bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The value of traditional African religious music into liturgy: Lobethal Congregation
Authors: Lebaka Morakeng E.K.
Published: June 2015

The purpose of this study was to discover whether the integration of traditional African religious music into Evangelical Lutheran liturgical church services, could effect a change in member attendance and/or participation. To achieve this, the study employed direct observation, video recordings and informal interviews. In addition, church records of attendance during Holy Communion once a month between 2008 and 2013 were accessed. The study was done at the Evangelical Lutheran Church of the Lobethal Congregation (Arkona Parish, Northern Diocese, Sekhukhune District, Limpopo Province, South Africa). It was demonstrated that church attendance increased dramatically after traditional African religious music was introduced into the Evangelical Lutheran liturgical services in 2011. Observations and video recordings showed that drums, rattles, horns and whistles were used. Handclapping was seen to act almost as a metronome, which steadily maintained the tempo. It was concluded that introducing traditional African religious music into Evangelical Lutheran liturgical church services has increased attendance and participation of church members. Therefore, the introduction of African religious music could be considered for other Evangelical Lutheran congregations in Africa.
Controlled breeding and reproductive management in water buffaloes (Bubalus bubalis) using Eazi Breed controlled internal drug release
Authors: Hiremath Shivayogi , Ramesha Kerekoppa P.
Published: June 2015

Buffalo reproduction is considerably affected by late maturity, poor oestrus symptoms and long postpartum periods. This study was undertaken to evaluate the efficiency of Eazi Breed controlled internal drug release (CIDR), an intravaginal progesterone-releasing device, in relation to oestrus and fertility. Five hundred true anoestrus buffalo cows, in the age group 4–6 years in 10 villages of Dharwad district in Karnataka state in India, were randomly selected and treated with CIDR for 9 days. Two mL of Cidirol (1 mg oestradiol benzoate) was administered intramuscularly to all animals on day 10. Forty-two buffaloes (8.4%) that failed to show oestrus signs (1.6%) or showed weak signs of oestrus (6.8%) after the first treatment were treated again 72 h after the Cidriol injection with a new device, and inseminated after the expression of oestrus. After the second treatment all the animals showed oestrus signs. The percentage of buffaloes showing intense oestrus was 67.40%, intermediate oestrus was shown by 25.80%, whilst 6.80% buffaloes showed weak oestrus even after the second treatment. The buffaloes showing oestrus signs were inseminated twice with an interval of 12 h, starting 12 h after the start of the oestrus signs. In 86 buffaloes showing prolonged oestrus signs a third insemination was done. The conception rates were 85.16%, 60.47% and 44.11% respectively in buffaloes showing intense, intermediate and weak oestrus. Transrectal palpation of the genital tract was performed 45–60 days post-insemination to diagnose pregnancy status, and in doubtful cases pregnancy was reconfirmed at 90 days after insemination. Out of 500 buffaloes treated in this way 380 animals became pregnant and the pregnancy rate was 76%. This study revealed the usefulness of Eazi Breed CIDR along with Cidirol treatment in buffaloes to improve their reproductive performance.
Powerful Tukey's One Degree-of-Freedom Test for Detecting Gene-Gene and Gene-Environment Interactions
Authors: Wang Yaping , Li Donghui , Wei Peng
Published: June 2015

Genome-wide association studies (GWASs) have identified thousands of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) robustly associated with hundreds of complex human diseases including cancers. However, the large number of G WAS-identified genetic loci only explains a small proportion of the disease heritability. This “missing heritability” problem has been partly attributed to the yet-to-be-identified gene-gene (G × G) and gene-environment (G × E) interactions. In spite of the important roles of G × G and G × E interactions in understanding disease mechanisms and filling in the missing heritability, straightforward GWAS scanning for such interactions has very limited statistical power, leading to few successes. Here we propose a two-step statistical approach to test G × G/G × E interactions: the first step is to perform principal component analysis (PCA) on the multiple SNPs within a gene region, and the second step is to perform Tukey's one degree-of-freedom (1-df) test on the leading PCs. We derive a score test that is computationally fast and numerically stable for the proposed Tukey's 1-df interaction test. Using extensive simulations we show that the proposed approach, which combines the two parsimonious models, namely, the PCA and Tukey's 1-df form of interaction, outperforms other state-of-the-art methods. We also demonstrate the utility and efficiency gains of the proposed method with applications to testing G × G interactions for Crohn's disease using the Wellcome Trust Case Control Consortium (WTCCC) GWAS data and testing G × E interaction using data from a case-control study of pancreatic cancer.
Efficient Preconditioners for a Shock Capturing Space-Time Discontinuous Galerkin Method for Systems of Conservation Laws
Authors: Hiltebrand Andreas , Mishra Siddhartha
Published: June 2015

An entropy stable fully discrete shock capturing space-time Discontinuous Galerkin (DG) method was proposed in a recent paper to approximate hyperbolic systems of conservation laws. This numerical scheme involves the solution of a very large nonlinear system of algebraic equations, by a Newton-Krylov method, at every time step. In this paper, we design efficient preconditioners for the large, non-symmetric linear system, that needs to be solved at every Newton step. Two sets of preconditioners, one of the block Jacobi and another of the block Gauss-Seidel type are designed. Fourier analysis of the preconditioners reveals their robustness and a large number of numerical experiments are presented to illustrate the gain in efficiency that results from preconditioning. The resulting method is employed to compute approximate solutions of the compressible Euler equations, even for very high CFL numbers.
The Rupture of Thin Liquid Films Placed on Solid and Liquid Substrates in Gravity Body Forces
Authors: Kupershtokh A. L. , Ermanyuk E. V. , Gavrilov N. V.
Published: June 2015

This paper presents a numerical and experimental study on hydrodynamic behavior of thin liquid films in rectangular domains. Three-dimensional computer simulations were performed using the lattice Boltzmann equation method (LBM). The liquid films laying on solid and liquid substrates are considered. The rupture of liquid films in computations is initiated via the thermocapillary (Marangoni) effect by applying an initial spatially localized temperature perturbation. The rupture scenario is found to depend on the shape of the temperature distribution and on the wettability of the solid substrate. For a wettable solid substrate, complete rupture does not occur: a residual thin liquid film remains at the substrate in the region of pseudo-rupture. For a non-wettable solid substrate, a sharp-peaked axisymmetric temperature distribution induces the rupture at the center of symmetry where the temperature is maximal. Axisymmetric temperature distribution with a flat-peaked temperature profile initiates rupture of the liquid film along a circle at some distance from the center of symmetry. The outer boundary of the rupture expands, while the inner liquid disk transforms into a toroidal figure and ultimately into an oscillating droplet.

We also apply the LBM to simulations of an evolution of one or two holes in liquid films for two-layer systems of immiscible fluids in a rectangular cell. The computed patterns are successfully compared against the results of experimental visualizations. Both the experiments and the simulations demonstrate that the initially circular holes evolved in the rectangular cell undergoing drastic changes of their shape under the effects of the surface tension and gravity. In the case of two interacting holes, the disruption of the liquid bridge separating two holes is experimentally observed and numerically simulated.
Increasing and decreasing trends of the atmospheric deposition of organochlorine compounds in European remote areas during the last decade
Authors: Arellano L. , Fernández P. , Fonts R. , Rose N. L. , Nickus U. , Thies H. , Stuchlík E. , Camarero L. , Catalan J. , Grimalt J. O.
Published: June 2015

Abstract. Bulk atmospheric deposition samples were collected between 2004 and 2007 at four high-altitude European sites encompassing east (Skalnaté Pleso), west (Lochnagar), central (Gossenköllesee) and south (Redòn) regions, and analysed for legacy and current-use organochlorine compounds (OCs). Polychlorobiphenyls (PCBs) generally showed the highest deposition fluxes in the four sites, between 112 and 488 ng m−2 mo−1, and hexachlorobenzene (HCB) the lowest, a few ng m−2 mo−1. Among pesticides, endosulfans were found at higher deposition fluxes (11–177 ng m−2 mo−1) than hexachlorocyclohexanes (HCHs) (17–66 ng m−2 mo−1) in all sites except Lochnagar that was characterized by very low fluxes of this insecticide. Comparison of the present measurements with previous determinations in Redòn (1997–1998 and 2001–2002) and Gossenköllesee (1996–1998) provided for the first time an assessment of the long-term temporal trends in OC atmospheric deposition in the European background areas. PCBs showed increasing deposition trends while HCB deposition fluxes remained nearly constant. Re-emission of PCBs from soils or as a consequence of glacier melting and subsequent precipitation and trapping of the volatilized compounds may explain the observed PCB trends. This process does not occur for HCB due to its high volatility which keeps most of this pollutant in the gas phase. A significant decline of pesticide deposition was observed during this studied decade (1996–2006) which is consistent with the restriction in the use of these compounds in most of the European countries. In any case, degassing of HCHs or endosulfans from ice melting to the atmosphere should be limited because of the low Henry's law constants of these compounds that will retain them dissolved in the melted water. Investigation of the relationship between air mass trajectories arriving at each site and OC deposition fluxes showed no correlation for PCBs, which is consistent with diffuse pollution from unspecific sources as the predominant origin of these compounds in these remote sites. In contrast, significant correlations between current-use pesticides and air masses flowing from the south were observed in Gossenköllesee, Lochnagar and Redòn. In the case of Redòn, the higher proportion of air masses from the south occurred in parallel to higher temperatures, which did not allow us to discriminate between these two determinant factors of pesticide deposition. However, in Gossenköllesee and Lochnagar, the relationship between pesticide concentration and southern air masses was univocal, reflecting the impact of regions with intensive agricultural activities.
Examining the major contributors of ozone pollution in a rural area of the Yangtze River Delta region during harvest season
Authors: Pan X. , Kanaya Y. , Tanimoto H. , Inomata S. , Wang Z. , Kudo S. , Uno I.
Published: June 2015

Abstract. Open biomass burning (OBB) emits significant amounts of non-methane hydrocarbons (NMHCs), and the mixing of OBB with urban plumes could exacerbate regional ozone (O3) pollution. In the present study, an observational field campaign was performed in a rural area at the northern edge of the Yangtze River Delta region (YRDR) from 15 May to 24 June 2010, during intensive open burning of wheat residues. The net photochemical production rate of oxidant (Ox = O3 + NO2) at the site was evaluated based on a box model (Regional Atmospheric Chemical Mechanism, Version 2) constrained by real-time ambient measurements (e.g., O3, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), NOx (NO2 + NO), J values). Our results showed that both in situ photochemistry and direct transport from urban areas in the YRDR were responsible for the high Ox concentration at the site. During an OBB-impact case, net photochemical production of Ox in the daytime was pronounced, with a 6 h averaged Ox production rate of 13 ± 4 ppbv h−1 (maximum value of 21 ppbv h−1 at 12:00 CST). Photochemical Oxproduction changed from VOC-limited in the morning to NOx-limited in the afternoon due to the rapid photochemical consumption of NOx during the day. A combined analysis with positive matrix factorization demonstrated that O3 pollution in the rural area of the YRDR was largely affected by urban emission, and OBB-related emissions also contributed to in situ photochemical production, particularly in the afternoon. Our study suggested that a joint effort in reducing both NMHCs (e.g., aromatics) and NOx emissions in the urban area, as well as local OBB activities, may be effective in eliminating high-O3 pollution risk in the rural areas of the YRDR.
Ice crystal concentrations in wave clouds: dependencies on temperature, D > 0.5 μm aerosol particle concentration, and duration of cloud processing
Authors: Peng L. , Snider J. R. , Wang Z.
Published: June 2015

Abstract. Model equations used to either diagnose or prognose the concentration of heterogeneously nucleated ice crystals depend on combinations of cloud temperature, aerosol properties, and elapsed time of supersaturated-vapor or supercooled-liquid conditions. The validity of these equations has been questioned. Among many uncertain factors there is a concern that practical limitations on aerosol particle time of exposure to supercooled-liquid conditions, within ice nucleus counters, has biased the predictions of a diagnostic model equation. In response to this concern, this work analyzes airborne measurements of crystals made within the downwind glaciated portions of wave clouds. A streamline model is used to connect a measurement of aerosol concentration, made upwind of a cloud, to a downwind ice crystal (IC) concentration. Four parameters are derived for 80 streamlines: (1) minimum cloud temperature along the streamline, (2) aerosol particle concentration (diameter, D > 0.5 μm) measured within ascending air upwind of the cloud, (3) IC concentration measured in descending air downwind, and (4) the duration of water-saturated conditions along the streamline. The latter are between 38 and 507 s and the minimum temperatures are between −34 and −14 °C. Values of minimum temperature, D > 0.5 μm aerosol concentration, and IC concentration are fitted using the equation developed for ice nucleating particles (INPs) by by DeMott et al. (2010; D10). Overall, there is reasonable agreement among measured IC concentrations, INP concentrations derived using D10's fit equation, and IC concentrations derived by fitting the airborne measurements with the equation developed by D10.
Regional-scale simulations of fungal spore aerosols using an emission parameterization adapted to local measurements of fluorescent biological aerosol particles
Authors: Hummel M. , Hoose C. , Gallagher M. , Healy D. A. , Huffman J. A. , O'Connor D. , Pöschl U. , Pöhlker C. , Robinson N. H. , Schnaiter M. , Sodeau J. R. , Stengel M. , Toprak E. , Vogel H.
Published: June 2015

Abstract. Fungal spores as a prominent type of primary biological aerosol particles (PBAP) have been incorporated into the COSMO-ART (Consortium for Small-scale Modelling-Aerosols and Reactive Trace gases) regional atmospheric model. Two literature-based emission rates for fungal spores derived from fungal spore colony counts and chemical tracer measurements were used as a parameterization baseline for this study. A third, new emission parameterization for fluorescent biological aerosol particles (FBAP) was adapted to field measurements from four locations across Europe. FBAP concentrations can be regarded as a lower estimate of total PBAP concentrations. Size distributions of FBAP often show a distinct mode at approx. 3 μm, corresponding to a diameter range characteristic for many fungal spores. Previous studies for several locations have suggested that FBAP are in many cases dominated by fungal spores. Thus, we suggest that simulated FBAP and fungal spore concentrations obtained from the three different emission parameterizations can be compared to FBAP measurements. The comparison reveals that simulated fungal spore concentrations based on literature emission parameterizations are lower than measured FBAP concentrations. In agreement with the measurements, the model results show a diurnal cycle in simulated fungal spore concentrations, which may develop partially as a consequence of a varying boundary layer height between day and night. Temperature and specific humidity, together with leaf area index (LAI), were chosen to drive the new emission parameterization which is fitted to the FBAP observations. The new parameterization results in similar root mean square errors (RMSEs) and correlation coefficients compared to the FBAP observations as the previously existing fungal spore emission parameterizations, with some improvements in the bias. Using the new emission parameterization on a model domain covering western Europe, FBAP in the lowest model layer comprise a fraction of 15% of the total aerosol mass over land and reach average number concentrations of 26 L−1. The results confirm that fungal spores and biological particles may account for a major fraction of supermicron aerosol particle number and mass concentration over vegetated continental regions and should thus be explicitly considered in air quality and climate studies.
Evaporation from weighing precipitation gauges: impacts on automated gauge measurements and quality assurance methods
Authors: Leeper R. D. , Kochendorfer J.
Published: June 2015

Abstract. Evaporation from a precipitation gauge can cause errors in the amount of measured precipitation. For automated weighing-bucket gauges, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) suggests the use of evaporative suppressants and frequent observations to limit these biases. However, the use of evaporation suppressants is not always feasible due to environmental hazards and the added cost of maintenance, transport, and disposal of the gauge additive. In addition, research has suggested that evaporation prior to precipitation may affect precipitation measurements from auto-recording gauges operating at sub-hourly frequencies. For further evaluation, a field campaign was conducted to monitor evaporation and its impacts on the quality of precipitation measurements from gauges used at U.S. Climate Reference Network (USCRN) stations. Two Geonor gauges were collocated, with one gauge using an evaporative suppressant (referred to as Geonor-NonEvap) and the other with no suppressant (referred to as Geonor-Evap) to evaluate evaporative losses and evaporation biases on precipitation measurements. From June to August, evaporative losses from the Geonor-Evap gauge exceeded accumulated precipitation, with an average loss of 0.12 mm h−1. The impact of evaporation on precipitation measurements was sensitive to the choice of calculation method. In general, the pairwise method that utilized a longer time series to smooth out sensor noise was more sensitive to gauge evaporation (−4.6% bias with respect to control) than the weighted-average method that calculated depth change over a smaller window (
A method for stable carbon isotope ratio and concentration measurements of ambient aromatic hydrocarbons
Authors: Kornilova A. , Moukhtar S. , Saccon M. , Huang L. , Zhang W. , Rudolph J.
Published: June 2015

Abstract. A technique for compound-specific analysis of stable carbon isotope ratios and concentration of ambient volatile organic compounds (VOCs) is presented. It is based on selective VOC sampling onto adsorbent-filled cartridges by passing large volumes of air (up to 80 L) through the cartridge. The hydrocarbons are recovered by thermal desorption followed by two-step cryogenic trapping and then are separated by gas chromatography in the laboratory. Once separated, individual VOCs are subjected to online oxidation in a combustion interface and isotope ratio analysis by isotope ratio mass spectrometry. The method allows measurements of stable carbon isotope ratios of ambient aromatic VOCs present in low pptV to ppbV levels with an accuracy of typically better than 0.5 ‰. The precision of concentration measurements is better than 10%. Examples of measurements conducted as part of a joint Environment Canada–York University (EC-YU) measurement campaign at a semi-rural location demonstrate that the ability to make accurate measurements in air with low VOC mixing ratios is important to avoid bias from an overrepresentation of samples that are strongly impacted by recent emissions.
Validation of MIPAS IMK/IAA methane profiles
Authors: Laeng A. , Plieninger J. , von Clarmann T. , Grabowski U. , Stiller G. , Eckert E. , Glatthor N. , Haenel F. , Kellmann S. , Kiefer M. , Linden A. , Lossow S. , Deaver L. , Engel A. , Hervig M. , Levin I. , McHugh M. , Noël S. , Toon G. , Walker K.
Published: June 2015

Abstract. The Michelson Interferometer for Passive Atmospheric Sounding (MIPAS) was an infra-red (IR) limb emission spectrometer on the Envisat platform. It measured during day and night, pole-to-pole, over an altitude range from 6 to 70 km in nominal mode and up to 170 km in special modes, depending on the measurement mode, producing more than 1000 profiles day−1. We present the results of a validation study of methane version V5R_CH4_222 retrieved with the IMK/IAA MIPAS scientific level 2 processor. The level 1 spectra are provided by ESA, the version 5 was used. The time period covered corresponds to the period when MIPAS measured at reduced spectral resolution, i.e. 2005–2012. The comparison with satellite instruments includes the Atmospheric Chemistry Experiment Fourier Transform Spectrometer (ACE-FTS), the HALogen Occultation Experiment (HALOE), the Solar Occultation For Ice Experiment (SOFIE) and the SCanning Imaging Absorption spectroMeter for Atmospheric CHartographY (SCIAMACHY). Furthermore, comparisons with MkIV balloon-borne solar occultation measurements and with air sampling measurements performed by the University of Frankfurt are presented. The validation activities include bias determination, in selected cases, assessment of histograms and comparison of corresponding climatologies. Above 50 km altitude, MIPAS methane mixing ratios agree within 3% with ACE-FTS and SOFIE. Between 30 and 40 km an agreement within 3% with SCIAMACHY has been found. In the middle stratosphere, there is no clear indication of a MIPAS bias since comparisons with various instruments contradict each other. In the lower stratosphere (below about 25–30 km) MIPAS CH4 is biased high with respect to satellite instruments, and the most likely estimate of this bias is 14%. However, in the comparison with CH4 data obtained from cryosampler measurements, there is no evidence of a MIPAS high bias between 20 and 25 km altitude. Precision validation is performed on collocated MIPAS-MIPAS pairs and suggests a slight underestimation of its errors by a factor of 1.2. A parametric model consisting of constant, linear, QBO and several sine and cosine terms with different periods has been fitted to the temporal variation of differences of stratospheric CH4 measurements by MIPAS and ACE-FTS for all 10° latitude/1–2 km altitude bins. Only few significant drifts can be calculated, due to the lack of data. Significant drifts with respect to ACE-FTS tend to have higher absolute values in the Northern Hemisphere, have no pronounced tendency in the sign, and do not exceed 0.2 ppmv per decade in absolute value.
Environmental controls on the boron and strontium isotopic composition of aragonite shell material of cultured Arctica islandica
Authors: Liu Y.-W. , Aciego S. M. , Wanamaker A. D.
Published: June 2015

Abstract. Ocean acidification, the decrease in ocean pH associated with increasing atmospheric CO2, is likely to impact marine organisms, particularly those that produce carbonate skeletons or shells. Therefore, it is important to investigate how environmental factors (seawater pH, temperature and salinity) influence the chemical compositions in biogenic carbonates. In this study we report the first high-resolution strontium (87Sr / 86Sr and δ88 / 86Sr) and boron (δ11B) isotopic values in the aragonite shell of cultured Arctica islandica (A. islandica). The 87Sr / 86Sr ratios from both tank water and shell samples show ratios nearly identical to the open ocean, which suggests that the shell material reflects ambient ocean chemistry without terrestrial influence. The 84Sr–87Sr double-spike-resolved shell δ88 / 86Sr and Sr concentration data show no resolvable change throughout the culture period and reflect no theoretical kinetic mass fractionation throughout the experiment despite a temperature change of more than 15 °C. The δ11B records from the experiment show at least a 5‰ increase through the 29-week culture season (January 2010–August 2010), with low values from the beginning to week 19 and higher values thereafter. The larger range in δ11B in this experiment compared to predictions based on other carbonate organisms (2–3‰) suggests that a species-specific fractionation factor may be required. A significant correlation between the ΔpH (pHshell − pHsw) and seawater pH (pHsw) was observed (R2 = 0.35), where the pHshell is the calcification pH of the shell calculated from boron isotopic composition. This negative correlation suggests that A. islandica partly regulates the pH of the extrapallial fluid. However, this proposed mechanism only explains approximately 35% of the variance in the δ11B data. Instead, a rapid rise in δ11B of the shell material after week 19, during the summer, suggests that the boron uptake changes when a thermal threshold of > 13 °C is reached.
Modelling the impact of riverine DON removal by marine bacterioplankton on primary production in the Arctic Ocean
Authors: Le Fouest V. , Manizza M. , Tremblay B. , Babin M.
Published: June 2015

Abstract. The planktonic and biogeochemical dynamics of the Arctic shelves exhibit a strong variability in response to Arctic warming. In this study, we employ a biogeochemical model coupled to a pan-Arctic ocean–sea ice model (MITgcm) to elucidate the processes regulating the primary production (PP) of phytoplankton, bacterioplankton (BP), and their interactions. The model explicitly simulates and quantifies the contribution of usable dissolved organic nitrogen (DON) drained by the major circum-Arctic rivers to PP and BP in a scenario of melting sea ice (1998–2011). Model simulations suggest that, on average between 1998 and 2011, the removal of usable riverine dissolved organic nitrogen (RDON) by bacterioplankton is responsible for a ~ 26% increase in the annual BP for the whole Arctic Ocean. With respect to total PP, the model simulates an increase of ~ 8% on an annual basis and of ~ 18% in summer. Recycled ammonium is responsible for the PP increase. The recycling of RDON by bacterioplankton promotes higher BP and PP, but there is no significant temporal trend in the BP : PP ratio within the ice-free shelves over the 1998–2011 period. This suggests no significant evolution in the balance between autotrophy and heterotrophy in the last decade, with a constant annual flux of RDON into the coastal ocean, although changes in RDON supply and further reduction in sea-ice cover could potentially alter this delicate balance.
Understanding the factors influencing rill erosion on roadcuts in the south eastern region of South Africa
Authors: Seutloali K. E. , Beckedahl H. R.
Published: June 2015

Abstract. Erosion on roadcuts is a concern due to the potential of causing environmental degradation, which has significant economic costs. It is therefore critical to understand the relationship between roadcut characteristics and soil erosion for designing roadcuts that are less vulnerable to erosion and to help road rehabilitation works. This study investigated the characteristics (i.e. gradient, length, percentage of vegetation cover and soil texture) of degraded (i.e. with rills) and non-degraded roadcuts (i.e. without rills) and explored the relationship of the roadcut characteristics with the dimensions (widths and depths) of the rills. Degraded roadcuts were steep (52.21°), long (10.70 m) and had a low percentage of vegetation cover (24.12) when compared to non-degraded roadcuts which had a gradient of 28.24°, length of 6.38 m and 91.7% of vegetation cover. Moreover, the gradient and percentage of vegetation cover of the roadcut significantly determine the rill dimensions. The widths and depths of the rills increase with the increase in slope gradient and decrease with an increase in percentage of vegetation cover. Moreover, the widths and depths of the rills decreased downslope of the roadcuts. Based on these results, re-vegetation of roadcuts as well as construction of gentle gradients could minimise rill erosion and hence the negative on-site and off-site effects.
Identification of vulnerable areas to soil erosion risk in India using GIS methods
Authors: Biswas H. , Raizada A. , Mandal D. , Kumar S. , Srinivas S. , Mishra P. K.
Published: June 2015

Abstract. This paper attempts to provide information for policy makers and soil conservation planners in the form of district-wise soil erosion risk (SER) maps prepared for the state of Telengana, India. The SER values for each district were computed by extracting the information on grid-wise soil erosion and soil loss tolerance limit values existing on the country-scale in a GIS environment. The objectives of the study were to (i) identify the areas of the state with high erosion risk, and (ii) identify areas with urgent needs of conservation measures. The results reveal that around 69% of the state has negligible risk of soil erosion above the tolerance limits, and does not call for immediate soil conservation measures. The remaining area (2.17M ha) requires conservation planning. Four districts, viz. Adilabad, Warangal, Khammam and Karimnagar are the most risk prone with more than one-fourth of their total geographical areas showing net positive SER values. In order to obtain a clearer picture and categorize the districts based on their extent of vulnerability, the Weighted Erosion Risk values were computed. Adilabad, Warangal and Khammam were identified as the worst-affected districts in terms of soil erosion and therefore need immediate attention for natural resource conservation.
Evolution of ice-shelf channels in Antarctic ice shelves
Authors: Drews R.
Published: June 2015

Abstract. Ice shelves buttress the continental ice flux and mediate ice–ocean interactions. They are often traversed by channels in which basal melting is enhanced, impacting ice-shelf stability. Here, channel evolution is investigated using a transient, three-dimensional full Stokes model and geophysical data collected on the Roi Baudouin Ice Shelf (RBIS), Antarctica. The modeling confirms basal melting as a feasible mechanism for channel creation, although channels may also advect without melting for many tens of kilometers. Channels can be out of hydrostatic equilibrium depending on their width and the upstream melt history. Inverting surface elevation for ice thickness using hydrostatic equilibrium in those areas is erroneous, and corresponding observational evidence is presented at RBIS by comparing the hydrostatically inverted ice thickness with radar measurements. The model shows that channelized melting imprints the flow field characteristically, which can result in enhanced horizontal shearing across channels. This is exemplified for a channel at RBIS using observed surface velocities and opens up the possibility to classify channelized melting from space, an important step towards incorporating these effects in ice–ocean models.
The Fascist Kernel of Ukrainian Genocidal Nationalism
Authors: Rossoliński-Liebe Grzegorz
Published: June 2015

This article briefly presents the history of the radical form of Ukrainian nationalism paying especial attention to the geopolitical circumstances which formed this movement. Then, it analyzes some aspects of this phenomenon such as its main ideologists, racism, antisemitism, religion, rituals, leaders, concepts of revolution, and the ethnic, political and mass violence conducted before, during and after the Second World War. The article argues that the extreme and genocidal form of Ukrainian nationalism did have a fascist kernel and should be considered a form of European or East Central European fascism. Nevertheless, because of the specific cultural, social and political Ukrainian circumstances the radical form of Ukrainian nationalism differed from better known fascist movements such as German National Socialism or Italian Fascism, and thus it requires a careful and adequate investigation.
The Pragmatist Yogi: Ancient and Contemporary Yogic Somaesthetics
Authors: Mullis Eric C.
Published: June 2015

as de michelis has argued, americans have been fascinated by the psychosomatic discipline of yoga since the turn of the twentieth century.1 The transcendentalists Thoreau and Emerson were influenced by Vedantic philosophy, and William James was intrigued by neo-Vedantic yogic practices as promulgated by Swami Vivekananda.2 Since then, yoga has become a global phenomenon with approximately 20.4 million Americans regularly practicing the discipline.3 In this essay, I will consider the implications of yoga practice for pragmatist philosophy and, more specifically, for the discipline of somaesthetics as developed by Richard Shusterman.
Special Issue Dedicated to Witold Gombrowicz
Authors: Dapía Silvia G.
Published: June 2015

The year 2014 marked the 110th anniversary of the birth of the noted author Witold Gombrowicz, as well as the 75th anniversary of his arrival in Argentina, the 50th anniversary of his move to the Côte d’Azur in France, and the 25th anniversary of his death. In view of these important chronological markers, the Fifth World Congress on Polish Studies sponsored by the Polish Institute of Arts & Science of America in Warsaw in June 2014 included two complete sessions featuring several renowned Gombrowicz scholars. Those panels, along with additional papers presented at the First International Conference on Witold Gombrowicz held at the National Library in Buenos Aires in August 2014, forms the basis of this special issue of The Polish Review dedicated to his works.
Narrative and Form: Gombrowicz and the Narrative Conception of Personal Identity
Authors: Pratt Daniel
Published: June 2015

Boom! Witold Gombrowicz’s novel Trans-Atlantyk (Transatlantic) ends with the explosion of Form and structure, destroying the foundation of the self. From the ashes of this blast, Gombrowicz’s phoenix self reemerges, only to be destroyed again and again in a never-ending cycle of creation and explosion. The cycle of destruction and creation underlines Gombrowicz’s preoccupation with himself, or, rather, with his self, which spans his entire oeuvre. From his first novel, which he claimed "from the first to the last word … endeavors to be the assertion of an identity," to the infamous repetition of the single word "me" over the first five days of his public diary, Gombrowicz’s work always centers on the ineluctable self and keeps the self undefined, or in Bakhtinian terms, unfinalized. The self of the main characters in Gombrowicz’s novels never has the time to solidify into a single Form but, instead, remains a half-formed entity, forever in the process of becoming, or, in Gombrowicz’s own terms, suspended between Form and immaturity.
Witold Gombrowicz in Spain
Authors: Stasiakiewicz Zofia
Published: June 2015

In the 1960s, Witold Gombrowicz, as renowned an author as he was in Europe, with his works being translated into numerous languages, including Spanish, French, English, and Italian, was still relatively unknown in Francoist Spain. The one who came to play a crucial role in the introduction of his oeuvre to the Catalan and Spanish peninsular literary world was Gabriel Ferrater (1922–1972), a poet and literary editor at the Catalan publisher Seix Barral in Barcelona. An epistolary exchange between the two writers began in 1965. However, the relationship was initiated at least a few months earlier, when the Catalan poet became interested in the literary work of the Polish writer and came up with the idea of a Spanish edition of the novel Pornografía (Pornography). Thanks to this correspondence, which is currently held in the Witold Gombrowicz Archive at Beinecke Library at Yale University, it is possible to trace the process of translation and editing of the novel.
Gombrowicz, a Slippery Liar
Authors: Hochman Nicolás
Published: June 2015

The general historical account of Witold Gombrowicz is that no sooner had the young author arrived in Argentina than the war broke out in Europe. Germany’s invasion of Poland meant a closing of the borders, and that prompted Gombrowicz’s decision to remain in Argentina. A strong, committed choice (albeit one committed to noncommitment), since his compatriots opted to scramble back on board the Chroby, the boat that had brought them to the Río de la Plata, to head home to Europe and enlist in the Polish resistance. A tough decision, but one influenced by an incontrovertible fact: Gombrowicz chose to stay because his homeland was occupied, and he did not want to fight, basically for three reasons: he was asthmatic, ideologically he was against war and those who wage it, and it was apparently a matter of no interest to him.
Two Ways of Thinking About Crime Gombrowicz’s “A Premeditated Crime” (1933) and Borges’s “Emma Zunz” (1948)
Authors: Dapia Silvia G.
Published: June 2015

Both Witold Gombrowicz’s “A Premeditated Crime” (1933) and Jorge Luis Borges’s “Emma Zunz” (1948) have characteristics that allow them to be placed within the detective story genre.1 Thus, as in detective fiction, both stories revolve around a seemingly “perfect” crime, although in Gombrowicz the crime is only in the mind of the narrator. Moreover, in both Gombrowicz’s and Borges’s stories, the narrative does not lead to unveiling a crime but to a crime itself. Ultimately both Gombrowicz’s and Borges’s narratives have a concern about truth. However, unlike traditional detective stories, in which the truth (“how things really happened”) is “out there” and the detective arrives at it through a process of inference carried out by his superior mind, in Gombrowicz’s short story the detective is not concerned with a realist notion of truth, while in Borges there is no perspicacious detective who unravels “what really happened” and reveals the identity of the culprit. By examining Gombrowicz’s and Borges’s stories, this article explores the particular notion of truth used by each author as well as the relationship between reality and representation as it appears in each of them.
First-in-Human Case Study: Multipotent Adult Progenitor Cells for Immunomodulation After Liver Transplantation
Authors: Soeder Yorick , Loss Martin , Johnson Christian L. , Hutchinson James A. , Haarer Jan , Ahrens Norbert , Offner Robert , Deans Robert J. , Van Bokkelen Gil , Geissler Edward K. , Schlitt Hans J. , Dahlke Marc H.
Published: June 2015

Mesenchymal stem cells and multipotent adult progenitor cells (MAPCs) have been proposed as novel therapeutics for solid organ transplant recipients with the aim of reducing exposure to pharmacological immunosuppression and its side effects. In the present study, we describe the clinical course of the first patient of the phase I, dose-escalation safety and feasibility study, MiSOT-I (Mesenchymal Stem Cells in Solid Organ Transplantation Phase I). After receiving a living-related liver graft, the patient was given one intraportal injection and one intravenous infusion of third-party MAPC in a low-dose pharmacological immunosuppressive background. Cell administration was found to be technically feasible; importantly, we found no evidence of acute toxicity associated with MAPC infusions.

Significance

Liver transplantation is the only definitive treatment for liver failure. However, in order to prevent rejection of the graft, patients must receive lifelong pharmacological immunosuppression, which itself causes clinically significant side effects. This study provides preclinical evidence that mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) and multipotent adult progenitor cells (MAPCs) can prolong allogeneic solid organ transplant survival in animals by switching the host response toward operational tolerance. To examine the safety and feasibility of MAPC therapy in patients receiving a living-related or dead-before-donation unrelated donor liver graft, the MiSOT-I (Mesenchymal Stem Cells in Solid Organ Transplantation Phase I) trial was designed. The first study patient, a 27-year-old male with liver cirrhosis of unknown etiology, received a living-related adult right liver graft from his brother. MAPC administration in both the operating room (day 0) and intensive care unit (day 2) was feasible, and no evidence was seen of acute complications associated with the cell infusion. The absence of any acute clinical complications of cell infusion is reassuring for the future administration of MAPCs.
« Un vieux contre un neuf » : une étude des réactions des consommateurs à l’égard des offres de reprise
Authors: Guillard Valérie , Johnson Guillaume
Published: June 2015

L’objectif de cet article est d’étudier les réactions des consommateurs à l’égard des offres de reprise des vieux objets proposées par les enseignes. Contraintes à l’origine par des réglementations environnementales, ces offres ont évolué pour devenir des outils promotionnels à part entière. Elles ne consistent plus seulement à racheter les objets possédés mais également à diminuer le prix d’achat des nouveaux produits via un bon d’achat et/ou à redonner les objets collectés à des associations caritatives. L’analyse de 23 entretiens confirme et enrichit la littérature sur la reprise en montrant que les réactions des consommateurs dépendent i) d’une comparaison entre les coûts et les bénéfices attribués à de tels programmes ; ii) de la prise en compte ou non de la valeur résiduelle des objets rapportés et iii) d’une analyse critique des incitations proposées. Les implications pour les décideurs des organisations marchandes et non marchandes sont discutées.
Synthesis of Nonnatural Oligonucleotides Made Exclusively of Alkynyl C‐Nucleosides with Nonnatural Bases
Authors: Chiba Junya , Inouye Masahiko
Published: June 2015

This unit describes detailed procedures for the preparation of nonnatural C‐nucleosides comprising seven types of nonnatural nucleobases attached to 1′‐position of 2′‐deoxyribose through an acetylene bond with the β‐configuration. In addition, derivatization of these alkynyl C‐nucleosides into the corresponding phosphoramidites and the subsequent oligonucleotide synthesis are also presented. The processes are depicted in three parts. The first basic protocol deals with the synthesis of a key intermediate, 5‐O‐DMTr‐protected 1‐ethynyl‐2‐deoxy‐β‐D‐ribofuranoside. The second basic protocol mentions the procedures of the preparation of nonnatural C‐nucleosides by a palladium‐catalyzed coupling reaction of the ethynyl intermediate and halogen‐attached nonnatural nucleobases. The synthetic procedures of the corresponding nonnatural phosporamidites are also described. The third basic protocol presents the solid‐phase, automated synthesis of nonnatural oligonucleotides composed exclusively of the nonnatural C‐nucleotides. © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Potential positive feedback between Greenland Ice Sheet melt and Baffin Bay heat content on the west Greenland shelf
Authors: Castro de la Guardia Laura , Hu Xianmin , Myers Paul G.
Published: June 2015

Greenland ice sheet meltwater runoff has been increasing in recent decades, especially in the southwest and the northeast. To determine the impact of this accelerating meltwater flux on Baffin Bay, we examine eight numerical experiments using an ocean‐sea ice model: Nucleus for European Modelling of the Ocean. Enhanced runoff causes shoreward increasing sea surface height and strengthens the stratification in Baffin Bay. The changes in sea surface height reduces the southward transport through the Canadian Arctic Archipelago and strengthens the gyre circulation within Baffin Bay. The latter leads to further freshening of surface waters as it produces a larger northward surface freshwater transport across Davis Strait. Increasing the meltwater runoff leads to a warming and shallowing of the west Greenland Irminger water on the northwest Greenland shelf. These warmer waters can now more easily enter fjords on the Greenland coast and thus provide additional heat to accelerate the melting of marine‐terminating glaciers.
Lightning strikes to tall objects: A study of wave interactions at the return‐stroke front using a nonlinear transmission line model
Authors: De Conti Alberto , Silveira Fernando H. , Visacro Silvério
Published: June 2015

A theoretical study is presented to investigate lightning strikes to towers, with focus on wave interactions occurring at the return‐stroke front due to the arrival of current pulses that propagate upward on the channel after being transmitted from the tower. The lightning channel is represented as a transmission line including corona and nonlinear losses. Analyses for the hypothetical case of a lossless channel considering matched tower and channel impedances show that the arrival of current pulses at the upward moving return‐stroke front leads to an increase in corona currents leaving the channel. This transient process generates current pulses whose arrival at the tower top can be interpreted as the effect of a current reflection at the upward moving front, even though no impedance discontinuity exists at that point if return‐stroke and leader channel properties are assumed the same. In the more realistic case of a lossy channel considering unmatched channel and tower impedances, the nonlinear channel resistance modifies the current pulses that propagate along the channel so that they merge smoothly with the return‐stroke front. In this case, the interaction of the current pulses transmitted from the tower to the channel with the upward moving return‐stroke front does not lead to features that can be clearly interpreted as the result of current reflections at that point in the evaluated conditions. Finally, it is argued that the current reflection coefficient at the tower top should be viewed as a current dependent parameter as opposed to a constant, linear value.