bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A novel algorithm for detection of precipitation in tropical regions using PMW radiometers
Authors: Casella D. , Panegrossi G. , Sanò P. , Milani L. , Petracca M. , Dietrich S.
Published: March 2015

Abstract. A novel algorithm for the detection of precipitation is described and tested. The algorithm is applicable to any modern passive microwave radiometer on board polar orbiting satellites independent of the observation geometry and channel frequency assortment. The algorithm is based on the application of canonical correlation analysis and on the definition of a threshold to be applied to the resulting linear combination of the brightness temperatures in all available channels. The algorithm has been developed using a 2-year data set of co-located Special Sensor Microwave Imager/Sounder (SSMIS) and Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission precipitation radar (TRMM-PR) measurements and Advanced Microwave Sounding Unit (AMSU) Microwave Humidity Sounder and TRMM-PR measurements. This data set was partitioned into four classes depending on the background surface emissivity (vegetated land, arid land, ocean, and coast) with the same procedure applied for each surface class. In this paper we describe the procedure and evaluate the results in comparison with many well-known algorithms for the detection of precipitation. The algorithm shows a small rate of false alarms and superior detection capability; it can efficiently detect (probability of detection between 0.55 and 0.71) minimum rain rate varying from 0.14 mm h-1 (AMSU over ocean) to 0.41 (SSMIS over coast) with the remarkable result of 0.25 mm h-1 over arid land surfaces.
A novel approach for the extraction of cloud motion vectors using airglow imager measurements
Authors: Satheesh Kumar S. , Narayana Rao T. , Taori A.
Published: March 2015

Abstract. The paper explores the possibility of implementing an advanced photogrammetric technique, generally employed for satellite measurements, on airglow imager, a ground-based remote sensing instrument primarily used for upper atmospheric studies, measurements of clouds for the extraction of cloud motion vectors (CMVs). The major steps involved in the algorithm remain the same, including image processing for better visualization of target elements and noise removal, identification of target cloud, setting a proper search window for target cloud tracking, estimation of cloud height, and employing 2-D cross-correlation to estimate the CMVs. Nevertheless, the implementation strategy at each step differs from that of satellite, mainly to suit airglow imager measurements. For instance, climatology of horizontal winds at the measured site has been used to fix the search window for target cloud tracking. The cloud height is estimated very accurately, as required by the algorithm, using simultaneous collocated Lidar measurements. High-resolution, both in space and time (4 min), cloud imageries are employed to minimize the errors in retrieved CMVs. The derived winds are evaluated against MST radar-derived winds by considering it as a reference. A very good correspondence is seen between these two wind measurements, both showing similar wind variation. The agreement is also found to be good in the both zonal and meridional wind velocities with RMSEs < 2.4 m s−1. At the end, the strengths and limitations of the algorithm are discussed, with possible solutions, wherever required.
Spatial variability and hotspots of soil N2O fluxes from intensively grazed grassland
Authors: Cowan N. J. , Norman P. , Famulari D. , Levy P. E. , Reay D. S. , Skiba U. M.
Published: March 2015

Abstract. One hundred N2O flux measurements were made from an area of intensively managed grazed grassland in central Scotland using a high-resolution dynamic chamber method. The field contained a variety of features from which N2O fluxes were measured including a manure heap, patches of decaying grass silage, and areas of increased sheep activity. Individual fluxes varied significantly across the field varying from 2 to 79 000 μg N2O-N m−2 h−1. Soil samples were collected at 55 locations to investigate relationships between soil properties and N2O flux. Fluxes of N2O correlated strongly with soil NO3- concentrations. Distribution of NO3− and the high spatial variability of N2O flux across the field are shown to be linked to the distribution of waste from grazing animals and the resultant reactive nitrogen compounds in the soil which are made available for microbiological processes. Features within the field such as shaded areas and manure heaps contained significantly higher available nitrogen than the rest of the field. Although these features only represented 1.1% of the area of the field, they contributed to over 55% of the total estimated daily N2O flux.
Continuous and discontinuous variation in ecosystem carbon stocks with elevation across a treeline ecotone
Authors: Speed J. D. M. , Martinsen V. , Hester A. J. , Holand Ø. , Mulder J. , Mysterud A. , Austrheim G.
Published: March 2015

Abstract. Treelines differentiate vastly contrasting ecosystems: open tundra from closed forest. Treeline advance has implications for the climate system due to the impact of the transition from tundra to forest ecosystem on carbon (C) storage and albedo. Treeline advance has been seen to increase above-ground C stocks as low vegetation is replaced with trees but decrease organic soil C stocks as old carbon is decomposed. However, studies comparing across the treeline typically do not account for elevational variation within the ecotone. Here we sample ecosystem C stocks along an elevational gradient (970 to 1300 m), incorporating a large-scale and long-term livestock grazing experiment, in the southern Norwegian mountains. We investigate whether there are continuous or discontinuous changes in C storage across the treeline ecotone, and whether these are modulated by grazing. We find that vegetation C stock decreases with elevation, with a clear breakpoint between the forest line and treeline above which the vegetation C stock is constant. C stocks in organic surface horizons of the soil were higher above the treeline than in the forest, whereas C stocks in mineral soil horizons are unrelated to elevation. Total ecosystem C stocks also showed a discontinuous elevational pattern, increasing with elevation above the treeline (8 g m−2 per metre increase in elevation), but decreasing with elevation below the forest line (−15 g m−2 per metre increase in elevation), such that ecosystem C storage reaches a minimum between the forest line and treeline. We did not find any effect of short-term (12 years) grazing on the elevational patterns. Our findings demonstrate that patterns of C storage across the treeline are complex, and should be taken account of when estimating ecosystem C storage with shifting treelines.
Technical Note: Multispectral lidar time series of pine canopy chlorophyll content
Authors: Hakala T. , Nevalainen O. , Kaasalainen S. , Mäkipää R.
Published: March 2015

Abstract. We present an empirical application of multispectral laser scanning for monitoring the seasonal and spatial changes in pine chlorophyll (a + b) content and upscaling the accurate leaf-level chlorophyll measurements into branch and tree level. The results show the capability of the new instrument for monitoring the changes in the shape and physiology of tree canopy: the spectral indices retrieved from the multispectral point cloud agree with laboratory measurements of the chlorophyll a and b content. The approach opens new prospects for replacing destructive and labour-intensive manual sampling with remote observations of tree physiology.
Statistical framework for evaluation of climate model simulations by use of climate proxy data from the last millennium – Part 3: Practical considerations, relaxed assumptions, and using tree-ring data to address the amplitude of solar forcing
Authors: Moberg A. , Sundberg R. , Grudd H. , Hind A.
Published: March 2015

Abstract. A statistical framework for evaluation of climate model simulations by comparison with climate observations from instrumental and proxy data (part 1 in this series) is improved by the relaxation of two assumptions. This allows autocorrelation in the statistical model for simulated internal climate variability and enables direct comparison of two alternative forced simulations to test whether one fits the observations significantly better than the other. The extended framework is applied to a set of simulations driven with forcings for the pre-industrial period 1000–1849 CE and 15 tree-ring-based temperature proxy series. Simulations run with only one external forcing (land use, volcanic, small-amplitude solar, or large-amplitude solar) do not significantly capture the variability in the tree-ring data – although the simulation with volcanic forcing does so for some experiment settings. When all forcings are combined (using either the small- or large-amplitude solar forcing), including also orbital, greenhouse-gas and non-volcanic aerosol forcing, and additionally used to produce small simulation ensembles starting from slightly different initial ocean conditions, the resulting simulations are highly capable of capturing some observed variability. Nevertheless, for some choices in the experiment design, they are not significantly closer to the observations than when unforced simulations are used, due to highly variable results between regions. It is also not possible to tell whether the small-amplitude or large-amplitude solar forcing causes the multiple-forcing simulations to be closer to the reconstructed temperature variability. Proxy data from more regions and of more types, or representing larger regions and complementary seasons, are apparently needed for more conclusive results from model–data comparisons in the last millennium.
Topology of sustainable management in dynamical Earth system models with desirable states
Authors: Heitzig J. , Kittel T.
Published: March 2015

Abstract. To keep the Earth system in a desirable region of its state space, such as the recently suggested "tolerable environment and development window", "planetary boundaries", or "safe (and just) operating space", one not only needs to understand the quantitative internal dynamics of the system and the available options for influencing it (management), but also the structure of the system's state space with regard to certain qualitative differences. Important questions are: which state space regions can be reached from which others with or without leaving the desirable region? Which regions are in a variety of senses "safe" to stay in when management options might break away, and which qualitative decision problems may occur as a consequence of this topological structure? In this article, as a complement to the existing literature on optimal control which is more focussed on quantitative optimization and is much applied in both the engineering and the integrated assessment literature, we develop a mathematical theory of the qualitative topology of the state space of a dynamical system with management options and desirable states. We suggest a certain terminology for the various resulting regions of the state space and perform a detailed formal classification of the possible states with respect to the possibility of avoiding or leaving the undesired region. Our results indicate that before performing some form of quantitative optimization, the sustainable management of the Earth system may require decisions of a more discrete type that come in the form of several dilemmata, e.g., choosing between eventual safety and uninterrupted desirability, or between uninterrupted safety and increasing flexibility. We illustrate the concepts and dilemmata with conceptual models from classical mechanics, climate science, ecology, economics, and coevolutionary Earth system modelling and discuss their potential relevance for the climate and sustainability debate.
Characterising Brazilian biomass burning emissions using WRF-Chem with MOSAIC sectional aerosol
Authors: Archer-Nicholls S. , Lowe D. , Darbyshire E. , Morgan W. T. , Bela M. M. , Pereira G. , Trembath J. , Kaiser J. W. , Longo K. M. , Freitas S. R. , Coe H. , McFiggans G.
Published: March 2015

Abstract. The South American Biomass Burning Analysis (SAMBBA) field campaign took detailed in situ flight measurements of aerosol during the 2012 dry season to characterise biomass burning aerosol and improve understanding of its impacts on weather and climate. Developments have been made to the Weather Research and Forecast model with chemistry (WRF-Chem) model to improve the representation of biomass burning aerosol in the region, by coupling a sectional aerosol scheme to the plume-rise parameterisation. Brazilian Biomass Burning Emissions Model (3BEM) fire emissions are used, prepared using PREP-CHEM-SRC, and mapped to CBM-Z and MOSAIC species. Model results have been evaluated against remote sensing products, AERONET sites, and four case studies of flight measurements from the SAMBBA campaign. WRF-Chem predicted layers of elevated aerosol loadings (5–20 μg sm−3) of particulate organic matter at high altitude (6–8 km) over tropical forest regions, while flight measurements showed a sharp decrease above 2–4 km altitude. This difference was attributed to the plume-rise parameterisation overestimating injection height. The 3BEM emissions product was modified using estimates of active fire size and burned area for the 2012 fire season, which reduced the fire size. The enhancement factor for fire emissions was increased from 1.3 to 5 to retain reasonable aerosol optical depths (AODs). The smaller fire size lowered the injection height of the emissions, but WRF-Chem still showed elevated aerosol loadings between 4–5 km altitude. Over eastern cerrado (savannah-like) regions, both modelled and measured aerosol loadings decreased above approximately 4 km altitude. Compared with MODIS satellite data and AERONET sites, WRF-Chem represented AOD magnitude well (between 0.3–1.5) over western tropical forest fire regions in the first half of the campaign, but tended to over-predict them in the second half, when precipitation was more significant. Over eastern cerrado regions, WRF-Chem tended to under-predict AODs. Modelled aerosol loadings in the east were higher in the modified emission scenario. The primary organic matter to black carbon ratio was typically between 8–10 in WRF-Chem. This was lower than the western flight measurements (interquartile range of 11.6–15.7 in B734, 14.7–24.0 in B739), but similar to the eastern flight B742 (8.1–10.4). However, single scattering albedo was close to measured over the western flights (0.87–0.89 in model; 0.86–0.91 in flight B734, and 0.81–0.95 in flight B739 measurements) but too high over the eastern flight B742 (0.86–0.87 in model, 0.79–0.82 in measurements). This suggests that improvements are needed to both modelled aerosol composition and optical properties calculations in WRF-Chem.
Confronting the vicinity of the surface water and sea shore in a shallow glaciogenic aquifer in southern Finland
Authors: Luoma S. , Okkonen J. , Korkka-Niemi K. , Hendriksson N. , Backman B.
Published: March 2015

Abstract. The groundwater in a shallow, unconfined, low-lying coastal aquifer in Santala, southern Finland, was chemically characterised by integrating multivariate statistical approaches, principal component analysis (PCA) and hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA), based on the stable isotopes δ2H and δ18O, hydrogeochemistry and field monitoring data. PCA and HCA yielded similar results and classified groundwater samples into six distinct groups that revealed the factors controlling temporal and spatial variations in the groundwater geochemistry, such as the geology, anthropogenic sources from human activities, climate and surface water. High temporal variation in groundwater chemistry directly corresponded to precipitation. With an increase in precipitation, KMnO4 consumption, EC, alkalinity and Ca concentrations also increased in most wells, while Fe, Al, Mn and SO4 were occasionally increased during spring after the snowmelt under specific geological conditions. The continued increase in NO3 and metal concentrations in groundwater indicates the potential contamination risk to the aquifer. Stable isotopes of δ18O and δ2H indicate groundwater recharge directly from meteoric water, with an insignificant contribution from lake water, and no seawater intrusion into the aquifer. Groundwater geochemistry suggests that local seawater intrusion is temporarily able to take place in the sulfate reduction zone along the freshwater and seawater mixed zone in the low-lying coastal area, but the contribution of seawater was found to be very low. The influence of lake water could be observed from higher levels of KMnO4 consumption in wells near the lake. The integration of PCA and HCA with conventional classification of groundwater types, as well as with the hydrogeochemical data, provided useful tools to identify the vulnerable groundwater areas representing the impacts of both natural and human activities on water quality and the understanding of complex groundwater flow system for the aquifer vulnerability assessment and groundwater management in the future.
DISCRIMINATION OF URBAN SETTLEMENT TYPES BASED ON SPACE-BORNE SAR DATASETS AND A CONDITIONAL RANDOM FIELDS MODEL
Authors: Novack T. , Stilla U.
Published: March 2015

Abstract. In this work we focused on the classification of Urban Settlement Types (USTs) based on two datasets from the TerraSAR-X satellite acquired at ascending and descending look directions. These data sets comprise the intensity, amplitude and coherence images from the ascending and descending datasets. In accordance to most official UST maps, the urban blocks of our study site were considered as the elements to be classified. The considered USTs classes in this paper are: Vegetated Areas, Single-Family Houses and Commercial and Residential Buildings. Three different groups of image attributes were utilized, namely: Relative Areas, Histogram of Oriented Gradients and geometrical and contextual attributes extracted from the nodes of a Max-Tree Morphological Profile. These image attributes were submitted to three powerful soft multi-class classification algorithms. In this way, each classifier output a membership value to each of the classes. This membership values were then treated as the potentials of the unary factors of a Conditional Random Fields (CRFs) model. The pairwise factors of the CRFs model were parameterised with a Potts function. The reclassification performed with the CRFs model enabled a slight increase of the classification’s accuracy from 76% to 79% out of 1926 urban blocks.
MASSIVE-SCALE TREE MODELLING FROM TLS DATA
Authors: Raumonen P. , Casella E. , Calders K. , Murphy S. , Åkerblom M. , Kaasalainen M.
Published: March 2015

Abstract. This paper presents a method for reconstructing automatically the quantitative structure model of every tree in a forest plot from terrestrial laser scanner data. A new feature is the automatic extraction of individual trees from the point cloud. The method is tested with a 30-m diameter English oak plot and a 80-m diameter Australian eucalyptus plot. For the oak plot the total biomass was overestimated by about 17 %, when compared to allometry (N = 15), and the modelling time was about 100 min with a laptop. For the eucalyptus plot the total biomass was overestimated by about 8.5 %, when compared to a destructive reference (N = 27), and the modelling time was about 160 min. The method provides accurate and fast tree modelling abilities for, e.g., biomass estimation and ground truth data for airborne measurements at a massive ground scale.
RECONSTRUCTION, QUANTIFICATION, AND VISUALIZATION OF FOREST CANOPY BASED ON 3D TRIANGULATIONS OF AIRBORNE LASER SCANNING POINT DATA
Authors: Vauhkonen J.
Published: March 2015

Abstract. Reconstruction of three-dimensional (3D) forest canopy is described and quantified using airborne laser scanning (ALS) data with densities of 0.6–0.8 points m-2 and field measurements aggregated at resolutions of 400–900 m2. The reconstruction was based on computational geometry, topological connectivity, and numerical optimization. More precisely, triangulations and their filtrations, i.e. ordered sets of simplices belonging to the triangulations, based on the point data were analyzed. Triangulating the ALS point data corresponds to subdividing the underlying space of the points into weighted simplicial complexes with weights quantifying the (empty) space delimited by the points. Reconstructing the canopy volume populated by biomass will thus likely require filtering to exclude that volume from canopy voids. The approaches applied for this purpose were (i) to optimize the degree of filtration with respect to the field measurements, and (ii) to predict this degree by means of analyzing the persistent homology of the obtained triangulations, which is applied for the first time for vegetation point clouds. When derived from optimized filtrations, the total tetrahedral volume had a high degree of determination (R2) with the stem volume considered, both alone (R2=0.65) and together with other predictors (R2=0.78). When derived by analyzing the topological persistence of the point data and without any field input, the R2 were lower, but the predictions still showed a correlation with the field-measured stem volumes. Finally, producing realistic visualizations of a forested landscape using the persistent homology approach is demonstrated.
NARROW FIELD-OF-VIEW VISUAL ODOMETRY BASED ON A FOCUSED PLENOPTIC CAMERA
Authors: Zeller N. , Quint F. , Stilla U.
Published: March 2015

Abstract. In this article we present a new method for visual odometry based on a focused plenoptic camera. This method fuses the depth data gained by a monocular Simultaneous Localization and Mapping (SLAM) algorithm and the one received from a focused plenoptic camera. Our algorithm uses the depth data and the totally focused images supplied by the plenoptic camera to run a real-time semi-dense direct SLAM algorithm. Based on this combined approach, the scale ambiguity of a monocular SLAM system can be overcome. Furthermore, the additional light-field information highly improves the tracking capabilities of the algorithm. Thus, visual odometry even for narrow field of view (FOV) cameras is possible. We show that not only tracking profits from the additional light-field information. By accumulating the depth information over multiple tracked images, also the depth accuracy of the focused plenoptic camera can be highly improved. This novel approach improves the depth error by one order of magnitude compared to the one received from a single light-field image.
FAST AND ADAPTIVE SURFACE RECONSTRUCTION FROM MOBILE LASER SCANNING DATA OF URBAN AREAS
Authors: Gordon M. , Hebel M. , Arens M.
Published: March 2015

Abstract. The availability of 3D environment models enables many applications such as visualization, planning or simulation. With the use of current mobile laser scanners it is possible to map large areas in relatively short time. One of the emerging problems is to handle the resulting huge amount of data. We present a fast and adaptive approach to represent connected 3D points by surface patches while keeping fine structures untouched. Our approach results in a reasonable reduction of the data and, on the other hand, it preserves details of the captured scene. At all times during data acquisition and processing, the 3D points are organized in an octree with adaptive cell size for fast handling of the data. Cells of the octree are filled with points and split into subcells, if the points do not lie on one plane or are not evenly distributed on the plane. In order to generate a polygon model, each octree cell and its corresponding plane are intersected. As a main result, our approach allows the online generation of an expandable 3D model of controllable granularity. Experiments have been carried out using a sensor vehicle with two laser scanners at an urban test site. The results of the experiments show that the demanded compromise between data reduction and preservation of details can be reached.
BUILDING FACADE OBJECT DETECTION FROM TERRESTRIAL THERMAL INFRARED IMAGE SEQUENCES COMBINING DIFFERENT VIEWS
Authors: Hoegner L. , Stilla U.
Published: March 2015

Abstract. This paper discusses the automatic texturing of building facades from thermal infrared image sequences. A fully automatic method is presented to refine GPS based positions estimating relative orientations of the image sequences including a given building model in a bundle adjustment process. The resulting refined orientation parameters are used to extract partial facade textures from all images and all sequences. The resulting partial textures of every sequence are combined to get complete facade textures in the thermal infrared domain. Textures from different image sequences are combined for object detection and extraction. These sequences are acquired either at different times for different radiometric thermal behavior of facade objects or with different viewing directions for objects located before or behind the facade plane.
SPATIAL-TEMPORAL CONDITIONAL RANDOM FIELDS CROP CLASSIFICATION FROM TERRASAR-X IMAGES
Authors: Kenduiywoa B. K. , Bargiel D. , Soergel U.
Published: March 2015

Abstract. The rapid increase in population in the world has propelled pressure on arable land. Consequently, the food basket has continuously declined while global demand for food has grown twofold. There is need to monitor and update agriculture land-cover to support food security measures. This study develops a spatial-temporal approach using conditional random fields (CRF) to classify co-registered images acquired in two epochs. We adopt random forest (RF) as CRF association potential and introduce a temporal potential for mutual crop phenology information exchange between spatially corresponding sites in two epochs. An important component of temporal potential is a transitional matrix that bears intra- and inter-class changes between considered epochs. Conventionally, one matrix has been used in the entire image thereby enforcing stationary transition probabilities in all sites. We introduce a site dependent transition matrix to incorporate phenology information from images. In our study, images are acquired within a vegetation season, thus perceived spectral changes are due to crop phenology. To exploit this phenomena, we develop a novel approach to determine site-wise transition matrix using conditional probabilities computed from two corresponding temporal sites. Conditional probability determines transitions between classes in different epochs and thus we used it to propagate crop phenology information. Classification results show that our approach improved crop discrimination in all epochs compared to state-of-the-art mono-temporal approaches (RF and CRF monotemporal) and existing multi-temporal markov random fields approach by Liu et al. (2008).
Hydrometeorological multi-model ensemble simulations of the 4 November 2011 flash flood event in Genoa, Italy, in the framework of the DRIHM project
Authors: Hally A. , Caumont O. , Garrote L. , Richard E. , Weerts A. , Delogu F. , Fiori E. , Rebora N. , Parodi A. , Mihalović A. , Ivković M. , Dekić L. , van Verseveld W. , Nuissier O. , Ducrocq V. , D'Agostino D. , Galizia A. , Danovaro E. , Clematis A.
Published: March 2015

Abstract. The e-Science environment developed in the framework of the EU-funded DRIHM project was used to demonstrate its ability to provide relevant, meaningful hydrometeorological forecasts. This was illustrated for the tragic case of 4 November 2011, when Genoa, Italy, was flooded as the result of heavy, convective precipitation that inundated the Bisagno catchment. The Meteorological Model Bridge (MMB), an innovative software component developed within the DRIHM project for the interoperability of meteorological and hydrological models, is a key component of the DRIHM e-Science environment. The MMB allowed three different rainfall-discharge models (DRiFt, RIBS and HBV) to be driven by four mesoscale limited-area atmospheric models (WRF-NMM, WRF-ARW, Meso-NH and AROME) and a downscaling algorithm (RainFARM) in a seamless fashion. In addition to this multi-model configuration, some of the models were run in probabilistic mode, thus giving a comprehensive account of modelling errors and a very large amount of likely hydrometeorological scenarios (> 1500). The multi-model approach proved to be necessary because, whilst various aspects of the event were successfully simulated by different models, none of the models reproduced all of these aspects correctly. It was shown that the resulting set of simulations helped identify key atmospheric processes responsible for the large rainfall accumulations over the Bisagno basin. The DRIHM e-Science environment facilitated an evaluation of the sensitivity to atmospheric and hydrological modelling errors. This showed that both had a significant impact on predicted discharges, the former being larger than the latter. Finally, the usefulness of the set of hydrometeorological simulations was assessed from a flash flood early-warning perspective.
Probabilistic storm surge inundation maps for Metro Manila based on Philippine public storm warning signals
Authors: Tablazon J. , Caro C. V. , Lagmay A. M. F. , Briones J. B. L. , Dasallas L. , Lapidez J. P. , Santiago J. , Suarez J. K. , Ladiero C. , Gonzalo L. A. , Mungcal M. T. F. , Malano V.
Published: March 2015

Abstract. A storm surge is the sudden rise of sea water over the astronomical tides, generated by an approaching storm. This event poses a major threat to the Philippine coastal areas, as manifested by Typhoon Haiyan on 8 November 2013. This hydro-meteorological hazard is one of the main reasons for the high number of casualties due to the typhoon, with 6300 deaths. It became evident that the need to develop a storm surge inundation map is of utmost importance. To develop these maps, the Nationwide Operational Assessment of Hazards under the Department of Science and Technology (DOST-Project NOAH) simulated historical tropical cyclones that entered the Philippine Area of Responsibility. The Japan Meteorological Agency storm surge model was used to simulate storm surge heights. The frequency distribution of the maximum storm surge heights was calculated using simulation results of tropical cyclones under a specific public storm warning signal (PSWS) that passed through a particular coastal area. This determines the storm surge height corresponding to a given probability of occurrence. The storm surge heights from the model were added to the maximum astronomical tide data from WXTide software. The team then created maps of inundation for a specific PSWS using the probability of exceedance derived from the frequency distribution. Buildings and other structures were assigned a probability of exceedance depending on their occupancy category, i.e., 1% probability of exceedance for critical facilities, 10% probability of exceedance for special occupancy structures, and 25% for standard occupancy and miscellaneous structures. The maps produced show the storm-surge-vulnerable areas in Metro Manila, illustrated by the flood depth of up to 4 m and extent of up to 6.5 km from the coastline. This information can help local government units in developing early warning systems, disaster preparedness and mitigation plans, vulnerability assessments, risk-sensitive land use plans, shoreline defense efforts, and coastal protection measures. These maps can also determine the best areas to build critical structures, or at least determine the level of protection of these structures should they be built in hazard areas. Moreover, these will support the local government units' mandate to raise public awareness, disseminate information about storm surge hazards, and implement appropriate countermeasures for a given PSWS.
The Ret receptor regulates sensory neuron dendrite growth and integrin mediated adhesion
Authors: Soba Peter , Han Chun , Zheng Yi , Perea Daniel , Miguel-Aliaga Irene , Jan Lily Yeh , Jan Yuh Nung
Published: March 2015

Neurons develop highly stereotyped receptive fields by coordinated growth of their dendrites. Although cell surface cues play a major role in this process, few dendrite specific signals have been identified to date. We conducted an in vivo RNAi screen in Drosophila class IV dendritic arborization (C4da) neurons and identified the conserved Ret receptor, known to play a role in axon guidance, as an important regulator of dendrite development. The loss of Ret results in severe dendrite defects due to loss of extracellular matrix adhesion, thus impairing growth within a 2D plane. We provide evidence that Ret interacts with integrins to regulate dendrite adhesion via rac1. In addition, Ret is required for dendrite stability and normal F-actin distribution suggesting it has an essential role in dendrite maintenance. We propose novel functions for Ret as a regulator in dendrite patterning and adhesion distinct from its role in axon guidance.
To plasticity and back again
Authors: Nijhout H Frederik
Published: March 2015

Both the gain and the loss of flexibility in the development of phenotypes have led to an increased diversity of physical forms in nematode worms.
A meta‐analysis of oceanic DMS and DMSP cycling processes: Disentangling the summer paradox
Authors: Galí Martí , Simó Rafel
Published: March 2015

The biogenic volatile compound dimethylsulfide (DMS) is produced in the ocean mainly from the ubiquitous phytoplankton osmolyte dimethylsulfoniopropionate (DMSP). In the upper mixed layer, DMS concentration and the daily averaged solar irradiance are roughly proportional across latitudes and seasons. This translates into a seasonal mismatch between DMS and phytoplankton biomass at low latitudes, termed the “DMS summer paradox,” which remains difficult to reproduce with biogeochemical models. Here we report on a global meta‐analysis of DMSP and DMS cycling processes and their relationship to environmental factors. We show that DMS seasonality reflects progressive changes in a short‐term dynamic equilibrium, set by the quotient between gross DMS production rates and the sum of biotic and abiotic DMS consumption rate constants. Gross DMS production is the principal driver of DMS seasonality, due to the synergistic increases toward summer in two of its underlying factors: phytoplankton DMSP content (linked to species succession) and short‐term community DMSP‐to‐DMS conversion yields (linked to physiological stress). We also show that particulate DMSP transformations (linked to grazing‐induced phytoplankton mortality) generally contribute a larger share of gross DMS production than dissolved‐phase DMSP metabolism. The summer paradox is amplified by a decrease in microbial DMS consumption rate constants toward summer. However, this effect is partially compensated by a concomitant increase in abiotic DMS loss rate constants. Besides seasonality, we identify consistent covariation between key sulfur cycling variables and trophic status. These findings should improve the modeling projections of the main natural source of climatically active atmospheric sulfur.
Kinematic modeling of fault slip rates using new geodetic velocities from a transect across the Pacific‐North America plate boundary through the San Bernardino Mountains, California
Authors: McGill Sally F. , Spinler Joshua C. , McGill John D. , Bennett Richard A. , Floyd Michael A. , Fryxell Joan E. , Funning Gareth J.
Published: March 2015

Campaign GPS data collected from 2002 to 2014 result in 41 new site velocities from the San Bernardino Mountains and vicinity. We combined these velocities with 93 continuous GPS velocities and 216 published velocities to obtain a velocity profile across the Pacific‐North America plate boundary through the San Bernardino Mountains. We modeled the plate boundary‐parallel, horizontal deformation with 5–14 parallel and one obliquely oriented screw dislocations within an elastic half‐space. Our rate for the San Bernardino strand of the San Andreas Fault (6.5 ± 3.6 mm/yr) is consistent with recently published latest Quaternary rates at the 95% confidence level and is slower than our rate for the San Jacinto Fault (14.1 ± 2.9 mm/yr). Our modeled rate for all faults of the Eastern California Shear Zone (ECSZ) combined (15.7 ± 2.9 mm/yr) is faster than the summed latest Quaternary rates for these faults, even when an estimate of permanent, off‐fault deformation is included. The rate discrepancy is concentrated on faults near the 1992 Landers and 1999 Hector Mine earthquakes; the geodetic and geologic rates agree within uncertainties for other faults within the ECSZ. Coupled with the observation that postearthquake deformation is faster than the pre‐1992 deformation, this suggests that the ECSZ geodetic‐geologic rate discrepancy is directly related to the timing and location of these earthquakes and is likely the result of viscoelastic deformation in the mantle that varies over the timescale of an earthquake cycle, rather than a redistribution of plate boundary slip at a timescale of multiple earthquake cycles or longer.
The influence of misrepresenting the nocturnal boundary layer on idealized daytime convection in large‐eddy simulation
Authors: van Stratum Bart J. H. , Stevens Bjorn
Published: March 2015

The influence of poorly resolving mixing processes in the nocturnal boundary layer (NBL) on the development of the convective boundary layer the following day is studied using large‐eddy simulation (LES). Guided by measurement data from meteorological sites in Cabauw (Netherlands) and Hamburg (Germany), the typical summertime NBL conditions for Western Europe are characterized, and used to design idealized (absence of moisture and large‐scale forcings) numerical experiments of the diel cycle. Using the UCLA‐LES code with a traditional Smagorinsky‐Lilly subgrid model and a simplified land‐surface scheme, a sensitivity study to grid spacing is performed. At horizontal grid spacings ranging from 3.125 m in which we are capable of resolving most turbulence in the cases of interest to grid a spacing of 100 m which is clearly insufficient to resolve the NBL, the ability of LES to represent the NBL and the influence of NBL biases on the subsequent daytime development of the convective boundary layer are examined. Although the low‐resolution experiments produce substantial biases in the NBL, the influence on daytime convection is shown to be small, with biases in the afternoon boundary layer depth and temperature of approximately 100 m and 0.5 K, which partially cancel each other in terms of the mixed‐layer top relative humidity.
Familial cortical dysplasia type IIA caused by a germline mutation in DEPDC5
Authors: Scerri Thomas , Riseley Jessica R. , Gillies Greta , Pope Kate , Burgess Rosemary , Mandelstam Simone A. , Dibbens Leanne , Chow Chung W. , Maixner Wirginia , Harvey Anthony Simon , Jackson Graeme D. , Amor David J. , Delatycki Martin B. , Crino Peter B. , Berkovic Samuel F. , Scheffer Ingrid E. , Bahlo Melanie , Lockhart Paul J. , Leventer Richard J.
Published: March 2015

Whole‐exome sequencing of two brothers with drug‐resistant, early‐onset, focal epilepsy secondary to extensive type IIA focal cortical dysplasia identified a paternally inherited, nonsense variant of DEPDC5 (c.C1663T, p.Arg555*). This variant has previously been reported to cause familial focal epilepsy with variable foci in patients with normal brain imaging. Immunostaining of resected brain tissue from both brothers demonstrated mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) activation. This report shows the histopathological features of cortical dysplasia associated with a DEPDC5 mutation, confirms mTOR dysregulation in the malformed tissue and expands the spectrum of neurological manifestations of DEPDC5 mutations to include severe phenotypes with large areas of cortical malformation.
Drastic Layer‐Number‐Dependent Activity Enhancement in Photocatalytic H2 Evolution over nMoS2/CdS (n ≥ 1) Under Visible Light
Authors: Chang Kun , Li Mu , Wang Tao , Ouyang Shuxin , Li Peng , Liu Lequan , Ye Jinhua
Published: March 2015

Exploiting noble‐metal‐free cocatalysts is of huge interest for photocatalytic water splitting using solar energy. As an efficient cocatalyst in photocatalysis, MoS2 is shown promise as a low‐cost alternative to Pt for hydrogen evolution. Here we report a systematical study on controlled synthesis of MoS2 with layer number ranging from ≈1 to 112 and their activities for photocatalytic H2 evolution over commercial CdS. A drastic increase in photocatalytic H2 evolution is observed with decreasing MoS2 layer number. Particularly for the single‐layer (SL) MoS2, the SL‐MoS2/CdS sample reaches a high H2 generation rate of ≈2.01 × 10−3m h−1 in Na2S–Na2SO3 solutions and ≈2.59 × 10−3m h−1 in lactic acid solutions, corresponding to an apparent quantum efficiency of 30.2% and 38.4% at 420 nm, respectively. In addition to the more exposed edges and unsaturated active S atoms, valence band–XPS and Mott–Schottky plots analysis indicate that the SL MoS2 has the more negative conduction band energy level than the H+/H2 potential, facilitating the hydrogen reduction.
Failure pressures of three rhinologic dural repairs in a porcine ex vivo model
Authors: Lin Ryan P. , Weitzel Erik Kent , Chen Philip G. , McMains Kevin Christopher , Majors Jacob , Bunegin Leonid
Published: March 2015

Background

The objective of this work was to determine the failure pressures of 3 commonly performed repair techniques of 5‐mm dural defects in a controlled setting.

Methods

This was a pig dura ex vivo study. A testing apparatus was fabricated to study failure pressures of 3 different repairs in a porcine model. Five‐millimeter (5‐mm) dural defects were created and plugged with autologous mucosa/Tisseel (MT) (Baxter International Inc.), fat graft (FG), and bath plug (BP) techniques. Saline solution was infused at 30 mL/hour to apply unidirectional pressure to the repair until failure occurred. Five dural repairs were performed for each arm of the trial, for a total of 15 trials.

Results

The mean failure pressure of the MT repair was 4.3 ± 1.9 cmH2O, of the FG repair was 10.9 ± 4.2 cmH2O, and of the BP repair was 20.7 ± 2.2 cmH2O. Differences among mean failure pressures were statistically significant.

Conclusion

The BP repair showed significantly higher tolerances for pressure than the other 2 repairs. The BP repair was the only technique that withstood adult physiologic supine cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) pressure.
Rhodium(I)‐Catalyzed Regiospecific Dimerization of Aromatic Acids: Two Direct CH Bond Activations in Water
Authors: Gong Hang , Zeng Huiying , Zhou Feng , Li Chao‐Jun
Published: March 2015

2,2′‐Diaryl acids are key building blocks for some of the most important and high‐performance polymers such as polyesters and polyamides (imides), as well as structural motifs of MOFs (metal–organic frameworks) and biological compounds. In this study, a direct, regiospecific and practical dimerization of simple aromatic acids to generate 2,2′‐diaryl acids has been discovered, which proceeds through two rhodium‐catalyzed CH activations in water. This reaction can be easily scaled up to gram level by using only 0.4–0.6 mol % of the rhodium catalyst. As a proof‐of‐concept, the natural product ellagic acid was synthesized in two steps by this method.
Bioactive Glasses—Structure and Properties
Authors: Brauer Delia S.
Published: March 2015

Bioactive glasses were the first synthetic materials to show bonding to bone, and they are successfully used for bone regeneration. They can degrade in the body at a rate matching that of bone formation, and through a combination of apatite crystallization on their surface and ion release they stimulate bone cell proliferation, which results in the formation of new bone. Despite their excellent properties and although they have been in clinical use for nearly thirty years, their current range of clinical applications is still small. Latest research focuses on developing new compositions to address clinical needs, including glasses for treating osteoporosis, with antibacterial properties, or for the sintering of scaffolds with improved mechanical stability. This Review discusses how the glass structure controls the properties, and shows how a structure‐based design may pave the way towards new bioactive glass implants for bone regeneration.
η3‐Allyl Coordination at Tin(II)—Reactivity towards Alkynes and Benzonitrile
Authors: Krebs Kilian M. , Wiederkehr Jessica , Schneider Julia , Schubert Hartmut , Eichele Klaus , Wesemann Lars
Published: March 2015

We herein report the synthesis and characterization of a terphenyl‐substituted SnII allyl compound featuring an η3 coordination mode in solution and in the solid state. Two examples for the interesting reactivity of the allyl SnII molecule are presented: Reactions with terminal alkynes result in the formation of tricyclic compounds by CC bond formation and the dimerization of two Sn moieties whereas the reaction with benzonitrile leads to a sixteen‐membered ring system through CH activation.
Copper‐catalyzed C(sp2)–C(sp) Sonogashira‐type cross‐coupling reactions accelerated by polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons
Authors: Xu Wei , Yu Bo , Sun Huaming , Zhang Guofang , Zhang Weiqiang , Gao Ziwei
Published: March 2015

Copper‐catalyzed Sonogashira‐type reactions were dramatically accelerated by introducing a catalytic amount of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon additive. This novel catalytic system features low copper loading (0.5 mol% < Cu < 5 mol%), broad reaction scope and remarkable substrate tolerance. Both aromatic and aliphatic terminal alkynes as well as diverse aryl iodides were employed in this transformation, affording respectable yields of the desired products. The novel Cu(OTf)2/pyrene system was subsequently employed to synthesize phenylacetylene‐based fluorescent compounds. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Thermal hydrolysis of poly(l‐lactic acid) films and cytotoxicity of water‐soluble degradation products
Authors: Xu Guoguang , Liu Xiao , Lin Yanqun , He Guoshan , Wang Wanjuan , Xiong Wen , Luo Haiying , Liu Zhong , Zhao Jianhao
Published: March 2015

In this study, the thermal hydrolysis of the poly(l‐lactic acid) (PLLA) films was investigated for its potential use as a food‐packaging ecomaterial. The surface morphology, mass loss, molecular weight, thermal properties, and medium pH were routinely investigated; meanwhile, in particular, the composition and cytotoxicity of the water‐soluble degradation products were studied. The changes in the mass loss and molecular weight revealed a random chain‐scission mechanism. Differential scanning calorimetry analysis implied that the hydrolysis preferentially took place in the amorphous region. The medium pH decreased with time because of the accumulation of acid water‐soluble products in the medium. Liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry analysis proved that these products were composed of 1–13 lactic acid units, in which the content of l‐lactic acid increased with time and reached 9.71 mmol/L after hydrolysis for 84 days. The in vitro cell culture indicated that the water‐soluble degradation products from the PLLA films had no cytotoxicity to human umbilical vein endothelial cells. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2015, 132, 42064.
Contributions of chinese authors in PLOS ONE
Authors: Yan Sulan , Rousseau Ronald , Huang Shuiqing
Published: March 2015

Beginning with a short review of Public Library of Science (PLOS) journals, we focus on PLOS ONE and more specifically the contributions of Chinese authors to this journal. It is shown that their contribution is growing exponentially. In 2013 almost one fifth of all publications in this journal had at least one Chinese author. The average number of citations per publication is approximately the same for articles with a Chinese author and for articles without any Chinese coauthor. Using the odds‐ratio, we could not find arguments that Chinese authors in PLOS ONE excessively cite other Chinese contributions.