bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Land Use/Land Cover Changes over a District in Northern India using Remote Sensing and GIS and their Impact on Society and Environment
Authors: Meer Mohammad Suhail , Mishra Anoop Kumar
Published: February 2020

This study focuses on exploring changes in Land Use and Land Cover (LULC) over Baramulla district of Kashmir using remote sensing and Geographic Information System (GIS). Linkage of LULC with evapotranspiration and precipitation is also explored in this paper. LULC were categorised into dense forest, sparse forest, water body and other classes by using geospatial satellite data from Landsat for the years 1979, 2001 to 2018. The dense forest and water body show decrease in extent from 1979 to 2018. A decrease of about 27 % has been reported from 1979 to 2018 in dense forest. Furthermore, water body shows a reduction of about 36% during the same time span. Significant changes in dense forest and water body affected the water cycle of the region. Reduction in dense forest and water body resulted in significant decrease in evapotranspiration which caused reduction in precipitation over the study area. Reduced precipitation over study area caused conversion from agriculture to horticulture. Increase of about 55% in horticulture has been reported with decrease of about 54% in agriculture over study area. Evapotranspiration from reanalysis shows coherent variation with precipitation from India Meteorological Department (IMD) gridded product. A decadal decrease of about 0.5% in evapotranspiration resulting in decrease of about 0.38% in precipitation over study area is reported. Increased horticulture causes increase in black carbon due to increased biomass which results in increased warming over study area. Changes reported in this study may cause a significant socioeconomic and environmental impact over Baramulla.
Grain Size Analysis of Dune and Bar Sediments of the Shyok River between Khalsar and Hunder Village, Karakoram Range, Ladakh, India
Authors: Singh Rupendra , Kumar Rajesh , Bahuguna I. M. , Kumar Rajesh
Published: February 2020

The Nubra and Shyok valleys are located between the central Karakoram and Ladakh range of northwest India and have preserved excellent sand dune and bar sediments between Khalsar and Hunder village. The present study aims to understand the evolution of these landforms using grain size characteristics. The sand dunes are formed by the aeolian processes and the bars are produced by the fluvial processes. The actions of fluvial and aeolian processes are different and landforms formed by these processes have completely different sedimentological and grain size characteristics. The mean grain size of dune sediments is dominated by fine sand while in bar sediments, it varies from medium to fine sand. The sand-silt-clay ternary plot shows that all samples are concentrated in sand corner. The histograms of sand dune sediments are unimodal while the histograms of bar sediments vary from unimodal to bimodal. The grain size parameters reveal that the bar and sand dune sediments are different but deposited in the same moderate to low energy riverine environments. The dune sediments are well sorted and are transported and deposited in uniform energy environment. Due to energy variations in the hydrodynamic system, the bar sediments are moderate to well-sorted at Diskit and Hunder villages. Overall 45.5% of sediments samples are platykurtic in nature, indicating the maturity of the deposited sand. The high and low values of kurtosis imply that some fractions of sediments were sorted in a high energy environment. The present study of grain size parameters reflects different sediment character for bars and sand dunes that are deposited in modrate to low energy environments. The results of the study may be used as an analougue for understanding depositional environment in high altitude region.
Biogas Digestate in Vegetable Hydroponic Production: pH Dynamics and pH Management by Controlled Nitrification
Authors: Pelayo Lind Olle , Hultberg Malin , Bergstrand Karl-Johan , Larsson-Jönsson Helene , Caspersen Siri , Asp Håkan
Published: February 2020

Soilless cultivation of vegetables with digestate fertilizer from biogas production as a nutrient source is a promising method for integrating food production and organic waste management. In this study, bok choy (Brassica rapa var. chinensis) was cultivated in a hydroponic nutrient film technique system with biogas digestate as the only fertilizer source. Nitrification in moving bed biofilm reactors (external and/or integrated into the hydroponic cultivation system) was employed to lower the high ammonium concentration in the digestate prior to use. Treatments with differing nitrification and digestate input strategies were compared with respect to pH dynamics, crop growth, shoot water content, and shoot mineral content. The results showed that < 20% longer cultivation time (< 1 week) gave similar yield in biogas digestate-based hydroponics as in conventional hydroponics based on synthetic fertilizers. Automatic pH control through addition of digestate resulted in similar shoot dry weight as in the mineral fertilizer reference system. It can be concluded that biogas digestate is a suitable plant nutrient source for hydroponic production of bok choy, considering productivity and circularity aspects. The combined impact of digestate ammonium content, digestate pH, and the nitrification step needs to be considered when designing a hydroponic system with biogas digestate as the fertilizer source.

Graphic Abstract
Theoretical foundation for calculating hydrodynamic characteristics of turbulent fluid flow in tubular mixing devices to intensify reagent wastewater treatment
Authors: Andreyev Sergey Yu. , Yahkind Michael I. , Lebedinskiy Konstantin V.
Published: February 2020

The results of theoretical studies of the hydrodynamic laws of fluid flow and changes in the characteristics of the wall layer of the flow in tubular mixing devices, used in technological processes of reagent-based wastewater treatment, are presented. A mathematical relation, which allows determining the critical value of the Reynolds number Re, at which the regime of fluid movement in a tubular mixing device passes into the region of the quadratic resistance law of rough channels with the maximum degree of turbulence of flows, is obtained. It is shown that the main technical characteristics of tubular mixing devices are: the magnitude of the pulsation component of the local velocity ∆υl (m/s) and the value of the turbulent diffusion coefficient DT (m2/s) in the wall region of the turbulent fluid flow. Mathematical relations, which allow calculating the magnitude of the pulsation component of the local velocity and the turbulent diffusion coefficient in the wall region of the fluid flow in the pressure channels of circular cross section, are obtained. Using the proposed calculation technique will allow to optimize the operation regime of tubular mixing devices.
Does self-report of multimorbidity in later life predict impaired physical functioning, and might this be useful in clinical practice?
Authors: Clynes Michael A. , Bevilacqua Gregorio , Jameson Karen A. , Cooper Cyrus , Dennison Elaine M.
Published: February 2020

Background

Multimorbidity has been shown in several studies to relate to impaired physical function in later life.

Aims

To examine if self-report of multimorbidity predicts impaired physical functioning, as assessed by formal physical function testing, in community-dwelling older adults.

Methods

Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) were self-reported by 443 older community-dwelling UK adults via questionnaire, asking the question: ‘Have you been told by a doctor that you have any of the following conditions?’ Assessments of walking speed, chair stands and balance allowed us to create a composite score (0–12) on which impaired physical functioning was defined as ≤ 9.

Results

The mean age of participants was 75.5 ± 2.5 years for men and 75.8 ± 2.6 for women. The proportion of individuals with impaired physical functioning was 71.2% in women and 56.9% in men. Having four or more NCDs was associated with an increased risk of poor physical function in men and women (p < 0.05). The number of medications and medicated systems was associated with gait speed (p < 0.03 and < 0.02, respectively) and timed up-and-go tests (p < 0.03 and < 0.02, respectively) in women but not men.

Discussion and conclusion

Self-report of 4 or more NCDs was associated with an increased risk of poor physical function, an outcome which has previously been associated with adverse clinical sequelae. This observation may inform development of a simple screening tool to look for poor physical function in older adults.
High-Throughput Cloud Computing with the Cloudscheduler VM Provisioning Service
Authors: Berghaus F. , Casteels K. , Driemel C. , Ebert M. , Galindo F. F. , Leavett-Brown C. , MacDonell D. , Paterson M. , Seuster R. , Sobie R. J. , Tolkamp S. , Weldon J.
Published: February 2020

We describe a high-throughput computing system for running jobs on public and private computing clouds using the HTCondor job scheduler and the cloudscheduler VM provisioning service. The distributed cloud computing system is designed to simultaneously use dedicated and opportunistic cloud resources at local and remote locations. It has been used for large-scale production particle physics workloads for many years using thousands of cores on three continents. A decade after its initial design and implementation, cloudscheduler has been modernized to take advantage of new software designs, improved operating system capabilities and support packages. The updated cloudscheduler is more resilient and scalable, with expanded capabilities. We present an overview of the original design and then describe the new version of the distributed compute cloud system. We conclude with a review of the current status and future plans.
“Ad obsequium divinum inhabilem,” la reconnaissance de la condition de personne infirme par la chancellerie pontificale (xiie- xive siècles)
Authors: Dubourg Ninon
Published: February 2020

Les suppliques reçues et les lettres émises par la Chancellerie apostolique entre le xiie et le xive siècles attestent la reconnaissance de l’invalidité par l’institution pontificale. Elles actent l’existence d’une infirmité physique ou mentale et autorisent le suppliant à adapter ses missions de clerc ou de chrétien en fonction de ses capacités. Ces documents se situent à la frontière entre une parole institutionnelle et des sources de la pratique. La sollicitation provoque une intense et complexe production épistolaire, mettant en évidence les acteurs engagés dans ce processus – les individus invalides et les personnels curial et ecclésiastique. Elle dévoile les législations spécifiques à l’institution et entraîne une définition de l’infirmité par la Chancellerie pontificale, catégorisant les corps invalides selon leur condition physique ou mentale. Les réponses de la Curie, basées sur la tradition de compilation de cas similaires, connus par le droit et l’enregistrement, confirment la reconnaissance de la condition de personne infirme. Les suppliques et les lettres constituent ainsi un dans sa relation à la papauté comme institution.
POISSON MODELS WITH DYNAMIC RANDOM EFFECTS AND NONNEGATIVE CREDIBILITIES PER PERIOD
Authors: Pinquet Jean
Published: February 2020

This paper provides a toolbox for the credibility analysis of frequency risks, with allowance for the seniority of claims and of risk exposure. We use Poisson models with dynamic and second-order stationary random effects that ensure nonnegative credibilities per period. We specify classes of autocovariance functions that are compatible with positive random effects and that entail nonnegative credibilities regardless of the risk exposure. Random effects with nonnegative generalized partial autocorrelations are shown to imply nonnegative credibilities. This holds for ARFIMA(0, d, 0) models. The AR(p) time series that ensure nonnegative credibilities are specified from their precision matrices. The compatibility of these semiparametric models with log-Gaussian random effects is verified. Gaussian sequences with ARFIMA(0, d, 0) specifications, which are then exponentiated entrywise, provide positive random effects that also imply nonnegative credibilities. Dynamic random effects applied to Poisson distributions are retained as products of two uncorrelated and positive components: the first is time-invariant, whereas the autocovariance function of the second vanishes at infinity and ensures nonnegative credibilities. The limit credibility is related to the three levels for the length of the memory in the random effects. The limit credibility is less than one in the short memory case, and a formula is provided.
Identification of emergency department patients for referral to rapid-access addiction services
Authors: Hann Jessica , Wu Howie , Gauri Aliyah , Dong Kathryn , Lam Ni , Bakal Jeffrey A. , Kirkham Allison
Published: February 2020

Objectives

Substance-related emergency department (ED) visits are rapidly increasing. Despite this finding, many EDs do not have access to on-site addiction services. This study characterized substance-related ED presentations and assessed the ED health care team's perceived need for an on-site rapid-access addiction clinic for direct patient referral from the ED.

Methods

This prospectively enrolled cohort study was conducted at an urban tertiary care ED from June to August 2018. Adult ED patients with problematic or high-risk substance use were enrolled by ED staff using a one-page form. The electronic and paper records from the index ED visit were reviewed. The primary outcome evaluated whether the ED health care team would have referred the patient to an on-site rapid-access addiction clinic, if one were available.

Results

We received 557 enrolment forms and 458 were included in the analysis. Median age was 35 years, and 64% of included patients were male. Alcohol was the most commonly reported substance of problematic or high-risk use (60%). Previous ED visits within 7 days of the index visit were made by 28% of patients. The ED health care team indicated “Yes” for rapid-access addiction clinic referral from the ED for 66% of patients, with a mean of 4.3 patients referred per day during the study period.

Conclusions

At least four patients per day would have been referred to an on-site rapid-access addiction clinic from the ED, had one been available. This indicates a gap in care and collaborating with other sites that have successfully implemented this clinic model is an important next step.
Transport of ultraintense laser-driven relativistic electrons in dielectric targets
Authors: Yang X. H. , Ren C. , Xu H. , Ma Y. Y. , Shao F. Q.
Published: February 2020

Ultraintense laser-driven relativistic electrons provide a way of heating matter to high energy density states related to many applications. However, the transport of relativistic electrons in solid targets has not been understood well yet, especially in dielectric targets. We present the first detailed two-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations of relativistic electron transport in a silicon target by including the field ionization and collisional ionization processes. An ionization wave is found propagating in the insulator, with a velocity dependent on laser intensity and slower than the relativistic electron velocity. Widely spread electric fields in front of the sheath fields are observed due to the collective effect of free electrons and ions. The electric fields are much weaker than the threshold electric field of field ionization. Two-stream instability behind the ionization front arises for the cases with laser intensity greater than

$5\times 10^{19}~\text{W}/\text{cm}^{2}$

that produce high relativistic electron current densities.
School Counsellors’ Job Satisfaction: What is the Role of Counselling Self-Efficacy, Trait Anxiety and Cognitive Flexibility?
Authors: Aydin Fatih , Odaci Hatice
Published: February 2020

The aim of the present study is to investigate the role of counselling self-efficacy, trait anxiety and cognitive flexibility in predicting job satisfaction of school counsellors. The study was conducted according to a correlational research design. The sample group consisted of 99 female and 77 male school counsellors voluntarily participating in the study. Data collection tools included the Personal Information Form, Job Satisfaction Scale, Counselor Activity Self-Efficacy Scale, Trait Anxiety Inventory and Cognitive Flexibility Inventory. The data were analysed with Pearson product-moment correlation analysis and hierarchical regression analysis. According to the research findings, the job satisfaction of school counsellors was identified to have moderate significant correlations with counselling self-efficacy, trait anxiety and cognitive flexibility. Counselling self-efficacy and trait anxiety were each concluded to be significant predictors of job satisfaction. Finally, cognitive flexibility was found not to be a significant predictor of job satisfaction. The results are interpreted and discussed in accordance with the relevant literature.
Food and Nationalism: Gastronationalism Revisited
Authors: Ichijo Atsuko
Published: February 2020

This article reviews recent developments in scholarship on gastronationalism, or more broadly, food and nationalism. It finds while the concept of gastronationalismper sehas not been rigorously developed, scholarship of food and nationalism in general has been developing fast. A major development in the study of gastronationalism is the introduction of the everyday nationhood/banal nationalism perspective, which in turn diverts the focus away from the state’s intervention, a point emphasized by Michaela DeSoucey. The review of the field suggests that a renewed focus on the role of food in the interaction between state actors and international organizations would further refine the concept of gastronationalism. As for the study of food and nationalism, efforts to integrate findings from existing case studies to produce an overall understanding of society are needed.
ON THE LONGEST BLOCK FUNCTION IN CONTINUED FRACTIONS
Authors: SONG TENG , ZHOU QINGLONG
Published: February 2020

For an irrational number $x\in [0,1)$, let $x=[a_{1}(x),a_{2}(x),\ldots ]$ be its continued fraction expansion with partial quotients $\{a_{n}(x):n\geq 1\}$. Given $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6E9}\in \mathbb{N}$, for $n\geq 1$, the $n$th longest block function of $x$ with respect to $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6E9}$ is defined by $L_{n}(x,\unicode[STIX]{x1D6E9})=\max \{k\geq 1:a_{j+1}(x)=\cdots =a_{j+k}(x)=\unicode[STIX]{x1D6E9}~\text{for some}~j~\text{with}~0\leq j\leq n-k\}$, which represents the length of the longest consecutive sequence whose elements are all $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6E9}$ from the first $n$ partial quotients of $x$. We consider the growth rate of $L_{n}(x,\unicode[STIX]{x1D6E9})$ as $n\rightarrow \infty$ and calculate the Hausdorff dimensions of the level sets and exceptional sets arising from the longest block function.
The effect of maternal dietary fat content andn-6:n-3 ratio on offspring growth and hepatic gene expression in the rat
Authors: Draycott Sally A. V. , George Grace , Elmes Matthew J. , Muhlhausler Beverly S. , Langley-Evans Simon C.
Published: February 2020

n-6 Fatty acids have been shown to exert pro-adipogenic effects, whereasn-3 fatty acids work in opposition. Increasing intakes of linoleic acid (LA;n-6)v.α-linolenic acid (ALA;n-3) in Western diets has led to the hypothesis that consumption of this diet during pregnancy may be contributing to adverse offspring health. This study investigated the effects of feeding a maternal dietary LA:ALA ratio similar to that of the Western diet (9:1) compared with a proposed ‘ideal’ ratio (about 1:1·5), at two total fat levels (18v. 36 % fat, w/w), on growth and lipogenic gene expression in the offspring. Female Wistar rats were assigned to one of the four experimental groups throughout gestation and lactation. Offspring were culled at 1 and 2 weeks of age for sample collection. Offspring of dams consuming a 36 % fat diet were approximately 20 % lighter than those exposed to an 18 % fat diet (P< 0·001). Male, but not female, liver weight at 1 week was approximately 13 % heavier and had increased glycogen (P< 0·05), in offspring exposed to high LA (P< 0·01). Hepatic expression of lipogenic genes suggested an increase in lipogenesis in male offspring exposed to a 36 % fat maternal diet and in female offspring exposed to a low-LA diet, via increases in the expression of fatty acid synthase and sterol regulatory element-binding protein. Sexually dimorphic responses to altered maternal diet appeared to persist until 2 weeks of age. In conclusion, whilst maternal total fat content predominantly affected offspring growth, fatty acid ratio and total fat content had sexually dimorphic effects on offspring liver weight and composition.
Formulational vs. Epistemological Debates Concerning Scientific Realism
Authors: Park Seungbae
Published: February 2020

A formulational debate is a debate over whether certain definitions of scientific realism and antirealism are useful. By contrast, an epistemological debate is a debate over whether we have sufficient evidence for scientific realism and antirealism, defined in a certain manner. I argue that Hilary Putnam's definitions of scientific realism and antirealism are more useful than Bas van Fraassen's definitions of scientific realism and constructive empiricism because Putnam's definitions can generate both formulational and epistemological debates, whereas van Fraassen's can generate only formulational debates.
Citizenship in Chinese and Global History Before and After the 1890s
Authors: Bin Wong R.
Published: February 2020

Maarten Prak'sCitizens without Nationsmerits praise for what he has added to our understanding of early modern and modern European history. He presents persuasive arguments and evidence for how variations among early modern European cities and their citizens together with subsequent variations among relations between cities and state shaped the modern relations between European national states and their citizens. Prak also extends the concept of citizenship to China and the Ottoman Empire where neither the ideological, nor the institutional features of European citizenship existed by discussing Chinese and Ottoman urban social, economic, and political practices that in early modern Europe relate to citizenship. Such a move makes invisible the early modern ideological and institutional foundations of the Chinese and Ottoman practices he recounts. It additionally creates the problem of determining how, if at all, what he calls Chinese and Ottoman citizenship mattered to nineteenth-century Chinese and Ottoman subjects as they encountered for the first time Western notions of citizenship. In order to write global history, we need more studies of Chinese, Ottoman, and other histories, which explain the changing political architecture of relations between people and those who ruled them to complement what Maarten Prak's fine study of citizens without nations gives us for European history.
The mitochondrial genome of Angiostrongylus mackerrasae is distinct from A. cantonensis and A. malaysiensis
Authors: Valentyne Hayley , Spratt David M. , Aghazadeh Mahdis , Jones Malcolm K. , Šlapeta Jan
Published: February 2020

The native rat lungworm (Angiostrongylus mackerrasae) and the invasive rat lungworm (Angiostrongylus cantonensis) occur in eastern Australia. The species identity of A. mackerrasae remained unquestioned until relatively recently, when compilation of mtDNA data indicated that A. mackerrasae sensu Aghazadeh et al. (2015b) clusters within A. cantonensis based on their mitochondrial genomes (mtDNA). To re-evaluate the species identity of A. mackerrasae, we sought material that would be morphologically conspecific with A. mackerrasae. We combined morphological and molecular approaches to confirm or refute the specific status of A. mackerrasae. Nematodes conspecific with A. mackerrasae from Rattus fuscipes and Rattus rattus were collected in Queensland, Australia. Morphologically identified A. mackerrasae voucher specimens were characterized using amplification of cox1 followed by the generation of reference complete mtDNA. The morphologically distinct A. cantonensis, A. mackerrasae and A. malaysiensis are genetically distinguishable forming a monophyletic mtDNA lineage. We conclude that A. mackerrasae sensu Aghazadeh et al. (2015b) is a misidentified specimen of A. cantonensis. The availability of the mtDNA genome of A. mackerrasae enables its unequivocal genetic identification and differentiation from other Angiostrongylus species.
Disentangling outbreaks using whole-genome sequencing: concurrent multistate outbreaks of Salmonella Kottbus in Germany, 2017
Authors: Enkelmann J. , von Laer A. , Simon S. , Fruth A. , Lachmann R. , Michaelis K. , Borowiak M. , Gillesberg Lassen S. , Frank C.
Published: February 2020

In June 2017, an outbreak of Salmonella Kottbus infection was suspected in Germany. We investigated the outbreak with whole-genome sequencing (WGS) and a case–control study. Forty-six isolates from 69 cases were subtyped. Three WGS clusters were identified: cluster 1 (n = 36), cluster 2 (n = 5) and cluster 3 (n = 3). Compared to controls, cluster 1 cases more frequently consumed raw smoked ham (odds ratio (OR) 10, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.2–88) bought at supermarket chain X (OR 36, 95% CI 4–356; 9/10 consumed ham Y). All four cluster 2 cases interviewed had consumed quail eggs. Timely WGS was invaluable in distinguishing concurrent outbreaks of a rare Salmonella serotype.
The burden of respiratory syncytial virus in adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Authors: Tin Tin Htar M. , Yerramalla M. S. , Moïsi J. C. , Swerdlow D. L.
Published: February 2020

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is the most common pathogen associated with acute lower respiratory tract infections in young children. RSV is also a major viral pathogen causing severe lung disease in the adult population, particularly among the elderly. We conducted a review of adult RSV studies published from January 1970 to February 2017 to determine the burden of disease among adults worldwide. There were no restrictions on health care setting or definition of RSV infection. A total of 1530 published studies were identified, 95 of which were included in this review. The incidence rates of hospitalised RSV acute respiratory tract infection (ARI) in adults >65 years old ranged from 7.3 to 13.0/105 population in Africa and Asia and from 190 to 254/105 population in the USA. Higher incidence rates (195–1790/105 population) were observed in adults ≥50 years old for outpatient or emergency visits in the USA. Of all ARI patients, RSV accounted for 1–10% in adults and 2–14% in patients with chronic diseases or transplantation. Given the limitations in the existing data, significant efforts should be made to generate evidence on the burden of RSV infections in adults and to estimate the potential impact of future preventive interventions.
The biology of ergothioneine, an antioxidant nutraceutical
Authors: Borodina Irina , Kenny Louise C. , McCarthy Cathal M. , Paramasivan Kalaivani , Pretorius Etheresia , Roberts Timothy J. , van der Hoek Steven A. , Kell Douglas B.
Published: February 2020

Ergothioneine (ERG) is an unusual thio-histidine betaine amino acid that has potent antioxidant activities. It is synthesised by a variety of microbes, especially fungi (including in mushroom fruiting bodies) and actinobacteria, but is not synthesised by plants and animals who acquire it via the soil and their diet, respectively. Animals have evolved a highly selective transporter for it, known as solute carrier family 22, member 4 (SLC22A4) in humans, signifying its importance, and ERG may even have the status of a vitamin. ERG accumulates differentially in various tissues, according to their expression of SLC22A4, favouring those such as erythrocytes that may be subject to oxidative stress. Mushroom or ERG consumption seems to provide significant prevention against oxidative stress in a large variety of systems. ERG seems to have strong cytoprotective status, and its concentration is lowered in a number of chronic inflammatory diseases. It has been passed as safe by regulatory agencies, and may have value as a nutraceutical and antioxidant more generally.
Constrained BERT BiLSTM CRF for understanding multi-sentence entity-seeking questions
Authors: Contractor Danish , Patra Barun , Mausam  , Singla Parag
Published: February 2020

We present the novel task of understanding multi-sentenceentity-seekingquestions (MSEQs), that is, the questions that may be expressed in multiple sentences, and that expect one or more entities as an answer. We formulate the problem of understanding MSEQs as a semantic labeling task over an open representation that makes minimal assumptions about schema or ontology-specific semantic vocabulary. At the core of our model, we use a BiLSTM (bidirectional LSTM) conditional random field (CRF), and to overcome the challenges of operating with low training data, we supplement it by using BERT embeddings, hand-designed features, as well as hard and soft constraints spanning multiple sentences. We find that this results in a 12–15 points gain over a vanilla BiLSTM CRF. We demonstrate the strengths of our work using the novel task of answering real-world entity-seeking questions from the tourism domain. The use of our labels helps answer 36% more questions with 35% more (relative) accuracy as compared to baselines. We also demonstrate how our framework can rapidly enable the parsing of MSEQs in an entirely new domain with small amounts of training data and little change in the semantic representation.
Electron Microscopy-Based Comparison and Investigation of the Morphology of Exosomes Derived from Hepatocellular Carcinoma Cells Isolated at Different Centrifugal Speeds
Authors: Deng Jing-Huan , Li Zhong-Jie , Wang Zi-Xuan , Feng Ji , Huang Xue-Jing , Zeng Zhi-Ming
Published: February 2020

Exosomes derived from hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cells are nanovesicles and are involved in the occurrence and development of HCC, they also serve as important carriers and drug targets of nanodrug delivery systems. The external shape and internal structure of exosomes are important indexes of identification, and isolated intact morphology is crucial to biological function integrity. However, given their susceptibility to various influencing factors, the external shape and internal structure of exosomes derived from HCC cells remain incompletely studied. In this study, exosomes purified from HCC cells were isolated at different centrifugation speeds and examined via multiple electron microscopy (EM) techniques. The results demonstrate that exosomes possess a nearly spherical shape and bilipid membranous vesicle with a concave cavity structure containing electron-dense and coated vesicles, suggesting the possible existence of subpopulations of exosomes with specific functions. The exosomes isolated at ultracentrifugation (UC) speed (≥110,000×g) presented irregular and diverse external morphologies, indicating the effect on the integrity of the exosomes. Transforming growth factor signaling bioactive substances (TGF-β1, S100A8, and S100A9) can be found in exosomes by performing Western blotting, showing that the internal content is associated with metastasis of HCC. These findings show that EMelectron microscopy and UC speed can affect exosome characteristics, including external shape, internal structure, and content of bioactive substances. The electron-dense and coated vesicles that had been discovered in exosomes might become new additional morphological features, which could help to improve the interpretation of experimental results and widen our understanding of exosome morphology.
Causes, types, etiological agents, prevalence, diagnosis, treatment, prevention, effects on human health and future aspects of bovine mastitis
Authors: Ashraf Aqeela , Imran Muhammad
Published: February 2020

Mastitis is among the most common and challenging diseases of dairy animals. It is an inflammation of udder tissues due to physical damage, chemical irritation, or infection caused by certain pathogens. Bovine mastitis has been known for ages, but its complex etiology and multi-factorial nature make it difficult to control. Mastitis may have a negative impact on human health by inducing antibiotic-resistant pathogens that may spread, which is threatening. Researchers are continuously struggling to devise suitable methods for mastitis control. Management strategies are mainly focused on disease prevention by farm management which includes proper hygiene, trained staff to monitor minor changes in the udder or milk, and better diagnostic and treatment methods. New technologies which have the potential to unravel this complicated disease include improved diagnostic tools, based on advanced genomics or proteomics, prevention, based on vaccines and immune modulators, and metabolic products of probiotics such as bacteriocins and gene therapy.
Simultaneous Observation of Negatively and Positively Charged Nanograins at Comet 67P/Churyumov‐Gerasimenko
Authors: LLera K. , Burch J. L. , Goldstein R. , Goetz Charlotte
Published: February 2020

Observations near comet 67P by Rosetta show evidence of charged nanograins. Specifically, the ion and electron sensor (IES) observed negative particles with energy/charge (E/q) consistent with charged nanograins. However, theory predicts that both polarities should be present. On 19 September 2014, IES detected positively and negatively charged particles with E/q up to the maximum detectable by IES (~17 keV/q) coming roughly from the Sun. The arrival directions of the negative and positive particles were different and consistent with their different charges. This observation is the first simultaneous measurement of positively and negatively charged nanograins by a plasma detector in a cometary environment. As observed previously for negative nanograins coming from the comet, we find similar peaks for the picked up negative nanograins, but only one peak for the positive ones. These E/q peaks are interpreted as different charge states since they occur at discrete multiples (1:3 in this event).
Investigating the Acceleration of Regional Sea Level Rise During the Satellite Altimeter Era
Authors: Hamlington Benjamin D. , Frederikse Thomas , Nerem R. Steven , Fasullo John T. , Adhikari Surendra
Published: February 2020

The 25‐year record of satellite altimeter‐measured sea level has led to improvements in the understanding of sea level change on both regional and global scales. However, the extent to which the pattern of regional sea level rise measured by altimeters is representative of the forced sea level response remains an open question. Internal variability both contributes to regional sea level changes on short time scales and masks the pattern of forced trend and acceleration associated with anthropogenic global warming. Recent studies have demonstrated that the forced trend pattern of regional rise has begun to emerge, although there has been no assessment of a possible associated acceleration. Here, the regional acceleration pattern is estimated from the altimeter sea level record and assessed with regard to the influence of internal variability. While the dominant features in the acceleration pattern can be attributed to internal variability, there is an indication that the forced acceleration pattern may emerge as the record continues to lengthen.
Sensitivity of Deciduous Forest Phenology to Environmental Drivers: Implications for Climate Change Impacts Across North America
Authors: Seyednasrollah Bijan , Young Adam M. , Li Xiaolu , Milliman Thomas , Ault Toby , Frolking Steve , Friedl Mark , Richardson Andrew D.
Published: February 2020

Projected changes in temperature and precipitation are expected to influence spring and autumn vegetation phenology and hence the length of the growing season in many ecosystems. However, the sensitivity of green‐up and senescence to climate remains uncertain. We analyzed 488 site years of canopy greenness measurements from deciduous forest broadleaf forests across North America. We found that the sensitivity of green‐up to temperature anomalies increases with increasing mean annual temperature, suggesting lower temperature sensitivity as we move to higher latitudes. Furthermore, autumn senescence is most sensitive to moisture deficits at dry sites, with decreasing sensitivity as mean annual precipitation increases. Future projections suggest North American deciduous forests will experience higher sensitivity to temperature in the next 50 years, with larger changes expected in northern regions than in southern regions. Our study highlights how interactions between long‐term and short‐term changes in the climate system influence green‐up and senescence.
Plant Growth Nullifies the Effect of Increased Water‐Use Efficiency on Streamflow Under Elevated CO2 in the Southeastern United States
Authors: Singh Arshdeep , Kumar Sanjiv , Akula Sathish , Lawrence David M. , Lombardozzi Danica L.
Published: February 2020

Plant response to elevated CO2 concentration is known to increase leaf‐level water‐use efficiency through a reduction in stomatal opening. Recent studies have emphasized that increased plant water‐use efficiency can ameliorate the impact of drought due to climate change. However, there is a potentially counterbalancing impact due to the increased leaf area. We investigate long‐term trends (1951 to 2015) of observed streamflow in the Southeastern United States (SE US) and quantify the contribution of major drivers of streamflow changes using single factor climate modeling experiments from Community Land Model Version 5 (CLM5). The SE US streamflow observations do not exhibit a trend, which is in agreement with the CLM5 control experiment. Using the factorial set of CLM5 experiments, we find that increased leaf area under elevated CO2 leads to decreased runoff and completely counteracts increased runoff due to water‐use efficiency gains under elevated CO2 and land‐use change.
New Features of the Enhancements in Electron Density at Low Latitudes
Authors: Liu Libo , Ding Zonghua , Le Huijun , Chen Yiding , Zhang Hui , Wu Jian , Li Guozhu , Wan Weixing
Published: February 2020

In this study, we present some new features of the enhancements of electron density in the ionospheric F region at low latitudes. The peak parameters of the ionosphere were recorded by Sanya (109.6°E, 18.3°N) ionosonde and electron density profiles analyzed were measured by the Qujing (103.8°E, 25.6°N) incoherent scatter radar. The peak electron density of the F2 layer (NmF2) is found to be enhanced in the afternoon and sunset hours. Common features in the cases demonstrate that the NmF2 increases at low latitudes are characterized by a descent of the peak height (hmF2). Meanwhile, the electron density at Qujing shows an increase at the bottom of the ionosphere and a depression at topside altitudes. It is consistent with those of the ionosonde measurements at Sanya, for both the daytime and nighttime enhancements. Cross correlation analyses reveal a lag of NmF2 to hmF2 in the cases. After taking time shifts some events of the enhancements in NmF2 are still associated with a downwelling hmF2, confirming the processes which drive a lower hmF2 and a convergence of plasma flux may possibly bring about a rise in NmF2.
Structural Controls on Rupture Extent of Recent Sumatran Fault Zone Earthquakes, Indonesia
Authors: Salman Rino , Lindsey Eric O. , Feng Lujia , Bradley Kyle , Wei Shengji , Wang Teng , Daryono Mudrik R. , Hill Emma M.
Published: February 2020

We present geodetically derived coseismic slip models for four Mw~6 strike‐slip earthquakes that struck the mainland island of Sumatra, Indonesia, between 2007 and 2016. Three of these earthquakes ruptured segments of the Sumatran Fault Zone: the 2007 Mw6.3 and 6.4 Lake Singkarak doublet, and the 2009 Mw6.6 Dikit event. The fourth earthquake, the 2016 Mw6.6 Pidie Jaya event, ruptured an unmapped active fault in a region of historically low seismicity near the northern coast of Aceh. Our results suggest that (1) the estimated rupture extents of the 2007 Lake Singkarak doublet and 2009 Dikit event were limited by geological structures such as step overs that define segment boundaries, (2) the 2016 Pidie Jaya event did not produce surface rupture despite the fact that it produced large shallow slip of more than 2.5 m, and (3) the remaining seismic gaps on the Sumatran Fault Zone are primarily located between the equator and northern Sumatra. We strongly recommend that seismic hazard assessment for densely populated areas in Sumatra include threats not only from the Sumatran Fault Zone but also from additional potentially active faults outside of the main Sumatran Fault Zone.
Are the Stress Drops of Small Earthquakes Good Predictors of the Stress Drops of Moderate‐to‐Large Earthquakes?
Authors: Hardebeck Jeanne L.
Published: February 2020

The stress drops of small earthquakes often exhibit spatial patterns of variability. If moderate and large earthquakes follow the same spatial patterns, the stress drops of possible future damaging earthquakes could be better predicted by considering the stress drops of nearby small events. Better stress drop predictability could reduce ground‐motion uncertainty in probabilistic seismic hazard assessment and earthquake early warning. I find that for an internally consistent stress drop catalog ofM1.8–3.1 events in Southern California, the stress drops of the bigger earthquakes are predictable from the nearby smaller events. However, this catalog only weakly spatially correlates with another catalog ofM3.0–5.8 earthquakes and is spatially uncorrelated with five other stress drop catalogs ofM≥ 3.4 earthquakes. For Southern California eventsM5.5–7.5, stress drops compiled from the literature are weakly spatially correlated with the stress drops of theM1.8–3.1 events, although the correlations are not statistically significant. The lack of strong spatial correlation may be due to actual differences in the controlling factors of stress drop, for example, dynamic weakening in moderate‐to‐large earthquakes. Alternatively, a stronger spatial correlation may exist that is obscured by methodological heterogeneity and large errors in the stress drop estimates. Either way, the stress drops of small earthquakes do not appear to be good predictors of the stress drops of nearby moderate‐to‐large earthquakes, at least for current techniques of stress drop estimation. If these results are representative, small‐earthquake stress drops are not currently useful for substantially reducing uncertainty in probabilistic seismic hazard assessment and earthquake early warning.
Large‐Scale Geographical Variations and Climatic Controls on Crown Architecture Traits
Authors: Su Yanjun , Hu Tianyu , Wang Yongcai , Li Yumei , Dai Jingyu , Liu Hongyan , Jin Shichao , Ma Qin , Wu Jin , Liu Lingli , Fang Jingyun , Guo Qinghua
Published: February 2020

Crown architecture is a critical component for a tree to interact with the ambient environment and to compete with neighbors. However, little is known regarding how climate variability may shape crown architecture traits across large geographical extents and whether crown architecture traits have coordinated variations with trunk and leaf traits to climate gradients. Here we used Quercus mongolica trees as an example, used the cutting‐edge terrestrial laser scanning technique to accurately characterize their crown architecture traits, and explored their variabilities along with environmental variability across large climate gradients in northern China. Our results showed that there are significant spatial variations in trunk, crown, and leaf traits even for the same genetic group across large environmental gradients. Tree height and leaf size had tight covariations with precipitation (|R|> 0.8, p < 0.01). We also observed coordinated variations among crown architecture traits related to canopy shape (e.g., primary branch insertion angle, chord length ratio), trunk traits (e.g., tree height), leaf traits (e.g., specific leaf area), and climate variability, highlighting there are likely fundamental evolutionary strategies regulating these covariations. With a projected drier and hotter climate scenario in this region, our results further suggest trees are expected to transit from a “tree shape” to a “shrub shape,” with large ecological and ecophysiological impacts on this region.
Cytoplasmic-predominant Pten increases microglial activation and synaptic pruning in a murine model with autism-like phenotype
Authors: Sarn Nicholas , Jaini Ritika , Thacker Stetson , Lee Hyunpil , Dutta Ranjan , Eng Charis
Published: February 2020

Germline mutations in PTEN account for ~10% of cases of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) with coincident macrocephaly. To explore the importance of nuclear PTEN in the development of ASD and macrocephaly, we previously generated a mouse model with predominantly cytoplasmic localization of Pten (Ptenm3m4/m3m4).Cytoplasmic predominant Pten localization results in a phenotype of extreme macrocephaly and autistic-like traits. Transcriptomic analysis of the Ptenm3m4/m3m4 cortex found upregulated gene pathways related to myeloid cell activation, myeloid cell migration, and phagocytosis. These transcriptomic findings were used to direct in vitro assays on Pten wild-type and Ptenm3m4/m3m4 microglia. We found increased Iba1 and C1q expression with enhanced phagocytic capacity in Ptenm3m4/m3m4 microglia, indicating microglial activation. Moreover, through a series of neuron-microglia co-culture experiments, we found Ptenm3m4/m3m4 microglia are more efficient at synaptic pruning compared with wild-type controls. In addition, we found evidence for neuron-microglia cross-talk, where Ptenm3m4/m3m4 neurons elicit enhanced pruning from innately activated microglia. Subsequent in vivo studies validated our in vitro findings. We observed a concurrent decline in the expression of Pten and synaptic markers in the Ptenm3m4/m3m4 cortex. At ~3 weeks of age, with a 50% drop in Pten expression compared with wild-type levels, we observed enhanced activation of microglia in the Ptenm3m4/m3m4 brain. Collectively, our data provide evidence that dysregulated Pten in microglia has an etiological role in microglial activation, phagocytosis, and synaptic pruning, creating avenues for future studies on the importance of PTEN in maintaining microglia homeostasis.