bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Political Agenda
Authors: Easterday Matthew W. , Krupnikov Yanna , Fitzpatrick Colin , Barhumi Salwa , Hope Alexis
Published: October 2017

Engaged citizenship requires understanding why different ideologies lead to different policy positions. However, we know little about political perspective taking. How might we use games to teach citizens political perspective taking? This paper describes a design research project to develop a cognitive game for political perspective taking. Study 1 describes a political perspective taking measure created through expert and novice task analysis. Study 2 surveyed 187 undergraduate students and found relatively poor political perspective taking ability. Study 3 tests an educational game for political perspective taking and found that the game was engaging but did not promote learning. Study 4 describes a technical exploration testing the feasibility of a cognitive game with intelligent tutoring for scaffolding complex reasoning on political perspectives. This work argues games can teach political perspective taking using: (a) moral foundations theory, (b) fantasy environments that ask players to predict policy positions, and (c) embedded intelligent tutors.
(Q)SPR Models for Prediction of Hydrophobicity of Isatins
Authors: Madan A.K. , Dutt Rohit
Published: October 2017

In the present study, the application of a wide variety of topological descriptors was investigated for predicting hydrophobicity (clogP) of isatin analogues. A total of four topochemical indices selected through decision tree (DT) were used for the development of single index based models using moving average analysis (MAA). The overall accuracy of prediction varied from a minimum of 95% to a maximum of 98% with regard to hydrophobicity.The values of sensitivity, specificity and Mathew's correlation coefficient for all MAA based models with regard to hydrophobicity (clogP) was found to be =78%, =94% and =0.85 respectively, suggesting robustness of proposed models. Since the compounds with high clogP values were found effective in carboxylesterases (CEs) inhibition, therefore, highly hydrophobic ranges of proposed MAA models can easily be exploited for the design and development of potent CEs inhibitors.
Social and Health Risks of Female Genital Mutilation for Medication and Braveness
Authors: Ibrahim Abdurahman Hamza , Belay Degwale Gebeyehu , Tiruneh Asfaw Zewdie , Kia Tsegaye Tuke
Published: October 2017

Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) is a worldwide phenomenon. Despite many attempts for its abolishment, FGM is undergoing till today. This study has been conducted in Six Woredas of Southern Region of Ethiopia in order to assess the prevalence of FGM, to explore its drivers, to assess documentation and tracking practices, and political will and synergy of actors against FGM. A total of 120 respondents were taken as a sample. Data has been collected using questionnaire, key informant interview, and focus group discussions. Findings revealed that FGM is prevalent in the study Woredas. It is practiced secretly and there is also a cross-boundary circumcision which makes documentation and tracking practices challenging. FGM is mainly practiced by traditional cutters and ‘festal doctors'. It is mainly practiced simply because it has been practiced by the previous generation. FGM is also perceived as medication to ‘chebela' [genital ‘disease']. Girls also perceive FGM as a sign of braveness. The political will and synergy different actors in the study Woredas, were found to be weak.
The Impacts of Risk on Deploying and Sustaining Lean Six Sigma Initiatives
Authors: Galli Brian J. , Kaviani Mohamad Amin
Published: October 2017

Continuous improvement is used to enhance productivity and customer value. However, throughout the years, its efficacy dwindled. Thus, a hybrid methodology known as Lean Six Sigma was developed. It combines Lean and Six Sigma in a continuous improvement effort to address most challenges organizations face. However, risks are associated with deployment and implementation of Lean Six Sigma in differing organizations. Lean Six Sigma uses DMAIC to evaluate and measure efficacy. Successful execution of Lean practices depends on effective project management, support, and commitment from top management, employees, and stakeholders. An organization must be willing to change existing corporate culture, empower employees, and hire trained personnel to experience the benefits of Lean Six Sigma. This paper discusses results from implementing this hybrid methodology, including improved productivity, quality, and customer satisfaction. This paper concludes that Lean Six Sigma is an effective approach for any organization to use to ascertain continuous improvement.
A Novel Approach for Ontology-Based Feature Vector Generation for Web Text Document Classification
Authors: Elhadad Mohamed K. , Badran Khaled M. , Salama Gouda I.
Published: October 2017

The task of extracting the used feature vector in mining tasks (classification, clustering …etc.) is considered the most important task for enhancing the text processing capabilities. This paper proposes a novel approach to be used in building the feature vector used in web text document classification process; adding semantics in the generated feature vector. This approach is based on utilizing the benefit of the hierarchal structure of the WordNet ontology, to eliminate meaningless words from the generated feature vector that has no semantic relation with any of WordNet lexical categories; this leads to the reduction of the feature vector size without losing information on the text, also enriching the feature vector by concatenating each word with its corresponding WordNet lexical category. For mining tasks, the Vector Space Model (VSM) is used to represent text documents and the Term Frequency Inverse Document Frequency (TFIDF) is used as a term weighting technique. The proposed ontology based approach was evaluated against the Principal component analysis (PCA) approach, and against an ontology based reduction technique without the process of adding semantics to the generated feature vector using several experiments with five different classifiers (SVM, JRIP, J48, Naive-Bayes, and kNN). The experimental results reveal the effectiveness of the authors' proposed approach against other traditional approaches to achieve a better classification accuracy F-measure, precision, and recall.
A Matching Approach to Factor Scores Based on Online Sponsored Search Auction
Authors: Li Xiaohui , Dong Hongbin , Zhou Yang , He Jun
Published: October 2017

How does a search engine company decide which advertisements to display for each query to maximize its revenue? This turns out to be a generalization of the online bipartite matching problem. In this paper, search engines decide the strategy to allocate resources with an advertiser credibility factor under budget constraints. Based on the optimal algorithm, which is the notion of a trade-off revealing LP, this paper remains the competitive ratio as 1-1/e with an advertiser credibility factor. During the ranking in the keywords auctions, the authors calculate factor scores. The new arrival keywords should match to the advertisement which has the maximum factor scores. The amount of spent money, budget constraints, CTR (Click Through Rate) and a credibility factor are added to the trade-off function using in the authors' algorithms. In the long term, users tend to use the search engine with high credibility, which will bring greater revenues. The search engine will attract advertisers to bid on keywords and improve their credibility actively.
Evaluating the Understandability of Android Applications
Authors: Saifan Ahmad A. , Alsghaier Hiba , Alkhateeb Khaled
Published: October 2017

Understandability is one of the major quality attributes used to measure the understandability of object oriented software and Android applications based on certain metrics. It is very important in most software development life cycles because misunderstanding any of the steps of the software development life cycle will lead to a poor-quality product. Mobile applications, like any software, need to be maintained and evolved over time, so understanding them is essential to their maintainability, reliability, quality and reusability. In this research, the authors discuss the importance of understandability in Android applications and determine the most influential metrics by using Metrics Reloaded tool to measure the metrics values. Then, based on these values, they develop a formula to measure the understandability for Android applications. The results show that the understandability of Android application can be measured by the formula developed based on object oriented and Android metrics.
Correlation to FVIII:C in two thrombin generation tests: TGA-CAT and INNOVANCE ETP
Authors: Ljungkvist Marcus
Published: October 2017

AbstractBackground and objectivesSeveral thrombin generation tests are available but few have been directly compared. Our primary aim was to investigate the correlation of two thrombin generation tests, thrombin generation assay-calibrated automated thrombogram (TGA-CAT) and INNOVANCE ETP, to factor VIII levels (FVIII:C) in a group of patients with hemophilia A.The secondary aim was to investigate inter-laboratory variation for the TGA-CAT method.MethodsBlood samples were taken from 45 patients with mild, moderate and severe hemophilia A. The TGA-CAT method was performed at both centers while the INNOVANCE ETP was only performed at the Stockholm center. Correlation between parameters was evaluated using Spearman´s rank correlation test. For determination of the TGA-CAT inter-laboratory variability Bland-Altman plots was used.ResultsThe correlation for the INNOVANCE ETP and TGA-CAT methods with FVIII:C in persons with hemophilia (PWH) was r=0,701 and r=0,734 respectively.The correlation between the two methods was r=0,546.When dividing the study material into disease severity groups (mild, moderate and severe) based on FVIII levels, both methods fail to discriminate between them.The variability of the TGA-CAT results performed at the two centers was reduced after normalization, before normalization 29% of values showed less than ±10% difference while after normalization the number increased to 41%.ConclusionsBoth methods correlate in an equal manner to FVIII:C in PWH but show a poor correlation to each other. The level of agreement for the TGA-CAT method was poor though slightly improved after normalization of data. Further improvement of standardization of these methods is warranted.
Performance in grade 12 mathematics and science predicts student nurses’ performance in first year science modules at a university in the Western Cape
Authors: Mthimunye Katlego D.T. , Daniels Felicity M.
Published: October 2017

Background: The demand for highly qualified and skilled nurses is increasing in South Africa as well as around the world. Having a background in science can create a significant advantage for students wishing to enrol for an undergraduate nursing qualification because nursing as profession is grounded in scientific evidence.Aim: The aim of this study was to investigate the predictive validity of grade 12 mathematics and science on the academic performance of first year student nurses in science modules.Method: A quantitative research method using a cross-sectional predictive design was employed in this study. The participants included first year Bachelor of Nursing students enrolled at a university in the Western Cape, South Africa. Descriptive and inferential statistics were performed to analyse the data by using the IBM Statistical Package for Social Sciences versions 24. Descriptive analysis of all variables was performed as well as the Spearman’s rank correlation test to describe the relationship among the study variables. Standard multiple linear regressions analysis was performed to determine the predictive validity of grade 12 mathematics and science on the academic performance of first year student nurses in science modules.Results: The results of this study showed that grade 12 physical science is not a significant predictor (p > 0.062) of performance in first year science modules. The multiple linear regression revealed that grade 12 mathematics and life science grades explained 37.1% to 38.1% (R2 = 0.381 and adj R2 = 0.371) of the variation in the first year science grade distributions.Conclusion: Based on the results of the study it is evident that performance in grade 12 mathematics (β = 2.997) and life science (β = 3.175) subjects is a significant predictor (p < 0.001) of the performance in first year science modules for student nurses at the university identified for this study.
Augmented feedback in autistic disorder
Authors: Geertsema Salome , McDonald Michelle , Van der Merwe Aletta , Swanepoel Margaretha , Strasheim Esedra
Published: October 2017

Children with autistic disorder (AD) display atypical eye contact and struggle with the social imitation of eye contact. Impaired social imitation may be indicative of disruptions in motor learning processes. The application of specific motor learning principles, such as external feedback, may suggest which variables will result in positive change in eye contact. The study aimed to determine the effects of knowledge of performance (KP) and knowledge of results (KR) as types of feedback on the frequency and duration of elicited and spontaneous eye contact in children with AD. A two-phase multiple-probe, multi-treatment (cross-over), singleparticipant design with a withdrawal component was used. Mixed treatment effects were obtained. Overall effects suggest that KR results in the greatest positive change over a short period of time regarding frequency and duration for both elicited and spontaneous eye contact. This type of feedback seems to be the most effective for spontaneous eye contact. The provision of KP, after elicited and spontaneous eye contact, produced positive effects for duration only. The current Phase 1 evidence suggests that KR (which is goal-directed with fewer additional instructions) may be more beneficial to children with AD. These findings are in accordance with the limb motor learning literature and may therefore support preliminary evidence for disrupted motor learning during eye contact imitation in children with AD.
New Tools for a New Job-Single Port Laparoscopic Surgery Equipment
Authors: MacDonald Euan R. , Brownlee Ewan , Ahmed Irfan
Published: October 2017

Single port transumbilical laparoscopic surgery (LESS, SILS, ENOTES) is a technique which has recently emerged with a view to improving the cosmesis following minimal access surgery, aiming to achieve ‘scarless’ surgery. This rapidly progressing technique is facilitated by developments in port and instrument technology, allowing surgeons to perform a wider range of surgical procedures with increasing ease. This paper aims to summarise the equipment available at present for single port surgery.
Triple Vessel Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting in a 14-year-old Child with Familial Hypercholesterolemia-A Rare Case Report
Authors: Shirish S Borkar , Kamath S Ganesh , Sunil Sagar C.V. , Chidanand Bedjirgi , Nitin Kashyap
Published: October 2017

Familial hypercholesterolemia is a genetic disorder caused by a mutation in the low density lipoprotein (LDL) receptor gene. The homozygous type of the disease is rare and causes tendon xanthomas and coronary artery disease during the early years of life. Premature coronary artery occlusive disease in familial homozygous hypercholesterolemia might necessitate coronary bypass surgery in children and young adults We present the case of a 14-year-old boy with familial hypercholesterolemia and coronary artery disease. He underwent triple-vessel coronary artery bypass grafting with bilateral pedicled internal mammary artery and saphenous vein grafting without adverse events. Pediatric patients with familial hypercholesterolemia may present with premature coronary atherosclerosis requiring coronary artery bypass grafting. In situ internal mammary artery grafts should be the graft of choice. To the best of our knowledge, he is one of the youngest such patients reported in the English-language literature who underwent coronary artery bypass surgery.
Perspectives on Using Physcomitrella Patens as an Alternative Production Platform for Thapsigargin and Other Terpenoid Drug Candidates
Authors: Simonsen Henrik Toft , Drew Damian Paul , Lunde Christina
Published: October 2017

To overcome the potential future demand for terpenoids used as drugs, a new production platform is currently being established in our laboratory. The moss Physcomitrella has been chosen as the candidate organism for production of drug candidates based on terpenoids derived from plants, with a primary focus on the sesquiterpene lactone, thapsigargin. This drug candidate and other candidates/drugs with sesquiterpene skeleton are difficult to obtain by chemical synthesis due to their large number of chiral centers. Furthermore, they are not available in sufficient amounts from their original plant. The requirement for a new production system to meet the potential market demand for these compounds is not only obvious, but also essential if sufficient quantities of the drug candidates are to be available for the potential therapeutic use.
Effects of FK506 on Ca2+ Release Channels (Review)
Authors: Ozawa Terutaka
Published: October 2017

Tacrolimus (FK506), which was isolated from the fermentation broth of Streptomyces tsukubaensis No. 9993, has an immunosuppressive effect. In T-lymphocytes, FK506 binds to the intracellular receptor, a 12-kDa FK506-binding protein (FKBP12). The FK506-FKBP12 complex binds to the phosphatase calcineurin (CN) and inhibits the activity of CN. By inhibition of the activity of CN, dephosphorylation of a nuclear factor of activated T-cells (NFAT) is inhibited, and translocation of the NFAT to the nucleus is suppressed. Thereby, the production of T-cell-derived mediators such as interleukin 2 (IL-2) is inhibited, and the proliferation of cytotoxic T-cells is suppressed. In muscle cells, FKBP12 and FKBP12.6 are associated with ryanodine-sensitive Ca2+ release channels (ryanodine receptors: RyRs) on the skeletal and cardiac muscle sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR), respectively. FK506 modulates the RyR by dissociating FKBP12 or FKBP12.6 from the RyR complex. FKBP12 is also associated with inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate (IP3)-sensitive Ca2+ release channels (IP3 receptors: IP3Rs) on the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) of non-muscle cells. The IP3R-FKBP12 complex binds to CN, which dephosphorylates the protein kinase C (PKC) phosphorylation site on the receptor. When FKBP12 is dissociated from the IP3R complex by FK506, CN is also dissociated from the IP3R. Thereby, the IP3R is phosphorylated by PKC, and the receptor is modulated. Recently, it was found that FK506 itself induces Ca2+ release through RyRs in some tissues.
Exploratory Studies on Development of the Chemokine Receptor CXCR4 Antagonists toward Downsizing
Authors: Tamamura Hirokazu , Tsutsumi Hiroshi , Nomura Wataru , Fujii Nobutaka
Published: October 2017

Seven transmembrane (7TM) G-protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) families are important targets for drug discovery, and specific antagonists for GPCR can accelerate research in the field of medicinal chemistry. The chemokine receptor CXCR4 is a GPCR that possesses a unique ligand CXCL12/stromal cell-derived factor-1 (SDF-1). The interaction between CXCL12 and CXCR4 is essential for the migration of progenitor cells during embryonic development of the cardiovascular, hemopoietic and central nervous systems, and also involved in several intractable disease processes, including HIV infection, cancer cell metastasis, progression of acute and chronic leukemias, rheumatoid arthritis and pulmonary fibrosis. Thus, CXCR4 may be an important therapeutic target in all of these diseases, and various CXCR4 antagonists have been proposed as potential drugs. Fourteen-mer peptides, T140 and its analogs, and downsized cyclic pentapeptides have been developed by us as potent CXCR4 antagonists. This article describes the development of a number of specific CXCR4 antagonists in our laboratory, including downsizing.
Effets de la podo-réflexologie sur les troubles du sommeil
Authors: Gérard Mélanie
Published: October 2017

Introduction : Quelles que soient les manifestations et les causes des troubles du sommeil, nous constatons une augmentation sensible du stress chez les sujets concernés. Ce stress chronique engendre souvent de multiples symptômes ayant un impact négatif sur la qualité de vie. Dans cette étude, nous observons les effets de la podo-réflexologie sur l’ensemble de ces troubles. Méthode : Six femmes, âgées de 25 à 57 ans, souffrant de troubles du sommeil non pris en charge par traitements allopathiques, ont reçu des soins réguliers de podo-réfléxologie sur plusieurs mois. Un protocole spécifique commun a été appliqué à tous les sujets, et chaque séance a fait l’objet d’une anamnèse précise et d’une observation de l’évolution des troubles, des symptômes et de l’état des zones réflexes. Résultats : Nous avons pu constater une amélioration du sommeil à la suite des soins réflexologiques. Cet effet est observé dès la première séance, avec une longévité variable selon les sujets, allant d’une à sept nuits consécutives sans trouble. Après deux à six séances régulières, l’ensemble des sujets avait retrouvé un sommeil normal et de qualité, quels que soient leur profil et les symptômes associés. Conclusion : A court terme, les séances de podo-réflexologie ont un effet relaxant et apaisant. Appliqué régulièrement, ce protocole permettrait, à moyen et long termes, une amélioration du sommeil par un rééquilibrage du système neuro-endocrien via le travail des zones réflexes associées.
Automatic Emergency Braking (AEB) System Performance Testing
Authors:   Active Safety Systems Standards Committee
Published: October 2017

This document describes an SAE Recommended Practice for Automatic Emergency Braking (AEB) system performance testing which:

establishes uniform vehicle level test procedures

identifies target equipment, test scenarios, and measurement methods

identifies and explains the performance data of interest

does not exclude any particular system or sensor technology

identifies the known limitations of the information contained within (assumptions and “gaps”)

is intended to be a guide toward standard practice and is subject to change on pace with the technology

is limited to “Vehicle Front to Rear, In lane Scenarios” for initial release

This document describes the equipment, facilities, methods and procedures needed to evaluate the ability of Automatic Emergency Braking (AEB) systems to detect and respond to another vehicle, in its immediate forward path, as it is approached from the rear.

This document does not specify test conditions (e.g., speeds, decelerations, headways, etc.). Those values will be defined by the tester according to the intended purpose of a given test sequence. Informative examples are provided for reference in Appendix B.

The procedure includes three test scenarios:

Stopped lead vehicle (Test 1) - the vehicle being approached is stopped in the lane of the test vehicle.

Slower lead vehicle (Test 2) the vehicle being approached is moving at a constant speed that is slower than the test vehicle.

Decelerating lead vehicle (Test 3) - the vehicle being approached is initially moving at the same speed as the test vehicle, but then slows.
State of the Journal, 2017
Authors: Richards Lorie Gage
Published: October 2017

The American Journal of Occupational Therapy (AJOT) has had another successful year, with increases in its journal impact factor and its ranking among rehabilitation journals indexed by Journal Citation Reports. The number of submissions has increased, with manuscripts received from 28 countries. Readership has also increased. AJOT remains the top-ranked occupational therapy journal in the world. In addition to its usual focus on publishing research broadly related to occupational therapy, AJOT created a Centennial section in each issue to celebrate the Centennial of the American Occupational Therapy Association. Centennial section topics were determined on the basis of their relevance to occupational therapy history and to future or emerging or increasing practice areas in occupational therapy. In her presidential address at the American Occupational Therapy Association’s 2017 Annual Conference & Centennial Celebration, Amy Lamb honored occupational therapy’s past and embraced its future. Occupational therapy practitioners have the power to serve as change agents, demonstrating their value during everyday opportunities as they design the future of occupational therapy.
Assessment of upper tropospheric and stratospheric water vapor and ozone in reanalyses as part of S-RIP
Authors: Davis Sean M. , Hegglin Michaela I. , Fujiwara Masatomo , Dragani Rossana , Harada Yayoi , Kobayashi Chiaki , Long Craig , Manney Gloria L. , Nash Eric R. , Potter Gerald L. , Tegtmeier Susann , Wang Tao , Wargan Krzysztof , Wright Jonathon S.
Published: October 2017

Abstract. Reanalysis data sets are widely used to understand atmospheric processes and past variability, and are often used to stand in as "observations" for comparisons with climate model output. Because of the central role of water vapor (WV) and ozone (O3) in climate change, it is important to understand how accurately and consistently these species are represented in existing global reanalyses. In this paper, we present the results of WV and O3 intercomparisons that have been performed as part of the SPARC (Stratosphere–troposphere Processes and their Role in Climate) Reanalysis Intercomparison Project (S-RIP). The comparisons cover a range of timescales and evaluate both inter-reanalysis and observation-reanalysis differences. We also provide a systematic documentation of the treatment of WV and O3 in current reanalyses to aid future research and guide the interpretation of differences amongst reanalysis fields.The assimilation of total column ozone (TCO) observations in newer reanalyses results in realistic representations of TCO in reanalyses except when data coverage is lacking, such as during polar night. The vertical distribution of ozone is also relatively well represented in the stratosphere in reanalyses, particularly given the relatively weak constraints on ozone vertical structure provided by most assimilated observations and the simplistic representations of ozone photochemical processes in most of the reanalysis forecast models. However, significant biases in the vertical distribution of ozone are found in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere in all reanalyses.In contrast to O3, reanalysis estimates of stratospheric WV are not directly constrained by assimilated data. Observations of atmospheric humidity are typically used only in the troposphere, below a specified vertical level at or near the tropopause. The fidelity of reanalysis stratospheric WV products is therefore mainly dependent on the reanalyses' representation of the physical drivers that influence stratospheric WV, such as temperatures in the tropical tropopause layer, methane oxidation, and the stratospheric overturning circulation. The lack of assimilated observations and known deficiencies in the representation of stratospheric transport in reanalyses result in much poorer agreement amongst observational and reanalysis estimates of stratospheric WV. Hence, stratospheric WV products from the current generation of reanalyses should generally not be used in scientific studies.
Mixing and ageing in the polar lower stratosphere in winter
2015/2016
Authors: Krause Jens , Hoor Peter , Engel Andreas , Plöger Felix , Grooß Jens-Uwe , Bönisch Harald , Keber Timo , Sinnhuber Björn-Martin , Woiwode Wolfgang , Oelhaf Hermann
Published: October 2017

Abstract. We present data from winter 2015/2016, which were measured during the POLSTRACC (The Polar Stratosphere in a Changing Climate) aircraft campaign between December 2015 and March 2016. The focus of this work is on the role of transport and mixing between aged and potentially chemically processed air masses from the stratosphere with mid and low latitude air mass fractions with small transit times originating at the tropical lower stratosphere. By combining measurements of CO, N2O and SF6 we estimate the evolution of the relative contributions of transport and mixing to the UTLS composition over the course of the winter. We find an increasing influence of aged stratospheric air partly from the vortex as indicated by decreasing N2O and SF6 values over the course of winter. Surprisingly we also found a mean increase of CO by (3.00 ± 1.64) ppbV from January to March relative to N2O in the lower stratosphere. We show that this increase of CO is consistent with an increased mixing of tropospheric air as part of the fast transport mechanism in the lower stratosphere surf zone. The analysed air masses were partly affected by air masses which originated at the tropical tropopause and were quasi-horizontally mixed into higher latitudes. This increase of the tropospheric air fraction partly compensates for ageing of the UTLS due to the diabatic descent of air masses from the vortex by horizontally mixed, tropospheric influenced air masses. This is consistent with simulated age spectra from the Chemical Lagrangian Model of the Stratosphere (CLaMS), which show a respective fractional increase of tropospheric air with short transit times lower than six months and a simultaneous increase of aged air from deep stratospheric and vortex regions with transit times larger than two years. We thus conclude that the lowermost stratosphere in winter 2015/16 was affected by aged air from the deep stratosphere and vortex region. These air masses were significantly affected by increased mixing from the lower latitudes, which led to a simultaneous increase of the fraction of young air in the Arctic lowermost stratosphere over the course of winter.
Secondary aerosol formation promotes water uptake by organic-rich wildfire haze particles in Equatorial Asia
Authors: Chen Jing , Budisulistiorini Sri Hapsari , Miyakawa Takuma , Komazaki Yuichi , Kuwata Mikinori
Published: October 2017

Abstract. Diameter growth factors (GF) of 100 nm haze particles at 85 % relative humidity and chemical characteristics were simultaneously monitored at Singapore in October 2015 during a pervasive wildfire haze episode, which was caused by peatland burning in Indonesia. Non-refractory submicron particles (NR-PM1) were dominated by organics (approximating 77.1 % in total mass), whereas sulfate was the most abundant inorganic constituent (11.7 % on average). A statistical analysis of the organic mass spectra showed that most of organics (36.0 % of NR-PM1 mass) were highly oxygenated. Diurnal variations of GF, number fraction of highly hygroscopic mode particles, mass fraction of sulfate, and mass fraction of oxygenated organics (OOA) synchronized well, peaking during daytime. The mean hygroscopicity parameter (κ) of haze particles was 0.189 ± 0.087, and mean κ values of organics were 0.157 ± 0.108 (κorg, bulk organics) and 0.287 ± 0.193 (κOOA, OOA), demonstrating the important roles of both sulfate and highly oxygenated organics in hygroscopic growth of wildfire haze particles. κorg was also affected by the water-soluble organic fraction to some extent. These results show the importance of secondary formation processes in promoting water uptake properties of wildfire haze particles, including both inorganic and organic species. Further detailed size-resolved as well as molecular level chemical information of organics will be necessary for more profound exploration of water uptake by wildfire haze particles in Equatorial Asia.
CO2 Flux and its Relationship with Water Parameters and Biological Activity in the Ji-Paraná River (Rondônia State – Western Amazon)
Authors: Pinto Thandy Junio da Silva , Gomes Beatriz Machado
Published: October 2017

Abstract. Over the past decades, the role of tropical rivers in the carbon cycle paradigm has been revised due to their importance in the regional carbon budget and identified as important emitters of carbon to atmosphere. This study, conducted in the Ji-Paraná River, quantifies the CO2 flux in the water-air interface according to the floating chamber methodology and verifies the seasonal variation and its relationship with physical, chemical and biological water parameters. The physical-chemical parameters analyzed were temperature, pH, electrical conductivity, dissolved oxygen, transparency, alkalinity, and turbidity, and the biological parameter was chlorophyll concentration. The Ji-Paraná River behaves as a source of carbon to the atmosphere, with higher emission peaks in high waters (4869.20 ± 779.95 mgC m−2 day−1) and lower values in low water (711.20 ± 131.51 mgC m−2 day−1) – the difference between the periods reached 6.8 times. Dissolved oxygen, pH, electrical conductivity and water transparency were correlated with flux and explained the gaseous exchange dynamics. CO2 flux was strongly related to the river flow, which evidences the importance of river regime variations in gaseous emissions. Chlorophyll was strongly related to flux, therefore, the primary production is an important sink of CO2 to the Ji-Paraná River, which indicates biological activity significantly influences the river carbon cycling.
Technical note: A simple approach for efficient collection of field reference data for calibrating remote sensing mapping of northern wetlands
Authors: Gålfalk Magnus , Karlson Martin , Crill Patrick , Bousquet Philippe , Bastviken David
Published: October 2017

Abstract. The calibration and validation of remote sensing land cover products is highly dependent on accurate field reference data, which are costly and practically challenging to collect. We describe an optical method for collection of field reference data that is a fast, cost-efficient, and robust alternative to field surveys and UAV imaging. A light weight, water proof, remote controlled RGB-camera (GoPro) was used to take wide-angle images from 3.1–4.5 m altitude using an extendable monopod, as well as representative near-ground (
A new bed elevation model for the Weddell Sea sector of the West
Antarctic Ice Sheet
Authors: Jeofry Hafeez , Ross Neil , Corr Hugh F. J. , Li Jilu , Gogineni Prasad , Siegert Martin J.
Published: October 2017

Abstract. We present a new bed elevation digital elevation model (DEM), with a 1 km spatial resolution, for the Weddell Sea sector of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet. The DEM has a total area of ~125,000 km2 covering the Institute, Möller and Foundation ice streams and the Bungenstock ice rise. In comparison with the Bedmap2 product, our DEM includes several new aerogeophysical datasets acquired by the Center for Remote Sensing of Ice Sheets (CReSIS) through the NASA Operation IceBridge (OIB) program in 2012, 2014 and 2016. We also update bed elevation information from the single largest existing dataset in the region, collected by the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) Polarimetric Airborne Survey Instrument (PASIN) in 2010-11, as BEDMAP2 included only relatively crude ice thickness measurements determined in the field for quality control purposes. This have resulted in the deep parts of the topography not being visible in the fieldwork non-SAR processed radargrams. While the gross form of the new DEM is similar to Bedmap2, there are some notable differences. For example, the position and size of a deep trough (~ 2 km below sea level) between the ice sheet interior and the grounding line of Foundation ice stream has been redefined. From the revised DEM, we are able to better derive the expected routing of basal water at the ice-bed interface, and by comparison with that calculated using Bedmap2 we are able to assess regions where hydraulic flow is sensitive to change. Given the sensitivity of this sector of the ice sheet to ocean-induced melting at the grounding line, especially in light of improved definition of the Foundation ice stream trough, our revised DEM will be of value to ice-sheet modelling in efforts to quantify future glaciological changes in the region, and therefore the potential impact on global sea level. The new 1 km bed elevation product of the Weddell Sea sector, West Antarctica can be found in the http://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.1035488.
Numerical experiments on isotopic diffusion in polar snow and firn using a multi-layer energy balance model
Authors: Touzeau Alexandra , Landais Amaëlle , Morin Samuel , Arnaud Laurent , Picard Ghislain
Published: October 2017

Abstract. To evaluate the impact of vapor diffusion onto isotopic composition variations in the snow pits and then in ice cores, we introduced water isotopes in the detailed snowpack model Crocus. The isotopes routine is run with a 1 s resolution. At each step and for each snow layer, 1) the initial isotopic composition of vapor is taken at equilibrium with solid phase, 2) kinetic fractionation is applied during transport, and 3) condensation is realized. We study the different effects of temperature gradient, compaction, wind compaction and precipitation on the final vertical isotopic profiles. We also run complete simulations of vapor and isotopic diffusion at GRIP, Greenland and at Dome C, Antarctica over periods of 1 or 10 years. The vapor diffusion tends to smooth the original seasonal signal, with an attenuation of 9.5 % of the original signal over 10 years at GRIP. This is smaller than the observed attenuation in ice cores, indicating that the model underestimates attenuation due to diffusion or that other processes, such as ventilation, also contribute to the observed attenuation. At Dome C, the attenuation is stronger (14 %), probably because of the lower accumulation and stronger δ18O gradients. Because vapor diffusion is not the only process responsible of the signal attenuation, it would be useful to implement in the model ventilation of the snowpack and exchanges with the atmosphere to evaluate their contribution.
Seasonal Drought Prediction for Semiarid Northeast Brazil: Verification of Six Hydro-Meteorological Forecast Products
Authors: Delgado José Miguel , Voss Sebastian , Bürger Gerd , Vormoor Klaus , Murawski Aline , Rodrigues Marcelo , Martins Eduardo , Vasconcelos Júnior Francisco , Francke Till
Published: October 2017

Abstract. A set of seasonal drought forecast models was assessed and verified for the Jaguaribe River in semiarid northeast Brazil. Meteorological seasonal forecasts were provided by the operational forecasting system used at FUNCEME (Ceará's research foundation for meteorology) and by the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF). Three downscaling approaches were tested and combined with the models in hindcast mode for the period 1981 to 2014. The forecast issue time was January and the forecast period was January to June. Hydrological drought indices were obtained by fitting a generalized linear model to observations. In short, it was possible to obtain forecasts for (a) monthly precipitation, (b) meteorological drought indices, and (c) hydrological drought indices. The skill of the forecasting systems was evaluated with regard to root mean square error (RMSE) and the relative operating characteristic (ROC) skill score. Forecasts of monthly precipitation had little or no skill considering RMSE. Still, the forecast of extreme events of low monthly precipitation showed skill for the rainy season (ROC skill score of 0.24 to 0.33). A similar picture was seen when forecasting meteorological drought indices: low skill regarding RMSE and significant skill when forecasting drought events of e.g. SPEI01 (ROC skill score of 0.53 to 0.61). Similar results were obtained for low regional reservoir storage forecasts. Regarding the skill in the forecasted months, it was greater for April, when compared to February and March (the remaining months of the rainy season). This work showed that a multimodel ensemble can forecast drought events of time scales relevant to water managers in northeast Brazil with skill. But no or little skill could be found in the forecasts of the whole range of monthly precipitation or drought indices (e.g. forecasting average years). Both this work and those here revisited showed that major steps forward are needed in forecasting the rainy season in northeast Brazil.
Inferring soil salinity in a drip irrigation system from multi-configuration EMI measurements using adaptive Markov chain Monte Carlo
Authors: Jadoon Khan Zaib , Altaf Muhammad Umer , McCabe Matthew Francis , Hoteit Ibrahim , Muhammad Nisar , Moghadas Davood , Weihermüller Lutz
Published: October 2017

Abstract. A substantial interpretation of electromagnetic induction (EMI) measurements requires quantifying optimal model parameters and uncertainty of a nonlinear inverse problem. For this purpose, an adaptive Bayesian Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) algorithm is used to assess multi-orientation and multi-offset EMI measurements in an agriculture field with non-saline and saline soil. In MCMC the posterior distribution is computed using Bayes' rule. The electromagnetic forward model based on the full solution of Maxwell's equations was used to simulate the apparent electrical conductivity measured with the configurations of EMI instrument, the CMD Mini-Explorer. Uncertainty in the parameters for the three-layered earth model are investigated by using synthetic data. Our results show that in the scenario of non-saline soil, the parameters of layer thickness as compared to layers electrical conductivity are not very informative and are therefore difficult to resolve. Application of the proposed MCMC-based inversion to field measurements in a drip irrigation system demonstrates that the parameters of the model can be well estimated for the saline soil as compared to the non-saline soil, and provides useful insight about parameter uncertainty for the assessment of the model outputs.
Investigating compound flooding in an estuary using hydrodynamic modelling: A case study from the Shoalhaven River, Australia
Authors: Kumbier Kristian , Carvalho Rafael C. , Vafeidis Athanasios T. , Woodroffe Colin D.
Published: October 2017

Abstract. Previous modelling studies have considered storm-tide and riverine flooding independently, even though joint-probability analysis highlighted significant dependence between extreme rainfall and extreme storm surges in estuarine environments. This study investigates compound flooding by quantifying horizontal and vertical differences in coastal flood risk estimates resulting from a separation of storm-tide and riverine flooding processes. We used an open source version of the Delft3D model to simulate flood extent and inundation depth due to a storm event that occurred in June 2016 in the Shoalhaven Estuary, southeast Australia. Time series of observed water levels and discharge measurements are used to force model boundaries, whereas observational data such as satellite imagery, aerial photographs, tidal gauges and water level logger measurements are used to validate modelling results. The comparison of simulation results including and excluding riverine discharge demonstrated large differences in modelled flood extents and inundation depths. A flood risk assessment accounting only for storm-tide flooding would have underestimated the flood extent of the June 2016 storm event by of 30 % (20.5 km2). Furthermore, inundation depths would have been underestimated on average by 0.34 m and by up to 1.5 m locally. We recommend to consider storm-tide and riverine flooding processes jointly in estuaries with large catchment areas, which are known to have a quick response time to extreme rainfall. In addition, comparison of different entrance conditions indicated that permanently opening the intermittent entrance, in order to reduce exposure to riverine flooding, would increase tidal range and exposure to both storm-tide flooding and wave action.
Land-use changes influence soil bacterial communities in a meadow grassland in Northeast China
Authors: Cao Chengyou , Zhang Ying , Qian Wei , Liang Caiping , Wang Congmin , Tao Shuang
Published: October 2017

Abstract. The conversion of natural grassland into agricultural fields is an intensive anthropogenic perturbation commonly occurring in semiarid regions, and this perturbation strongly affects soil microbiota. In this study, the influences of land-use conversion on the soil properties and bacterial communities in the Horqin Grasslands in Northeast China were assessed. This study aimed to investigate (1) how the abundances of soil bacteria changed across land-use types, (2) how the structure of the soil bacterial community was altered in each land-use type, and (3) how these variations were correlated with soil physical and chemical properties. Variations in the diversities and compositions of bacterial communities and the relative abundances of dominant taxa were detected in four distinct land-use systems, namely, natural meadow grassland, paddy field, upland field, and poplar plantation, through the high-throughput Illumina MiSeq sequencing technique. The results indicated that land-use changes primarily affected the soil physical and chemical properties and bacterial community structure. Soil properties, namely, organic matter, pH, total N, total P, available N and P, and microbial biomass C, N, and P, influenced the bacterial community structure. The dominant phyla and genera were almost the same among the land-use types, but their relative abundances were significantly different. The effects of land-use changes on the structure of soil bacterial communities were more quantitative than qualitative.
PREDICTING POLYMER DEGRADATION AND MECHANICAL PROPERTY CHANGES FOR COMBINED RADIATION-THERMAL AGING ENVIRONMENTS
Authors: Gillen Kenneth T. , Celina Mathew
Published: October 2017

A new approach is presented for conducting and extrapolating combined environment (radiation plus thermal) accelerated aging experiments. The method involves a novel way of applying the time-temperature-dose rate (t-T-R) approach derived many years ago, which assumes that by simultaneously accelerating the thermal-initiation rate (from Arrhenius T-only analysis) and the radiation dose rate R by the same factor x, the overall degradation rate will increase by the factor x. The dose rate assumption implies that equal dose yields equal damage, which is equivalent to assuming the absence of dose-rate effects (DRE). A plot of inverse absolute temperature versus the log of the dose rate is used to indicate experimental conditions consistent with the model assumptions, which can be derived along lines encompassing so-called matched accelerated conditions (MAC lines). Aging trends taken along MAC lines for several elastomers confirms the underlying model assumption and therefore indicates, contrary to many past published results, that DRE are typically not present. In addition, the MAC approach easily accommodates the observation that substantial degradation chemistry changes occur as aging conditions transition R-T space from radiation domination (high R, low T) to temperature domination (low R, high T). The MAC-line approach also suggests an avenue for gaining more confidence in extrapolations of accelerated MAC-line data to ambient aging conditions by using ultrasensitive oxygen consumption (UOC) measurements taken along the MAC line both under the accelerated conditions and at ambient. From UOC data generated under combined R-T conditions, this approach is tested and quantitatively confirmed for one of the materials. In analogy to the wear-out approach developed previously for thermo-oxidative aging, the MAC-line concept can also be used to predict the remaining lifetimes of samples extracted periodically from ambient environments.