bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
An evaluation of SMOS L-band vegetation optical depth (L-VOD) data sets: high sensitivity of L-VOD to above-ground biomass in Africa
Authors: Rodríguez-Fernández Nemesio J. , Mialon Arnaud , Mermoz Stephane , Bouvet Alexandre , Richaume Philippe , Al Bitar Ahmad , Al-Yaari Amen , Brandt Martin , Kaminski Thomas , Le Toan Thuy , Kerr Yann H. , Wigneron Jean-Pierre 
Published: July 2018

Abstract. The vegetation optical depth (VOD) measured at microwave frequencies is related to the vegetation water content and provides information complementary to visible/infrared vegetation indices. This study is devoted to the characterization of a new VOD data set obtained from SMOS (Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity) satellite observations at L-band (1.4 GHz). Three different SMOS L-band VOD (L-VOD) data sets (SMOS level 2, level 3 and SMOS-IC) were compared with data sets on tree height, visible/infrared indexes (NDVI, EVI), mean annual precipitation and above-ground biomass (AGB) for the African continent. For all relationships, SMOS-IC showed the lowest dispersion and highest correlation. Overall, we found a strong (R > 0.85) correlation with no clear sign of saturation between L-VOD and four AGB data sets. The relationships between L-VOD and the AGB data sets were linear per land cover class but with a changing slope depending on the class type, which makes it a global non-linear relationship. In contrast, the relationship linking L-VOD to tree height (R = 0.87) was close to linear. For vegetation classes other than evergreen broadleaf forest, the annual mean of L-VOD spans a range from 0 to 0.7 and it is linearly correlated with the average annual precipitation. SMOS L-VOD showed higher sensitivity to AGB compared to NDVI and K/X/C-VOD (VOD measured at 19, 10.7 and 6.9 GHz). The results showed that, although the spatial resolution of L-VOD is coarse ( ∼ 40 km), the high temporal frequency and sensitivity to AGB makes SMOS L-VOD a very promising indicator for large-scale monitoring of the vegetation status, in particular biomass.
Testing an optimality-based model of rooting zone water storage capacity in temperate forests
Authors: Speich Matthias J. R. , Lischke Heike , Zappa Massimiliano 
Published: July 2018

Abstract. Rooting zone water storage capacity Sr is a crucial parameter for
modeling hydrology, ecosystem gas exchange and vegetation dynamics. Despite
its importance, this parameter is still poorly constrained and subject to
high uncertainty. We tested the analytical, optimality-based model of
effective rooting depth proposed by Guswa (2008, 2010) with regard to its
applicability for parameterizing Sr in temperate forests. The
model assumes that plants dimension their rooting systems to maximize net
carbon gain. Results from this model were compared against values obtained by
calibrating a local water balance model against latent heat flux and soil
moisture observations from 15 eddy covariance sites. Then, the effect of
optimality-based Sr estimates on the performance of local water
balance predictions was assessed during model validation. The agreement between calibrated and optimality-based Sr varied
greatly across climates and forest types. At a majority of cold and temperate
sites, the Sr estimates were similar for both methods, and the
water balance model performed equally well when parameterized with calibrated
and with optimality-based Sr. At spruce-dominated sites,
optimality-based Sr were much larger than calibrated values.
However, this did not affect the performance of the water balance model. On
the other hand, at the Mediterranean sites considered in this study,
optimality-based Sr were consistently much smaller than
calibrated values. The same was the case at pine-dominated sites on sandy
soils. Accordingly, performance of the water balance model was much worse at
these sites when optimality-based Sr were used. This rooting
depth parameterization might be used in dynamic (eco)hydrological models
under cold and temperate conditions, either to estimate Sr
without calibration or as a model component. This could greatly increase the
reliability of transient climate-impact assessment studies. On the other
hand, the results from this study do not warrant the application of this
model to Mediterranean climates or on very coarse soils. While the cause of
these mismatches cannot be determined with certainty, it is possible that
trees under these conditions follow rooting strategies that differ from the
carbon budget optimization assumed by the model.
Developing a Cryptocurrency Assessment Framework: Function over Form
Authors: Burnie Andrew , Burnie James , Henderson Andrew 
Published: July 2018

The rise of cryptocurrency as a new sui generis asset class creates a need for a new classification scheme to cover the wide range of functionality for which tokens can be used. By differentiating tokens based on their functional attributes, cryptocurrency tokens can be categorised into crypto-transaction tokens (which act as a cash substitute); crypto-fuel tokens (which underpin generic blockchain applications); and crypto-voucher tokens (which can be exchanged for a predefined asset). This classification is applied to identify important issues when considering whether to participate in a cryptocurrency system, such as the impact of potential forks, token supply expectations and the level of dependence on a few operators (entity-dependence). For crypto-transaction tokens (and crypto-fuel tokens if used in a similar or overlapping role) it shows the importance of the token being seen as a “better” form of money. For crypto-fuel tokens, the popularity of blockchain applications and the utility of the crypto-fuel system in application development is vital. For crypto-voucher tokens, the value of the underlying asset, the token’s exchangeability for that asset and the importance of a digital representation should be considered by participants. The interplay between fundamentals and speculation as drivers of price is considered.An erratum to this article has been published at as DOI: https://doi.org/10.5195/ledger.2018.151.
Refusing to Wait: Just-in-Time Teaching
Authors: Cahill Ann J. , Mould Tom 
Published: July 2018

Shortly after the presidential election of 2016, a group of faculty and staff at Elon University committed to developing and offering a one-credit course designed to provide students with intellectual and practical skills that would be useful in facing contemporary social and political challenges. This article describes the process of developing the course, its structure and content, and its effects on the students, faculty, and staff who participated in it. The article also discusses strengths and weaknesses of the course design as a means of helping to ensure the success of any future endeavors. The course, which eventually came to be titled “Refusing to Wait: Intellectual and Practical Resources for Troubled Times,” is an example of how institutions of higher education can respond quickly and effectively to political developments, while keeping student learning at the center of their mission.
Teaching 'Trump Feminists'
Authors: Josephson Tristan 
Published: July 2018

This article takes up the question of how to develop effective strategies for engaging conservative students who feel under attack in feminist classrooms. Every semester I teach a Women’s Studies course that introduces students to the history and breadth of contemporary feminist social movements, with a focus on feminist struggles that center anti-racist, queer, and economic justice analytical frameworks. As a general education course, listed in the university course catalog under the rather generic title of “Introduction to Women’s Movements,” this class attracts students with a range of political perspectives from a variety of academic majors. While the majority of the students tend to enter the class with relatively liberal analyses of gender and racial oppression, a significant minority of students have more conservative views. Dealing with resistant and conservative students in women and gender studies is not a new phenomenon, especially in my position teaching at a regional comprehensive public university in northern California. While the university administration is supportive of students of color and undocumented students, it is also heavily invested in discourses of civility and ‘free speech.’ The recent election cycle and the current Trump presidency have empowered the more conservative students in my classes to mobilize this language to claim that they feel ‘unsafe’ in class and on campus. The appropriation of feminist and queer discourses of ‘safe space’ by students on the right to position themselves as being under attack and vulnerable presents a series of pedagogical challenges. I challenge explicit racist, misogynist, homophobic, and transphobic comments in class and my course readings rigorously challenge these forms of bias. Personally and politically I am committed to making sure that my students who are actually under threat – undocumented students, students of color, queer and trans students – are receiving the support that they need. However, I am also invested in challenging all of my students and trying to make my classrooms into spaces of transformational learning. I explore the question of dissent in feminist classrooms through the problem of conservative students who deploy rhetorics of safety in ways that flatten out power relations and systemic oppression. How to respond to students who proudly proclaim they voted for Trump and consider themselves feminists, or to students who tearfully confess they feel unsafe on campus because of their political views? What pedagogical strategies actively engage conservative students rather than silence and alienate them? How can instructors problematize the notion of ‘safety’ for conservative students to help them develop more critical understandings of structural violence and precarity?
Rehabilitation of Reinforced Concrete Deep Beams Using Carbon Fiber Reinforced Polymers (CFRP)
Authors: Hassan Shereen K. H. , Abdel-Jaber Mu`tasim S. , Alqam Maha 
Published: July 2018

Reinforced concrete structures that incorporates deep beams are generally susceptible to deterioration due to weathering effects and sulphur attacks, under-design in the detailing of concrete cover and/or reinforcement, and construction errors. In lieu of demolishing and replacing these structures, rehabilitation and strengthening using carbon fiber composites becomes a cost-effective viable alternative. Recent advances in research and innovation have introduced concrete repair and strengthening systems that are primarily based on fiber reinforced polymer composites. These systems have offered engineers the opportunity to provide additional stability to the structural elements in question and to restore the damaged portions back to their original load carrying capacity. This paper investigates the effect of Carbon Fiber Reinforced Polymer (CFRP) composites in enhancing the flexural performance of damaged reinforced concrete deep beams. Two types of CFRP composites and epoxy were used in the experimental investigation carried out and as described by this paper: 1) high strength carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) plates, commercially known as MBrace Laminate, that are bonded using an epoxy resin specifically suited for the installation and used to strengthen existing structural members; and, 2) MBrace Fiber 230/4900, a 100% solids, low viscosity epoxy material that is used to encapsulate MBrace carbon, glass, and aramid fiber fabrics so that when it cures, it provides a high performance FRP sheet.Test samples were divided into four groups: A control group, and three rehabilitated test groups with CRFP fibers, where the main variable among them was the percent length of CRFP used along the bottom beam extreme surface between supports (i.e, for two of the groups reinforced with MBrace laminates), and the use of MBrace Fiber 230/4500 CRFP sheets on the 4th beam along its vertical sides as well as the bottom extreme face between supports. All beams had similar cross-sectional dimensions and reinforcement, and were designed to fail in flexure rather than shear. The results show that CFRP composites, both laminated and sheet type, have increased the load carrying capacity in comparison to the control specimen, where observations were recorded pertaining to the delayed formation of vertical flexural cracks at the section of maximum moment, and diagonal shear cracks at beam ends. The increase in the load carrying capacity varied among the three rehabilitated test group beams, with the 4th group showing the highest ultimate load carrying capacity when compared to the control specimen.
Reviewer Acknowledgements for Sustainable Agriculture Research, Vol. 7, No. 3
Authors: Lee Joan 
Published: July 2018

Sustainable Agriculture Research wishes to acknowledge the following individuals for their assistance with peer review of manuscripts for this issue. Their help and contributions in maintaining the quality of the journal are greatly appreciated.Sustainable Agriculture Research is recruiting reviewers for the journal. If you are interested in becoming a reviewer, we welcome you to join us. Please find the application form and details at http://www.ccsenet.org/journal/index.php/sar/editor/recruitment and e-mail the completed application form to sar@ccsenet.org. Reviewers for Volume 7, Number 3Entessar Mohammad Al JBawi, General Commission for Scientific Agricultural Research, SyriaKatarzyna Panasiewicz, Poznan University of Life Sciences, PolandManuel Teles Oliveira, University Tras os Montes Alto Douro, PortugalMaren Langhof, Julius Kühn-Institut, GermanyMirela Kopjar, University of Osijek, CroatiaMurtazain Raza, Subsidiary of Habib Bank AG Zurich, PakistanNasim Ahmad Yasin, University of the Punjab Lahore Pakistan, PakistanNehemie Tchinda Donfagsiteli, Institute of Medical Research and Medicinal Plants Studies, CameroonRaghuveer Sripathi, Advanta US, Inc., USARam Swaroop Jat, ICAR-Directorate of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants Research, IndiaS. Dharumarajan, Scientist, National Bureau of soil survey and land use planning, Bangalore, IndiaSalvatore Tinervia, University of Study of Palermo, Italy
Estudio situacional de los registros electrónicos en una unidad de medicina interna: barreras y oportunidades
Authors: Pérez-Martí Montserrat , Casadó Marín Lina Cristina , Romaní Alfonso José Oriol 
Published: July 2018

El objetivo de este trabajo fue conocer los recursos, flujos de trabajo y percepción de las enfermeras de una unidad de medicina interna, relacionados con los registros electrónicos, con el fin de determinar si la implantación de tablets en las unidades de hospitalización, podrían responder a sus expectativas. <br />Se llevó a cabo un estudio descriptivo, transversal, muestreo no probabilístico, consecutivo durante los meses de julio y agosto del 2016. Se realizaron 31 observaciones, a 18 enfermeras, 392 pacientes ingresados. Las variables: turno, metodología de trabajo, tiempo “ronda”, tiempo transcripción de datos, tiempo total, número de pacientes ingresados y tiempo invertido por paciente. También se preguntó a cada enfermera sobre cómo trabajaban y el motivo.<br />La media de tiempo total fue 59,16 min (DT:16,6), y 12,65 (DT:1,11) pacientes ingresados. Tiempo invertido por paciente 4,65 min (DT:1,15), inferior en el turno tarde [M:4,14; DT: 0,84] que el de noche [M: 5,47; DT: 1,12]. El turno noche siempre utilizaba el mismo método de trabajo y era el turno tarde que presentaba sistemáticas diferentes. Las enfermeras manifestaron la necesidad de un sistema de registro ligero, en tiempo real, a pie de cama del enfermo, evitando desplazamientos, de fácil acceso para la consulta e intercambio de información. <br />Los dos métodos de trabajo de la unidad de observación no satisfacen las necesidades de las enfermeras, son lentos, pesados y dificultan el acceso a la información y el registro. La incorporación de tablets podría reducir estos problemas y cubrir sus expectativas, abriendo una nueva línea de investigación.<br /><br />
2D Materials Beyond Graphene for Metal Halide Perovskite Solar Cells
Authors: Kakavelakis George , Kymakis Emmanuel , Petridis Kostantinos 
Published: July 2018

AbstractIn this Research News, the authors summarize the work that has been done on the utilization of 2D materials beyond graphene in the electron transport layer (ETL) and hole transport layer (HTL) selected of metal halide perovskite solar cells (PSCs). On the one hand, the impact of such materials in the stability of PSCs under operational conditions is impressive. Stabilities for encapsulated PSCs cells under illumination and ambient conditions at maximum power point that retain 80% of their initial performance (T80) have been reported. On the other hand, the extraction of photogenerated holes has been reduced to few microsecond when a 2D material–based HTL or ETL is introduced. The faster photogenerated charge extraction lowered the recombination rates and resulted in higher power conversion efficiencies. The most interesting thing is that the 2D materials have been successfully applied for large active area cells (≈1.05 cm2) as well. The exploitation of 2D materials, beyond graphene, is a very interesting and promising technology that shows a high potential pathway towards the envisioned future commercialization of PSCs through addressing their performance, stability, and scalability priorities.
From Crystalline to Amorphous: An Effective Avenue to Engineer High‐Performance Electrode Materials for Sodium‐Ion Batteries
Authors: Wei Zhixuan , Wang Dongxue , Yang Xu , Wang Chunzhong , Chen Gang , Du Fei 
Published: July 2018

AbstractRoom‐temperature rechargeable sodium‐ion batteries appear to be promising alternatives for grid and other storage applications to lithium‐ion batteries because of the natural abundance, low cost, and environmental benignity of sodium. In response to the ever‐increasing development for these technologies, an intensive exploration for appropriate electrode materials with high energy density is still underway. This Progress Report highlights the recent research in the investigation of amorphous materials, whose isotropic physical and chemical properties can provide multiple pathways for ions and facilitate ion diffusion. This Progress Report focuses on sodium‐ion batteries, but it is hoped that the engineering strategies may provide guidance on further research and design of functional materials for both sodium and potassium‐ion batteries.
Mechanically Robust Transparent Anti‐Icing Coatings: Roles of Dispersion Status of Titanate Nanotubes
Authors: Wu Xinghua , Tang Yuxin , Silberschmidt Vadim V. , Wilson Peter , Chen Zhong 
Published: July 2018

AbstractIce accretion on automobiles, aerospace components, precision instruments, and photovoltaic devices detrimentally affect their performance and increase the maintenance cost. Despite significant efforts devoted to the investigation of anti‐icing coatings in the past decades, mechanically robust and transparent anti‐icing coatings are rarely reported. In this study, titanate nanotubes are used as filler to prepare mechanically robust anti‐icing coatings with a sol‐gel method. Specially, the effect of dispersion status of nanotubes on the transmittance, surface roughness, and water repellency is investigated. The optimized smooth, transparent coating exhibits higher water repellency and better anti‐icing performance in terms of ice‐adhesion strength, icing delay time, and ice‐nucleation temperature than the rough one. Much higher hardness and scratch resistance than that of commercially available icephobic or anti‐icing coatings is obtained on the smooth, transparent sample; the coating also presents good adhesion to the substrate.
Creating a Nanoscale “Black Hole” to Trap Light by a Single Au Nanosphere in an All‐Dielectric Nanocavity
Authors: Huang Yingcong , Yan Jiahao , Ma Churong , Yang Guowei 
Published: July 2018

AbstractEfficient manipulation of visible light at the subwavelength scale is a crucial issue for realizing light‐on‐a‐chip technology and other nanophotonic applications. In the past decade, many demonstrations based on the surface plasmon resonance of noble metallic materials and the Mie resonance of all‐dielectric materials are made showing that visible light can be captured and concentrated in the nanoscale dimension. Here, a new kind of hybrid metal–dielectric nanostructure composed of a single gold nanosphere and an individual silicon carbide nanogroove is designed and fabricated to capture the visible light like a “black hole”. It is demonstrated that a large portion of the incoming light is scattered in the forward direction, with only a tiny fraction scattering in a broad spectral range in the backward direction owing to the destructive interference between the hybrid electric and magnetic modes in the system. Meanwhile, the absorption of the gold nanosphere contributes to the strongly suppressed backscattering. Based on the scattering anisotropy exhibited herein, this hybrid metal–dielectric nanostructure can act as a nanoscale light source or a nanoantenna on a photonic chip, making it promising for the creation of novel nanophotonic devices.
Electron‐Beam‐Induced Nanopatterning of J‐Aggregate Thin Films for Excitonic and Photonic Response Control
Authors: Seo In Cheol , Woo Byung Hoon , An Soo‐Chan , Lee Eunsongyi , Jeong Hoon Yeub , Lim Yeonsoo , Jun Young Chul 
Published: July 2018

AbstractExcitons play a crucial role in the optical response of various materials. Molecular aggregates, such as J‐aggregates, exhibit strong optical responses via exciton generation and coherent transport. Planar J‐aggregate thin films can even show an optically metallic response in the visible region and may be considered as alternative materials for plasmonics. However, a direct method to control the optical properties of J‐aggregate films using a top‐down approach is not reported. Here, it is shown that the excitonic response of J‐aggregate films can be locally modified by electron beam exposure, leading to a gradual change in the dielectric constant: from optically metallic (Re[ε] < 0) to dielectric (Re[ε] > 0). Nanoscale patterned films that exhibit clear polarization‐dependent transmission and photoluminescence spectra are demonstrated. The remarkable spectral features can be attributed to the excitation of optical modes in excitonic films. This work suggests that nanopatterned excitonic films may be used as functional elements in various photonic systems to achieve the collaborative synergy between excitonic and photonic elements on a single platform.