bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Flood Forecasting Using Neural Computing Techniques and Conceptual Class Segregation
Authors: Kim Sungwon , Singh Vijay P. 
Published: July 2013

AbstractVarious neural networks models are developed and applied for flood forecasting at Sangye station (no. 1) of the Bocheong Stream catchment, which is one of the International Hydrological Program's representative catchments, Republic of Korea. The neural networks models (NNMs) are multilayer perceptron‐neural networks model (MLP‐NNM), generalized regression neural networks model (GRNNM), and Kohonen self‐organizing feature maps neural networks model (KSOFM‐NNM). Data used for model training and testing are divided into two groups: such as floods and typhoon events. Single conventional application and class segregation implementation are applied to evaluate the neural networks models. KSOFM‐NNM forecasts flood discharge more accurately than do MLP‐NNM and GRNNM for the testing data of Methods I and II for single conventional application and class segregation implementation. This study shows that class segregation can capture the dynamics of different physical processes and overcome the difficulties using single conventional application of neural networks models.
Modeling Hydrologic Benefits of Low Impact Development: A Distributed Hydrologic Model of The Woodlands, Texas
Authors: Doubleday George , Sebastian Antonia , Luttenschlager Tatyana , Bedient Philip B. 
Published: July 2013

AbstractLow Impact Development (LID) is alternative design approach to land development that conserves and utilizes natural resources to minimize the potential negative environmental impacts of development, such as flooding. The Woodlands near Houston, Texas is one of the premier master‐planned communities in the United States. Unlike in a typical urban development where riparian corridors are often replaced with concrete channels, pervious surfaces, vegetation, and natural drainage pathways were preserved as much as possible during development. In addition, a number of detention ponds were strategically located to manage runoff on site. This article uses a unique distributed hydrologic model, Vflo™, combined with historical (1974) and recent (2008 and 2009) rainfall events to evaluate the long‐term effectiveness of The Woodlands natural drainage design as a stormwater management technique. This study analyzed the influence of LID in The Woodlands by comparing the hydrologic response of the watershed under undeveloped, developed, and highly urbanized conditions. The results show that The Woodlands drainage design successfully reflects predeveloped hydrologic conditions and produces peak flows two to three times lower than highly urbanized development. Furthermore, results indicate that the LID practices employed in The Woodlands successfully attenuate the peak flow from a 100‐year design event, resulting in flows comparable to undeveloped hydrologic conditions.
Characterizing Rainwater Harvesting Performance and Demonstrating Stormwater Management Benefits in the Humid Southeast USA
Authors: DeBusk K.M. , Hunt W.F. , Wright J.D. 
Published: July 2013

AbstractRainwater harvesting (RWH) has traditionally been implemented in areas with (semi) arid climates or limited access to potable water supplies; however, recent droughts in the humid southeastern United States have led to increased implementation of RWH systems. The objectives of this study were twofold: (1) present usage characteristics and performance results for four RWH systems installed in humid North Carolina (NC) as compared with systems located in arid/semiarid regions and (2) identify system benefits and modifications that could help improve the performance of RWH systems installed in humid regions of the world. For this study four RWH systems were installed in NC. Their usage was monitored for at least one year and compared with similar studies. Results revealed that dedicated water uses and usage characteristics for RWH systems in NC differed from those previously reported in the literature. Two of the systems studied met 100 and 61% of the potable water demand with designated uses of animal kennel flushing and greenhouse irrigation, respectively. The designated uses yielding the greatest potable water replacement were often seasonal or periodic, thus necessitating the need for identifying and implementing secondary objectives for these systems, namely, stormwater management. Otherwise, the expense and effort required to implement RWH systems in humid areas will most likely preclude their use.
Runoff Curve Numbers at the Agricultural Field‐Scale and Implications for Continuous Simulation Modeling
Authors: McGinley Paul M. , Freihoefer Adam T. , Mentz Randy S. 
Published: July 2013

AbstractThis study used monitoring in the waterways of agricultural fields to understand the use of the runoff curve number (CN) in continuous simulation models. The CN has a long history as a design tool for estimating runoff volumes for large, single storms on small watersheds, but its use in continuous simulation models to describe runoff from smaller storms and relatively small areas is more recent and controversial. We examined 788 nonwinter rainfall events on four agricultural fields over five years (2004‐2008) during which runoff was generated in 87 events. The largest 20 runoff events on each field generated approximately 90% of the total runoff volume. The runoff event CNs showed an inverse correlation with storm depth that could not consistently be explained by previous precipitation. We review how small areas of higher runoff generation within larger areas will systematically increase the apparent CN of the larger area as the storm size decreases. If this variation is not incorporated into a model explicitly, continuous simulation modelers must understand that when source areas are aggregated or when runoff generation is spatially variable, the overall CN is not unique when smaller storms are included in the calibration set.
A Decade of Geomorphic and Hydraulic Response to the La Valle Dam Project, Baraboo River, Wisconsin
Authors: Greene Samantha L. , Krause Austin Jena , Knox James C. 
Published: July 2013

AbstractWe investigate stream response to the La Valle Dam removal and channel reconstruction by estimating channel hydraulic parameter values and changes in sedimentation within the reservoir. The designed channel reconstruction after the dam removal included placement of a riffle structure at the former dam site. Stream surveys undertaken in 1984 by Federal Emergency Management Agency and in 2001 by Doyle et al. were supplemented with surveys in 2009 and 2011 to study the effects of the instream structure. We created a model in HEC‐RAS IV and surface maps in Surfer© using the 1984, 2009, and 2011 surveys. The HEC‐RAS IV model for 2009 channel conditions indicates that the riffle structure decreases upstream channel shear stress and velocity, causing renewed deposition of sediment within the former reservoir. We estimate by 2009, 61% of former reservoir sediments were removed during dam removal and channel reconstruction. Between 2009 and 2011 renewed sedimentation within the former reservoir represented approximately 7.85% of the original reservoir volume. The HEC‐RAS IV models show the largest impacts of the dam and riffle structure occur at flood magnitudes at or below bankfull. Thus, the riffle and the dam similarly alter channel hydraulics and sediment transport. As such, our models indicate that the La Valle Dam project was a dam replacement rather than a removal. Our results confirm that channel reconstruction method can alter channel hydraulics, geomorphology, and sediment mobility.
Uncertainty Models for Estimates of Physical Characteristics of River Segments Over Large Areas
Authors: Lamouroux Nicolas , Pella Hervé , Snelder Ton H. , Sauquet Eric , Lejot Jérome , Shankar Ude 
Published: July 2013

AbstractSpatially comprehensive estimates of the physical characteristics of river segments over large areas are required in many large‐scale analyses of river systems and for the management of multiple basins. Remote sensing and modeling are often used to estimate river characteristics over large areas, but the uncertainties associated with these estimates and their dependence on the physical characteristics of the segments and their catchments are seldom quantified. Using test data with varying degrees of independence, we derived analytical models of the uncertainty associated with estimates of upstream catchment area (CA), segment slope, and mean annual discharge for all river segments of a digital representation of the hydrographic network ofFrance. Although there were strong relationships between our test data and estimates at the scale of France, there were also large relative local uncertainties, which varied with the physical characteristics of the segments and their catchments. Discharge andCAwere relatively uncertain where discharge was low and catchments were small. Discharge uncertainty also increased in catchments with large rainfall events and low minimum temperature. The uncertainty of segment slope was strongly related to segment length. Our uncertainty models were consistent across large regions ofFrance, suggesting some degree of generality. Their analytical formulation should facilitate their use in large‐scale ecological studies and simulation models.
A Method to Consider Whether Dams Mitigate Climate Change Effects on Stream Temperatures
Authors: Null Sarah E. , Ligare Scott T. , Viers Joshua H. 
Published: July 2013

AbstractThis article provides a method for examining mesoscale water quality objectives downstream of dams with anticipated climate change using a multimodel approach. Coldwater habitat for species such as trout and salmon has been reduced by water regulation, dam building, and land use change that alter stream temperatures. Climate change is an additional threat. Changing hydroclimatic conditions will likely impact water temperatures below dams and affect downstream ecology. We model reservoir thermal dynamics and release operations (assuming that operations remain unchanged through time) of hypothetical reservoirs of different sizes, elevations, and latitudes with climate‐forced inflow hydrologies to examine the potential to manage water temperatures for coldwater habitat. All models are one dimensional and operate on a weekly timestep. Results are presented as water temperature change from the historical time period and indicate that reservoirs release water that is cooler than upstream conditions, although the absolute temperatures of reaches below dams warm with climate change. Stream temperatures are sensitive to changes in reservoir volume, elevation, and latitude. Our approach is presented as a proof of concept study to evaluate reservoir regulation effects on stream temperatures and coldwater habitat with climate change.
Time‐Dependent Health Risk from Contaminated Groundwater Including Use of Reliability, Resilience, and Vulnerability as Measures
Authors: Rodak Carolyn , Silliman Stephen E. , Bolster Diogo 
Published: July 2013

AbstractTraditionally, assessment of human health risk caused by contamination of a water supply focuses on the maximum risk to an individual. Here, we introduce a time‐dependent risk assessment method and adapt and explore the reliability, resilience, and vulnerability (RRV) criteria from the surface‐water literature as possible tools for assessing this risk. Time‐dependent risk assessment, including RRV, is applied to two synthetic examples where water quality at a well varies over time. We calculate time‐dependent health risks for discrete periods of exposure to the contaminated water for a variable population. The RRV criteria provide information about time‐dependent risk: probability of an acceptable risk, probability of system recovery, maximum risk, and average exceedance of a prescribed risk threshold. The results demonstrate that episodic contamination events produce fundamentally different time‐dependent risks than long‐term events: these differences, such as generally lower risks for the episodic contamination, can be captured via plots of the risk and the RRV criteria. Furthermore, the evaluation of time‐dependent health risk and the RRV criteria demonstrates significant sensitivity to the shape of the contaminant breakthrough curve, length of exposure, and variability within the population. Overall, analysis of time‐dependent health risks provides substantial insight into the structure of risk, with RRV providing a reasonable framework for the evaluation of these risks.
Influence of monsoon‐related riparian phenology on yellow‐billed cuckoo habitat selection in Arizona
Authors: Wallace Cynthia S. A. , Villarreal Miguel L. , van Riper III Charles 
Published: July 2013

AbstractAimThe western yellow‐billed cuckoo (Coccyzus americanus occidentalis), a Neotropical migrant bird, is facing steep population declines in its western breeding grounds owing primarily to loss of native habitat. The favoured nesting habitat for the cuckoo in the south‐western United States is low‐elevation riparian forests and woodlands. Our aim was to explore relationships between vegetation phenology patterns captured by satellite phenometrics and the distribution of the yellow‐billed cuckoo, and to use this information to map cuckoo habitat.LocationArizona, USA.MethodsLand surface phenometrics were derived from satellite Advanced Very High‐Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR), bi‐weekly time‐composite, normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) data for 1998 and 1999 at a resolution of 1 km. Fourier harmonics were used to analyse the waveform of the annual NDVI profile in each pixel. To create the models, we coupled 1998 satellite phenometrics with 1998 field survey data of cuckoo presence or absence and with point data that sampled riparian and cottonwood–willow vegetation types. Our models were verified and refined using field and satellite data collected in 1999.ResultsThe models reveal that cuckoos prefer areas that experience peak greenness 29 days later, are 36% more dynamic and slightly (< 1%) more productive than their average cottonwood–willow habitat. The results support a scenario in which cuckoos migrate northwards, following the greening of riparian corridors and surrounding landscapes in response to monsoon precipitation, but then select a nesting site based on optimizing the near‐term foraging potential of the neighbourhood.Main conclusionsThe identification of preferred phenotypes within recognized habitat can be used to refine future habitat models, inform habitat response to climate change, and suggest adaptation strategies. For example, models of phenotype preferences can guide management actions by identifying and prioritizing for conservation those landscapes that reliably exhibit highly preferred phenometrics on a consistent basis.
Extensive hybridization and associated geographic trends between two rockfishesSebastes vulpesandS. zonatus(Teleostei:Scorpaeniformes:Sebastidae)
Authors: Muto N. , Kai Y. , Noda T. , Nakabo T. 
Published: July 2013

AbstractInterspecific hybridization is an important evolutionary process, which has significant influence on the diversity within and between participating taxa. Although interspecific hybridization in terrestrial and freshwater organisms has been subjected to many detailed studies, studies in marine realm have been limited in terms of both numbers and detail. In this study, the potential for interspecific hybridization between two rockfishes,Sebastes vulpesandS. zonatus, occurring in the westernNorthPacific, was assessed on the basis of 177 specimens collected from three sampling localities within the main geographic distribution of both species, and analysed using a combination of amplified fragment length polymorphisms (AFLP), mitochondrialDNA(mtDNA) markers and morphometric characters. Bayesian‐based individual genetic assignment based on 364AFLPloci detected a total of 63 (35.6%) hybrid specimens in the data set, the presence of interspecific hybrids also being rigorously supported by mtDNAanalysis using partial sequences from the control region and morphological analysis based on 31 morphometric characters. Hybrids from all three localities were found, showing a common pattern of biased introgression across the localities whereby hybrids were more closely related toS. zonatusthan toS. vulpes. Apart from this common pattern, rates of hybridization varied considerably among the localities, being greater in the northern localities. Variations in the local rates of hybridization were associated with variations in habitat segregation and thermal regime, implying that vertical water temperature regimes determined the extent of habitat segregation of the two species and, accordingly, the opportunity for hybridization.
Association between host's genetic diversity and parasite burden in damselflies
Authors: Kaunisto K. M. , Viitaniemi H. M. , Leder E. H. , Suhonen J. 
Published: July 2013

AbstractRecent research indicates that low genetic variation in individuals can increase susceptibility to parasite infection, yet evidence from natural invertebrate populations remains scarce. Here, we studied the relationship between genetic heterozygosity, measured as AFLP‐based inbreeding coefficientfAFLP, and gregarine parasite burden from eleven damselfly,Calopteryx splendens,populations. We found that in the studied populations, 5–92% of males were parasitized by endoparasitic gregarines (Apicomplexa:Actinocephalidae). Number of parasites ranged from none to 47 parasites per male, and parasites were highly aggregated in a few hosts. Mean individualfAFLPdid not differ between populations. Moreover, we found a positive association between individual's inbreeding coefficient and parasite burden. In other words, the more homozygous the individual, the more parasites it harbours. Thus, parasites are likely to pose strong selection pressure against inbreeding and homozygosity. Our results support the heterozygosity‐fitness correlation hypothesis, which suggests the importance of heterozygosity for an individual's pathogen resistance.
Isolation and partial characterization of a novel virus from different carp species suffering gill necrosis – ultrastructure and morphogenesis
Authors: Granzow H , Fichtner D , Schütze H , Lenk M , Dresenkamp B , Nieper H , Mettenleiter T C 
Published: July 2013

AbstractTwo isolates of a novel enveloped RNA virus were obtained from carp and koi carp with gill necrosis. Both isolates behaved identically and could be propagated in different cyprinid cell lines forming large syncytia. The virus was sensitive to lipid solvents and neither exhibited haemadsorption/haemagglutination nor reverse transcriptase activity. Mature virus particles displayed a spherical shape with diameter of 100–350 nm after negative staining and 100–300 nm in ultrathin sections, covered by short projections of 8–10 nm in length. Maturation of virus progeny was shown to occur by budding and envelopment of the filamentous helical nucleocapsids at the cell surface. A detailed comparison of ultrastructure and morphogenesis of the novel virus isolates with selected arena‐, ortho‐ and paramyxoviruses as possible candidates for evaluation of taxonomic classification yielded no consistency in all phenotypic features. Thus, on the basis of ultrastructure the novel virus isolates could not be assigned unequivocally to any established virus family.
Caregiver Perspectives on Cancer Screening for Persons with Dementia: “Why Put Them Through It?”
Authors: Torke Alexia M. , Schwartz Peter H. , Holtz Laura R. , Montz Kianna , Sachs Greg A. 
Published: July 2013

ObjectivesTo describe the perspectives of family caregivers toward stopping cancer screening tests for their relatives with dementia and identify opportunities to reduce harmful or unnecessary screening.DesignFocus group study.SettingAlzheimer's Association support groups for family members of individuals with dementia.ParticipantsFour focus groups including 32 caregivers (25 female; 24 white, 7 African American, one American/Indian; mean age 65.5, range 49–85).MeasurementsFocus group transcripts were transcribed and analyzed using methods of grounded theory.ResultsCaregivers considered decisions to stop cancer screening in terms of quality of life and burden on the patient and caregiver. Many described having to intervene in the patient's care to stop unnecessary or harmful screening, and others met resistance when they advocated for stopping. Physicians varied widely in their knowledge of dementia care and willingness to consider cessation of screening.ConclusionMany family caregivers wish to stop cancer screening tests as dementia progresses and are relieved when physicians bring it up. Caregivers are open to discussions of screening cessation that focus on quality of life, burdens, and benefits. Interventions are needed to increase caregiver and clinician discussion of screening cessation and to increase clinician awareness of the need to reconsider cancer screening in individuals with dementia.
Pancreaticoduodenectomy in Elderly Adults: Is It Justified in Terms of Mortality, Long‐Term Morbidity, and Quality of Life?
Authors: Gerstenhaber Fabian , Grossman Julie , Lubezky Nir , Itzkowitz Eran , Nachmany Ido , Sever Ronen , Ben‐Haim Menahem , Nakache Richard , Klausner Joseph M. , Lahat Guy 
Published: July 2013

ObjectivesTo evaluate long‐term morbidity, mortality, and quality of life (QoL) after pancreaticoduodenectomy (PD) in elderly adults.DesignRetrospective cohort study.SettingTel‐Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, Tel‐Aviv, Israel.ParticipantsOne hundred and sixty‐eight individuals aged 70 and older who underwent PD between 1995 and 2010.MeasurementsA prospective pancreatic surgery database was analyzed for postoperative morbidity; mortality; intensive care unit (ICU), hospital, and rehabilitation facility stay; and readmissions after surgery. QoL was assessed using a validated questionnaire completed 3, 6, and 12 months after surgery.ResultsSeventy‐two percent of the participants had an American Society of Anesthesiologists score of 3 or greater. There was no intraoperative death. Thirty‐ and 60‐day postoperative mortality rates were 5.9% and 6.5%, respectively. Median ICU stay was 2 days, and median hospital stay was 22 days. Sixty‐four participants (37.5%) were discharged to a rehabilitation facility. The first‐year readmission rate was 31%. One‐ and 2‐year overall survival rates were 58% and 36%, respectively. Global QoL scores 3 and 12 months after surgery were 68% and 73%, respectively. Scores were lower yet comparable with those of matched individuals undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy.ConclusionMost elderly adults with pancreatic cancer survive longer than 1 year after PD; 36% survive longer than 2 years. These individuals are likely to have acceptable long‐term morbidity and overall good QoL, corresponding with their age.