bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Crystal Plasticity Model Calibration for Ti-7Al Alloy with a Multi-fidelity Computational Scheme
Authors: Acar Pınar 
Published: November 2018

AbstractThe present work addresses a Gaussian process-based multi-fidelity computational scheme to enable the crystal plasticity modeling of Ti-7Al alloy. The crystal plasticity simulations are performed by using computational techniques that lead to two different solution fidelities. The first technique involves the use of a one-point probability descriptor, orientation distribution function (ODF), which measures the volume fractions of crystals in different orientations. The ODF is posed as the low-fidelity method in the multi-fidelity scheme since it neglects the effects of the microstructural correlations and grain shapes to the macro-scale stress-strain response of the material. For the high-fidelity computational technique, crystal plasticity finite element method (CPFEM) is utilized. This is because the CPFEM resolves better in grain-level microstructural features. However, the CPFEM is a computationally expensive technique and it is not feasible to be utilized for computationally costly problems. Therefore, a multi-fidelity modeling scheme that improves the low-fidelity ODF simulation data with the high-fidelity CPFEM simulations is utilized to obtain the crystal plasticity parameters. The presented approach uses more samples from the computationally less expensive low-fidelity model and less samples from the computationally expensive high-fidelity model to build a numerical framework that satisfies both accuracy and computational time expectations. The results of the presented multi-fidelity scheme show a significant improvement on the accuracy of the crystal plasticity modeling of Ti-7Al compared to the results of the previous low-fidelity solution.
Clinical and cognitive characteristics of preclinical Alzheimer's disease in the Japanese Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative cohort
Authors: Ihara Ryoko , Iwata Atsushi , Suzuki Kazushi , Ikeuchi Takeshi , Kuwano Ryozo , Iwatsubo Takeshi ,   Japanese Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative
Published: November 2018

AbstractIntroductionThe objective of this study was to determine the frequency and clinical and cognitive characteristics of preclinical Alzheimer's disease (AD) in a Japanese population to effectively design and conduct future preventive trials on preclinical AD.MethodsThree‐year longitudinal data from cognitively normal participants who underwent cerebrospinal fluid biomarker measurement and/or amyloid positron emission tomography in the Japanese Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative, were analyzed. Comparisons between participants with and without amyloid β (Aβ) accumulation, and between those with and without elevated tau levels tau among participants with Aβ accumulation were performed.ResultsAmong 84 participants with available cerebrospinal fluid biomarker and/or amyloid positron emission tomography data, 19 (22.6%) exhibited Aβ accumulation. The frequency of APOE ε4 alleles was significantly higher in participants with Aβ accumulation. There were no significant differences in any of the cognitive tests at the baseline; however, participants with Aβ accumulation exhibited a decline in clock drawing test (linear mixed‐effects model, P = .008) and a tendency toward loss of practice effects in the Mini‐Mental State Examination and the logical memory over time. Although it did not reach statistical significance, the analysis indicated a decline in measurements of executive function over time in participants with elevated tau levels compared with those with normal tau levels.DiscussionThe frequency of preclinical AD in the Japanese Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative was lower than in similar studies because of the younger age of the participants and lower frequency of APOE ε4 carriage. Although limitations in sample size precluded definitive conclusions, the results suggest that even in the preclinical phase of AD, loss of practice effects in episodic memory tests and at a later stage, decline in executive function, are present. These findings may be useful for recruitment of individuals with preclinical AD and establishing a novel cognitive composite for use in clinical trials on preclinical AD.
Learning lessons from data breaches
Authors: Roberts Steve 
Published: November 2018

Bricks-and-mortar retail sales are rapidly being replaced by online shopping. And where money is spent, bad actors will follow. Data breaches involving e-commerce have now surpassed breaches at the point of sale and they're becoming very expensive. In spite of this, there remains an alarming lack of corporate self-awareness when it comes to cyber security. Where money is spent, bad actors will follow. Data breaches involving e-commerce have now surpassed breaches at the point of sale and they're becoming very expensive. In spite of this, there remains an alarming lack of corporate self-awareness when it comes to cyber security. This has led to major incidents that could have been avoided. Steve Roberts of OSS Technology analyses some major breaches of the past few years and asks what went wrong, how could they have been prevented and what lessons can we learn?
Chemical characteristics of hydrologically distinct cryoconite holes in coastal Antarctica
Authors: Samui Gautami , Antony Runa , Thamban Meloth 
Published: November 2018

ABSTRACTCryoconite holes play a significant role in the nutrient cycling on glaciers and can be regarded as a storehouse of nutrients that are generated through microbial and photochemical activities. In this work, the chemical characteristics of hydrologically connected and isolated cryoconite holes from three geographically distinct regions of coastal Antarctica, namely Larsemann Hills, Amery Ice Shelf and central Dronning Maud Land were studied. Major ions (Na+, K+, Mg2+, Ca2+, Cl−, SO42− and NO3−) and total organic carbon in the hydrologically isolated, closed cryoconite holes showed significantly higher enrichment (6–26 times and 9 times, respectively) over the conservative tracer ion Cl− possibly due to sediment dissolution and microbial synthesis during isolation period. In contrast, depletion of major ions and organic carbon were observed in the open, hydrologically connected holes due to their discharge from the cryoconite holes through interconnected streams. This study suggests that the contribution of cryoconite holes to the nutrient and microbial transport to downstream environments may vary with the extent of hydrological connectivity by virtue of the fact that nutrients and organic carbon which accumulate in the isolated cryoconite holes during isolation could get washed to downstream environments in the event that they get connected through surface or subsurface melt channels.
Internet Service Providers as Privacy Custodians
Authors: Zajko Mike 
Published: November 2018

AbstractThis article examines the role of internet service providers (ISPs) as guardians of personal information and protectors of privacy, with a particular focus on how telecom companies in Canada have historically negotiated these responsibilities. Communications intermediaries have long been expected to act as privacy custodians by their users, while simultaneously being subject to pressures to collect, utilize, and disclose personal information. As service providers gain custody over increasing volumes of highly-sensitive information, their importance as privacy custodians has been brought into starker relief and explicitly recognized as a core responsibility.Some ISPs have adopted a more positive orientation to this responsibility, actively taking steps to advance it, rather that treating privacy protection as a set of limitations on conduct. However, commitments to privacy stewardship are often neutralized through contradictory legal obligations (such as mandated surveillance access) and are recurrently threatened by commercial pressures to monetize personal information.
Mycobacterium avium pseudo-outbreak associated with an outpatient bronchoscopy clinic: Lessons for reprocessing
Authors: Seidelman Jessica L. , Wallace Richard J. , Iakhiaeva Elena , Vasireddy Ravikiran , Brown-Elliott Barbara A. , McKnight Celeste , Chen Luke F. , Smith Terry , Lewis Sarah S. 
Published: November 2018

AbstractWe identified a pseudo-outbreak of Mycobacterium avium in an outpatient bronchoscopy clinic following an increase in clinic procedure volume. We terminated the pseudo-outbreak by increasing the frequency of automated endoscope reprocessors (AER) filter changes from quarterly to monthly. Filter changing schedules should depend on use rather than fixed time intervals.
Plasma metabolite profiles in healthy women differ after intervention with supplemental folic acid v. folate-rich foods
Authors: Hefni Mohammed E. , Witthöft Cornelia M. , Moazzami Ali A. 
Published: November 2018

AbstractPublic health authorities recommend all fertile women to increase their folate intake to 400 µg/d by eating folate-rich foods or by taking a folic acid supplement to protect against neural tube defects. In a previous study it was shown that folate-rich foods improved folate blood status as effectively as folic acid supplementation. The aim of the present study was to investigate, using NMR metabolomics, the effects of an intervention with a synthetic folic acid supplement v. native food folate on the profile of plasma metabolites. Healthy women with normal folate status received, in parallel, 500 µg/d synthetic folic acid from a supplement (n 18), 250 µg/d folate from intervention foods (n 19), or no additional folate (0 µg/d) through a portion of apple juice (n 20). The metabolic profile of plasma was measured using 1H-NMR in fasted blood drawn at baseline and after 12 weeks of intervention. Metabolic differences between the groups at baseline and after intervention were assessed using a univariate statistical approach (P ≤ 0·001, Bonferroni-adjusted significance level). At baseline, the groups showed no significant differences in measured metabolite concentrations. After intervention, eight metabolites, of which six (glycine, choline, betaine, formate, histidine and threonine) are related to one-carbon metabolism, were identified as discriminative metabolites. The present study suggests that different folate forms (synthetic v. natural) may affect related one-carbon metabolites differently.
The Early Ordovician Middle Shale Member (Am3) of the Amdeh Formation and further evidence of conodont faunas from the Sultanate of Oman
Authors: Heward AP , Miller CG , Booth GA 
Published: November 2018

AbstractThe Middle Shale Member of the Amdeh Formation is interpreted to be of Early Ordovician age based on its trace fossils, stratigraphic context and a newly discovered fauna of conodonts. The member abruptly overlies the Lower Quartzite Member, which may be Early Cambrian, and passes gradationally-upward into the Upper Quartzite Member, which is probably Early–Middle Ordovician. The 542.5 m thick Middle Shale Member can be divided into two parts: a shaly lower part, and a sandy upper part that contains an influx of heavy minerals. Bioturbation by marine trace fossils is one of the most obvious characteristics of the member. The shales and sandstones are interpreted to be ofCruzianaandSkolithosichnofacies and represent shallow-marine shelf, shoreface, beach and coastal deposits. Sparse shelly fossils occur in the sandy upper part, principally bivalves, inarticulate brachiopods, ostracods and conodonts. The small assemblage of conodonts includes elements interpreted to be Tremadocian (Tetraprioniodus,Drepanoistodus,Drepanodus,Scolopodus, ?Tropodus,SemiacontiodusandTeridontus), and others which may be Floian or ancestral forms of Floian taxa (Balognathidae gen. et sp. indet. A &amp; B and aff.Erraticodon). No acritarchs have been recovered, probably due to high temperatures experienced during burial to &gt;6 km. It is likely that the Middle Shale Member is the seaward equivalent of the Mabrouk and Barakat formations, and an outcrop gamma-ray log supports such a correlation. The trace fossils, sedimentology, conodont fauna and the general lack of macrofossils are in keeping with the regional Tremadocian–Floian of the Arabian margin of Gondwana.
Habitat Loss Challenges the Conservation of Endemic Plants in Mining-Targeted Brazilian Mountains
Authors: Salles Debora M , Carmo Flávio F do , Jacobi Claudia M 
Published: November 2018

SummaryIronstone outcrop habitats harbour rare and endemic rupicolous plants. In southeast Brazil, they concentrate on mountaintops in the Iron Quadrangle (IQ), an intensively exploited iron ore reserve. To evaluate the current habitat availability of 32 plants endemic tocanga(ironstone outcrops) and to support priority conservation areas and actions, we compared their functional connectivity in the IQ before (1960s) and after (2014) massive habitat loss to opencast mining. The Integral Index of Connectivity and associated metrics of habitat availability were used to evaluate present and past connectivity at a threshold distance of 500 m. The overallcangahabitat loss up to 2014 was 50%. The historical configuration of 334 patches totalling 18 654 ha was already disconnected and the proportion of patches acting as relevant stepping stones was thus very low. Furthermore, in both the historical and current settings, the largest contribution to habitat availability came from ‘intrapatch connectivity’ (i.e., patch area), especially in the east sector. All the IQcangaendemics fall into the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Critically Endangered category and require protection. The recommended strategy for their conservation is to protect large, preferably well-preserved ironstone patches. This measure will require finding the middle ground between economic development and conservation of natural heritage.
Aerobic Fitness Level Moderates the Association Between Cannabis Use and Executive Functioning and Psychomotor Speed Following Abstinence in Adolescents and Young Adults
Authors: Wade Natasha E. , Wallace Alexander L. , Swartz Ann M. , Lisdahl Krista M. 
Published: November 2018

AbstractObjectives: The high rate of cannabis (CAN) use in emerging adults is concerning given prior research suggesting neurocognitive deficits associated with CAN use in youth. Regular CAN use downregulates endocannabinoid activity, while aerobic exercise upregulates cannabinoid receptor 1 activity and releases endocannabinoids. Here we investigate the influence of regular CAN use on neuropsychological performance, and whether aerobic fitness moderates these effects. Methods: Seventy-nine young adults (37 CAN users) aged 16–26 participated. Groups were balanced for aerobic fitness level. Exclusion criteria included: left-handedness, past-year independent Axis-I disorders, major medical/neurologic disorders, prenatal issues, or prenatal alcohol/illicit drug exposure. After 3 weeks of abstinence, participants completed a neuropsychological battery and a maximal oxygen consumption test (VO2 max). Multiple regressions tested whether past-year CAN use, VO2 max, and CAN*VO2 max interaction predicted neuropsychological performance, controlling for past-year alcohol use, cotinine, gender, and depression symptoms. Results: Increased CAN use was associated with decreased performance on working memory and psychomotor tasks. High aerobic fitness level was related to better performance on visual memory, verbal fluency, and sequencing ability. CAN*VO2 max predicted performance of psychomotor speed, visual memory, and sequencing ability. Conclusions: Following monitored abstinence, increased CAN use was associated with poorer performance in working memory and psychomotor speed. Higher aerobic fitness level moderated the impact of CAN on visual memory, executive function and psychomotor speed, as more aerobically fit CAN users demonstrated better performance relative to low-fit users. Therefore, aerobic fitness may present an affordable and efficacious method to improve cognitive functioning in CAN users. (JINS, 2019, 25, 134–145)
Horizontal “checks and balances” in the socialist regime: the party chief and mayor template
Authors: Zhou Yang 
Published: November 2018

AbstractJános Kornai's pioneering scholarship examined the mechanisms of the socialist system. Following the collapse of the Soviet Union, Kornai's main focus was on the transition process in former socialist countries in central Eastern Europe. This paper builds on Kornai's work on the socialist system by analyzing horizontal bargaining within every political branch in contemporary China. I argue that this horizontal bargaining within the party is enhanced by the vertical bargaining. Incorporating Kornai's work on socialism, the “party chief and mayor” template extends the bargaining model from one key figure and one group in the “king and council” template to two key figures and their respective confidants. In addition, it incorporates institutional constraints into the graphical model. It also defines a “collective decision probability function,” which shows how the party chief and mayor model reaches “checks and balances” that limit the policy space, regardless of whether the policy is exogenous or endogenous.
Temporal and Spatial Correspondence of Pc1/EMIC Waves and Relativistic Electron Precipitations Observed With Ground‐Based Multi‐Instruments on 27 March 2017
Authors: Hirai A. , Tsuchiya F. , Obara T. , Kasaba Y. , Katoh Y. , Misawa H. , Shiokawa K. , Miyoshi Y. , Kurita S. , Matsuda S. , Connors M. , Nagatsuma T. , Sakaguchi K. , Kasahara Y. , Kumamoto A. , Matsuoka A. , Shoji M. , Shinohara I. , Albert J. M. 
Published: November 2018

AbstractElectromagnetic ion cyclotron (EMIC) waves potentially cause precipitation loss of relativistic electrons from the outer radiation belt to the atmosphere through pitch angle scattering. However, the direct evidence of each EMIC wave element and burst of precipitation has not yet been reported. Here we show the temporal and spatial correspondence of the EMIC waves with relativistic electron precipitation (REP) during the geomagnetic storm of 27 March 2017. EMIC waves were observed at several stations in North America. REP was detected as a decrease of subionospheric radio amplitudes observed at Athabasca, Canada. When isolated proton aurora, observed at Athabasca, appeared on the radio propagation path, we found a good correspondence between the temporal variations of REP and EMIC waves, and REP preceded EMIC waves by 24 s. This time lag is consistent with the travel time difference between relativistic electrons and EMIC waves from the magnetospheric equatorial plane to the ionosphere.
Seismological Evidence for Laterally Heterogeneous Lowermost Outer Core of the Earth
Authors: Ohtaki Toshiki , Kaneshima Satoshi , Ichikawa Hiroki , Tsuchiya Taku 
Published: November 2018

AbstractThe Earth's outer core is believed to be laterally homogeneous because of its low viscosity. However, a hemispherical difference in the inner core likely exists due to its uneven growth, which may be accompanied by localized light‐element releases to the outer core. A few seismological studies proposed heterogeneous lowermost outer core (called F layer) but using methods that are not very sensitive to F layer structures. In a previous study we developed a new method sensitive to the F layer structure and insensitive to others. The method analyzes differences in P wave traveltimes reflected on the inner core boundary and those that turn above the boundary as well as dispersion in waves bottoming or diffracting in the F layer, and was applied to obtain an F layer model of P wave velocity for the northeastern Pacific Ocean. In this paper, we examine the F layer structure beneath Australia using the same method. The observed dispersion requires a lower‐velocity gradient beneath Australia than beneath the northeastern Pacific, whereas the observed traveltime differences require higher average velocities beneath Australia. The results obtained for the two regions indicate that the F layer is laterally heterogeneous and that the layer beneath Australia has a higher velocity and velocity gradient in its upper part and a much smaller gradient in its lower part than beneath northeastern Pacific. The maximum velocity difference between the two regions is 0.04 km/s, which corresponds to 0.8 wt% excess oxygen according to ab initio calculations of elastic properties. These results suggest regional light‐element concentration beneath Australia.
Chloroquine ameliorates carbon tetrachloride-induced acute liver injury in mice via the concomitant inhibition of inflammation and induction of apoptosis
Authors: Dai Chongshan , Xiao Xilong , Li Daowen , Tun Sun , Wang Ying , Velkov Tony , Tang Shusheng 
Published: November 2018

AbstractThis is the first study to investigate the hepatoprotective effect of CQ on acute liver injury caused by carbon tetrachloride (CCl4) in a murine model and the underlying molecular mechanisms. Ninety-six mice were randomly divided into the control (n = 8), CQ (n = 8), CCl4 (n = 40), and CCl4 + CQ (n = 40) treatment groups. In the CCl4 group, mice were intraperitoneally (i.p) injected with 0.3% CCl4 (10 mL/kg, dissolved in olive oil); in the CCl4 + CQ group, mice were i.p injected with CQ at 50 mg/kg at 2, 24, and 48 h before CCl4 administration. The mice in the control and CQ groups were administered with an equal vehicle or CQ (50 mg/kg). Mice were killed at 2, 6, 12, 24, 48 h post CCl4 treatment and their livers were harvested for analysis. The results showed that CQ pre-treatment markedly inhibited CCl4-induced acute liver injury, which was evidenced by decreased serum transaminase, aspartate transaminase and lower histological scores of liver injury. CQ pretreatment downregulated the CCl4-induced hepatic tissue expression of high-mobility group box 1 (HMGB1) and the levels of serum HMGB1 as well as IL-6 and TNF-α. Furthermore, CQ pre-treatment inhibited autophagy, downregulated NF-kB expression, upregulated p53 expression, increased the ratio of Bax/Bcl-2, and increased the activation of caspase-3 in hepatic tissue. This is the first study to demonstrate that CQ ameliorates CCl4-induced acute liver injury via the inhibition of HMGB1-mediated inflammatory responses and the stimulation of pro-apoptotic pathways to modulate the apoptotic and inflammatory responses associated with progress of liver damage.