bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Computing motivic zeta functions on log smooth models
Authors: Bultot Emmanuel , Nicaise Johannes
Published: July 2019

We give an explicit formula for the motivic zeta function in terms of a log smooth model. It generalizes the classical formulas for snc-models, but it gives rise to much fewer candidate poles, in general. This formula plays an essential role in recent work on motivic zeta functions of degenerating Calabi–Yau varieties by the second-named author and his collaborators. As a further illustration, we explain how the formula for Newton non-degenerate polynomials can be viewed as a special case of our results.
Belief in Fate and Self-Efficacy in Road Safety Advertising Based on Guilt: An Explanation Based on Negotiable Fate
Authors: Becheur Imene , Guizani Haithem , Shaaban Khaled
Published: July 2019

This study examines the effectiveness of using guilt in road safety advertising among young populations characterized as having high levels of belief in fate, and refutes the positive relationship between belief in fate and health message ineffectiveness, by introducing the notion of negotiable fate. This type of coping implies that when belief in fate increases, persuasion increases and this relationship operates through self-efficacy perceptions. That is, when exposed to guilt-based road safety messages, belief in fate generates self-efficacy perceptions, which motivates drivers to focus on the problem instead of denying it, leading to a higher persuasion. The current research constitutes a first empirical test of the relationships between belief in fate, self-efficacy, and compliance with guilt-based road safety communications. We also test a moderation-mediation model proving that the mediator role of self-efficacy is reinforced with the use of higher levels of guilt in the message. Results can provide guidance for non-profit organizations and public agencies on how to develop future policies to promote safe behaviors among young drivers who have high belief in fate.
Functional network connectivity changes in children with attention‐deficit hyperactivity disorder: A resting‐state fMRI study
Authors: Jiang Kaihua , Yi Yang , Li Lin , Li Hongxin , Shen Huijuan , Zhao Fangqiao , Xu Yunpin , Zheng Aibin
Published: July 2019

The study aimed to investigate the pathologic mechanism of functional brain regions in attention‐deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) patients through making comparisons of normal and ADHD children from the perspective of the network nodes of brain network and the intensity of functional connection between bilateral of hemispheres by resting‐state functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Thirty‐five ADHD and forty‐two children were examined by resting‐state functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scans. Data analysis was done via the degree centrality (DC) and voxel‐mirrored homotopic connectivity (VMHC) approaches. Compared with healthy subjects, the ADHD group exhibited significantly decreased DC values in the right posterior cingulate gyrus, left medial superior frontal gyrus, right inferior parietal gyrus, right middle frontal gyrus, left superior frontal gyrus and right superior frontal gyrus. Children with ADHD also exhibited some areas with increased DC values compared with healthy children. These regions included the cerebellar anterior lobe, right middle occipital cortex, left middle cingulate gyrus and right middle cingulate gyrus. VMHC analysis all revealed positive activation in a range of brain regions when comparing ADHD and normal children, suggesting that the VMHC scores of children with ADHD were higher in the bilateral superior frontal lobe, bilateral middle occipital lobe, and bilateral cerebellar anterior lobes. This work provides a new approach for examining the neural mechanisms underlying ADHD, demonstrating that the DC and VMHC methods enabled more comprehensive analysis that can be cross‐checked.
Limit theorems for the fractional nonhomogeneous Poisson process
Authors: Leonenko Nikolai , Scalas Enrico , Trinh Mailan
Published: July 2019

The fractional nonhomogeneous Poisson process was introduced by a time change of the nonhomogeneous Poisson process with the inverseα-stable subordinator. We propose a similar definition for the (nonhomogeneous) fractional compound Poisson process. We give both finite-dimensional and functional limit theorems for the fractional nonhomogeneous Poisson process and the fractional compound Poisson process. The results are derived by using martingale methods, regular variation properties and Anscombe’s theorem. Eventually, some of the limit results are verified in a Monte Carlo simulation.
Asymptotic expansions and saddlepoint approximations using the analytic continuation of moment generating functions
Authors: Butler Ronald W.
Published: July 2019

Transform inversions, in which density and survival functions are computed from their associated moment generating function $\mathcal{M}$, have largely been based on methods which use values of $\mathcal{M}$ in its convergence region. Prominent among such methods are saddlepoint approximations and Fourier-series inversion methods, including the fast Fourier transform. In this paper we propose inversion methods which make use of values for $\mathcal{M}$ which lie outside of its convergence region and in its analytic continuation. We focus on the simplest and perhaps richest setting for applications in which $\mathcal{M}$ is either a meromorphic function in its analytic continuation, so that all of its singularities are poles, or else the singularities are isolated essential. Asymptotic expansions of finite- and infinite-orders are developed for density and survival functions using the poles of $\mathcal{M}$ in its analytic continuation. For finite-order expansions, the expansion error is a contour integral in the analytic continuation, which we approximate using the saddlepoint method based on following the path of steepest descent. Such saddlepoint error approximations accurately determine expansion errors and, thus, provide the means for determining the order of the expansion needed to achieve some preset accuracy. They also provide an additive correction term which increases accuracy of the expansion. Further accuracy is achieved by computing the expansion errors numerically using a contour path which ultimately tracks the steepest descent direction. Important applications include Wilks’ likelihood ratio test in MANOVA, compound distributions, and the Sparre Andersen and Cramér–Lundberg ruin models.
THE -PROVABILITY LOGIC OF
Authors: ARDESHIR MOHAMMAD , MOJTAHEDI MOJTABA
Published: July 2019

For the Heyting Arithmetic HA, $HA^{\text{*}} $ is defined [14, 15] as the theory $\left\{ {A|HA \vdash A^\square } \right\}$, where $A^\square $ is called the box translation of A (Definition 2.4). We characterize the ${\text{\Sigma }}_1 $-provability logic of $HA^{\text{*}} $ as a modal theory $iH_\sigma ^{\text{*}} $ (Definition 3.17).
The role of inhibitory control in animacy effect: evidence from retrieval practice tasks
Authors: Tao Jun , Deng Bilin , Hu Saisai , Xu Lin
Published: July 2019

Animate stimuli are remembered better than inanimate stimuli. The proximate mechanism of this preferential retrieval of animate stimuli has not been clarified. The present study proposes an inhibitory control explanation for the advantage of the memory of animate stimuli. The retrieval practice paradigm is employed to examine the role of inhibitory control in animacy effect in two experiments. The results of Experiment 1 revealed a strong inhibitory effect on animate stimuli but was not reliable on inanimate stimuli, suggesting that animacy effect is not due to the insensitivity to the inhibitory control. The results of Experiment 2 show the absence of animacy effect when animacy is designed as a between-subject variable, suggesting that the memory of artifact may be influenced by the memory of animals. These findings are discussed using the inhibitory control account and suggest that the role of inhibitory control in animacy effect is to selectively inhibit the memory of other categories in order to facilitate the retrieval of animals, indicating that inhibitory control is, in part, responsible for the animacy effect.
Equivalency of the diagnostic accuracy of the PHQ-8 and PHQ-9: a systematic review and individual participant data meta-analysis
Authors: Wu Yin , Levis Brooke , Riehm Kira E. , Saadat Nazanin , Levis Alexander W. , Azar Marleine , Rice Danielle B. , Boruff Jill , Cuijpers Pim , Gilbody Simon , Ioannidis John P.A. , Kloda Lorie A. , McMillan Dean , Patten Scott B. , Shrier Ian , Ziegelstein Roy C. , Akena Dickens H. , Arroll Bruce , Ayalon Liat , Baradaran Hamid R. , Baron Murray , Bombardier Charles H. , Butterworth Peter , Carter Gregory , Chagas Marcos H. , Chan Juliana C. N. , Cholera Rushina , Conwell Yeates , de Man-van Ginkel Janneke M. , Fann Jesse R. , Fischer Felix H. , Fung Daniel , Gelaye Bizu , Goodyear-Smith Felicity , Greeno Catherine G. , Hall Brian J. , Harrison Patricia A. , Härter Martin , Hegerl Ulrich , Hides Leanne , Hobfoll Stevan E. , Hudson Marie , Hyphantis Thomas , Inagaki Masatoshi , Jetté Nathalie , Khamseh Mohammad E. , Kiely Kim M. , Kwan Yunxin , Lamers Femke , Liu Shen-Ing , Lotrakul Manote , Loureiro Sonia R. , Löwe Bernd , McGuire Anthony , Mohd-Sidik Sherina , Munhoz Tiago N. , Muramatsu Kumiko , Osório Flávia L. , Patel Vikram , Pence Brian W. , Persoons Philippe , Picardi Angelo , Reuter Katrin , Rooney Alasdair G. , Santos Iná S. , Shaaban Juwita , Sidebottom Abbey , Simning Adam , Stafford Lesley , Sung Sharon , Tan Pei Lin Lynnette , Turner Alyna , van Weert Henk C. , White Jennifer , Whooley Mary A. , Winkley Kirsty , Yamada Mitsuhiko , Benedetti Andrea , Thombs Brett D.
Published: July 2019

Background

Item 9 of the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) queries about thoughts of death and self-harm, but not suicidality. Although it is sometimes used to assess suicide risk, most positive responses are not associated with suicidality. The PHQ-8, which omits Item 9, is thus increasingly used in research. We assessed equivalency of total score correlations and the diagnostic accuracy to detect major depression of the PHQ-8 and PHQ-9.

Methods

We conducted an individual patient data meta-analysis. We fit bivariate random-effects models to assess diagnostic accuracy.

Results

16 742 participants (2097 major depression cases) from 54 studies were included. The correlation between PHQ-8 and PHQ-9 scores was 0.996 (95% confidence interval 0.996 to 0.996). The standard cutoff score of 10 for the PHQ-9 maximized sensitivity + specificity for the PHQ-8 among studies that used a semi-structured diagnostic interview reference standard (N = 27). At cutoff 10, the PHQ-8 was less sensitive by 0.02 (−0.06 to 0.00) and more specific by 0.01 (0.00 to 0.01) among those studies (N = 27), with similar results for studies that used other types of interviews (N = 27). For all 54 primary studies combined, across all cutoffs, the PHQ-8 was less sensitive than the PHQ-9 by 0.00 to 0.05 (0.03 at cutoff 10), and specificity was within 0.01 for all cutoffs (0.00 to 0.01).

Conclusions

PHQ-8 and PHQ-9 total scores were similar. Sensitivity may be minimally reduced with the PHQ-8, but specificity is similar.
‘Illiterate’ musicians: an historic review of curriculum and practice for student popular musicians in Australian senior secondary classrooms
Authors: Carroll Christine
Published: July 2019

This article examines curriculum and practice in Australian secondary classroom music education, in order to trace the inclusion of, and provision for, students with learning orientations based on popular music forms. A 60-year period of curriculum reform, matriculation statistics and literature is surveyed with a focus on the state of New South Wales (NSW), where the ‘non-literate’ student musician was first acknowledged in curriculum documents dating from the late 1970s at the senior secondary level (Music Syllabus Year 11 and 12: New 2 Unit A Course. Draft Document). Three overlapping eras frame discussion. The first discusses the original post–World War II school curriculum established for Western art music (WAM); the second discusses the period of curriculum reform beginning in the 1960s and 1970s, which leads to the inclusion of popular music at junior secondary levels; and the third is the present era from roughly 1980 onwards, where separate pathways of instruction are maintained for WAM and students with interests in popular and contemporary musics. Legitimation Code Theory (LCT) from the sociology of education is employed, with analysis unveiling a series of historic code shifts and clashes with implications for present practice. An unveiling of these codes explains the cause of ongoing tensions surrounding the inclusion of popular music and musicians in Australian music classrooms and provides foundation for much-needed curriculum development in the NSW context, and potentially elsewhere, where similar dynamics underpin practice in secondary classrooms.
IntrospectiveQ-learning and learning from demonstration
Authors: Li Mao , Brys Tim , Kudenko Daniel
Published: July 2019

One challenge faced by reinforcement learning (RL) agents is that in many environments the reward signal is sparse, leading to slow improvement of the agent’s performance in early learning episodes. Potential-based reward shaping can help to resolve the aforementioned issue of sparse reward by incorporating an expert’s domain knowledge into the learning through a potential function. Past work on reinforcement learning from demonstration (RLfD) directly mapped (sub-optimal) human expert demonstration to a potential function, which can speed up RL. In this paper we propose an introspective RL agent that significantly further speeds up the learning. An introspective RL agent records its state–action decisions and experience during learning in a priority queue. Good quality decisions, according to a Monte Carlo estimation, will be kept in the queue, while poorer decisions will be rejected. The queue is then used as demonstration to speed up RL via reward shaping. A human expert’s demonstration can be used to initialize the priority queue before the learning process starts. Experimental validation in the 4-dimensional CartPole domain and the 27-dimensional Super Mario AI domain shows that our approach significantly outperforms non-introspective RL and state-of-the-art approaches in RLfD in both domains.
Biological underpinnings from psychosocial stress towards appetite and obesity during youth: research implications towards metagenomics, epigenomics and metabolomics
Authors: Michels Nathalie
Published: July 2019

Psychosocial stress, uncontrolled eating and obesity are three interrelated epidemiological phenomena already present during youth. This broad narrative conceptual review summarises main biological underpinnings of the stress–diet–obesity pathway and how new techniques can further knowledge. Cortisol seems the main biological factor from stress towards central adiposity; and diet, physical activity and sleep are the main behavioural pathways. Within stress–diet, the concepts of comfort food and emotional eating are highlighted, as cortisol affects reward pathways and appetite brain centres with a role for insulin, leptin, neuropeptide Y (NPY), endocannabinoids, orexin and gastrointestinal hormones. More recently researched biological underpinnings are microbiota, epigenetic modifications and metabolites. First, the gut microbiota reaches the stress-regulating and appetite-regulating brain centres via the gut–brain axis. Second, epigenetic analyses are recommended as diet, obesity, stress and gut microbiota can change gene expression which then affects appetite, energy homeostasis and stress reactivity. Finally, metabolomics would be a good technique to disentangle stress–diet–obesity interactions as multiple biological pathways are involved. Saliva might be an ideal biological matrix as it allows metagenomic (oral microbiota), epigenomic and metabolomic analyses. In conclusion, stress and diet/obesity research should be combined in interdisciplinary collaborations with implementation of several -omics analyses.
Why is an Egg Donor a Genetic Parent, but not a Mitochondrial Donor?
Authors: PIOTROWSKA MONIKA
Published: July 2019

As new ways of reproducing emerge, advancing technologies are forcing us to rethink our old ideas of what it means to be a genetic parent. Why should some processes qualify as “reproduction” and others should not? To illustrate the practical impact of providing a defensible account of reproduction, the author examines the case of mitochondrial donation (mtDNA) and calls for a philosophical argument to bring clarity to exactly what we mean by ‘reproduction.’
Empowering Graduate Students to Address Ethics in Research Environments
Authors: HILDT ELISABETH , LAAS KELLY , MILLER CHRISTINE , TAYLOR STEPHANIE , BREY ERIC M.
Published: July 2019

In this article, we present an educational intervention that embeds ethics education within research laboratories. This structure is designed to assist students in addressing ethical challenges in a more informed way, and to improve the overall ethical culture of research environments. The project seeks (a) to identify factors that students and researchers consider relevant to ethical conduct in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) and (b) to promote the cultivation of an ethical culture in experimental laboratories by integrating research stakeholders in a bottom-up approach to developing context-specific, ethics-based guidelines. An important assumption behind this approach is that direct involvement in the process of developing laboratory specific ethical guidelines will positively influence researchers’ understanding of ethical research and practice issues, their handling of these issues, and the promotion of an ethical culture in the respective laboratory. The active involvement may increase the sense of ownership and integration of further discussion on these important topics. Based on the project experiences, the project team seeks to develop a module involving the bottom-up building of codes-of-ethics-based guidelines that can be used by a broad range of institutions and that will be distributed widely.
Medicine Unbound
Authors: Treitel Corinna
Published: July 2019

Why should intellectual historians care about the history of medicine? As someone who admires and draws frequently on intellectual history but is mostly an outsider to the field, I asked myself this question after accepting the invitation to review two books related to medical history for Modern Intellectual History. To make the question manageable, I decided to investigate how much the history of medicine had cropped up in the pages of MIH since it began publishing in 2004. Three terms fundamental to the history of medicine went into the MIH search engine: “medicine,” “physician,” and “disease.” “Medicine” yielded seven hits, “physician” three, and “disease” one. Curious to see in what context “medicine” appeared, I clicked on the seven hits and discovered three book reviews, two articles that made mention of medicine only incidentally, and two articles that connected medicine to the history of subjectivity. Because seven hits seemed low and the subjectivity result intrigued me, I went back to the search engine with a more specific set of terms. “Psychology” yielded sixteen hits, “psychoanalysis” fourteen, and “psychiatry” one. These results, of course, only tell us about the publishing record of MIH and not necessarily about the research interests that intellectual historians might have in the history of medicine. Still, they do suggest that the piece of medical history most useful to intellectual historians concerns the mind/brain sciences—that is, those sciences most likely to engage minds, selves, identities, the individual, and related constructs of interiority. Apparently less interesting is work from other vibrant research areas in medical history: diseases (e.g. cholera, cancer, plague), hospitals, medical education, medical practice, medical technology, medical sciences (e.g. physiology, nutrition, biochemistry), and the body, to name just a few. Intellectual historians, it seems, hold a strong but quite selective interest in medicine right now.
MECHANIZING PRINCIPIA LOGICO-METAPHYSICA IN FUNCTIONAL TYPE-THEORY
Authors: KIRCHNER DANIEL , BENZMÜLLER CHRISTOPH , ZALTA EDWARD N.
Published: July 2019

Principia Logico-Metaphysica contains a foundational logical theory for metaphysics, mathematics, and the sciences. It includes a canonical development of Abstract Object Theory [AOT], a metaphysical theory (inspired by ideas of Ernst Mally, formalized by Zalta) that distinguishes between ordinary and abstract objects.

This article reports on recent work in which AOT has been successfully represented and partly automated in the proof assistant system Isabelle/HOL. Initial experiments within this framework reveal a crucial but overlooked fact: a deeply-rooted and known paradox is reintroduced in AOT when the logic of complex terms is simply adjoined to AOT’s specially formulated comprehension principle for relations. This result constitutes a new and important paradox, given how much expressive and analytic power is contributed by having the two kinds of complex terms in the system. Its discovery is the highlight of our joint project and provides strong evidence for a new kind of scientific practice in philosophy, namely, computational metaphysics.

Our results were made technically possible by a suitable adaptation of Benzmüller’s metalogical approach to universal reasoning by semantically embedding theories in classical higher-order logic. This approach enables one to reuse state-of-the-art higher-order proof assistants, such as Isabelle/HOL, for mechanizing and experimentally exploring challenging logics and theories such as AOT. Our results also provide a fresh perspective on the question of whether relational type theory or functional type theory better serves as a foundation for logic and metaphysics.
Summer weed species incidence in Western Australia varies between seasons
Authors: Borger Catherine , Hashem Abul , D’Antuono Mario
Published: July 2019

Agronomic surveys of summer weed species are necessary to identify future research directions for optimal weed control, but usually focus on agricultural fields in a single season. To survey all species in the absence of weed control measures and determine species variability between seasons, a survey of 133 sites was conducted on roadsides adjoining agricultural fields throughout the Western Australian grainbelt in early 2015 and repeated in 2016 and 2017. The survey identified 144 species, but only 19 species were evident at more than 10% of sites. The most common species were weeping lovegrass [Eragrostis curvula (Schrad.) Nees], fleabane (Erigeron sp.), windmillgrass (Chloris truncata R. Br.), and wild radish (Raphanus raphanistrum L). The survey highlighted that weed species incidence varied between years. For example, C. truncata incidence was 30% in 2015 and 55% in 2016, while stinkgrass [Eragrostis cilianensis (All.) Vignolo ex Janch.] ranged from 20% in 2015 to 50% of sites in 2017. Conversely, density of individual species on the roadside was usually low, and density remained consistent between years. The survey highlighted multiple weed species that will require further research to optimize management programs. Raphanus raphanistrum and wild oat (Avena fatua L.) in particular are an issue for growers, as these species are highly detrimental winter weeds, and the survey demonstrates that they can also be common summer weeds. Control of these species with nonselective herbicides in summer as well as winter is likely to exacerbate the development of herbicide resistance.
EEG-neurofeedback as a training method for cognitive and non-cognitive functions in early dementia: A case report
Authors: Kaufmann Liane , Wood Guilherme , Robertson Melanie , Marksteiner Josef , Kober Silvia Erika
Published: July 2019

Abstract. EEG-neurofeedback (NF) is used as a training method for altering brain and associated functional activity in healthy individuals and patients alike. Depending on the chosen NF protocol (aiming at enhancing alpha, beta etc. EEG frequency band activity), NF training effects may be rather specific, aiming at ameliorating cognitive or non-cognitive states. We present data of an elderly female patient with minor neurocognitive disorder (MND). As the core symptoms of MND are acquired cognitive impairments due to neurodegenerative processes, NF training effects should be most pronounced regarding disease-related non-cognitive symptoms (i. e., sleeping disturbances and depression). Neuropsychological testing was conducted prior and after termination of the NF training. Two NF protocols (sensorimotor rhythm / SMR and alpha asymmetry / AA) were offered successively, each consisting of 12 sessions with six training blocks. AA NF should reduce depressive symptomatology, while SMR NF should ameliorate sleeping behavior and possibly attention and memory. Overall, our patient with MND exhibited partly positive NF training effects regarding brain electrical activity (i. e., AA, but not SMR) and associated cognitive and non-cognitive functions (i. e., memory and sleep, but not attention or depression). Thus, even in elderly with MND NF training should be regarded as a complementary non-pharmacological treatment for frequently reported disease-related cognitive and behavioral-affective symptoms.
The 1596 Keicho Earthquake, a 5‐Day, 300‐km‐Long Sequential Rupture Event in the Median Tectonic Line Fault Zone, Southwestern Japan
Authors: Ikeda Michiharu , Toda Shinji , Onishi Kozo , Nishizaka Naoki , Suzuki Shunsuke
Published: July 2019

Historical accounts and geological surveys suggest that a sequential rupture event occurred in 1596 CE in the Median Tectonic Line fault zone (MTLFZ) in southwestern Japan. During this event, known as the 1596 Keicho earthquake, the rupture probably propagated in two or three sequential stages, similar to a series of events that occurred along the North Anatolian fault during 1939–1999. The detailed rupture process of the 1596 earthquake event is unknown, however, because coseismic seismological, geological, and geodetic observation data are not available. To reconstruct the rupture processes, we integrated data from Coulomb stress change analyses, fault geometrical analyses, historical accounts, and rupture history. The results suggest that the rupture initiated on the Kawakami fault on 1 September 1596 and propagated bilaterally, to the Beppu Bay fault system, which ruptured on 4 September, and to the MTLFZ in eastern Shikoku and the Rokko‐Awaji fault zone and Arima‐Takatsuki Tectonic Line in the Kinki area, which ruptured on 5 September. However, there is a small possibility that the rupture initiated at the western end of the MTLFZ and propagated eastward unilaterally. The propagation of ruptures might be sensitively controlled not only by stress perturbation and fault geometry but also by rupture history. Evaluation of fault rupture behavior from various viewpoints can contribute to the mitigation of future seismic disasters in fault zones where detailed coseismic observation data from the past are lacking.
Regional Superparameterization in a Global Circulation Model Using Large Eddy Simulations
Authors: Jansson Fredrik , van den Oord Gijs , Pelupessy Inti , Grönqvist Johanna H. , Siebesma A. Pier , Crommelin Daan
Published: July 2019

As a computationally attractive alternative for global large eddy simulations (LESs), we investigate the possibility of using comprehensive three‐dimensional LESs as a superparameterization that can replace all traditional parameterizations of atmospheric processes that are currently used in global models. We present the technical design for a replacement of the parameterization for clouds, convection, and turbulence of the global atmospheric model of the European Centre for Medium‐Range Weather Forecasts by the Dutch Atmospheric Large Eddy Simulation model. The model coupling consists of bidirectional data exchange between the global model and the high‐resolution LES models embedded within the columns of the global model. Our setup allows for selective superparameterization, that is, for applying superparameterization in local regions selected by the user, while keeping the standard parameterization of the global model intact outside this region. Computationally, this setup can result in major geographic load imbalance, because of the large difference in computational load between superparameterized and nonsuperparameterized model columns. To resolve this issue, we use a modular design where the local and global models are kept as distinct model codes and organize the model coupling such that all the local models run in parallel, separate from the global model. First simulation results, employing this design, demonstrate the potential of our approach.
Insights Into Intraplate Stresses and Geomorphology in the Southeastern United States
Authors: Murphy Benjamin S. , Liu Lijun , Egbert Gary D.
Published: July 2019

The stress field in the eastern United States is commonly considered to be broadly uniform and due to homogeneous far‐field forces; however, modern and geologic stress indicators in this region show substantial heterogeneity. Using CitcomS to model stresses based on simple input density, temperature, and viscosity fields, we show that local isostasy is key in explaining the intraplate stress field in the southeastern United States. Crustal thickness variations appear to be most important in reproducing observations, although we slightly better match the observed stress field by including variable crustal viscosity informed by magnetotelluric imaging. Our results demonstrate that local gravitational body forces can substantially reorient far‐field stresses and thereby influence patterns of intraplate seismicity. We also show that variable crustal viscosity encourages a steepening of isostatic topography in the southeastern United States; this observation suggests that a sharp boundary in crustal strength may be important in explaining the apparently long‐lived Appalachian topographic escarpment.
Coral bacterial community structure responds to environmental change in a host-specific manner
Authors: Ziegler Maren , Grupstra Carsten G. B. , Barreto Marcelle M. , Eaton Martin , BaOmar Jaafar , Zubier Khalid , Al-Sofyani Abdulmohsin , Turki Adnan J. , Ormond Rupert , Voolstra Christian R.
Published: July 2019

The global decline of coral reefs heightens the need to understand how corals respond to changing environmental conditions. Corals are metaorganisms, so-called holobionts, and restructuring of the associated bacterial community has been suggested as a means of holobiont adaptation. However, the potential for restructuring of bacterial communities across coral species in different environments has not been systematically investigated. Here we show that bacterial community structure responds in a coral host-specific manner upon cross-transplantation between reef sites with differing levels of anthropogenic impact. The coral Acropora hemprichii harbors a highly flexible microbiome that differs between each level of anthropogenic impact to which the corals had been transplanted. In contrast, the microbiome of the coral Pocillopora verrucosa remains remarkably stable. Interestingly, upon cross-transplantation to unaffected sites, we find that microbiomes become indistinguishable from back-transplanted controls, suggesting the ability of microbiomes to recover. It remains unclear whether differences to associate with bacteria flexibly reflects different holobiont adaptation mechanisms to respond to environmental change.
The nasal methylome as a biomarker of asthma and airway inflammation in children
Authors: Cardenas Andres , Sordillo Joanne E. , Rifas-Shiman Sheryl L. , Chung Wonil , Liang Liming , Coull Brent A. , Hivert Marie-France , Lai Peggy S. , Forno Erick , Celedón Juan C. , Litonjua Augusto A. , Brennan Kasey J. , DeMeo Dawn L. , Baccarelli Andrea A. , Oken Emily , Gold Diane R.
Published: July 2019

The nasal cellular epigenome may serve as biomarker of airway disease and environmental response. Here we collect nasal swabs from the anterior nares of 547 children (mean-age 12.9 y), and measure DNA methylation (DNAm) with the Infinium MethylationEPIC BeadChip. We perform nasal Epigenome-Wide Association analyses (EWAS) of current asthma, allergen sensitization, allergic rhinitis, fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO) and lung function. We find multiple differentially methylated CpGs (FDR < 0.05) and Regions (DMRs; ≥ 5-CpGs and FDR < 0.05) for asthma (285-CpGs), FeNO (8,372-CpGs; 191-DMRs), total IgE (3-CpGs; 3-DMRs), environment IgE (17-CpGs; 4-DMRs), allergic asthma (1,235-CpGs; 7-DMRs) and bronchodilator response (130-CpGs). Discovered DMRs annotated to genes implicated in allergic asthma, Th2 activation and eosinophilia (EPX, IL4, IL13) and genes previously associated with asthma and IgE in EWAS of blood (ACOT7, SLC25A25). Asthma, IgE and FeNO were associated with nasal epigenetic age acceleration. The nasal epigenome is a sensitive biomarker of asthma, allergy and airway inflammation.
Author Correction: Infralimbic cortex is required for learning alternatives to prelimbic promoted associations through reciprocal connectivity
Authors: Mukherjee Arghya , Caroni Pico
Published: July 2019

An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via a link at the top of the paper.
Publisher Correction: Unusual 4H-phase twinned noble metal nanokites
Authors: Niu Wenxin , Liu Jiawei , Huang Jingtao , Chen Bo , He Qiyuan , Wang An-Liang , Lu Qipeng , Chen Ye , Yun Qinbai , Wang Jie , Li Cuiling , Huang Ying , Lai Zhuangchai , Fan Zhanxi , Wu Xue-Jun , Zhang Hua
Published: July 2019

An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via a link at the top of the paper.
Machine learning enables polymer cloud-point engineering via inverse design
Authors: Kumar Jatin N. , Li Qianxiao , Tang Karen Y. T. , Buonassisi Tonio , Gonzalez-Oyarce Anibal L. , Ye Jun
Published: July 2019

Inverse design is an outstanding challenge in disordered systems with multiple length scales such as polymers, particularly when designing polymers with desired phase behavior. Here we demonstrate high-accuracy tuning of poly(2-oxazoline) cloud point via machine learning. With a design space of four repeating units and a range of molecular masses, we achieve an accuracy of 4 °C root mean squared error (RMSE) in a temperature range of 24–90 °C, employing gradient boosting with decision trees. The RMSE is >3x better than linear and polynomial regression. We perform inverse design via particle-swarm optimization, predicting and synthesizing 17 polymers with constrained design at 4 target cloud points from 37 to 80 °C. Our approach challenges the status quo in polymer design with a machine learning algorithm, that is capable of fast and systematic discovery of new polymers.
Accelerated aging test modeling applied to solar mirrors
Authors: Avenel Coralie , Raccurt Olivier , Gardette Jean-Luc , Therias Sandrine
Published: July 2019

The durability of solar mirrors is a critical factor for the deployment of concentrating solar power plants. Accelerated aging test models currently applied in the polymer, electronic, and photovoltaic fields have recently been reviewed, and the issues of their application to solar mirrors have been discussed. This article first reports the results of temperature, humidity, and light irradiance accelerated aging tests performed to assess the dependent parameters of selected models from the literature. These parameters include the apparent activation energy for the Arrhenius temperature law, the Peck and Eyring coefficients for humidity models and the Schwarzschild coefficient for the irradiance law. The experimental values were then assessed for specular reflectance loss of solar mirrors. Finally, using these parameters, acceleration factors were calculated for solar mirrors. An effective temperature considering the Arrhenius degradation law was used rather than the commonly used mean temperature. This question is also addressed for light irradiance by using the dose instead of the mean value.
Age-associated changes in the impact of sex steroids on influenza vaccine responses in males and females
Authors: Potluri Tanvi , Fink Ashley L. , Sylvia Kristyn E. , Dhakal Santosh , Vermillion Meghan S. , vom Steeg Landon , Deshpande Sharvari , Narasimhan Harish , Klein Sabra L.
Published: July 2019

Vaccine-induced immunity declines with age, which may differ between males and females. Using human sera collected before and 21 days after receipt of the monovalent A/Cal/09 H1N1 vaccine, we evaluated cytokine and antibody responses in adult (18–45 years) and aged (65+ years) individuals. After vaccination, adult females developed greater IL-6 and antibody responses than either adult males or aged females, with female antibody responses being positively associated with concentrations of estradiol. To test whether protection against influenza virus challenge was greater in females than males, we primed and boosted adult (8–10 weeks) and aged (68–70 weeks) male and female mice with an inactivated A/Cal/09 H1N1 vaccine or no vaccine and challenged with a drift variant A/Cal/09 virus. As compared with unvaccinated mice, vaccinated adult, but not aged, mice experienced less morbidity and better pulmonary viral clearance following challenge, regardless of sex. Vaccinated adult female mice developed antibody responses that were of greater quantity and quality and more protective than vaccinated adult males. Sex differences in vaccine efficacy diminished with age in mice. To determine the role of sex steroids in vaccine-induced immune responses, adult mice were gonadectomized and hormones (estradiol in females and testosterone in males) were replaced in subsets of animals before vaccination. Vaccine-induced antibody responses were increased in females by estradiol and decreased in males by testosterone. The benefit of elevated estradiol on antibody responses and protection against influenza in females is diminished with age in both mice and humans.
Age-related differences and sexual dimorphism in canine sleep spindles
Authors: Iotchev Ivaylo Borislavov , Kis Anna , Turcsán Borbála , Tejeda Fernández de Lara Daniel Rodrigo , Reicher Vivien , Kubinyi Enikő
Published: July 2019

Non-REM bursts of activity in the sigma range (9–16 Hz) typical of sleep spindles predict learning in dogs, similar to humans and rats. Little is known, however, about the age-related changes in amplitude, density (spindles/minute) and frequency (waves/second) of canine spindles. We investigated a large sample (N = 155) of intact and neutered pet dogs of both sexes, varying in breed and age, searching for spindles in segments of non-REM sleep. We recorded EEG from both a frontal midline electrode (Fz) and a central midline electrode (Cz) in 55.5% of the dogs, in the remaining animals only the Fz electrode was active (bipolar derivation). A similar topography was observed for fast (≥13 Hz) spindle occurrence as in humans (fast spindle number, density on Cz > Fz). For fast spindles, density was higher in females, and increased with age. These effects were more pronounced among intact animals and on Fz. Slow spindle density declined and fast spindle frequency increased with age on Cz, while on Fz age-related amplitude decline was observed. The frequency of fast spindles on Fz and slow spindles on Cz was linked to both sex and neutering, suggesting modulation by sexual hormones. Intact females displayed higher frequencies than males and neutered females. Our findings support the argument that sigma bursts in the canine non-REM sleep are analogous to human sleep spindles, and suggest that slow and fast spindles display different trajectories related to age, of which an increase in frontal fast spindles is unique to dogs.
In situ characterisation of MnS precipitation in high carbon steel
Authors: Tanaka Yasuhiro , Pahlevani Farshid , Moon Suk-Chun , Dippenaar Rian , Sahajwalla Veena
Published: July 2019

Manganese sulphide (MnS) is one of the major non-metallic inclusions in steel with huge impact on steel property. In the case of high carbon steel, due to higher sulphur content and its brittleness, controlling MnS formation is one of the main issues. MnS has a complicated precipitation mechanism during solidification in liquid and solid steel and at the interface with oxide inclusions. Higher sulphur content, lower melting point and different oxide inclusions in high carbon steel will cause MnS precipitation at different stages. In this study, different stages of MnS precipitation from liquid and/or solid in high carbon steel and at the interface with oxide inclusion were investigated comprehensively via two different types of High Temperature Confocal Scanning Laser Microscope (HTCSLM). Samples were analysed further using SEM-EDS for better understanding the pertaining mechanisms. MnS precipitation on the surface of liquid steel was observed in situ in a HTCSLM by the use of a concentric solidification technique. Additionally, formation of MnS following solidification and at the interfaces of oxide inclusions, was investigated in situ in a HTCSLM, which has a uniform temperature profile across the specimen. These comprehensive descriptions about different stages of MnS precipitation in high carbon steel have been conducted for the first time and provide crucial information for controlling MnS morphology in high carbon steel.
Differential effects of slow rewarming after cerebral hypothermia on white matter recovery after global cerebral ischemia in near-term fetal sheep
Authors: Draghi V. , Wassink G. , Zhou K. Q. , Bennet L. , Gunn A. J. , Davidson J. O.
Published: July 2019

It is widely believed that rewarming slowly after therapeutic hypothermia for hypoxic-ischemic (HI) encephalopathy can improve outcomes, but its impact on white matter injury after HI is unclear. Fetal sheep (0.85 gestation) received 30 min ischemia-normothermia (n = 8), or hypothermia from 3–48 h with rapid spontaneous rewarming over 1 h (ischemia-48 h hypothermia, n = 8), or 48 h with slow rewarming over 24 h (ischemia-slow rewarming, n = 7) or 72 h with rapid rewarming (ischemia-72 h hypothermia, n = 8). Ischemia was associated with loss of total and mature oligodendrocytes and reduced area fraction of myelin basic protein (MBP) and 2′,3′-cyclic nucleotide 3′-phosphodiesterase (CNPase; immature/mature oligodendrocytes) and increased microglia and astrocytes. Total numbers of oligodendrocytes were increased by all hypothermia protocols but only ischemia-72 h hypothermia attenuated loss of mature oligodendrocytes. All hypothermia protocols similarly increased the area fraction of MBP, whereas there was only an intermediate effect on the area fraction of CNPase. Microglia were suppressed by all hypothermia protocols, with the greatest reduction after ischemia-72 h hypothermia, and an intermediate effect after ischemia-slow rewarming. By contrast, induction of astrocytes was significantly reduced only after ischemia-slow rewarming. In conclusion, slow rewarming after hypothermia did not improve oligodendrocyte survival or myelination or suppression of microgliosis compared to fast rewarming, but modestly reduced astrocytosis.
Centrality in Complex Networks with Overlapping Community Structure
Authors: Ghalmane Zakariya , Cherifi Chantal , Cherifi Hocine , Hassouni Mohammed El
Published: July 2019

Identifying influential spreaders in networks is an essential issue in order to prevent epidemic spreading, or to accelerate information diffusion. Several centrality measures take advantage of various network topological properties to quantify the notion of influence. However, the vast majority of works ignore its community structure while it is one of the main features of many real-world networks. In a recent study, we show that the centrality of a node in a network with non-overlapping communities depends on two features: Its local influence on the nodes belonging to its community, and its global influence on the nodes belonging to the other communities. Using global and local connectivity of the nodes, we introduced a framework allowing to redefine all the classical centrality measures (designed for networks without community structure) to non-overlapping modular networks. In this paper, we extend the so-called “Modular Centrality” to networks with overlapping communities. Indeed, it is a frequent scenario in real-world networks, especially for social networks where nodes usually belong to several communities. The “Overlapping Modular Centrality” is a two-dimensional measure that quantifies the local and global influence of overlapping and non-overlapping nodes. Extensive experiments have been performed on synthetic and real-world data using the Susceptible-Infected-Recovered (SIR) epidemic model. Results show that the Overlapping Modular Centrality outperforms its alternatives designed for non-modular networks. These investigations provide better knowledge on the influence of the various parameters governing the overlapping community structure on the nodes’ centrality. Additionally, two combinations of the components of the Overlapping Modular Centrality are evaluated. Comparative analysis with competing methods shows that they produce more efficient centrality scores.
Fast dose fractionation using ultra-short laser accelerated proton pulses can increase cancer cell mortality, which relies on functional PARP1 protein
Authors: Bayart E. , Flacco A. , Delmas O. , Pommarel L. , Levy D. , Cavallone M. , Megnin-Chanet F. , Deutsch E. , Malka V.
Published: July 2019

Radiotherapy is a cornerstone of cancer management. The improvement of spatial dose distribution in the tumor volume by minimizing the dose deposited in the healthy tissues have been a major concern during the last decades. Temporal aspects of dose deposition are yet to be investigated. Laser-plasma-based particle accelerators are able to emit pulsed-proton beams at extremely high peak dose rates (~109 Gy/s) during several nanoseconds. The impact of such dose rates on resistant glioblastoma cell lines, SF763 and U87-MG, was compared to conventionally accelerated protons and X-rays. No difference was observed in DNA double-strand breaks generation and cells killing. The variation of the repetition rate of the proton bunches produced an oscillation of the radio-induced cell susceptibility in human colon carcinoma HCT116 cells, which appeared to be related to the presence of the PARP1 protein and an efficient parylation process. Interestingly, when laser-driven proton bunches were applied at 0.5 Hz, survival of the radioresistant HCT116 p53−/− cells equaled that of its radiosensitive counterpart, HCT116 WT, which was also similar to cells treated with the PARP1 inhibitor Olaparib. Altogether, these results suggest that the application modality of ultrashort bunches of particles could provide a great therapeutic potential in radiotherapy.