bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The establishment of two paclitaxel‐resistant prostate cancer cell lines and the mechanisms of paclitaxel resistance with two cell lines
Authors: Takeda Masashi , Mizokami Atsushi , Mamiya Kiminori , Li You Qiang , Zhang Jian , Keller Evan T. , Namiki Mikio
Published: April 2007

BACKGROUND

Although paclitaxel is used for hormone‐resistant prostate cancer, relapse definitely occurs later. Details of the molecular mechanism responsible for paclitaxel‐ resistance remain unclear.

METHODS

We established paclitaxel‐resistant cells, DU145‐TxR and PC‐3‐TxR from parent DU145 and PC‐3. To characterize these cells, we examined cross‐resistance to other anticancer drugs. Expression of several potential genes that had been related to drug‐resistance was compared with parent cells by RT‐PCR and Western blotting. Methylation analysis of multiple drug resistance (MDR1) promoter was carried out using bisulfite‐modified DNA from cell lines. Knockdown experiments using small interfering RNA (siRNA) were also performed to confirm responsibility of drug‐resistance. Finally, cDNA microarray was performed to quantify gene expression in PC‐3 and PC‐3‐TxR cells.

RESULTS

The IC50 for paclitaxel in DU145‐TxR and PC‐3‐TxR was 34.0‐ and 43.4‐fold higher than that in both parent cells, respectively. Both cells showed cross‐resistance to some drugs, but not to VP‐16 and cisplatin. Methylation analysis revealed that methylated CpG sites of MDR1 promoter in DU145 and PC‐3 cells were demethylated in DU145‐TxR cells, but not in PC‐3‐TxR cells. Knockdown of P‐glycoprotein (P‐gp), which was up‐regulated in resistant cells, by MDR‐1 siRNA restored paclitaxel sensitivity in DU145‐TxR but not in PC‐3‐TxR, indicating that up‐regulation of P‐gp was not always main cause of paclitaxel‐resistance. Microarray analysis identified 201 (1.34%) up‐regulated genes and 218 (1.45%) out of screened genes in PC‐3‐TxR.

CONCLUSIONS

Our data will provide molecular mechanisms of paclitaxel‐resistance and be useful for screening target genes to diagnose paclitaxel sensitivity. Prostate 67: 955–967, 2007. © 2007 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
The bisphosphonate YM529 inhibits osteoblastic bone tumor proliferation of prostate cancer
Authors: Yonou Hiroyuki , Ochiai Atsushi , Ashimine Satoshi , Maeda Hiroyuki , Horiguchi Yutaka , Yoshioka Kunihiko , Ogawa Yoshihide , Hatano Tadashi , Tachibana Masaaki
Published: April 2007

BACKGROUND

In men, prostate cancer frequently metastasizes to the bones, where it forms osteoblastic lesions with an osteolytic element that cause pain. However, the role of osteoclastogenesis in bone metastasis of human prostate cancer is unknown. Bisphosphonates are already known to be beneficical for treating osteolytic bone metastases, so we employed a model of osteoblastic bone tumor of human prostate cancer to investigate whether a new bisphosphonate (YM529: minodronate) could inhibit both the formation of bone tumors and the progression of established osteoblastic tumors.

METHODS

Human prostate cancer cells (LNCaP) were injected into adult human bone implants in nonobese diabetic/severe combined immunodeficient mice, after which osteoblastic bone tumors developed. YM529 (1 µg/day) was administered subcutaneously every day for 2 weeks, starting either immediately or 2 weeks after implantation of the tumor cells, and the mice were sacrificed at 4 weeks after implantation. The bone tumors were examined histologically and the number of tartrate‐resistant acid phosphatase‐stained osteoclasts in each tumor focus was counted.

RESULTS

Histomorphometric analysis revealed that YM529 markedly inhibited both the formation of bone tumors and the progression of established tumors, as well as markedly reducing the number of osteoclasts.

CONCLUSIONS

YM529 reduced the tumor burden in bone by inhibiting both the formation of new lesions and the progression of existing tumors, suggesting that osteoclasts are involved in the formation of bone tumors by prostate cancer. Treatment with this bisphosphonate may potentially be beneficial for patients with bone metastases of prostate cancer. Prostate 67: 999–1009, 2007. © 2007 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Can an excess electron localize on a purine moiety in the adenine–thymine Watson–Crick base pair? A computational study
Authors: Mazurkiewicz Kamil , Harańczyk Maciej , Gutowski Maciej , Rak Janusz
Published: April 2007

The electron affinity and the propensity to electron‐induced proton transfer (PT) of hydrogen‐bonded complexes between the Watson–Crick adenine–thymine pair (AT) and simple organic acid (HX), attached to adenine in the Hoogsteen‐type configuration, were studied at the B3LYP/6‐31+G** level. Although the carboxyl group is deprotonated at physiological pH, its neutral form, COOH, resembles the peptide bond or the amide fragment in the side chain of asparagine (Asn) or glutamine (Gln). Thus, these complexes mimic the interaction between the DNA environment (e.g., proteins) and nucleobase pairs incorporated in the biopolymer. Electron attachment is thermodynamically feasible and adiabatic electron affinities range from 0.41 to 1.28 eV, while the vertical detachment energies of the resulting anions span the range of 0.39–2.88 eV. Low‐energy activation barriers separate the anionic minima: aHX(AT) from the more stable single‐PT anionic geometry, aHX(AT)‐SPT, and aHX(AT)‐SPT from the double‐PT anionic geometry, aHX(AT)‐DPT. Interaction between the adenine of the Watson–Crick AT base pair with an acidic proton donor probably counterbalances the larger EA of isolated thymine, as SOMO is almost evenly delocalized over both types of nucleic bases in the aHX(AT) anions. Moreover, as a result of PT the excess electron localizes entirely on adenine. Thus, in DNA interacting with its physiological environment, damage induced by low‐energy electrons could begin, contrary to the current view, with the formation of purine anions, which are not formed in isolated DNA because of the greater stability of anionic pyrimidines. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Quantum Chem, 2007
Visual end‐effector position error compensation for planetary robotics
Authors: Bajracharya Max , DiCicco Matthew , Backes Paul , Nickels Kevin
Published: April 2007

This paper describes a vision‐guided manipulation algorithm that improves arm end‐effector positioning to subpixel accuracy and meets the highly restrictive imaging and computational constraints of a planetary robotic flight system. Analytical, simulation‐based, and experimental analyses of the algorithm's effectiveness and sensitivity to camera and arm model error is presented along with results on several prototype research systems and “ground‐in‐the‐loop” technology experiments on the Mars Exploration Rover (MER) vehicles. A computationally efficient and robust subpixel end‐effector fiducial detector that is instrumental to the algorithm's ability to achieve high accuracy is also described along with its validation results on MER data. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Oasis: Onboard autonomous science investigation system for opportunistic rover science
Authors: Castano Rebecca , Estlin Tara , Anderson Robert C. , Gaines Daniel M. , Castano Andres , Bornstein Benjamin , Chouinard Caroline , Judd Michele
Published: April 2007

The Onboard Autonomous Science Investigation System has been developed to enable a rover to identify and react to serendipitous science opportunities. Using the FIDO rover in the Mars Yard at JPL, we have successfully demonstrated a fully autonomous opportunistic science system. The closed loop system tests included the rover acquiring image data, finding rocks in the image, analyzing rock properties and identifying rocks that merit further investigation. When the system on the rover alerts the rover to take additional measurements of interesting rocks, the planning and scheduling component determines if there are enough resources to meet this additional science data request. The rover is then instructed to either turn toward the rock, or to actually move closer to the rock to take an additional, close‐up image. Prototype dust devil and cloud detection algorithms were delivered to an infusion task which refined the algorithms specifically for Mars Exploration Rovers (MER). These algorithms have been integrated into the MER flight software and were recently uploaded to the rovers on Mars. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Adaptive background estimation based on robust statistics
Authors: Shimai Hiroyuki , Kurita Takio , Umeyama Shinji , Tanaka Masaru , Mishima Taketoshi
Published: April 2007

In this paper, the authors propose a robust background estimation algorithm, which is a technique for adaptively estimating background in response to changes in the environment based on robust statistics, and a technique for automatically adjusting the adaptation rate in response to changes in the environment. In monitoring systems and the like using stationary cameras, it is necessary to detect moving objects from the captured image series, and recognize and identify the detected subject. The most simple and representative method for moving object detection, which is used in many fields, is the background subtraction method for detecting moving objects by the difference between the background image and the current scene. This method requires a background image which does not include a moving object. However, it is difficult to acquire a background image under conditions in which moving objects are continually included in the scene. Also, when the environment changes, adaptive revision must be performed in response to the changes in the background image. Furthermore, in an environment where sections of the background change over time in different ways, it is important to determine the appropriate number of frames needed to estimate the background. In this paper, therefore, the authors propose a method for adaptive background estimation using M‐estimation, a known robust statistics technique. Also, the authors propose a technique for adjusting the number of frames necessary for background estimation by varying the adaptation rate to the environment using robust template matching. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Syst Comp Jpn, 38(7): 98– 108, 2007; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/scj.10612
Calibration of fish‐eye camera for acquisition of spherical image
Authors: Nakano Masao , Li Shigang , Chiba Norishige
Published: April 2007

This paper proposes a method for nonmetric calibration of a fish‐eye camera that utilizes the properties of vanishing points on lines in photo scenes to join together two images facing two sides front and rear, taken with a fish‐eye camera (for this paper, a camera mounting a fish‐eye conversion lens with a field of view extending to more than one hemisphere is called a fish‐eye camera), in order to acquire a full‐view spherical image. In this method, the geometric properties of vanishing points are first used to obtain initial estimates of the optical center and focal distance on the image, which are the internal parameters for the fish‐eye camera. Next, the photo images of the two sides are each mapped onto a spherical surface, and binding conditions, in which true parameter values are used to join the two resulting hemispherical images into a single spherical image, are used to perform fine adjustment of the parameters, based on image correlation of overlapping sections of the front and rear photo images. Experiments using actual still scene images showed the validity of the method, and the proposed method was used to build a system capable of shooting full‐view images in real time. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Syst Comp Jpn, 38(6): 10–20, 2007; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/scj.20631 Copyright © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
A fast algorithm for reconstruction‐based superresolution and evaluation of its accuracy
Authors: Tanaka Masayuki , Okutomi Masatoshi
Published: April 2007

A superresolution process produces a high‐resolution image from a set of low‐resolution images. Reconstruction‐based algorithms to produce the high‐resolution image which minimizes the difference between observed images and images estimated from the high‐resolution image with a camera model have been developed. The reconstruction‐based algorithm requires iterative calculation and has a large calculation cost because reconstruction‐based superresolution is a large‐scale problem. In this paper, a fast algorithm for reconstruction‐based superresolution is proposed. The proposed algorithm reduces the number of observed pixel value estimations from the high‐resolution image, using an average of pixel values in a divided region. The effect of our proposed algorithm is demonstrated with synthetic images and real images. The results show that the proposed algorithm is about 1.4 to 8.5 times faster than conventional algorithms. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Syst Comp Jpn, 38(7): 44–52, 2007; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/scj.20662
Motion‐compensated video coding using sliced blocks
Authors: Kondo Satoshi , Sasai Hisao
Published: April 2007

In international standards for video coding such as MPEG‐4 and H.264, motion compensation is performed by partitioning macroblocks (square pixel sets) into multiple areas. In this paper, we propose motion compensation using sliced blocks as a new method for macroblock‐based motion compensation. The partition shape is not restricted to squares or other patterns; instead, macroblocks are sliced by arbitrary line segments. This produces better agreement in shape between partitions and moving objects, as well as better motion compensation performance. In addition, when partition data are described in bitstream, adaptive prediction of segments based on partition shape of neighbor macroblocks is applied, aiming at reduction of the overhead caused by partition data. In the proposed method, coding is performed at the macroblock level, and therefore, coding mode selection and other related algorithms of conventional rate distortion optimization can be used unaltered. The proposed method was applied to forward‐prediction picture coding (basic algorithm of H.264), and an improvement of coding efficiency by about 5% was confirmed. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Syst Comp Jpn, 38(7): 12– 22, 2007; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/scj.20714
Validation of the French version of the BACS (the brief assessment of cognition in schizophrenia) among 50 French schizophrenic patients
Authors: Bralet Marie-Cécile , Falissard Bruno , Neveu Xavier , Lucas-Ross Margaret , Eskenazi Anne-Marie , Keefe Richard S.E.
Published: April 2007

Schizophrenic patients demonstrate impairments in several key dimensions of cognition. These impairments are correlated with important aspects of functional outcome. While assessment of these cognition disorders is increasingly becoming a part of clinical and research practice in schizophrenia, there is no standard and easily administered test battery. The BACS (Brief Assessment of Cognition in Schizophrenia) has been validated in English language [Keefe RSE, Golberg TE, Harvey PD, Gold JM, Poe MP, Coughenour L. The Brief Assessment of Cognition in Schizophrenia: reliability, sensibility, and comparison with a standard neurocognitive battery. Schizophr. Res 2004;68:283–97], and was found to be as sensitive to cognitive dysfunction as a standard battery of tests, with the advantage of requiring less than 35 min to complete. We developed a French adaptation of the BACS and this study tested its ease of administration and concurrent validity. Correlation analyses between the BACS (version A) and a standard battery were performed. A sample of 50 stable schizophrenic patients received the French Version A of the BACS in a first session, and in a second session a standard battery. All the patients completed each of the subtests of the French BACS . The mean duration of completion for the BACS French version was 36 min (S.D. = 5.56). A correlation analysis between the BACS (version A) global score and the standard battery global score showed a significant result (r= 0.81,p< 0.0001). The correlation analysis between the BACS (version A) sub-scores and the standard battery sub-scores showed significant results for verbal memory, working memory, verbal fluency, attention and speed of information processing and executive functions (p< 0.001) and for motor speed (p< 0.05). The French Version of the BACS is easier to use in French schizophrenic patients compared to a standard battery (administration shorter and completion rate better) and its good psychometric properties suggest that the French Version of the BACS may be a useful tool for assessing cognition in schizophrenic patients with French as their primary language.
Advanced glycation end products increases matrix metalloproteinase‐1, ‐3, and ‐13, and TNF‐α in human osteoarthritic chondrocytes
Authors: Nah Seong-Su , Choi In-Young , Yoo Bin , Kim Yong Gil , Moon Hee-Bom , Lee Chang-Keun
Published: April 2007

We investigated the effects of advanced glycation end products (AGE) which accumulate in articular cartilage with age in human osteoarthritic chondrocytes. We found AGE‐BSA significantly increased MMP‐1, ‐3, and ‐13, and TNF‐α in a dose‐dependent manner. AGE‐BSA‐stimulated JNK, p38, and ERK and NF‐κB activity. The stimulatory effect of AGE‐BSA on MMP‐1, ‐3, and ‐13 were reversed by treatment with specific JNK, p38 inhibitors, suggesting JNK and p38 are involved in AGE‐BSA‐induced MMPs and TNF‐α. We also observed that NF‐κB is involved in AGE‐BSA‐induced TNF‐α. Pretreatment with soluble receptor for AGE (sRAGE) also reduced AGE‐stimulated MMPs and TNF‐α, implicating the involvement of receptor for AGE (RAGE). In conclusion, accumulation of AGE may have a role in the development of osteoarthritis by increasing MMP‐1, ‐3, and ‐13, and TNF‐α.
Pathogenic mitochondrial DNA‐induced respiration defects in hematopoietic cells result in anemia by suppressing erythroid differentiation
Authors: Inoue Shin-Ichi , Yokota Mutsumi , Nakada Kazuto , Miyoshi Hiroyuki , Hayashi Jun-Ichi
Published: April 2007

Anemia is a symptom in patients with Pearson syndrome caused by the accumulation of mutated mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA). Such mutated mtDNAs have been detected in patients with anemia. This suggested that respiration defects due to mutated mtDNA are responsible for the anemia. However, there has been no convincing experimental evidence to confirm the pathophysiological relation between respiration defects in hematopoietic cells and expression of anemia. We address this issue by transplanting bone marrow cells carrying pathogenic mtDNA with a large‐scale deletion (ΔmtDNA) into normal mice. The bone marrow‐transplanted mice carried high proportion of ΔmtDNA only in hematopoietic cells, and resultant the mice suffered from macrocytic anemia. They show abnormalities of erythroid differentiation and weak erythropoietic response to a stressful condition. These observations suggest that hematopoietic cell‐specific respiration defects caused by mtDNAs with pathogenic mutations are responsible for anemia by inducing abnormalities in erythropoiesis.
Osmoregulation of leaf motor cells
Authors: Moran Nava
Published: April 2007

“Osmotic Motors” – the best‐documented explanation for plant leaf movements – frequently reside in specialized motor leaf organs, pulvini. The movements result from dissimilar volume and turgor changes in two oppositely positioned parts of the pulvinus. This Osmotic Motor is powered by a plasma membrane proton ATPase, which drives KCl fluxes and, consequently, water, across the pulvinus into swelling cells and out of shrinking cells. Light signals and signals from the endogenous biological clock converge on the channels through which these fluxes occur. These channels and their regulatory pathways in the pulvinus are the topic of this review.
Obstetric outcome following laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding
Authors: Ducarme G. , Revaux A. , Rodrigues A. , Aissaoui F. , Pharisien I. , Uzan M.
Published: April 2007

Objective: To evaluate obstetric outcomes following laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding (LAGB) in obese women. Methods; Obstetric outcomes were compared in a retrospective case‐control study with 427 obese women, 13 who underwent LABG and 414 who did not. Results: The mean weight gain during pregnancy was significantly lower in the LABG group than among controls (5.5 kg vs. 7.1 kg; P < 0.05). The incidence of pre‐eclampsia, gestational diabetes mellitus, low birth weight, and fetal macrosomia was less in the LABG group (P < 0.05), and the incidence of cesarean deliveries during labor was half in the LAGB group (15.3% vs. 34.4%; P < 0.01). Neonatal outcomes were not significantly different in the 2 groups. Conclusions: Among obese women, the incidence of adverse obstetric outcomes was less in those who underwent LABG than in those who did not. These results suggest that obese women who wish to become pregnant would decrease their risk of obstetric complications if they first underwent LAGB.
Physical activity and the maintenance of cognitive function
Authors: Rockwood Kenneth , Middleton Laura
Published: April 2007

Experimental studies suggest that physical activity or exercise can prevent or delay the onset of age‐related cognitive impairment or dementia. Several epidemiologic studies have attempted to address this issue by using widely varying definitions of physical activity as well as differing methods to assess cognitive function or dementia. Despite the variability in study design, longitudinal studies report that the risk of dementia, cognitive impairment, cognitive decline, and Alzheimer's disease is lower among persons engaging in high levels of physical activity, relative to those engaging in low levels of physical activity. There is also evidence of a dose‐response relationship between physical activity and preservation of cognitive function, even though small increases in physical activity from a sedentary state can reap comparatively large incremental benefits. Reductions in the relative risk of vascular dementia associated with physical activity were weaker and more variable. Although many studies had a follow‐up duration of around 5 years, at least one study has found evidence that exercise in midlife reduces the risk of dementia in late life. How interactions between physical activity and the APOE e4 allele affect the risk of cognitive impairment is inconsistent. The available epidemiologic studies support the concept that physical activity might prevent or delay the onset of cognitive decline. Whether that effect will translate into a reduction in the prevalence of dementia is unknown.
Physical activity and the maintenance of cognition: Learning from animal models
Authors: Cotman Carl W. , Berchtold Nicole C.
Published: April 2007

Although exercise has long been equated with better physical health, there is now extensive research showing that it has substantial benefits for the brain as well. From an Alzheimer's disease (AD) standpoint, one of the most important effects of exercise is on cognition. Exercise not only improves cognitive function in normal individuals, but it has been associated with a lower risk for AD and other types of dementia. Studies in animal models also suggest that exercise might attenuate some of the cognitive symptoms and pathophysiology of dementia. Recent research has attempted to identify molecular and cellular changes in the central nervous system elicited by physical activity. Work in animal models has identified several key responses, including up‐regulation of growth factors, increased neurogenesis, and improved learning and memory, which might be key to improved cognition in response to exercise.
Excess in precipitation as a cause for settlement decline along the Israeli coastal plain during the third millennium BC
Authors: Faust Avraham , Ashkenazy Yosef
Published: April 2007

Although the relations between climate and settlement are not straightforward, there is a general agreement that arid conditions are less favorable for human settlement in the semiarid Near East than humid conditions. Here we show that humid conditions resulted in the abandonment of settlements along the Israeli coastal plain. We first present archaeological evidence for a drastic decline in settlement along the Israeli coast during most of the third millennium BC (Early Bronze Age II–III). Then, based on archaeological and climatic evidence, we link this decline to an environmental change occurring at that time. We propose that increased precipitation intensified the already existing drainage problems and resulted in flooding, which led to the transformation of arable land into marshes and to the spread of diseases, gradually causing settlement decline and abandonment.
Increased tropical Atlantic wind shear in model projections of global warming
Authors: Vecchi Gabriel A. , Soden Brian J.
Published: April 2007

To help understand possible impacts of anthropogenic greenhouse warming on hurricane activity, we assess model‐projected changes in large‐scale environmental factors tied to variations in hurricane statistics. This study focuses on vertical wind shear (Vs) over the tropical Atlantic during hurricane season, the increase of which has been historically associated with diminished hurricane activity and intensity. A suite of state‐of‐the‐art global climate model experiments is used to project changes in Vs over the 21st century. Substantial increases in tropical Atlantic and East Pacific shear are robust features of these experiments, and are shown to be connected to the model‐projected decrease in the Pacific Walker circulation. The relative changes in shear are found to be comparable to those of other large‐scale environmental parameters associated with Atlantic hurricane activity. The influence of these Vs changes should be incorporated into projections of long‐term hurricane activity.
Understanding Merapi‐type volcanoes
Authors: Purbawinata Mas Atje , Ratdomopurbo Antonius , Surono  , Pallister John , Luehr Birger , Newhall Chris
Published: April 2007

‘We have to understand volcano science to know what to monitor.” That simple statement by Antonius Ratdomopurbo, director of the Indonesian Center for Volcano Technology [Balai Penyelidikan dan Pengembangan‐Teknologi (BPPTK)],captured the spirit and content of a recent workshop about Merapi and Merapi‐type volcanoes.

Merapi still is experiencing low levels of unrest, following a peak in eruptive activity on 14 June 2006, when pyroclastic flows swept into the evacuated village of Kali Adem and killed two workers who refused to leave. The volcano is an essential element that underlies life in Yogyakarta, Indonesia: It is a constant reminder of the perilous beauty as well as the mystical stature of volcanoes in Indonesia, the world's most volcanically active country. It also is a proving ground for new technologies and monitoring methods in volcano hazards.
Wunsch receives 2006 William Bowie medal
Authors: Fu Lee‐Lueng , Wunsch Carl
Published: April 2007

Carl Wunsch was awarded the 2006 William Bowie Medal at the AGU Fall Meeting Honors Ceremony, which was held on 13 December 2006, in San Francisco, Calif. The medal recognizes outstanding contributions to fundamental geophysics and for unselfish cooperation in research.

Carl Wunsch is a visionary in the study of the ocean and its roles in climate change. Through the impact of research, vision, leadership, and unselfish cooperation, he has shaped the landscape of modern oceanography.
Watson awarded 2006 Walter H. Bucher medal
Authors: Ryerson F. J. , Watson E. Bruce
Published: April 2007

E. Bruce Watson was awarded the Walter H. Bucher Medal at the AGU Fall Meeting honors ceremony, which was held on 13 December 2006 in San Francisco, Calif. The medal recognizes original contributions to the basic knowledge of crust and lithosphere.

It is with great pleasure that I introduce Bruce Watson as this year's recipient of the Walter H. Bucher Medal. This honor comes at an opportune moment, as 2006 represents the thirtieth anniversary of Bruce's first publications on the role of silicate melt structure in trace element partitioning. As always, Bruce's approach to the problem was original, in this case investigating mineral‐melt partitioning by simply eliminating the mineral, and instead focusing the distribution of trace elements between immiscible melts. In 2006, a conceptually identical paper appeared in the pages of Science. This affords a quantification not often observed at awards ceremonies: Exactly how far ahead of his time was Bruce Watson? The answer is, 30±1 years.
Satellite observations of new volcanic island in Tonga
Authors: Vaughan R. Greg , Abrams Michael J. , Hook Simon J. , Pieri David C.
Published: April 2007

A rising volcanic plume from an unknown source was observed on 9–11 August 2006 in the Vava'u Island group in the northernmost islands of Tonga [Matangi News Online, 2006]. On 12 August, the crew on board the yacht Maiken, sailing west from Vava'u to Fiji, encountered “a vast, many miles wide, belt of densely packed pumice” floating on the water (F. Fransson personal communication, 2006). Later, the crew sailed south and discovered that the source of the pumice was a newly erupting submarine volcano near Home Reef (18.991°S, 174.767°W) (Figure la).

The submarine Home Reef volcano last erupted in 1984, creating a small, temporary island, 1500 meters long×500 meters wide [Smithsonian Institution, 1984]. The 1984 eruption also produced large amounts of pumice that rafted away with the currents, and over the following year the floating pumice traveled to beaches as far away as Fiji and Australia [Smithsonian Institution, 1985; Bryan et al., 2004]. With time, these ocean‐voyaging pumice fragments can have far‐reaching ecological effects as a transportation mechanism for some marine organisms [Bryan et al., 2004].
Education, outreach, and marketing
Authors: Stein Seth
Published: April 2007

Education and outreach programs seek to improve science education and the public's understanding of science. Although many scientists are doing much good work through these programs, others are uneasy with them, believing that they are unseemly and peripheral to ‘real’ science.

I suggest taking a broader view and adding ‘marketing’ to ‘education and outreach.’ Education is business as usual for university scientists. Scientists think they know what to do, do it well at the college level, and can help at secondary and primary grade levels. Outreach sounds like public service—no harm, but not crucial. In contrast, many organizations consider marketing as a vital function and seek to do it better.
Navrotsky awarded 2006 Harry H. Hess medal
Authors: Prewitt Charles T. , Liebermann Robert C. , Navrotsky Alexandra
Published: April 2007

Alexandra Navrotsky was awarded the Harry H. Hess Medal at the AGU Fall Meeting honors ceremony, which was held on 13 December 2006 in San Francisco, Calif. The medal recognizes outstanding achievements in research in the constitution and evolution of Earth and other planets.

It is a great privilege and honor to introduce Alexandra Navrotsky as the recipient of the 2006 Harry H. Hess Medal. She is an outstanding scientist who has made important contributions to our understanding of minerals and other materials through a wide range of theoretical and experimental applications of thermodynamics. She was trained as a physical chemist and originally approached oxide chemistry through a materials perspective. However, her interests broadened and she became known as a leading authority in a wide range of subjects from chemistry through materials science to the geosciences. She held faculty positions at Arizona State University (Tempe) and Princeton University (N.J.) and is now at the University of California, Davis.
Thomas Schmugge awarded 2006 Robert E. Horton medal
Authors: Brutsaert Wilfried H. , Schmugge Thomas
Published: April 2007

Thomas Schmugge was awarded the Robert E. Horton Medal at the AGU Fall Meeting honors ceremony, which was held on 13 December 2006 in San Francisco, Calif. The medal recognizes outstanding contributions to hydrology.

For the past 30 years, Thomas Schmugge has been a truly peerless intellectual leader in improving both the theory and the application of microwave and infrared radiative transfer for the remote sensing of the land surface, especially soil moisture, surface temperature, and emissivity. Without exaggeration, he has been a trailblazer and is now unquestionably one of the few world experts on remote sensing in hydrology.
Kutzbach receives 2006 Roger Revelle Medal
Authors: William Ruddiman , Kutzbach John E.
Published: April 2007

John E. Kutzbach was awarded the Roger Revelle Medal at the AGU Fall Meeting honors ceremony, which was held on 13 December 2006 in San Francisco, Calif. The medal recognizes outstanding contributions in atmospheric sciences, atmosphere‐ocean coupling, atmosphere‐land coupling, biogeochemical cycles, climate, or related aspects of the Earth system.

John Kutzbach's career contributions to climate science are broad and deep. After a distinguished early career in atmospheric sciences, he shifted into paleoclimate during the 1970s. His subsequent research used general circulation models to explore several problems, including insolation and icesheet forcing of regional climates during the last deglaciation and in the late Holocene, the megamonsoon climates on the supercontinent Pangaea, and the climatic impacts of uplift of Tibet. These and other studies are characterized by an impressive economy of design, clarity of interpretation, and depth of insight into the operation of the climate system. Together, this body of work forms a large part of the framework of our current understanding of past climates.
Volcanic eruptions at East Pacific Rise near 9°50′N
Authors: Cowen James P. , Glazer Brian , Fornari Daniel J. , Shank Timothy M. , Soule S. Adam , Love Brooke , Treusch Alexander , Pomranig Kyle R. , Holmes R. Chadwick , Tolstoy Maya , Baker Edward T.
Published: April 2007

Evidence for recent volcanic eruptions along the fast spreading East Pacific Rise (EPR) crest near 9°50′N spanning about 4 to 5 months of activity was discovered in April and May 2006 as a result of studies related to the U.S. National Science Foundation' (NSF) Ridge2000 (R2K) program. In April, during routine recovery and redeployment of ocean‐bottom seismometers (OBS) at the EPR R2K Integrated Study Site (ISS) near 9°50′N, eight of 12 OBS could not be recovered [Tolstoy et al, 2006]. Anomalous turbidity and temperature structure in the water column along the ridge axis confirmed scientists' suspicions that the OBS were trapped by a new lava flow.

A resurgence in magmatism recently had been postulated, based on temporal changes observed over the past few years in hydrothermal vent fluid chemistry and temperatures [Von Damm et al, 2004] and increasing microseismicity [Tolstoy et al, 2006].
Effort continues to double budget at several science agencies
Authors: Zielinski Sarah
Published: April 2007

The Bush Administration has proposed continuing last year's American Competitiveness Initiative (ACI) in the rollout of the $2.9 trillion Fiscal Year (FY) 2008 U.S. federal budget request, released on 5 February. Over a 10‐year period, ACI would double the cumulative budgets of the U.S. National Science Foundation, the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Science, and the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology ‘core’intramural research and facilities.

The initiative got off to an uneven start last year, however. Although the U.S. Congress passed FY2007 budgets for defense and homeland security, since 1 October 2006 all other departments and agencies have been operating under a series of continuing resolutions. These resolutions provide funding at the lowest of the levels set in either of the appropriations bills passed by the House of Representatives or the Senate or the amount provided in FY2006.
Satellite‐based model parameterization of diabatic heating
Authors: Pielke Roger , Stokowski David , Wang Jih‐Wang , Vukicevic Tomislava , Leoncini Giovanni , Matsui Toshihisa , Castro Christopher L. , Niyogi Dev , Kishtawal Chandra M. , Biazar Arastoo , Doty Kevin , McNider Richard T. , Nair Udaysankar , Tao Wei‐Kuo
Published: April 2007

Future meteorological satellites are expected to provide much needed fine‐scale information that can improve the accuracy of weather and climate models. As one application of this improved capability, we introduce the concept of a generalized parameterization framework using satellite datasets that will increase the accuracy and the computational efficiency of weather and climate modeling. In an atmospheric model, several different parameterizations usually are used to reproduce the various physical processes. However, it is generally unrealistic to separate the processes in this artificial way since the observations and physics make no such artificial separation. Thus, we propose a new unified parameterization framework to remove the unrealistic separation between parameterizations.
User‐driven design of a data system for the international polar year
Authors: Parsons Mark A. , Wilson Bruce E.
Published: April 2007

Data systems must serve user needs. This is easier said than done, especially when trying to design a system that will provide discovery and access to a broad array of disparate data for users with differing expertise. The International Polar Year (IPY) provides a particular challenge with its emphasis on interdisciplinary research in the physical, life, and social sciences. Typically, systems designers try to enumerate the various requirements of the system and build the system to meet those requirements. The challenge is ensuring that the requirements accurately reflect evolving user needs and adequately address how a user will use the system to solve problems. A more user‐driven and iterative approach is necessary.
How nature foiled the 2006 hurricane forecasts
Authors: Lau William K. M. , Kim Kyu‐Myong
Published: April 2007

The 2006 hurricane season proved again that predicting Mother Nature is a very precarious undertaking.

At the beginning of the season, all signs indicated that it would be more active than average: Sea surface temperature (SST) was above normal, vertical wind shear was low, and sea level pressure was reduced over the tropical Atlantic. Many forecasters believed that these features foreshadowed a continuation of the trend of nine preceding years of above‐normal hurricane seasons. Given the recent warming tendency in the Atlantic and the prevailing favorable preseason conditions, there was no wonder that even by August 2006, forecasters were still calling for an above‐normal frequency of tropical storms and hurricanes.
Schmittner receives 2006 ocean sciences early career award
Authors: Mix Alan C. , Schmittner Andreas
Published: April 2007

Andreas Schmittner received the Ocean Sciences Early Career Award at the 2006 AGU Fall Meeting in San Francisco, Calif., in recognition of significant contributions to and promise in the ocean sciences.

I am pleased to introduce Andreas Schmittner as a recipient of the Ocean Sciences Early Career Award, in recognition of his contributions to understanding global change through coupled modeling of the Earth system. Andreas is addressing an exceptionally broad range of topics spanning physical oceanography, atmospheric sciences, ecology, chemistry, and geology.
Developing standards for dissolved iron in seawater
Authors: Johnson Kenneth S. , Elrod Virginia , Fitzwater Steve , Plant Joshua , Boyle Edward , Bergquist Bridget , Bruland Kenneth , Aguilar‐Islas Ana , Buck Kristen , Lohan Maeve , Smith Geoffrey J. , Sohst Bettina , Coale Kenneth , Gordon Michael , Tanner Sara , Measures Chris , Moffett James , Barbeau Katherine , King Andrew , Bowie Andrew , Chase Zanna , Cullen Jay , Laan Patrick , Landing William , Mendez Jeffrey , Milne Angela , Obata Hajime , Doi Takashi , Ossiander Lia , Sarthou Geraldine , Sedwick Peter , Van den Berg Stan , Laglera‐Baquer Luis , Wu Jing‐feng , Cai Yihua
Published: April 2007

In nearly a dozen open‐ocean fertilization experiments conducted by more than 100 researchers from nearly 20 countries, adding iron at the sea surface has led to distinct increases in photosynthesis rates and biomass. These experiments confirmed the hypothesis proposed by the late John Martin [Martin, 1990] that dissolved iron concentration is a key variable that controls phytoplankton processes in ocean surface waters However, the measurement of dissolved iron concentration in seawater remains a difficult task [Bruland and Rue, 2001] with significant interlaboratory differences apparent at times. The availability of a seawater reference solution with well‐known dissolved iron (Fe) concentrations similar to open‐ocean values, which could be used for the calibration of equipment or other tasks, would greatly alleviate these problems [National Research Council (NRC), 2002[.
NOAA seeks guidance on ocean acidification research
Authors: Anonymous
Published: April 2007

As the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere increases, the oceans become more acidic. The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has already developed a 5‐year interdisciplinary program on ocean acidification, which includes establishing coral reef monitoring stations, research on the physiological responses of various organisms to increasing ocean acidity, modeling of ocean acidification and its socioeconomic effect, and development of technology for measuring and monitoring carbon dioxide in the oceans.

NOAAs Science Advisory Board (SAB) is considering whether the agency's plans are appropriate for addressing the requirements of both science and national policy and whether NOAA should be the lead agency in this area of research.
New Mexico declares Pluto a planet
Authors: Zielinski Sarah
Published: April 2007

Nearly eight months after the International Astronomical Union demoted Pluto from planet status (see Eos 87(35), 29 August 2006), the state legislature of New Mexico has declared that Pluto is a planet, naming 13 March 2007 “Pluto Planet Day.” The resolution notes that Pluto has been called a planet for 75 years and that Clyde Tombaugh, who discovered Pluto in 1930, was a resident of New Mexico for much of his life.
Reply to Comments on “A turning point in auroral physics”
Authors: Bryant Duncan A.
Published: April 2007

Haerendel's conviction (An Apparent Controversy in Auroral Physics, Eos, this issue) that a potential difference is responsible for the downward acceleration of auroral electrons is based on there being an upward acceleration of positive ions, caused apparently by a corresponding electric field. However, even if one accepts on face value this indication of an upward directed quasi‐static electric field, the inevitable presence of a downward directed field farther along the line, where the equipotentials must close and the ions are slowed down again, prevents the negative potential well having any net effect on the energy of either ions or electrons traversing it. The conviction is therefore unfounded.

Stern (Origin of Auroral Arcs, Eos, this issue) is swayed to the same conclusion by the fact that in order to deliver the necessary power, electrons need to be forced through the magnetic mirror field. Again, though, even setting aside the fact that static fields cannot produce net acceleration, the conclusion overlooks the fact that any process leading to downward acceleration will accomplish the same feat. Similarly, his claim that a voltage drop has been shown to exist is false. The measurements in question were of electrons, not electric fields. They demonstrate that downward acceleration occurs but do not reveal the process responsible.
A European Network for Earth System Modeling
Authors: Valcke Sophie , Budich Reinhard , Carter Mick , Guilyardi Eric , Foujols Marie‐Alice , Lautenschlager Michael , Redler René , Steenman‐Clark Lois , Wedi Nils
Published: April 2007

The increasing complexity of Earth system models and the computing facilities needed to run those models put a heavy technical burden on research teams active in climate modeling. To ease this burden, a European collaborative venture called PRISM was initiated in December 2001 to organize a network of experts in order to share the development, maintenance, and support of Earth system modeling software tools and community standards. PRISM was recently reorganized, and a new Web portal (http://prism.enes.org) was unveiled in July 2006.

The PRISM network was developed with the hope that advancing specific common standards and tools will reduce the technical development efforts of individual research teams, facilitate the assembling, running, and postprocessing of Earth system models based on state‐of‐the‐art component models, and hence facilitate scientific collaboration between the different research groups in Europe and elsewhere.
Preview of AGU digital library
Authors: Anonymous
Published: April 2007

AGU members who subscribe to Geophysical Research Letters or the Member Journal Library now have access to scanned issues of GRL going back to Vol. 1, 1974. This begins the first phase of the AGU Digital Library project to digitize all journals to their earliest volume. The current preview does not include linked references or PDF purchase, which will be available when the library is complete.

The AGU Digital Library will include over 60,000 AGU journal articles going back to 1896 followed by over 600 books and 100,000 pages of Eos and its predecessor Transactions. For more information visit www.agu.org/pubs/e_publishing/digitize_2007.html
Nearshore arctic subsea permafrost in transition
Authors: Rachold Volker , Bolshiyanov Dmitry Yu , Grigoriev Mikhail N. , Hubberten Hans‐Wolfgang , Junker Ralf , Kunitsky Victor V. , Merker Franziska , Overduin Paul , Schneider Waldemar
Published: April 2007

Models and geophysical data indicate that large areas of the Arctic shelves, as a result of their exposure during the Last Glacial Maximum, are thought to be almost entirely underlain by subsea permafrost from the coastline down to a water depth of about 100 meters. Subsea permafrost is still poorly understood, due mainly to the lack of direct observations. However, it is known to contain gas hydrates, a solid phase composed of water and gases that formed under low‐temperature, high‐pressure conditions. Large volumes of methane in gas hydrate form can be stored within or below the subsea permafrost, and the stability of this gas hydrate zone is sustained by the existence of permafrost. Degradation of subsea permafrost and the consequent destabilization of gas hydrates could significantly if not dramatically increase the flux of methane, a potent greenhouse gas, to the atmosphere.
NASA lacks funds for Earth science decadal survey projects
Authors: Zielinski Sarah
Published: April 2007

NASA does not have the resources to complete all of the projects set forth in the U.S. National Academies decadal survey for Earth Sciences, NASA Administrator Michael Griffin told the U.S. House of Representatives Science and Technology Committee at a 22 March hearing.

Griffin said that although he respects the advice put forth by the National Academies, “we cannot do every mission in the Earth science decadal [survey] with the money that we have.” He noted that the Fiscal Year 2008 budget request for NASA, the subject of the hearing, does provide a modest 3% increase in funding for the agency. However, he admitted that the budget “does not purchase all of the things that all of us would like to purchase.”
Committee of visitors' advice to NSF Ocean Sciences Division
Authors: Anonymous
Published: April 2007

The U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) convenes an external group, called a Committee of Visitors (COV), every 3 years to provide advice to NSF management about the foundation's divisions and programs. Specifically, the COV provides an assessment of the quality and integrity of program operations pertaining to proposal decisions, and the degree to which awardees have contributed to the attainment of NSF's mission.

The COV for the Division of Ocean Sciences (OCE) met at NSF on 26–28 June 2006. Findings in the COV report (http://www.nsf.gov/geo/acgeo_cov.jsp) include the following.