ALBERT

Description: Submarine groundwater discharge (SGD) consists of fresh submarine groundwater discharge (FSGD) and recirculated submarine groundwater discharge (RSGD). In this study, we conducted simultaneous 25-hour time-series measurements of short-lived 222Rn and 224Ra activities at two sites with differing SGD rates in the central Seto Inland Sea of Japan to evaluate SGD rates and their constituents. At both sites, we also quantified the total SGD, FSGD, and RSGD using a seepage meter to verify the water fluxes estimated with 222Rn and 224Ra. SGD rates estimated using 222Rn and 224Ra at the site with significant SGD approximated the total SGD and RSGD measured by the seepage meter. However, SGD rates derived using 222Rn at the site with minor SGD were overestimated, since 222Rn activity at the nearshore mooring site was lower than that in the offshore area. These results suggest that the coupling of short-lived 222Rn and 224Ra is a powerful tool for quantification of FSGD and RSGD, although it is important to confirm that tracer activities in coastal areas are higher than those in offshore.

Description: This study aimed to identify effective presentation methods used for historical self-comparisons of residential water consumption that will lead to the efficient use of water. To compare each household’s current and previous water consumption, illustrations of water droplets were used as feedback every other week for five months, with the number of water droplets indicating an increase or decrease in water consumption. When only using the same blue water droplets, there was no change in water consumption. However, when using yellow and red droplets in cases of increased water use, we observed that water consumption declined. By improving the method of communication, historical self-comparisons of water consumption can realize an efficient use of water at all consumption levels.

Description: In bone regeneration, there are some important cellular biological processes, such as mineralization, cell organization, and differentiation. In particular, vascularization into regenerative tissues is a key step for the survival of cells and tissues. In this study, to fabricate biomimetic-engineered bone, including vascular networks, we focused on connective tissue growth factor (CTGF), a multifunctional protein which could regulate the extracellular matrix remodeling. By combination with CTGF and hydroxyapatite (HAp) ceramics (2D) or apatite-fiber scaffold (AFS, 3D), we have fabricated bioactive materials. The CTGF-loaded HAp ceramics could enhance the cellular attachment through interaction with integrin and promote actin cytoskeletal reorganization. CTGF-loaded HAp also enhanced the differentiation of osteoblasts by integrin-mediated activation of the signaling pathway. Under co-culture conditions, both osteoblasts and endothelial cells in the CTGF-loaded AFS were stimulated by CTGF, and each cell could penetrate the central region of the scaffold in vitro and in vivo. Direct cell-cell interaction would also improve the functionality of cells in bone formation. These results suggest that coupling between effective optimized scaffold and CTGF with multifunction could provide better mimicking natural bone by stimulation of angiogenesis.

Description: Silsesquioxane (SQ) derivatives possessing intramolecular H2C = CH- groups and Si-H groups were designed as precursors for ternary silicon oxycarbide (SiOC). By using R-Si(OMe)3, H-Si(OEt)3 and (H-Si(Me)2)2O as starting compounds, SQ derivatives of VH-SQ (R = vinyl) and St-H-SQ (R = stylyl) were successfully synthesized through the conventional sol-gel route. Simultaneous thermogravimetric and mass spectroscopic analyses up to 1000 °C revealed that in situ cross-linking via hydrosilylation and demethanation of VH-SQ suppressed the evolution of gaseous hydrocarbon species to afford amorphous SiOC having a composition close to the desired stoichiometric SiO2(1−x)Cx (x = ca. 0.3) with a high yield. The effect of carbon content on the phase separation and crystallization of the SQ-derived amorphous SiOC was studied by several spectroscopic analyses and TEM observation. The results were discussed aiming to develop a novel polymer-derived ceramics (PDCs) route for in situ formation of binary β-SiC-amorphous SiO2 nanocomposites with enhanced thermal and mechanical stability.

Description: There is a lack of research focusing on the association of temperature with mortality and hospitalization in developing countries with tropical climates and a low capacity to cope with the influences of extreme weather events. This study aimed to examine and compare the effect of temperature, including heat waves, on mortality and hospitalization in the most populous city of Vietnam. We used quasi-Poisson time series regression coupled with the distributed lag non-linear model (DLNM) to examine the overall pattern and compare the temperature-health outcome relationship. The main and added effects of heat waves were evaluated. The main effect of heat waves significantly increased the risk of all cause-specific mortality. Significant main effects of heat waves on hospitalization were observed only for elderly people and people with respiratory diseases (elderly, relative risk (RR) = 1.28, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.14–3.45; respiratory diseases, RR = 1.3, 95% CI = 1.19–1.42). The RRs of the main effect were substantially higher than those of the added effect in mortality; the same was applicable for hospitalizations of people with respiratory diseases and elderly people. The findings of this study have important implications for public health adaptation and prevention program implementation in the protection of residents from the adverse health effects of temperature.

Description: A normally-off GaN double-implanted vertical MOSFET (DMOSFET) with an atomic layer deposition (ALD)-Al2O3 gate dielectric film on a free-standing GaN substrate fabricated by triple ion implantation is presented. The DMOSFET was formed with Si ion implanted source regions in a Mg ion implanted p-type base with N ion implanted termination regions. A maximum drain current of 115 mA/mm, maximum transconductance of 19 mS/mm at a drain voltage of 15 V, and a threshold voltage of 3.6 V were obtained for the fabricated DMOSFET with a gate length of 0.4 μm with an estimated p-type base Mg surface concentration of 5 × 1018 cm−3. The difference between calculated and measured Vths could be due to the activation ratio of ion-implanted Mg as well as Fermi level pinning and the interface state density. On-resistance of 9.3 mΩ·cm2 estimated from the linear region was also attained. Blocking voltage at off-state was 213 V. The fully ion implanted GaN DMOSFET is a promising candidate for future high-voltage and high-power applications.

Description: Experimental investigations into the field dependence of magnetization and temperature dependences of magnetic susceptibility in Ni2+xMnGa1−x (x = 0.00, 0.02, 0.04) and Co2VGa Heusler alloy ferromagnets were performed following the spin fluctuation theory of itinerant ferromagnetism, called as “Takahashi theory”. We investigated the magnetic field dependence of magnetization at the Curie temperature TC, which is the critical temperature of the ferromagnetic–paramagnetic transition, and also at T = 5 K, which concerns the ground state of the ferromagnetic state. The field dependence of the magnetization was analyzed by means of the H vs. M5 dependence, and the field dependence of the ground state at 5 K was investigated by means of an Arrott plot (H/M vs. M2) according to the Takahashi theory. As for Ni2+xMnGa1−x, the spin fluctuation parameter in k-space (momentum space, TA) and that in energy space (T0) obtained at TC and 5 K were almost the same. On the contrary, as for Co2VGa, the H vs. M5 dependence was not shown at TC. We obtained TA and T0 by means of an Arrott plot at 5 K. We created a generalized Rhodes–Wohlfarth plot of peff/pS versus TC/T0 for the other ferromagnets. The plot indicated that the relationship between peff/pS and T0/TC followed Takahashi’s theory. We also discussed the spontaneous magnetic moment at the ground state, pS, which was obtained by an Arrott plot at 5 K and the high temperature magnetic moment, pC, at the paramagnetic phase. As for the localized ferromagnet, the pC/pS was 1. As for weak ferromagnets, the pC/pS was larger than 1. In contrast, the pC/pS was smaller than 1 by many Heusler alloys. This is a unique property of Heusler ferromagnets. Half-metallic ferromagnets of Co2VGa and Co2MnGa were in accordance with the generalized Rhodes–Wohlfarth plot with a km around 1.4. The magnetic properties of the itinerant electron of these two alloys appeared in the majority bands and was confirmed by Takahashi’s theory.

Description: Experimental investigations into the field dependence of magnetization and the relationship between magnetization and magnetostriction in Ni2+xMnGa1−x (x = 0.00, 0.02, 0.04) alloy ferromagnets were performed following the self-consistent renormalization (SCR) spin fluctuation theory of itinerant ferromagnetism. In this study, we investigated the magnetization of and magnetostriction on Ni2+xMnGa1−x (x = 0.02, 0.04) to check whether these relations held when the ratio of Ni to Ga and, the valence electron concentration per atom, e/a were varied. When the ratio of Ni to Ga was varied, e/a increased with increasing x. The magnetization results for x = 0.02 (e/a = 7.535) and 0.04 (e/a = 7.570) suggest that the critical index δ of H ∝ Mδ is around 5.0 at the Curie temperature TC, which is the critical temperature of the ferromagnetic–paramagnetic transition. This result confirms Takahashi’s spin fluctuation theory and the experimental results of Ni2MnGa. The spontaneous magnetization pS slightly decreased with increasing x. For x = 0.00, the spin fluctuation parameter in k-space (momentum space; TA) and that in energy space (T0) were obtained. The relationship between peff/pS and TC/T0 can also be explained by Takahashi’s theory, where peff indicates the effective magnetic moments. We created a generalized Rhodes-Wohlfarth plot of peff/pS versus TC/T0 for other ferromagnets. The plot indicates that the relationship between peff/pS and T0/TC follows Takahashi’s theory. We also measured the magnetostriction for Ni2+xMnGa1−x (x = 0.02, 0.04). As a result, at TC, the plot of the magnetostriction (ΔL/L) versus M4 shows proportionality and crosses the origin. These magnetization and magnetostriction results were analyzed in terms of Takahashi’s SCR spin fluctuation theory. We investigated the magnetostriction at the premartensite phase, which is the precursor state to the martensitic transition. In Ni2MnGa system alloys, the maximum value of magnetostriction is almost proportional to the e/a.

Description: The ability of individuals to manage and rebuild their lives after a disaster depends on environmental factors, as well as their own psychological characteristics. A psychometric questionnaire to measure personality traits relevant to disaster survival was proposed based on a large-scale investigation of survivors of the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake (Sugiura et al. 2015). This tool, the Power to Live with Disasters questionnaire, measures eight personality characteristics that are beneficial for coping with disasters. However, this instrument has not been optimised for practical use; it is long and lacks benchmark scores for the general population. Thus, we developed a concise, 16-item version of the Power to Live with Disasters questionnaire through reanalysis of the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake survivor data and an additional Web-based survey to obtain normative data from 1200 respondents drawn from the general population of Japan. The scores obtained from the short-form version of the questionnaire successfully replicated the results of the long-form version; eight distinct personality characteristics correlated well with several items associated with “successful survival” of the 2011 earthquake and tsunami. The normative data of the full- and short-version questionnaires were also highly correlated. We propose use of the shortened questionnaire to determine the personality traits critical for survival in the face of unexpected, life-threatening situations caused by natural disasters. Our questionnaire could be useful in schools and other public settings to enhance disaster-mitigation efforts and resilience to disasters in the general population.

Description: Although various factors related to the environment (perception of earthquake and warning) and knowledge (oral history and scientific knowledge) affect individual differences in evacuation behavior before a tsunami, the roles of psychological processes and personality factors in such relationships are poorly understood. We addressed this research gap by applying hierarchical regression analyses to survey data from survivors of the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami disaster. Previously-known contributions of environmental and knowledge factors were mostly replaced by the perception of a tsunami risk and threat, and these background factors were shown to facilitate these psychological processes. Several personality factors directly contributed to voluntary evacuation, particularly leadership and active well-being in the Power to Live scale, and extraversion in the Big Five scale. Overall, these results seem to indicate the need for formulating two independent targets when developing measures to enhance appropriate tsunami evacuation. Facilitation of the perception of a tsunami risk and threat may basically be pursued by developing existing approaches. Addressing the relevant personality factors may be done in a broader context of disaster or general education and sociocultural activities.