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10.1142/S0219493715500124 | Mixing For Invertible Dynamical Systems With Infinite Measure | In a recent paper, Melbourne and Terhesiu [Operator renewal theory and mixing rates for dynamical systems with infinite measure, Invent. Math. 189 (2012) 61–110] obtained results on mixing and mixing rates for a large class of noninvertible maps preserving an infinite ergodic invariant measure. Here, we are concerned with extending these results to the invertible setting. Mixing is established for a large class of infinite measure invertible maps. Assuming additional structure, in particular exponential contraction along stable manifolds, it is possible to obtain good results on mixing rates and higher order asymptotics. | [
"Mathematics"
]
|
632365 | Antibody engineering by natural selection and by design | Antibodies represent a powerful defense mechanism due to their capacity to link specific antigen recognition with effector functions and are currently developed as drugs for prophylaxis and therapy of infectious diseases. The generation of antibody diversity represents a remarkable example of protein engineering that is coupled to a stringent mechanism of clonal selection. In the ENGRAB project we propose first to develop an integrated bioinformatics platform to unravel the clonal dynamics of antibody responses and use it to formulate and test hypotheses on the factors that drive antibody selection in primary and recall responses, thus providing a rational basis for vaccination strategies. Second, we will establish the general relevance and impact of receptor-based antibodies, a new type of naturally engineered antibodies generated by templated DNA insertions into immunoglobulin genes. Third, we will use different bispecific antibody formats, including those produced by templated insertions, to engineer, in the same molecule, two binding sites for the HIV spike in order to increase neutralization potency and breadth. Fourth, we will engineer the Fc portion of antibodies to HSV, S. aureus and M. tuberculosis to increase their effector function through loss-of-binding to pathogen Fc receptors or gain-of-binding to human activatory Fc receptors. The program is strongly supported by preliminary findings and will deliver an innovative platform to interrogate natural antibody repertoires and new strategies to engineer antibodies to improve their therapeutic efficacy. The ENGRAB project deals with mechanisms of antibody diversification and engineering with implications for vaccination and immunotherapy. It is therefore submitted to LS6. Given its translational potential it also falls within the scope of LS7. | [
"Immunity, Infection and Immunotherapy",
"Molecules of Life: Biological Mechanisms, Structures and Functions",
"Prevention, Diagnosis and Treatment of Human Diseases"
]
|
3743287 | Fair pensions and population ageing | Demographic changes in survival rates and age structures require adaptions in public policies. This grant will produce a social benefit by providing policy makers with two kinds of tools that they will need to make these adaptions, fair normal pension ages and consistently up-to-date measures of population ageing that take the changing characteristics of populations into account. An important area of adaption is national pension policy. Recently changes in pension policies have been driven by financial considerations and have aroused a great deal of dissent. One reason for the unhappiness with proposed pension reforms is that they place the burden of reform inequitably. People generally dislike inequitable policies. In this grant, we will produce a detailed case study of equitable pension ages. In the ReAgeing project we dealt with fairness in a very general framework. In this grant, we present an innovative methodology that produces scenarios of equitable normal pension ages using the details of a specific pension system. This grant shows how fairness can enter public policy discussions of ageing.
In the future, new problems with respect to population ageing could arise and new data will certainly become available. In the ReAgeing grant, we produced many new measures of population ageing that took the changing characteristics of populations, such as remaining life expectancy and health into account. Our presentations were based on data that were available at the time of writing. In order for the results of the ReAgeing grant to remain relevant requires a second innovation, a way to keep the new measures of population ageing up-to-date. We do this with two pieces of software that can immediately be updated every time the UN produces a new round of data. We cannot predict exactly how demographic conditions will change. With these pieces of software, we can be sure that we will have the tools to deal with them. | [
"Individuals, Markets and Organisations",
"Human Mobility, Environment, and Space",
"The Social World and Its Interactions"
]
|
W2011771713 | Physiologically based modeling of the pharmacokinetics of acetaminophen and its major metabolites in humans using a Bayesian population approach | The principal aim of this study was to develop, validate, and demonstrate a physiologically based pharmacokinetic (PBPK) model to predict and characterize the absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion of acetaminophen (APAP) in humans. A PBPK model was created that included pharmacologically and toxicologically relevant tissue compartments and incorporated mechanistic descriptions of the absorption and metabolism of APAP, such as gastric emptying time, cofactor kinetics, and transporter-mediated movement of conjugated metabolites in the liver. Through the use of a hierarchical Bayesian framework, unknown model parameters were estimated using a large training set of data from human pharmacokinetic studies, resulting in parameter distributions that account for data uncertainty and inter-study variability. Predictions from the model showed good agreement to a diverse test set of data across several measures, including plasma concentrations over time, renal clearance, APAP absorption, and pharmacokinetic and exposure metrics. The utility of the model was then demonstrated through predictions of cofactor depletion, dose response of several pharmacokinetic endpoints, and the relationship between APAP biomarker levels in the plasma and those in the liver. The model addressed several limitations in previous PBPK models for APAP, and it is anticipated that it will be useful in predicting the pharmacokinetics of APAP in a number of contexts, such as extrapolating across doses, estimating internal concentrations, quantifying population variability, assessing possible impacts of drug coadministration, and, when coupled with a suitable pharmacodynamic model, predicting toxicity. | [
"Molecules of Life: Biological Mechanisms, Structures and Functions",
"Physiology in Health, Disease and Ageing",
"Prevention, Diagnosis and Treatment of Human Diseases",
"Mathematics"
]
|
632776 | Commercial feasibility of targeting the histone methyltransferase setd8 in cancer: new chemical entities and biomarkers. | Within our ERC CoG grant, RSHEALTH, our group has contributed to the to the preclinical development of chemical inhibitors of the ATR kinase as anticancer agents, that are now in clinical trials by several companies. During the course of our investigations, we also made important advances in developing inhibitors of SETD8, another interesting cancer-related target. SETD8 is a histone methyltransferase known to play important roles in DNA replication and repair. Evidence indicating that targeting SETD8 could be interesting for cancer therapy has been building up in recent years. For instance, SETD8 is overexpressed in a wide range of cancers, and recent works identified SETD8 as a specific vulnerability in High-Risk Neuroblastoma or MYC-driven Medulloblastomas. Unfortunately, all available SETD8 inhibitors have low potency and poor pharmacological properties, and none has progressed to the clinic. We here propose to capitalize in our strengths in academic drug development, and our experience in transferring our inhibitors to the industry, in order to facilitate the clinical development SETD8 inhibitors. Our proposal includes objectives that will help us improve the quality of our inhibitors, valorise them in preclinical cancer models and develop companion biomarkers that would be used for patient stratification. All of this would be integrated within a business plan that should facilitate a coherent development of this line of work oriented towards the clinical development of SETD8 inhibitors for the benefit of cancer patients. | [
"Molecules of Life: Biological Mechanisms, Structures and Functions",
"Prevention, Diagnosis and Treatment of Human Diseases",
"Integrative Biology: from Genes and Genomes to Systems"
]
|
US 201716465452 A | Method for determining treatment parameters via an information carrier | A method performed by one or more devices includes determining an information item indicative of at least one parameter affecting the treatment of a textile with the information item being detected by an information carrier of the textile (220) and/or a cleaning device (230), or a cleaning agent (210) and the textile (220), or the cleaning agent (210) and the cleaning device, or the cleaning agent (210) and the textile (220) and the cleaning device and the information carrier comprises a package, a label, an NFC chip or a combination thereof, determining at least one treatment parameter of the textile based at least in part on the determined information item, and outputting or triggering the outputting of the at least one determined treatment parameter. | [
"Products and Processes Engineering",
"Computer Science and Informatics"
]
|
10.1007/JHEP11(2016)133 | Three Dimensional Mathcal N 4 Linear Quivers And Non Abelian T Duals | In this paper we construct a new Type IIB background with an AdS
4 factor that preserves $$ \mathcal{N}=4 $$
Supersymmetry. This solution is obtained using a non-Abelian T-duality transformation on the Type IIA reduction of the AdS
4 × S
7 background. We interpret our configuration as a patch of a more general background with localised sources, dual to the renormalisation fixed point of a $$ {T}_{\rho}^{\widehat{\rho}}\left(\mathrm{S}\mathrm{U}(N)\right) $$
quiver field theory. This relates explicitly the AdS
4 geometry to a D3-D5-NS5 brane intersection, illuminating what seems to be a more general phenomenon, relating AdS
p+1 backgrounds generated by non-Abelian T-duality to Dp-D(p + 2)-NS5 branes intersections. | [
"Fundamental Constituents of Matter",
"Mathematics"
]
|
10.1051/0004-6361/201731667 | The Alma Pils Survey Isotopic Composition Of Oxygen Containing Complex Organic Molecules Toward Iras 16293 2422B | This paper presents a systematic survey of the deuterated and 13C isotopologues of a variety of oxygen-bearing complex organic molecules on Solar System scales toward the protostar IRAS 16293-2422B. We use the data from an unbiased molecular line survey between 329 and 363 GHz from the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA). The observations probe scales of 60 AU where most of the organic molecules have sublimated off dust grains and are present in the gas-phase. The complex organic molecules can be divided into two groups with one group, the simpler species, showing a D/H ratio of approximately 2% and the other, the more complex species, D/H ratios of 4-8%. This division may reflect the formation time of each species in the ices before or during warm-up/infall of material through the protostellar envelope. No significant differences are seen in the deuteration of different functional groups for individual species, possibly a result of the short time-scale for infall through the innermost warm regions where exchange reactions between different species may be taking place. The species show differences in excitation temperatures between 125 K and 300 K. This likely reflects the binding energies/sublimation temperatures of the individual species, in good agreement to what has previously been found for high-mass sources. For dimethyl ether, the 12C/13C ratio is found to be lower by up to a factor of 2 compared to typical ISM values similar to what has previously been inferred for glycolaldehyde. The results point to the importance of ice surface chemistry for the formation of these complex organic molecules at different stages in the evolution of embedded protostars and demonstrate the use of accurate isotope measurements for understanding the history of individual species. | [
"Physical and Analytical Chemical Sciences",
"Universe Sciences"
]
|
853387 | Phase map of dynamic, adaptive colloidal crystals far from equilibrium | We recently reported the first observation of dynamic adaptive colloidal crystals exhibiting characteristics similar to those commonly associated with living organisms: self-replication, self-healing, adaptation, competition, motility. Here, I propose to do the first experiments to clarify precisely how dynamic adaptive behavior arises far from equilibrium and how to control it. The key to both is a fundamental question at the heart of condensed matter, statistical and nonlinear physics: When far from equilibrium, in the presence of fluctuations and faced with multiple steady states with small energy differences, how does a system evolve? Specifically, my objectives are (1) to form crystals with periodic and aperiodic patterns, e.g. 2D Bravais lattices, quasicrystals, using passive identical particles, (2) to quantify their formation energies through the effective temperature of Brownian particles, (3) to identify the conditions for emergence and control of adaptive behavior. Then, I will draw a complete phase map of these dynamic adaptive colloidal crystals using fitness landscapes to characterize each pattern. I will further ask to what extent this control is extendable down to the few-nm scale, where fluctuations are even stronger and if and how these findings change when using nonidentical, in size or shape, but still passive particles. My system comprises quasi-2D-confined pure-polystyrene 500-nm spheres suspended in water. An energy flux to drive the system far from equilibrium and sustain it there is supplied by an ultrafast laser. My method exploits only three physical tenets, nonlinearity, fluctuations and positive/negative feedback mechanisms acting on identical passive particles, yet generates extremely rich emergent dynamics. A full understanding of how such dynamics arise from so few basic ingredients will advance our understanding of complex systems in addition to numerous practical applications to self-assembly, microfluidics, nanoscience and biology. | [
"Condensed Matter Physics",
"Physical and Analytical Chemical Sciences",
"Materials Engineering"
]
|
284331 | Dynamic Structural Corporate Finance: Linking Theory and Empirical Testing | There are three components to this project: Theory; Empirical Testing; and Dissemination. All components are linked to the current policy question of how taxes influence debt and systemic risk, and all use novel dynamic structural models. I am unique in explicitly linking such models to empirical testing.
Theory: “Learning, Capital Structure and Systemic Risk.” Standard dynamic structural models of financing assume firms know the stochastic process governing cash flow. I will first consider a partial equilibrium model. Here firms are exposed to rare event risk, with the true probability being unknown. Firms learn and update beliefs regarding risk. Relative to standard models, firms are debt conservative and there is leverage persistence. In many cases, firms increase leverage only if they have avoided a negative shock long enough. In order to analyze asset pricing implications, I plan to embed such firms in a general equilibrium setting with a common catastrophic risk having unknown probability. Firms rationally respond to “Great Moderations” by increasing leverage. Recessions are more severe after long tranquil periods due to high debt overhang. A third paper, Re-Examining the Link Between Leverage and Systematic Risk, considers cross sectional asset pricing implications of credit shocks. The standard levered beta formula is erroneous, and the pre-tax cost of capital increases with debt. Together, the models show privately optimal debt is lower than recognized, and that tax breaks for debt reduce welfare.
Empirical Testing: “Natural Experiment Policy Evaluation—A Structural Critique.” A common approach to testing whether taxes influence corporate financing and investment decisions is to compare leverage and investment before/after tax changes. I use a structural model as a laboratory to show that lack of a statistically significant change is not sufficient to reject the null that “taxes matter.” I will first consider an economy where the tax rate is a Markov process. Flotation costs on debt and real irreversibility limit the response of financing and investment to changes in shadow prices. More importantly, responses to tax changes are attenuated whenever they are partially anticipated and not permanent. Standard tests violate rational expectations by implicitly assuming tax changes come as surprises, with each new change being viewed as permanent, until the next surprise. My argument implies that standard tax experiments cannot falsify the null that taxes affect behaviour. Further, one cannot generalize elasticities if the policy transition matrix differs. I will propose an alternative Bayesian approach to hypothesis testing. My argument casts doubt on standard interpretations of historical evidence of tax change effects, suggesting true elasticities may be much higher. I will consider extending this argument to settings with endogenous policy choices.
“Dissemination. The objective of this phase is to lower entry barriers by making the methodology accessible via a non-technical primer, and by making the models readily available using a user-friendly online platform. | [
"Individuals, Markets and Organisations"
]
|
10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.114.014822 | Pentraxin 3 induces vascular endothelial dysfunction through a P-selectin/matrix metalloproteinase-1 pathway | Background - Pentraxin 3 (PTX3), the prototype of long pentraxins, has been described to be associated with endothelial dysfunction in different cardiovascular disorders. No study has yet evaluated the possible direct effect of PTX3 on vascular function. Methods and Results - Through in vitro experiments of vascular reactivity and ultrastructural analyses, we demonstrate that PTX3 induces dysfunction and morphological changes in the endothelial layer through a P-selectin/matrix metalloproteinase-1 pathway. The latter hampered the detachment of endothelial nitric oxide synthase from caveolin-1, leading to an impairment of nitric oxide signaling. In vivo studies showed that administering PTX3 to wild-type mice induced endothelial dysfunction and increased blood pressure, an effect absent in P-selectin-deficient mice. In isolated human umbilical vein endothelial cells, PTX3 significantly blunted nitric oxide production through the matrix metalloproteinase-1 pathway. Finally, using ELISA, we found that hypertensive patients (n=31) have higher plasma levels of PTX3 and its mediators P-selectin and matrix metalloproteinase-1 than normotensive subjects (n=21). Conclusions - Our data show for the first time a direct role of PTX3 on vascular function and blood pressure homeostasis, identifying the molecular mechanisms involved. The findings in humans suggest that PTX3, P-selectin, and matrix metalloproteinase-1 may be novel biomarkers that predict the onset of vascular dysfunction in hypertensive patients. | [
"Physiology in Health, Disease and Ageing",
"Molecules of Life: Biological Mechanisms, Structures and Functions"
]
|
W2034530130 | Shearer Shaft Roundness Error of Signal Processing | For the measurement of shearer shaft geometry signal contain the axis of rotation error and the measurement error, made of two separate programs from shearer shaft the geometric method of measuring signal acquisition and signal processing error. The program is based on the analysis of the shearer shaft Two-point method of roundness measurement method and error separation technique. Using two displacement sensors and a combination of programs to measure the angle sensor, and an equation using the Fourier transform of elimination and separated from the measurement signal roundness. Then, 53H, and wavelet signal Noise algorithm such as the error of roundness error signal separation. Simulation results show that the method has a higher real value and better convergence for coal mining shaft roundness error in the separation of signal processing. | [
"Systems and Communication Engineering",
"Computer Science and Informatics"
]
|
10.1002/cphc.201300694 | Lifetime shortening and fast energy-tansfer processes upon dimerization of a A-π-D-π-A molecule | Time-resolved fluorescence and transient absorption experiments uncover a distinct change in the relaxation dynamics of the homo-dimer formed by two 2,5-bis[1-(4-N-methylpyridinium)ethen-2-yl)]-N-methylpyrrole ditriflate (M) units linked by a short alkyl chain when compared to that of the monomer M. Fluorescence decay traces reveal characteristic decay times of 1. 1 ns and 210 ps for M and the dimer, respectively. Transient absorption spectra in the spectral range of 425-1050 nm display similar spectral features for both systems, but strongly differ in the characteristic relaxation times gathered from a global fit of the experimental data. To rationalize the data we propose that after excitation of the dimer the energy localizes on one M branch and then decays to a dark state, peculiar only of the dimer. This dark state relaxes to the ground state within 210 ps through non-radiative relaxation. The nature of the dark state is discussed in relation to different possible photophysical processes such as excimer formation and charge transfer between the two M units. Anisotropy decay traces of the probe-beam differential transmittance of M and the dimer fall on complete different time scales as well. The anisotropy decay for M is satisfactorily ascribed to rotational diffusion in DMSO, whereas for the dimer it occurs on a faster time scale and is likely caused by energy-transfer processes between the two monomer M units. A dark mistery: Time-resolved experiments reveal a distinct change in the decay dynamic of an A-π-D-π-A molecule upon formation of a covalently linked non-conjugated dimer. The faster decay observed in the dimer is attributed to a dark state, which is presumably associated with charge delocalization between the two multipolar units. | [
"Physical and Analytical Chemical Sciences",
"Synthetic Chemistry and Materials"
]
|
10.1007/978-3-319-42417-0_32 | Towards A Synthetic Tutor Assistant The Easel Project And Its Architecture | Robots are gradually but steadily being introduced in our daily lives. A paramount application is that of education, where robots can assume the role of a tutor, a peer or simply a tool to help learners in a specific knowledge domain. Such endeavor posits specific challenges: affective social behavior, proper modelling of the learner’s progress, discrimination of the learner’s utterances, expressions and mental states, which, in turn, require an integrated architecture combining perception, cognition and action. In this paper we present an attempt to improve the current state of robots in the educational domain by introducing the EASEL EU project. Specifically, we introduce the EASEL’s unified robot architecture, an innovative Synthetic Tutor Assistant (STA) whose goal is to interactively guide learners in a science-based learning paradigm, allowing us to achieve such rich multimodal interactions. | [
"Computer Science and Informatics",
"Systems and Communication Engineering"
]
|
US 0216859 W | IMPROVED CELLULAR CUSHION VEHICLE SEAT SYSTEM | An improved vehicle seat assembly (20) for mounting on the frame (F) of a vehicle driver's seat (s) including a polymer support plate (22) attached to the frame, a polyurethane foam base (24) on the support, an inflatable air cell cushion (26) on the base and an elastic cover (28). The inflatable air cell cushion (26) includes individual inflation zones (51) each comprised of individual interconnected inflation cells (52). The zones are normally isolated from each other. A center zone (51) having a preset inflation pressure is positioned under the ischial area of the driver. Front, back and side bolster zones provide front-to-back and side-to-side support. The individual air cells (52) of the center zone (51) are interconnected by a serpentine airflow path of reduced area to enhance the vibration and shock absorption characteristics of the zone. | [
"Products and Processes Engineering",
"Materials Engineering"
]
|
10.1038/ncomms7243 | A cnidarian homologue of an insect gustatory receptor functions in developmental body patterning | Insect gustatory and odorant receptors (GRs and ORs) form a superfamily of novel transmembrane proteins, which are expressed in chemosensory neurons that detect environmental stimuli. Here we identify homologues of GRs (Gustatory receptor-like (Grl) genes) in genomes across Protostomia, Deuterostomia and non-Bilateria. Surprisingly, two Grls in the cnidarian Nematostella vectensis, NvecGrl1 and NvecGrl2, are expressed early in development, in the blastula and gastrula, but not at later stages when a putative chemosensory organ forms. NvecGrl1 transcripts are detected around the aboral pole, considered the equivalent to the head-forming region of Bilateria. Morpholino-mediated knockdown of NvecGrl1 causes developmental patterning defects of this region, leading to animals lacking the apical sensory organ. A deuterostome Grl from the sea urchin Strongylocentrotus purpuratus displays similar patterns of developmental expression. These results reveal an early evolutionary origin of the insect chemosensory receptor family and raise the possibility that their ancestral role was in embryonic development. | [
"Cell Biology, Development, Stem Cells and Regeneration",
"Molecules of Life: Biological Mechanisms, Structures and Functions"
]
|
10.1021/ac303005g | Well-defined microapertures for ion channel biosensors | Gated ion channels are excitable nanopores in biological membranes. They sense and respond to different triggers in nature. The sensory characteristics of these channels can be modified by protein engineering tools and the channels can be functionally reconstituted into synthetic lipid bilayer membranes. The combination of the advances in protein engineering with electrical and/or optical signal detection possibilities makes ion channels perfect detection modules for sensory devices. However, their integration into analytical devices is problematic due to the instability of lipid bilayers. Here, we report on developing a stable sensory chip containing a mechanosensitive channel in a Si/SiO2 chip with a 3 μm pore. Our new fabrication strategy was straightforward. It required only lithography and dry etching for the pore definition and membrane release and reduced the risk of membrane rupture in the fabrication process. A gated ion channel could be inserted, with the retention of its function, into the pores of Si/SiO2 chips and be detectable at the single channel level upon activation. Excitable ion channels in stable small pores can serve as very sensitive detectors of specific molecules. | [
"Condensed Matter Physics",
"Physical and Analytical Chemical Sciences",
"Materials Engineering",
"Molecules of Life: Biological Mechanisms, Structures and Functions"
]
|
10.1038/ncomms12354 | Ordered chromatin changes and human X chromosome reactivation by cell fusion-mediated pluripotent reprogramming | Erasure of epigenetic memory is required to convert somatic cells towards pluripotency. Reactivation of the inactive X chromosome (Xi) has been used to model epigenetic reprogramming in mouse, but human studies are hampered by Xi epigenetic instability and difficulties in tracking partially reprogrammed iPSCs. Here we use cell fusion to examine the earliest events in the reprogramming-induced Xi reactivation of human female fibroblasts. We show that a rapid and widespread loss of Xi-associated H3K27me3 and XIST occurs in fused cells and precedes the bi-allelic expression of selected Xi-genes by many heterokaryons (30-50%). After cell division, RNA-FISH and RNA-seq analyses confirm that Xi reactivation remains partial and that induction of human pluripotency-specific XACT transcripts is rare (1%). These data effectively separate pre- and post-mitotic events in reprogramming-induced Xi reactivation and reveal a complex hierarchy of epigenetic changes that are required to reactivate the genes on the human Xi chromosome. | [
"Cell Biology, Development, Stem Cells and Regeneration",
"Integrative Biology: from Genes and Genomes to Systems"
]
|
10.1107/S1600576717012882 | Improved Orientation Sampling For Indexing Diffraction Patterns Of Polycrystalline Materials | Orientation mapping is a widely used technique for revealing the microstructure of a polycrystalline sample. The crystalline orientation at each point in the sample is determined by analysis of the diffraction pattern, a process known as pattern indexing. A recent development in pattern indexing is the use of a brute-force approach, whereby diffraction patterns are simulated for a large number of crystalline orientations, and compared against the experimentally observed diffraction pattern in order to determine the most likely orientation. Whilst this method can robust identify orientations in the presence of noise, it has very high computational requirements. In this article, the computational burden is reduced by developing a method for nearly-optimal sampling of orientations. By using the quaternion representation of orientations, it is shown that the optimal sampling problem is equivalent to that of optimally distributing points on a four-dimensional sphere. In doing so, the number of orientation samples needed to achieve a indexing desired accuracy is significantly reduced. Orientation sets at a range of sizes are generated in this way for all Laue groups, and are made available online for easy use. | [
"Condensed Matter Physics",
"Computer Science and Informatics"
]
|
10.1186/1745-6150-7-6 | Amino Acid Fermentation At The Origin Of The Genetic Code | There is evidence that the genetic code was established prior to the existence of proteins, when metabolism was powered by ribozymes. Also, early proto-organisms had to rely on simple anaerobic bioenergetic processes. In this work I propose that amino acid fermentation powered metabolism in the RNA world, and that this was facilitated by proto-adapters, the precursors of the tRNAs. Amino acids were used as carbon sources rather than as catalytic or structural elements. In modern bacteria, amino acid fermentation is known as the Stickland reaction. This pathway involves two amino acids: the first undergoes oxidative deamination, and the second acts as an electron acceptor through reductive deamination. This redox reaction results in two keto acids that are employed to synthesise ATP via substrate-level phosphorylation. The Stickland reaction is the basic bioenergetic pathway of some bacteria of the genus Clostridium. Two other facts support Stickland fermentation in the RNA world. First, several Stickland amino acid pairs are synthesised in abiotic amino acid synthesis. This suggests that amino acids that could be used as an energy substrate were freely available. Second, anticodons that have complementary sequences often correspond to amino acids that form Stickland pairs. The main hypothesis of this paper is that pairs of complementary proto-adapters were assigned to Stickland amino acids pairs. There are signatures of this hypothesis in the genetic code. Furthermore, it is argued that the proto-adapters formed double strands that brought amino acid pairs into proximity to facilitate their mutual redox reaction, structurally constraining the anticodon pairs that are assigned to these amino acid pairs. Significance tests which randomise the code are performed to study the extent of the variability of the energetic (ATP) yield. Random assignments can lead to a substantial yield of ATP and maintain enough variability, thus selection can act and refine the assignments into a proto-code that optimises the energetic yield. Monte Carlo simulations are performed to evaluate the establishment of these simple proto-codes, based on amino acid substitutions and codon swapping. In all cases, donor amino acids are assigned to anticodons composed of U+G, and have low redundancy (1-2 codons), whereas acceptor amino acids are assigned to the the remaining codons. These bioenergetic and structural constraints allow for a metabolic role for amino acids before their co-option as catalyst cofactors. Reviewers: this article was reviewed by Prof. William Martin, Prof. Eors Szathmary (nominated by Dr. Gaspar Jekely) and Dr. Adam Kun (nominated by Dr. Sandor Pongor) | [
"Molecules of Life: Biological Mechanisms, Structures and Functions",
"Integrative Biology: from Genes and Genomes to Systems"
]
|
10.1088/1361-6463/aad520 | Magnons versus electrons in thermal spin transport through metallic interfaces | We develop a theory for spin transport in magnetic metals that treats the contribution of magnons and electrons on equal footing. As an application, we consider thermally-driven spin injection across an interface between a magnetic metal and a normal metal, i. e. the spin-dependent Seebeck effect. We show that the ratio between magnonic and electronic contribution scales as √ T/T/cF/Tc, with the Fermi temperature TF and the Curie temperature TC. Since, typically, TC≪ TF, the magnonic contribution may dominate the thermal spin injection, even though the interface is more transparent for electronic spin current. | [
"Condensed Matter Physics"
]
|
10.1021/acs.nanolett.5b01461 | Efficient Production of Single-Stranded Phage DNA as Scaffolds for DNA Origami | Scaffolded DNA origami enables the fabrication of a variety of complex nanostructures that promise utility in diverse fields of application, ranging from biosensing over advanced therapeutics to metamaterials. The broad applicability of DNA origami as a material beyond the level of proof-of-concept studies critically depends, among other factors, on the availability of large amounts of pure single-stranded scaffold DNA. Here, we present a method for the efficient production of M13 bacteriophage-derived genomic DNA using high-cell-density fermentation of Escherichia coli in stirred-tank bioreactors. We achieve phage titers of up to 1. 6 × 10<sup>14</sup> plaque-forming units per mL. Downstream processing yields up to 410 mg of high-quality single-stranded DNA per one liter reaction volume, thus upgrading DNA origami-based nanotechnology from the milligram to the gram scale. | [
"Synthetic Chemistry and Materials",
"Materials Engineering",
"Biotechnology and Biosystems Engineering"
]
|
10.1007/978-3-662-53354-3_6 | The Big Match In Small Space | We study repeated games with absorbing states, a type of two-player, zero-sum concurrent mean-payoff games with the prototypical example being the Big Match of Gillete (1957). These games may not allow optimal strategies but they always have \(\varepsilon \)-optimal strategies. In this paper we design \(\varepsilon \)-optimal strategies for Player 1 in these games that use only \(O(\log \log T)\) space. Furthermore, we construct strategies for Player 1 that use space s(T), for an arbitrary small unbounded non-decreasing function s, and which guarantee an \(\varepsilon \)-optimal value for Player 1 in the limit superior sense. The previously known strategies use space \(\varOmega (\log T)\) and it was known that no strategy can use constant space if it is \(\varepsilon \)-optimal even in the limit superior sense. We also give a complementary lower bound. Furthermore, we also show that no Markov strategy, even extended with finite memory, can ensure value greater than 0 in the Big Match, answering a question posed by Neyman [11]. | [
"Mathematics",
"Computer Science and Informatics"
]
|
10.1007/JHEP06(2015)101 | Two Wave Functions And Ds Cft On S 1 S 2 | We evaluate the tunneling and Hartle-Hawking wave functions on S 1 � S 2 boundaries in Einstein gravity with a positive cosmological constant. In the large over- all volume limit the classical predictions of both wave functions include an ensemble of Schwarzschild-de Sitter black holes. We show that the Hartle-Hawking tree level measure on the classical ensemble converges in the small S 1 limit. A divergence in this regime can be identied in the tunneling state. However we trace this to the contribution of an unphysical branch of saddle points associated with negative mass black holes. Using a representation in which all saddle points have an interior Euclidean anti-de Sitter region we also derive a holographic form of both semiclassical wave functions on S 1 �S 2 boundaries. | [
"Fundamental Constituents of Matter",
"Universe Sciences"
]
|
10.1016/j.msea.2015.08.031 | Effect of grain size on compressive behaviour of titanium at different strain rates | An investigation was conducted to evaluate the dependence on grain size of the compressive deformation of commercial purity (CP) Ti. Tests were performed at room temperature using grain sizes from coarse-grained CG (20μm) to ultrafine-grained UFG (500nm) and nanocrystalline NC (90nm) with testing strain rates in the range from 0. 01 to 10s-1. The results show the flow stress and the strain rate sensitivity of CP Ti increase with decreasing grain size. Work hardening dominates at all strain rates in CG Ti but it balances with flow softening at 0. 01 and 0. 1s-1 in UFG and NC Ti and there is obvious flow softening in these two materials at 10s-1. | [
"Condensed Matter Physics",
"Materials Engineering"
]
|
EP 18000437 A | PREPACKAGED CHARGE FOR THE PREPARATION OF BEVERAGES | Prepackaged charge of edible material for the preparation of beverages, comprising a vessel container body (1, 101) provided, at the open end (111), with a sealing wall made of airtight material and provided on the bottom wall (201, 211) with the dispensing means (221) of the prepared beverage, being provided a second wall (231) In airtight material close to the said bottom wall (201, 211); said second airtight wall (231) being made with at least one layer of thermoplastic material (2321) facing the inside of the container body, being also provided a support of thermoplastic material (241, 301, 321, 331, 351) intended to be coupled by welding to the said layer of thermoplastic material (2321) of the said second wall (231), said welding being performed along a polygonal path (251) with at least two smaller angles of 90°, in a substantially coaxial position to said dispensing means (221) of the beverage. | [
"Products and Processes Engineering",
"Materials Engineering"
]
|
10.1093/sysbio/syz066 | Continued Adaptation of C4 Photosynthesis After an Initial Burst of Changes in the Andropogoneae Grasses | C$_{4}$ photosynthesis is a complex trait that sustains fast growth and high productivity in tropical and subtropical conditions and evolved repeatedly in flowering plants. One of the major C$_{4}$ lineages is Andropogoneae, a group of $\sim $1200 grass species that includes some of the world’s most important crops and species dominating tropical and some temperate grasslands. Previous efforts to understand C$_{4}$ evolution in the group have compared a few model C$_{4}$ plants to distantly related C$_{3}$ species so that changes directly responsible for the transition to C$_{4}$ could not be distinguished from those that preceded or followed it. In this study, we analyze the genomes of 66 grass species, capturing the earliest diversification within Andropogoneae as well as their C$_{3}$ relatives. Phylogenomics combined with molecular dating and analyses of protein evolution show that many changes linked to the evolution of C$_{4}$ photosynthesis in Andropogoneae happened in the Early Miocene, between 21 and 18 Ma, after the split from its C$_{3}$ sister lineage, and before the diversification of the group. This initial burst of changes was followed by an extended period of modifications to leaf anatomy and biochemistry during the diversification of Andropogoneae, so that a single C$_{4}$ origin gave birth to a diversity of C$_{4}$ phenotypes during 18 million years of speciation events and migration across geographic and ecological spaces. Our comprehensive approach and broad sampling of the diversity in the group reveals that one key transition can lead to a plethora of phenotypes following sustained adaptation of the ancestral state. [Adaptive evolution; complex traits; herbarium genomics; Jansenelleae; leaf anatomy; Poaceae; phylogenomics. ] | [
"Environmental Biology, Ecology and Evolution",
"Integrative Biology: from Genes and Genomes to Systems"
]
|
10.1103/PhysRevB.91.195403 | Aggregation and electronically induced migration of oxygen vacancies in TiO2 anatase | The influence of the electric field and electric current on the behavior of oxygen vacancies (VOs) in TiO2 anatase was investigated with scanning tunneling microscopy (STM). At the anatase (101) surface VOs are not stable; they migrate into the bulk at temperatures above 200 K. Scanning a clean anatase (101) surface at a sample bias greater than ≈+4. 3 V results in surface VOs in the scanned area, suggesting that subsurface VOs migrate back to the surface. To test this hypothesis, surface VOs were first created through bombardment with energetic electrons. The sample was then mildly annealed, which caused the VOs to move to the subsurface region, where they formed vacancy clusters. These VO clusters have various, distinct shapes. Scanning VO clusters with a high STM bias reproducibly converts them back into groupings of surface VO, with a configuration that is characteristic for each type of cluster. The dependence of the subsurface-to-surface VO migration on the applied STM bias voltage, tunneling current, and sample temperature was investigated systematically. The results point towards a key role of energetic, "hot" electrons in this process. The findings are closely related to the memristive behavior of oxides and oxygen diffusion in solid-oxide membranes. | [
"Condensed Matter Physics",
"Physical and Analytical Chemical Sciences"
]
|
10.1364/OE.21.025954 | Performance And Capacity Analysis Of Poisson Photon Counting Based Iter Pic Ocdma Systems | In this paper, an iterative parallel interference cancellation (Iter-PIC) technique is developed for optical code-division multiple-access (OCDMA) systems relying on shot-noise limited Poisson photon-counting reception. The novel semi-analytical tool of extrinsic information transfer (EXIT) charts is used for analysing both the bit error rate (BER) performance as well as the channel capacity of these systems and the results are verified by Monte Carlo simulations. The proposed Iter-PIC OCDMA system is capable of achieving two orders of magnitude BER improvements and a 0. 1 nats of capacity improvement over the conventional chip-level OCDMA systems at a coding rate of 1/10. | [
"Systems and Communication Engineering",
"Computer Science and Informatics"
]
|
10.1016/j.tig.2012.03.009 | The genomics of speciation-with-gene-flow | The emerging field of speciation genomics is advancing our understanding of the evolution of reproductive isolation from the individual gene to a whole-genome perspective. In this new view it is important to understand the conditions under which 'divergence hitchhiking' associated with the physical linkage of gene regions, versus 'genome hitchhiking' associated with reductions in genome-wide rates of gene flow caused by selection, can enhance speciation-with-gene-flow. We describe here a theory predicting four phases of speciation, defined by changes in the relative effectiveness of divergence and genome hitchhiking, and review empirical data in light of the theory. We outline future directions, emphasizing the need to couple next-generation sequencing with selection, transplant, functional genomics, and mapping studies. This will permit a natural history of speciation genomics that will help to elucidate the factors responsible for population divergence and the roles that genome structure and different forms of hitchhiking play in facilitating the genesis of new biodiversity. | [
"Integrative Biology: from Genes and Genomes to Systems",
"Environmental Biology, Ecology and Evolution"
]
|
10.2514/6.2014-0709 | Optimal Control Of Wind Farm Power Extraction In Large Eddy Simulations | In the present work we couple flow simulations performed using Large Eddy Simulations (LES) with gradient based optimization to control individual turbine in a farm, so as to achieve an increase in the total power output. The controls in our optimization problem are the disk-based thrust coefficients C′ T,n of individual turbines as function of time. We use a gradient-based algorithm for the optimization and the gradients are computed using the adjoint method; the adjoint equations are formulated directly from the LES equation and the cost functional. We employ a receding-horizon predictive control setting and solve the optimization problem iteratively at each time horizon based on the gradient information obtained from the evolution of the flow field and the adjoint computation. In this paper we further elaborate the optimization techniques, interpret the simulation of adjoint field and present results for the wind-farm boundary layer cases. We find that the extracted farm power increases by approximately 20%, during optimal control. However, the increased power output is also responsible for an increase in turbulent dissipation, and a deceleration of the boundary layer. These issues are further discussed. | [
"Systems and Communication Engineering",
"Products and Processes Engineering"
]
|
interreg_1288 | Energy Vision 2020 for South East European Cities | The need to improve resource efficiency is at the heart of the EU agenda. This is evidenced both by the energy and pollution targets set, as well as the Resource-Efficient Europe flagship initiative, within the Europe 2020 strategy. In many countries win South East Europe, the energy intensity of countries is among the highest in Europe. Since these countries are expected to economically converge with European averages over time (GDP per capita) the correlative link between energy use and economic growth indicates that energy use in this region is likely to increase at above average rates. Envision2020 is based on the assumption that the energy elasticity (the ratio of the change in energy consumption to the change in GDP) of target cities can be modified based on forward looking approaches, in particular by undertaking foresight activities focusing on energy resources consumption. It does this by: -Analysing the energy sector and energy resources consumption in the target cities against EU priorities as well as legislation and institutions responsible for the development and implementation of energy strategy; -Identifying key technologies essential to improving the efficiency of energy resource consumption in cities; -Identifying and developing innovative new financial instruments to support RES and new forms of energy in collaboration with business and financial sector representatives; -The production of technology roadmaps and high-level meetings to endorse the roadmaps and develop policy recommendations to local and national levels; -The hosting of mutual learning workshops which allow for the identification and development of common vision for energy resources consumption as well as the development of joint policy priorities in order to share experiences, practices and successes in achieving their energy objectives. The main results include individual technology roadmaps, policy implementation plans and joint energy priorities for the SEE partner cities as well as recommendations to relevant EU institutions. | [
"Products and Processes Engineering",
"Earth System Science",
"Institutions, Governance and Legal Systems"
]
|
10.1039/C9TC00082H | N B P Al As And Ga Graphdiyne Graphyne Lattices First Principles Investigation Of Mechanical Optical And Electronic Properties | Graphdiyne and graphyne are carbon-based two-dimensional (2D) porous atomic lattices with outstanding physics and excellent application prospects for advanced technologies, like nanoelectronics and energy storage systems. During the last few years, B- and N-graphdiyne nanomembranes were experimentally realized. Motivated by the latest experimental advances, in this work, we predicted novel N-, B-, P-, Al-, As-, and Ga-graphdiyne/graphyne 2D lattices. We then conducted density functional theory simulations to obtain the energy minimized structures and explore the mechanical, thermal stability, electronic and optical characteristics of these novel porous nanosheets. The acquired theoretical results reveal that the predicted carbon-based lattices are thermally stable. It was moreover found that these novel 2D nanostructures can exhibit remarkably high tensile strengths or stretchability. The electronic structure analysis reveals a semiconducting electronic character for the predicted monolayers. Moreover, the optical results indicate that the first absorption peaks of the imaginary part of the dielectric function for these novel porous lattices along the in-plane directions are in the visible, IR and near-IR (NIR) ranges of light. This work highlights the outstanding properties of graphdiyne/graphyne lattices and recommends them as promising candidates in the design of stretchable energy storage and nanoelectronics systems. | [
"Condensed Matter Physics",
"Synthetic Chemistry and Materials",
"Materials Engineering"
]
|
10.1098/rsbl.2016.0876 | Capturing goats: documenting two hundred years of mitochondrial DNA diversity among goat populations from Britain and Ireland | The domestic goat (
Capra hircus
) plays a key role in global agriculture, being especially prized in regions of marginal pasture. However, the advent of industrialized breeding has seen a dramatic reduction in genetic diversity within commercial populations, while high extinction rates among feral herds have further depleted the reservoir of genetic variation available. Here, we present the first survey of whole mitochondrial genomic variation among the modern and historical goat populations of Britain and Ireland using a combination of mtDNA enrichment and high throughput sequencing. Fifteen historical taxidermy samples, representing the indigenous ‘Old Goat’ populations of the islands, were sequenced alongside five modern Irish dairy goats and four feral samples from endangered populations in western Ireland. Phylogenetic and network analyses of European mitochondrial variation revealed distinct groupings dominated by historical British and Irish samples, which demonstrate a degree of maternal genetic structure between the goats of insular and continental Europe. Several Irish modern feral samples also fall within these clusters, suggesting continuity between these dwindling populations and the ancestral ‘Old Goats’ of Ireland and Britain. | [
"Integrative Biology: from Genes and Genomes to Systems",
"Environmental Biology, Ecology and Evolution"
]
|
10.1371/journal.pcbi.1004445 | Task-Driven Activity Reduces the Cortical Activity Space of the Brain: Experiment and Whole-Brain Modeling | How a stimulus or a task alters the spontaneous dynamics of the brain remains a fundamental open question in neuroscience. One of the most robust hallmarks of task/stimulus-driven brain dynamics is the decrease of variability with respect to the spontaneous level, an effect seen across multiple experimental conditions and in brain signals observed at different spatiotemporal scales. Recently, it was observed that the trial-to-trial variability and temporal variance of functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) signals decrease in the task-driven activity. Here we examined the dynamics of a large-scale model of the human cortex to provide a mechanistic understanding of these observations. The model allows computing the statistics of synaptic activity in the spontaneous condition and in putative tasks determined by external inputs to a given subset of brain regions. We demonstrated that external inputs decrease the variance, increase the covariances, and decrease the autocovariance of synaptic activity as a consequence of single node and large-scale network dynamics. Altogether, these changes in network statistics imply a reduction of entropy, meaning that the spontaneous synaptic activity outlines a larger multidimensional activity space than does the task-driven activity. We tested this model’s prediction on fMRI signals from healthy humans acquired during rest and task conditions and found a significant decrease of entropy in the stimulus-driven activity. Altogether, our study proposes a mechanism for increasing the information capacity of brain networks by enlarging the volume of possible activity configurations at rest and reliably settling into a confined stimulus-driven state to allow better transmission of stimulus-related information. | [
"Neuroscience and Disorders of the Nervous System",
"Computer Science and Informatics"
]
|
788203 | Innovation and opportunity in the evolution of life | The aim is to produce a complete evolutionary tree of tetrapods and use this to explore two core questions in macroevolution: the balance between innovation and external processes in driving the evolution of life; and, identifying the best model for morphological evolution. Biodiversity today is unbalanced, with a small number of highly successful groups, like birds and beetles, and many others of equal antiquity but with far fewer species. Why are those groups so successful – was it chance or do they have some remarkable adaptation(s)? The core of the project is to construct a complete evolutionary tree of all 30,000 living species of tetrapods (amphibians, reptiles, birds, mammals) and add the 10,000 fossil species; this will generate a database of key characters, the homologies, shared by major groups. The probability of different drivers of diversification will be tested, focusing on those key, highly successful groups (e.g. lizards, birds, neornithines, passerines, rodents) that show explosive evolution to very high species diversity. The proposal goes to the roots of macroevolutionary understanding, and encompasses key questions about origins and modern biodiversity. The project is ambitious, but is possible because of advances in knowledge of relationships of all key tetrapod groups based on phylogenomic and morphological data, increasing precision of geological dating, and the availability of a range of computational methods to construct large phylogenetic trees, to assess likelihood of trees, to explore innovation and evolutionary rates and models, and Bayesian modelling techniques that can map trait data onto large trees and evaluate multiple models of drivers and bias. A unique outcome will be the chance to explore waiting time between major morphological changes, assessing distribution and magnitude, and use this information to inform the construction of a meaningful model of morphological evolution for computational phylogenetics. | [
"Environmental Biology, Ecology and Evolution",
"Integrative Biology: from Genes and Genomes to Systems",
"Computer Science and Informatics"
]
|
10.1002/anie.201404568 | Membrane deformation by neolectins with engineered glycolipid binding sites | Lectins are glycan-binding proteins that are involved in the recognition of glycoconjugates at the cell surface. When binding to glycolipids, multivalent lectins can affect their distribution and alter membrane shapes. Neolectins have now been designed with controlled number and position of binding sites to decipher the role of multivalency on avidity to a glycosylated surface and on membrane dynamics of glycolipids. A monomeric hexavalent neolectin has been first engineered from a trimeric hexavalent bacterial lectin, From this neolectin template, 13 different neolectins with a valency ranging from 0 to 6 were designed, produced, and analyzed for their ability to bind fucose in solution, to attach to a glycosylated surface and to invaginate glycolipid-containing giant liposomes. Whereas the avidity only depends on the presence of at least two binding sites, the ability to bend and invaginate membranes critically depends on the distance between two adjacent binding sites. Neolectins, which are based on a β-propeller architecture, have been designed with controlled number and position of binding sites to decipher the role of multivalency on avidity to a glycosylated surface and on membrane dynamics of glycolipids. Whereas the avidity only depends on the presence of at least two binding sites, the ability to bend and invaginate membranes critically depends on the distance between two adjacent binding sites. | [
"Physical and Analytical Chemical Sciences",
"Molecules of Life: Biological Mechanisms, Structures and Functions"
]
|
10.1039/C3SC50496D | Charge Carrier Trapping Recombination And Transfer In Hematite Α Fe2O3 Water Splitting Photoanodes | Hematite is currently considered one of the most promising materials for the conversion and storage of solar energy via the photoelectrolysis of water. Whilst there has been extensive research and much progress in the development of hematite structures with enhanced photoelectrochemical (PEC) activity, relatively limited information has been available until recently concerning the dynamics of photogenerated charge carriers in hematite and their impact upon the efficiency of water photoelectrolysis. In this perspective we present an overview of our recent studies of the dynamics of photoinduced charge carrier processes in hematite, derived primarily from transient absorption spectroscopy of nanostructured photoanodes. The relationship between PEC activity and transient measurements are discussed in terms of a phenomenological model which rationalizes the observations and in particular the impact of external potential bias on the relative rates of charge carrier trapping, recombination and interfacial transfer in hematite photoanodes for water oxidation. | [
"Condensed Matter Physics",
"Physical and Analytical Chemical Sciences",
"Synthetic Chemistry and Materials"
]
|
10.1021/ja501458s | Turn-on phosphorescence by metal coordination to a multivalent terpyridine ligand: A new paradigm for luminescent sensors | A hexathiobenzene molecule carrying six terpyridine (tpy) units at the periphery has been designed to couple the aggregation induced phosphorescence, displayed by the core in the solid state, to the metal binding properties of the tpy units. Upon Mg2+ complexation in THF solution, phosphorescence of the hexathiobenzene core is turned on. Metal ion coordination yields the formation of a supramolecular polymer which hinders intramolecular rotations and motions of the core chromophore, thus favoring radiative deactivation of the luminescent excited state. Upon excitation of the [Mg(tpy)2] 2+ units of the polymeric structure, sensitization of the core phosphorescence takes place with >90% efficiency. The light-harvesting polymeric antenna can be disassembled upon fluoride ion addition, thereby switching off luminescence and offering a new tool for fluoride ion sensing. This unique system can, thus, serve as cation or anion sensor. | [
"Physical and Analytical Chemical Sciences",
"Synthetic Chemistry and Materials"
]
|
10.1002/wcs.1194 | Blindsight: Recent and historical controversies on the blindness of blindsight | The phenomenon 'blindsight' has received much interest from neuroscientists, philosophers, and psychologists during the last decades. Several researchers seem to agree that blindsight might be of great importance in the ambition to find neural correlates of consciousness. However, the history of blindsight is a history of changing experimental paradigms and very few patients. In late 19th century, researchers debated why lesions to primary visual cortex seemingly left some visual abilities intact in animals, while human patients reported to be blind. From the 1970s until today, experiments have attempted to compare measures of conscious and unconscious perception, suggesting a distinction between visual functions and visual experience. However, more recently, newer methods and an interest in introspective reports have cast doubts about the 'blindness' of blindsight. A cautious conclusion is suggested, though current research can be interpreted in different ways. WIREs Cogn Sci 2012 doi: 10. 1002/wcs. 1194 For further resources related to this article, please visit the WIREs website. | [
"Neuroscience and Disorders of the Nervous System",
"The Human Mind and Its Complexity"
]
|
10.5194/amt-11-1207-2018 | Interlaboratory comparison of <i>δ</i><sup>13</sup>C and <i>δ</i>D measurements of atmospheric CH<sub>4</sub> for combined use of data sets from different laboratories | Abstract. We report results from a worldwide interlaboratory comparison of samples among laboratories that measure (or measured) stable carbon and hydrogen isotope ratios of atmospheric CH4 (δ13C-CH4 and δD-CH4). The offsets among the laboratories are larger than the measurement reproducibility of individual laboratories. To disentangle plausible measurement offsets, we evaluated and critically assessed a large number of intercomparison results, some of which have been documented previously in the literature. The results indicate significant offsets of δ13C-CH4 and δD-CH4 measurements among data sets reported from different laboratories; the differences among laboratories at modern atmospheric CH4 level spread over ranges of 0. 5 ‰ for δ13C-CH4 and 13 ‰ for δD-CH4. The intercomparison results summarized in this study may be of help in future attempts to harmonize δ13C-CH4 and δD-CH4 data sets from different laboratories in order to jointly incorporate them into modelling studies. However, establishing a merged data set, which includes δ13C-CH4 and δD-CH4 data from multiple laboratories with desirable compatibility, is still challenging due to differences among laboratories in instrument settings, correction methods, traceability to reference materials and long-term data management. Further efforts are needed to identify causes of the interlaboratory measurement offsets and to decrease those to move towards the best use of available δ13C-CH4 and δD-CH4 data sets. | [
"Earth System Science",
"Physical and Analytical Chemical Sciences"
]
|
10.1088/0004-637X/743/2/143 | Testing Scaling Relations For Solar Like Oscillations From The Main Sequence To Red Giants Using Kepler Data | We have analyzed solar-like oscillations in ~1700 stars observed by the Kepler Mission, spanning from the main sequence to the red clump. Using evolutionary models, we test asteroseismic scaling relations for the frequency of maximum power (νmax), the large frequency separation (Δν), and oscillation amplitudes. We show that the difference of the Δν-νmax relation for unevolved and evolved stars can be explained by different distributions in effective temperature and stellar mass, in agreement with what is expected from scaling relations. For oscillation amplitudes, we show that neither (L/M) s scaling nor the revised scaling relation by Kjeldsen & Bedding is accurate for red-giant stars, and demonstrate that a revised scaling relation with a separate luminosity-mass dependence can be used to calculate amplitudes from the main sequence to red giants to a precision of ~25%. The residuals show an offset particularly for unevolved stars, suggesting that an additional physical dependency is necessary to fully reproduce the observed amplitudes. We investigate correlations between amplitudes and stellar activity, and find evidence that the effect of amplitude suppression is most pronounced for subgiant stars. Finally, we test the location of the cool edge of the instability strip in the Hertzsprung-Russell diagram using solar-like oscillations and find the detections in the hottest stars compatible with a domain of hybrid stochastically excited and opacity driven pulsation. | [
"Universe Sciences"
]
|
10.1007/s10853-012-7061-3 | Evolution of microhardness and microstructure in a cast Al-7 % Si alloy during high-pressure torsion | Disks of a cast Al-7 % Si alloy were processed through high-pressure torsion (HPT) for 1/4, 1/2, 1, 5, and 10 revolutions under a pressure of 6. 0 GPa and at temperatures of 298 and 445 K. The hardness of the samples after processing was significantly higher than in the cast sample, and the hardness profiles across the samples became more uniform with increasing numbers of turns. Processing at higher temperature gave lower hardness values. Experiments were conducted to examine the effects of HPT processing on various microstructural aspects of the cast Al-7 % Si alloy such as the grain size, the Taylor factor, and the fraction of high-angle grain boundaries. The results demonstrate that there is a correlation between trends in the microhardness values and the observed microstructures. | [
"Condensed Matter Physics",
"Materials Engineering"
]
|
10.1145/2470654.2466474 | Indoor Weather Stations Investigating A Ludic Approach To Environmental Hci Through Batch Prototyping | In this project, we investigated how a ludic approach might open new possibilities for environmental HCI by designing three related devices that encourage environmental awareness while eschewing utilitarian or persuasive agendas. In addition, we extended our methodological approach by batch-producing multiple copies of each device and deploying them to 20 households for several months, gathering a range of accounts about how people engaged and used them. The devices, collectively called the 'Indoor Weather Stations', reveal the home's microclimate by highlighting small gusts of wind, the colour of ambient light, and temperature differentials within the home. We found that participants initially tended to relate to the devices in line with two 'orienting narratives' of environmental tools or ludic designs, finding the devices disappointing from either perspective. Most of our participants showed lingering affection for the devices, however, for a variety of reasons. We discuss the implications of this 'sporadic interaction', and the more general lessons from the project, both for environmental HCI and ludic design. | [
"Computer Science and Informatics",
"Environmental Biology, Ecology and Evolution",
"Products and Processes Engineering"
]
|
10.1126/science.1201578 | A midzone-based ruler adjusts chromosome compaction to anaphase spindle length | Partitioning of chromatids during mitosis requires that chromosome compaction and spindle length scale appropriately with each other. However, it is not clear whether chromosome condensation and spindle elongation are linked. Here, we find that yeast cells could cope with a 45% increase in the length of their longest chromosome arm by increasing its condensation. The spindle midzone, aurora/Ipl1 activity, and Ser10 of histone H3 mediated this response. Thus, the anaphase spindle may function as a ruler to adapt the condensation of chromatids, promoting their segregation regardless of chromosome or spindle length. | [
"Cell Biology, Development, Stem Cells and Regeneration",
"Molecules of Life: Biological Mechanisms, Structures and Functions"
]
|
278410 | From correct to high-quality reactive systems | Formal verification is the study of algorithms and tools for the development of correct hardware and software designs. Two fundamental problems in formal verification are temporal logic model checking -- given a mathematical model of the system and a temporal-logic formula that specifies the desired behavior of the system, decide whether the model satisfies the formula, and synthesis -- given a temporal-logic formula that specifies the desired behavior, generate a system that satisfies the specification with respect to all environments. Formal verification improves earlier verification methods, which are based on simulation and are thus neither exhaustive nor fully automatic.
Formal verification is Boolean: the system may either satisfy its specification or not satisfy it. The objective of this research is to add a quality measure to the satisfiability of specifications of reactive systems, and to use it in order to formally define and reason about quality of systems and in order to significantly improve the quality of automatically synthesized reactive systems. We plan to do so by developing a theory of multi-valued specification formalisms -- temporal logic and automata, studying the algorithmic aspects of the new formalisms, and suggesting novel applications of multi-valued automata in verification, design, and synthesis of reactive systems. | [
"Computer Science and Informatics"
]
|
W2014616114 | Slavery, Settlement, and Empire: The Expansion and Growth of Slavery in the Interior of the North American Continent, 1770-1820 | The expansion of slavery on the North American continent under the newly independent United States was both remarkable and unprecedented. In 1770, European settlers, European empires, and African American slaves had only the barest presence west of the Appalachians. While scattered settlements of European Americans held slaves in places such as the British Illinois country, British West Florida, and Spanish Louisiana, African American slavery on the North American continent was largely confined to the strip of British colonies that hugged the Atlantic Coast. Outside of the Chesapeake and Low Country plantation cores, there were seven times as many slaves in the northern colonies (47,000) than there were in the entire Ohio and Mississippi Valleys and along the Gulf Coast (7,000). Finally, while European empires staked claims to the trans-Appalachian West, Native Americans continued to control the vast interior of the North American continent. Over the next half century, the expansion of European American sovereignty and African American slavery would produce dramatic changes in the continental interior. By 1820, the United States exercised sovereignty over the long contested Mississippi, Ohio, and Missouri Valleys. It also oversaw an enormous empire for slavery that stretched from the Chesapeake to Florida, from the Atlantic to the Missouri, and from the Gulf of Mexico to St. Louis and the Illinois country.1Historians typically attribute the growth of slavery in the continental interior to the emergence of an independent United States and the dominance of the federal government by southern planters and their partisan allies. As slaveholders from the Atlantic states sought to exploit the advantages offered by growing demand for cotton and sugar, they used the powers of the federal government to create a western empire for slavery that provided new lands for plantations and new markets for slaves. In many ways, the literature on slavery and expansion in the early republic remains exceptionalist and nationalist in that it analyzes the growth of slavery in the interior of the North American continent as a uniquely American phenomenon, occurring in distinctively American places and historical periods, and involving the westward expansion of American institutions and peoples. Over the past decade, historians have moved beyond the confines of the United States as both nation and nation-state by situating the growth of slavery in broader Atlantic and imperial worlds, and by highlighting the resistance of Native Americans and African Americans to slavery's expansion. But despite these additions the expansion and growth of slavery in an ill-defined trans-Appalachian West remains a phenomenon linked closely with the westward expansion of the United States.2 Treating the expansion of slavery as a phenomenon that was concomitant with the emergence of an independent United States and assuming that the United States was exceptional in its commitment to encouraging slavery's growth and expansion create numerous interpretive problems. Historians typically begin their analyses of expansion with the flurry of ordinances passed and rejected by the United States in the 1780s. But in doing so, historians tend to neglect the presence, persistence, and significance of the slavery and empires that predated the expansion of the United States into the continental interior. At the same time, by focusing on the changes wrought by the expansion of the United States, historians have minimized the significant continuities that characterized slavery's growth and expansion from the 1760s through the 1810s under French, Spanish, British, and American regimes. Other problems abound. Even as historians have emphasized the significance of growing Atlantic world demand for cotton and sugar in driving slavery's expansion into the southern interior, they have isolated the growth of slavery from other factors that shaped the history of the interior of the North American continent. … | [
"The Study of the Human Past",
"The Social World and Its Interactions",
"Human Mobility, Environment, and Space"
]
|
W2067518790 | Selective removal of carious human dentin using a nanosecond pulsed laser operating at a wavelength of 5.85 μ m | Less invasive methods for treating dental caries are strongly desired. However, conventional dental lasers do not always selectively remove caries or ensure good bonding to the composite resin. According to our previous study, demineralized dentin might be removed by a nanosecond pulsed laser operating at wavelengths of around 5.8 μm . The present study investigated the irradiation effect of the light on carious human dentin classified into "remove," "not remove," and "unclear" categories. Under 5.85-μm laser pulses, at average power densities of 30 W/cm² and irradiation time of 2 s, the ablation depth of "remove" and "not remove," and also the ablation depth of "unclear" and "not remove," were significantly different (p<0.01 ). The ablation depth was correlated with both Vickers hardness and Ca content. Thus, a nanosecond pulsed laser operating at 5.85 μm proved an effective less-invasive caries treatment. | [
"Physical and Analytical Chemical Sciences",
"Materials Engineering"
]
|
10.1096/fj.201500128 | Skeletal muscle PGC-1α modulates systemic ketone body homeostasis and ameliorates diabetic hyperketonemia in mice | Ketone bodies (KBs) are crucial energy substrates during states of low carbohydrate availability. However, an aberrant regulation of KB homeostasis can lead to complications such as diabetic ketoacidosis. Exercise and diabetes affect systemic KB homeostasis, but the regulation of KB metabolism is still enigmatic. In our study in mice with either knockout or overexpression of the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ coactivator (PGC)-1α in skeletal muscle, PGC-1α regulated ketolytic gene transcription in muscle. Furthermore, KB homeostasis of these mice was investigated during withholding of food, exercise, and ketogenic diet feeding, and after streptozotocin injection. In response to these ketogenic stimuli, modulation of PGC-1α levels in muscle affected systemic KB homeostasis. Moreover, the data demonstrate that skeletal muscle PGC-1α is necessary for the enhanced ketolytic capacity in response to exercise training and overexpression of PGC-1a in muscle enhances systemic ketolytic capacity and is sufficient to ameliorate diabetic hyperketonemia in mice. In cultured myotubes, the transcription factor estrogen-related receptor-α was a partner of PGC-1α in the regulation of ketolytic gene transcription. These results demonstrate a central role of skeletal muscle PGC-1α in the transcriptional regulation of systemic ketolytic capacity | [
"Physiology in Health, Disease and Ageing",
"Molecules of Life: Biological Mechanisms, Structures and Functions"
]
|
10.1063/1.4745479 | Tuning Effective Interactions Close To The Critical Point In Colloidal Suspensions | We report a numerical investigation of two colloids immersed in a critical solvent, with the aim of quantifying the effective colloid-colloid interaction potential. By turning on an attraction between the colloid and the solvent particles we follow the evolution from the case in which the solvent density close to the colloids changes from values smaller than the bulk to values larger than the bulk. We thus effectively implement the so-called $(+,+)$ and $(-,-)$ boundary conditions defined in field theoretical approaches focused on the description of critical Casimir forces. We find that the effective potential at large distances decays exponentially, with a characteristic decay length compatible with the bulk critical correlation length, in full agreement with theoretical predictions. We also investigate the case of $(+,-)$ boundary condition, where the effective potential becomes repulsive. Our study provides a guidance for a design of the interaction potential which can be exploited to control the stability of colloidal systems. | [
"Condensed Matter Physics",
"Physical and Analytical Chemical Sciences"
]
|
W3081688436 | Socio-Economic Factors as a Criterion for the Classification of Housing Markets in Selected Cities in Poland | Abstract Property prices, including, in particular, residential properties, vary across local markets. For example, according to the National Bank of Poland, in late 2018, the average unit price of an apartment on the secondary market stood at PLN 8,700 in Warsaw, 6,100 in Poznań, 4,800 in Szczecin, and 3,800 in Kielce and Zielona Góra. The level of prices on particular markets is affected by a variety of factors, primarily those of a social and economic nature. Earlier research work on the influence of such factors on the level of apartment prices was carried out on a random basis, and their results were also published in the Real Estate Management and Valuation journals (Kokot 2018). This article presents study results that help deepen and broaden such analyses, seeing as how the research work: – covers a period of 12 years (2006-2018), – proposes and then applies a city wealth synthetic measure (SMZM) in the analyses, – classifies cities according to the criterion of socio-economic factors and of average housing prices, – examines relationships within the groups of cities identified via classification. The obtained results indicate that it is justified to consider the impact of socio-economic factors on housing prices precisely in the context of their appropriate classification. Moreover, they may be an indicative tool of identifying so-called comparable or parallel real property markets. | [
"Individuals, Markets and Organisations",
"Human Mobility, Environment, and Space"
]
|
10.1002/anie.201509910 | Monitoring Backbone Hydrogen-Bond Formation in β-Barrel Membrane Protein Folding | β-barrel membrane proteins are key components of the outer membrane of bacteria, mitochondria and chloroplasts. Their three-dimensional structure is defined by a network of backbone hydrogen bonds between adjacent β-strands. Here, we employ hydrogen-deuterium (H/D) exchange in combination with NMR spectroscopy and mass spectrometry to monitor backbone hydrogen bond formation during folding of the outer membrane protein X (OmpX) from E. coli in detergent micelles. Residue-specific kinetics of interstrand hydrogen-bond formation were found to be uniform in the entire β-barrel and synchronized to formation of the tertiary structure. OmpX folding thus propagates via a long-lived conformational ensemble state in which all backbone amide protons exchange with the solvent and engage in hydrogen bonds only transiently. Stable formation of the entire OmpX hydrogen bond network occurs downhill of the rate-limiting transition state and thus appears cooperative on the overall folding time scale. | [
"Physical and Analytical Chemical Sciences",
"Molecules of Life: Biological Mechanisms, Structures and Functions"
]
|
10.1080/17508487.2019.1650382 | Conflicting Framings Young Ghanaians And Dutch Education Professionals Views On The Impact Of Mobility On Education | This paper investigates how Dutch education professionals and Ghanaian migrant youth frame the impact of young people’s geographical mobility on education. The paper is based on a discourse analysi. . . | [
"Human Mobility, Environment, and Space",
"The Social World and Its Interactions"
]
|
10.1557/mrs.2015.258 | Composite epitaxial thin films: A new platform for tuning, probing, and exploiting mesoscale oxides | Abstract | [
"Condensed Matter Physics",
"Materials Engineering"
]
|
10.1016/j.chemgeo.2017.11.037 | Accurate stable tungsten isotope measurements of natural samples using a <sup>180</sup>W-<sup>183</sup>W double-spike | Tungsten is a moderately siderophile element and, thus, enriched in the Earth's core. Moreover, W behaves incompatibly during partial melting, causing relative enrichment in the Earth's crust compared to the mantle. However, little is known about the geochemical cycle of the redox-sensitive element W in the crust-mantle system and in modern to ancient low-temperature environments. High resolution stable W isotope measurements of rock samples from different geochemical reservoirs might be a powerful tool to better constrain this cycle. So far, low relative mass differences between the different W isotopes and analytical challenges hampered such high-resolution measurements. Notably, some pioneering studies on the stable W isotope composition of geological reference material show inconsistent results, calling for further verification of the true compositions of these materials. This study presents an analytical protocol for stable W isotope measurements including the calibration of a 180W-183W double-spike as well as W isotope and W concentration data of several geological reference materials (BHVO-2, AGV-2, SDC-1, W-2a, ScO-2, NOD-A-1, NOD-P-1). The reproducibility of stable W isotope measurements (± 0. 018‰ in δ186/184W; 2 s. d. ) is significantly improved compared to previous studies, which allows resolving between the stable W isotope compositions of various rock reservoirs on Earth. Relative to the NIST SRM 3163 standard, the highest δ186/184W value was observed for the Pacific Mn crust NOD-P-1 (+ 0. 154 ± 0. 013‰; 2 s. d. ; n = 6), which is significantly different from the δ186/184W value of the Atlantic Mn crust NOD-A-1 (+ 0. 029 ± 0. 014‰; 2 s. d. ; n = 6). Considering equilibrium fractionation between seawater WO42 − and slowly growing Mn oxides, this indicates an isotopically heterogeneous distribution of W in the modern oceans. Igneous rocks also show a resolvable range in δ186/184W values. Magmatic reference materials range in δ186/184W between + 0. 016 ± 0. 032‰ (andesite AGV-2; 2 s. d. ; n = 5) and + 0. 082 ± 0. 010‰ (basalt BHVO-2; 2 s. d. ; n = 5) showing relative enrichment of light isotopes in more evolved magmatic rocks. These isotopic differences might result from isotope fractionation during magmatic differentiation. Alternatively, the mobilization of W by hydrothermal and/or magmatic fluids might be accompanied by isotope fractionation. | [
"Physical and Analytical Chemical Sciences",
"Earth System Science"
]
|
10.1167/iovs.12-10672 | Adaptive optics imaging of geographic atrophy | PURPOSE. To report the findings of en face adaptive optics (AO) near infrared (NIR) reflectance fundus flood imaging in eyes with geographic atrophy (GA). METHODS. Observational clinical study of AO NIR fundus imaging was performed in 12 eyes of nine patients with GA, and in seven controls using a flood illumination camera operating at 840 nm, in addition to routine clinical examination. To document short term and midterm changes, AO imaging sessions were repeated in four patients (mean interval between sessions 21 days; median follow up 6 months). RESULTS. As compared with scanning laser ophthalmoscope imaging, AO NIR imaging improved the resolution of the changes affecting the RPE. Multiple hyporeflective clumps were seen within and around GA areas. Time-lapse imaging revealed micrometric-scale details of the emergence and progression of areas of atrophy as well as the complex kinetics of some hyporeflective clumps. Such dynamic changes were observed within as well as outside atrophic areas. CONCLUSIONS. In eyes affected by GA, AO NIR imaging allows high resolution documentation of the extent of RPE damage. This also revealed that a complex, dynamic process of redistribution of hyporeflective clumps throughout the posterior pole precedes and accompanies the emergence and progression of atrophy. Therefore, these clumps are probably also a biomarker of RPE damage. AO NIR imaging may, therefore, be of interest to detect the earliest stages, to document the retinal pathology and to monitor the progression of GA. (ClinicalTrials. gov number, NCT01546181. ) | [
"Prevention, Diagnosis and Treatment of Human Diseases",
"Physiology in Health, Disease and Ageing"
]
|
W2106249147 | Betti Numbers of Transversal Monomial Ideals | In this paper, by a modification of a previously constructed minimal free resolution for a transversal monomial ideal, the Betti numbers of this ideal is explicitly computed. For convenient characteristics of the ground field, up to a change of coordinates, the ideal of t-minors of a generic pluri-circulant matrix is a transversal monomial ideal. Using a Gröbner basis for this ideal, it is shown that the initial ideal of a generic pluri-circulant matrix is a stable monomial ideal when the matrix has two square blocks. By means of the Eliahou-Kervaire resolution for stable monomial ideals, the Betti numbers of this initial ideal is computed and it is proved that for some significant values of t, this ideal has the same Betti numbers as the corresponding transversal monomial ideal. The ideals treated in this paper naturally arise in the study of generic singularities of algebraic varieties. | [
"Mathematics"
]
|
10.1007/s10750-016-2921-5 | Singing above the chorus: cooperative Princess cichlid fish (Neolamprologus pulcher) has high pitch | Teleost fishes not only communicate with well-known visual cues, but also olfactory and acoustic signals. Communicating with sound has advantages, as acoustic signals propagate fast, omnidirectionally, around obstacles and over long distances. Heterogeneous environments might favour multimodal communication, especially in socially complex species, as the combination of modalities’ strengths helps overcome their individual limitations. Fishes of the ecologically and morphologically diverse family Cichlidae are known to be vocal. Here we investigated sound production in the socially complex Princess cichlid Neolamprologus pulcher from Lake Tanganyika in East Africa. We show that wild and captive N. pulcher produce only short-duration, broadband high-frequency sounds (mean: 12 kHz), when stimulated by mirror images. The evolutionary reasons for this “low frequency silencing” are still unclear. In laboratory experiments, N. pulcher produced distinct two-pulsed calls mostly, but not exclusively, associated with agonistic displays. Princess cichlids produce these high-frequency sounds both in combination with and independent from visual displays, suggesting that sounds are not a by-product of behavioural displays. Further studies on the hearing abilities of N. pulcher are needed to clarify whether the high-frequency sounds are used in intra- or inter-specific communication. | [
"Environmental Biology, Ecology and Evolution",
"Condensed Matter Physics"
]
|
10.1093/mnras/stz2721 | Young star cluster populations in the E-MOSAICS simulations | ABSTRACT
We present an analysis of young star clusters (YSCs) that form in the E-MOSAICS cosmological, hydrodynamical simulations of galaxies and their star cluster populations. Through comparisons with observed YSC populations, this work aims to test models for YSC formation and obtain an insight into the formation processes at work in part of the local galaxy population. We find that the models used in E-MOSAICS for the cluster formation efficiency and high-mass truncation of the initial cluster mass function ($M_\rm {c,\ast }$) both quantitatively reproduce the observed values of cluster populations in nearby galaxies. At higher redshifts (z ≥ 2, near the peak of globular cluster formation) we find that, at a constant star formation rate (SFR) surface density, $M_\rm {c,\ast }$ is larger than at z = 0 by a factor of four due to the higher gas fractions in the simulated high-redshift galaxies. Similar processes should be at work in local galaxies, offering a new way to test the models. We find that cluster age distributions may be sensitive to variations in the cluster formation rate (but not SFR) with time, which may significantly affect their use in tests of cluster mass-loss. By comparing simulations with different implementations of cluster formation physics, we find that (even partially) environmentally independent cluster formation is inconsistent with the brightest cluster-SFR and specific luminosity-$\Sigma _\rm {SFR}$ relations, whereas these observables are reproduced by the fiducial, environmentally varying model. This shows that models in which a constant fraction of stars form in clusters are inconsistent with observations. | [
"Universe Sciences",
"Computer Science and Informatics"
]
|
W1512987951 | The Swedish version of the Insomnia Severity Index: Factor structure analysis and psychometric properties in chronic pain patients | Abstract Objective Insomnia is the most commonly diagnosed comorbidity disorder among patients with chronic pain. This circumstance requests brief and valid instruments for screening insomnia in epidemiological studies. The main object of this study was to assess the psychometric properties and factor structure of the Swedish version of the Insomnia Severity Index (ISI). The ISI is a short instrument designed to measure clinical insomnia and one of the most common used scales both in clinical and research practice. However there is no study in Sweden that guarantees neither its factor structure nor its feasibility in chronic pain patients. We further examined the measurement invariance property of the ISI across the two sexes. Methods The ISI was administered to 836 (269 men and 567 women) chronic pain patients from the Swedish Quality Registry for Pain Rehabilitation. This study used demographic data, the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), the Mental Summary Component (MSC) of the Health Survey (SF-36) and the item 7 from Multidimensional Pain Inventory (MPI). The sample was divided into two random halves: exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was performed in the first sample (N1 = 334, 40%) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) in the second half of the sample (N2 = 502, 60%). The measurement and structural invariance of the proposed structure (4-item version) between the two sexes as well as reliability and validity indexes were further assessed. Results Exploratory factor analysis using the principal axis factoring method generated one global factor structure for the ISI, explaining 63.1% of the total variance. The one factor solution was stable between the two sexes. Principal component analysis was also applied and indicated almost identical results. The structure was further assessed by CFA, resulting in an adequate fit only after omitting three items. The difference on structural and measurement invariance in the loadings by participants’ sex was not significant (Δ χ 2 = 10.6; df = 3; p = .69 and Δ χ 2 = 2.86; df = 3; p = 41 respectively). The shorter version four-item Insomnia Severity Index (ISI-4) was analysed further. The Chronbach’s alpha for the global ISI-4 score was 0.88. The construct validity of the ISI-4 was also supported by the, Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, the Mental Summary Component of quality of life and quality of sleep data. Pain intensity was significantly associated with the ISI-4 score (beta = .29, p < 001) whereas no significant correlation between four-item Insomnia Severity Index score and age was observed ( p > 05). Conclusions and implications Although short, the four-item Insomnia Severity Index (ISI-4) version seemed to effectively assess insomnia in chronic pain patients. An important clinical implication is that the four-item Swedish Insomnia Severity Index can be used in chronic pain cohorts when screening for insomnia problems. Its measurement and structural invariance property across the two sexes shows that the ISI-4 is a valid measure of the insomnia across groups of chronic patients. Our results also suggest its utility both in pain clinical practice and research purposes. | [
"Physiology in Health, Disease and Ageing",
"Prevention, Diagnosis and Treatment of Human Diseases",
"The Human Mind and Its Complexity"
]
|
W2623823751 | Environmentally friendly parametric alarm for alerting marine mammals of approaching vessels | Marine mammals are vulnerable to boat, barge, and ship collisions. Although more commonly identified and reported in busy coastal areas, collisions are not restricted to shipping lanes or shallow water environments. A common denominator is that they all occur near the surface. Here the acoustical laws of reflection and propagation significantly limit the ability of marine mammals to hear and locate the sounds of approaching vessels. Acoustic measurements from controlled ship passages through vertical hydrophone arrays demonstrate the confluence of factors that poses auditory detection challenges for both whales and manatees. A highly directional, environmentally-friendly, low intensity underwater parametric alarm has been developed to mitigate these challenges & safely alert marine mammals of approaching vessels. The efficacy has been demonstrated with wild manatees. Ninety-five percent of manatees during alarm-on trials elicited avoidance reactions while only 5% of manatees during alarm-off trials elicit... | [
"Environmental Biology, Ecology and Evolution",
"Products and Processes Engineering",
"Condensed Matter Physics"
]
|
W1987228444 | A Macroeconomic Structure of Employment: Rural-Urban Conflict in a Kaleckian Framework | Faced with the phenomenon of “jobless growth” and to contain the vast “surplus population” the governments of the developing world have taken up measures to manage poverty and social security outside the sphere of accumulation-led growth in the “urban-modern” sector especially through “rural” employment generation. Many researchers criticize such policies, as government expenditure supporting accumulation and growth of the urban sector is thought to be competitive with government financed rural employment creation. However, my assertion is that there is no demand-driven trade-off between these urban and rural employment generations. In fact, I propose a supply-side trade-off. The generic “food-supply-constraint” creates this rural-urban conflict. To investigate this phenomenon, first a Kaleckian macroeconomic framework is constructed, with which I examine the role of the government and that of the “food sector” in supporting accumulation in the modern sector and thereby generating urban employment. Subsequently, the issue of rural employment creation with the help of food surplus and through direct government intervention is considered. Finally, we arrive at the issue of the rural-urban conflict: the conflict between the effects of government involvement in accumulation-led urban employment generation and of direct government intervention through “development management” administrating rural employment. However, I also propose a policy that could minimize such a contradiction. JEL classifications: O11, O18, O20, Q18 | [
"Individuals, Markets and Organisations",
"Institutions, Governance and Legal Systems"
]
|
10.1038/s41588-019-0350-x | Causal relationships among the gut microbiome, short-chain fatty acids and metabolic diseases | Microbiome-wide association studies on large population cohorts have highlighted associations between the gut microbiome and complex traits, including type 2 diabetes (T2D) and obesity 1 . However, the causal relationships remain largely unresolved. We leveraged information from 952 normoglycemic individuals for whom genome-wide genotyping, gut metagenomic sequence and fecal short-chain fatty acid (SCFA) levels were available 2 , then combined this information with genome-wide-association summary statistics for 17 metabolic and anthropometric traits. Using bidirectional Mendelian randomization (MR) analyses to assess causality 3 , we found that the host-genetic-driven increase in gut production of the SCFA butyrate was associated with improved insulin response after an oral glucose-tolerance test (P = 9. 8 × 10 −5 ), whereas abnormalities in the production or absorption of another SCFA, propionate, were causally related to an increased risk of T2D (P = 0. 004). These data provide evidence of a causal effect of the gut microbiome on metabolic traits and support the use of MR as a means to elucidate causal relationships from microbiome-wide association findings. | [
"Integrative Biology: from Genes and Genomes to Systems",
"Physiology in Health, Disease and Ageing",
"Molecules of Life: Biological Mechanisms, Structures and Functions"
]
|
10.1007/s00041-011-9206-1 | Ridgelet-type Frame Decompositions for Sobolev Spaces related to Linear Transport | In this paper we study stability properties of ridgelet and curvelet frames for mixed-smoothness Sobolev spaces with norm {double pipe} f {double pipe} s = {double pipe} f {double pipe} L2(ℝ d) + {double pipe} s. ∇ f {double pipe} L2(ℝ d). Here s ∈ S d-1 is a transport direction and ∇ denotes the gradient of f. Such spaces arise as domains of linear, first order transport equations. The main result of this paper is that ridgelet frames are stable in ∥ · ∥ s regardless of s, while curvelet frames are not. To show the second statement we explicitly construct functions f,g whose curvelet coefficients have all the same modulus but {double pipe} f {double pipe} s < ∞ and ∥g∥ s=∞. | [
"Mathematics"
]
|
10.1093/cercor/bhr214 | In vivo imaging and noninvasive ablation of pyramidal neurons in adult NEX-CreERT2 mice | To study the function of individual neurons that are embedded in a complex neural network is difficult in mice. Conditional mutagenesis permits the spatiotemporal control of gene expression including the ablation of cells by toxins. To direct expression of a tamoxifen-inducible variant of Cre recombinase (CreERT2) selectively to cortical neurons, we replaced the coding region of the murine Nex1 gene by CreERT2 cDNA via homologous recombination in embryonic stem cells. When injected with tamoxifen, adult NEX-CreERT2 mice induced reporter gene expression exclusively in projection neurons of the neocortex and hippocampus. By titrating the tamoxifen dosage, we achieved recombination in single cells, which allowed multiphoton imaging of neocortical neurons in live mice. When hippocampal projection neurons were genetically ablated by induced expression of diphteria toxin, within 20 days the inflammatory response included the infiltration of CD3+ T cells. This marks a striking difference from similar studies, in which dying oligodendrocytes failed to recruit cells of the adaptive immune system. | [
"Neuroscience and Disorders of the Nervous System",
"Cell Biology, Development, Stem Cells and Regeneration",
"Immunity, Infection and Immunotherapy"
]
|
10.1038/s41598-018-36110-y | A near atomic-scale view at the composition of amyloid-beta fibrils by atom probe tomography | Amyloid-beta (Ab) proteins play an important role in a number of neurodegenerative diseases. Ab is found in senile plaques in brains of Alzeimer’s disease patients. The 42 residues of the monomer form dimers which stack to fibrils gaining several micrometers in length. Using Ab fibrils with 13C and 15N marker substitution, we developed an innovative approach to obtain insights to structural and chemical information of the protein. We deposited the modified protein fibrils to pre-sharped aluminium needles with >100-nm apex diameters and, using the position-sensitive mass-to-charge spectrometry technique of atom probe tomography, we acquired the chemically-resolved three dimensional information for every detected ion evaporated in small fragments from the protein. We also discuss the influence of experimental parameters such as pulse energy and pulse frequency of the used Laser beam which lead to differences in the size of the gained fragments, developing the capability of localising metal atom within Ab plaques. | [
"Physical and Analytical Chemical Sciences",
"Neuroscience and Disorders of the Nervous System",
"Molecules of Life: Biological Mechanisms, Structures and Functions"
]
|
10.1007/978-3-662-55665-8_15 | Doing Without Nature | We show that every indeterministic n-agent choice model \(M^i\) can be transformed into a deterministic n-agent choice model \(M^d\), such that \(M^i\) is a bounded morphic image of \(M^d\). This generalizes an earlier result from Van Benthem and Pacuit [16] about finite two-player choice models. It further strengthens the link between STIT logic and game theory, because deterministic choice models correspond in a straightforward way to normal game forms, and choice models are generally used to interpret STIT logic. | [
"Computer Science and Informatics",
"Mathematics"
]
|
10.1261/rna.047324.114 | Unexpected selection to retain high GC content and splicing enhancers within exons of multiexonic IncRNA loci | If sequencing was possible only for genomes, and not for RNAs or proteins, then functional protein-coding exons would be recognizable by their unusual patterns of nucleotide composition, specifically a high GC content across the body of exons, and an unusual nucleotide content near their edges. RNAs and proteins can, of course, be sequenced but the extent of functionality of intergenic long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) remains under question owing to their low nucleotide conservation. Inspired by the nucleotide composition patterns of protein-coding exons, we sought evidence for functionality across lncRNA loci from diverse species. We found that such patterns across multiexonic lncRNA loci mirror those of protein-coding genes, although to a lesser degree: Specifically, compared with introns, lncRNA exons are GC rich. Additionally we report evidence for the action of purifying selection to preserve exonic splicing enhancers within human multiexonic lncRNAs and nucleotide composition in fruit fly lncRNAs. Our findings provide evidence for selection for more efficient rates of transcription and splicing within lncRNA loci. Despite only a minor proportion of their RNA bases being constrained, multiexonic intergenic lncRNAs appear to require accurate splicing of their exons to transact their function. | [
"Molecules of Life: Biological Mechanisms, Structures and Functions",
"Integrative Biology: from Genes and Genomes to Systems"
]
|
10.1371/journal.pone.0190101 | Complex patterns of concomitant medication use: A study among Norwegian women using paracetamol during pregnancy | Background Studies on medication safety in pregnancy often rely on an oversimplification of medication use into exposed or non-exposed, without considering intensity and timing of use in pregnancy, or concomitant medication use. This study uses paracetamol in pregnancy as the motivating example to introduce a method of clustering medication exposures longitudinally throughout pregnancy. The aim of this study was to use hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA) to better identify clusters of medication exposure throughout pregnancy. Methods Data from the Norwegian Mother and Child Cohort Study was used to identify subclasses of women using paracetamol during pregnancy. HCA with customized distance measure was used to identify clusters of medication exposures in pregnancy among children at 18 months. Results The pregnancies in the study (N = 9 778) were grouped in 5 different clusters depending on their medication exposure profile throughout pregnancy. Conclusion Using HCA, we identified and described profiles of women exposed to different medications in combination with paracetamol during pregnancy. Identifying these clusters allows researchers to define exposure in ways that better reflects real-world medication usage patterns. This method could be extended to other medications and used as pre-analysis for identifying risks associated with different profiles of exposure. | [
"Integrative Biology: from Genes and Genomes to Systems",
"Prevention, Diagnosis and Treatment of Human Diseases"
]
|
10.1007/s10578-016-0642-7 | The Effects of Intranasal Oxytocin Administration on Sensitive Caregiving in Mothers with Postnatal Depression | Postnatal depression (PND) is common and negatively affects the mother–infant relationship; oxytocin (OT) has been found to have positive effects on parenting, although psychiatric disorders may reduce these effects. Thus, we explored the role of OT in mothers diagnosed with PND. A within-subject, randomized controlled double-blind design was used to test the effects of nasal administration of OT or placebo on sensitive caregiving. The outcome measures were perceptual and caregiving responses to prerecorded cry sounds, as well as observed maternal sensitivity. We found that in the OT condition mothers with PND were more likely to rate an infant cry as more urgent and they were more likely to indicate they would chose a harsh caregiving strategy in response. There was no effect of OT on maternal sensitive interaction with their own baby. Further research is required prior to consideration of OT administration in depressed mothers of infants. | [
"Neuroscience and Disorders of the Nervous System",
"Physiology in Health, Disease and Ageing"
]
|
W2954070110 | A practical guide to intelligent image-activated cell sorting | Intelligent image-activated cell sorting (iIACS) is a machine-intelligence technology that performs real-time intelligent image-based sorting of single cells with high throughput. iIACS extends beyond the capabilities of fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS) from fluorescence intensity profiles of cells to multidimensional images, thereby enabling high-content sorting of cells or cell clusters with unique spatial chemical and morphological traits. Therefore, iIACS serves as an integral part of holistic single-cell analysis by enabling direct links between population-level analysis (flow cytometry), cell-level analysis (microscopy), and gene-level analysis (sequencing). Specifically, iIACS is based on a seamless integration of high-throughput cell microscopy (e.g., multicolor fluorescence imaging, bright-field imaging), cell focusing, cell sorting, and deep learning on a hybrid software-hardware data management infrastructure, enabling real-time automated operation for data acquisition, data processing, intelligent decision making, and actuation. Here, we provide a practical guide to iIACS that describes how to design, build, characterize, and use an iIACS machine. The guide includes the consideration of several important design parameters, such as throughput, sensitivity, dynamic range, image quality, sort purity, and sort yield; the development and integration of optical, microfluidic, electrical, computational, and mechanical components; and the characterization and practical usage of the integrated system. Assuming that all components are readily available, a team of several researchers experienced in optics, electronics, digital signal processing, microfluidics, mechatronics, and flow cytometry can complete this protocol in ~3 months. | [
"Products and Processes Engineering",
"Cell Biology, Development, Stem Cells and Regeneration",
"Computer Science and Informatics"
]
|
10.1007/s42979-020-00325-6 | The FaceChannel: A Fast and Furious Deep Neural Network for Facial Expression Recognition | Current state-of-the-art models for automatic facial expression recognition (FER) are based on very deep neural networks that are effective but rather expensive to train. Given the dynamic conditions of FER, this characteristic hinders such models of been used as a general affect recognition. In this paper, we address this problem by formalizing the FaceChannel, a light-weight neural network that has much fewer parameters than common deep neural networks. We introduce an inhibitory layer that helps to shape the learning of facial features in the last layer of the network and, thus, improving performance while reducing the number of trainable parameters. To evaluate our model, we perform a series of experiments on different benchmark datasets and demonstrate how the FaceChannel achieves a comparable, if not better, performance to the current state-of-the-art in FER. Our experiments include cross-dataset analysis, to estimate how our model behaves on different affective recognition conditions. We conclude our paper with an analysis of how FaceChannel learns and adapts the learned facial features towards the different datasets. | [
"Computer Science and Informatics"
]
|
10.1088/1367-2630/19/1/013027 | Entanglement And Extreme Spin Squeezing Of Unpolarized States | We present criteria to detect the depth of entanglement in macroscopic ensembles of spin-j particles using the variance and second moments of the collective spin components. The class of states detected goes beyond traditional spin-squeezed states by including Dicke states and other unpolarized states. The criteria derived are easy to evaluate numerically even for systems of very many particles and outperform past approaches, especially in practical situations where noise is present. We also derive analytic lower bounds based on the linearization of our criteria, which make it possible to define spin-squeezing parameters for Dicke states. In addition, we obtain spin squeezing parameters also from the condition derived in (Sorensen and Molmer 2001 Phys. Rev. Lett. 86 4431). We also extend our results to systems with fluctuating number of particles. | [
"Condensed Matter Physics",
"Fundamental Constituents of Matter"
]
|
EP 07290701 A | Noise-reduction device for automobile air-conditioning circuit, conduit and circuit comprising same | The conduit has a noise reducer device (607) in its internal space and mounted to contact a wall of the conduit. The device has geometry of a tubular part delimited by two transversal inlet and outlet faces (608, 609) for fluid and by an external radial face (610) which connects the inlet and outlet faces. The inlet and outlet faces form an axial channel (612) for passage of fluid in the device. The external face is partly cylindrical and matches with the conduit wall. Ratio of a minimal passage section of the channel and a transversal section of the external face is between 0.05 and 0.75. | [
"Products and Processes Engineering",
"Materials Engineering"
]
|
W4319773907 | Faire sa jeunesse dans les rues de Ouagadougou | À Ouagadougou, les jeunes hommes qui vivent et dorment dans les rues s’appellent les bakoroman. Mais le plus souvent, et bien qu’ils n’aiment pas ça, on les appelle les « enfants de la rue ». Par le vol, la mendicité et les petits boulots, les bakoroman s’insèrent dans différentes niches de l’économie urbaine qui leur garantissent la survie au quotidien mais aussi l’accès à la modernité et aux loisirs, voire l’envoi occasionnel d’argent à leurs parents. La mobilité juvénile masculine const... | [
"The Social World and Its Interactions",
"Human Mobility, Environment, and Space"
]
|
interreg_3927 | Road of Alpine Vineyard | Before the imposition of borders between France and Italy, Mountains of Turin, Val d’Aosta and Savoy was deeply interconnected. On both sides of the Alpes, vineyard was cultivated. Selected grape varieties and adapted to these climatic conditions was exchanged thanks to the trade flux and travellers.
The common history of winemakers, the singular landscape and these invaluable vineyards leaned on the mountain are the starting point to explore a new vision of these three regions, which have yet some cultural, natural and sportive attractions for visitors. The ambitious objective of the project is to promote new roads of oenotourism discovery on both sides of occidental Alpes, purposing a thematic itinerary which will integrate the new touristic offer and will promote specificities of the territory from an oenological, gastronomic, geographic, historic and cultural point of view.
The project acts on three strategic levels: the commune value and the formation of actors, the rehabilitation of landscapes, and the touristic promotion. | [
"Human Mobility, Environment, and Space",
"The Study of the Human Past",
"Studies of Cultures and Arts"
]
|
10.1038/emboj.2013.211 | How unfinished business from S-phase affects mitosis and beyond | The eukaryotic cell cycle is conventionally viewed as comprising several discrete steps, each of which must be completed before the next one is initiated. However, emerging evidence suggests that incompletely replicated, or unresolved, chromosomes from S-phase can persist into mitosis, where they present a potential threat to the faithful segregation of sister chromatids. In this review, we provide an overview of the different classes of loci where this 'unfinished S-phase business' can lead to a variety of cytogenetically distinct DNA structures throughout the various steps of mitosis. Furthermore, we discuss the potential ways in which cells might not only tolerate this inevitable aspect of chromosome biology, but also exploit it to assist in the maintenance of genome stability. | [
"Cell Biology, Development, Stem Cells and Regeneration",
"Molecules of Life: Biological Mechanisms, Structures and Functions"
]
|
US 0107004 W | OILWELL CASING ELECTRICAL POWER PICK-OFF POINTS | A power supply apparatus is provided for supplying power and communications within a first piping structure. An external power transfer device (42) is positioned around the first piping structure (24) and is magnetically coupled to an internal power transfer device (44). The internal power transfer device (44) is positioned around a second piping structure (26) disposed within the first piping structure (24). A main surface current flowing on the first piping structure (24) induces a first surface current within the external power transfer device (42). The first surface current causes a second surface current to be induced within the internal power transfer device (44). | [
"Systems and Communication Engineering",
"Products and Processes Engineering"
]
|
10.1002/hlca.201600122 | Phenylazide Hybrid-Silica – Polarization Platform for Dynamic Nuclear Polarization at Cryogenic Temperatures | Hyperpolarization of NMR-active nuclei is key to gather high quality spectra of rare species and insensitive isotopes. We have recently established that silica-based materials containing regularly distributed nitroxyl radicals connected to the silica matrix by flexible linkers can serve as promising polarization matrices for dynamic nuclear polarization (DNP). Here we investigate the influence of the linker on the efficiency of the polarization. The materials were fully characterized and exhibit high surface areas and narrow pore size distributions with a tunable amount of phenyl azide groups over a broad range of concentrations. The phenyl azide groups can be easily functionalized via a two-step procedure with 4-carboxy-2,2,6,6-tetramethyl-1-oxylpiperidine (TEMPO) to give polarizing matrices with controllable radical content. The DNP efficiency was found to be similar as in materials with flexible linkers, both for magic angle spinning at 105 K and dissolution DNP at 4 K. | [
"Physical and Analytical Chemical Sciences",
"Condensed Matter Physics"
]
|
10.1016/j.bpj.2012.11.3837 | Amphipathic lipid packing sensor motifs: Probing bilayer defects with hydrophobic residues | Sensing membrane curvature allows fine-tuning of complex reactions that occur at the surface of membrane-bound organelles. One of the most sensitive membrane curvature sensors, the Amphipathic Lipid Packing Sensor (ALPS) motif, does not seem to recognize the curved surface geometry of membranes per se; rather, it recognizes defects in lipid packing that arise from membrane bending. In a companion paper, we show that these defects can be mimicked by introducing conical lipids in a flat lipid bilayer, in agreement with experimental observations. Here, we use molecular-dynamics (MD) simulations to characterize ALPS binding to such lipid bilayers. The ALPS motif recognizes lipid-packing defects by a conserved mechanism: peptide partitioning is driven by the insertion of hydrophobic residues into large packing defects that are preformed in the bilayer. This insertion induces only minor modifications in the statistical distribution of the free packing defects. ALPS insertion is severely hampered when monounsaturated lipids are replaced by saturated lipids, leading to a decrease in packing defects. We propose that the hypersensitivity of ALPS motifs to lipid packing defects results from the repetitive use of hydrophobic insertions along the monotonous ALPS sequence. | [
"Condensed Matter Physics",
"Molecules of Life: Biological Mechanisms, Structures and Functions"
]
|
643616 | Electrochemical-Mediated site-selective halogenation of phenol as a platform for accessing poly-substituted arenes. | ElectroPheX aims to develop electrochemically-mediated methods for the site-selective halogenation of phenols. Electrochemistry will be the main feature of this project as it can be an efficient way to access and manipulate reactive intermediates.
The project will span disciplines (interdisciplinarity) and aims to study electrochemistry’s ability to act as an enhancement tool for both selectivity and reactivity. Electrochemistry will help us to: (1) help us study the redox properties of catalysts, compounds, complexes and substrates (find redox potentials etc.); (2) to generate open-shell species; and, (3) to adjust the oxidation state of metals.
WP1-ORTHO focuses on (1) the design and synthesis of a series of compounds that contain N-halogen bond and they are capable of facilitating the ortho-halogenation of phenols upon anodic oxidation, (2) the study of intermolecular interactions and how the electrochemical generation of the corresponding radical-cation of N-halogen bond will alter/enhance the strength of the former.
WP2-META aims at the development of an electrochemically-mediated methodology for the meta-halogenation of phenols. Early transition metals (Mn, Co) will be used in order to facilitate the desired transformation. Electrochemistry will orchestrate the whole procedure giving access to adjacent oxidation states of metallic centers.
WP3-PARA targets para-halogenation of phenols mediated by a novel catalyst that mimics a main feature of photosystem II leading to a proton-coupled electron transfer (PCET) protocol for the transformation.
In WP4 the acquired knowledge will be translated to complex phenolic compounds in order to achieve a late-stage functionalization. SAR libraries, PET radiotracer, Also, the synthesis of highly site-selective halogenation of phenols can provide valuable intermediates for the preparation of poly-substituted arenes with a well-defined relationship between their substituent via cross-coupling reactions. | [
"Physical and Analytical Chemical Sciences",
"Synthetic Chemistry and Materials"
]
|
W2100465390 | The agrifood system policy agenda and research domain | Abstract In the US, traditionally food policy has been considered a federal concern dealing with issues such as nutrition, anti-hunger, food safety, food labeling, international trade and food aid. In the 1970s, new concerns arose about the potentially deleterious consequences of the modern global food system. Social movement groups, often referred to as the Alternative Agrifood Movement, successfully championed these concerns into policy discussions, expanding the federal food policy frame to include the agrifood system agenda, while also creating new roles for local and state governments in food system governance. A body of agrifood system policy research emerged to address both the concerns and policies addressing modern global food system issues. The purpose of this paper is two-fold: first, to summarize the underpinnings of the agrifood system policy agenda, trace the emergence of initiatives in federal policy, and describe expressions in local policy; and, second, to describe the corresponding research domain, focusing on seminal works that inform or directly speak to policy development. Findings indicate that, as a whole, agrifood system policy research is interdisciplinary and draws from a core of knowledge. The most highly cited publications come from the fields of geography, sociology and rural sociology, environmental science and nutrition education, and follow a consistent trajectory of conceptualizing alternatives, providing friendly critique and proposing research agendas attentive to hybridity between conventional and alternative food systems. Research mostly informs framing and agenda-setting in the policy process and is aimed at all scales of governance, with a slight emphasis on local governance. Finally, we offer suggestions for further research, including evaluative research and comparative analysis with other domains of food policy research. | [
"The Social World and Its Interactions",
"Institutions, Governance and Legal Systems"
]
|
interreg_2979 | Restructuring Cultural Landscapes | Industrial processes, such as mining, have altered and disturbed landscapes within a short time. Natural and cultural heritages as well as regional identities have often been neglected by changing economic structures. REKULA, the Restructuring of Cultural Landscapes, aims at establishing integrated and co-ordinated measures for a renewed appreciation of altered cultural landscapes. A committee of experts was established in order to develop landscaping criteria and assume the evaluation tasks. The expert commission acts as a group of consultants for the EU via the REKULA project and transmits the dialogue to the European level as an international discourse on the treatment of altered landscapes. Pilot projects are intended to help establish the necessary set of tools for application throughout Europe. They are intended as a set of rules for the production, i.e. preservation, of the balance of natural resources as well as handy tools for managing the entire process. | [
"Earth System Science",
"Human Mobility, Environment, and Space",
"Studies of Cultures and Arts"
]
|
10.1109/CVPR.2017.267 | Dsac Differentiable Ransac For Camera Localization | RANSAC is an important algorithm in robust optimization and a central building block for many computer vision applications. In recent years, traditionally hand-crafted pipelines have been replaced by deep learning pipelines, which can be trained in an end-to-end fashion. However, RANSAC has so far not been used as part of such deep learning pipelines, because its hypothesis selection procedure is non-differentiable. In this work, we present two different ways to overcome this limitation. The most promising approach is inspired by reinforcement learning, namely to replace the deterministic hypothesis selection by a probabilistic selection for which we can derive the expected loss w. r. t. to all learnable parameters. We call this approach DSAC, the differentiable counterpart of RANSAC. We apply DSAC to the problem of camera localization, where deep learning has so far failed to improve on traditional approaches. We demonstrate that by directly minimizing the expected loss of the output camera poses, robustly estimated by RANSAC, we achieve an increase in accuracy. In the future, any deep learning pipeline can use DSAC as a robust optimization component. | [
"Computer Science and Informatics"
]
|
10.1093/bib/bbx160 | Community effort endorsing multiscale modelling, multiscale data science and multiscale computing for systems medicine | Systems medicine holds many promises, but has so far provided only a limited number of proofs of principle. To address this road block, possible barriers and challenges of translating systems medicine into clinical practice need to be identified and addressed. The members of the European Cooperation in Science and Technology COST) Action CA15120 Open Multiscale Systems Medicine OpenMultiMed) wish to engage the scientific community of systems medicine and multiscale modelling, data science and computing, to provide their feedback in a structured manner. This will result in follow-up white papers and open access resources to accelerate the clinical translation of systems medicine. | [
"Integrative Biology: from Genes and Genomes to Systems",
"Computer Science and Informatics",
"Prevention, Diagnosis and Treatment of Human Diseases"
]
|
10.5194/amt-8-1447-2015 | Cross-validation of IASI/MetOp derived tropospheric δD with TES and ground-based FTIR observations | Abstract. The Infrared Atmospheric Sounding Interferometer (IASI) flying onboard MetOpA and MetOpB is able to capture fine isotopic variations of the HDO to H2O ratio (δD) in the troposphere. Such observations at the high spatio-temporal resolution of the sounder are of great interest to improve our understanding of the mechanisms controlling humidity in the troposphere. In this study we aim to empirically assess the validity of our error estimation previously evaluated theoretically. To achieve this, we compare IASI δD retrieved profiles with other available profiles of δD, from the TES infrared sounder onboard AURA and from three ground-based FTIR stations produced within the MUSICA project: the NDACC (Network for the Detection of Atmospheric Composition Change) sites Kiruna and Izaña, and the TCCON site Karlsruhe, which in addition to near-infrared TCCON spectra also records mid-infrared spectra. We describe the achievable level of agreement between the different retrievals and show that these theoretical errors are in good agreement with empirical differences. The comparisons are made at different locations from tropical to Arctic latitudes, above sea and above land. Generally IASI and TES are similarly sensitive to δD in the free troposphere which allows one to compare their measurements directly. At tropical latitudes where IASI's sensitivity is lower than that of TES, we show that the agreement improves when taking into account the sensitivity of IASI in the TES retrieval. For the comparison IASI-FTIR only direct comparisons are performed because the sensitivity profiles of the two observing systems do not allow to take into account their differences of sensitivity. We identify a quasi negligible bias in the free troposphere (−3‰) between IASI retrieved δD with the TES, which are bias corrected, but important with the ground-based FTIR reaching −47‰. We also suggest that model-satellite observation comparisons could be optimized with IASI thanks to its high spatial and temporal sampling. | [
"Physical and Analytical Chemical Sciences",
"Earth System Science"
]
|
US 202318518052 A | WORKING MACHINE | A floor mat arranged in a working machine includes a floor portion, a wall portion arranged on a circumferential portion of the floor portion, and an opening portion arranged on a part of a connecting portion of the wall portion, the connecting portion connecting to the floor portion. The floor mat includes a mat main body arranged on the floor portion, a covering portion configured to cover the opening portion, and an connecting portion configured to connect the covering portion flexibly to a circumferential portion of the mat main body. | [
"Products and Processes Engineering",
"Materials Engineering"
]
|
10.1109/CDC.2016.7799334 | Polarization In Coopetitive Networks Of Heterogeneous Nonlinear Agents | The mechanisms of regular cooperative behavior in multi-agent networks, such as consensus and synchronization, have been thoroughly studied. However, many natural and engineered networks do not synchronize, exhibiting persistent disagreement or clustering. One of the reasons for this “irregular” behavior is competition among some pairs of agents. Whereas cooperative interactions are usually represented by attractive couplings, bringing the trajectories closer, competition between two agents is naturally modeled by a repulsive coupling, leading to disagreement among the agents and preventing their trajectories from convergence. Such couplings may e. g. describe interactions of antagonistic individuals in social groups, competing economic agents and repelling particles. Networks where agents can both cooperate and compete are said to be coopetitive. To study the dynamics of general coopetitive networks, in particular, mechanisms of agents' splitting into several clusters, remains a challenging problem. A simple yet insightful model of polarization under coopetitive interactions was proposed in [1], [2]. These papers address consensus-type dynamics over signed graphs, where arcs of positive and negative weights correspond, respectively, to cooperative and competitive couplings between the agents. If the graph is structurally balanced, these protocols lead to either consensus or “bipartite consensus” (polarization): the agents split into two competing “camps”, and the values (opinions) of agents from different camps agree in modulus but differ in signs. The results from [1], [2] are limited to single integrator agents, interacting over static signed graphs. In this paper, we extend these results to time-varying graphs and nonlinear heterogeneous agents that satisfy a relaxed passivity condition. | [
"Mathematics",
"Computer Science and Informatics",
"Systems and Communication Engineering"
]
|
10.3389/fimmu.2017.01115 | Factor XII-driven inflammatory reactions with implications for anaphylaxis | Anaphylaxis is a life-threatening allergic reaction. It is triggered by the release of pro-inflammatory cytokines and mediators from mast cells and basophils in response to immunologic or non-immunologic mechanisms. Mediators that are released upon mast cell activation include the highly sulfated polysaccharide and inorganic polymer heparin and polyphosphate (polyP), respectively. Heparin and polyP supply a negative surface for factor XII (FXII) activation, a serine protease that drives contact system-mediated coagulation and inflammation. Activation of the FXII substrate plasma kallikrein leads to further activation of zymogen FXII and triggers the pro-inflammatory kallikrein-kinin system that results in the release of the mediator bradykinin (BK). The severity of anaphylaxis is correlated with the intensity of contact system activation, the magnitude of mast cell activation, and BK formation. The main inhibitor of the complement system, C1 esterase inhibitor, potently interferes with FXII activity, indicating a meaningful cross-link between complement and kallikrein-kinin systems. Deficiency in a functional C1 esterase inhibitor leads to a severe swelling disorder called hereditary angioedema (HAE). The significance of FXII in these disorders highlights the importance of studying how these processes are integrated and can be therapeutically targeted. In this review, we focus on how FXII integrates with inflammation and the complement system to cause anaphylaxis and HAE as well as highlight current diagnosis and treatments of BK-related diseases. | [
"Immunity, Infection and Immunotherapy",
"Physiology in Health, Disease and Ageing",
"Prevention, Diagnosis and Treatment of Human Diseases"
]
|
10.3389/fimmu.2012.00313 | The intestinal B-cell response in celiac disease | The function of intestinal immunity is to provide protection toward pathogens while preserving the composition of the microflora and tolerance to orally fed nutrients. This is achieved via a number of tightly regulated mechanisms including production of IgA antibodies by intestinal plasma cells. Celiac disease is a common gut disorder caused by a dysfunctional immune regulation as signified, among other features, by a massive intestinal IgA autoan- tibody response. Here we review the current knowledge of this B-cell response and how it is induced, and we discuss key questions to be addressed in future research. | [
"Immunity, Infection and Immunotherapy",
"Molecules of Life: Biological Mechanisms, Structures and Functions"
]
|
Q2694084 | Working capital support for JG Group sp. z o.o. | The project concerns support to the entrepreneur in providing liquidity and support to day-to-day activities due to the financial difficulties that have occurred to the entrepreneur as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak. Financial assistance under scheme SA.57015 (2020/N) | [
"Individuals, Markets and Organisations",
"Institutions, Governance and Legal Systems"
]
|
W2367497198 | Correction model for flow calculation of plain river network | Complex water movement and fewer measuring points are the unfavorable factors in improving the accuracy of flow calculation of river networks.For this reason,a correction model for a plain river network was developed based on the three-step method in dealing with the water levels at key nodes of a looping river network,with the coefficients in the equation considered to be the media carrying the correction information.The correction information of the model errors at observation stations was transmitted to the other cross sections of the river network to correct the forecasted values of water levels and discharges at the cross sections of neighboring rivers.A case study was conducted in the river network of the Chengtong section of the Yangtze River.Hydrological data in September 2004 were selected for model calculation.The results show that the proposed model can effectively transmit the correction information of model errors in a certain spatial range and has practical significance in improving the accuracy of forecasts for river networks. | [
"Earth System Science",
"Products and Processes Engineering"
]
|
AU 2020/367246 A | Method for obtaining material from plant cell surfaces | The invention relates to a method for detaching expressed material from the surface or the apoplast of plant cells, the plant cells being treated in a liquid medium using a rotor-stator. The specific heat of the rotor-stator introduced by the rotation of the stator is at most 3 kJ per kg of the liquid medium and per g/l dry mass of the plant cells and the specific heat output introduced into the medium is at most 1.5 kJ per kg of the liquid medium per minute and per g/l dry mass of the plant cells. | [
"Materials Engineering",
"Biotechnology and Biosystems Engineering"
]
|
307442 | Tailoring Material Properties Using Femtosecond Lasers: A New Paradigm for Highly Integrated Micro-/Nano- Scale Systems | Using recent progress in laser technology and in particular in the field of ultra-fast lasers, we are getting close to accomplish the alchemist dream of transforming materials. Compact lasers can generate pulses with ultra-high peak powers in the Tera-Watt or even Peta-Watt ranges. These high-power pulses lead to a radically different laser-matter interaction than the one obtained with conventional lasers. Non-linear multi-photons processes are observed; they open new and exciting opportunities to tailor the matter in its intimate structure with sub-wavelength spatial resolutions and in the three dimensions.
This project is aiming at exploring the use of these ultrafast lasers to locally tailor the physical properties of glass materials. More specifically, our objective is to create polymorphs embedded in bulk structures and to demonstrate their use as means to introduce new functionalities in the material.
The long-term objective is to develop the scientific understanding and technological know-how to create three-dimensional objects with nanoscale features where optics, fluidics and micromechanical elements as well as active functions are integrated in a single monolithic piece of glass and to do so using a single process.
This is a multidisciplinary research that pushes the frontier of our current knowledge of femtosecond laser interaction with glass to demonstrate a novel design platform for future micro-/nano- systems. | [
"Materials Engineering",
"Condensed Matter Physics",
"Synthetic Chemistry and Materials"
]
|
W1979600830 | A study on the presence of flagella in the order Rickettsiales: the case of ‘Candidatus Midichloria mitochondrii’ | According to Bergey's Manual of Systematic Bacteriology, the Rickettsiales are '…bacteria with typical gram-negative cell walls and no flagella'. The recently sequenced genome of 'Candidatus Midichloria mitochondrii', a divergent lineage within the order Rickettsiales capable of invading mitochondria in ixodid ticks, revealed the presence of 26 putative flagellar genes. Open questions in relation to this observation are whether these genes are expressed and whether they possess the domains expected for the flagellar function. Here we show that: (a) the putative flagellar proteins of 'Ca. M. mitochondrii' actually possess the conserved domains and structural features required for their function in a model bacterium; (b) the seven flagellar genes of 'Ca. M. mitochondrii' that have been tested are expressed at the RNA level; and (c) the putative flagellar cap gene of this bacterium (FliD) is expressed at the protein level, and can be stained within the bacterium and at its surface. Beside the specific questions that we have addressed that relate to the first evidence, to our knowledge, for a flagellar apparatus in a member of the order Rickettsiales, we present here novel tools (recombinant protein and antibodies) that will facilitate the study of 'Ca. M. mitochondrii'. | [
"Molecules of Life: Biological Mechanisms, Structures and Functions",
"Integrative Biology: from Genes and Genomes to Systems",
"Cell Biology, Development, Stem Cells and Regeneration"
]
|
10.1101/2020.01.29.924373 | Variable Environments Select For Short Lifespan | Abstract The role of environmental variation in the evolution of lifespan is contested. Classic theory suggests that variable environments result in evolution of long life but novel theoretical breakthroughs show that environmental variation can instead select for short lifespan when the changes are rapid relative to generation time. Here we combined simulation modelling and experimental evolution to study the evolution of lifespan in response to temperature variation to provide the first empirical test of the new theory. Genetically diverse populations of the outcrossing nematode Caenorhabditis remanei, were exposed to a novel, stressful temperature for 30 generations, in either stable, slowly increasing or fluctuating temperature regimes. We found evolution of shorter lifespan in populations evolving in rapidly fluctuating environments both in simulation models and in real populations supporting the new theory. While climate warming is predicted to increase environmental stochasticity, our results show that fast temperature cycles rapidly select for short lifespan. | [
"Environmental Biology, Ecology and Evolution",
"Integrative Biology: from Genes and Genomes to Systems"
]
|
10.1039/c5cp00582e | How exciton-vibrational coherences control charge separation in the photosystem II reaction center | Two-dimensional photon echo in the photosystem II reaction center reveals the exciton-vibrational coherences that promote directed energy/electron transfers. | [
"Physical and Analytical Chemical Sciences",
"Condensed Matter Physics"
]
|
10.1080/24694452.2020.1740579 | Expanding The Boundaries Of Justice In Urban Greening Scholarship Toward An Emancipatory Antisubordination Intersectional And Relational Approach | Supported by a large body of scholarship, it is increasingly orthodox practice for cities to deploy urban greening interventions to address diverse socioenvironmental challenges, from protecting ur. . . | [
"The Social World and Its Interactions",
"Human Mobility, Environment, and Space",
"Environmental Biology, Ecology and Evolution"
]
|
172592 | Metrology for future 3d-technologies | Within the food chain of equipment delivery for the semiconductor industry, Europe has kept a very strong position in the metrology area with many companies establishing themselves as main leaders in the field. Hence in line with the objectives of the ICT25 call for innovation action to overcome the (initial) barriers for the successful commercialization of novel European products, this project aims at exploring for a number of metrology solutions their technological readiness, reliability and relevance of the developed protocols, and the COO. The portfolio within the project covers new metrology concepts addressing specifically the processing challenges linked to 3D-Devices and range from probing basic layer properties (composition, electrical properties) in FEOL to control of metallization in BEOL up to issues linked to die stacking.
Due to the specific processing steps which need to be addressed, three separate metrology tools will be assessed in this project i.e a Tofsims system (IonTOF) with build-in Scanning Probe stage and FIB column for true 3D-composition profiling, a completely automated micro-Hall and sheet resistance measurement tool (Capres) with additional capabilities for measurements on dedicated test structures (prior to full BEOL) and an GHz acoustic Microscope (Tepla) for probing voids in TSV’s and stacked dies. As some of them (IonTOf, Capres) are addressing partly complementary information (composition versus electrical properties), their co-existence in this project creates additional value as beyond the tool assessment also a methodology based on combining these concepts can be explored and certified. Moreover a significant efficiency gain is created as they can employ similar test structures and devices. For each of these tools, the basic metrology concepts are existing and validated in the lab on selected applications but their general applicability field within the semiconductor industry still needs to be established | [
"Materials Engineering",
"Physical and Analytical Chemical Sciences",
"Systems and Communication Engineering"
]
|
221173 | Seeing things you don't see: unifying the philosophy, psychology and neuroscience of multimodal mental imagery | When I am looking at my coffee machine that makes funny noises, this is an instance of multisensory perception – I perceive this event by means of both vision and audition. But very often we only receive sensory stimulation from a multisensory event by means of one sense modality. If I hear the noisy coffee machine in the next room (without seeing it), then how do I represent the visual aspects of this multisensory event?
The aim of this research project is to bring together empirical findings about multimodal perception and empirical findings about (visual, auditory, tactile) mental imagery and argue that on occasions like the one described in the last paragraph, we have multimodal mental imagery: perceptual processing in one sense modality (here: vision) that is triggered by sensory stimulation in another sense modality (here: audition).
Multimodal mental imagery is rife. The vast majority of what we perceive are multisensory events: events that can be perceived in more than one sense modality – like the noisy coffee machine. And most of the time we are only acquainted with these multisensory events via a subset of the sense modalities involved – all the other aspects of these events are represented by means of multisensory mental imagery. This means that multisensory mental imagery is a crucial element of almost all instances of everyday perception, which has wider implications to philosophy of perception and beyond, to epistemological questions about whether we can trust our senses.
Focusing on multimodal mental imagery can help us to understand a number of puzzling perceptual phenomena, like sensory substitution and synaesthesia. Further, manipulating mental imagery has recently become an important clinical procedure in various branches of psychiatry as well as in counteracting implicit bias – using multimodal mental imagery rather than voluntarily and consciously conjured up mental imagery can lead to real progress in these experimental paradigms. | [
"Neuroscience and Disorders of the Nervous System",
"The Human Mind and Its Complexity"
]
|
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