bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Valorization of Biomass Hydrolysis Waste: Activated Carbon from Humins as Exceptional Sorbent for Wastewater Treatment
Authors: Kang Shimin , Fu Jinxia , Deng Zhituan , Jiang Shaohui , Zhong Guoyu , Xu Yongjun , Guo Jianfeng , Zhou Jingwen
Published: May 2018

Humins, waste from biomass hydrolysis, are the main factor limiting the utilization efficiency of biomass carbon. In the present study, waste humins were employed for activated carbon production though KOH activation in a temperature range of 500–900 °C. The structure and properties of the activated carbons were studied, and a honeycomb-like macropore structure was observed. High activation temperature was demonstrated to be capable of promoting the formation of activated carbon with high surface area, high pore volume and high adsorption capacity. The activated carbon obtained by carbonization at 800 °C (KOH800) was selected as sorbent to adsorb methylene blue (MB) and phenol in aqueous solution, and the adsorption process can be explained by pseudo-second-order kinetic model. The adsorption behavior complies with Langmuir isotherm model and exhibits superior adsorption capacity of 1195 and 218 mg/g for MB and phenol, respectively. The impacts of surface area, acidic active sites and pore structures were also investigated, and it was found that the adsorption of approximately 44.0% MB and 39.7% phenol were contributed by the pores with apertures from 1.7 nm to 300 nm.
Comparative Study of Passive and Active Islanding Detection Methods for PV Grid-Connected Systems
Authors: Abokhalil Ahmed G. , Awan Ahmed Bilal , Al-Qawasmi Abdel-Rahman
Published: May 2018

Photovoltaic (PV) power grid-connected systems have the advantages of being prompt and reliable supplies of electrical power. Nevertheless, the installation and operation requirements from the grid side have to be fulfilled in order to guarantee the security of the PV system technicians and the efficiency of the power system. Particularly, the potential for “islanding” is one of the dreads that are brought about by PV grid-connected systems. To be able to tackle these concerns, this paper investigates recent islanding detection techniques and topologies for PV systems. Active islanding detection techniques apply regular disturbances to the inverter system and then analyze the output voltage or frequency to investigate the islanding and stability of the grid. If the injected disturbances influence the load voltage or frequency, the controller forces the intermediate inverter to stop sending power to the connected load. In addition, several islanding detection techniques that inject a periodical signal to the reference current that causes a change in the magnitude of inverter output voltage when islanding happens in a three-phase photovoltaic grid-connected system are discussed. The validity of the proposed technique is tested and verified through PSIM software.
Antimicrobial and Chemotactic Activity of Scorpion-Derived Peptide, ToAP2, against Mycobacterium massiliensis
Authors: Marques-Neto Lázaro M. , Trentini Monalisa M. , Das Neves Rogério C. , Resende Danilo P. , Procopio Victor O. , Da Costa Adeliane C. , Kipnis André , Mortari Márcia R. , Schwartz Elisabeth F. , Junqueira-Kipnis Ana Paula
Published: May 2018

Mycobacterium massiliense is a rapid growing, multidrug-resistant, non-tuberculous mycobacteria that is responsible for a wide spectrum of skin and soft tissue infections, as well as other organs, such as the lungs. Antimicrobial peptides had been described as broad-spectrum antimicrobial, chemotactic, and immunomodulator molecules. In this study we evaluated an antimicrobial peptide derived from scorpion Tityus obscurus as an anti-mycobacterial agent in vitro and in vivo. Bioinformatics analyses demonstrated that the peptide ToAP2 have a conserved region similar to several membrane proteins, as well as mouse cathelicidin. ToAP2 inhibited the growth of four M. massiliense strains (GO01, GO06, GO08, and CRM0020) at a minimal bactericidal concentration (MBC) of 200 µM. MBC concentration used to treat infected macrophages was able to inhibit 50% of the bacterial growth of all strains. ToAP2 treatment of infected mice with bacilli reduced the bacterial load in the liver, lung, and spleen, similarly to clarithromycin levels (90%). ToAP2 alone recruited monocytes (F4/80low Gr1), neutrophils (F4/80− Gr1), and eosinophils (F4/80+ Gr1+). ToAP2, together with M. massiliense infection, was able to increase F4/80low and reduce the percentage of F4/80high macrophages when compared with infected and untreated mice. ToAP2 has in vitro anti-microbial activity that is improved in vivo due to chemotactic activity.
Potential Animal Reservoir of Mycobacterium ulcerans: A Systematic Review
Authors: Singh Avishek , McBride William John Hannan , Govan Brenda , Pearson Mark
Published: May 2018

Mycobacterium ulcerans is the causative agent of Buruli ulcer, also known in Australia as Daintree ulcer or Bairnsdale ulcer. This destructive skin disease is characterized by extensive and painless necrosis of the skin and soft tissue with the formation of large ulcers, commonly on the leg or arm. To date, 33 countries with tropical, subtropical and temperate climates in Africa, the Americas, Asia and the Western Pacific have reported cases of Buruli ulcer. The disease is rarely fatal, although it may lead to permanent disability and/or disfigurement if not treated appropriately or in time. It is the third most common mycobacterial infection in the world after tuberculosis and leprosy. The precise mode of transmission of M. ulcerans is yet to be elucidated. Nevertheless, it is possible that the mode of transmission varies with different geographical areas and epidemiological settings. The knowledge about the possible routes of transmission and potential animal reservoirs of M. ulcerans is poorly understood and still remains patchy. Infectious diseases arise from the interaction of agent, host and environment. The majority of emerging or remerging infectious disease in human populations is spread by animals: either wildlife, livestock or pets. Animals may act as hosts or reservoirs and subsequently spread the organism to the environment or directly to the human population. The reservoirs may or may not be the direct source of infection for the hosts; however, they play a major role in maintenance of the organism in the environment, and in the mode of transmission. This remains valid for M. ulcerans. Possums have been suggested as one of the reservoir of M. ulcerans in south-eastern Australia, where possums ingest M. ulcerans from the environment, amplify them and shed the organism through their faeces. We conducted a systematic review with selected key words on PubMed and INFORMIT databases to aggregate available published data on animal reservoirs of M. ulcerans around the world. After certain inclusion and exclusion criteria were implemented, a total of 17 studies was included in the review. A variety of animals around the world e.g., rodents, shrews, possums (ringtail and brushtail), horses, dogs, alpacas, koalas and Indian flap-shelled turtles have been recorded as being infected with M. ulcerans. The majority of studies included in this review identified animal reservoirs as predisposing to the emergence and reemergence of M. ulcerans infection. Taken together, from the selected studies in this systematic review, it is clear that exotic wildlife and native mammals play a significant role as reservoirs for M. ulcerans.
Effects of a Chimeric Lysin against Planktonic and Sessile Enterococcus faecalis Hint at Potential Application in Endodontic Therapy
Authors: Li Wuyou , Yang Hang , Gong Yujing , Wang Shujuan , Li Yuhong , Wei Hongping
Published: May 2018

Enterococcus faecalis is a commensal opportunistic pathogen found in the intestine, mouth, and vaginal tract of humans. As an invasive pathogen in the oral cavity, E. faecalis is one of the leading causes of periapical endodontic lesions. However, due to the strong biofilm-forming capacity and tolerance of E. faecalis to conventional antibiotics and treatments, limited therapeutic options are available. In the present study, we investigated the activity of ClyR, a chimeric lysin with extended streptococcal lytic spectrum, against planktonic and sessile E. faecalis cells in vitro and in an ex vivo dental model. Our results showed that ClyR has robust and rapid lytic activity against multiple E. faecalis strains, killing >90% planktonic cells within 1 min at a concentration of 50 μg/mL. The biochemical experiments combined with microscopy analysis revealed that ClyR degrades E. faecalis biofilm with high efficacy in a dose-dependent manner, reducing the survival rate to <40% within biofilms after treatment with 50 μg/mL ClyR for 1 h. In the ex vivo dental model, ClyR showed a significant biofilm removal efficacy, killing >90% viable bacteria within biofilms at a low dose of 50 μg/mL, which is much better than ampicillin and similar to calcium hydroxide, the extensively used routine intracanal medicament in the treatment of endodontics and dental traumatology. The robust activity of ClyR against both planktonic and sessile E. faecalis suggests the potential of ClyR in treating endodontic infections caused by E. faecalis.
Adsorption of Reactive Brilliant Red X-3B in Aqueous Solutions on Clay–Biochar Composites from Bagasse and Natural Attapulgite
Authors: Chen Si , Zhou Min , Wang Han-Fei , Wang Teng , Wang Xiao-Shu , Hou Hao-Bo , Song Bi-Yu
Published: May 2018

The study aims to determine the adsorption mechanism of reactive brilliant red X-3B (RBR) on a novel low-cost clay–biochar composite with different proportions of bagasse and natural attapulgite (ATP). Pure bagasse, pure ATP, and two mixtures with weight ratios of 1:5 and 1:3 were pyrolyzed at 700 °C for 4 h in a muffle furnace. Biochar samples were characterized with an element analyzer and by scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, Brunauer–Emmett–Teller method, and zeta potential measurement. Results of the batch and leaching experiments showed that the adsorption capacities followed the order of 1:3 clay–biochar > 1:5 clay–biochar > bagasse biochar > pure ATP. Furthermore, ATP and bagasse exerted a synergistic effect on the adsorption of RBR. The adsorption data showed good correlation with the Langmuir isotherm, and the kinetic data were fitted to the pseudo-second-order model. The adsorption of RBR on clay-biochar involved electrostatic interaction, hydrogen bond, π–π interactions, and surface participation. The modification of biochar by ATP improved the adsorption capacity by increasing functional groups and creating adsorption sites. Therefore, ATP-modified clay–biochar composites could be effective adsorbents for the removal of RBR from wastewater.
A survey of chiral hypervalent iodine reagents in asymmetric synthesis
Authors: Ghosh Soumen , Pradhan Suman , Chatterjee Indranil
Published: May 2018

The recent years have witnessed a remarkable growth in the area of chiral hypervalent iodine chemistry. These environmentally friendly, mild and economic reagents have been used in catalytic or stoichiometric amounts as an alternative to transition metals for delivering enantioenriched molecules. Varieties of different chiral reagents and their use for demanding asymmetric transformations have been documented over the last 25 years. This review highlights the contribution of different chiral hypervalent iodine reagents in diverse asymmetric conversions.
MONETARY POLICY AND THE CAUSALITY BETWEEN INFLATION AND MONEY SUPPLY IN INDONESIA
Authors: Sasongko Gatot
Published: May 2018

Conceptually and empirically, inflation volatility in Indonesia is a monetary and fiscal phenomenon. This study focuses on the macroeconomic policy and public policy especially causality between two variables namely inflation and money supply in Indonesia. This study uses Indonesian macroeconomic data of inflation and money supply from the Bank of Indonesia publication during 2007.1–2017.7. Inflation is measured by the consumer price index, reflects the annual percentage change in costs of acquiring a basket of goods and services to the average consumers that may change at specified intervals. Meanwhile, money supply is measured by the currency, demand deposits, time deposits, and saving deposits. Methodically, this study uses the Granger Causality model to determine the causality between inflation and money supply. The results show that there is a one-way causality between inflation and money supply in Indonesia. These findings imply that money supply causes inflation, but not vice versa. This condition implies that the role of Indonesian Government and Bank of Indonesia were very crucial in managing and controlling macroeconomic policy and public policy. Then, analysis of money supply and inflation also related to impacting factors such as money laundering, role of banks, taxation, tax evasion, and corruption.
Driving Solar Giant Cells through the Self-organization of Near-surface Plumes
Authors: Nelson Nicholas J. , Featherstone Nicholas A. , Miesch Mark S. , Toomre Juri
Published: May 2018

Global 3D simulations of solar giant-cell convection have provided significant insight into the processes which yield the Sun’s observed differential rotation and cyclic dynamo action. However, as we move to higher-resolution simulations a variety of codes have encountered what has been termed the convection conundrum. As these simulations increase in resolution and hence the level of turbulence achieved, they tend to produce weak or even anti-solar differential rotation patterns associated with a weak rotational influence (high Rossby number) due to large convective velocities. One potential culprit for this convection conundrum is the upper boundary condition applied in most simulations, which is generally impenetrable. Here we present an alternative stochastic plume boundary condition which imposes small-scale convective plumes designed to mimic near-surface convective downflows, thus allowing convection to carry the majority of the outward solar energy flux up to and through our simulated upper boundary. The use of a plume boundary condition leads to significant changes in the convective driving realized in the simulated domain and thus to the convective energy transport, the dominant scale of the convective enthalpy flux, and the relative strength of the strongest downflows, the downflow network, and the convective upflows. These changes are present even far from the upper boundary layer. Additionally, we demonstrate that, in spite of significant changes, giant cell morphology in the convective patterns is still achieved with self-organization of the imposed boundary plumes into downflow lanes, cellular patterns, and even rotationally aligned banana cells in equatorial regions. This plume boundary presents an alternative pathway for 3D global convection simulations where driving is non-local and may provide a new approach toward addressing the convection conundrum.
Chemical Composition of Two Bright, Extremely Metal-poor Stars from the SDSS MARVELS Pre-survey
Authors: Bandyopadhyay Avrajit , Sivarani Thirupathi , Susmitha Antony , Beers Timothy C. , Giridhar Sunetra , Surya Arun , Masseron Thomas
Published: May 2018

SDSS J082625.70+612515.10 (V = 11.4; [Fe/H] = −3.1) and SDSS J134144.60+474128.90 (V = 12.4; [Fe/H] = −3.2) were observed with the SDSS 2.5m telescope as part of the SDSS MARVELS spectroscopic pre-survey and identified as extremely metal-poor (EMP; [Fe/H] < −3.0) stars during the high-resolution follow-up using the Hanle Echelle Spectrograph (HESP) on the 2.0-m Himalayan Chandra Telescope. In this paper, the first science results using HESP, we present a detailed analysis of their chemical abundances. Both stars exhibit under-abundances in their neutron capture elements, while one of them (SDSS J134144.60+474128.90) is clearly enhanced in carbon. Lithium was also detected in this star at a level of about A(Li) = 1.95. The spectra were obtained over a span of 6–24 months, and indicate that both stars could be members of binary systems. We compare the elemental abundances derived for these two stars along with other carbon-enhanced metal-poor (CEMP) and EMP stars, in order to understand the nature of their parent supernovae. We find that CEMP-no stars and EMP-dwarfs show a very similar trend in their lithium abundances at various metallicities. We also find indications of CEMP-no stars having larger abundances of Cr and Co at given metallicities compared to EMP stars.
Two Episodes of Magnetic Reconnections during a Confined Circular-ribbon Flare
Authors: Li Ting , Yang Shuhong , Zhang Qingmin , Hou Yijun , Zhang Jun
Published: May 2018

We analyze a unique event with an M1.8 confined circular-ribbon flare on 2016 February 13, with successive formations of two circular ribbons at the same location. The flare had two distinct phases of UV and extreme ultraviolet emissions with an interval of about 270 s, of which the second peak was energetically more important. The first episode was accompanied by the eruption of a mini-filament and the fast elongation motion of a thin circular ribbon (CR1) along the counterclockwise direction at a speed of about 220 km s−1. Two elongated spine-related ribbons were also observed, with the inner ribbon co-temporal with CR1 and the remote brightenings forming ∼20 s later. In the second episode, another mini-filament erupted and formed a blowout jet. The second circular ribbon and two spine-related ribbons showed similar elongation motions with that during the first episode. The extrapolated three-dimensional coronal magnetic fields reveal the existence of a fan-spine topology, together with a quasi-separatrix layer (QSL) halo surrounding the fan plane and another QSL structure outlining the inner spine. We suggest that continuous null-point reconnection between the filament and ambient open field occurs in each episode, leading to the sequential opening of the filament and significant shifts of the fan plane footprint. For the first time, we propose a compound eruption model of circular-ribbon flares consisting of two sets of successively formed ribbons and eruptions of multiple filaments in a fan-spine-type magnetic configuration.
The Frequency of Intrinsic X-Ray Weakness among Broad Absorption Line Quasars
Authors: Liu Hezhen , Luo B. , Brandt W. N. , Gallagher S. C. , Garmire G. P.
Published: May 2018

We present combined ≈14–37 ks Chandra observations of seven z = 1.6–2.7 broad absorption line (BAL) quasars selected from the Large Bright Quasar Survey (LBQS). These seven objects are high-ionization BAL (HiBAL) quasars, and they were undetected in the Chandra hard band (2–8 keV) in previous observations. The stacking analyses of previous Chandra observations suggested that these seven objects likely contain some candidates for intrinsically X-ray weak BAL quasars. With the new Chandra observations, six targets are detected. We calculate their effective power-law photon indices and hard-band flux weakness, and find that two objects, LBQS 1203+1530 and LBQS 1442–0011, show soft/steep spectral shapes (

and

) and significant X-ray weakness in the hard band (by factors of ≈15 and 12). We conclude that the two HiBAL quasars are good candidates for intrinsically X-ray weak BAL quasars. The mid-infrared-to-ultraviolet spectral energy distributions of the two candidates are consistent with those of typical quasars. We constrain the fraction of intrinsically X-ray weak active galactic nuclei (AGNs) among HiBAL quasars to be ≈7%–10% (2/29–3/29), and we estimate it is ≈6%–23% (2/35–8/35) among the general BAL quasar population. Such a fraction is considerably larger than that among non-BAL quasars, and we suggest that intrinsically X-ray weak quasars are preferentially observed as BAL quasars. Intrinsically X-ray weak AGNs likely comprise a small minority of the luminous type 1 AGN population, and they should not affect significantly the completeness of these AGNs found in deep X-ray surveys.
Motions in Prominence Barbs Observed on the Solar Limb
Authors: Kucera T. A. , Ofman L. , Tarbell T. D.
Published: May 2018

We analyze and discuss an example of prominence barbs observed on the limb on 2016 January 7 by the Hinode/Solar Optical Telescope in Ca ii and Hα, the Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph, with slit jaw images and Mg ii spectral data, and the Solar Dynamics Observatory’s Atmospheric Imaging Assembly. In the recent literature there has been a debate concerning whether these features, sometimes referred to as “tornadoes,” are rotating. Our data analysis provides no evidence for systematic rotation in the barbs. We do find line-of-sight motions in the barbs that vary with location and time. We also discuss observations of features moving along the barbs. These moving features are elongated parallel to the solar limb and tend to come in clusters of features moving along the same or similar paths in the plane of the sky during a period of 10 minutes to an hour, moving toward or away from the limb. The motion may have a component along the line of sight as well. The spectral data indicate that the features are Doppler shifted. We discuss possible explanations for these features.
In Situ Observations of Harmonic Alfvén Waves and Associated Heavy Ion Heating
Authors: Chen Huayue , Gao Xinliang , Lu Quanming , Wang Shui
Published: May 2018

Resonant ion heating by high-frequency Alfvén waves has long been believed to be the primary dissipation mechanism for solar coronal heating, and these high-frequency Alfvén waves are considered to be generated via cascade from low-frequency Alfvén waves. In this study, we report an unusual harmonic Alfvén event from in situ observations by the Van Allen Probes in the magnetosphere, having an environment similar to that in the solar corona. The harmonic Alfvén waves, which propagate almost along the wave vector of the fundamental waves, are considered to be generated due to the interaction between quasi-parallel Alfvén waves and plasma density fluctuations with almost identical frequency. These high-frequency harmonic Alfvén waves can then cyclotron resonantly heat the heavy ions. Our observations provide an important insight into solar corona heating by Alfvén waves.
Planet-driven Spiral Arms in Protoplanetary Disks. II. Implications
Authors: Bae Jaehan , Zhu Zhaohuan
Published: May 2018

We examine whether various characteristics of planet-driven spiral arms can be used to constrain the masses of unseen planets and their positions within their disks. By carrying out two-dimensional hydrodynamic simulations varying planet mass and disk gas temperature, we find that a larger number of spiral arms form with a smaller planet mass and a lower disk temperature. A planet excites two or more spiral arms interior to its orbit for a range of disk temperatures characterized by the disk aspect ratio

, whereas exterior to a planet’s orbit multiple spiral arms can form only in cold disks with

. Constraining the planet mass with the pitch angle of spiral arms requires accurate disk temperature measurements that might be challenging even with ALMA. However, the property that the pitch angle of planet-driven spiral arms decreases away from the planet can be a powerful diagnostic to determine whether the planet is located interior or exterior to the observed spirals. The arm-to-arm separations increase as a function of planet mass, consistent with previous studies; however, the exact slope depends on disk temperature as well as the radial location where the arm-to-arm separations are measured. We apply these diagnostics to the spiral arms seen in MWC 758 and Elias 2–27. As shown in Bae et al., planet-driven spiral arms can create concentric rings and gaps, which can produce a more dominant observable signature than spiral arms under certain circumstances. We discuss the observability of planet-driven spiral arms versus rings and gaps.
The Circumstellar Disk and Asymmetric Outflow of the EX Lup Outburst System
Authors: Hales A. S. , Pérez S. , Saito M. , Pinte C. , Knee L. B. G. , Gregorio-Monsalvo I. de , Dent B. , López C. , Plunkett A. , Cortés P. , Corder S. , Cieza L.
Published: May 2018

We present Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) observations at 0.″3 resolution of EX Lup, the prototype of the EXor class of outbursting pre-main-sequence stars. The circumstellar disk of EX Lup is resolved for the first time in 1.3 mm continuum emission and in the J = 2–1 spectral line of three isotopologues of CO. At the spatial resolution and sensitivity achieved, the compact dust continuum disk shows no indications of clumps, fragments, or asymmetries above the 5σ level. Radiative transfer modeling constrains the characteristic radius of the dust disk to 23 au and the total dust mass to 1.0 × 10−4
M
⊙ (33 M
⊕), similar to other EXor sources. The 13CO and C18O line emissions trace the disk rotation and are used to constrain the disk geometry, kinematics, and a total gas disk mass of 5.1 × 10−4
M
⊙. The 12CO emission extends out to a radius of 200 au and is asymmetric, with one side deviating from Keplerian rotation. We detect blueshifted, 12CO arc-like emission located 0.″8 to the northwest and spatially disconnected from the disk emission. We interpret this extended structure as the brightened walls of a cavity excavated by an outflow, which are more commonly seen in FUor sources. Such outflows have also been seen in the borderline FU/EXor object V1647 Ori, but not toward EXor objects. Our detection provides evidence that the outflow phenomenon persists into the EXor phase, suggesting that FUor and EXor objects are a continuous population in which outflow activity declines with age, with transitional objects such as EX Lup and V1647 Ori.
The Origin of the Relation between Metallicity and Size in Star-forming Galaxies
Authors: Almeida J. Sánchez , Vecchia C. Dalla
Published: May 2018

For the same stellar mass, physically smaller star-forming galaxies are also metal richer. What causes the relation remains unclear. The central star-forming galaxies in the EAGLE cosmological numerical simulation reproduce the observed trend. We use them to explore the origin of the relation assuming that the physical mechanism responsible for the anticorrelation between size and gas-phase metallicity is the same in the simulated and the observed galaxies. We consider the three most likely causes: (1) metal-poor gas inflows feeding the star formation (SF) process, (2) metal-rich gas outflows particularly efficient in shallow gravitational potentials, and (3) enhanced efficiency of the SF process in compact galaxies. Outflows (cause 2) and enhanced SF efficiency (cause 3) can be discarded. Metal-poor gas inflows (cause 1) produce the correlation in the simulated galaxies. Galaxies grow in size with time, so those that receive gas later are both metal poorer and larger, giving rise to the observed anticorrelation. As expected within this explanation, larger galaxies have younger stellar populations. We explore the variation with redshift of the relation, which is maintained up to, at least, redshift 8.
Extended Millimeter Emission in the HD 141569 Circumstellar Disk Detected with ALMA
Authors: White Jacob Aaron , Boley A. C.
Published: May 2018

We present archival Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) observations of the HD 141569 circumstellar disk at 345, 230, and 100 GHz. These data detect extended millimeter emission that is exterior to the inner disk. We find through simultaneous visibility modeling of all three data sets that the system’s morphology is described well by a two-component disk model. The inner disk ranges from approximately 16–45 au with a spectral index of 1.81 (q = 2.95), and the outer disk ranges from 95 to 300 au with a spectral index of 2.28 (q = 3.21). Azimuthally averaged radial emission profiles derived from the continuum images at each frequency show potential emission that is consistent with the visibility modeling. The analysis presented here shows that at ∼5 Myr, HD 141569's grain size distribution is steeper and therefore possibly more evolved in the outer disk than in the inner disk.
Gemini/GMOS Spectroscopy of Globular Clusters in the Merger Remnant Galaxy M85
Authors: Ko Youkyung , Lee Myung Gyoon , Park Hong Soo , Sohn Jubee , Lim Sungsoon , Hwang Narae
Published: May 2018

M85 is a peculiar S0 galaxy in Virgo and a well-known merger remnant. We present the first spectroscopic study of globular clusters (GCs) in M85. We obtain spectra for 21 GC candidates and the nucleus of M85 using the Gemini Multi-Object Spectrograph on the Gemini North 8.1 m telescope. From their radial velocities, 20 of the GCs are found to be members of M85. We find a strong rotation signal of the M85 GC system with a rotation amplitude of 235 km s−1. The rotation axis of the GC system has a position angle of about 161°, which is 51.°5 larger than that of the stellar light. The rotation-corrected radial velocity dispersion of the GC system is estimated to be

km s−1. The rotation parameter

of the GC system is derived to be

, which is one of the largest among known early-type galaxies. The ages and metallicities of the GCs, which show the same trend as the results based on Lick indices, are derived from full spectrum fitting (ULySS). About half of the GCs are an intermediate-age population whose mean age is ∼3.7 ± 1.9 Gyr, having a mean [Fe/H] value of −0.26. The other half are old and metal-poor. These results suggest that M85 experienced a wet merging event about 4 Gyr ago, forming a significant population of star clusters. The strong rotational feature of the GC system can be explained by an off-center major merging.
The Importance of the 13C(α,n)16O Reaction in Asymptotic Giant Branch Stars
Authors: Cristallo S. , Cognata M. La , Massimi C. , Best A. , Palmerini S. , Straniero O. , Trippella O. , Busso M. , Ciani G. F. , Mingrone F. , Piersanti L. , Vescovi D.
Published: May 2018

Low-mass asymptotic giant branch stars are among the most important polluters of the interstellar medium. In their interiors, the main component (A ≳ 90) of the slow neutron capture process (the s-process) is synthesized, the most important neutron source being the 13C(α,n)16O reaction. In this paper, we review its current experimental status, discussing possible future synergies between some experiments currently focused on the determination of its rate. Moreover, in order to determine the level of precision needed to fully characterize this reaction, we present a theoretical sensitivity study, carried out with the FUNS evolutionary stellar code and the NEWTON post-process code. We modify the rate up to a factor of 2 with respect to a reference case. We find that variations of the 13C(α,n)16O rate do not appreciably affect s-process distributions for masses above 3 M
⊙ at any metallicity. Apart from a few isotopes, in fact, the differences are always below 5%. The situation is completely different if some 13C burns in a convective environment: this occurs in FUNS models with M < 3 M
⊙ at solar-like metallicities. In this case, a change of the 13C(α,n)16O reaction rate leads to nonnegligible variations of the element surface distribution (10% on average), with larger peaks for some elements (such as rubidium) and neutron-rich isotopes (such as 86Kr and 96Zr). Larger variations are found in low-mass, low-metallicity models if protons are mixed and burned at very high temperatures. In this case, the surface abundances of the heavier elements may vary by more than a factor of 50.
Hemiboea suiyangensis (Gesneriaceae): a new species from Guizhou, China
Authors: Li Shuwan , Han Mengqi , Li Xiaojie , Li Zhenyu , Xiang Xiaoguo
Published: May 2018

The limestone areas in south China are a major biodiversity hotspot for terrestrial biomes. Hemiboea, with 34 species and 5 varieties, mainly distributed in south China, is one of the characteristic plant groups in limestone areas. Hemiboeasuiyangensis, a new species of Gesneriaceae from limestone areas in Guizhou, China, is described and illustrated. The new species is easily distinguished from other Hemiboea species by having an oblique-infundibular corolla with an abaxially gibbous swelling on the upper half of the tube and with a densely villose throat and lower lobes. Hemiboeasuiyangensis is similar to H.omeiensis W. T. Wang in the shape of the leaf blade, but differs from the latter by the shape of the petiole, involucre, calyx and corolla and the colour of the corolla. The conservation status of this species is considered to be “Critically Endangered” (CR) according to IUCN Red List Criteria.
PhytoAuthent: Molecular authentication of complex herbal food supplements for safety and efficacy
Authors: Ichim Mihael , Crisan Gianina , Tebrencu Carmen , de Boer Hugo
Published: May 2018

The PhytoAuthent project was structured to gather, test, develop and apply, in real life case scenarios, molecular techniques, such as biochemical fingerprinting and DNA sequence-based methods, for plant identification of constituents in complex herbal products. The project had a strong focus on applied aspects like protecting consumers from health risks associated with product substitution and contamination of herbal products.
Australian Hospital-Based Nurse Educators' Perceptions of Their Role
Authors: Thornton Karleen
Published: May 2018

This article presents the findings from a phenomenological study that explored the understandings of Australian hospital-based nurse educators' experiences of their role. Purposive sampling resulted in 11 nurse educators from four large metropolitan hospitals within an Australian jurisdiction. The participants were asked how they understand their role and translate that understanding into practice. Thematic analysis identified four themes representative of nurse educators' understanding of their role: Becoming an Educator, Capability Building, Panacea, and Tension. A coherent picture emerged from subthemes highlighting that nurse educators were undervalued and value is added. Being undervalued and value adding are translated into nurse educator practice as resilience, being educationally literate, investing, and having a presence. This article identifies a gap in knowledge related to understanding the nurse educator role and informs recruitment and subsequent retention of nurses into nurse educator roles at a time when the nursing workforce in Australia and internationally is about to experience a major shortfall. Findings are specific to the Australian context and are not necessarily generalizable to other hospital jurisdictions.

J Contin Educ Nurs.2018;49(6):274–281.
Acute-phase endovascular management of an uncommon bleeding peripancreatic pseudoaneurysm
Authors: Varrassi Marco , Izzo Antonio , Carducci Sergio , Giordano Aldo Victor , Masciocchi Carlo
Published: May 2018

Pancreatic pseudoaneurysms represent relatively rare but potentially lethal complications of acute or chronic pancreatitis, involving several visceral arteries. Due to their intrinsic instability and subsequent high risk of massive bleeding, these lesions require prompt treatment, regardless of the size of the pseudoaneurysm. First option of treatment is today represented by transcatheter embolization; this treatment, in fact, shows higher rates of clinical and technical success and lower recurrence rates than conventional surgery. We present a clinical case of endovascular management of a large pseudoaneurysm, measuring 54 x 53 mm (AP x LL), involving right gastric artery in a 35-year-old woman with history of chronic alcoholic abuse presenting with severe anemia.
Online Learning
Authors: Searight Barbara K. , Spannaus Timothy
Published: May 2018

The purpose of this chapter is to provide an integrative essay of collaborative learning variables that enhance as well as detract from an e-learning and information technology (IT)-mediated environment. It is common knowledge that a group is only as strong as the individuals who make up the group. Yet in online education there is the assumption that individuals have the skills they need to work within the group successfully. Although there are multiple opportunities for individuals to learn how to interact in a one-on-one setting, there is little formal training on how to work within a group. How to identify, address, and accommodate cultural differences, motivation levels, conflict resolution, expectations, critical thinking, self-organization, and group construction of knowledge are some of the areas that are not typically addressed formally in an academic setting. Successful group projects require that everyone be skilled in these and additional areas to have the potential for an equal and meaningful learning experience as a member of the group. Learning online is a social process involving collaborative efforts which can be mediated by the applications being used.
An Intergenerational Solidarity Approach to Community Public Space in China
Authors: Fu Benchen , Meng Xue , Zhang Yu
Published: May 2018

Community intergenerational solidarity is an effective intervention to facilitate cohesiveness and to explore mutual supports between generations within neighborhoods. However, few attempts have been made in China from the perspective of physical environment. This study aims to explore the associations between community intergenerational solidarity and the built environment, and then figure out the approaches for the facilitation of community intergenerational solidarity. Firstly, a conceptual framework of community intergenerational solidarity was proposed. Then field surveys were carried out and questionnaires were distributed in four residential communities in Harbin, China, investigating the respondents' preferences for intergenerational solidarity. The results demonstrate that inhabitants have the expectation of intergenerational solidarity and they would prefer to those activities that take place in public space. Based on that, design approaches of community public space, including overall planning, service facilities and open space, as well as other suggestions, were proposed.
Quality of Life and Aging of Women
Authors: Ghosh Soma
Published: May 2018

Aging is the process of becoming older. It represents the accumulation of changes in a human being over time, encompassing physical, psychological, and social changes. Both men and women experience some sexual changes with age, but they experience aging differently. For women, it's commonly known as menopause, starting around in the age of 50. For men, aging is more gradual, with testosterone levels declining slowly over time. Unlike menopause, which brings fertility to an end, men can still reproduce and create sperm well into old age. The effects of aging on social relations, existence, and identity are more alarming and often dreadful. Despite the influence of the aging process on women's lives, very few feminist insights analyzed the interconnectedness of gender and aging. Hence, the impact of aging on gender inequalities requires more serious discussions and analysis. Only through these efforts can new visions of the plight and contributions of older women grow and policies be developed to remedy the problems.
Dementia
Authors: Mukherjee Sudeshna
Published: May 2018

The high global prevalence, economic impact of dementia on families, caregivers, and communities, and the associated stigma and social exclusion present dementia as a significant public health challenge. Global as well as Indian data confirms a greater vulnerability of the women patients than their male counterparts. The global health community has recognized the need for action and to place dementia and its care and support services on the public health agenda. Dementia imposes significant physical, mental, and financial stress on caregivers who, again, often are women. In this context, the chapter aims to use capability approach and the concept of “disability paradox” to project dementia as a capability deprivation situation and through comparative analysis of various care models proposes a comprehensive economic care model and plan of action for a developing country like India to ensure dignified quality living for dementia patients and their caregivers.
Self-Esteem During the Ageing Process
Authors: van der Weide Theo
Published: May 2018

In this chapter, the author focuses on the phase in human life that starts with the ending of the reproductive phase in one's life, usually referred to as the midlife crisis. The author especially focuses on self-esteem. He first studies the size of the problem. Then he uses Maslow's hierarchy of needs to understand the demotion process associated with the midlife crisis. Then he uses Hofstede's cultural model to understand this phase in a cultural context. Finally, the author discusses modern ICT development in general, and especially the global village created by the internet.
The Interplay of Biological and Socio Environmental Factors in Aging and Disorders in Women
Authors: Jagota Anita , Jannu Navya , Boro Suchitra
Published: May 2018

Aging is a biological, social, and environmental phenomenon characterized by progressive decline in all physiological functions. Age depends upon genes, social and environmental influences, and lifestyle. Although aging occurs at varying rates, it takes greater toll on gender. Beyond multiple social inequalities, women experience proportionately higher rates of chronic illness, disability, and deterioration in the body appearance leading to depression, decreased socialization resulting in sleep disorders. Therefore, onset of sleep and health disorders with aging in women were studied in variable cross sections of society with variable social structures and lifestyles. The case studies involved the field work and data collection from old age homes and individuals. The analysis of the interplay of biological, social, and environmental factors influencing sleep disorders in aging women done through such studies will help in designing policies and measures for improving economic level, social support, functional ability, psychosocial stress, loneliness, depression, and health services.
Concerns of Elderly Women's Wellbeing
Authors: Bandila Ratna Kumari
Published: May 2018

Marginalization/isolation or alienation in old age is among the most common issues that are affecting older women. Elderly women, who are still living with their sons/daughters and grand-children, are also suffering from emotional alienation. Due to fast changing socio-economic scenario of the country, fast paced modern lifestyle, and rapid urbanization across the country, younger generations hardly interact with their elderly family members. Popularity of nuclear family system has virtually crushed the strong traditional bond between grandchildren and grandmothers. The authors analyze this situation thoroughly and ask themselves (1) do the national policies for older persons help the aged women to enhance their wellbeing and (2) does the judiciary show alternate arrangements for the wellbeing of our senior citizens?
Search for an Optimal Solution to Vague Traffic Problems Using the PSK Method
Authors: Kumar P. Senthil
Published: May 2018

There are several algorithms, in literature, for obtaining the fuzzy optimal solution of fuzzy transportation problems (FTPs). To the best of the author's knowledge, in the history of mathematics, no one has been able to solve transportation problem (TP) under four different uncertain environment using single method in the past years. So, in this chapter, the author tried to categories the TP under four different environments and formulates the problem and utilizes the crisp numbers, triangular fuzzy numbers (TFNs), and trapezoidal fuzzy numbers (TrFNs) to solve the TP. A new method, namely, PSK (P. Senthil Kumar) method for finding a fuzzy optimal solution to fuzzy transportation problem (FTP) is proposed. Practical usefulness of the PSK method over other existing methods is demonstrated with four different numerical examples. To illustrate the PSK method different types of FTP is solved by using the PSK method and the obtained results are discussed.
Design Patterns for Social Intelligent Agent Architectures Implementation
Authors: Kolp Manuel , Wautelet Yves , Heng Samedi
Published: May 2018

Multi-agent systems (MAS) architectures are popular for building open, distributed, and evolving software required by today's business IT applications such as e-business systems, web services, or enterprise knowledge bases. Since the fundamental concepts of MAS are social and intentional rather than object, functional, or implementation-oriented, the design of MAS architectures can be eased by using social patterns. They are detailed agent-oriented design idioms to describe MAS architectures as composed of autonomous agents that interact and coordinate to achieve their intentions like actors in human organizations. This chapter presents social patterns and focuses on a framework aimed to gain insight into these patterns. The framework can be integrated into agent-oriented software engineering methodologies used to build MAS. The authors consider the broker social pattern to illustrate the framework. The mapping from system architectural design (through organizational architectural styles), to system detailed design (through social patterns), is overviewed with a data integration case study.
An Integrated Framework for Information Identification With Image Data Using Multi-Technique Feature Extraction
Authors: Das Rik , Singh S. N. , Banerjee Mahua , Mayank Shishir , Shashank T. Venkata
Published: May 2018

Image data has portrayed immense potential as a resourceful foundation of information in current context for numerous applications including biomedicine, military, commerce, education, and web image classification and searching. The scenario has kindled the requirement for efficient content-based image identification from the archived image databases in varied industrial and educational sectors. Feature extraction has acted as the backbone to govern the success rate of content-based information identification with image data. The chapter has presented two different techniques of feature extraction from images based on image binarization and morphological operators. The multi-technique extraction with radically reduced feature size was imperative to explore the rich set of feature content in an image. The objective of this work has been to create a fusion framework for image recognition by means of late fusion with data standardization. The work has implemented a hybrid framework for query classification as a precursor for image retrieval which has been so far the first of its kind.
Fuzzy Techniques for Content-Based Image Retrieval
Authors: Rose Bindu Joseph P.  , Devarasan Ezhilmaran
Published: May 2018

Content-based image retrieval aims to acquire images from huge databases by analyzing their visual features like color, texture, shape, and spatial relationship. The search for superior accuracy in image retrieval has resulted in concentrating more on semantic gap reduction between the low-level features and high level human reasoning. Fuzzy theory is a prevailing methodology which helps in attaining this goal by using attributes and interpretations similar to human reasoning. The vagueness and impreciseness in image data and the retrieval process can be modeled by fuzzy sets. This chapter analyses fuzzy theoretic approaches in various stages of content-based image retrieval system. Various fuzzy-based feature descriptors are discussed along with different fuzzy classification and indexing algorithms for content-based image retrieval. This chapter also presents an overview of various fuzzy distance and similarity measures for image retrieval. A novel fuzzy theoretic retrieval for finger vein biometric images is also proposed in this chapter with experiment and analysis.