bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Unusual Atmospheric‐River‐Like Structures Coming From Africa Induce Extreme Precipitation Over the Western Mediterranean Sea
Authors: Lorente‐Plazas R. , Montavez J. P. , Ramos A. M. , Jerez S. , Trigo R. M. , Jimenez‐Guerrero P. 
Published: December 2019

AbstractLong filaments of high integrated water vapor transport (IVT) content, widely known as atmospheric rivers (ARs), play a relevant role in the water cycle being also associated to many extreme flooding events worldwide. In this work we inspect whether similar structures can be found over the western Mediterranean. The methodology used here to detect these AR‐like structures is based on standard ARs detection methods but imposing a strong IVT advection westward component. The ERA5 global reanalysis and Spain02 high‐resolution gridded observational data set are used covering the period 1979–2017 to analyze the composites of mesoscale features and associated impacts on rainfall. Results show that AR‐like structures over the Mediterranean (abbreviated here Med‐ARs) have an approximately once‐per‐year frequency, but they are associated with extreme orographic precipitation contributing to more than 40% to the annual precipitation in some cases. During Med‐AR, IVT increases due to high horizontal winds and water vapor contents. Med‐ARs are associated to a cutoff cyclone with a cold core over northwestern Africa and warmer air mass over northern Europe. The vertical structure of Med‐ARs suggests an occluded front with a low level jet in the warmer front where Med‐ARs reside and moisture penetrating into high atmospheric levels where cold and warm front intersect. In conclusion, long filaments of IVT can be found over the western Mediterranean Sea playing a relevant role on hydrometeorological impacts. Although these structures share some features with ARs over the Pacific/Atlantic Ocean, they may not be considered the same meteorological phenomenon.
Detection of Non‐Gaussian Behavior Using Machine Learning Techniques: A Case Study on the Lorenz 63 Model
Authors: Goodliff Michael , Fletcher Steven , Kliewer Anton , Forsythe John , Jones Andrew 
Published: December 2019

AbstractAn important assumption made in most variational, ensemble, and hybrid‐based data assimilation systems is that all minimized errors are Gaussian random variables. A theory developed at the Cooperative Institute for Research in the Atmosphere enables for the Gaussian assumption for the different types of errors to be relaxed to a lognormally distributed random variable. While this is a first step toward using more consistent distributions to model the errors involved in numerical weather/ocean prediction, we still need to be able to identify when we need to assign a lognormal distribution in a mixed Gaussian‐lognormal approach. In this paper, we present some machine learning techniques and experiments with the Lorenz 63 model. Using these machine learning techniques, we show detection of non‐Gaussian distributions can be done using two methods: a support vector machine and a neural network. This is done by training past data to classify (1) differences with the distribution statistics (means and modes) and (2) the skewness of the probability density function.
Differences in Northward Propagation of Convection Over the Arabian Sea and Bay of Bengal During Boreal Summer
Authors: Karmakar Nirupam , Misra Vasubandhu 
Published: December 2019

AbstractThe governing dynamics that modulate the propagation characteristics of intraseasonal oscillations (ISO) during summer monsoon over the two ocean basins, Bay of Bengal (BoB) and Arabian Sea (AS), are investigated using observational analysis and high‐resolution regional coupled ocean‐atmosphere climate model simulations. ISO features are extracted over the Indian region using a data‐adaptive spectral method called multichannel singular spectrum analysis. ISO exhibits stronger intensity over the BoB than over the AS. But ISO‐filtered rainfall propagates at a faster rate (
1.25°/day) over AS as compared to BoB (
.74°/day), giving rise to a northwest‐southeast tilted band of rainfall anomalies. However, the composite diagrams of several atmospheric fields associated with northward propagation like vorticity, low‐level convergence, and oceanic variables like sea surface temperature and mixed layer depth do not show this difference in propagation speed and all exhibit a speed of nearly 0.75°/day in both the ocean basins. The difference in speed of ISO‐filtered rainfall is explained through moisture flux convergence. Anomalous horizontal moisture advection plays a major role over AS in preconditioning the atmosphere and making it favorable for convection. Anomalous wind acting on climatological moisture gradient is the dominant term in the moisture advection equation. Easterly wind anomalies associated with a low‐level anticyclone over India helps advect moisture from the eastern side of the domain. The northwest‐southeast tilt of ISO is dictated by the atmospheric processes of moisture advection with the upper ocean playing a more passive role in causing the tilt.
The Use of Whole Exome Sequencing in a Cohort of Transgender Individuals to Identify Rare Genetic Variants
Authors: Theisen J. Graham , Sundaram Viji , Filchak Mary S. , Chorich Lynn P. , Sullivan Megan E. , Knight James , Kim Hyung-Goo , Layman Lawrence C. 
Published: December 2019

AbstractApproximately 0.5–1.4% of natal males and 0.2–0.3% of natal females meet DSM-5 criteria for gender dysphoria, with many of these individuals self-describing as transgender men or women. Despite recent improvements both in social acceptance of transgender individuals as well as access to gender affirming therapy, progress in both areas has been hampered by poor understanding of the etiology of gender dysphoria. Prior studies have suggested a genetic contribution to gender dysphoria, but previously proposed candidate genes have not yet been verified in follow-up investigation. In this study, we expand on the topic of gender identity genomics by identifying rare variants in genes associated with sexually dimorphic brain development and exploring how they could contribute to gender dysphoria. To accomplish this, we performed whole exome sequencing on the genomic DNA of 13 transgender males and 17 transgender females. Whole exome sequencing revealed 120,582 genetic variants. After filtering, 441 variants in 421 genes remained for further consideration, including 21 nonsense, 28 frameshift, 13 splice-region, and 225 missense variants. Of these, 21 variants in 19 genes were found to have associations with previously described estrogen receptor activated pathways of sexually dimorphic brain development. These variants were confirmed by Sanger Sequencing. Our findings suggest a new avenue for investigation of genes involved in estrogen signaling pathways related to sexually dimorphic brain development and their relationship to gender dysphoria.
A study on Chinese ancient jades with mercury alteration unearthed from Lizhou’ao Tomb
Authors: Bao Yi , Xu Changqing , Zhu Qinwen , Li Yuesheng 
Published: December 2019

Abstract“Alteration” geologically refers to chemical composition and/or structural changes of minerals under the influences of hydrothermal fluids, surface water, seawater, or other environmental conditions. In this paper, we use the word “alteration” to refer to chemical component and structural changes in jade artifacts caused by human activity and natural weathering, which is different from the term in geology. “Mercury alteration”, a kind of black alteration related to Hg, is unique among the several types of alteration that occur in Chinese ancient jades. Mercury alteration often appears on ancient jade artifacts unearthed from high-grade tombs of the pre-Qin period (before 221 B.C.). Therefore, ancient jades with mercury alteration have attracted substantial attention from Chinese archaeologists. This paper reports the use of materials analytic techniques to study such ancient jade fragments. The studied jade samples date to the middle and late periods of the Spring and Autumn Period (~500 B.C.) and were unearthed from Lizhou’ao Tomb in Jiangxi Province, China. Structural analyses revealed the internal microstructure of the ancient jade fragments and the microdistribution of the mercury alteration. The jade fragments exhibit typical characteristics of round holes and structural hierarchy, which imply that the jades were heated before burial. The black alteration on these jade samples was found to be rich in Hg. The results of this study will be widely useful in the study of ancient jade artifacts and jade culture in Chinese archeology.
Acoustic Sensing as a Novel Wearable Approach for Cardiac Monitoring at the Wrist
Authors: Sharma Piyush , Imtiaz Syed Anas , Rodriguez-Villegas Esther 
Published: December 2019

AbstractThis paper introduces the concept of using acoustic sensing over the radial artery to extract cardiac parameters for continuous vital sign monitoring. It proposes a novel measurement principle that allows detection of the heart sounds together with the pulse wave, an attribute not possible with existing photoplethysmography (PPG)-based methods for monitoring at the wrist. The validity of the proposed principle is demonstrated using a new miniature, battery-operated wearable device to sense the acoustic signals and a novel algorithm to extract the heart rate from these signals. The algorithm utilizes the power spectral analysis of the acoustic pulse signal to detect the S1 sounds and additionally, the K-means method to remove motion artifacts for an accurate heartbeat detection. It has been validated on a dataset consisting of 12 subjects with a data length of 6 hours. The results demonstrate an accuracy of 98.78%, mean absolute error of 0.28 bpm, limits of agreement between −1.68 and 1.69 bpm, and a correlation coefficient of 0.998 with reference to a state-of-the-art PPG-based commercial device. The results in this proof of concept study demonstrate the potential of this new sensing modality to be used as an alternative, or to complement existing methods, for continuous monitoring of heart rate at the wrist.
The effect of transcranial focused ultrasound target location on the acoustic feedback control performance during blood-brain barrier opening with nanobubbles
Authors: Cheng Bingbing , Bing Chenchen , Chopra Rajiv 
Published: December 2019

AbstractReal-time acoustic feedback control based on harmonic emissions of stimulated microbubbles may be important for facilitating the clinical adoption of focused ultrasound (FUS)-induced blood-brain barrier (BBB) opening, both to ensure safe acoustic exposures, and to achieve repeatable and consistent opening. Previously our group demonstrated that successful BBB opening was achievable with both commercially available microbubbles and custom-made nanobubbles under acoustic feedback control. In a recent study, we demonstrated the acoustic control performance was not sensitive to the nanobubble concentration within 109–1011 bubbles/ml. The goal of this study was to examine the effect of the ultrasound target location in the rat brain on the acoustic control quality during BBB opening with nanobubbles. Temporal analysis of the received acoustic signals during each ultrasound pulse indicated that stable nanobubble oscillation was present throughout the entire 10 ms ultrasound exposure. The acoustic feedback control signals were very sensitive to the brain spatial location in rats. There appears to be a shared pattern of acoustic control stability in the brain across different animals, suggesting anatomical features are an underlying cause. The findings emphasize the importance of tuning acoustic feedback control algorithms for specific rodent brain regions of interest to ensure optimal performance.
Changing sex for selfish gain: B chromosomes of Lake Malawi cichlid fish
Authors: Clark Frances E. , Kocher Thomas D. 
Published: December 2019

AbstractB chromosomes are extra, non-essential chromosomes present in addition to the normal complement of A chromosomes. Many species of cichlid fish in Lake Malawi carry a haploid, female-restricted B chromosome. Here we show that this B chromosome exhibits drive, with an average transmission rate of 70%. The offspring of B-transmitting females exhibit a strongly female-biased sex ratio. Genotyping of these offspring reveals the B chromosome carries a female sex determiner that is epistatically dominant to an XY system on linkage group 7. We suggest that this sex determiner evolved to enhance the meiotic drive of the B chromosome. This is some of the first evidence that female meiotic drive can lead to the invasion of new sex chromosomes solely to benefit the driver, and not to compensate for skewed sex ratios.
Microtiming Deviations and Swing Feel in Jazz
Authors: Datseris George , Ziereis Annika , Albrecht Thorsten , Hagmayer York , Priesemann Viola , Geisel Theo 
Published: December 2019

AbstractJazz music that swings has the fascinating power to elicit a pleasant sensation of flow in listeners and the desire to synchronize body movements with the music. Whether microtiming deviations (MTDs), i.e. small timing deviations below the bar or phrase level, enhance the swing feel is highly debated in the current literature. Studies on other groove related genres did not find evidence for a positive impact of MTDs. The present study addresses jazz music and swing in particular, as there is some evidence that microtiming patterns are genre-specific. We recorded twelve piano jazz standards played by a professional pianist and manipulated the natural MTDs of the recordings in systematic ways by quantizing, expanding and inverting them. MTDs were defined with respect to a grid determined by the average swing ratio. The original and manipulated versions were presented in an online survey and evaluated by 160 listeners with various musical skill levels and backgrounds. Across pieces the quantized versions (without MTDs) were rated slightly higher and versions with expanded MTDs were rated lower with regard to swing than the original recordings. Unexpectedly, inversion had no impact on swing ratings except for two pieces. Our results suggest that naturally fluctuating MTDs are not an essential factor for the swing feel.
Tracing the fate of microplastic carbon in the aquatic food web by compound-specific isotope analysis
Authors: Taipale S. J. , Peltomaa E. , Kukkonen J. V. K. , Kainz M. J. , Kautonen P. , Tiirola M. 
Published: December 2019

AbstractIncreasing abundance of microplastics (MP) in marine and freshwaters is currently one of the greatest environmental concerns. Since plastics are fairly resistant to chemical decomposition, breakdown and reutilization of MP carbon complexes requires microbial activity. Currently, only a few microbial isolates have been shown to degrade MPs, and direct measurements of the fate of the MP carbon are still lacking. We used compound-specific isotope analysis to track the fate of fully labelled 13C-polyethylene (PE) MP carbon across the aquatic microbial-animal interface. Isotopic values of respired CO2 and membrane lipids showed that MP carbon was partly mineralized and partly used for cell growth. Microbial mineralization and assimilation of PE-MP carbon was most active when inoculated microbes were obtained from highly humic waters, which contain recalcitrant substrate sources. Mixotrophic algae (Cryptomonas sp.) and herbivorous zooplankton (Daphnia magna) used microbial mediated PE-MP carbon in their cell membrane fatty acids. Moreover, heteronanoflagellates and mixotrophic algae sequestered MP carbon for synthesizing essential ω-6 and ω-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids. Thus, this study demonstrates that aquatic micro-organisms can produce, biochemically upgrade, and trophically transfer nutritionally important biomolecules from PE-MP.
Identification of a proton sensor that regulates conductance and open time of single hERG channels
Authors: Wilson Stacey L. , Dempsey Christopher E. , Hancox Jules C. , Marrion Neil V. 
Published: December 2019

AbstractThe hERG potassium channel influences ventricular action potential duration. Extracellular acidosis occurs in pathological states including cardiac ischaemia. It reduces the amplitude of hERG current and speeds up deactivation, which can alter cardiac excitability. This study aimed to identify the site of action by which extracellular protons regulate the amplitude of macroscopic hERG current. Recordings of macroscopic and single hERG1a and 1b channel activity, mutagenesis, and the recent cryoEM structure for hERG were employed. Single hERG1a and 1b channels displayed open times that decreased with membrane depolarization, suggestive of a blocking mechanism that senses approximately 20% of the membrane electric field. This mechanism was sensitive to pH; extracellular acidosis reduced both hERG1a and1b channel open time and conductance. The effects of acidosis on macroscopic current amplitude and deactivation displayed different sensitivities to protons. Point mutation of a pair of residues (E575/H578) in the pore turret abolished the acidosis-induced decrease of current amplitude, without affecting the change in current deactivation. In single hERG1a channel recordings, the conductance of the double-mutant channel was unaffected by extracellular acidosis. These findings identify residues in the outer turret of the hERG channel that act as a proton sensor to regulate open time and channel conductance.
Care Practices, Morbidity and Mortality of Preterm Neonates in China, 2013–2014: a Retrospective study
Authors: Xu Fengdan , Kong Xiangyong , Duan Shunyan , Lv Hongyan , Ju Rong , Li Zhankui , Zeng Shujuan , Wu Hui , Zhang Xuefeng , Liu Weipeng , Liu Fang , Cheng Hongbin , Ding Yanjie , Chen Tieqiang , Xu Ping , Tong Xiaomei , Feng Zhichun 
Published: December 2019

AbstractThis retrospective cohort study aimed to investigate the prevalence, morbidity, mortality and the maternal/neonatal care of preterm neonates and the perinatal risk factors for mortality. We included data on 13,701 preterm neonates born in 15 hospitals for the period 2013–2014 in China. Results showed a prevalence of preterm neonates of 9.9%. Most infants at 24–27 weeks who survived more than 12 hours were mechanically ventilated (56.1%). Few infants born before 28 weeks received CPAP without first receiving mechanical ventilation (8.1%). Few preterm neonates received antenatal steroid(35.8% at 24–27 weeks, 57.9% at 28–31 weeks, 57.0% at 32–33 weeks and 32.7% at 34–36 weeks). Overall mortality was 1.9%. Most of the deaths at 24–27 weeks of gestation occurred within 12 hours after birth, accounting for 68.1%(32/47), and within 12–72 hours after birth at 28–36 weeks of gestation, accounting for 47.4%(99/209). Rates of survival to discharge increased from 68.2% at 24–27 weeks, 93.3% at 28–31 weeks, 99.2% at 32–33 weeks to 99.4% at 34–36 weeks. The smaller of the GA, there was a greater risk of morbidities due to prematurity. Preterm birth weight (OR = 0.407, 95% CI 0.346–0.478), antenatal steroid (OR = 0.680, 95% CI 0.493–0.938), and neonatal asphyxia (OR = 3.215, 95% CI 2.180–4.741) proved to significantly influence the odds of preterm neonatal death. Overall, our results support that most of the preterm neonates at 28–36 weeks of gestation survived without major morbidity. Rate of survival of GAs less than 28 weeks was still low. Maternal and infant care practices need to be improved in the very preterm births.
Seasonal spreading and transport of buoyant plumes in the shelf off Kochi, South west coast of India- A modeling approach
Authors: Seena G. , Muraleedharan K. R. , Revichandran C. , Abdul Azeez S. , John Sebin 
Published: December 2019

AbstractWe investigated the seasonal spreading and transport of buoyant plume in the shelf off Kochi using Finite Volume Community Ocean Model (FVCOM). The modelled river plume typically consisted of an offshore bulge and a coastal current. The spreading of the bulge extended up to a distance of 19 km from inlet during the summer monsoon to <10 km in the spring inter-monsoon. The Kelvin number varied between 0.1 and 0.9 which revealed that the plume exhibited both the features of small and large scale plumes, resulting in a highly complicated plume pattern. During the southwest monsoon the plume fringe twisted towards the south, while during the northeast monsoon it twisted towards north according to the reversal of monsoonal winds. The fresh water transport with respect to coastal currents varied in accordance with seasonal river discharge such that the value peaked in the wet season and dropped in the dry season. During the non-realistic (no wind) condition the plume initiated barotropic and baroclinic flow, after which it was acted upon by earth’s rotation so that the plume propagated in the direction of Coriolis force (towards north), as geostrophic currents. The model run ‘with wind’ and ‘without wind’ condition revealed that in the shelf off Kochi the plume is transported in accordance with monsoonal winds/currents by nullifying the effect of earth’s rotation. The categorization of plume influenced area and realization of the direction of plume transport can be used for interpreting the dynamically and potentially active zones in the shelf off Kochi.
High-throughput investigation of crystal-to-glass transformation of Ti–Ni–Cu ternary alloy
Authors: Hui Jian , Ma Haiqian , Wu Zheyu , Zhang Zhan , Ren Yang , Zhang Hengrui , Zhang Lanting , Wang Hong 
Published: December 2019

AbstractA high-throughput investigation of metallic glass formation via solid-state reaction was reported in this paper. Combinatorial multilayered thin-film chips covering the entire Ti–Ni–Cu ternary system were prepared using ion beam sputtering technique. Microbeam synchrotron X-ray diffraction (XRD) and X-ray fluorescence (XRF) measurements were conducted, with 1,325 data points collected from each chip, to map out the composition and the phase constitution before and after annealing at 373 K for 110 hours. The composition dependence of the crystal-to-glass transition by solid-state reaction was surveyed using this approach. The resulting composition–phase map is consistent with previously reported results. Time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectroscopy (ToF-SIMS) was performed on the representative compositions to determine the inter-diffusion between layers, the result shows that the diffusion of Ti is the key factor for the crystal-to-glass transition. In addition, both layer thickness and layer sequence play important roles as well. This work demonstrates that combinatorial chip technique is an efficient way for systematic and rapid study of crystal-to-glass transition for multi-component alloy systems.
Transport of impact ejecta from Mars to its moons as a means to reveal Martian history
Authors: Hyodo Ryuki , Kurosawa Kosuke , Genda Hidenori , Usui Tomohiro , Fujita Kazuhisa 
Published: December 2019

AbstractThroughout the history of the solar system, Mars has experienced continuous asteroidal impacts. These impacts have produced impact-generated Mars ejecta, and a fraction of this debris is delivered to Earth as Martian meteorites. Another fraction of the ejecta is delivered to the moons of Mars, Phobos and Deimos. Here, we studied the amount and condition of recent delivery of impact ejecta from Mars to its moons. Using state-of-the-art numerical approaches, we report, for the first time, that materials delivered from Mars to its moons are physically and chemically different from the Martian meteorites, which are all igneous rocks with a limited range of ages. We show that Mars ejecta mixed in the regolith of its moons potentially covers all its geological eras and consists of all types of rocks, from sedimentary to igneous. A Martian moons sample-return mission will bring such materials back to Earth, and the samples will provide a wealth of “time-resolved” geochemical information about the evolution of Martian surface environments.