bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
ENHANCING MAIZE PRODUCTIVITY AND PROFITABILITY USING ORGANIC INPUTS AND MINERAL FERTILIZER IN CENTRAL KENYA SMALL-HOLD FARMS
Authors: MUCHERU-MUNA MONICAH , MUGENDI DANIEL , PYPERS PIETER , MUGWE JAYNE , KUNG'U JAMES , VANLAUWE BERNARD , MERCKX ROEL
Published: September 2013

Declining land productivity is a major problem facing smallholder farmers today in Sub-Saharan Africa, and as a result increase in maize grain yield has historically staggered behind yield gains that have been achieved elsewhere in the world. This decline primarily results from reduction in soil fertility caused by continuous cultivation without adequate addition of external nutrient inputs. Improved soil fertility management practices, which combine organic and mineral fertilizer inputs, can enable efficient use of inputs applied, and can increase overall system's productivity. The trials were established at two sites with different soil fertility status to determine the effects of various organic sources (Tithonia diversifolia, Mucuna pruriens, Calliandra calothyrsus and cattle manure) and their combinations with mineral fertilizer on maize grain yield, economic return and soil chemical properties. Drought spells were common during the peak water requirement periods, and during all the seasons most (90%) of the rainfall was received before 50% flowering. In good and poor sites, there was a significant (p < 0.001) effect of season on maize grain yield. Tithonia diversifolia recorded the highest (4.2 t ha−1) average maize grain yield in the poor site, while Calliandra calothyrsus gave the highest (4.8 t ha−1) average maize grain yield in the good site. Maize grain yields were lower in treatments with sole fertilizer compared with treatments that included organic fertilizers. The maize grain yields were higher with sole organics compared with treatments integrating organic and inorganic fertilizers. Soil pH increment was statistically significant in the sole manure treatment in good and poor sites (t-test, p = 0.036 and 0.013), respectively. In the poor site, magnesium increased significantly in the sole manure and manure + 30 kg N ha−1 treatments with t-test p = 0.006 and 0.027, respectively. Soil potassium was significant in the sole manure treatment (t-test, p = 0.03). Generally the economic returns were low, with negative net benefits and benefit cost ratio of less than 1. Inorganic fertilizer recorded the highest net benefit and return to labour (p < 0.001 and <0.01, respectively) in the good site. The treatments that had very high maize grain yields did not lead to improved soil fertility, thus there is need for tradeoffs between yield gains and soil fertility management when selecting agricultural production technologies.
Timing of post-collisional volcanism in the eastern part of the Variscan Belt: constraints from SHRIMP zircon dating of Permian rhyolites in the North-Sudetic Basin (SW Poland)
Authors: AWDANKIEWICZ MAREK , KRYZA RYSZARD , SZCZEPARA NORBERT
Published: September 2013

The final stages of the Variscan orogeny in Central Europe were associated with voluminous granitic plutonism and widespread volcanism. Four samples representative of the main rhyolitic volcanic units from the Stephanian–Permian continental succession of the North-Sudetic Basin, in the eastern part of the Variscan Belt, were dated using the SIMS (SHRIMP) zircon method. Three samples show overlapping206Pb–238U mean ages of 294 ± 3, 293 ± 2 and 292 ± 2 Ma, and constrain the age of the rhyolitic volcanism in the North-Sudetic Basin at 294–292 Ma. This age corresponds to the Early Permian – Sakmarian Stage and is consistent with the stratigraphic position of the lava units. The fourth sample dated at 288 ± 4 Ma reflects a minor, younger stage of (sub)volcanic activity in the Artinskian. The silicic activity was shortly followed by mafic volcanism. The rhyolite samples contained very few inherited zircons, possibly owing to limited contribution of crustal sources to the silicic magma, or owing to processes involved in anatectic melting and magma differentiation (e.g. resorption of old zircon by Zr-undersaturated melts). The SHRIMP results and the stratigraphic evidence suggest that the bimodal volcanism terminated the early, short-lived (10–15 Ma) and vigorous stage of basin evolution. The Permian volcanism in the North-Sudetic Basin may be correlated with relatively late phases of the regional climax of Late Palaeozoic volcanism in Central Europe, constrained by 41 published SHRIMP zircon age determinations at 299–291 Ma. The Permian volcanism and coeval plutonism in the NE part of the Bohemian Massif can be linked to late Variscan, post-collisional extension.
‘FAN the SUN brighter’: Fortifying Africa nutritionally (FAN) – the role of public private partnership in scaling up nutrition (SUN) in West Africa
Authors: Sablah Mawuli , Baker Shawn K. , Badham Jane , De Zayas Alfred
Published: September 2013

The scaling up nutrition (SUN) policy framework requires extensive public–private partnership (PPP). Malnutrition is multi-dimensional and should engage multi-sectoral platforms. The SUN policy however did not fully embrace the dynamics of harnessing PPP. The objectives of the present paper are to highlight the reasons for the apprehension around PPP and illustrate how effective coordination of PPP in West Africa has contributed to implementing large-scale food fortification with micronutrients as a complementary nutrition intervention. The experience of Helen Keller International (HKI) in scaling up food fortification was emphasised with understanding of the factors contributing to indifference by the international community to private sector contribution to SUN. The roles of different stakeholders in a PPP are elucidated and the process linked to who, why and how to engage. The private sector provides direct nutrition services while the public sector creates the enabling environment for the private sector to thrive on social values. Through this approach fortified vegetable oil and wheat flour are now reaching over 70% of the population in West Africa. As a neutral broker HKI coordinated and facilitated dialogue among the different stakeholders. The core competencies of each stakeholder were harnessed and each partner was held accountable. It concludes that multi-sectoral relationship must be transparent, equitable and based on shared mutual interests. The rules and values of PPP offer opportunities for SUN.
Psychotic experiences in a mental health clinic sample: implications for suicidality, multimorbidity and functioning
Authors: Kelleher I. , Devlin N. , Wigman J. T. W. , Kehoe A. , Murtagh A. , Fitzpatrick C. , Cannon M.
Published: September 2013

Background

Recent community-based research has suggested that psychotic experiences act as markers of severity of psychopathology. There has, however, been a lack of clinic-based research. We wished to investigate, in a clinical sample of adolescents referred to a state-funded mental health service, the prevalence of (attenuated or frank) psychotic experiences and the relationship with (i) affective, anxiety and behavioural disorders, (ii) multimorbid psychopathology, (iii) global functioning, and (iv) suicidal behaviour.

Method

The investigation was a clinical case–clinical control study using semi-structured research diagnostic psychiatric assessments in 108 patients newly referred to state adolescent mental health services.

Results

Psychotic experiences were prevalent in a wide range of (non-psychotic) disorders but were strong markers of risk in particular for multimorbid psychopathology (Z = 3.44, p = 0.001). Young people with psychopathology who reported psychotic experiences demonstrated significantly poorer socio-occupational functioning than young people with psychopathology who did not report psychotic experiences, which was not explained by multimorbidity. Psychotic experiences were strong markers of risk for suicidal behaviour. Stratified analyses showed that there was a greatly increased odds of suicide attempts in patients with a major depressive disorder [odds ratio (OR) 8.89, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.59–49.83], anxiety disorder (OR 15.4, 95% CI 1.85–127.94) or behavioural disorder (OR 3.13, 95% CI 1.11–8.79) who also had psychotic experiences compared with patients who did not report psychotic experiences.

Conclusions

Psychotic experiences (attenuated or frank) are an important but under-recognized marker of risk for severe psychopathology, including multimorbidity, poor functioning and suicidal behaviour in young people who present to mental health services.
Can China Bring Back the Best? The Communist Party Organizes China's Search for Talent
Authors: Zweig David , Wang Huiyao
Published: September 2013

For some developing countries, the international flow of their human talent in the recent decade was more of a “reverse brain gain” than a “brain drain.” China, too, joined the group of states whose students, after studying abroad, now found sufficient opportunity and an acceptable quality of life back home to make returning after graduation a reasonable option. Still, China had not succeeded in bringing back the very best scientists and academics. To remedy this problem, the Organization Department of the Chinese Communist Party became actively involved in the recruitment process. The key programme was the “1000 Talents” Plan, introduced in 2008 by Politburo member Li Yuanchao, who had a visionary perspective on reverse migration. This programme has succeeded in bringing back entrepreneurs full time; but it has not attracted the very best of the Chinese scientists and academics who studied and lived overseas to return fulltime.
Constructive Packings by Linear Hypergraphs
Authors: DIZONA JILL , NAGLE BRENDAN
Published: September 2013

For k-graphs F0 and H, an F0-packing of H is a family $\mathscr{F}$ of pairwise edge-disjoint copies of F0 in H. Let νF0(H) denote the maximum size |$\mathscr{F}$| of an F0-packing of H. Already in the case of graphs, computing νF0(H) is NP-hard for most fixed F0 (Dor and Tarsi [6]).

In this paper, we consider the case when F0 is a fixed linear k-graph. We establish an algorithm which, for ζ > 0 and a given k-graph H, constructs in time polynomial in |V(H)| an F0-packing of H of size at least νF0(H) − ζ |V(H)|k. Our result extends one of Haxell and Rödl, who established the analogous algorithm for graphs.
THE ELEMENT OF LIVING STORM: SWINBURNE AND THE BRONTËS
Authors: Krishnan Lakshmi
Published: September 2013

That Algernon Charles Swinburne loved the Brontës is well known, and his interest in them well documented. His admiration for Charlotte and Emily, in particular, prompted two studies, a short book and an article, which were instrumental in establishing their critical reputation as it exists today. “Those great twin sisters in genius,” as he wrote in 1877, held a powerful sway over Swinburne's imagination (A Note 188–200). He considered them his Yorkshire kinswomen, bred in the wild borderlands of the North (although Swinburne was born in London and spent most of his life in southern England, his family was based in Northumberland, and he never lost his allegiance to the county, calling himself a “Borderer” to the very end). He sensed in their work – Emily's especially – the haunting, poetic influence of the moors, a passionate, romantic spirit that saturated his own verse and prose. More, they were his novelistic predecessors, and his essays on them shed considerable light on his own fictional practice. In framing himself as the Brontës’ apologist, Swinburne was “far ahead of his time,” shaping Victorian criticism (Hyder 15–16). His praise of Wuthering Heights is considered “by some literary historians to be epochmaking” and altered the way in which novels were discussed, analysed, and ultimately evaluated (Watson 247). There are also striking features that suggest Swinburne's own novel Lesbia Brandon – in its trans-genre form and unique milieu – was conceived as an exercise in the manner of Wuthering Heights.
STEVENSON'S THE EBB-TIDE, OR VIRGIL'S AENEID REVISITED: HOW LITERATURE MAY MAKE OR MAR EMPIRES
Authors: Largeaud-Ortéga Sylvie
Published: September 2013

Robert Louis Stevenson took it for granted that Rome had shaped most of the Western modern world: “the average man at home . . . is sunk over the ears in Roman civilisation,” he wrote in a letter to H. B. Baildon (Mehew 474). Unlike the English contemporaries of his own class, he had not been steeped in classical literature, nor had he “internalised Latin literature in the way he ascribed to his English character Robert Herrick . . . in The Ebb-Tide” – mostly because his poor health had precluded regular school attendance (Jolly, Stevenson in the Pacific 37). But he did come to the classics, “from the outside” as Roslyn Jolly demonstrates, through his legal studies: “Rome counted to him as something very much more than a literature – a whole system of law and empire” that had laid the foundations of most Western societies.
Sarkopenie: Definition, Diagnostik und Therapie
Authors: Buess Daniel , Kressig Reto W.
Published: September 2013

Ein altersassoziierter Verlust an Muskelmasse, -kraft und -leistung wird als Sarkopenie bezeichnet. Bis zu 50% der über 80-Jährigen sind betroffen. Die Sarkopenie ist eine wichtige Ursache der Gebrechlichkeit und führt zu körperlicher Behinderung, erhöhter Sturzrate und Institutionalisierung. Als Ursache gelten neben altersassoziierten Abbaumechanismen im neuromuskulären System eine verminderte Nahrungsaufnahme und Sedentarismus. Für das Sarkopenie-Screening wird die Ganggeschwindigkeit gemessen. Liegt sie unter 0,8 m/s, sind weitere Abklärungen indiziert. Diese umfassen eine Muskelmassenbestimmung z. B. mittels DEXA-Methode (Dual Energy X-Ray Absorptiometry), eine dynamometrische Muskelkraftmessung mittels Handkrafttest und eine funktionelle Evaluation mittels «Chair Stand Test». Werden in allen drei Untersuchungen vordefinierte Grenzwerte unterschritten, muss eine Therapie erfolgen. Eine Kombination eines intensiven Schnell- oder Maximalkrafttrainings mit leucinreichen Proteingaben kann die Sarkopenie effizient bekämpfen.
Zwischen Bedrohung und Hoffnung – die onkologische Patientin mit Kinderwunsch
Authors: Tschudin Sibil , Urech Corinne
Published: September 2013

Dank der Fortschritte in der Onkologie steigt die Zahl der Langzeitüberlebenden stetig. Da Infertilität die Folge einer effizienten Krebsbehandlung sein kann, ist der Zugang zu den heute teilweise schon etablierten, teilweise noch experimentellen Möglichkeiten der Fruchtbarkeitserhaltung für junge Krebspatientinnen und ihre weitere Lebensperspektive von zentraler Bedeutung. Die Entscheidung für oder gegen eine fruchtbarkeitserhaltende Massnahme muss in dem engen Zeitfenster zwischen Diagnosestellung und Therapiebeginn erfolgen, sodass die Beratung der Patientin anspruchsvoll ist. Basierend auf einem Überblick über die technischen Möglichkeiten der Fruchtbarkeitserhaltung werden das ethische Dilemma aufgezeigt und die bis heute vorliegenden Forschungsresultate zur psychologischen Dimension und zu den Anforderungen an die Beratenden dargelegt. Aufgrund der Komplexität der Thematik ist eine multidisziplinäre Herangehensweise, die sich an Richtlinien orientiert, unabdingbar.
Rezidivierende Nephrolithiasis – wie weiter?
Authors: Kim Min Jeong , Mayr Michael
Published: September 2013

Die Nephrolithiasis ist eine häufige Erkrankung mit einer hohen Rezidivrate. Neben den Krankheitsfolgen für die Betroffenen entstehen auch relevante Folgekosten für die Gesellschaft. Aufgrund dessen ist eine Metaphylaxe respektive Sekundärprophylaxe zur Erkennung und Korrektur von bestehenden Risikofaktoren von zentraler Bedeutung. Die Abklärungen für eine Metaphylaxe umfassen eine detaillierte Anamneseerhebung, eine Steinanalyse, metabolische Untersuchungen im Urin und im Blut sowie bildgebende Untersuchungen der Nieren und Harnwege. Auf Basis der genannten Untersuchungen werden präventive Massnahmen eingeleitet, die sich auf folgende Ziele konzentrieren: Eine Reduktion der Übersättigung von steinbildenden Salzen im Urin, eine Erhöhung der Urinkonzentration von Inhibitoren der Steinbildung und falls nötig eine Veränderung des Urin-pH. Als Massnahmen stehen diätetische Massnahmen ganz weit im Vordergrund.
Activation of TLR4 signaling promotes gastric cancer progression by inducing mitochondrial ROS production
Authors: Yuan X , Zhou Y , Wang W , Li J , Xie G , Zhao Y , Xu D , Shen L
Published: September 2013

Chronic infection, such as Helicobacter pylori infection, has been associated with the development of gastric cancer (GC). Pathogen-associated molecular patterns can trigger inflammatory responses via Toll-like receptors (TLRs) in GC. Here we showed that Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) was highly expressed in GC cells and was associated with the aggressiveness of GC. The binding of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) to TLR4 on GC cells enhanced proliferation without affecting apoptosis. Higher level of reactive oxygen species (ROS) was induced after activation of TLR4 signaling in GC. Using oxidase inhibitors and antioxidants, we found that mitochondrial ROS (mROS) was major source of TLR4-stimulated ROS generation. This elevated mROS production can be inhibited by diphenylene iodonium (DPI), and the blocking of the mROS production rather than ROS neutralization resulted in cell cycle arrest and the loss of mitochondrial potential, which were plausible reason for decreased cell viability. Furthermore, the increased mROS owing to TLR4 signaling resulted in the activation of Akt phosphorylation and NF-κB p65 nuclear translocation. Altogether, these results reveal a novel pathway linking innate immune signaling to GC cell proliferation, implicate mROS as an important component of cell survival signals and further establish mitochondria as hubs for GC therapies.
Attributing functions to ectomycorrhizal fungal identities in assemblages for nitrogen acquisition under stress
Authors: Pena Rodica , Polle Andrea
Published: September 2013

Mycorrhizal fungi have a key role in nitrogen (N) cycling, particularly in boreal and temperate ecosystems. However, the significance of ectomycorrhizal fungal (EMF) diversity for this important ecosystem function is unknown. Here, EMF taxon-specific N uptake was analyzed via 15N isotope enrichment in complex root-associated assemblages and non-mycorrhizal root tips in controlled experiments. Specific 15N enrichment in ectomycorrhizas, which represents the N influx and export, as well as the exchange of 15N with the N pool of the root tip, was dependent on the fungal identity. Light or water deprivation revealed interspecific response diversity for N uptake. Partial taxon-specific N fluxes for ectomycorrhizas were assessed, and the benefits of EMF assemblages for plant N nutrition were estimated. We demonstrated that ectomycorrhizal assemblages provide advantages for inorganic N uptake compared with non-mycorrhizal roots under environmental constraints but not for unstressed plants. These benefits were realized via stress activation of distinct EMF taxa, which suggests significant functional diversity within EMF assemblages. We developed and validated a model that predicts net N flux into the plant based on taxon-specific 15N enrichment in ectomycorrhizal root tips. These results open a new avenue to characterize the functional traits of EMF taxa in complex communities.
Making a living while starving in the dark: metagenomic insights into the energy dynamics of a carbonate cave
Authors: Ortiz Marianyoly , Legatzki Antje , Neilson Julia W , Fryslie Brandon , Nelson William M , Wing Rod A , Soderlund Carol A , Pryor Barry M , Maier Raina M
Published: September 2013

Carbonate caves represent subterranean ecosystems that are largely devoid of phototrophic primary production. In semiarid and arid regions, allochthonous organic carbon inputs entering caves with vadose-zone drip water are minimal, creating highly oligotrophic conditions; however, past research indicates that carbonate speleothem surfaces in these caves support diverse, predominantly heterotrophic prokaryotic communities. The current study applied a metagenomic approach to elucidate the community structure and potential energy dynamics of microbial communities, colonizing speleothem surfaces in Kartchner Caverns, a carbonate cave in semiarid, southeastern Arizona, USA. Manual inspection of a speleothem metagenome revealed a community genetically adapted to low-nutrient conditions with indications that a nitrogen-based primary production strategy is probable, including contributions from both Archaea and Bacteria. Genes for all six known CO2-fixation pathways were detected in the metagenome and RuBisCo genes representative of the Calvin–Benson–Bassham cycle were over-represented in Kartchner speleothem metagenomes relative to bulk soil, rhizosphere soil and deep-ocean communities. Intriguingly, quantitative PCR found Archaea to be significantly more abundant in the cave communities than in soils above the cave. MEtaGenome ANalyzer (MEGAN) analysis of speleothem metagenome sequence reads found Thaumarchaeota to be the third most abundant phylum in the community, and identified taxonomic associations to this phylum for indicator genes representative of multiple CO2-fixation pathways. The results revealed that this oligotrophic subterranean environment supports a unique chemoautotrophic microbial community with potentially novel nutrient cycling strategies. These strategies may provide key insights into other ecosystems dominated by oligotrophy, including aphotic subsurface soils or aquifers and photic systems such as arid deserts.
Happiness and the Patterns of Life: A Study of Geolocated Tweets
Authors: Frank Morgan R. , Mitchell Lewis , Dodds Peter Sheridan , Danforth Christopher M.
Published: September 2013

The patterns of life exhibited by large populations have been described and modeled both as a basic science exercise and for a range of applied goals such as reducing automotive congestion, improving disaster response and even predicting the location of individuals. However, these studies have had limited access to conversation content, rendering changes in expression as a function of movement invisible. In addition, they typically use the communication between a mobile phone and its nearest antenna tower to infer position, limiting the spatial resolution of the data to the geographical region serviced by each cellphone tower. We use a collection of 37 million geolocated tweets to characterize the movement patterns of 180,000 individuals, taking advantage of several orders of magnitude of increased spatial accuracy relative to previous work. Employing the recently developed sentiment analysis instrument known as the hedonometer, we characterize changes in word usage as a function of movement and find that expressed happiness increases logarithmically with distance from an individual's average location.
Mutation of Trp93 of MauG to tyrosine causes loss of bound Ca2+ and alters the kinetic mechanism of tryptophan tryptophylquinone cofactor biosynthesis
Authors: Shin Sooim , Feng Manliang , Davidson Victor L.
Published: September 2013

The dihaem enzyme MauG catalyses a six-electron oxidation required for post-translational modification of preMADH (precursor of methylamine dehydrogenase) to complete the biosynthesis of its TTQ (tryptophan tryptophylquinone) cofactor. Trp93 of MauG is positioned midway between its two haems, and in close proximity to a Ca2+ that is critical for MauG function. Mutation of Trp93 to tyrosine caused loss of bound Ca2+ and changes in spectral features similar to those observed after removal of Ca2+ from WT (wild-type) MauG. However, whereas Ca2+-depleted WT MauG is inactive, W93Y MauG exhibited TTQ biosynthesis activity. The rate of TTQ biosynthesis from preMADH was much lower than that of WT MauG and exhibited highly unusual kinetic behaviour. The steady-state reaction exhibited a long lag phase, the duration of which was dependent on the concentration of preMADH. The accumulation of reaction intermediates, including a diradical species of preMADH and quinol MADH (methylamine dehydrogenase), was detected during this pre-steady-state phase. In contrast, steady-state oxidation of quinol MADH to TTQ, the final step of TTQ biosynthesis, exhibited no lag phase. A kinetic model is presented to explain the long pre-steady-state phase of the reaction of W93Y MauG, and the role of this conserved tryptophan residue in MauG and related dihaem enzymes is discussed.
Serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D predicts the short-term outcomes of Chinese patients with acute ischaemic stroke
Authors: Tu Wen-Jun , Zhao Sheng-Jie , Xu Dong-Jiang , Chen Hui
Published: September 2013

Low vitamin D levels have been reported to contribute to the risk of cardiovascular events and mortality, especially stroke. In the present study we therefore evaluated the short-term prognostic value of serum 25(OH)D (25-hydroxyvitamin D) in Chinese patients with AIS (acute ischaemic stroke). From February 2010 to September 2012, consecutive stroke patients admitted to the emergency department at two hospitals in Beijing, China were identified. Clinical information was collected, and the serum concentration of 25(OH)D and NIHSS (National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale) were measured at the time of admission. Short-term functional outcome was measured using a modified Rankin Scale (mRS) at 90 days after admission. Multivariate analyses were performed using logistic regression models. During the inclusion period, 231 patients were diagnosed as having AIS, and 220 completed follow-up. The median serum 25(OH)D level was significantly lower in patients with AIS compared with normal controls [14.2 (10.2–18.9) ng/ml compared with 17.9 (12.5–22.9) ng/ml; P<0.001; values are medians (interquartile range)]. 25(OH)D was an independent prognostic marker of short-term functional outcome and death {0.79 (0.73–0.85) and 0.70 (0.50–0.98) respectively [values are odds rations (95% confidence intervals)]; P<0.01 for both, adjusted for NHISS, other predictors and vascular risk factors} in patients with AIS. In ROC (receiver operating characteristic) curve analysis, the prognostic accuracy of 25(OH)D was higher compared with all of the other serum predictors and was in the range of NIHSS score. In conclusion, these findings suggest that 25(OH)D is an independent prognostic marker for death and functional outcome within 90 days in Chinese patients with AIS even after adjusting for possible confounding factors
Differential strain and residual anisotropy in silica glass
Authors: Sato Tomoko , Funamori Nobumasa , Yagi Takehiko
Published: September 2013

To understand the behavior of SiO2 glass under high pressure and differential stress, we conducted radial x-ray diffraction measurements on SiO2 glass up to 60 GPa, in which x-rays irradiate the sample from a direction perpendicular to the compression axis of a uniaxial apparatus. The differential strain of SiO2 glass, determined from the azimuth angle dependence of the position of the first sharp diffraction peak, was very large especially at pressures below 20 GPa and decreased with increasing pressure. After decompression, a large differential strain, equivalent to about 2 GPa in differential stress, remained in the glass at ambient conditions. We attribute this residual anisotropy to the anisotropic permanent densification, which is caused by the anisotropic change in intermediate-range structure, i.e., the anisotropic reconstruction of the network structure consisting of SiO4 tetrahedra.
On the transition between two-phase and single-phase interface dynamics in multicomponent fluids at supercritical pressures
Authors: Dahms Rainer N. , Oefelein Joseph C.
Published: September 2013

A theory that explains the operating pressures where liquid injection processes transition from exhibiting classical two-phase spray atomization phenomena to single-phase diffusion-dominated mixing is presented. Imaging from a variety of experiments have long shown that under certain conditions, typically when the pressure of the working fluid exceeds the thermodynamic critical pressure of the liquid phase, the presence of discrete two-phase flow processes become diminished. Instead, the classical gas-liquid interface is replaced by diffusion-dominated mixing. When and how this transition occurs, however, is not well understood. Modern theory still lacks a physically based model to quantify this transition and the precise mechanisms that lead to it. In this paper, we derive a new model that explains how the transition occurs in multicomponent fluids and present a detailed analysis to quantify it. The model applies a detailed property evaluation scheme based on a modified 32-term Benedict-Webb-Rubin equation of state that accounts for the relevant real-fluid thermodynamic and transport properties of the multicomponent system. This framework is combined with Linear Gradient Theory, which describes the detailed molecular structure of the vapor-liquid interface region. Our analysis reveals that the two-phase interface breaks down not necessarily due to vanishing surface tension forces, but due to thickened interfaces at high subcritical temperatures coupled with an inherent reduction of the mean free molecular path. At a certain point, the combination of reduced surface tension, the thicker interface, and reduced mean free molecular path enter the continuum length scale regime. When this occurs, inter-molecular forces approach that of the multicomponent continuum where transport processes dominate across the interfacial region. This leads to a continuous phase transition from compressed liquid to supercritical mixture states. Based on this theory, a regime diagram for liquid injection is developed that quantifies the conditions under which classical sprays transition to dense-fluid jets. It is shown that the chamber pressure required to support diffusion-dominated mixing dynamics depends on the composition and temperature of the injected liquid and ambient gas. To illustrate the method and analysis, we use conditions typical of diesel engine injection. We also present a companion set of high-speed images to provide experimental validation of the presented theory. The basic theory is quite general and applies to a wide range of modern propulsion and power systems such as liquid rockets, gas turbines, and reciprocating engines. Interestingly, the regime diagram associated with diesel engine injection suggests that classical spray phenomena at typical injection conditions do not occur.
On the way to the highest coordination number in the planar metal-centred aromatic Ta©B10− cluster: Evolution of the structures of TaBn− (n = 3–8)
Authors: Li Wei-Li , Ivanov Alexander S. , Federič Jozef , Romanescu Constantin , Černušák Ivan , Boldyrev Alexander I. , Wang Lai-Sheng
Published: September 2013

The structures and chemical bonding of TaBn− (n = 3–8) clusters are investigated systematically to elucidate the formation of the planar metal-centred aromatic borometallic cluster, Ta©B10− (the © sign is used to designate the central position of the doped atom in monocyclic structures in M©Bn-type planar clusters), which was found previously to have the highest coordination number for a metal atom in a planar geometry. Photoelectron spectroscopy is combined with ab initio calculations to determine the global minima of the TaBn− clusters. We find that from TaB3− to TaB5− the boron atoms nucleate around the central Ta atom to form fan-like structures. A structural transition occurs at TaB6−, which is found to have a hexagonal structure, but with a boron atom in the centre and the Ta atom on the periphery. TaB7− is shown to have a three-dimensional boat-like structure, which can be viewed as a Ta atom coordinated to an elongated B7 cluster from above. The global minimum of the TaB8− cluster is found to be pyramidal with the Ta atom interacting with a B8 monocyclic ring. Starting from this structure, additional boron atoms simply enlarge the boron ring to form the slightly pyramidal TaB9− cluster and eventually the perfectly planar Ta-centred B10-ring aromatic cluster, Ta©B10−. It is shown that boron atoms do not nucleate smoothly around a Ta atom on the way to the decacoordinated Ta©B10− molecular wheel, but rather the competition between B–B interactions and Ta–B interactions determines the most stable structures of the smaller TaBn− (n = 3–8) clusters.
Natural occupation numbers: When do they vanish?
Authors: Giesbertz K. J. H. , van Leeuwen R.
Published: September 2013

The non-vanishing of the natural orbital (NO) occupation numbers of the one-particle density matrix of many-body systems has important consequences for the existence of a density matrix-potential mapping for nonlocal potentials in reduced density matrix functional theory and for the validity of the extended Koopmans' theorem. On the basis of Weyl's theorem we give a connection between the differentiability properties of the ground state wavefunction and the rate at which the natural occupations approach zero when ordered as a descending series. We show, in particular, that the presence of a Coulomb cusp in the wavefunction leads, in general, to a power law decay of the natural occupations, whereas infinitely differentiable wavefunctions typically have natural occupations that decay exponentially. We analyze for a number of explicit examples of two-particle systems that in case the wavefunction is non-analytic at its spatial diagonal (for instance, due to the presence of a Coulomb cusp) the natural orbital occupations are non-vanishing. We further derive a more general criterium for the non-vanishing of NO occupations for two-particle wavefunctions with a certain separability structure. On the basis of this criterium we show that for a two-particle system of harmonically confined electrons with a Coulombic interaction (the so-called Hookium) the natural orbital occupations never vanish.
Integrated experimental setup for angle resolved photoemission spectroscopy of transuranic materials
Authors: Graham Kevin S. , Joyce John J. , Durakiewicz Tomasz
Published: September 2013

We have developed the Angle Resolved Photoemission Spectroscopy (ARPES) system for transuranic materials. The ARPES transuranic system is an endstation upgrade to the Laser Plasma Light Source (LPLS) at Los Alamos National Laboratory. The LPLS is a tunable light source for photoemission with a photon energy range covering the vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) and soft x-ray regions (27–140 eV). The LPLS was designed and developed for transuranic materials. Transuranic photoemission is currently not permitted at the public synchrotrons worldwide in the VUV energy range due to sample encapsulation requirements. With the addition of the ARPES capability to the LPLS system there is an excellent opportunity to explore new details centered on the electronic structure of actinide and transuranic materials.
Selective ionization/dissociation of oriented N2O molecules by asymmetric fs laser field
Authors: Kotsina N. , Kaziannis S. , Danakas S. , Kosmidis C.
Published: September 2013

We report on the selective ionization of oriented nitrous oxide (N2O) molecules in gas phase by the use of an intense asymmetric two-color ω/2ω 40 fs laser field. By means of a time-of-flight mass spectrometer the induced N2O mass spectra have been recorded as a function of the relative phase of the two-color laser fields. It is found that the applied method facilitates the distinction of different dissociation channels that result in fragments with the same mass and kinetic energy. Thus, the potential of the employed technique for phase control of the molecular excitation for the case of N2O is explored.
Optical emission spectroscopy at the large RF driven negative ion test facility ELISE: Instrumental setup and first results
Authors: Wünderlich D. , Fantz U. , Franzen P. , Riedl R. , Bonomo F.
Published: September 2013

One of the main topics to be investigated at the recently launched large (Asource = 1.0 × 0.9 m2) ITER relevant RF driven negative ion test facility ELISE (Extraction from a Large Ion Source Experiment) is the connection between the homogeneity of the plasma parameters close to the extraction system and the homogeneity of the extracted negative hydrogen ion beam. While several diagnostics techniques are available for measuring the beam homogeneity, the plasma parameters are determined by optical emission spectroscopy (OES) solely. First OES measurements close to the extraction system show that without magnetic filter field the vertical profile of the plasma emission is more or less symmetric, with maxima of the emission representing the projection of the plasma generation volumes, and a distinct minimum in between. The profile changes with the strength of the magnetic filter field but under all circumstances the plasma emission in ELISE is much more homogeneous compared to the smaller IPP prototype sources. Planned after this successful demonstration of the ELISE OES system is to combine OES with tomography in order to determine locally resolved values for the plasma parameters.
Non-thermal mechanism of weak microwave fields influence on neurons
Authors: Shneider M. N. , Pekker M.
Published: September 2013

A non-thermal mechanism of weak microwave field impact on a nerve fiber is proposed. It is shown that in the range of about 30–300 GHz, there are strongly pronounced resonances associated with the excitation of ultrasonic vibrations in the membrane as a result of interaction with electromagnetic radiation. The viscous dissipation limits the resonances and results in their broadening. These forced vibrations create acoustic pressure, which may lead to the redistribution of the protein transmembrane channels, and thus changing the threshold of the action potential excitation in the axons of the neural network. The influence of the electromagnetic microwave radiation on various specific areas of myelin nerve fibers was analyzed: the nodes of Ranvier, and the initial segment—the area between the neuron hillock and the first part of the axon covered with the myelin layer. It was shown that the initial segment is the most sensitive area of the myelined neurons from which the action potential normally starts.
Fiber-pigtailed optical tweezer for single-atom trapping and single-photon generation
Authors: Garcia S. , Maxein D. , Hohmann L. , Reichel J. , Long R.
Published: September 2013

We demonstrate a miniature, fiber-coupled optical tweezer to trap a single atom. The same fiber is used to trap a single atom and to read out its fluorescence. To obtain a low background level, the tweezer light is chopped, and we measure the influence of the chopping frequency on the atom's lifetime. We use the single atom as a single-photon source at 780 nm and measure the second-order correlation function of the emitted photons. Because of its miniature, robust, fiber-pigtailed design, this tweezer can be implemented in a broad range of experiments where single atoms are used as a resource.
In situ x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy for electrochemical reactions in ordinary solvents
Authors: Masuda Takuya , Yoshikawa Hideki , Noguchi Hidenori , Kawasaki Tadahiro , Kobata Masaaki , Kobayashi Keisuke , Uosaki Kohei
Published: September 2013

In situ electrochemical X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) apparatus, which allows XPS at solid/liquid interfaces under potential control, was constructed utilizing a microcell with an ultra-thin Si membrane, which separates vacuum and a solution. Hard X-rays from a synchrotron source penetrate into the Si membrane surface exposed to the solution. Electrons emitted at the Si/solution interface can pass through the membrane and be analyzed by an analyzer placed in vacuum. Its operation was demonstrated for potential-induced Si oxide growth in water. Effect of potential and time on the thickness of Si and Si oxide layers was quantitatively determined at sub-nanometer resolution.
Digital Serious Game for Urban Planning: “B3—Design Your Marketplace!”
Authors: Poplin Alenka
Published: September 2013

The main goal of this paper is to study the design and implementation of a digital serious game for civic engagement in urban planning. Digital serious games are games that aim to support learning in a playful and engaging way. Learning about the environment and planned changes is essential in civic engagement. The study case is taken from a city district, Billstedt, in Hamburg, Germany. In the implementation of a game concept we concentrated on the design of a marketplace in Billstedt. The game was called “B3—Design your Marketplace!” The B3 game aims to provide a playful digital environment in which the citizens gain information about the current situation in the city district, have the possibility of submitting their own designs for the marketplace, vote for the preferred designs, and chat with the experts and other participants. The prototype of the B3 serious game was evaluated with a group of students and a group of elderly people. The majority of the participants involved in testing expressed appreciation for the digital serious game as a new form of online civic engagement in urban planning. The paper concludes with a discussion about the potential of digital serious games for civic engagement and open research questions.
More Than Meat: Rediscovering the Cow beneath the Face in Urban Heritage Practice
Authors: Hillier Jean
Published: September 2013

I walk fantastically with the cows along the stock route of the former Newmarket saleyards and abattoirs, through what have become the regenerated residential estates of Lynch's Bridge/Kensington Banks in Melbourne, Australia. I challenge the practice of heritage conservation as a closed story of the past ‘as it was’, which projects a set of sanitised meanings that allow for neither subtext nor counter readings. I problematise the concrete machine of heritage protection utilising Deleuze and Guattari's ideas of faciality, where reassuring mosaic faces of cows going to the saleyards belong, but anguished faces of cows at the slaughterhouse do not. I call upon the cow's face as potential probe head to forge connections between past—present—future in hot heritage practices which challenge people to question their values and actions. Rediscovery of the cow beneath the face at Newmarket saleyards and abattoirs could intervene in people's habitual patterns of thinking and acting, triggering renegotiation of cultural meanings of ethics, welfare, and rights, regarding not only nonhuman animals, but also Othered humans, such as those penned in detention centres. Through experiential experiment rather than controlled interpretation, hot heritage practices may create evental spaces for thinking and acting otherwise.
Targeted trapping surveys shed new light on the distribution and habitat characteristics of the Carpentarian pseudantechinus (Pseudantechinus mimulus), a threatened dasyurid marsupial
Authors: Lloyd P. , Sanders M. , Reis T. , Abbott A.
Published: September 2013

Through a targeted trapping survey we provide important new records and habitat descriptions for the Carpentarian pseudantechinus (Pseudantechinus mimulus) on mainland Australia, including the first records from landscapes dominated by rocks other than sandstone. We hypothesise that continued invasion by an introduced pasture grass may constitute an emerging threatening process to this rare species.
Generation of a replication-competent simian–human immunodeficiency virus, the neutralization sensitivity of which can be enhanced in the presence of a small-molecule CD4 mimic
Authors: Otsuki Hiroyuki , Hishiki Takayuki , Miura Tomoyuki , Hashimoto Chie , Narumi Tetsuo , Tamamura Hirokazu , Yoshimura Kazuhisa , Matsushita Shuzo , Igarashi Tatsuhiko
Published: September 2013

Simian–human immunodeficiency virus (SHIV) carrying the envelope from the clade B clinical human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) isolate MNA, designated SHIV MNA, was generated through intracellular homologous recombination. SHIV MNA inherited biological properties from the parental HIV-1, including CCR5 co-receptor preference, resistance to neutralization by the anti-V3 loop mAb KD-247 and loss of resistance in the presence of the CD4-mimic small-molecule YYA-021. SHIV MNA showed productive replication in rhesus macaque PBMCs. Experimental infection of a rhesus macaque with SHIV MNA caused a transient but high titre of plasma viral RNA and a moderate antibody response. Immunoglobulin in the plasma at 24 weeks post-infection was capable of neutralizing SHIV MNA in the presence but not in the absence of YYA-021. SHIV MNA could serve a model for development of novel therapeutic interventions based on CD4-mimic-mediated conversion of envelope protein susceptible to antibody neutralization.
The state and the development of corporate insolvency law in China and Russia
Authors: Lai Hang Hui Dennis
Published: September 2013

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to explore the origin of the development of insolvency laws in China and Russia and explores the evolving role of the states in the legislative process.

Design/methodology/approach

– The study is conducted based on the analysis of historical materials and the relevant secondary sources written in Chinese and Russian.

Findings

– The paper argues that the development of the insolvency laws in China and Russia underlines the diverging perceptions by the states about the ways to improve economic performance through reforming their respective state enterprise system. On the other hand, the unsatisfactory utilisation of the laws in the these countries revealed the incompleteness of the wider institutional reform that opened up possibilities for predatory exploitations and corruptive practices which in turn upset the market-building in these developing economies.

Originality value

– This study highlights that by bring back the state into the analysis, the competing ideas, interests and institutions in the development of insolvency laws can be identified.