bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
High-bandwidth modeling for rate-dependent hysteresis nonlinearity using a standard Prandtl–Ishlinskii model
Authors: Yang Haigen , Zhu Wei , Liu Feifei
Published: April 2021

Rate-dependent hysteresis of piezoelectric stack actuators (PSAs) is known to cause oscillations and instabilities. This paper introduces a novel electro-mechanical coupling model that can accurately characterize the high-bandwidth rate-dependent hysteresis of a PSA. The proposed model contains three components to fully represent the output response of the system, namely, an electric model that is used to describe the electric dynamic behaviors of the PSA and its power amplifier, a hysteresis model that is applied to represent the inverse piezoelectric effect, and a mechanical model that is able to characterize the mechanical dynamic behavior of the PSA. It should be noted that, in the mechanical model, the force generated by the inverse piezoelectric effect of piezoelectric wafers is considered a distributed force and the dynamic model of the PSA is regarded as a longitudinal vibration straight bar with a uniform cross section. Through this proposed model, high modeling accuracy is achieved well with high-bandwidth varying frequencies (1–1000 Hz) as well as varying amplitudes. This paper provides a simple and effective novel method for the high-bandwidth modeling of smart material-based actuators with rate-dependent hysteresis nonlinearity.
Seed production and grow-out of climbing perch (Anabas testudineus) in Vietnam.
Authors: Pham Van Khanh
Published: April 2021

Broodfish conditioning of climbing perch (Anabas testudineus) is conducted in earthen ponds with a density of 2-4 kg m-2, at a 1:1 male to female ratio. Homemade or commercial feeds containing 22-25% crude protein are given as feed for the broodfish. To induce spawning, HCG and LH-RHa are used. Nursing from fry to fingerlings is done in earthen ponds with densities of 500-600 fry m-2. After nursing for 50-60 days, when the fish reach 4-5 cm length, they are harvested and stocked in grow-out systems. Fingerlings are stocked in grow-out ponds at a density of 20 fish m-2. Homemade and commercial feeds containing 22-25% crude protein are used to feed fish. After 6 months, the fish can reach the marketable size of 60-100 g per fish. The stocking density of fish in rice fields is lower, at 3 m-2. They feed on natural food found in the rice field. Homemade feeds are also added as supplementary feed. Rice-fish culture covers two continuous paddy rice cropping periods, or one paddy rice crop and one flooded crop.
System understanding as a scientific foundation in radioactive waste disposal, legacy site and decommissioning programmes
Authors: Lindborg Tobias , Ikonen Ari T K , Kautsky Ulrik , Smith Graham
Published: April 2021

Ongoing national programmes and International forums have in recent decades developed and enhanced methods and strategies in how to address the characterisation of potentially suitable sites for radioactive waste repositories. Siting processes, site selection and site investigation programmes have been conducted for near surface and geological repositories and plans for construction are in progress or have already been implemented. Lessons learned from these national and international programmes are available and results are published. In this paper we synthesise the methods and our lessons learned in how to plan, conduct, and achieve site understanding. Effective site understanding should incorporate a multi-disciplinary and integrated view of geosphere and biosphere information for a site, together with the designed parts of a repository or installation that constitute the total system. We argue that this integrated approach, following a staged program of repository development and adopting a graded approach to assessment at each stage, is to be recommended. The recommendation is supported by the results of international cooperation and progress with national programmes (e.g. the Swedish SKB). Further, we argue that this strategy is valid as a foundation for planning and execution of other types of radioactive waste management programmes such as decommissioning, legacy site management and remediation projects.
Power spectrum in stochastic inflation
Authors: Ando Kenta , Vennin Vincent
Published: April 2021

We compute the power spectrum of curvature perturbations in stochastic inflation. This combines the distribution of first crossing times through the end-of-inflation surface, which has been previously studied, with the distribution of the fields value at the time when a given scale crosses out the Hubble radius during inflation, which we show how to compute. This allows the stochastic-δ N formalism to make concrete contact with observations. As an application, we study how quantum diffusion at small scales (arising e.g. in models leading to primordial black holes) affects the large-scale perturbations observed in the cosmic microwave background. We find that even if those sets of scales are well separated, large effects can arise from the distortion of the classical relationship between field values and wavenumbers brought about by quantum diffusion near the end of inflation. This shows that cosmic microwave background measurements can set explicit constraints on the entire inflationary potential down to the end of inflation.
Dark sector production and baryogenesis from not quite black holes *
Authors: Aydemir Ufuk , Ren Jing
Published: April 2021

Primordial black holes have been considered attractive dark matter candidates, whereas some of the predictions rely heavily on the near-horizon physics that remains to be tested experimentally. As a concrete alternative, thermal 2-2-holes closely resemble black holes without event horizons. Being a probable endpoint of gravitational collapse, they provide a solution to the information loss problem but also naturally result in stable remnants. Previously, we have considered primordial 2-2-hole remnants as dark matter. Owing to the strong constraints from a novel phenomenon associated with remnant mergers, only small remnants with mass approximate to the Planck mass can constitute all dark matter. In this paper, we examine the scenario in which the majority of dark matter consists of particles produced by the evaporation of primordial 2-2-holes, whereas the remnant contribution is secondary. The products with sufficiently light mass may contribute to the number of relativistic degrees of freedom in the early universe, which we also calculate. Moreover, 2-2-hole evaporation can produce particles that are responsible for the baryon asymmetry. We observe that baryogenesis through direct B-violating decays or through leptogenesis can both be realized. Overall, the viable parameter space for the Planck remnant scenario is similar to that of primordial black holes with Planck remnants. However, heavier remnants result in different predictions, and the viable parameter space remains large even when the remnant abundance is small.
The operational space for divertor power exhaust in DEMO with a super-X divertor
Authors: Xiang L. , Militello F. , Moulton D. , Subba F. , Aho-Mantila L. , Coster D. , Wensing M. , Lunt T. , Wischmeier M. , Reimerdes H.
Published: April 2021

SOLPS-ITER simulations of the European DEMO reactor with a Super-X divertor, which has larger major radius at the outer target and increased connection length, show an increased operational space for divertor power exhaust compared to the conventional single-null configuration. Using a multi-fluid approach with fluid neutrals and charge-state bundling of impurities, we assessed the existence and boundaries of the operational space in the single-null and Super-X configurations by carrying out fuelling, seeding and power scans. Compared to the conventional single-null divertor, the Super-X divertor offers lower impurity concentration (factor ∼2 lower) at the same main plasma density, and consistent with this, it has lower main plasma density at the same impurity concentration level. This observed difference is in line with the simple analytical Lengyel model predictions resulting from the increased connection length in the super-X configuration. DEMO with a Super-X divertor demonstrates remarkable robustness against increases in input power, and in this study is able to exhaust the maximum expected steady-state separatrix-crossing power of 300 MW while maintaining acceptable impurity concentration along the separatrix This is something that was not possible in the single-null configuration in this study. This robustness of the Super-X divertor lies mostly in its capability to sufficiently dissipate power in its divertor via argon (Ar) radiation at acceptable Ar concentration, which is related to two factors: long (with respect to single-null) parallel connection length from the upstream to the outer target and higher but tolerable extrinsic impurity concentration at higher input powers. Finally, consistent with neon-seeded simulations of ITER, it is observed in all our simulations that the plasma density drops with increasing Ar concentration given fixed power input. We find that as the Ar content increases, the accompanying enhancement of Ar radiation reduces the power available for deuterium (D) to be ionized, thus limiting the D ionization particle source, and consequently reducing the plasma density.
Identification of male and female nutmeg seeds based on the shape and texture features of leaf images using the learning vector quantization (LVQ)
Authors: Satria E , Arnia F , Muchtar K
Published: April 2021

One of the stages in the process of planting nutmeg seedlings on agricultural land is the identification of the sex of male and female nutmeg seedlings. The process of identifying nutmeg seedlings still uses manual methods, while the method is often inaccurate and inefficient. There fore, this research discusses the methods and results of identification of male and female nutmeg seedling leaves based on the combined feature extraction and leaf texture using learning vector quantization (LVQ). The form feature extraction method used consists of slimness, roundness, narrow factor, perimeter ratio and diameter, perimeter ratio at length while for texture is contrast, correlation, energy, and homogeneity. The results of the combined extraction of shape and texture features were applied as input vectors when classification using the LVQ method. Whereas LVQ aims at classification based on extraction results, by initializing LVQ parameters, namely learning rate and epoch. The change in the learning rate value on LVQ is very influential to get the percentage of the correctness of the data, the learning rate value must be between 0 to 1. The accuracy of LVQ predictions obtained in this study is 92.30%, with the best learning rate values from 0.001 to 0.09 and epoch 50.
Collaborative of ICT Research in Indonesia
Authors: Rusdi Jack Febrian , Salam Sazilah , Abu Nor Azman , Baktina Tedja Gurat , Gumilar Hadiningrat R , Sunaryo Budi , Rusmartiana Arlinda , Nashihuddin Wahid , Fannya Puteri , Laurenty Fretycia , Shanono Nuruddeen Musa , Hardi Richki , Kuswayati Sri , Damayanti Sri Erina , Rahmawati Sri
Published: April 2021

Information technology has an impact on the emergence of various studies in the world. The effect of research occurs in fields of study such as education, economics, social, and technology. This study shows the results of studies related to Information and Communication Technology research conducted in collaboration with various parties in Indonesia in the last five years, from 2015 to 2019. The study was conducted by studying multiple articles published and indexed on the Garuda portal, as a gateway for researchers in Indonesia.
Development of Digital Map System for Poor Population Distribution
Authors: Yanuartha Wahyu , Fadli Mohammad , Wulansari Tina Tri , Abiratno  , Wulan Sari Nariza Wanti , Hutauruk Martinus Robert
Published: April 2021

The implementation of this study aims to present information not only in the text/tabular form but also in the spatial/digital map form to support the poverty alleviation programs in East Kalimantan, especially in Samarinda and Balikpapan, hence information obtained can be more easily analyzed, identified in terms of the poor population distribution in the visualization form. It presented as a list an area, graph, detail data and geographical map integrated with Google Maps. This application was developed using PHP scripts, Apache Webserver, Codeigniter Framework, CCS Bootstrap, MySQL database, and google maps API. Poor data collected from the Central Bureau of Statistics and the results of the survey through questioner and interview respondents. The information presented in this system is the resident name, identification number, address, employment, income, education, residence status and photo of living conditions/person.
The Influence of Situational Leadership and Employee Engagement on The Need of Achievement Motivation of Non-Supervisory Employee Heavy-duty Equipment Dealer in Balikpapan
Authors: Agung Pratama Chandra Bagus , Ratnasari Wahyu , Lestari Endah , Ariyani Linda Fauziyah
Published: April 2021

This study aims to analyse the influence of Situational Leadership, Employee Engagement on Achievement Motivation on 53 Employees of heavy equipment supplier agent companies in Balikpapan, which consists of some employees who are in the department of central rebuild component development (CRC) Balikpapan. The data analysis method used is structural equation modelling (SEM) with a partial least square (PLS) approach. The conclusions in this study have given us information that Situational Leadership does not always have a significant influence on need of achievement motivation with Original Sample (O) 0.128 because of differences in generation and probably some superior didn’t get Supervisory training or they never implementing how to handle team with situational leadership way. Employee Engagement has a positive and significant influence on achievement motivation with Original Sample (O) 0.742 because if there is no commitment and involvement, the company’s goals will not be achieved.
Optimal Control of diarrhea Disease model With Vaccination AND Treatment
Authors: Affandi Pardi , Salam Nur
Published: April 2021

This study aims to analyze the spread of diarrheal diseases using a SIR-(Susceptible-Infected-Recovered with Vaccination and Treatment) mathematical model and analyze the characteristics of the spread of diarrheal disease. Based on the model obtained, it can then be analyzed the stability criteria around the disease-free equilibrium point seen from its basic reproductive number. Next, perform Optimal Control by involving vaccines and treatments. Furthermore, by involving The Pontryagin’s maximum principle to complete the Mathematical Model of the Diarrhea Disease obtained.
An analytical approach to the cooling of a flat plate
Authors: Pagliarini L , Spiga M , Vocale P
Published: April 2021

The present work deals with the cooling of a flat plate having an initial non-homogeneous temperature distribution, which undergoes a sudden temperature drop at its surfaces. Hence, starting from an arbitrary steady-state temperature distribution, the two surfaces of the slab are suddenly cooled down to the value θ0, resulting in a strong perturbation of the initial temperature distribution. A general analytical solution is provided by adopting the variable separation technique to the Fourier equation in transient conditions, thus obtaining a general solution in terms of a very fast converging series, which includes a definite integral of the initial steady-state distribution. Common engineering applications are investigated and the related results, obtained thanks to an extremely low computational effort, are presented and discussed.
Transient free convection in open-ended vertical channels
Authors: Vocale P , Pagliarini L , Spiga M
Published: April 2021

The aim of the present work is to investigate the heat transfer for laminar natural convection of a fully developed flow in a chimney consisting of two parallel vertical plates with open ends, occurring due to a sudden change in temperature of one of the plates. The momentum conservation equation was analytically solved by applying the Laplace transform technique and the Green’s function method, resulting in the evaluation of the velocity field with a very low computational effort. The proposed analytical solution was adopted to assess the effect of the Prandtl number on the fluid behaviour of the flow. The results revealed that the steady-state velocity distribution is reached when the Fourier number became comparable with the Prandtl number, except for low values of the Prandtl number.
Sustainable and low-cost solutions for thermal and acoustic refurbishment of old buildings
Authors: Neri M , Levi E , Piana E A , Pujadas P , Cuerva E , Guardo A , Pilotelli M
Published: April 2021

This paper investigates the possibility to realize solutions for buildings thermal and acoustic refurbishment by using end-of-life household materials, such as cardboard, clothes, and egg-boxes. These solutions can be installed to improve the indoor quality in neighborhoods populated by people below the poverty threshold. The considered end-of-life household materials and their combination have been analyzed from the acoustic and thermal points of view. First of all, the sound insulation and the sound absorption properties have been determined by means of an impedance tube. Then, the summer and the winter thermal performances, when coupled to different wall systems, have been investigated analitically. The results suggest that good thermal and acoustic characteristics can be achieved in a contained thickness by coupling end-of-life household materials.
Solar assisted heat pump pilot plant management and troubleshooting by means of numerical modelling: a case study
Authors: Tagliafico L.A. , Cavalletti A. , Marafioti C. , Marchitto A.
Published: April 2021

A solar assisted heat pump integrated with fossil burners provides the space heating and Domestic Hot Water (DHW) demand of the sport palace Palacus, Genoa. The plant complexity requires a Data Acquisition System (DAS) to perform diagnoses for problem troubleshooting. A DAS with a set of sensors able to measure every key parameter of the plant loses economic feasibility as the installation complexity increases. This compulsory lack of information can be handled with numerical modelling calibrated on the collected data. In the case study, a net variation in the thermal losses during night (where all the plant is off and the facility is closed) within the DHW storage tanks has been measured. Without any apparent reason, the temperatures reached within the tank at 8.00 a.m. can be either 33 °C or 50 °C. According to the approach of inverse heat transfer problems, a numerical simulation in TRNSYS17 is used to enquire the most likely causes of failure and to establish new regulation criteria. Thermal stratification and its destruction are studied to better understand the temperature trend in the DHW tanks.
Liquid holdup optical measurements for horizontal stratified flows with an opaque fluid layer
Authors: Carraretto I M , Colombo L P M , Fasani D , Guilizzoni M G
Published: April 2021

This study presents a method to measure the void fraction in presence of a stratified three-phase flow with an opaque fluid like foam. The commonly used resistive probes, which were successfully applied for air-water flows, fail in detecting the liquid/foam interface due to the variable conductivity of foam. To overcome this problem, a new optical method was developed. A probe consisting of a steel rod covered in red vinyl plastic with a black measuring scale having 1 mm resolution was introduced radially into the flow; the foam layer, being opaque, can be easily identified against the measuring scale in a side view of the flow. The behavior over time of the liquid-foam interface was thus recorded through a video camera. A couple of small LED lamps provided the lighting to record the scene. The videos were then processed to count the measuring scale marks below the foam layer in order to get the instantaneous values of liquid layer depth. Measurements were performed at different pipe sections. The results were compared to those obtained for air-water flows at the same superficial velocities, with the latter ranging from 0.76 to 2.30 m/s for air and 0.03 to 0.06 m/s for water respectively. A liquid loading reduction up to 41 % was detected at the lowest gas superficial velocity, i.e. 1 m/s, while when the gas superficial velocity increases the difference in the liquid holdup lowers and becomes negligible at 2.30 m/s, regardless the value of the liquid superficial velocity. Since no specific model exists for foamy flows, as a first attempt the Zuber and Findlay drift-flux model was finally adopted to correlate the data.
Towards a two-dimensional readout of the improved CMS Resistive Plate Chamber with a new front-end electronics
Authors: Meola S. , Samalan A. , Tytgat M. , Zaganidis N. , Alves G.A. , Marujo F. , Torres Da Silva De Araujo F. , Da Costa E.M. , De Jesus Damiao D. , Nogima H. , Santoro A. , Fonseca De Souza S. , Aleksandrov A. , Hadjiiska R. , Iaydjiev P. , Rodozov M. , Shopova M. , Sultanov G. , Bonchev M. , Dimitrov A. , Litov L. , Pavlov B. , Petkov P. , Petrov A. , Qian S.J. , Cao P. , Kou H. , Liu Z. , Song J. , Zhao J. , Bernal C. , Cabrera A. , Fraga J. , Sarkar A. , Elsayed S. , Assran Y. , El Sawy M. , Mahmoud M.A. , Mohammed Y. , Combaret C. , Gouzevitch M. , Grenier G. , Laktineh I. , Mirabito L. , Shchablo K. , Bagaturia I. , Lomidze D. , Lomidze I. , Bhatnagar V. , Gupta R. , Kumari P. , Singh J. , Amoozegar V. , Boghrati B. , Ebraimi M. , Ghasemi R. , Mohammadi Najafabadi M. , Zareian E. , Abbrescia M. , Aly R. , Elmetenawee W. , De Filippis N. , Gelmi A. , Iaselli G. , Leszki S. , Loddo F. , Margjeka I. , Pugliese G. , Ramos D. , Benussi L. , Bianco S. , Piccolo D. , Buontempo S. , Di Crescenzo A. , Fienga F. , De Lellis G. , Lista L. , Paolucci P. , Braghieri A. , Salvini P. , Montagna P. , Riccardi C. , Vitulo P. , Francois B. , Kim T.J. , Park J. , Choi S.Y. , Hong B. , Lee K.S. , Goh J. , Lee H. , Eysermans J. , Uribe Estrada C. , Pedraza I. , Castilla-Valdez H. , Sanchez-Hernandez A. , Mondragon Herrera C.A. , Perez Navarro D.A. , Ayala Sanchez G.A. , Carrillo S. , Vazquez E. , Radi A. , Ahmad A. , Asghar I. , Hoorani H. , Muhammad S. , Shah M.A. , Crotty I.
Published: April 2021

As part of the Compact Muon Solenoid experiment Phase-II upgrade program, new resistive plate chambers will be installed in the region at low angle with respect to the beam collision axis, in order to improve the detection of muons with a low transverse momentum. High background conditions are expected in this region during the high-luminosity phase of the Large Hadron Collider, therefore an improved-RPC design has been proposed with a new front-end electronics to sustain a higher particle rate capability and better time resolution. A new technology is used in the front-end electronics resulting in low achievable signal detection of 1–20 fC. Crucial in the design of the improved-RPC is the capability of a two-dimensional readout in order to improve the spatial resolution, mainly motivated by trigger requirements. In this work, the first performance results towards this two-dimensional readout are presented, based on data taken on a real-size prototype chamber with two embedded readout planes with orthogonal strips.
Multiscale mapping of plant functional groups and plant traits in the High Arctic using field spectroscopy, UAV imagery and Sentinel-2A data
Authors: Thomson Eleanor R , Spiegel Marcus P , Althuizen Inge H J , Bass Polly , Chen Shuli , Chmurzynski Adam , Halbritter Aud H , Henn Jonathan J , Jónsdóttir Ingibjörg S , Klanderud Kari , Li Yaoqi , Maitner Brian S , Michaletz Sean T , Niittynen Pekka , Roos Ruben E , Telford Richard J , Enquist Brian J , Vandvik Vigdis , Macias-Fauria Marc , Malhi Yadvinder
Published: April 2021

The Arctic is warming twice as fast as the rest of the planet, leading to rapid changes in species composition and plant functional trait variation. Landscape-level maps of vegetation composition and trait distributions are required to expand spatially-limited plot studies, overcome sampling biases associated with the most accessible research areas, and create baselines from which to monitor environmental change. Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) have emerged as a low-cost method to generate high-resolution imagery and bridge the gap between fine-scale field studies and lower resolution satellite analyses. Here we used field spectroscopy data (400–2500 nm) and UAV multispectral imagery to test spectral methods of species identification and plant water and chemistry retrieval near Longyearbyen, Svalbard. Using the field spectroscopy data and Random Forest analysis, we were able to distinguish eight common High Arctic plant tundra species with 74% accuracy. Using partial least squares regression (PLSR), we were able to predict corresponding water, nitrogen, phosphorus and C:N values (r
2 = 0.61–0.88, RMSEmean = 12%–64%). We developed analogous models using UAV imagery (five bands: Blue, Green, Red, Red Edge and Near-Infrared) and scaled up the results across a 450 m long nutrient gradient located underneath a seabird colony. At the UAV level, we were able to map three plant functional groups (mosses, graminoids and dwarf shrubs) at 72% accuracy and generate maps of plant chemistry. Our maps show a clear marine-derived fertility gradient, mediated by geomorphology. We used the UAV results to explore two methods of upscaling plant water content to the wider landscape using Sentinel-2A imagery. Our results are pertinent for high resolution, low-cost mapping of the Arctic.
Implementation of an Environmentally Friendly Approach of a Hospital–Practice of Medical Waste Disposal
Authors: Chen Chiwei
Published: April 2021

Gama Hospital is a well-known private hospital in Taiwan. In addition to medical treatment technology, hospital management and cost control are also excellent. Regarding the treatment of medical waste, one must consider the cost and also the environmental implications. Waste disposal, besides the inevitable treatment after its emergence, should be given more attention during the course of medical execution. In the practice of the hospital, the actual waste treatment cost was reduced. The main factor is that the hospital promotes a series of waste treatment education and training. In addition to medical personnel, patients and family members also participate in medical waste reduction and correct handling activities, successfully completing the hospital’s waste reduction target and achieving sustainable environmental social responsibility.
Investigation on the Development of Fuel Consumption for China’s Gasoline Passenger Car in Recent Years
Authors: Yu Hanzhengnan , Liu Yu , Li Jingyuan
Published: April 2021

As the application of several energy saving technologies and the continuous tightening fuel consumption standards, the fuel consumption of China’s gasoline passenger cars is decreasing continuously. In this paper, the development of the standards related to fuel consumption was reviewed firstly, and the development of the fuel consumption for China’s gasoline passenger cars has been investigated based on the declared fuel consumption data of over 4800 vehicle models produced or imported in recent 5 years (2014-2018). Results showed that the average fuel consumption in 2018 decreased 6.4% compared to 2014, about 1.6% per year. In additions, the development of gasoline passenger cars with turbocharge engines and auto transmissions had a more significant effect on the fuel consumption reduction, and the annual decreasing rate reached 2.4% per year and 3.6% per year, respectively.
Oxidative Desulfurization of Diesel from the Topping Plant using 1-Butyl-3-Methylimidazolium Hydrogen Sulfate [Bmim][HSO4] as Catalyst
Authors: Timbila Sara , Donoso Caterine , Mejía Francisco
Published: April 2021

This investigation was carried out with the purpose of reducing the sulphur content in diesel from the topping plant and avoiding air pollution, due to the presence of SOx in the emissions, at the same time reduced the corrosion rate in the equipment, machinery or mechanical components of the industry. An oxidative desulphurization (ODS) process was carried out with ionic liquid (1-butyl-3-methyl imidazolium hydrogen sulfate [BMIM][HSO4]) that serves as a solvent and catalyst. H2O2 (30 % wt) was used as an oxidizing agent, because it is benign to the environment. A maximum of 43.14% removal was obtained at a volumetric ratio VIL/Vdiesel (1:1), molar ratio H2O2/S (5) and reaction time (2 hours). In addition, the IL was evaluated after subjecting it to a regeneration process, being able to recycle it only once until it is saturated again; also the physical-chemical properties of diesel were studied before and after of exposed it to the ODS process.
Evaluation of Chromium Application in the Steel Industry in China: Implications on Environmental Quality
Authors: Musah Baba Imoro , Peng Lai , Xu Yifeng
Published: April 2021

This study provides vital analysis of environmental consequences of the steel industry in China on outdoor air quality, surface, and groundwater quality as well as global production of Chromite ore, its associated cost on health locally and internationally. The steel industry emissions currently amount to 50, 200, and 300 μg/m3 for PM2.5, SO2, and NO2 respectively exceeding WHO recommended emissions values. Out of 365 cities in China, 70% of these cities representing 256 cities in 2018 had their annual mean particulate matter emission being 44.1 μg/m3 which is significantly higher than the WHO standard. Imported chromite from 1996 to 2016 amounted to 106,090,000 Mt by China. The production of crude steel increased from 870.9 to 928.3 Mt in 2017 and 2018 respectively. The proportion of good groundwater quality reduced from 26.9 to 25.4% in three years. Nearly 68% of total chromium emissions come from the metallurgical industry with an annual increment of 15.6% with an annual average PM2.5 value of 53 ug/m3 which is significantly very high.
Nursing Home Wind Environment Evaluation in Northern China - A Case Study in Dezhou
Authors: Ni Xuwei
Published: April 2021

As the rapid development of institution-based care for the elderly people, the nursing home’s outdoor wind environment research has become an important topic including wind potential evaluation as well as wind comfort analysis. In this study, the wind environment of a nursing home located in Dezhou, northern China has been evaluated quantitatively according to CFD methods. The parameters related to the wind environment including average wind velocity, wind velocity variation range and area proportion of shadow wind, comfort wind and risky wind regions has been calculated. Results showed the annual average wind velocity of the nursing home’s outdoor environment was 1.69m/s and its variation range was 40.41%. The area proportions of shadow wind, comfort wind and risky wind regions were 23.00%, 75.35% and 1.65%. This indicated that the wind environment optimization of the nursing home should be focused on decreasing the shadow wind regions and dismiss the risky wind regions, and relative optimization suggestions were proposed.
Influence of non-uniform electric field distribution on the atmospheric pressure air dielectric barrier discharge
Authors: CUI Weisheng , ZHAO Shuai , QIAN Zhengfang , SUN Yiling , AL-SALIHI Mahmoud , DENG Xiangquan
Published: April 2021

The dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) in air at atmospheric pressure is not suitable for industrial applications due to its randomly distributed discharge filaments. In this paper, the influence of the electric field distribution on the uniformity of DBD is theoretically analyzed and experimentally verified. It is found that a certain degree of uneven electric field distributions can control the development of electron avalanches and regulate their transition to streamers in the gap. The discharge phenomena and electrical characteristics prove that an enhanced Townsend discharge can be formed in atmospheric-pressure air with a curved-plate electrode. The spectral analysis further confirms that the gas temperature of the plasma produced by the curved-plate electrode is close to room temperature, which is beneficial for industrial applications. This paper presents the relationship between the electron avalanche transition and the formation of a uniform DBD, which can provide some references for the development and applications of the DBD in the future.
The harmonic heat flow of almost complex structures
Authors: He Weiyong , Li Bo
Published: April 2021

We define and study the harmonic heat flow for almost complex structures which are compatible with a Riemannian structure

(
M
,
g
)

(M, g)

. This is a tensor-valued version of harmonic map heat flow. We prove that if the initial almost complex structure

J
J

has small energy (depending on the norm

|

∇
J

|

|\nabla J|

), then the flow exists for all time and converges to a Kähler structure. We also prove that there is a finite time singularity if the initial energy is sufficiently small but there is no Kähler structure in the homotopy class. A main technical tool is a version of monotonicity formula, similar as in the theory of the harmonic map heat flow. We also construct an almost complex structure on a flat four tori with small energy such that the harmonic heat flow blows up at finite time with such an initial data.
A yeast FRET biosensor enlightens cAMP signaling
Authors: Botman Dennis , O’Toole Tom G. , Goedhart Joachim , Bruggeman Frank J. , van Heerden Johan H. , Teusink Bas
Published: April 2021

A FRET-based cAMP biosensor for in yeast showed that cAMP peaks differentiate between different carbon source transitions and are homogenous among single cells. Additionally, its height scales with the relative, and not the absolute, change in glucose. Last, the sensor showed that cAMP can convey information about prospective growth rates.
Memory precision of object-location binding is unimpaired inAPOEε4-carriers with spatial navigation deficits
Authors: Gellersen Helena M , Coughlan Gillian , Hornberger Michael , Simons Jon S
Published: April 2021

Research suggests that tests of memory fidelity, feature binding and spatial navigation are promising for early detection of subtle behavioural changes related to Alzheimer’s disease. In the absence of longitudinal data, one way of testing the early detection potential of cognitive tasks is through the comparison of individuals at different genetic risk for Alzheimer’s dementia. Most studies have done so using samples aged 70 years or older. Here, we tested whether memory fidelity of long-term object-location binding may be a sensitive marker even among cognitively healthy individuals in their mid-60s by comparing participants at low and higher risk based on presence of the ε4-allele of the apolipoprotein gene (n = 26 ε3ε3, n = 20 ε3ε4 carriers). We used a continuous report paradigm in a visual memory task that required participants to recreate the spatial position of objects in a scene. We employed mixture modelling to estimate the two distinct memory processes that underpin the trial-by-trial variation in localization errors: retrieval success which indexes the proportion of trials where participants recalled any information about an object’s position and the precision with which participants retrieved this information. Prior work has shown that these memory paradigms that separate retrieval success from precision are capable of detecting subtle differences in mnemonic fidelity even when retrieval success could not. Nonetheless, Bayesian analyses found good evidence that ε3ε4 carriers did not remember fewer object locations [F(1, 42) = 0.450, P = 0.506, BF01 = 3.02], nor was their precision for the spatial position of objects reduced compared to ε3ε3 carriers [F(1, 42) = 0.12, P = 0.726, BF01 = 3.19]. Because the participants in the sample presented here were a subset of a study on apolipoprotein ε4-carrier status and spatial navigation in the Sea Hero Quest game [Coughlan et al., 2019. PNAS, 116(9)], we obtained these data to contrast genetic effects on the two tasks within the same sample (n = 33). Despite the smaller sample size, wayfinding deficits among ε3ε4 carriers could be replicated [F(1, 33) = 5.60, P = 0.024, BF10 = 3.44]. Object-location memory metrics and spatial navigation scores were not correlated (all r < 0.25, P > 0.1, 0 < BF10 < 3). These findings show spared object-location binding in the presence of a detrimental apolipoprotein ε4 effect on spatial navigation. This suggests that the sensitivity of memory fidelity and binding tasks may not extend to individuals with one ε4-allele in their early to mid-60s. The results provide further support to prior proposals that spatial navigation may be a sensitive marker for the earliest cognitive changes in Alzheimer’s disease, even before episodic memory.
EFFECT OF TRISOMY 6 ON RECOMBINATION IN CHROMOSOME 9 OF MAIZE
Authors: Ghidoni A
Published: April 2021

The effect of an additional chromosome 6 upon recombination in chromosome 9 was investigated in maize. Trisomic 6 plants and their disomic sibs, heterozygous for three loci of chromosome 9 (yg, sh and wx), were testcrossed, and recombination in the regions yg-sh and sh-wx was analyzed. Single exchanges in the sh-wx region and double exchanges were more frequent in trisomics, particularly in female flowers.——In reciprocal testcrosses, higher male crossover rates were found for the sh-wx region, and the difference was enhanced in trisomic 6 plants.
REGULATION OF NEWLY EVOLVED ENZYMES II. THE EBG REPRESSOR
Authors: Hall Barry G , Hartl Daniel L
Published: April 2021

The ebg (evolved β-galactosidase) regulatory locus has been mapped. The map order is argG-ebgA-ebgR-tolC-metC, and there is 1.6% recombination between ebgR and ebgA. Studies with ebgR-/ebgR+ merdiploids have shown that ebgR- is recessive, and it is concluded that the synthesis of ebg enzyme is under negative control.
RIBOSOMAL DNA AMOUNTS IN PISUM SATIVUM
Authors: Cullis C A , Davies D Roy
Published: April 2021

Different varieties of peas have different proportions of rDNA in their genomes; there is no obvious correlation between the proportions and seed or leaf size. The rDNA proportions in root tips, seedlings, leaves and in the cotyledon cells of high DNA content, were compared in four varieties. In three, there was no difference between tissues; the fourth showed an amplification of rRNA genes in the cells of high DNA content of the seed cotyledon, and also in the cells of young but not of older leaves. The fourth variety was the one that had the lowest proportion of rDNA of all those examined. Studies of the tissues of hybrids between genotypes with "low" and "high" proportions of rDNA showed that heterozygotes had the "high" value, showing again the occurrence of an amplification phenomenon.
INTEGRATION, AT HAG OR ELSEWHERE, OF H2 (PHASE-2 FLAGELLIN) GENES TRANSDUCED FROM SALMONELLA TO ESCHERICHIA COLI
Authors: Enomoto Masatoshi , Stocker Bruce A D
Published: April 2021

A fla mutant of E. coli K12 was given fla  + and H1-i by phage P1kc cotransduction from S. typhimurium, then made Fla- by transduction of ah1 from S. typhimurium. Motile clones expressing a Salmonella phase-2 antigen, e,n,x or 1,2, were obtained from the K12 i  ah1 (therefore Fla-) line by P1kc transduction of flagellin-specifying genes, H2-e,n,x or H2–1,2, from Salmonella donors. Of eighteen such transductants sixteen failed to show phase variation, and on transduction back to Salmonella each structural gene for a phase-2 flagellin (or at least for its antigenically determinant part) now behaved as an allele of H1, presumably in consequence of incorporation in the hag region of the K12 recipient, in place of H1-i ah1 . The e,n,x- and 1,2-specifying genes were shown to have been integrated in the K12 chromosome without the linked H1-repressor gene or the adjacent vh2 gene (controlling rate of phase-variation) and they responded to the repressing activity of an H2 allele elsewhere in the cell, in this respect resembling H1 alleles of Salmonella or hag alleles of E. coli. Two K12 e,n,x transductants had flagellin-specifying genes which when transduced back to Salmonella were integrated at H2; they are inferred to have resulted from integration of H2-e,n,x in the K12 chromosome elsewhere than the hag region. These two clones showed phase variation, between a Fla+ phase, with antigen e,n,x, and a Fla- phase (with e,n,x determinant in the nonactive state and the determinant of antigen i inactivated by ah1). The two integrated e,n,x genes when in the "active" state retained the ability to repress expression of exogenote H1 alleles, which indicates that the closely linked H1-repressor gene also was integrated. One of the two exceptional transductants derived its e,n,x gene from a Salmonella donor with the linked vh2  - gene, which in Salmonella almost entirely prevents change of phase, and transduction of this e,n,x gene back to Salmonella recipients proved that vh2  - had been incorporated into the E. coli chromosome along with the e,n,x determinant and the H1-repressor gene. The high frequency of change of phase (Fla+↔Fla-) in the K12 e,n,x  vh2  - transductant concerned suggests that vh2  - fails to prevent frequent change of state of the phase-determinant part of H2 when vh2  - and H2 are incorporated in the E. coli chromosome.
POPULATION DIFFERENTIATION UNDER THE CHARGE STATE MODEL
Authors: Brown A H D , Marshall D R , Weir B S
Published: April 2021

The extent of divergence between partially isolated sub-populations for electrophoretically detectable alleles was formulated assuming the island model of migration and the charge state model of mutation. At equilibrium the ratio of the variance of charge between the means of k different islands to the average within-island variance of charge was shown to be approximately 4Nemk  2/(k-1)2 where Ne is the effective size of each island population and m is the migration rate. This ratio was calculated from published data for eight polymorphic loci in six island populations of Drosophila willistoni . Under the assumption that all variants are selectively neutral, migration rates of greater than 10 adults per generation per island are required to explain the observed similarity of the allelic profiles in D. willistoni . Since the islands studied appear to be virtually completely isolated it was concluded either that the observed protein variants are adaptive and maintained in populations by some form of balancing selection or that the observed variants themselves are neutral but natural selection acts to restrict the appearance of more extreme variants in the charge carried.
GENE FLOW AND SELECTION IN A TWO-LOCUS SYSTEM
Authors: Slatkin Montgomery
Published: April 2021

A model of gene flow and selection in two linked loci is analyzed. The problems considered are the effects of linkage on the clines in frequencies at the two loci and the role of gene flow in producing linkage disequilibrium between the loci. Also, the possible significance of linkage as a mechanism for permitting a population of "track" spatial changes in the environment is considered. The results are that when the recombination fraction between the loci is of the same order of magnitude as the selection coefficients or smaller, then linkage is important in determining the gene frequencies and a substantial amount of linkage disequilibrium is present in the cline. Depending on the spatial pattern of selection on the two loci, linkage can either decrease or increase a population's response to local selection.
ISOLATION AND GENETIC ANALYSIS OF MUTANT STRAINS OF CHLAMYDOMONAS REINHARDI DEFECTIVE IN GAMETIC DIFFERENTIATION
Authors: Goodenough Ursula W , Hwang Carol , Martin Howard
Published: April 2021

Impotent mutant strains of Chlamydomonas reinhardi, mating-type (mt) plus, are described that have normal growth and motility but fail to differentiate into normal gametes. Procedures for their isolation and their genetic analysis are described. Five of the imp strains (imp-2, imp-5, imp-6, imp-7, and imp-8) exhibit no flagellar agglutination when mixed with mt  - or mt  + gametes; these strains have been induced to form rare zygotes with mt  - gametes and the mutations are shown to be unlinked to the mt locus (with the possible exception of imp-7). Two of the strains (imp-3 and imp-4) carry leaky mutations that affect cell fusion; neither mutation is found by tetrad analysis to be linked to mt or to the other. Cells of the imp-1 strain agglutinate well with mt  - gametes and active agglutination continues for up to 48 hours, but cell fusion occurs only very rarely. Analysis of these rare zygotes indicates that imp-1 is closely linked to the mt  + locus, and fine-structural studies reveal that imp-1gametes produce a mutant mating structure involved in zygotic cell fusion. The development of sexuality in C. reinhardi therefore appears amenable to genetic dissection.
CHROMOSOME STUDIES IN WILD POPULATIONS OF D. MELANOGASTER
Authors: Stalker Harrison D
Published: April 2021

Chromosome studies of wild D. melanogaster populations from Missouri, Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas uncovered 58 inversions. Six were common and cosmopolitan; 52 were new, rare and generally endemic. In one of two Missouri populations tested, structurally heterozygous females carried significantly more sperm at capture than did the homozygotes. In both populations comparisons of wild sperms with the females carrying them indicated significant positive assortative mating and an excess production of homozygotes among the F1 progeny. Wild females structurally heterozygous in up to three major autosomal arms showed no associated nondisjunctional egg lethality; those heterozygous in all four arms produced from 0% to 24% dead eggs, suggesting the presence of intrapopulational gene modifiers of meiosis. Texas populations supported on windfall citrus fruit showed a slight but significant difference in inversion frequencies between flies breeding on oranges and those breeding on grapefruit. Within these populations inversions were not distributed at random among individuals; rather there was an observed excess of individuals carrying intermediate numbers, and a deficiency of those carrying very few or very many inversions. While there was no significant linkage disequilibrium associated with this central tendency, there was a significant interchromosomal interaction: flies carrying inversions in chromosome 2 tended not to carry them in chromosome 3, and vice versa.
MUTANTS OF SACCHAROMYCES CEREVISIAE RESISTANT TO THE α MATING-TYPE FACTOR
Authors: Manney Thomas R , Woods Verna
Published: April 2021

Mutants that are resistant to α-factor have been isolated from a mating-type haploid strains of yeast by direct selection on agar medium containing partially purified α-factor. All resistant mutants isolated were found to be sterile. They were characterized and compared with mutants previously isolated as nonmating. Among 93 able to mate at low frequency and to sporulate, none showed linkage to the mating-type locus. The results support the hypothesis that the response to α-factor by cells of mating-type a is essential for mating.
SELECTION IN REFERENCE TO BIOLOGICAL GROUPS. VI. USE OF EXTREME FORMS OF NONRANDOM GROUPS TO INCREASE SELECTION EFFICIENCY
Authors: Griffing B
Published: April 2021

The strategy of using non-random groups to increase the efficiency of truncation selection is discussed. The present study, which considers extreme forms of non-random groups, complements a previous study involving full-sib groups. It is shown that of the two kinds of non-randomness, i.e. that due to homozygosity or that due to homogeneity (as represented by cloning), the latter is the most effective. This suggests that with those plant crops in which intense competition among plants exists, use of clonal propagation to produce non-random groups should be investigated.