be a Europe for everyone, for all its citizens, or it will be nothing’.
The ‘Floating’Ummahin the Fall of ‘Ahok’ in Indonesia
Authors: Hadiz Vedi R.
Published: December 2018

The article examines the idea of a ‘floating’ummahin Indonesia today that affects the workings of Indonesian Islamic politics and democracy itself. It is asserted that theummah, or community of believers, are more disconnected from the large mainstream Islamic organisational vehicles in Indonesia than is often claimed. A considerable cross-section of this community has become increasingly disaffected with the status quo, as social inequalities sharpen and educated youths who face uncertain futures find appeal in the tough rhetoric of fringe Islamic organisations. This rhetoric emphasises absolute standards of morality as a solution to social and economic predicaments, thereby resulting in the mainstreaming of rigid religious attitudes. Consequently, organisations seen as guardians of ‘religious moderation’ have also picked up on them in an attempt to remain relevant to their increasingly socially heterogeneous constituencies. The overall result is an Islamic politics that has become more intolerant, especially when identity politics gets absorbed into conflicts between different oligarchic factions. This was seen in the dramatic fall of the ethnic-Chinese and Christian former governor of Jakarta known as ‘Ahok’ in 2017.
Observational Constraints Reduce Likelihood of Extreme Changes in Multidecadal Land Water Availability
Authors: Padrón Ryan S. , Gudmundsson Lukas , Seneviratne Sonia I.
Published: December 2018

Future changes in multidecadal mean water availability, represented as the difference between precipitation and evapotranspiration, remain highly uncertain in ensemble simulations of climate models. Here we identify a physically meaningful relationship between present‐day mean precipitation and projected changes in water availability. This suggests that the uncertainty can be reduced by conditioning the ensemble on observed precipitation, which is achieved through a novel probabilistic approach that uses Approximate Bayesian Computation. Comparing the constrained with the full ensemble shows that projected extreme changes in water availability, denoted by the 5th and 95th percentile of the full ensemble, are less likely over 73% and 63% of land, respectively. There is also an overall shift toward wetter conditions over Europe, Southern Africa, and Western North America, whereas the opposite occurs over the Amazon. Finally, the constrained projections support adaptation to shifts in regional water availability as imposed by different global warming levels.
Temperature‐ and Humidity‐Dependent Phase States of Secondary Organic Aerosols
Authors: Petters Sarah S. , Kreidenweis Sonia M. , Grieshop Andrew P. , Ziemann Paul J. , Petters Markus D.
Published: December 2018

Viscosity of monoterpene‐derived secondary organic aerosols (SOAs) as a function of temperature and relative humidity (RH), and dry SOA glass transition temperatures are reported. Viscosity was measured using coalescence time scales of synthesized 100 nm dimers. Dry temperature‐dependent SOA viscosity was similar to that of citric acid, coal tar pitch, and sorbitol. The temperature where dry viscosity was 106 Pa·s varied between 14 and 36 °C and extrapolated glass transition varied between −10 and 20 °C (±10 °C). Mass fragment f44 obtained with an Aerosol Chemical Speciation Monitor was anticorrelated with viscosity. Viscosity of humidified Δ3‐carene and α‐pinene SOAs exceeded 106 Pa·s for all subsaturated RHs at temperatures <0 and –5 °C, respectively. Steep viscosity isopleths at 106 Pa·s were traced for these across (temperature, RH) conditions ranging from (approximately −5 °C, 100%) and (approximately 36 °C, 0%). Differences in composition and thus hygroscopicity can shift humidified viscosity isopleths for SOAs at cold tropospheric temperatures.
Aftershock Rate and Pore Fluid Diffusion: Insights From the Amatrice‐Visso‐Norcia (Italy) 2016 Seismic Sequence
Authors: Albano Matteo , Barba Salvatore , Saroli Michele , Polcari Marco , Bignami Christian , Moro Marco , Stramondo Salvatore , Di Bucci Daniela
Published: December 2018

We developed a numerical model by using only early and unreviewed data and information related to the 2016 Mw 6 earthquake in central Italy to quickly evaluate the pore pressure contribution to the aftershock release after a severe mainshock. Moreover, a computational procedure is proposed for discussing if and how such an approach could be useful in the management of a seismic crisis. The two‐dimensional finite element model in this study is based on poroelastic theory and includes a planar seismogenic fault. The model geometry and parameters are based on data collected from the literature before the mainshock. The dip and depth of the seismogenic fault are based on preliminary information from focal mechanisms and related fault inversions. The fault slip is calibrated with synthetic aperture radar interferometric data, and the hydraulic properties of the medium are progressively calibrated based on routine aftershock data collected during the sequence. The procedure proposed here can be efficiently applied in a diverse range of cases depending on data availability. Typically, the available “ingredients” allow for a quick, simplified analysis to be conducted rapidly. The simulation results show that early information and routine data are useful in developing and calibrating a model that can rapidly describe the approximate temporal evolution of overpressured conditions, which represent a crucial driving mechanism in the occurrence of aftershocks. These findings highlight the need to adequately consider time‐dependent poroelastic effects when modeling postseismic scenarios and predicting the spatiotemporal evolution of the stresses following a large earthquake.
Seismic Evidence on Different Rifting Mechanisms in Southern and Northern Segments of the Fenhe‐Weihe Rift Zone
Authors: Ai Sanxi , Zheng Yong , Riaz Muhammad Shahid , Song Meiqing , Zeng Sijia , Xie Zujun
Published: December 2018

The Fenhe‐Weihe Rift (FWR) system is one of the most active rift zones in east China, and plays an important role in the reactivation of the North China Craton. In this work, a high‐resolution 3‐D lithospheric S wave velocity model of the FWR is built by joint inversion of receiver functions and ambient noise. Strong correlation between topography and tectonic features is observed at shallow depths. At great depths, strong heterogeneities are observed along the FWR: (1) high‐velocity anomalies emerge beneath the Weihe and Taiyuan basins in the lower crust; (2) two high‐velocity anomalies are imaged in the uppermost mantle beneath the south to central FWR; and (3) two strong large‐scale, low‐velocity zones are observed beneath the north Trans‐North China Oregon: one is at ~60 km and the other one is much larger with a deeper source. Based on the petrologic properties, geochemical analyses, and seismic images obtained in this work, we propose that the rifting mechanisms between the south and north FWR are different. In the south, the rifting could be mainly caused by the passive effects from the uplift of the Tibetan Plateau, while in the north the rifting is due to the combined effects of the asthenosphere upwelling and the counterclockwise rotation of the Ordos block. The uppermost mantle high‐velocity anomalies underneath the south to central part of the FWR could be the remnants of strong ancient cratonic root, and act as mechanical barriers to block the rifting processes between the south and north FWR.
Wave Interaction of Reverse‐Fault Rupture With Free Surface: Numerical Analysis of the Dynamic Effects and Fault Opening Induced by Symmetry Breaking
Authors: Scala A. , Festa G. , Vilotte J.‐P. , Lorito S. , Romano F.
Published: December 2018

Several great earthquakes occur on thrust faults along both subduction and continental collision zones. These events often feature a large shallow slip patch, an asymmetric pattern for the ground motion, and the static deformation between the hanging wall and footwall of the fault. From a mechanical point of view, this asymmetry can be partially explained taking into account the interaction between the fault and the seismic radiation emitted during rupture propagation and stored in the hanging wall in the vicinity of the free surface. We numerically investigate the rupture dynamics along a thrust dipping fault impacting onto the free surface at a dip angle of δ = 20°, in a 2‐D elastic model. We show how the wave interaction of the rupture with the free surface leads to a breaking of the reflection symmetry. Compared to a rupture propagating in an infinite medium, this interaction enhances the slip rate in the updip direction as an effect of the coupling between slip and normal traction around the crack front. The breaking of symmetry leads to sizeable acceleration of the rupture toward asymptotic speed with inertia acquisition, and dependence of the rupture dynamics on the level of friction along the interface might produce an interface opening over a finite length in the vicinity of the surface. We finally explore how the wave interaction drives amplification and asymmetry of the shallow slip and the vertical displacement at the surface. The described effects should be considered in various numerical approaches and in interpretation of geophysical observations.
Active Deformation Near the Rio Grande Rift and Colorado Plateau as Inferred from Continuous Global Positioning System Measurements
Authors: Murray K. D. , Murray M. H. , Sheehan A. F.
Published: December 2018

We used data from 333 continuous Global Positioning System stations, including 26 stations installed in 2006–2007 as part of a collaborative EarthScope experiment, to investigate how deformation is distributed near the Rio Grande Rift. Our previous analysis, using data from 2006 to 2010, was consistent with a nearly uniform east‐west distributed extensional strain rate of ~1.2 nε/year (nanostrain/year) along five profiles spanning a ~1,000‐km region. We built upon this analysis with additional Global Positioning System networks and longer time series of data spanning varying time ranges between 1993 and 2018. In all five east‐west profiles, extensional strain rates are higher within and west of the fault‐defined rift zone than to the east. There is an east‐to‐west increase in Central New Mexico from 0.7 ± 0.1 to 1.8 ± 0.8 nε/year that is significant at the 95% confidence level. We found elevated extensional and shear strain rates of over 10 nε/year along parts of the central Rio Grande Rift, particularly along the southeast edge of the Colorado Plateau along part of the Jemez lineament, as well as elevated dilatational strain rates and uplift above the Socorro magma body. Results from Euler pole analysis of Global Positioning System velocities for sites within the Colorado Plateau show nonrigid behavior with considerable deformation near the plateau margins and internal east‐west extension. Our results suggest the Rio Grande Rift is actively deforming in an evolving tectonic environment.
Spin density encodes intramolecular singlet exciton fission in pentacene dimers
Authors: Krishnapriya K. C. , Roy Palas , Puttaraju Boregowda , Salzner Ulrike , Musser Andrew J. , Jain Manish , Dasgupta Jyotishman , Patil Satish
Published: December 2018

The formation of two triplet excitons at the cost of one photon via singlet exciton fission in organic semiconductors can potentially enhance the photocurrent in photovoltaic devices. However, the role of spin density distribution in driving this photophysical process has been unclear until now. Here we present the significance of electronic spin density distribution in facilitating efficient intramolecular singlet exciton fission (iSEF) in π-bridged pentacene dimers. We synthetically modulate the spin density distribution in a series of pentacene dimers using phenyl-, thienyl- and selenyl- flanked diketopyrrolopyrrole (DPP) derivatives as π-bridges. Using femtosecond transient absorption spectroscopy, we find that efficient iSEF is only observed for the phenyl-derivative in ~2.4 ps while absent in the other two dimers. Electronic structure calculations reveal that phenyl-DPP bridge localizes α- and β-spin densities on distinct terminal pentacenes. Upon photoexcitation, a spin exchange mechanism enables iSEF from a singlet state which has an innate triplet pair character.
Defect engineered bioactive transition metals dichalcogenides quantum dots
Authors: Ding Xianguang , Peng Fei , Zhou Jun , Gong Wenbin , Slaven Garaj , Loh Kian Ping , Lim Chwee Teck , Leong David Tai
Published: December 2018

Transition metal dichalcogenide (TMD) quantum dots (QDs) are fundamentally interesting because of the stronger quantum size effect with decreased lateral dimensions relative to their larger 2D nanosheet counterparts. However, the preparation of a wide range of TMD QDs is still a continual challenge. Here we demonstrate a bottom-up strategy utilizing TM oxides or chlorides and chalcogen precursors to synthesize a small library of TMD QDs (MoS2, WS2, RuS2, MoTe2, MoSe2, WSe2 and RuSe2). The reaction reaches equilibrium almost instantaneously (~10–20 s) with mild aqueous and room temperature conditions. Tunable defect engineering can be achieved within the same reactions by deviating the precursors’ reaction stoichiometries from their fixed molecular stoichiometries. Using MoS2 QDs for proof-of-concept biomedical applications, we show that increasing sulfur defects enhanced oxidative stress generation, through the photodynamic effect, in cancer cells. This facile strategy will motivate future design of TMDs nanomaterials utilizing defect engineering for biomedical applications.
Ulcerative colitis mucosal transcriptomes reveal mitochondriopathy and personalized mechanisms underlying disease severity and treatment response
Authors: Haberman Yael , Karns Rebekah , Dexheimer Phillip J. , Schirmer Melanie , Somekh Judith , Jurickova Ingrid , Braun Tzipi , Novak Elizabeth , Bauman Laura , Collins Margaret H. , Mo Angela , Rosen Michael J. , Bonkowski Erin , Gotman Nathan , Marquis Alison , Nistel Mason , Rufo Paul A. , Baker Susan S. , Sauer Cary G. , Markowitz James , Pfefferkorn Marian D. , Rosh Joel R. , Boyle Brendan M. , Mack David R. , Baldassano Robert N. , Shah Sapana , Leleiko Neal S. , Heyman Melvin B. , Grifiths Anne M. , Patel Ashish S. , Noe Joshua D. , Aronow Bruce J. , Kugathasan Subra , Walters Thomas D. , Gibson Greg , Thomas Sonia Davis , Mollen Kevin , Shen-Orr Shai , Huttenhower Curtis , Xavier Ramnik J. , Hyams Jeffrey S. , Denson Lee A.
Published: December 2018

Molecular mechanisms driving disease course and response to therapy in ulcerative colitis (UC) are not well understood. Here, we use RNAseq to define pre-treatment rectal gene expression, and fecal microbiota profiles, in 206 pediatric UC patients receiving standardised therapy. We validate our key findings in adult and paediatric UC cohorts of 408 participants. We observe a marked suppression of mitochondrial genes and function across cohorts in active UC, and that increasing disease severity is notable for enrichment of adenoma/adenocarcinoma and innate immune genes. A subset of severity genes improves prediction of corticosteroid-induced remission in the discovery cohort; this gene signature is also associated with response to anti-TNFα and anti-α4β7 integrin in adults. The severity and therapeutic response gene signatures were in turn associated with shifts in microbes previously implicated in mucosal homeostasis. Our data provide insights into UC pathogenesis, and may prioritise future therapies for nonresponders to current approaches.
Genome editing in primary cells and in vivo using viral-derived Nanoblades loaded with Cas9-sgRNA ribonucleoproteins
Authors: Mangeot Philippe E. , Risson Valérie , Fusil Floriane , Marnef Aline , Laurent Emilie , Blin Juliana , Mournetas Virginie , Massouridès Emmanuelle , Sohier Thibault J. M. , Corbin Antoine , Aubé Fabien , Teixeira Marie , Pinset Christian , Schaeffer Laurent , Legube Gaëlle , Cosset François-Loïc , Verhoeyen Els , Ohlmann Théophile , Ricci Emiliano P.
Published: December 2018

Programmable nucleases have enabled rapid and accessible genome engineering in eukaryotic cells and living organisms. However, their delivery into target cells can be technically challenging when working with primary cells or in vivo. Here, we use engineered murine leukemia virus-like particles loaded with Cas9-sgRNA ribonucleoproteins (Nanoblades) to induce efficient genome-editing in cell lines and primary cells including human induced pluripotent stem cells, human hematopoietic stem cells and mouse bone-marrow cells. Transgene-free Nanoblades are also capable of in vivo genome-editing in mouse embryos and in the liver of injected mice. Nanoblades can be complexed with donor DNA for “all-in-one” homology-directed repair or programmed with modified Cas9 variants to mediate transcriptional up-regulation of target genes. Nanoblades preparation process is simple, relatively inexpensive and can be easily implemented in any laboratory equipped for cellular biology.
Desymmetrization of meso-bisphosphates using copper catalysis and alkylzirconocene nucleophiles
Authors: Jacques Reece , Pullin Robert D. C. , Fletcher Stephen P.
Published: December 2018

The desymmetrization of meso-compounds is a useful synthetic method, as illustrated by numerous applications of this strategy in natural product synthesis. Cu-catalyzed allylic desymmetrizations enable the enantioselective formation of carbon-carbon bonds, but these transformations are limited in substrate scope and by the use of highly reactive premade organometallic reagents at cryogenic temperatures. Here we show that diverse meso-bisphosphates in combination with alkylzirconium nucleophiles undergo highly regio-, diastereo- and enantio-selective Cu-catalyzed desymmetrization reactions. In addition, C2-symmetric chiral bisphosphates undergo stereospecific reactions and a racemic substrate undergoes a Cu-catalyzed kinetic resolution. The reaction tolerates functional groups incompatible with many common organometallic reagents and provides access to a broad range of functionalized carbo- and hetero-cyclic structures. The products bear up to three contiguous stereogenic centers, including quaternary centers and spirocyclic ring systems. We anticipate that the method will be a useful complement to existing catalytic enantioselective reactions.
Role of APS reductase in biogeochemical sulfur isotope fractionation
Authors: Sim Min Sub , Ogata Hideaki , Lubitz Wolfgang , Adkins Jess F. , Sessions Alex L. , Orphan Victoria J. , McGlynn Shawn E.
Published: December 2018

Sulfur isotope fractionation resulting from microbial sulfate reduction (MSR) provides some of the earliest evidence of life, and secular variations in fractionation values reflect changes in biogeochemical cycles. Here we determine the sulfur isotope effect of the enzyme adenosine phosphosulfate reductase (Apr), which is present in all known organisms conducting MSR and catalyzes the first reductive step in the pathway and reinterpret the sedimentary sulfur isotope record over geological time. Small fractionations may be attributed to low sulfate concentrations and/or high respiration rates, whereas fractionations greater than that of Apr require a low chemical potential at that metabolic step. Since Archean sediments lack fractionation exceeding the Apr value of 20‰, they are indicative of sulfate reducers having had access to ample electron donors to drive their metabolisms. Large fractionations in post-Archean sediments are congruent with a decline of favorable electron donors as aerobic and other high potential metabolic competitors evolved.
PRMT5 is essential for B cell development and germinal center dynamics
Authors: Litzler Ludivine C. , Zahn Astrid , Meli Alexandre P. , Hébert Steven , Patenaude Anne-Marie , Methot Stephen P. , Sprumont Adrien , Bois Thérence , Kitamura Daisuke , Costantino Santiago , King Irah L. , Kleinman Claudia L. , Richard Stéphane , Di Noia Javier M.
Published: December 2018

Mechanisms regulating B cell development, activation, education in the germinal center (GC) and differentiation, underpin the humoral immune response. Protein arginine methyltransferase 5 (Prmt5), which catalyzes most symmetric dimethyl arginine protein modifications, is overexpressed in B cell lymphomas but its function in normal B cells is poorly defined. Here we show that Prmt5 is necessary for antibody responses and has essential but distinct functions in all proliferative B cell stages in mice. Prmt5 is necessary for B cell development by preventing p53-dependent and p53-independent blocks in Pro-B and Pre-B cells, respectively. By contrast, Prmt5 protects, via p53-independent pathways, mature B cells from apoptosis during activation, promotes GC expansion, and counters plasma cell differentiation. Phenotypic and RNA-seq data indicate that Prmt5 regulates GC light zone B cell fate by regulating transcriptional programs, achieved in part by ensuring RNA splicing fidelity. Our results establish Prmt5 as an essential regulator of B cell biology.
Molecular memory with downstream logic processing exemplified by switchable and self-indicating guest capture and release
Authors: Daly Brian , Moody Thomas S. , Huxley Allen J. M. , Yao Chaoyi , Schazmann Benjamin , Alves-Areias Andre , Malone John F. , Gunaratne H. Q. Nimal , Nockemann Peter , de Silva A. Prasanna
Published: December 2018

Molecular-logic based computation (MLBC) has grown by accumulating many examples of combinational logic gates and a few sequential variants. In spite of many inspirations being available in biology, there are virtually no examples of MLBC in chemistry where sequential and combinational operations are integrated. Here we report a simple alcohol-ketone redox interconversion which switches a macrocycle between a large or small cavity, with erect aromatic walls which create a deep hydrophobic space or with collapsed walls respectively. Small aromatic guests can be captured or released in an all or none manner upon chemical command. During capture, the fluorescence of the alcohol macrocycle is quenched via fluorescent photoinduced electron transfer switching, meaning that its occupancy state is self-indicated. This represents a chemically-driven RS Flip-Flop, one of whose outputs is fed into an INHIBIT gate. Processing of outputs from memory stores is seen in the injection of packaged neurotransmitters into synaptic clefts for onward neural signalling. Overall, capture-release phenomena from discrete supermolecules now have a Boolean basis.