bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Annual net primary productivity of a cyanobacteria dominated biological soil crust in the Gulf savanna, Queensland, Australia
Authors: Büdel Burkhard , Williams Wendy J. , Reichenberger Hans
Published: September 2017

Abstract. Biological soil crusts are a common element of the Queensland (Australia) dry savannah ecosystem and are composed of cyanobacteria, algae, lichens, bryophytes, fungi and heterotrophic bacteria. Here we report on the annual net primary productivity of a cyanobacteria dominated biological soil crust form the Boodjamulla National Park in north western Queensland using a semi-automatic cuvette system. The dominating cyanobacteria are the filamentous species Sypmplocastrum purpurascens together with Scytonema sp. The recording period lasted from July 1st 2010 to June 30th 2011. Metabolic activity was found from November 2010 until mid-April 2011 only, referring to 23.6 % of the total time of the year. With the onset of the raining season in November, the first month of activity had a pronounced respiratory loss of CO2. Also the last month of the raining season had a negative CO2 balance. Of the metabolic active period, 48.6 % were net photosynthesis and 51.4 % dark respiration. Net photosynthetic uptake of CO2 during daylight was reduced at 32.6 % of the time by water suprasaturation during. In total, the biological soil crust fixed 229.09 mmol CO2 m−2 yr−1, referring to an annual carbon gain of 2.75 g m−2 yr−1. Due to malfunction of the automatic cuvette system, data from September and October 2010, together with days in November and December 2010 could not be analysed for net photosynthesis and respiration. Based on climatic and gas exchange data from November 2010, an estimated loss of 88 mmol CO2 m−2 was found for the two month, resulting in annual rates of 143.08 mmol CO2 m−2 yr−1, equivalent to a carbon gain of 1.72 g m−2 yr−1. The bulk net photosynthetic activity occurred above a relative humidity above 42 %, indicating a suitable climatic combination of temperature and water availability, and a light intensity well above 200 µmol photons m−2 s−1 photosynthetic active radiation. The Boodjamulla biocrust showed a highly seasonally varying CO2 gas exchange pattern divided into metabolically inactive winter month and active summer month. The metabolic active period starts with a period (up to 3 month) of carbon loss, probably due to regrowth before a four month period of carbon gain. This must be taken into consideration for future analyses and modelling of carbon balances in comparable biocrust ecosystems.
Levinas and the Anticolonial
Authors: Anderson Patrick D.
Published: September 2017

Over the last two decades, the various attempts to “radicalize” Levinas have resulted in two interesting and often separated debates: one the one hand, there is the debate regarding the relationship between Levinas and colonialism and racism, and on the other hand, there is the debate regarding the relationship between Levinas and Judaism. Whether scholars interested in issues of colonialism disregard Levinas's Judaism or use his "subaltern" identity to challenge European hegemony, they do not take seriously the Jewish content of Levinas's thought. In this essay, I challenge the prevailing postcolonial orinetation of the Levinas-colonialism conversation, approaching Levinas's phenomenology from an anticolonial perspective. I will use Frantz Fanon’s dualistic understanding of the colonial world to evaluate the adequacy of Levinas’s phenomenology in describing the ontological structure of the colony and the historical experience of the colonized within it. Levinas’s incomplete understanding of the Holocaust as colonialism contributes to his failure to recognize the dividing line of colonial ontology, the zone of nonbeing, the non-human status of the colonized, and ultimately contributes to the insufficiency of his phenomenology to describe the colony. Because my purpose is not to reject Levinas’s thought in general but to encourage a new approach to his work, in the conclusion I will gesture toward the need for an anticolonial reading of Levinas’s project for Jewish education.
Vitality: Carnal, Seraphic Bodies
Authors: Treanor Brian
Published: September 2017

This paper reflects on experiences of what i call vitality. Such experiences are neither idiosyncratic (they overlap major themes in Chinese philosophy, among other disciplines) nor mere romanticism (contemporary psychology lends credence to these accounts). Moreover, while some figures in continental philosophy do address the body—as perceiving, as sexed, as political—there has been almost no attention given to the active body of vitality. Drawing from the work of Michel Serres, this paper will uncover some of the significant features of such bodily experiences.
Regulatory Chill: Learnings From New Zealand’s Plain Packaging Tobacco Law
Authors: Kelsey Jane
Published: September 2017

Australia’s precedent-setting Tobacco Plain Packaging Act 2011 (Cth) took two and a half years from its public announcement to come into force. The fact that New Zealand’s almost identical legislation was still not in force six years after it was first mooted suggests it was subject to regulatory chill through both specific threats and systemic influences within the policy making process. This article examines the hypothesis that three elements associated with New Zealand’s free trade and investment treaties combined to chill a National government that was already luke-warm on a plain packaging law: perceived risks from litigation; associated arguments pressed by politically influential industry lobbyists; and the bias in the regulatory management regime that favours minimal intervention and empowers the tobacco industry, consistent with contemporary trade agreements. It concludes that these mutually reinforcing factors delayed the passage of New Zealand’s legislation, but did not see it abandoned. This suggests that health policies supported by public opinion, international health obligations, and precedents from other countries can withstand regulatory chill. But the difference from Australia also highlights the need to pay more attention to ways of neutralising those factors if a Smokefree Aotearoa New Zealand, and similarly ground-breaking public health policies, are to be achieved.
Market Chain for Cereal and Pulse Crops in North Shewa Zone of Oromia Regional State, Ethiopia
Authors: Bekele Teferi Girma , Meshesha(PhD) Getamesay Bekele
Published: September 2017

This study provides empirical analysis on the market chain for cereal and pulse crops by measuring profit of rural farming households in North Shewa Zone of Oromia Regional State, (Ethiopia). Marketing problem of agricultural products happens because of internal and external problem of the farmer. The purpose of this study is to provide empirical evidence on the market chain in the area. Multistage sampling technique was used to select 393 sample farming households. Additionally, 20 merchants, 10 government employees and 1 Salale Union worker respondents were included in the study. The mixed research method employed to make the result more fruitful. Some descriptive analysis and Logistic regression were used for the econometric part. Even if some independent variables are insignificant, result of the model shows that market chain positively affects the profitability of the farmer. The areas with market chain for both agricultural input and agricultural product have relatively high profits. Farmers who use agricultural inputs from market cooperatives and sell their crops to the cooperatives are highly productive and more profitable. These results confirm that market chain contributes directly for improving the profitability of rural farming households, and hence scaling up the trading among farmers. Minimizing marketing problem and increasing awareness, financial access and road access for farmer by concerned local government institutions and nongovernmental organizations were recommended to improve farmers’ profitability.
The Impact of Attitudes towards Healthcare Service Quality on Organisational Performance: Evidence from the Saudi Arabia
Authors: Alsharar Yaser Salman , Aziz Fadzil Shah bin , Taib Che Azlan Bin , Yusoff Rushami Zien
Published: September 2017

This research aims to investigate the effect of attitudes towards healthcare service quality on organisational performance among Saudi Arabian hospitals. The sample size comprises of 154 hospitals randomly chosen from 259 government hospitals in Saudi Arabia. For data analysis, the Partial Least Squares (PLS) structural equation modeling was used. In addition, this study found a positive and significant association between attitudes towards healthcare service quality and organisational performance. Eventually, this study provides some limitations and suggestions for future researchers.
Saint Christopher's Canine Hybrid Body and its Cultural Autocannibalism
Authors: Friedrich Jennie
Published: September 2017

This article interrogates the cannibalistic hybrid form of Saint Christopher, the patron saint of travel in order to establish meaningful theoretical links between the threatening characteristics and processes of his monstrous body and the threatening characteristics and processes of travel. Continuing controversy in the Catholic Church over historical accounts of this monstrous saint's life suggests that his religious and cultural influence extends into the twenty-first century, which makes him a remarkable candidate for further study. This article employs postcolonial and psychoanalytic approaches to the text in order to define Saint Christopher as both literally and culturally cannibalistic.
Rethinking with Demons: The Campaign against Superstition in Late Medieval and Early Modern Europe from a Cognitive Perspective
Authors: Keitt Andrew
Published: September 2017

Popular religion in late medieval and early modern Europe posited an invisible world densely populated with both personal spirits and impersonal forces that interacted constantly with the natural and social realms in ambiguous and unpredictable ways. This represented a stark contrast to elite theological discourse, which insisted on dividing the spirit world into a strict moral dichotomy of good and evil spirits, operating within a rigid causal taxonomy of natural, preternatural, and supernatural. During this period, deviations from this elite theological consensus were increasingly labeled “superstitious.” The cognitive science of religion postulates that beliefs about demons and spirits are constrained by the evolved cognitive architecture of our species, and in this article I show that the patterns of religious belief and practice targeted by the critics of superstition are compatible wth key hypotheses in the cognitive science of religion.
To Accommodate the Earthly Kingdom to Divine Will: Official and Nonconformist Definitions of Witchcraft in England (ca. 1542–1630)
Authors: Mendez Agustin
Published: September 2017

This article compares and contrasts England's first three Witchcraft Acts (1542, 1563, and 1604) with demonological treatises published by English theologians and clerics between 1580 and 1627 with the intention of highlighting the different ways both types of texts defined witches and their actions. This research focuses on cunning folk as healers to emphasize the disparity of interests and aims that underpinned the representation of witchcraft in civil law and religious treatises concerning that issue. I suggest that during Elizabethan and Jacobean periods, discussions about the definition of witchcraft became one of the battlefields where those who thought the English Reformation had achieved its ends and those who propelled a more thorough disciplining of the population to create a godly society collided. I argue that demonological works served, among other purposes, to express grievances about the official religious policy.
“She was full of evil spirits”: Occult Influence, Free Will, and Medical Authority in the Old Bailey, circa 1860–1910
Authors: Bell Karl
Published: September 2017

This article explores how occult and medical epistemologies intersected in late Victorian and Edwardian courtroom narratives in the Old Bailey, London's Central Criminal Court. Rather than delineating the preternatural, I argue that this meeting of the occult and medical science resulted in a blurring of the boundaries between external and internal influences, between notions of prisoner and patient, the psychical and the insane. Considering the role of the accused, victims, medical authorities, lawyers, and jurors, I examine how this epistemological shift developed and how it was presented, manipulated, or hindered. Through investigating this attempt by medical “experts” to pathologize the occult, I offer fresh insights into how medical testimony interpreted and employed accounts of witchcraft, mesmerism, and hypnotism in courtroom narratives. I conclude by briefly drawing attention to the resonances between the operation of occult, legal, and medical influences over the mind and body in the late nineteenth-century courtroom.
Corporate Governance Practices and Firm’s Capital Structure Decisions: An Empirical Evidence of An Emerging Economy
Authors: Hafez Hassan M.
Published: September 2017

There is a growing body of literature that recognises the importance of corporate governance practices on capital structure decisions. However, results are not consistent and only a few studies have been able to draw on any systematic research trying to quantify the relation between corporate governance practices and capital structure decisions and to acquire bits of knowledge of such relation of listed firms in Emerging Economies. Because of the fact that impact use of the corporate governance rules can have on capital structure decisions.The main driver of this research is to investigate the sound use of the Egyptian corporate governance practices on capital structure decisions of listed firms in Egypt over the period 2007 to 2016 utilizing a sample of 50 listed firms in EGX 100. Empirical results demonstrate the significant relationship between various inner and outer corporate governance practices and capital structure decisions of listed firms in Egypt. The findings were quantitatively approved through utilizing E-Views programming for examining panel data. Descriptive statistics, Multi-Collinearity test, Hausman test and multiple regression have been utilized to distinguish the major determinates of capital structure decisions and assess whether it has a significant impact on capital structure decisions.
Do Small Indonesian Companies Have a Better Performance in the Stock Market than Larger Ones?
Authors: Perez Gerardo “Gerry” Alfonso
Published: September 2017

Company specific characteristics, such as size, might have an impact on stock performance. In fact, there is an extensive literature supporting the existence of a small capitalization effect stock in many markets, such as the U.S. (Fama, 1992), UK (Andrikopoulus, 2008)) and Thailand (Alfonso, 2016). In this article the Indonesian case is presented. Indonesia has a growing economy and financial markets and is one of the ASEAN countries. The performance of small and large capitalization stock from 2010 to 2016 was analyzed in this article. The results, at a 5% confidence level, indicate that the assumption that the returns from small and large capitalization stocks for that period being the same cannot be rejected. The result was consistent when analyzing the entire period or when analyzing every single year independently. The test used to compare the performance of small and large capitalization stocks was the Wilcoxon test. The risk adjusted returns were also compared with the conclusion remain the same. The returns of the index as well as the logarithmic returns, during the same, period did not appear to follow a normal distribution. Normal distribution is not an assumption required by the Wilcoxon test. The idea that small capitalization stocks outperformed large capitalization stocks cannot be supported by either the results of the statistical tests or by the actual returns during that period. The finding supports that there are significant differences between the behavior of the stock market in Indonesia and other comparable countries like Thailand.
A Proposed Courses Structure for the Preparatory College Year
Authors: Al Ashry (Ashry) Mohammed H. S.
Published: September 2017

Colleges in Saudi Arabia receive many college applicants with all sorts of high-school education, knowledge and skills. A large percentage of these applicants have a weak background in the English language, math and science. As a result, most Saudi Universities have a precollege year labeled the preparatory year. During this year accepted applicants are scrutinized to weed out the less qualified, and prepare those with limited deficiencies for college. It is important for a freshman to acknowledge his/her lacking and or lagging in any of the mentioned fields above. Such recognition facilitates the learning process for those who realize their deficiencies. This paper presents samples of a course structure that meets the needs of those with inadequate background in all or two of the three mentioned subjects. The paper offers examples of two curriculum courses in the two main topics, English and math, and suggests a basic curriculum set of courses for the physics discipline. The first semester introduces fundamental material in the two subjects, with more in depth intermediate courses in the second semester. The paper presents a few simple examples for both semesters.
The influence of Organizational Image on Academic Success for International Students
Authors: Küçüksüleymanoğlu Rüyam
Published: September 2017

Image as a concept that develops through personal, environmental, cultural, and organizational factors throughout history. Organizational image is the overall evaluation of people’s views regarding an organization or system. The purpose of present study was to determine the relationship between international university students’ academic achievement and perceived organizational image. As this is a descriptive research for it measures the image perceptions of the participants at a single time, quantative research methods were used. The population of the research was 2208 international students at Uludag University in Bursa. Randomly selected  1718 students (%77.8) who provided anonymous responses were the sample of the study. To examine the relation between organizational image and academic achievement, correlation analysis was used. To control the effect of the organizational image on the academic achievement regression analysis was used. Students’ academic achievement was mostly affected by reputation and recognition, provided services and general view and physical infrastucture at moderate level. As the students' image perception towards the university increases, their acdemic success also increase. Perceived organizational image affected students’ academic achievement significantly and explained 16% of the variance of academic achievement. General view &physical infrastructure provided services, reputation and recognition, and extra curricular activities from the sub-dimensions of organizational image perception have a meaningful effect on the academic success of students.  Key findings are discussed and recommendations offered to address issues related to organizational image.
Pain experience, pain management strategies and satisfaction of hospitalized trauma patients in Indonesia
Authors: Prastika Deya , Kitrungrote Luppana , Damkliang Jintana
Published: September 2017

Although trauma is a common cause of greater pain and interference on daily activities, little is known about pain experience, pain management strategies and pain management outcomes in hospitalized trauma patients in Indonesia. This descriptive study aimed (1) to assess the pain experience, (2) to describe pain management strategies, and (3) to describe satisfaction with pain management conducted by healthcare providers as perceived by trauma patients. A total of 154 hospitalized trauma patients from a teaching hospital in Indonesia were recruited from January to March 2016. Data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. The study found that most of the hospitalized trauma patients had single extremity fractures (56.49%) and mild head injury (20.13%). They have experienced a mild to moderate level of pain intensity and pain interference during the first three days of admission. These pain intensity and pain interference levels were found to be significantly decreased from the first to the third day. The pain management strategies often used by the healthcare providers were showing interest and asking about pain, assessing the outcomes after receiving analgesic drugs, and giving information about pain. The pain management strategies often used by patients were praying (86.36%), slow and deep breathing (77.27%), and reciting Dzikir (meditation) (68.18%). Patients reported that performing Dzikir and praying were the effective strategies to reduce their pain. The patients rated moderate to high levels of satisfaction with pain management conducted by healthcare providers. Therefore, combinations analgesic drugs with praying and performing Dzikir related to cultural contexts are crucial to alleviate pain among hospitalized trauma patients in Indonesia.
Education as a Means to Implement Job Rotation in a Public Organization
Authors: Georgantza G. , Samanta Irene
Published: September 2017

The present article presents a study aiming to inquire the intra-business training as a means to implement JobRotation (JR), in the Public Sector and specifically the ΟΑΕΕ organization. The focus to the public sector is givenbecause it is the unique provider of some services (i.e. justice, security, social care etc.), and at the same time it is ina process of change inside the new European framework that is being created. The sample of the study is made ofΟΑΕΕ employees, 138 persons, of which 102 participated at least once in a JR program, while 36 never did so. Fromthe findings, it was concluded that intra-business training provides to the employees knowledge and skills, whichcontribute not only to the improvement of provided services, but also to the modernization and updating of theorganization. In this framework Job rotation provides to the trainee employees knowledge, skills and experience,while it is an important motivational factor. The study is a first step towards investigating the effective use oftraining tools in the Greek Public Sector from the point of Greek Bibliography in order to help improve training andskills of its human resources.
Vertrouwen in de politie
Authors: Schuilenburg M.B. , Besseling B. , Uitendaal F.
Published: September 2017

Confidence in the police. Empirical research into the experience of trust in the Rotterdam district Bloemhof

There have been little to no empirical research conducted on trust of Dutch citizens in the police. This study is a step towards filling this gap. We used semi-structured interviews, questionnaires and observations to examine to what extent citizens’ trust in the police is determined by perceptions of the effectiveness of the police to reduce crime and disorder and perceptions of procedural justice. Research was conducted in Bloemhof, a superdiverse neighbourhood in Rotterdam. The results indicate that in superdiverse neighbourhoods perceived responsiveness is the cornerstone for explaining police trustworthiness. Implications for policy reform are discussed.
Gender Transitioning and Catholic Health Care
Authors: Di Camillo John A. ,   The National Catholic Bioethics Center
Published: September 2017

This essay discusses basic concepts that Catholic health care ministries should understand concerning so-called gender-transitioning interven­tions. Since genuine healing encompasses the whole person, transgender issues must be addressed in the full realistic terms of a body–soul union not merely in relation to experienced desires and feasible physiological modifications. For necessary clarity, the essay explains key distinctions between the terms disorders of sex development, gender dysphoria, and transgender. It argues that only bodily acceptance efforts can offer authentic healing in response to gender dysphoria, while all forms of gender transitioning, from psychological counsel­ing to cross-sex hormones and surgical “reassignment,” always contradict the good of the whole person. The essay concludes by emphasizing the significance of the educational role of Catholic health care and its call to witness even in the face of problematic recommendations by respected medical associations.
When Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation Becomes Harmful
Authors: Mullins Marissa L. ,   The National Catholic Bioethics Center
Published: September 2017

Cardiopulmonary resuscitation is a standard emergency medical procedure. Since its inception in the late 1960s, CPR has been performed on patients unless they or their proxies refuse it. However, like all medical inter­ventions, CPR has its benefits, risks, and consequences. Although the expected benefits of the procedure often outweigh its potential harm, CPR is not always clinically appropriate, especially for the dying, who have a very small statistical chance of surviving the intervention. Just as antibiotics are not prescribed for viruses and surgeries and treatments are withheld when clinically inappropri­ate, CPR should not be offered as a clinical treatment when it has a very low probability of success and is thought to be futile. Health care providers have an ethical and moral responsibility to withhold clinically inappropriate CPR, even when patients or their proxies request the procedure.
Lessons from Recent Polls on Physician-Assisted Suicide
Authors: White Frederick J. ,   The National Catholic Bioethics Center
Published: September 2017

Physician-assisted suicide is an active political issue, and recent polls have indicated shifts in public opinion in favor of its permissibility and moral acceptability. However, structural errors and biasing effects exist in these polls, including several subtle logical fallacies as well as cognitive and reporting biases. Analysis of the polls suggests that public support for physician-assisted suicide is more conditional and much softer than the popular news headlines indicate. An understanding of how these factors function beneath the headlines provides important lessons for the discussion of physician-assisted suicide.
Addressing Affordability as a Necessary Element of Full‐Cost Pricing
Authors: III G. Tracy Mehan , Gansler Ian D.
Published: September 2017

To reconcile the need to adequately fund infrastructure while not overburdening those who cannot afford rate increases, water utilities are implementing customer assistance programs.
The DREAM complex through its subunit Lin37 cooperates with Rb to initiate quiescence
Authors: Mages Christina FS , Wintsche Axel , Bernhart Stephan H , Müller Gerd A
Published: September 2017

The retinoblastoma Rb protein is an important factor controlling the cell cycle. Yet, mammalian cells carrying Rb deletions are still able to arrest under growth-limiting conditions. The Rb-related proteins p107 and p130, which are components of the DREAM complex, had been suggested to be responsible for a continued ability to arrest by inhibiting E2f activity and by recruiting chromatin-modifying enzymes. Here, we show that p130 and p107 are not sufficient for DREAM-dependent repression. We identify the MuvB protein Lin37 as an essential factor for DREAM function. Cells not expressing Lin37 proliferate normally, but DREAM completely loses its ability to repress genes in G0/G1 while all remaining subunits, including p130/p107, still bind to target gene promoters. Furthermore, cells lacking both Rb and Lin37 are incapable of exiting the cell cycle. Thus, Lin37 is an essential component of DREAM that cooperates with Rb to induce quiescence.
Nanoscale architecture of the Schizosaccharomyces pombe contractile ring
Authors: McDonald Nathan A , Lind Abigail L , Smith Sarah E , Li Rong , Gould Kathleen L
Published: September 2017

The contractile ring is a complex molecular apparatus which physically divides many eukaryotic cells. Despite knowledge of its protein composition, the molecular architecture of the ring is not known. Here we have applied super-resolution microscopy and FRET to determine the nanoscale spatial organization of Schizosaccharomyces pombe contractile ring components relative to the plasma membrane. Similar to other membrane-tethered actin structures, we find proteins localize in specific layers relative to the membrane. The most membrane-proximal layer (0–80 nm) is composed of membrane-binding scaffolds, formin, and the tail of the essential myosin-II. An intermediate layer (80–160 nm) consists of a network of cytokinesis accessory proteins as well as multiple signaling components which influence cell division. Farthest from the membrane (160–350 nm) we find F-actin, the motor domains of myosins, and a major F-actin crosslinker. Circumferentially within the ring, multiple proteins proximal to the membrane form clusters of different sizes, while components farther from the membrane are uniformly distributed. This comprehensive organizational map provides a framework for understanding contractile ring function.
Fish Ontology framework for taxonomy-based fish recognition
Authors: Ali Najib M. , Khan Haris A. , Then Amy Y-Hui , Ving Ching Chong , Gaur Manas , Dhillon Sarinder Kaur
Published: September 2017

Life science ontologies play an important role in Semantic Web. Given the diversity in fish species and the associated wealth of information, it is imperative to develop an ontology capable of linking and integrating this information in an automated fashion. As such, we introduce the Fish Ontology (FO), an automated classification architecture of existing fish taxa which provides taxonomic information on unknown fish based on metadata restrictions. It is designed to support knowledge discovery, provide semantic annotation of fish and fisheries resources, data integration, and information retrieval. Automated classification for unknown specimens is a unique feature that currently does not appear to exist in other known ontologies. Examples of automated classification for major groups of fish are demonstrated, showing the inferred information by introducing several restrictions at the species or specimen level. The current version of FO has 1,830 classes, includes widely used fisheries terminology, and models major aspects of fish taxonomy, grouping, and character. With more than 30,000 known fish species globally, the FO will be an indispensable tool for fish scientists and other interested users.
Hydrothermal Technology for Processing of Advanced Functional Materials
Authors: Byrappa K. , Namratha K. , Byrappa Nayan M.
Published: September 2017

In the current context, the term hydrothermal technology of material processing refers to a broad set of technologies and processes of material preparation under the action of pressure and temperature (PT) in a closed system to prepare materials with desired functional properties, to meet the industrial demand.

A new generation of researchers now considers hydrothermal processing a simple, inexpensive, and fast technique with a high product yield, which requires mild to low temperature/pressure. Indeed, the hydrothermal processing of advanced functional materials has significant advantages such as high product purity and homogeneity, crystal symmetry, narrow particle size distribution, and a wide range of chemical compositions.

This article provides an overview of the chemistry of hydrothermal processing of materials, the apparatus used, the synthesis of advanced inorganic materials, including zeolites, and processing of advanced ceramics, bioceramics, and composites. Detoxification and disposal of problematic industrial, nuclear, military, and municipal wastes by hydrothermal treatment, one of the most important areas of research in the field, is also discussed.
Metals Recycling
Authors: Panayotova Marinela
Published: September 2017

Recycling is a significant factor in the supply of many metals. This article discusses metals recycling from different types of scrap. Entirely dissipative uses (as in chemicals production) are not considered. No economic assessments on the recycling profitability are made. For all metals described herein, the article is organized as follows: uses, since they show scrap sources; examples of recycled amounts, where the most examples cover 5‐year period (2011–2015) in the United States; and recycling technologies–in use and for some metals–under study.

Twenty‐three metals and two metal groups metals (including three metalloids) are considered: most widely used and recycled nonferrous metals (aluminum, chromium, copper, lead, magnesium, manganese, nickel, tin, titanium, and zinc); precious metals (gold, silver, and platinum group metals, especially Pt); high tech metals defined as critical for the future sustainable development of the world (antimony, beryllium, cobalt, gallium, germanium, indium, lithium, niobium, tantalum, tellurium, and tungsten); and ferrous metals (steel, pig and wrought iron, and iron alloys with other metals, such as stainless steel).
Protein Engineering: Recent Trends
Authors: Steiner Kerstin
Published: September 2017

Protein engineering is an important method to improve (recombinant) proteins for various applications, such as biocatalysis, food processing, pulp and paper processing, bioremediation, and also as various biopharmaceuticals. While protein engineering has been a routine procedure in many laboratories in academia and in industry for many years, the methods changed significantly over the past two decades. Many more protein sequences, structures, and biochemical data are available now, and the computational power and methods for data analysis improved significantly. However, to meet specific goals, the methods have to be carefully chosen depending on the protein, available data, equipment, expertise, as well as time and costs.

This article provides an overview of laboratory and computational methods used in protein engineering and examples of their applications, focusing on enzyme engineering.
High‐Latitude Thermosphere Neutral Density Response to Solar Wind Dynamic Pressure Enhancement
Authors: Shi Y. , Zesta E. , Connor H. K. , Su Y.‐J. , Sutton E. K. , Huang C. Y. , Ober D. M. , Christodoulou C. , Delay S. , Oliveira D. M.
Published: September 2017

We examine the response of the thermosphere to the impact of solar wind dynamic pressure enhancements using observations and global magneto‐hydrodynamics (MHD) simulations by the OpenGGCM model. Combining neutral density observations from the Challenging Minisatellite Payload (CHAMP) and the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) satellites with simultaneous Poynting flux measurements from the Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP) F16, we find that thermospheric density as well as downward Poynting flux intensified shortly after a sudden enhancement of the solar wind dynamic pressure. The intensification manifested mostly on the dayside high‐latitude region with peak intensity in the vicinity of the noon and prenoon cusp. OpenGGCM modeling results show that the ionospheric Joule heating increased abruptly in response to the sudden enhancement of the dynamic pressure in the same region as the observed Poynting flux and neutral density enhancements. The modeling results show that the enhanced Joule heating coincides, both in time and location, with the appearance of a pair of high‐latitude localized field‐aligned currents (FACs) in the cusp region. The FACs intensified and extended azimuthally. Coincidental with the solar wind dynamic pressure enhancement, the y component of the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) By became strongly positive and, in addition, had some large fluctuations. We explore the separate and combined effects of the dynamic pressure and IMF By perturbations, with specifically designed simulation experiments that isolate the effect of each solar wind parameter. We find that the dynamic pressure enhancement is the primary source for the Joule heating and neutral density enhancements, but the IMF By modulates the level of enhancement.
Characterization of Low‐Altitude Nightside Martian Magnetic Topology Using Electron Pitch Angle Distributions
Authors: Weber Tristan , Brain David , Mitchell David , Xu Shaosui , Connerney Jack , Halekas Jasper
Published: September 2017

Magnetic field lines at Mars act as direct pathways for both energy inflow and ion escape. Local variations in magnetic field topology can therefore directly impact the interaction between the solar wind and the Martian ionosphere. One method of analyzing magnetic topology is through the use of electron pitch angle distributions (PADs). Previous PAD investigations have characterized magnetic topology in the Martian system using data from the Mars Global Surveyor spacecraft, but these studies were orbitally constrained to ∼400 km altitude and 2 a.m./2 p.m. local time. With the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (MAVEN) mission, we are now able to extend this analysis to a larger range of altitudes and local times. Here we use electron PADs measured using the Solar Wind Electrostatic Analyzer and Magnetometer instruments on MAVEN to analyze the magnetic topology of the nightside Martian environment. We use several characteristic PAD shapes to determine where Martian magnetic field lines are open or closed to the solar wind and present frequency maps of how these PAD shapes vary both geographically and with altitude. Finally, we present an initial analysis of the variation of the PAD shapes with local time, finding that trapped electron distributions become increasingly frequent as crustal fields rotate from dusk to dawn across the nightside of Mars.
Compositional Signatures in Acoustic Backscatter Over Vegetated and Unvegetated Mixed Sand‐Gravel Riverbeds
Authors: Buscombe D. , Grams P. E. , Kaplinski M. A.
Published: September 2017

Multibeam acoustic backscatter has considerable utility for remote characterization of spatially heterogeneous bed sediment composition over vegetated and unvegetated riverbeds of mixed sand and gravel. However, the use of high‐frequency, decimeter‐resolution acoustic backscatter for sediment classification in shallow water is hampered by significant topographic contamination of the signal. In mixed sand‐gravel riverbeds, changes in the abiotic composition of sediment (such as homogeneous sand to homogeneous gravel) tend to occur over larger spatial scales than is characteristic of small‐scale bedform topography (ripples, dunes, and bars) or biota (such as vascular plants and periphyton). A two‐stage method is proposed to filter out the morphological contributions to acoustic backscatter. First, the residual supragrain‐scale topographic effects in acoustic backscatter with small instantaneous insonified areas, caused by ambiguity in the local (beam‐to‐beam) bed‐sonar geometry, are removed. Then, coherent scales between high‐resolution topography and backscatter are identified using cospectra, which are used to design a frequency domain filter that decomposes backscatter into the (unwanted) high‐pass component associated with bedform topography (ripples, dunes, and sand waves) and vegetation, and the (desired) low‐frequency component associated with the composition of sediment patches superimposed on the topography. This process strengthens relationships between backscatter and sediment composition. A probabilistic framework is presented for classifying vegetated and unvegetated substrates based on acoustic backscatter at decimeter resolution. This capability is demonstrated using data collected from diverse settings within a 386 km reach of a canyon river whose bed varies among sand, gravel, cobbles, boulders, and submerged vegetation.
Nitric Oxide: Synthesis and Action
Authors: Childers Kenneth C , Garcin Elsa D
Published: September 2017

Nitric oxide (NO) is a diatomic radical implicated in a variety of pathways including vascular homeostasis, neurotransmission and immune defence. NO is produced endogenously by three nitric oxide synthases (NOS) and can also be formed from nitrates and nitrites. Several mechanisms regulate NOS function, including protein–protein interactions, posttranslational modifications, cell localization, calcium levels, substrate availability, and the cell redox status. Picomolar NO concentrations activate guanylyl cyclase to increase cGMP levels and lead to vasodilation and memory formation. Excess NO concentrations cause posttranslational modifications of cellular components and formation of peroxynitrite leading to inflammation and cell death. Due to its involvement in multiple pathways and high reactivity with a myriad of downstream targets, tight regulation of NO production is crucial to maintain cellular function. Major advancements in understanding NO chemistry, production and downstream signalling have provided new avenues to target this pathway for the treatment of cardiovascular, neurodegenerative and autoimmune diseases.

Key Concepts

Nitric oxide is produced endogenously by three nitric oxide synthase (NOS) isozymes.

Low NO levels mediate cell signalling, while high NO levels mediate the immune response and defence against pathogens.

A tight regulation of NO production is necessary to maintain cellular function.

The guanylyl cyclase enzyme (GC1) is the primary receptor of NO in smooth muscle cells and mediates vasorelaxation. Better understanding of NO/GC1 signalling will lead to novel drugs targeting this pathway for improved cardiovascular health.

Nitrite, a product of nitrate reduction via oral bacteria, is a biologically relevant source of NO under hypoxic and acidic conditions.

Dysfunction in NO synthesis due to oxidative damage leads to NOS uncoupling and increased output of ROS, a well‐known trait of cardiovascular disease (CVD).
Plant Genome Projects
Authors: Barth Susanne
Published: September 2017

A genome project aims to discover all genes and their function in a particular species. Plant genome projects initially focused on a few model organisms that are characterised by small genomes or their amenability to genetic studies. Since sequencing technologies have moved on, sequencing cost have dropped and bioinformatics tools advanced, the genomes of many plant species including the enormous genome of bread wheat have been assembled. Genome sequencing projects have been carried out on all three plant genomes: the nuclear, chloroplast and mitochondrial genomes and have opened venues for advanced molecular breeding and manipulation of plant species, but also have accelerated phylogenetics studies amongst species. Several excellent curated plant genome databases, besides the general nucleotide data base archives, allow public access of plant genomes.

Key Concepts

Plant genomes have been extensively studied at the cytological, genetic and molecular level.

Plant cells have their genetic information distributed in three locations: nucleus, mitochondria and chloroplasts.

The main location of genetic information is the nuclear genome.

Nuclear genomes vary greatly in size and complexity.

Although many mitochondrial and chloroplast genes were already transferred to the nucleus since the incorporation of both organelles in the plant cell, a core of around 110 genes is retained in chloroplasts and of 35 genes in mitochondria.

Mitochondrial genomes are of special interest in plant breeding because they are involved in cytoplasmic male sterility.

The first entire plant genome sequenced was the genome of the model plant for plant genetics and plant physiology, Arabidopsis thaliana.

The list of sequenced plant genomes is continuously increasing due to drop in sequencing costs, advances in sequencing and bioinformatics technologies.

Comparative genomics approaches are useful to help along other non‐finished plant genomes.

Most sequenced plant genomes are from crop plants with an intention of making these genome sequencing efforts useful towards breeding of improved cultivars and for use of basic discoveries in plant biology.
Evolution of Vertebrate Limb Development
Authors: Tanaka Mikiko
Published: September 2017

The origin and diversification of fins and limbs have long been a focus of interest to both palaeontologists and developmental biologists. Studies conducted in recent decades have resulted in enormous progress in the understanding of the genetic and developmental bases of the evolution of paired appendages in vertebrates. These discoveries in the areas of genetics and developmental biology have shed light on the mechanisms underlying the evolution of this key morphological innovation in vertebrates. In this article, recent advances in these fields and how they can provide a mechanistic explanation for the origin and evolution of paired appendages have been discussed.

Key Concepts

Step‐wise changes seem to be involved in the acquisition of paired fins, such as regionalisation of the lateral plate mesoderm (LPM) into the anterior and posterior LPM; sub‐division of the LPM into somatic and splanchnic layers; acquisition of expression of genes that initiate limb formation, such asTbx4/5; and dorso‐ventral compartmentalisation of ectoderm.

Morphological changes during the fin‐to‐limb transition include the acquisition of the autopod and the evolutionary modification of skeletal patterns along the anterior–posterior axis.

The fin‐to‐limb transition seems to involve changes in transcriptional regulation ofHoxAandHoxDclusters, changes in the expression ofGli3andShh, loss of the fin fold, and modification of the BMP‐SOX9‐WNT Turing network.

Changes in the activity of regulatory elements of genes known to play pivotal roles in limb development seem to be related to the morphological diversification of limbs and the loss of paired fins and limbs.
Repetitive Elements and Human Disorders
Authors: Kaul Tiffany K , Morales Maria E , Deininger Prescott L
Published: September 2017

Repetitive sequences, consisting largely of transposable elements (TEs), comprise almost two‐thirds of the human genome. Non‐long‐terminal repeat (non‐LTR) TEs such as L1s, Alus and SVAs are still actively multiplying. Ongoing proliferation of these non‐LTR TEs results in a significant level of disease‐causing mutations through insertional mutagenesis, non‐allelic recombination (NAR) and the induction of genomic instability. NAR between Alu elements represents a major form of genetic instability leading to deletions, duplications and complex rearrangements. Between these different mechanisms, TEs have not only contributed a great deal to the evolution of the genome but also continue to generate germline mutations that cause a variety of diseases and potentially the progression of somatic diseases like cancer. With the advent of sequencing technologies, the future holds the promise of uncovering this role.

Key Concepts

Transposable elements (TEs) are DNA segments that are able to create new copies within the genome.

These TEs are known to cause a variety of germline diseases through insertional mutagenesis and mutagenic recombination.

TEs provide opportunities for non‐allelic recombination events to cause DNA rearrangements.

There is a sharp increase in TE insertions in most epithelial cancers as well as increased opportunities for non‐allelic recombination.

The overall impact of these TEs in a number of somatic diseases, particularly epithelial cancers, is under investigation.

High‐throughput sequencing approaches are being utilised to better understand mobile element biology.