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  • Oxford University Press  (22,888)
  • American Institute of Physics (AIP)  (11,864)
  • MDPI Publishing  (10,327)
  • 2015-2019  (45,079)
  • 1930-1934
  • 2016  (45,079)
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  • 2015-2019  (45,079)
  • 1930-1934
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  • 1
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    Oxford University Press
    Publication Date: 2017-04-04
    Description: We provide an updated present-day stress map for the Italian territory. Following the World Stress Map (WSM) Project guidelines, we list the different stress indicators, explaining the criteria used to select data. We discuss the data, which will also be included in the 2016 release of the WSM, highlighting the areas for which we have added stress information. Our map displays the minimum horizontal stress orientations inferred from crustal stress indicators down to 40 km depth using data of A–C quality, updated for earthquakes until December 2015. We have completely reviewed all data, and the data set now contains 855 entries, in contrast to the previous 715. The number of data with A–C quality of 630 corresponds to an increase of 26 per cent relative to the previous data set. In particular, the new data set contains the results of the analysis of borehole breakouts, critically reviewed data from earthquake focal mechanisms, data concerning active faults, formal inversions of focal mechanisms of seismic sequences or of restricted areas and one stress determination from overcoring. The new data set defines the stress field in areas not well covered by the previous data: the region north to the Po Plain and the central Adriatic sea, both characterized by a thrust- and strike-faulting regime, the northern Sicilian belt with a prevailing normal-faulting regime, and the Ionian sea with a strike-slip regime.
    Description: Published
    Description: 1525-1531
    Description: 2T. Tettonica attiva
    Description: JCR Journal
    Description: restricted
    Keywords: Seismicity and tectonics ; Dynamics: seismotectonics ; Crustal structure ; Europe ; 04. Solid Earth::04.07. Tectonophysics::04.07.05. Stress
    Repository Name: Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia (INGV)
    Type: article
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  • 2
    Publication Date: 2017-04-04
    Description: Although there are many methods for investigating tectonic structures, many faults remain hidden, and they can endanger the life and property of people living along them. The slopes of volcanoes are covered with such hidden faults, near which strong earthquakes and gas releases can appear. Revealing hidden faults can therefore contribute significantly to the protection of people living in volcanic areas. In the study, seven different techniques were used for making measurements of in-soil radon concentrations in order to search for hidden faults on the SE flank of the Mt. Etna volcano. These reported methods had previously been proved to be useful tools for investigating fault structures. The main aim of the experiment presented here was to evaluate the usability of these methods in the geological conditions of the Mt. Etna region, and to find the best place for continual radon monitoring using a permanent station in the near future.
    Description: Published
    Description: 70-73
    Description: 5V. Sorveglianza vulcanica ed emergenze
    Description: JCR Journal
    Description: restricted
    Keywords: Mt. Etna ; soil gas ; hidden faults ; radon ; 04. Solid Earth::04.02. Exploration geophysics::04.02.01. Geochemical exploration
    Repository Name: Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia (INGV)
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  • 3
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    Oxford University Press
    In:  EPIC3ICES Journal of Marine Science, Oxford University Press, 73, pp. 772-782, ISSN: 1054-3139
    Publication Date: 2016-11-30
    Description: Global warming and ocean acidification are among the most important stressors for aquatic ecosystems in the future. To investigate their direct and indirect effects on a near-natural plankton community, a multiple-stressor approach is needed. Hence, we set up mesocosms in a full-factorial design to study the effects of both warming and high CO2 on a Baltic Sea autumn plankton community, concentrating on the impacts on microzooplankton (MZP). MZP abundance, biomass, and species composition were analysed over the course of the experiment. We observed that warming led to a reduced time-lag between the phytoplankton bloom and an MZP biomass maximum. MZP showed a significantly higher growth rate and an earlier biomass peak in the warm treatments while the biomass maximum was not affected. Increased pCO2 did not result in any significant effects on MZP biomass, growth rate, or species composition irrespective of the temperature, nor did we observe any significant interactions between CO2 and temperature. We attribute this to the high tolerance of this estuarine plankton community to fluctuations in pCO2, often resulting in CO2 concentrations higher than the predicted end-of-century concentration for open oceans. In contrast, warming can be expected to directly affect MZP and strengthen its coupling with phytoplankton by enhancing its grazing pressure.
    Repository Name: EPIC Alfred Wegener Institut
    Type: Article , isiRev
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  • 4
    Publication Date: 2022-05-25
    Description: Author Posting. © Crown Copyright, 2015. This article is posted here by permission of Oxford University Press for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Geophysical Journal International 204 (2016): 1-20, doi:10.1093/gji/ggv416.
    Description: The Canada Basin and the southern Alpha-Mendeleev ridge complex underlie a significant proportion of the Arctic Ocean, but the geology of this undrilled and mostly ice-covered frontier is poorly known. New information is encoded in seismic wide-angle reflections and refractions recorded with expendable sonobuoys between 2007 and 2011. Velocity–depth samples within the sedimentary succession are extracted from published analyses for 142 of these records obtained at irregularly spaced stations across an area of 1.9E + 06 km2. The samples are modelled at regional, subregional and station-specific scales using an exponential function of inverse velocity versus depth with regionally representative parameters determined through numerical regression. With this approach, smooth, non-oscillatory velocity–depth profiles can be generated for any desired location in the study area, even where the measurement density is low. Practical application is demonstrated with a map of sedimentary thickness, derived from seismic reflection horizons interpreted in the time domain and depth converted using the velocity–depth profiles for each seismic trace. A thickness of 12–13 km is present beneath both the upper Mackenzie fan and the middle slope off of Alaska, but the sedimentary prism thins more gradually outboard of the latter region. Mapping of the observed-to-predicted velocities reveals coherent geospatial trends associated with five subregions: the Mackenzie fan; the continental slopes beyond the Mackenzie fan; the abyssal plain; the southwestern Canada Basin; and, the Alpha-Mendeleev magnetic domain. Comparison of the subregional velocity–depth models with published borehole data, and interpretation of the station-specific best-fitting model parameters, suggests that sandstone is not a predominant lithology in any of the five subregions. However, the bulk sand-to-shale ratio likely increases towards the Mackenzie fan, and the model for this subregion compares favourably with borehole data for Miocene turbidites in the eastern Gulf of Mexico. The station-specific results also indicate that Quaternary sediments coarsen towards the Beaufort-Mackenzie and Banks Island margins in a manner that is consistent with the variable history of Laurentide Ice Sheet advance documented for these margins. Lithological factors do not fully account for the elevated velocity–depth trends that are associated with the southwestern Canada Basin and the Alpha-Mendeleev magnetic domain. Accelerated porosity reduction due to elevated palaeo-heat flow is inferred for these regions, which may be related to the underlying crustal types or possibly volcanic intrusion of the sedimentary succession. Beyond exploring the variation of an important physical property in the Arctic Ocean basin, this study provides comparative reference for global studies of seismic velocity, burial history, sedimentary compaction, seismic inversion and overpressure prediction, particularly in mudrock-dominated successions.
    Keywords: Numerical approximations and analysis ; Spatial analysis ; Controlled source seismology ; Acoustic properties ; Sedimentary basin processes ; Large igneous provinces ; Crustal structure ; Arctic region
    Repository Name: Woods Hole Open Access Server
    Type: Article
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  • 5
    Publication Date: 2022-05-25
    Description: © The Author(s), 2015. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License. The definitive version was published in Genome Biology and Evolution 7 (2015): 3207-3225, doi:10.1093/gbe/evv210.
    Description: High-throughput sequencing of reduced representation libraries obtained through digestion with restriction enzymes—generically known as restriction site associated DNA sequencing (RAD-seq)—is a common strategy to generate genome-wide genotypic and sequence data from eukaryotes. A critical design element of any RAD-seq study is knowledge of the approximate number of genetic markers that can be obtained for a taxon using different restriction enzymes, as this number determines the scope of a project, and ultimately defines its success. This number can only be directly determined if a reference genome sequence is available, or it can be estimated if the genome size and restriction recognition sequence probabilities are known. However, both scenarios are uncommon for nonmodel species. Here, we performed systematic in silico surveys of recognition sequences, for diverse and commonly used type II restriction enzymes across the eukaryotic tree of life. Our observations reveal that recognition sequence frequencies for a given restriction enzyme are strikingly variable among broad eukaryotic taxonomic groups, being largely determined by phylogenetic relatedness. We demonstrate that genome sizes can be predicted from cleavage frequency data obtained with restriction enzymes targeting “neutral” elements. Models based on genomic compositions are also effective tools to accurately calculate probabilities of recognition sequences across taxa, and can be applied to species for which reduced representation data are available (including transcriptomes and neutral RAD-seq data sets). The analytical pipeline developed in this study, PredRAD (https://github.com/phrh/PredRAD), and the resulting databases constitute valuable resources that will help guide the design of any study using RAD-seq or related methods.
    Description: This research was supported by the Office of Ocean Exploration and Research of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NA09OAR4320129 to T.S.); the Division of Ocean Sciences of the National Science Foundation (OCE-1131620 to T.S.); the Astrobiology Science and Technology for Exploring Planets program of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NNX09AB76G to T.S.); and the Academic Programs Office (Ocean Ventures Fund to S.H.), the Ocean Exploration Institute (Fellowship support to T.M.S.), and the Ocean Life Institute of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (internal grant to T.M.S. and S.H.).
    Keywords: RAD-seq ; Reduced representation sequencing ; PredRAD ; Experimental design ; Genome size prediction ; Restriction recognition sequence probability
    Repository Name: Woods Hole Open Access Server
    Type: Article
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  • 6
    Publication Date: 2022-05-25
    Description: © The Author(s), 2016. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License. The definitive version was published in Nucleic Acids Research 44 (2016): e157, doi:10.1093/nar/gkw738.
    Description: Site-directed RNA editing (SDRE) is a strategy to precisely alter genetic information within mRNAs. By linking the catalytic domain of the RNA editing enzyme ADAR to an antisense guide RNA, specific adenosines can be converted to inosines, biological mimics for guanosine. Previously, we showed that a genetically encoded iteration of SDRE could target adenosines expressed in human cells, but not efficiently. Here we developed a reporter assay to quantify editing, and used it to improve our strategy. By enhancing the linkage between ADAR's catalytic domain and the guide RNA, and by introducing a mutation in the catalytic domain, the efficiency of converting a UAG premature termination codon (PTC) to tryptophan (UGG) was improved from ∼11% to ∼70%. Other PTCs were edited, but less efficiently. Numerous off-target edits were identified in the targeted mRNA, but not in randomly selected endogenous messages. Off-target edits could be eliminated by reducing the amount of guide RNA with a reduction in on-target editing. The catalytic rate of SDRE was compared with those for human ADARs on various substrates and found to be within an order of magnitude of most. These data underscore the promise of site-directed RNA editing as a therapeutic or experimental tool.
    Description: National Institutes of Health [1R0111223855, 1R01NS64259]; Cystic Fibrosis Foundation Therapeutics [Rosent14XXO]; Infrastructural support was provided by the National Institutes of Health [NIGMS 1P20GM103642, NIMHD 8G12-MD007600]; National Science Foundation [DBI 0115825, DBI 1337284]; Department of Defense [52680-RT-ISP].
    Repository Name: Woods Hole Open Access Server
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  • 7
    Publication Date: 2022-05-26
    Description: Author Posting. © Oxford University Press, 2016. This article is posted here by permission of Oxford University Press for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Geophysical Journal International 205 (2016): 728-743, doi:10.1093/gji/ggw044.
    Description: While elasticity is a defining characteristic of the Earth's lithosphere, it is often ignored in numerical models of long-term tectonic processes in favour of a simpler viscoplastic description. Here we assess the consequences of this assumption on a well-studied geodynamic problem: the growth of normal faults at an extensional plate boundary. We conduct 2-D numerical simulations of extension in elastoplastic and viscoplastic layers using a finite difference, particle-in-cell numerical approach. Our models simulate a range of faulted layer thicknesses and extension rates, allowing us to quantify the role of elasticity on three key observables: fault-induced topography, fault rotation, and fault life span. In agreement with earlier studies, simulations carried out in elastoplastic layers produce rate-independent lithospheric flexure accompanied by rapid fault rotation and an inverse relationship between fault life span and faulted layer thickness. By contrast, models carried out with a viscoplastic lithosphere produce results that may qualitatively resemble the elastoplastic case, but depend strongly on the product of extension rate and layer viscosity U × ηL. When this product is high, fault growth initially generates little deformation of the footwall and hanging wall blocks, resulting in unrealistic, rigid block-offset in topography across the fault. This configuration progressively transitions into a regime where topographic decay associated with flexure is fully accommodated within the numerical domain. In addition, high U × ηL favours the sequential growth of multiple short-offset faults as opposed to a large-offset detachment. We interpret these results by comparing them to an analytical model for the fault-induced flexure of a thin viscous plate. The key to understanding the viscoplastic model results lies in the rate-dependence of the flexural wavelength of a viscous plate, and the strain rate dependence of the force increase associated with footwall and hanging wall bending. This behaviour produces unrealistic deformation patterns that can hinder the geological relevance of long-term rifting models that assume a viscoplastic rheology.
    Description: This work was supported by NSF grants OCE-11-54238 (JAO, MDB), EAR-10-10432 (MDB) and OCE-11-55098 (GI), as well as a WHOI Deep Exploration Institute grant and start-up support from the University of Idaho (EM).
    Keywords: Mid-ocean ridge processes ; Continental tectonics: extensional ; Lithospheric flexure ; Mechanics, theory, and modelling
    Repository Name: Woods Hole Open Access Server
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  • 8
    Publication Date: 2022-05-26
    Description: © The Author(s), 2016. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License. The definitive version was published in Conservation Physiology 4 (2016): cow014, doi:10.1093/conphys/cow014.
    Description: Reproduction of mysticete whales is difficult to monitor, and basic parameters, such as pregnancy rate and inter-calving interval, remain unknown for many populations. We hypothesized that baleen plates (keratinous strips that grow downward from the palate of mysticete whales) might record previous pregnancies, in the form of high-progesterone regions in the sections of baleen that grew while the whale was pregnant. To test this hypothesis, longitudinal baleen progesterone profiles from two adult female North Atlantic right whales (Eubalaena glacialis) that died as a result of ship strike were compared with dates of known pregnancies inferred from calf sightings and post-mortem data. We sampled a full-length baleen plate from each female at 4 cm intervals from base (newest baleen) to tip (oldest baleen), each interval representing ∼60 days of baleen growth, with high-progesterone areas then sampled at 2 or 1 cm intervals. Pulverized baleen powder was assayed for progesterone using enzyme immunoassay. The date of growth of each sampling location on the baleen plate was estimated based on the distance from the base of the plate and baleen growth rates derived from annual cycles of stable isotope ratios. Baleen progesterone profiles from both whales showed dramatic elevations (two orders of magnitude higher than baseline) in areas corresponding to known pregnancies. Baleen hormone analysis shows great potential for estimation of recent reproductive history, inter-calving interval and general reproductive biology in this species and, possibly, in other mysticete whales.
    Description: This work was supported by the Eppley Foundation for Research, the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration Marine Mammal Health and Stranding Program and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Ocean Life Institute.
    Keywords: Baleen ; Cetacea ; Marine mammals ; Pregnancy ; Progesterone ; Reproduction
    Repository Name: Woods Hole Open Access Server
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  • 9
    Publication Date: 2022-05-26
    Description: Author Posting. © The Author(s), 2016. This article is posted here by permission of The Royal Astronomical Society for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Geophysical Journal International 205 (2016): 785-795, doi:10.1093/gji/ggw036.
    Description: An L-configured, three-component short period seismic array was deployed on the Ross Ice Shelf, Antarctica during November 2014. Polarization analysis of ambient noise data from these stations shows linearly polarized waves for frequency bands between 0.2 and 2 Hz. A spectral peak at about 1.6 Hz is interpreted as the resonance frequency of the water column and is used to estimate the water layer thickness below the ice shelf. The frequency band from 4 to 18 Hz is dominated by Rayleigh and Love waves propagating from the north that, based on daily temporal variations, we conclude were generated by field camp activity. Frequency–slowness plots were calculated using beamforming. Resulting Love and Rayleigh wave dispersion curves were inverted for the shear wave velocity profile within the firn and ice to ∼150 m depth. The derived density profile allows estimation of the pore close-off depth and the firn–air content thickness. Separate inversions of Rayleigh and Love wave dispersion curves give different shear wave velocity profiles within the firn. We attribute this difference to an effective anisotropy due to fine layering. The layered structure of firn, ice, water and the seafloor results in a characteristic dispersion curve below 7 Hz. Forward modelling the observed Rayleigh wave dispersion curves using representative firn, ice, water and sediment structures indicates that Rayleigh waves are observed when wavelengths are long enough to span the distance from the ice shelf surface to the seafloor. The forward modelling shows that analysis of seismic data from an ice shelf provides the possibility of resolving ice shelf thickness, water column thickness and the physical properties of the ice shelf and underlying seafloor using passive-source seismic data.
    Description: PDB, AD and PG were supported by NSF Grant PLR 1246151. RAS was supported by NSF Grant PLR-1246416. DAW, RA and AN were supported under NSF Grants PLR-1142518, 1141916 and 1142126, respectively. PDB also received support from the California Department of Parks and Recreation, Division of Boating and Waterways under contract 11-106-107.
    Keywords: Glaciology ; Surface waves and free oscillations ; Seismic anisotropy ; Antarctica
    Repository Name: Woods Hole Open Access Server
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  • 10
    Publication Date: 2022-05-26
    Description: © International Council for the Exploration of the Sea, 2016. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License. The definitive version was published in ICES Journal of Marine Science 73 (2016): 1839-1850, doi: 10.1093/icesjms/fsw086.
    Description: For terrestrial and marine benthic ecologists, landscape ecology provides a framework to address issues of complexity, patchiness, and scale—providing theory and context for ecosystem based management in a changing climate. Marine pelagic ecosystems are likewise changing in response to warming, changing chemistry, and resource exploitation. However, unlike spatial landscapes that migrate slowly with time, pelagic seascapes are embedded in a turbulent, advective ocean. Adaptations from landscape ecology to marine pelagic ecosystem management must consider the nature and scale of biophysical interactions associated with organisms ranging from microbes to whales, a hierarchical organization shaped by physical processes, and our limited capacity to observe and monitor these phenomena across global oceans. High frequency, multiscale, and synoptic characterization of the 4-D variability of seascapes are now available through improved classification methods, a maturing array of satellite remote sensing products, advances in autonomous sampling of multiple levels of biological complexity, and emergence of observational networks. Merging of oceanographic and ecological paradigms will be necessary to observe, manage, and conserve species embedded in a dynamic seascape mosaic, where the boundaries, extent, and location of features change with time.
    Description: This work was supported by NASA grant NNX14AP62A “National Marine Sanctuaries as Sentinel Sites for a Demonstration Marine Biodiversity Observation Network (MBON)” funded under the National Ocean Partnership Program (NOPP RFP NOAA-NOS-IOOS-2014-2003803 in partnership between NOAA, BOEM, and NASA), the NOAA Integrated Ocean Observing System (IOOS) Program Office, and the LenFest Ocean Program.
    Keywords: Biodiversity ; Conservation ; Landscape ; Ocean observations ; Pelagic ; Phytoplankton ; Seascape
    Repository Name: Woods Hole Open Access Server
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  • 11
    Publication Date: 2016-07-12
    Description: We present experimental results obtained under normal gravity on the dynamics of solid particles in periodic oscillatory thermocapillary-driven flows in a non-isothermal liquid bridge made of decane. Inertial particles of different densities and in the size range approximately 0.75 − 75 μ m are able to form stable coherent structures (particle accumulation structures, or PASs). Two image processing techniques were developed and successfully applied to compute time required for an ensemble of particles to form a structure. It is shown that the formation time grows with the decrease of the Stokes number. The observations indicate the probable irrelevance of the memory term for these experiments. Two types of PAS were observed—single (SL-I) and double-loop (SL-II)—which sometimes co-existed. Only large or very dense particles may form an SL-II type structure. A number of novel features of the system were perceived. In some cases, intermittently stable structures emerged (their dynamics is characterized by alternating time intervals during which a structure exists and is destroyed). Whereas in most experiments we observed a conventional symmetric and centered PAS, there were cases when a long-term stable asymmetric structure appeared. Experiments wherein two different types of PAS-forming particles were used simultaneously revealed the destructive role of collisions between the particles on formation of structures.
    Print ISSN: 1054-1500
    Electronic ISSN: 1089-7682
    Topics: Physics
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  • 12
    Publication Date: 2016-07-10
    Description: Differential exposure to multiple environmental burdens and benefits and their distribution across a population with varying vulnerability can contribute heavily to health inequalities. Particularly relevant are areas with high cumulative burdens and high social vulnerability termed as “hotspots”. This paper develops an index-based approach to assess these multiple burdens and benefits in combination with vulnerability factors at detailed intra-urban level. The method is applied to the city of Dortmund, Germany. Using non-spatial and spatial methods we assessed inequalities and identified “hotspot” areas in the city. We found modest inequalities burdening higher vulnerable groups in Dortmund (CI = −0.020 at p 〈 0.05). At the detailed intra-urban level, however, inequalities showed strong geographical patterns. Large numbers of “hotspots” exist in the northern part of the city compared to the southern part. A holistic assessment, particularly at a detailed local level, considering both environmental burdens and benefits and their distribution across the population with the different vulnerability, is essential to inform environmental justice debates and to mobilize local stakeholders. Locating “hotspot” areas at this detailed spatial level can serve as a basis to develop interventions that target vulnerable groups to ensure a health conducive equal environment.
    Print ISSN: 1661-7827
    Electronic ISSN: 1660-4601
    Topics: Energy, Environment Protection, Nuclear Power Engineering , Medicine
    Published by MDPI Publishing
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  • 13
    Publication Date: 2016-07-10
    Description: The goal of the study was to assess the quality of life (QOL) and depression and provide further insights into the relationship between QOL and depression among community-dwelling elderly Chinese people. Baseline data were collected from 1168 older adults (aged ≥ 60) in a large, prospective cohort study on measurement and evaluation of health-promoting and health-protecting behaviors intervention on chronic disease in different community-dwelling age groups. QOL was assessed using the 26-item, World Health Organization Quality of Life, brief version (WHOQOL-BREF) and depression was assessed using the 30-item Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS). The mean WHOQOL-BREF score for all dimensions was approximately 60, with the highest mean value (61.92) observed for social relationships, followed by environment, physical health, and psychological health domains. In this cohort, 26.1% of elderly urban adults met GDS criteria for depression. There were negative correlations between physical health (Odds Ratio (OR) = 0.928, 95% Confidence Interval (CI): 0.910–0.946), psychological health (OR = 0.906, 95% CI: 0.879–0.934), environment (OR = 0.966, 95% CI: 0.944–0.989) and depression among elderly people. Those with depression were older, less educated, had a lower monthly income, and were more likely to report insomnia. All WHOQOL-BREF domains, with the exception of the social domain were negatively correlated with depression.
    Print ISSN: 1661-7827
    Electronic ISSN: 1660-4601
    Topics: Energy, Environment Protection, Nuclear Power Engineering , Medicine
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  • 14
    Publication Date: 2016-07-10
    Description: Background: Measuring mercury in newborn bloodspots to determine fetal exposures is a novel methodology with many advantages. Questions remain, however, about its reliability as an estimate of newborn exposure to mercury. Methods: We studied mercury concentrations in paired bloodspots and cord blood from a convenience sample of 48 Minnesota women and infants. Results: The limit of detection for bloodspots was higher than for cord blood (0.7 and 0.3 μg/L in bloodspots and cord blood, respectively) with the result that mercury was detected in only 38% of newborn bloodspots compared to 62% of cord blood samples. The geometric mean mercury concentration in cord blood was 0.6 μg/L. Mercury concentrations were almost uniformly lower in bloodspots than in cord blood (mean ratio (±SD) = 0.85 ± 0.4), their mean value was significantly less than that for the cord blood (p = 0.02), and the two methods were highly correlated (r = 0.82). Conclusion: These preliminary findings indicate that newborn bloodspot mercury measurements have utility; however, until bloodspot analyses are more sensitive, they are likely to underestimate in utero exposure.
    Print ISSN: 1661-7827
    Electronic ISSN: 1660-4601
    Topics: Energy, Environment Protection, Nuclear Power Engineering , Medicine
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  • 15
    Publication Date: 2016-07-12
    Description: A three-dimensional model is presented to investigate helium plasma generated by microwave under atmospheric pressure in this paper, which includes the physical processes of electromagnetic wave propagation, electron and heavy species transport, gas flow, and heat transfer. The model is based on the fluid approximation calculation and local thermodynamic equilibrium assumption. The simulation results demonstrate that the maxima of the electron density and gas temperature are 4.79 × 10 17  m −3 and 1667 K, respectively, for the operating conditions with microwave power of 500 W, gas flow rate of 20 l/min, and initial gas temperature of 500 K. The electromagnetic field distribution in the plasma source is obtained by solving Helmholtz equation. Electric field strength of 2.97 × 10 4  V/m is obtained. There is a broad variation on microwave power, gas flow rate, and initial gas temperature to obtain deeper information about the changes of the electron density and gas temperature.
    Print ISSN: 1070-664X
    Electronic ISSN: 1089-7674
    Topics: Physics
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  • 16
    Publication Date: 2016-07-12
    Description: The paper analyzes the dielectric breakdown properties of N 2 –O 2 mixtures at different O 2 concentrations and gas pressures, taking into account electron detachments from negative ions. The reduced effective ionization coefficients α(eff)/N in N 2 –O 2 mixtures at different O 2 concentrations and gas pressures were calculated and analyzed, by considering electron detachments. The critical reduced electric fields (E/N) cr and the critical electron temperature T b were then determined. The result indicates a clear enhancement of α(eff)/N by collisional detachments, which causes a reduction in the (E/N) cr . In addition, a synergistic effect in the N 2 –O 2 mixture was also observed in both (E/N) cr and T b . The value of T b was decreased by the increase of pd product, however, T b tended to be constant at relatively high pd products.
    Print ISSN: 1070-664X
    Electronic ISSN: 1089-7674
    Topics: Physics
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  • 17
    Publication Date: 2016-07-12
    Description: Materials based on biodegradable polyesters, such as poly(butylene terephthalate) (PBT) or poly(butylene terephthalate-co-poly(alkylene glycol) terephthalate) (PBTAT), have potential application as pro-regenerative scaffolds for bone tissue engineering. Herein, the preparation of films composed of PBT or PBTAT and an engineered spider silk protein, (eADF4(C16)), that displays multiple carboxylic acid moieties capable of binding calcium ions and facilitating their biomineralization with calcium carbonate or calcium phosphate is reported. Human mesenchymal stem cells cultured on films mineralized with calcium phosphate show enhanced levels of alkaline phosphatase activity suggesting that such composites have potential use for bone tissue engineering.
    Electronic ISSN: 1996-1944
    Topics: Mechanical Engineering, Materials Science, Production Engineering, Mining and Metallurgy, Traffic Engineering, Precision Mechanics
    Published by MDPI Publishing
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  • 18
    Publication Date: 2016-07-10
    Description: Bioleaching is the mobilization of metal cations from insoluble ores by microorganisms. Biofilms can enhance this process. Since Sulfobacillus often appears in leaching heaps or reactors, this genus has aroused attention. In this study, biofilm formation and subsequent pyrite dissolution by the Gram-positive, moderately thermophilic acidophile Sulfobacillus thermosulfidooxidans were investigated. Five strategies, including adjusting initial pH, supplementing an extra energy source or ferric ions, as well as exchanging exhausted medium with fresh medium, were tested for enhancement of its biofilm formation. The results show that regularly exchanging exhausted medium leads to a continuous biofilm development on pyrite. By this way, multiply layered biofilms were observed on pyrite slices, while only monolayer biofilms were visible on pyrite grains. In addition, biofilms were proven to be responsible for pyrite leaching in the early stages.
    Electronic ISSN: 2075-163X
    Topics: Geosciences
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  • 19
    Publication Date: 2016-07-10
    Description: The objective of this study was to assess the performance of the simulated start of the photosynthetically active season by a large-scale biosphere model in boreal forests in Finland with remote sensing observations. The start of season for two forest types, evergreen needle- and deciduous broad-leaf, was obtained for the period 2003–2011 from regional JSBACH (Jena Scheme for Biosphere–Atmosphere Hamburg) runs, driven with climate variables from a regional climate model. The satellite-derived start of season was determined from daily Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (MODIS) time series of Fractional Snow Cover and the Normalized Difference Water Index by applying methods that were targeted to the two forest types. The accuracy of the satellite-derived start of season in deciduous forest was assessed with bud break observations of birch and a root mean square error of seven days was obtained. The evaluation of JSBACH modelled start of season dates with satellite observations revealed high spatial correspondence. The bias was less than five days for both forest types but showed regional differences that need further consideration. The agreement with satellite observations was slightly better for the evergreen than for the deciduous forest. Nonetheless, comparison with gross primary production (GPP) determined from CO2 flux measurements at two eddy covariance sites in evergreen forest revealed that the JSBACH-simulated GPP was higher in early spring and led to too-early simulated start of season dates. Photosynthetic activity recovers differently in evergreen and deciduous forests. While for the deciduous forest calibration of phenology alone could improve the performance of JSBACH, for the evergreen forest, changes such as seasonality of temperature response, would need to be introduced to the photosynthetic capacity to improve the temporal development of gross primary production.
    Electronic ISSN: 2072-4292
    Topics: Architecture, Civil Engineering, Surveying , Geography
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  • 20
    Publication Date: 2016-07-10
    Description: An innovative remote sensing approach that combines land-use change and water quality information is proposed in order to investigate if Artisanal and Small-scale Gold Mining (ASGM) area extension is associated with water siltation in the Tapajós River Basin (Brazil), containing the largest small-scale gold mining district in the world. Taking advantage of a 40-year period of the multi-satellite imagery archive, the objective of this paper is to build a normalized time-series in order to evaluate the influence of temporal mining expansion on the water siltation data (TSS, Total Suspended Solids concentration) derived from previous research. The methodological approach was set to deliver a full characterization of the ASGM expansion from its initial stages in the early 1970s to the present. First, based on IRS/LISSIII images acquired in 2012, the historical Landsat image database (1973–2001) was corrected for radiometric and atmospheric effects using dark vegetation as reference to create a normalized time-series. Next, a complete update of the mining areas distribution in 2012 derived from the TerraClass Project (an official land-use classification for the Brazilian Amazon) was conducted having IRS/LISSIII as the base map with the support of auxiliary data and vector editing. Once the ASGM in 2012 was quantified (261.7 km2) and validated with photos, a reverse classification of ASGM in 2001 (171.7 km2), 1993 (166.3 km2), 1984 (47.5 km2), and 1973 (15.4 km2) with the use of Landsat archives was applied. This procedure relies on the assumption that ASGM changes in the land cover are severe and remain detectable from satellite sensors for decades. The mining expansion area over time was then combined with the (TSS) data retrieved from the same atmospherically corrected satellite imagery based on the literature. In terms of gold mining expansion and water siltation effects, four main periods of ASGM activities were identified in the study area: (i) 1958–1977, first occurrence of mining activities and low water impacts; (ii) 1978–1993, introduction of low-budget mechanization associated with very high gold prices resulting in large mining area expansion and high water siltation levels; (iii) 1994–2003, general recession of ASGM activities and exhaustion of easy-access gold deposits, resulting in decreased TSS; (iv) 2004 to present, intensification of ASGM encouraged by high gold prices, resulting in an increase of TSS.
    Electronic ISSN: 2072-4292
    Topics: Architecture, Civil Engineering, Surveying , Geography
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  • 21
    Publication Date: 2016-07-10
    Description: Current earth observation models do not take into account the influence of water salinity on the evaporation rate, even though the salinity influences the evaporation rate by affecting the density and latent heat of vaporization. In this paper, we adapt the SEBS (Surface Energy Balance System) model for large water bodies and add the effect of water salinity to the evaporation rate. Firstly, SEBS is modified for fresh-water whereby new parameterizations of the water heat flux and sensible heat flux are suggested. This is achieved by adapting the roughness heights for momentum and heat transfer. Secondly, a salinity correction factor is integrated into the adapted model. Eddy covariance measurements over Lake IJsselmeer (The Netherlands) are carried out and used to estimate the roughness heights for momentum (~0.0002 m) and heat transfer (~0.0001 m). Application of these values over the Victoria and Tana lakes (freshwater) in Africa showed that the calculated latent heat fluxes agree well with the measurements. The root mean-square of relative-errors (rRMSE) is about 4.1% for Lake Victoria and 4.7%, for Lake Tana. Verification with ECMWF data showed that the salinity reduced the evaporation at varying levels by up to 27% in the Great Salt Lake and by 1% for open ocean. Our results show the importance of salinity to the evaporation rate and the suitability of the adapted-SEBS model (AquaSEBS) for fresh and saline waters.
    Electronic ISSN: 2072-4292
    Topics: Architecture, Civil Engineering, Surveying , Geography
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  • 22
    Publication Date: 2016-07-10
    Description: Area-based analyses of airborne laser scanning (ALS) data are an established approach to obtain wall-to-wall predictions of forest characteristics for vast areas. The analyses of sparse data in particular are based on the height value distributions, which do not produce optimal information on the horizontal forest structure. We evaluated the complementary potential of features quantifying the textural variation of ALS-based canopy height models (CHMs) for both supervised (linear regression) and unsupervised (k-Means clustering) analyses. Based on a comprehensive literature review, we identified a total of four texture analysis methods that produced rotation-invariant features of different order and scale. The CHMs and the textural features were derived from practical sparse-density, leaf-off ALS data originally acquired for ground elevation modeling. The features were extracted from a circular window of 254 m2 and related with boreal forest characteristics observed from altogether 155 field sample plots. Features based on gray-level histograms, distribution of forest patches, and gray-level co-occurrence matrices were related with plot volume, basal area, and mean diameter with coefficients of determination (R2) of up to 0.63–0.70, whereas features that measured the uniformity of local binary patterns of the CHMs performed poorer. Overall, the textural features compared favorably with benchmark features based on the point data, indicating that the textural features contain additional information useful for the prediction of forest characteristics. Due to the developed processing routines for raster data, the CHM features may potentially be extracted with a lower computational burden, which promotes their use for applications such as pre-stratification or guiding the field plot sampling based solely on ALS data.
    Electronic ISSN: 2072-4292
    Topics: Architecture, Civil Engineering, Surveying , Geography
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  • 23
    Publication Date: 2016-07-12
    Description: Presence of speech and motion artifacts has been shown to impact the performance of wearable sensor systems used for automatic detection of food intake. This work presents a novel wearable device which can detect food intake even when the user is physically active and/or talking. The device consists of a piezoelectric strain sensor placed on the temporalis muscle, an accelerometer, and a data acquisition module connected to the temple of eyeglasses. Data from 10 participants was collected while they performed activities including quiet sitting, talking, eating while sitting, eating while walking, and walking. Piezoelectric strain sensor and accelerometer signals were divided into non-overlapping epochs of 3 s; four features were computed for each signal. To differentiate between eating and not eating, as well as between sedentary postures and physical activity, two multiclass classification approaches are presented. The first approach used a single classifier with sensor fusion and the second approach used two-stage classification. The best results were achieved when two separate linear support vector machine (SVM) classifiers were trained for food intake and activity detection, and their results were combined using a decision tree (two-stage classification) to determine the final class. This approach resulted in an average F1-score of 99.85% and area under the curve (AUC) of 0.99 for multiclass classification. With its ability to differentiate between food intake and activity level, this device may potentially be used for tracking both energy intake and energy expenditure.
    Electronic ISSN: 1424-8220
    Topics: Chemistry and Pharmacology , Electrical Engineering, Measurement and Control Technology
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  • 24
    Publication Date: 2016-07-12
    Description: The Internet of Things (IoT) has made it possible for devices around the world to acquire information and store it, in order to be able to use it at a later stage. However, this potential opportunity is often not exploited because of the excessively big interval between the data collection and the capability to process and analyse it. In this paper, we review the current IoT technologies, approaches and models in order to discover what challenges need to be met to make more sense of data. The main goal of this paper is to review the surveys related to IoT in order to provide well integrated and context aware intelligent services for IoT. Moreover, we present a state-of-the-art of IoT from the context aware perspective that allows the integration of IoT and social networks in the emerging Social Internet of Things (SIoT) term.
    Electronic ISSN: 1424-8220
    Topics: Chemistry and Pharmacology , Electrical Engineering, Measurement and Control Technology
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  • 25
    Publication Date: 2016-07-10
    Description: Surrounded by the ocean, Taiwan has been increasingly developing coastal tourism projects. Concerns that negative impacts might be brought about by prosperous tourism have resulted in a recent focus on sustainable tourism. Sustainable tourism involves policies that acknowledge the interdependences among the environment, the community, and the economy. The goal of sustainable tourism is to enhance and protect the environment while satisfying basic human requirements, as well as those of the contemporary and future tourism industries to improve quality of life. On the other hand, unsustainable coastal tourism might undermine the natural environment and society, resulting in air, water, and soil pollution, wildlife habitat disruption, and changes of local community cultural characteristics. Therefore, performance evaluation of coastal tourism, using an indicator framework to facilitate sustainable development and enhance the effectiveness of coastal resources exploitation, is critical. Through a literature review and expert surveys using the methods of the fuzzy Delphi method (FDM) and the fuzzy analytic hierarchy process (FAHP), this study builds a performance indicator framework and identifies the key factors affecting the sustainable development of coastal tourism in Taiwan. The results can serve as a reference for the public sector to be used for the sustainable planning and development of coastal tourism.
    Electronic ISSN: 2071-1050
    Topics: Energy, Environment Protection, Nuclear Power Engineering
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  • 26
    Publication Date: 2016-07-10
    Description: Many countries and scholars have used various strategies to improve and optimize the allocation ratios for carbon emission allowances. This issue is more urgent for China due to the uneven development across the country. This paper proposes a new method that divides low-carbon economy development processes into two separate periods: from 2020 to 2029 and from 2030 to 2050. These two periods have unique requirements and emissions reduction potential; therefore, they must involve different allocation methods, so that reduction behaviors do not stall the development of regional low-carbon economies. During the first period, a more deterministic economic development approach for the carbon emission allowance allocation ratio should be used. During the second period, more adaptive and optimized policy guidance should be employed. We developed a low-carbon economy index evaluation system using the entropy weight method to measure information filtering levels. We conducted vector autoregressive correlation tests, consulted 60 experts for the fuzzy analytic hierarchy process, and we conducted max-min standardized data processing tests. This article presents first- and second-period carbon emission allowance models in combination with a low-carbon economy index evaluation system. Finally, we forecast reasonable carbon emission allowance allocation ratios for China for the periods starting in 2020 and 2030. A good allocation ratio for the carbon emission allowance can help boost China’s economic development and help the country reach its energy conservation and emissions reduction goals.
    Electronic ISSN: 2071-1050
    Topics: Energy, Environment Protection, Nuclear Power Engineering
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  • 27
    Publication Date: 2016-07-10
    Description: In the Internet of Things era, panel displays play a major role in human life, because humans frequently use liquid crystal displays to monitor their electrical devices. The display industry creates remarkable economic output, but every manufacturing process inevitably has some undesirable effects on the environment. With the increasing awareness of environmental protection, balanced development is necessary to address the emerging market trends. However, short-sighted manufacturing corporations that focus solely on financial performance can achieve only short-term profits. The purpose of this study was to develop the most effective sustainable improvement strategies that can enhance competitive advantages in real-world situations. The proposed method combines the balanced scorecard and a new hybrid modified multiple attribute decision-making model which together adopt the DEMATEL technique to construct the influential network relation map and develop the DEMATEL-based ANP with the VIKOR method to deliver strategies that integrate environmental sustainability and competitive advantage. Finally, a real-world case study applying the proposed method to the cases of liquid crystal display manufacturers was conducted. Then, this paper discusses the effective use of natural resources, development of enterprises, and sustainable competitive advantage in this context. Various manufacturers, communities, and stakeholders can benefit from the coopetition solutions explained by the proposed method.
    Electronic ISSN: 2071-1050
    Topics: Energy, Environment Protection, Nuclear Power Engineering
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  • 28
    Publication Date: 2016-07-10
    Description: Soil is the most basic resource for sustainable agricultural production; it promotes water quality, is a key component of the biogeochemical cycles and hosts a huge diversity of organisms. However, we are not paying enough attention to soil degradation produced by land use. Modern agriculture has been successful in increasing yields but has also caused extensive environmental damage, particularly soil degradation. In the Argentine Pampas, agriculturization reached a peak with the generalized use of the no-till technological package: genetically modified soybeans tolerant to glyphosate, no-till, glyphosate, and inorganic fertilizers. This phenomenon has been widely spread in the country; the no-till package has been applied in large areas and has been used by tenants in a 60%–70% of cultivated lands. Thus, those who were involved in developing management practices may not be the same as those who will face degradation issues related to those practices. Indeed, most evidence reviewed in this paper suggests that the most widely distributed practices in the Pampas region are actually producing severe soil degradation. Biological degradation is particularly important because soil biota is involved in numerous soil processes on which soil functioning relies, affecting soil fertility and productivity. For example, soil meso- and macrofauna are especially important in nutrient cycling and in soil structure formation and maintenance, and they are key components of the network that links microbial process to the scale of fields and landscapes where ecosystem services are produced. However, the knowledge of the impact of different agricultural managements on soil meso- and macrofauna in Pampas agroecosystems is far from conclusive at this stage. The reason for this lack of definite conclusions is that this area has been given less attention than in other parts of the world; the response of soil fauna to agricultural practices is complex and taxa-dependent; and there is a wide variety of practices in the main types of agricultural systems, making generalizations difficult. A review of the existing studies on soil meso- and macrofauna in agroecosystems, revealed that (a) agricultural soils, regardless of farming system, are strongly modified in biological aspects compared to the same soils without human interventions; (b) there are no conclusive results about no-till benefits compared to reduced tillage or conventional tillage; (c) agricultural managements that are alternative to the traditional conventional systems are very poorly represented in research.
    Electronic ISSN: 2071-1050
    Topics: Energy, Environment Protection, Nuclear Power Engineering
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  • 29
    Publication Date: 2016-07-10
    Description: Rain gauge and satellite-retrieved data have been widely used in basin-scale hydrological applications. While rain gauges provide accurate measurements that are generally unevenly distributed in space, satellites offer spatially regular observations and common error prone retrieval. Comparative evaluation of gauge-based and satellite-based data is necessary in hydrological studies, as precipitation is the most important input in basin-scale water balance. This study uses quality-controlled rain gauge data and prevailing satellite products (Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) 3B43, 3B42 and 3B42RT) to examine the consistency and discrepancies between them at different scales. Rain gauges and TRMM products were available in the Poyang Lake Basin, China, from 1998 to 2007 (3B42RT: 2000–2007). Our results show that the performance of TRMM products generally increases with increasing spatial scale. At both the monthly and annual scales, the accuracy is highest for TRMM 3B43, with 3B42 second and 3B42RT third. TRMM products generally overestimate precipitation because of a high frequency and degree of overestimation in light and moderate rain cases. At the daily scale, the accuracy is relatively low between TRMM 3B42 and 3B42RT. Meanwhile, the performances of TRMM 3B42 and 3B42RT are highly variable in different seasons. At both the basin and pixel scales, TRMM 3B43 and 3B42 exhibit significant discrepancies from July to September, performing worst in September. For TRMM 3B42RT, all statistical indices fluctuate and are low throughout the year, performing worst in July at the pixel scale and January at the basin scale. Furthermore, the spatial distributions of the statistical indices of TRMM 3B43 and 3B42 performed well, while TRMM 3B42RT displayed a poor performance.
    Electronic ISSN: 2073-4441
    Topics: Energy, Environment Protection, Nuclear Power Engineering
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  • 30
    Publication Date: 2016-07-10
    Description: Flood is a frequent natural hazard that has significant financial consequences for Australia. In Australia, physical losses caused by floods are commonly estimated by stage-damage functions. These methods usually consider only the depth of the water and the type of buildings at risk. However, flood damage is a complicated process, and it is dependent on a variety of factors which are rarely taken into account. This study explores the interaction, importance, and influence of water depth, flow velocity, water contamination, precautionary measures, emergency measures, flood experience, floor area, building value, building quality, and socioeconomic status. The study uses tree-based models (regression trees and bagging decision trees) and a dataset collected from 2012 to 2013 flood events in Queensland, which includes information on structural damages, impact parameters, and resistance variables. The tree-based approaches show water depth, floor area, precautionary measures, building value, and building quality to be important damage-influencing parameters. Furthermore, the performance of the tree-based models is validated and contrasted with the outcomes of a multi-parameter loss function (FLFArs) from Australia. The tree-based models are shown to be more accurate than the stage-damage function. Consequently, considering more parameters and taking advantage of tree-based models is recommended. The outcome is important for improving established Australian flood loss models and assisting decision-makers and insurance companies dealing with flood risk assessment.
    Electronic ISSN: 2073-4441
    Topics: Energy, Environment Protection, Nuclear Power Engineering
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  • 31
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    MDPI Publishing
    In: Water
    Publication Date: 2016-07-10
    Description: This paper recounts the environmental history of a main waterway in Northern Israel—the Kishon, and deploys this history to examine the evolution of Israel water policy as it struggled to bridge the growing gap between its ambitions of development and the realities of its limited water supply. The first part of the paper describes the decay of the Kishon since the early 1950s, and the multiple scientific, political and legal attempts to alleviate its misfortunes, and discusses the reasons for their failings. Some of these reasons were administrative by nature, but the paper suggests a deeper reason, rooted in the ideological core of the infant state that was overwhelmingly concerned with the development of its infrastructure, and invited the pioneering Israeli society to consider the demise of the Kishon as a necessary sacrifice for progress. The second part of the paper describes the late-20th century developments that allowed for the recovery of the ailing river. Changing social mores, the growing importance of environmental politics, the advance of Israel’s water technologies, and an environmental scandal that endowed the rehabilitation of the Kishon with a new political and moral meaning, have all contributed to the rehabilitation of the river. Once a testament for the sacrifices involved in a struggle to create a viable state, the Kishon has become a theater for a confident society that has triumphed in its struggle against nature.
    Electronic ISSN: 2073-4441
    Topics: Energy, Environment Protection, Nuclear Power Engineering
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  • 32
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: In semiconductors almost all heat is conducted by phonons (lattice vibrations), which is limited by their quasi-particle lifetimes. Phonon-phonon interactions represent scattering mechanisms that produce thermal resistance. In thermoelectric materials, this resistance due to anharmonicity should be maximised for optimal performance. We use a first-principles lattice-dynamics approach to explore the changes in lattice dynamics across an isostructural series where the average atomic mass is conserved: ZnS to CuGaS 2 to Cu 2 ZnGeS 4 . Our results demonstrate an enhancement of phonon interactions in the multernary materials and confirm that lattice thermal conductivity can be controlled independently of the average mass and local coordination environments.
    Electronic ISSN: 2166-532X
    Topics: Mechanical Engineering, Materials Science, Production Engineering, Mining and Metallurgy, Traffic Engineering, Precision Mechanics
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  • 33
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: In this contribution, we present a highly accurate approach for thickness measurements of multi-layered automotive paints using terahertz time domain spectroscopy in reflection geometry. The proposed method combines the benefits of a model-based material parameters extraction method to calibrate the paint coatings, a generalized Rouard's method to simulate the terahertz radiation behavior within arbitrary thin films, and the robustness of a powerful evolutionary optimization algorithm to increase the sensitivity of the minimum thickness measurement limit. Within the framework of this work, a self-calibration model is introduced, which takes into consideration the real industrial challenges such as the effect of wet-on-wet spray in the painting process.
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    Electronic ISSN: 1077-3118
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  • 34
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: Based on electromagnetic scattering theory, a model of superscatterer enhanced distant wireless power transfer (WPT) device has designed and analyzed with the concept of transformation optics. The numerical results obtained through a series expansion method reveal that a properly designed ss-WPT has high efficiency for long transfer distances as well as a wide transfer range. The transfer distance can be further enlarged by fine tuning of the design. These effects can be explained qualitatively through the study of magnetic flux.
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  • 35
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: In this work, we report enhanced power conversion efficiency (PCE) of bulk heterojunction polymer solar cells by Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) from samarium-doped luminescent gadolinium orthovanadate (GdVO 4 :Sm 3+ ) quantum dots (QDs) to polythieno[3,4-b]-thiophene-co-benzodithiophene (PTB7) polymer. The photoluminescence emission spectrum of GdVO 4 :Sm 3+ QDs overlaps with the absorption spectrum of PTB7, leading to FRET from GdVO 4 :Sm 3+ to PTB7, and significant enhancements in the charge-carrier density of excited and polaronic states of PTB7 are observed. This was confirmed by means of femtosecond transient absorption spectroscopy. The FRET from GdVO 4 :Sm 3+ QDs to PTB7 led to a remarkable increase in the power conversion efficiency (PCE) of PTB7:GdVO 4 :Sm 3+ :PC 71 BM ([6,6]-phenyl-C 71 -butyric acid methyl ester) polymer solar cells. The PCE in optimized ternary blend PTB7:GdVO 4 :Sm 3+ :PC 71 BM (1:0.1:1.5) is increased to 8.8% from 7.2% in PTB7:PC 71 BM. This work demonstrates the potential of rare-earth based luminescent QDs in enhancing the PCE of polymer solar cells.
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  • 36
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: We fabricate planar graphene field-effect transistors with self-aligned side-gate at 100 nm from the 500 nm wide graphene conductive channel, using a single lithographic step. We demonstrate side-gating below 1 V with conductance modulation of 35% and transconductance up to 0.5 mS/mm at 10 mV drain bias. We measure the planar leakage along the SiO 2 /vacuum gate dielectric over a wide voltage range, reporting rapidly growing current above 15 V. We unveil the microscopic mechanisms driving the leakage, as Frenkel-Poole transport through SiO 2 up to the activation of Fowler-Nordheim tunneling in vacuum, which becomes dominant at higher voltages. We report a field-emission current density as high as 1  μ A/ μ m between graphene flakes. These findings are important for the miniaturization of atomically thin devices.
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  • 37
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: The nanoscale resistive switching in hafnium oxide stack is investigated by the conductive atomic force microscopy (C-AFM). The initial oxide stack is insulating and electrical stress from the C-AFM tip induces nanometric conductive filaments. Multimode resistive switching can be observed in consecutive operation cycles at one spot. The different modes are interpreted in the framework of a low defect quantum point contact theory. The model implies that the optimization of the conductive filament active region is crucial for the future application of nanoscale resistive switching devices.
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  • 38
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: We report on the fabrication and characterization of a Schottky diode made using 2D germanane (hydrogenated germanene). When compared to germanium, the 2D structure has higher electron mobility, an optimal band-gap, and exceptional stability making germanane an outstanding candidate for a variety of opto-electronic devices. One-atom-thick sheets of hydrogenated puckered germanium atoms have been synthesized from a CaGe 2 framework via intercalation and characterized by XRD, Raman, and FTIR techniques. The material was then used to fabricate Schottky diodes by suspending the germanane in benzonitrile and drop-casting it onto interdigitated metal electrodes. The devices demonstrate significant rectifying behavior and the outstanding potential of this material.
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  • 39
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: High-performance pentacene-based organic field-effect transistor nonvolatile memories, using polystyrene as a tunneling dielectric and Au nanoparticles as a nano-floating-gate, show parallelogram-like transfer characteristics with a featured transition point. The transition voltage at the transition point corresponds to a threshold electric field in the tunneling dielectric, over which stored electrons in the nano-floating-gate will start to leak out. The transition voltage can be modulated depending on the bias configuration and device structure. For p-type active layers, optimized transition voltage should be on the negative side of but close to the reading voltage, which can simultaneously achieve a high ON/OFF ratio and good memory retention.
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  • 40
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: Ion implantation of Zn substituting elements in ZnO has been shown to result in a dramatic Li depletion of several microns in hydrothermally grown ZnO. This has been ascribed to a burst of mobile Zn interstials. In this study, we seek to understand the reason behind this interstitial mediated transient enhanced diffusion in Li-containing ZnO samples after Zn implantation. ZnO wafers were implanted with Zn to two doses, 5 × 10 15  cm −2 and 1 × 10 17  cm −2 . Secondary ion mass spectrometry was carried out to profile the Li depletion depth for different annealing temperatures between 600 and 800 °C. The 800 °C annealing had the most significant Li depletion of close to 60  μ m. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) was carried out in selected samples to identify the reason behind the Li depletion. In particular, TEM investigations of samples annealed at 750 °C show significant Zn precipitation just below the depth of the projected range of the implanted ions. We propose that the Zn precipitation is indicative of Zn supersaturation. Both the Li depletion and Zn precipitation are competing synchronous processes aimed at reducing the excess Zn interstitials.
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  • 41
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: In this letter, we investigate the origin of the spatial inhomogeneity of the photoluminescence (PL) intensity maps obtained on thin-film solar cells. Based on a hyperspectral imager setup, we record an absolute map of the quasi-Fermi level splitting Δμ by applying the generalized Planck's law. Then, using scanning confocal microscopy, we perform spatially and time-resolved photoluminescence measurements. This allowed us to quantify and map the micrometric fluctuations of the trapping defect density within these solar cells. Finally, we demonstrate the existence of a direct correlation between the spatial fluctuations of the quasi-Fermi level splitting and the trapping defect density. The latter was found to be correlated with the frequently reported spatially inhomogeneous PL maps of thin-film solar cells. Based on the observed correlation, we can quantify the local losses in quasi-Fermi level splitting induced by the spatial distribution of the trapping defects.
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  • 42
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: Nonlinear ultrasonic Lamb waves are popular to characterize the nonlinearity of materials. However, the widely used nonlinear Lamb mode suffers from two associated complications: inherent dispersive and multimode natures. To overcome these, the symmetric Lamb mode (S0) at low frequency region is explored. At the low frequency region, the S0 mode is little dispersive and easy to generate. However, the secondary mode still exists, and increases linearly for significant distance. Numerical simulations and experiments are used to validate the nonlinear features and therefore demonstrate an easy alternative for nonlinear Lamb wave applications.
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  • 43
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: Dynamic deposition of silicon nitrides using in-line plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition systems results in non-uniform structure of the dielectric layer. Appropriate analysis of such layers requires the optical characterization to be performed as a function of the layer's depth. This work presents a method to characterize dynamically deposited silicon nitride layers. The method is based on the fitting of experimental spectroscopic ellipsometry data via grading of Tauc–Lorentz optical parameters through the depth of the layer. When compared with the standard Tauc–Lorentz fitting procedure, used in previous studies, the improved method is demonstrating better quality fits to the experimental data and revealing more accurate optical properties of the dielectric layers. The most significant advantage of the method is the ability to extract the depth profile of the optical properties along the direction of the layer normal. This is enabling a better understanding of layers deposited using dynamic plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition systems frequently used in the photovoltaic industry.
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  • 44
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: The 120-nm-thick cobalt-doped ZnO (Co-doped ZnO, CZO) dilute magnetic films deposited by pulsed laser deposition were employed as the n-electrodes for both lateral-type blue (450 nm) and green (520 nm) InGaN light emitters. In comparison to the conventional blue and green emitters, there were 15.9% and 17.7% enhancements in the output power (@350 mA) after fabricating the CZO n-electrode on the n-GaN layer. Observations on the role of CZO n-electrodes in efficiency improvement of InGaN light emitters were performed. Based on the results of Hall measurements, the carrier mobilities were 176 and 141 cm 2 /V s when the electrons passed through the n-GaN and the patterned-CZO/n-GaN, respectively. By incorporating the CZO n-electrode into the InGaN light emitters, the electrons would be scattered because of the collisions between the magnetic atoms and the electrons as the device is driven, leading to the reduction of the electron mobility. Therefore, the excessively large mobility difference between electron and hole carriers occurred in the conventional InGaN light emitter can be efficiently decreased after preparing the CZO n-electrode on the n-GaN layer, resulting in the increment of carrier recombination rate and the improvement of light output power.
    Print ISSN: 0003-6951
    Electronic ISSN: 1077-3118
    Topics: Physics
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  • 45
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: Although phosphorus limitation is common in freshwaters and bacteria are known to use dissolved organic phosphorus (DOP), little is known about how efficiently DOP compounds are taken up by individual bacterial taxa. Here, we assessed bacterial uptake of three model DOP substrates in two mountain lakes and examined whether DOP uptake followed concentration-dependent patterns. We determined bulk uptake rates by the bacterioplankton and examined bacterial taxon-specific substrate uptake patterns using microautoradiography combined with catalyzed reporter deposition–fluorescence in situ hybridization. Our results show that in the oligotrophic alpine lake, bacteria took up ATP, glucose-6-phosphate and glycerol-3-phosphate to similar extents (mean 29.7 ± 4.3% Bacteria ), whereas in the subalpine mesotrophic lake, ca. 40% of bacteria took up glucose-6-phosphate, but only ~20% took up ATP or glycerol-3-phosphate. In both lakes, the R-BT cluster of Betaproteobacteria (lineage of genus Limnohabitans ) was over-represented in glucose-6-phosphate and glycerol-3-phosphate uptake, whereas AcI Actinobacteria were under-represented in the uptake of those substrates. Alphaproteobacteria and Bacteroidetes contributed to DOP uptake proportionally to their in situ abundance. Our results demonstrate that R-BT Betaproteobacteria are the most active bacteria in DOP acquisition, whereas the abundant AcI Actinobacteria may either lack high affinity DOP uptake systems or have reduced phosphorus requirements.
    Print ISSN: 0168-6496
    Electronic ISSN: 1574-6941
    Topics: Biology
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  • 46
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: Height models based on high-altitude aerial images provide a low-cost means of generating detailed 3D models of the forest canopy. In this study, the performance of these height models in the detection of individual trees was evaluated in a commercially managed boreal forest. Airborne digital stereo imagery (DSI) was captured from a flight altitude of 5 km with a ground sample distance of 50 cm and corresponds to regular national topographic airborne data capture programs operated in many countries. Tree tops were detected from smoothed canopy height models (CHM) using watershed segmentation. The relative amount of detected trees varied between 26% and 140%, and the RMSE of plot-level arithmetic mean height between 2.2 m and 3.1 m. Both the dominant tree species and the filter used for smoothing affected the results. Even though the spatial resolution of DSI-based CHM was sufficient, detecting individual trees from the data proved to be demanding because of the shading effect of the dominant trees and the limited amount of data from lower canopy levels and near the ground.
    Electronic ISSN: 1999-4907
    Topics: Agriculture, Forestry, Horticulture, Fishery, Domestic Science, Nutrition
    Published by MDPI Publishing
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  • 47
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: Thinning is one of the intensive forest management techniques commonly applied to increase the merchantable timber volume. However, how thinning affects soil–atmospheric fluxes of greenhouse gases (GHGs) is poorly understood. A field experiment with four treatments (CK: unthinned; MB: medium intensity thinning from below; HB: high intensity thinning from below; and HI: high intensity thinning by removing every alternative row of trees) was conducted to assess the impact of thinning regimes on soil–atmospheric fluxes of GHGs (CO2, CH4, and N2O) and soil nitrogen mineralization in a poplar plantation established on a lowland. Thinning significantly increased soil water content and water table in the high thinning treatments (HB and HI) and tended to increase soil temperature (p 〈 0.10). The result of the one-year study showed that estimated annual emissions of CO2 and CH4 were higher in HB and HI than in other treatments, while the highest emission of N2O was in the CK. The thinning treatments increased the annual emission of CO2 by 23%–64% and that of CH4 by 190%–1200%, but decreased that of N2O by 41%–62%. Thinning increased annual N mineralization by 50.3% in HI and 30.1%in HB. Changes in soil temperature and water table drove CO2, CH4, and N2O emissions, while soil water content was the most important factor driving CH4 emission. We conclude that the moderate thinning (MB) regime is the best thinning option to minimize the impact on GHG emissions for lowland poplar plantations with similar conditions to those tested in this study.
    Electronic ISSN: 1999-4907
    Topics: Agriculture, Forestry, Horticulture, Fishery, Domestic Science, Nutrition
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  • 48
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: Severe crown fires are determining disturbances for the composition and structure of boreal forests in North America. Fire cycle (FC) associations with continental climate gradients are well known, but smaller scale controls remain poorly documented. Using a time since fire map (time scale of 300 years), the study aims to assess the relative contributions of local and regional controls on FC and to describe the relationship between FC heterogeneity and vegetation patterns. The study area, located in boreal eastern North America, was partitioned into watersheds according to five scales going from local (3 km2) to landscape (2800 km2) scales. Using survival analysis, we observed that dry surficial deposits and hydrography density better predict FC when measured at the local scale, while terrain complexity and slope position perform better when measured at the middle and landscape scales. The most parsimonious model was selected according to the Akaike information criterion to predict FC throughout the study area. We detected two FC zones, one short (159 years) and one long (303 years), with specific age structures and tree compositions. We argue that the local heterogeneity of the fire regime contributes to ecosystem diversity and must be considered in ecosystem management.
    Electronic ISSN: 1999-4907
    Topics: Agriculture, Forestry, Horticulture, Fishery, Domestic Science, Nutrition
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  • 49
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: Earlier studies show that the proliferation of phytoplankton viruses can be inhibited by depletion of soluble reactive phosphorus (SRP; orthophosphate). In natural marine waters, phytoplankton phosphorus (P) availability is, however, largely determined by the supply rate of SRP (e.g. through remineralization) and potentially by the source of P as well (i.e. the utilization of soluble non-reactive P; SNP). Here we show how a steady low supply of P (mimicking natural P recycling) to virally infected P-limited Micromonas pusilla stimulates virus proliferation. Independent of the degree of P limitation prior to infection (0.32 and 0.97μ max chemostat cultures), SRP supply resulted in 2-fold higher viral burst sizes (viruses lysed per host cell) as compared with no addition (P starvation). Delaying these spikes during the infection cycle showed that the added SRP was utilized for extra M. pusilla virus (MpV) production far into the lytic cycle (18 h post-infection). Moreover, P-limited M. pusilla utilized several SNP compounds with high efficiency and with the same extent of burst size stimulation as for SRP. Finally, addition of virus-free MpV lysate (representing a complex SNP mixture) to newly infected cells enhanced MpV production, implicating host-associated alkaline phosphatase activity, and highlighting its important role in oligotrophic environments.
    Print ISSN: 0168-6496
    Electronic ISSN: 1574-6941
    Topics: Biology
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  • 50
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: Converting secondary natural forests (SFs) to Chinese fir plantations (CFPs) represents one of the most important (8.9 million ha) land use changes in subtropical China. This study estimated both biomass and soil C stocks in a SF and a CFP that was converted from a SF, to quantify the effects of land use change on ecosystem C stock. After the forest conversion, biomass C in the CFP (73 Mg·ha−1) was significantly lower than that of the SF (114 Mg·ha−1). Soil organic C content and stock decreased with increasing soil depth, and the soil C stock in the 0–10 cm layer accounted for more than one third of the total soil C stock over 0–50 cm, emphasizing the importance of management of the top soil to reduce the soil C loss. Total ecosystem C stock of the SF and the CFP was 318 and 200 Mg·ha−1, respectively, 64% of which was soil C for both stands (205 Mg·ha−1 for the SF and 127 Mg·ha−1 for the CFP). This indicates that land use change from the SF to the CFP significantly decreased ecosystem C stock and highlights the importance of managing soil C.
    Electronic ISSN: 1999-4907
    Topics: Agriculture, Forestry, Horticulture, Fishery, Domestic Science, Nutrition
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  • 51
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: Earth's free oscillations excited by a mega-thrust earthquake were observed by a continent-scale array of groundwater monitoring sites for the first time. After the occurrence of the 2011 Tohoku M w 9.0 earthquake, water level records at 43 out of 216 wells in the China mainland revealed long-period free oscillation signals. In the time domain, these free oscillations exhibit globe circling Rayleigh surface waves. In some single wells, even the globe-circling Rayleigh wave R7 was visible, which travels three times around the Earth after the first arrival and appears about 10 hr after the earthquake occurrence in the present case. The spectral analysis shows that the principal oscillatory fluctuations seen in the water level records correspond to the spheroidal modes 0 S l ( l  = 2–31 for frequencies between 0.3 and 5.0 mHz) of the Earth's free oscillation. Especially at quiet sites, the spheroidal modes at very low frequencies (〈1.5 mHz) can be identified with high signal-to-noise ratios. Using signal enhancement methods (product spectrum over 43 wells), even the gravest modes of these oscillations can be detected. The results suggest that groundwater level arrays can be considered as a low-cost complementary tool to study the Earth's free oscillations excited by great earthquakes. Additionally, the site-specific aquifer response may provide further insight into local hydrogeological conditions.
    Keywords: Seismology
    Print ISSN: 0956-540X
    Electronic ISSN: 1365-246X
    Topics: Geosciences
    Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Deutsche Geophysikalische Gesellschaft (DGG) and the Royal Astronomical Society (RAS).
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  • 52
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: We performed numerical simulations of the 2011 deep-seated Akatani landslide in central Japan to understand the dynamic evolution of friction of the landslide. By comparing the forces obtained from numerical simulation to those resolved from seismic waveform inversion, the coefficient of the friction during sliding was investigated in the range of 0.1–0.4. The simulation assuming standard Coulomb friction shows that the forces obtained by the seismic waveform inversion are well explained using a constant friction of μ = 0.3. A small difference between the residuals of Coulomb simulation and a velocity-dependent simulation suggests that the coefficient of friction over the volume is well constrained as 0.3 most of time during sliding. It suggests the sudden loss of shearing resistance at the onset of sliding, that is, sudden drop of the initial coefficient of friction in our model, which accelerates the deep-seated landslide. Our numerical simulation calibrated by seismic data provides the evolution of dynamic friction with a reasonable resolution in time, which is difficult to obtain from a conventional runout simulation, or seismic waveform inversion alone.
    Keywords: Seismology
    Print ISSN: 0956-540X
    Electronic ISSN: 1365-246X
    Topics: Geosciences
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  • 53
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: We explore thermal convection of a fluid with a temperature-dependent viscosity in a basally heated 3-D spherical shell using linear stability analyses and numerical experiments, while considering the application of our results to terrestrial planets. The inner to outer radius ratio of the shell f assumed in the linear stability analyses is in the range of 0.11–0.88. The critical Rayleigh number R c for the onset of thermal convection decreases by two orders of magnitude as f increases from 0.11 to 0.88, when the viscosity depends sensitively on the temperature, as is the case for real mantle materials. Numerical simulations carried out in the range of f  = 0.11–0.55 show that a thermal boundary layer (TBL) develops both along the surface and bottom boundaries to induce cold and hot plumes, respectively, when f is 0.33 or larger. However, for smaller f values, a TBL develops only on the bottom boundary. Convection occurs in the stagnant-lid regime where the root mean square velocity on the surface boundary is less than 1 per cent of its maximum at depth, when the ratio of the viscosity at the surface boundary to that at the bottom boundary exceeds a threshold that depends on f . The threshold decreases from 10 6.5 at f  = 0.11 to 10 4 at f  = 0.55. If the viscosity at the base of the convecting mantle is 10 20 –10 21  Pa s, the Rayleigh number exceeds R c for Mars, Venus and the Earth, but does not for the Moon and Mercury; convection is unlikely to occur in the latter planets unless the mantle viscosity is much lower than 10 20  Pa s and/or the mantle contains a strong internal heat source.
    Keywords: Geodynamics and Tectonics
    Print ISSN: 0956-540X
    Electronic ISSN: 1365-246X
    Topics: Geosciences
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  • 54
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: Due to a mistake during the production process, there was one error in paragraph 3 of the introduction in the original published version [1].[...]
    Electronic ISSN: 1999-4907
    Topics: Agriculture, Forestry, Horticulture, Fishery, Domestic Science, Nutrition
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  • 55
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: We introduce a technique to compute exact anelastic sensitivity kernels in the time domain using parsimonious disk storage. The method is based on a reordering of the time loop of time-domain forward/adjoint wave propagation solvers combined with the use of a memory buffer. It avoids instabilities that occur when time-reversing dissipative wave propagation simulations. The total number of required time steps is unchanged compared to usual acoustic or elastic approaches. The cost is reduced by a factor of 4/3 compared to the case in which anelasticity is partially accounted for by accommodating the effects of physical dispersion. We validate our technique by performing a test in which we compare the K α sensitivity kernel to the exact kernel obtained by saving the entire forward calculation. This benchmark confirms that our approach is also exact. We illustrate the importance of including full attenuation in the calculation of sensitivity kernels by showing significant differences with physical-dispersion-only kernels.
    Keywords: Seismology
    Print ISSN: 0956-540X
    Electronic ISSN: 1365-246X
    Topics: Geosciences
    Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Deutsche Geophysikalische Gesellschaft (DGG) and the Royal Astronomical Society (RAS).
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  • 56
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: Subducting oceanic lithosphere is an example of a thin sheet-like object whose characteristic lateral dimension greatly exceeds its thickness. Here we exploit this property to derive a new hybrid boundary-integral/thin sheet (BITS) representation of subduction that combines in a single equation all the forces acting on the sheet: gravity, internal resistance to bending and stretching, and the tractions exerted by the ambient mantle. For simplicity, we limit ourselves to 2-D. We solve the BITS equations using a discrete Lagrangian approach in which the sheet is represented by a set of vertices connected by edges. Instantaneous solutions for the sinking speed of a slab attached to a trailing flat sheet obey a scaling law of the form V / V Stokes  = fct(St), where V Stokes is a characteristic Stokes sinking speed and St is the sheet's flexural stiffness. Time-dependent solutions for the evolution of the sheet's shape and thickness show that these are controlled by the viscosity ratio between the sheet and its surroundings. An important advantage of the BITS approach is the possibility of generalizing the sheet's rheology, either to a viscosity that varies along the sheet or to a non-Newtonian shear-thinning rheology.
    Keywords: Geodynamics and Tectonics
    Print ISSN: 0956-540X
    Electronic ISSN: 1365-246X
    Topics: Geosciences
    Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Deutsche Geophysikalische Gesellschaft (DGG) and the Royal Astronomical Society (RAS).
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  • 57
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: Rock permeability is an important parameter for the formation evaluation. In this paper, a new method with streaming current is proposed to determine the sample permeability based on the electrokinetic effects, and is proved by the experimental measurements. Corresponding to this method, we have designed an experimental setup and a test system, then performed the streaming current (potential) and electro-osmosis pressure experiments with 23 sandstone samples at 0.05 mol l –1 NaCl solution. The streaming current (potential) coefficient and electro-osmosis pressure coefficient are obtained, respectively, with the experimental data at low frequencies with AC lock-in technique. The electrokinetic permeabilities are further calculated with these coefficients. The results are consistent well with the gas permeability measured with Darcy's law, which verifies the current method for estimating rock permeability. Our measurements are also analysed and compared with previous measurements. The results indicate that our method can reflect the essence of electrokinetic effects better and simplify the electrokinetic measurements as well. In addition, we discuss the influences of experimental artefacts (core holder and confining pressure installation) on the electrokinetic data. The results show that the trough phenomenon, appeared in frequency curves of streaming current (potential) coefficients, is induced by the resonance of the core-holder/vibrator system. This is important for the design of electrokinetic setup and the analysis of low-frequency response of the electrokinetic coupling coefficients.
    Keywords: Marine Geosciences and Applied Geophysics
    Print ISSN: 0956-540X
    Electronic ISSN: 1365-246X
    Topics: Geosciences
    Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Deutsche Geophysikalische Gesellschaft (DGG) and the Royal Astronomical Society (RAS).
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  • 58
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: Real Earth media are not perfectly elastic. Instead, they attenuate propagating mechanical waves. This anelastic phenomenon in wave propagation can be modeled by a viscoelastic mechanical model consisting of several standard linear solids. Using this viscoelastic model, we approximate a constant Q over a frequency band of interest. We use a four-element viscoelastic model with a trade-off between accuracy and computational costs to incorporate Q into 2-D time-domain first-order velocity–stress wave equations. To improve the computational efficiency, we limit the Q in the model to a list of discrete values between 2 and 1000. The related stress and strain relaxation times that characterize the viscoelastic model are pre-calculated and stored in a database for use by the finite-difference calculation. A viscoelastic finite-difference scheme that is second order in time and fourth order in space is developed based on the MacCormack algorithm. The new method is validated by comparing the numerical result with analytical solutions that are calculated using the generalized reflection/transmission coefficient method. The synthetic seismograms exhibit greater than 95 per cent consistency in a two-layer viscoelastic model. The dispersion generated from the simulation is consistent with the Kolsky–Futterman dispersion relationship.
    Keywords: Seismology
    Print ISSN: 0956-540X
    Electronic ISSN: 1365-246X
    Topics: Geosciences
    Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Deutsche Geophysikalische Gesellschaft (DGG) and the Royal Astronomical Society (RAS).
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  • 59
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: Seismology plays an important role in characterizing potential underground nuclear tests. Using broad-band digital seismic data from Northeast China, South Korea and Japan, we investigated the properties of the recent seismic event occurred in North Korea on 2016 January 6. Using a relative location method and choosing the previous 2006 explosion as the master event, the 2016 event was located within the North Korean nuclear test site, with its epicentre at latitude 41.3003°N and longitude 129.0678°E, approximately 900 m north and 500 m west of the previous event on 2013 February 12. Based on the error ellipse, the relocation uncertainty was approximately 70 m. Using the P / S spectral ratios, including Pg/Lg, Pn/Lg and Pn/Sn, as the discriminants, we identify the 2016 event as an explosion rather than an earthquake. The body-wave magnitude calculated from regional wave Lg is m b (Lg) equal to 4.7 ± 0.2. Adopting an empirical magnitude–yield relation, and assuming that the explosion is fully coupled and detonated at a normally scaled depth, we find that the seismic yield is about 4 kt, with the uncertainties allowing a range from 2 to 8 kt.
    Keywords: Express Letters, Seismology
    Print ISSN: 0956-540X
    Electronic ISSN: 1365-246X
    Topics: Geosciences
    Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Deutsche Geophysikalische Gesellschaft (DGG) and the Royal Astronomical Society (RAS).
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  • 60
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: After 83 yr, the great normal-faulting earthquake of 1933 March 2, which took place off the Japan Trench and produced a devastating tsunami on the Sanriku coast and damaging waves in Hawaii, remains the largest recorded normal-faulting earthquake. This study uses advanced methods to investigate this event using far-field seismological and tsunami data and complements a sister study by Uchida et al. which used exclusively arrival times at Japanese stations. Our relocation of the main shock (39.22°N, 144.45°E, with a poorly constrained depth of less than 40 km) places it in the outer trench slope, below a seafloor depth of ~6500 m, in a region of horst-and-graben structure, with fault scarps approximately parallel to the axis of the Japan Trench. Relocated aftershocks show a band of genuine shallow aftershocks parallel to the Japan Trench under the outer trench slope and a region of post-mainshock events landward of the trench axis that occur over roughly the same latitude range and are thought to be the result of stress transfer to the interplate thrust boundary following the normal-faulting rupture. Based on a combination of P -wave first motions and inversion of surface wave spectral amplitudes, we propose a normal-faulting focal mechanism ( = 200°, = 61° and = 271°) and a seismic moment M 0 = (7 ± 1) x 10 28 dyn cm ( M w = 8.5). A wide variety of data, including the distribution of isoseismals, the large magnitudes (up to 8.9) proposed by early investigators before the standardization of magnitude scales, estimates of energy-to-moment ratios and the tentative identification of a T wave at Pasadena (and possibly Riverside), clearly indicate that this seismic source was exceptionally rich in high-frequency wave energy, suggesting a large apparent stress and a sharp rise time, and consistent with the behaviour of many smaller shallow normal-faulting earthquakes. Hydrodynamic simulations based on a range of possible sources consistent with the above findings, including a compound rupture on two opposite-facing normal-faulting segments, are in satisfactory agreement with tsunami observations in Hawaii, where run-up reached 3 m, causing significant damage. This study emphasizes the need to include off-trench normal-faulting earthquake sources in global assessments of tsunami hazards emanating from the subduction of old and cold plates, whose total length of trenches exceed 20 000 km, even though only a handful of great such events are known with confidence in the instrumental record.
    Keywords: Seismology
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    Topics: Geosciences
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  • 61
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: Pointwise error estimates for the first-order div least-squares (LS) finite element method for second-order elliptic partial differential equations are presented. Direct flux approximation is considered as an important advantage of the LS method. However, there are no known pointwise error estimates for the direct flux approximation. In this paper, we provide optimal pointwise estimates which show local dependence of the error at a point and weak dependence of the global norm. As an elementary consequence of these estimates, we provide an asymptotic error expansion inequality. The inequality has applications to superconvergence and a posteriori estimates.
    Print ISSN: 0272-4979
    Electronic ISSN: 1464-3642
    Topics: Mathematics
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  • 62
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: The first-order and higher-order derivatives of a function can be viewed as the solutions of Volterra integral equations of the first kind. In this paper we propose a fast multiscale solver for the numerical solution of the Tikhonov regularization of the Volterra equations. In association with the special form of the kernels, the matrices resulting from the discretization by multiscale bases are sparse. Moreover, they can be truncated using proper strategies with only a minor loss of accuracy. In the best case, the number of nonzero entries of the truncated matrices is linear with respect to the dimensions of the matrices. The accuracy of the solution from the solver is analysed theoretically and verified by numerical experiments.
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  • 63
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: The finite element method with $\mathscr {Q}_p$ elements is applied to a singularly perturbed convection–diffusion problem on an L-shaped domain. As an effect of corner singularities the exact solution is not $H^2$ -regular. Therefore, we combine a layer-adapted Shishkin mesh with a special grading adapted to the corner singularity. On such meshes we prove error estimates and estimates for the closeness error which explicitly show the influence of the grading parameter $\mu$ . Hence, $\mu$ can be chosen such that optimal error bounds are obtained. Thereby, it turns out that in the problem studied the influence of the corner singularity becomes small if the perturbation parameter $\varepsilon$ decreases. Moreover, we conduct numerical experiments that verify the theoretical results.
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  • 64
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: Pták's method of nondiscrete induction is based on the idea that in the analysis of iterative processes one should aim at rates of convergence as functions rather than just numbers, because functions may give convergence estimates that are tight throughout the iteration rather than just asymptotically. In this paper we motivate and prove a theorem on nondiscrete induction, originally due to Potra and Pták, and we apply it to the Newton iterations for computing the matrix polar decomposition and the matrix square root. Our goal is to illustrate the application of the method of nondiscrete induction in the finite-dimensional numerical linear algebra context. We show the sharpness of the resulting convergence estimate analytically for the polar decomposition iteration and on some examples for the square root iteration. We also discuss some of the method's limitations and possible extensions.
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  • 65
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: We consider the numerical solution, by a Petrov–Galerkin finite-element method, of a singularly perturbed reaction–diffusion differential equation posed on the unit square. In Lin & Stynes (2012, A balanced finite element method for singularly perturbed reaction-diffusion problems. SIAM J. Numer. Anal. , 50 , 2729–2743), it is argued that the natural energy norm, associated with a standard Galerkin approach, is not an appropriate setting for analysing such problems, and there they propose a method for which the natural norm is ‘balanced’. In the style of a first-order system least squares method, we extend the approach of Lin & Stynes (2012, A balanced finite element method for singularly perturbed reaction-diffusion problems. SIAM J. Numer. Anal. , 50 , 2729–2743) by introducing a constraint which simplifies the associated finite-element space and the method's analysis. We prove robust convergence in a balanced norm on a piecewise-uniform (Shishkin) mesh, and present supporting numerical results. Finally, we demonstrate how the resulting linear systems are solved optimally using multigrid methods.
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  • 66
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: The construction of tensor-product surface patches with a family of Pythagorean-hodograph (PH) isoparametric curves is investigated. The simplest nontrivial instances, interpolating four prescribed patch boundary curves, involve degree $(5,4)$ tensor-product surface patches $\bf{x}(u,v)$ whose $v=\hbox {constant}$ isoparametric curves are all spatial PH quintics. It is shown that the construction can be reduced to solving a novel type of quadratic quaternion equation, in which the quaternion unknown and its conjugate exhibit left and right coefficients, while the quadratic term has a coefficient interposed between them. A closed-form solution for this type of equation is derived, and conditions for the existence of solutions are identified. The surfaces incorporate three residual scalar freedoms which can be exploited to improve the interior shape of the patch. The implementation of the method is illustrated through a selection of computed examples.
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  • 67
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: Interior eigenvalues of bounded scattering objects can be rigorously characterized from multi-static and multi-frequency far field data, that is, from the behaviour of scattered waves far away from the object. This characterization, the so-called inside–outside duality, holds for various types of penetrable and impenetrable scatterers and is based on the behaviour of a particular eigenvalue of the far field operator. It naturally leads to a numerical algorithm for computing interior eigenvalues of a scatterer that does not require shape or physical properties of the scatterer as input. Since the nonlinear inverse problem to compute such interior eigenvalues from far field data is ill-posed, we propose a regularizing algorithm that is shown to converge as the noise level of the far field data tends to zero. We illustrate feasibility and accuracy of our algorithm by numerical experiments where we compute interior transmission eigenvalues and Robin eigenvalues of the Laplacian in three-dimensional domains from scattering data of these domains due to plane incident waves.
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  • 68
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: Regulated school days entail less free-living physical activity (PA) and outdoor stay, which may jeopardize the opportunities for cohesive moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) and, by extension, children’s health. The role of outdoor stay during school time for pupils’ free-living PA vs. physical education (PE) and indoor stay was studied during one academic year in 196 pupils aged 7–14 years at four schools in mid-southern Sweden during five consecutive days each in September, March, and May. Actigraph GT3X+ Activity monitors were used. Predictors for PA during school stay were expressed as mean daily accelerometer counts and were measured per season, day, grade, gender, weather, and time outdoors. Overall, free-living PA outdoors generated the highest mean accelerometer counts for moderate and vigorous PA. Outdoor PA and PE, representing 23.7% of the total school time contributed to 50.4% of total mean accelerometer counts, and were the greatest contributors to moderate and vigorous PA. Age and weather impacted PA, with less PA in inclement weather and among older pupils. More time outdoors, at all seasons, would favorably increase school children’s chances of reaching recommended levels of PA.
    Print ISSN: 1661-7827
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    Topics: Energy, Environment Protection, Nuclear Power Engineering , Medicine
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  • 69
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: Nuclear hazards, linked to both U.S. weapons programs and civilian nuclear power, pose substantial environment justice issues. Nuclear power plant (NPP) reactors produce low-level ionizing radiation, high level nuclear waste, and are subject to catastrophic contamination events. Justice concerns include plant locations and the large potentially exposed populations, as well as issues in siting, nuclear safety, and barriers to public participation. Other justice issues relate to extensive contamination in the U.S. nuclear weapons complex, and the mining and processing industries that have supported it. To approach the topic, first we discuss distributional justice issues of NPP sites in the U.S. and related procedural injustices in siting, operation, and emergency preparedness. Then we discuss justice concerns involving the U.S. nuclear weapons complex and the ways that uranium mining, processing, and weapons development have affected those living downwind, including a substantial American Indian population. Next we examine the problem of high-level nuclear waste and the risk implications of the lack of secure long-term storage. The handling and deposition of toxic nuclear wastes pose new transgenerational justice issues of unprecedented duration, in comparison to any other industry. Finally, we discuss the persistent risks of nuclear technologies and renewable energy alternatives.
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    Topics: Energy, Environment Protection, Nuclear Power Engineering , Medicine
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  • 70
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: Mothers’ instigation of complementary feeding before their infant reaches 6 months old risks shortening their breastfeeding duration, and high morbidity and mortality for their child. Complementary feeding practices require further investigation in Saudi Arabia. The present study aims to evaluate complementary feeding practices, and to establish which factors are associated with the early introduction of complementary feeding in the Saudi Arabian context. Cross-sectional research was conducted with 632 mothers of infants aged between 4 and 24 months attending five primary health care centers (PHCCs) between July and December 2015 in Saudi Arabia. Data on participants’ socio-demographic characteristics and complementary feeding practices were collected via structured questionnaires. A regression analysis identified the factors associated with the early introduction of solid foods, defined as before 17 weeks. 62.5% of the study’s infants received solid foods before reaching 17 weeks old. The maternal factors at higher risk of early introduction of solids were: younger age; Saudi nationality; shorter education; employment within 6 months post-birth; caesareans; not breastfeeding fully for six weeks post-birth, and living in low-income households. Complementary feeding prior to 6 months postpartum was common in Saudi Arabia. Public health interventions are needed to reduce early complementary feeding, focusing on mothers at highest risk of giving solids too early.
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  • 71
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: Introduction: Asthma is a multifactorial disease and a serious public health problem. Environmental factors and poverty are the main determinants of this disease. Objective: To describe the spatial and temporal distribution of asthma-related hospitalizations and identify the areas with the highest prevalence of and vulnerability to severe asthma in a major Brazilian city. Methods: An ecological study of hospitalizations for asthma from 2002 to 2012, in children and adolescents under 15 years of age, living in Belo Horizonte, Southeast Brazil. All events were geocoded by residence address using Hospital Information System data. The socioeconomic vulnerability of residence address was ranked using the Health Vulnerability Index. Raster surfaces were generated and time-series plots were constructed to determine spatial and time trends in the frequency of asthma-related hospitalizations, respectively. Results: Asthma-related hospitalization rates were highest in children aged 0–4 years and in boys. There was a decreasing trend in the number of asthma-related hospitalizations across the study period. Approximately 48% of all hospitalizations were children living in health vulnerable areas. Seasonal trends showed a hospitalization peak in March, April, and May, coinciding with the post-rainy period. Conclusion: Our findings suggest that social and environmental factors may be determinants of disparities in severe asthma.
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  • 72
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: Biologically plausible associations exist between climatic conditions and stroke risk, but study results are inconsistent. We aimed to summarize current evidence on ambient temperature and overall stroke occurrence, and by age, sex, and variation of temperature. We performed a systematic literature search across MEDLINE, Embase, PsycINFO, CINAHL, Web of Science, and GEOBASE, from inception to 16 October 2015 to identify all population-based observational studies. Where possible, data were pooled for meta-analysis with Odds ratios (OR) and corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CI) by means of the random effects meta-analysis. We included 21 studies with a total of 476,511 patients. The data were varied as indicated by significant heterogeneity across studies for both ischemic stroke (IS) and intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH). Pooled OR (95% CI) in every 1 degree Celsius increase in ambient temperature was significant for ICH 0.97 (0.94–1.00), but not for IS 1.00 (0.99–1.01) and subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) 1.00 (0.98–1.01). Meta-analysis was not possible for the pre-specified subgroup analyses by age, sex, and variation of temperature. Change in temperature over the previous 24 h appeared to be more important than absolute temperature in relation to the risk of stroke, especially in relation to the risk of ICH. Older age appeared to increase vulnerability to low temperature for both IS and ICH. To conclude, this review shows that lower mean ambient temperature is significantly associated with the risk of ICH, but not with IS and SAH. Larger temperature changes were associated with higher stroke rates in the elderly.
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  • 73
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: Bisphenol A (BPA) is a ubiquitous compound used in polymer manufacturing for a wide array of applications; however, increasing evidence has shown that BPA causes significant endocrine disruption and this has raised public concerns over safety and exposure limits. The use of renewable materials as polymer feedstocks provides an opportunity to develop replacement compounds for BPA that are sustainable and exhibit unique properties due to their diverse structures. As new bio-based materials are developed and tested, it is important to consider the impacts of both monomers and polymers on human health. Molecular docking simulations using the Estrogenic Activity Database in conjunction with the decision forest were performed as part of a two-tier in silico model to predict the activity of 29 bio-based platform chemicals in the estrogen receptor-α (ERα). Fifteen of the candidates were predicted as ER binders and fifteen as non-binders. Gaining insight into the estrogenic activity of the bio-based BPA replacements aids in the sustainable development of new polymeric materials.
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  • 74
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: 2,4,6-Tribromophenol (TBP) is a brominated flame retardant (BFR). Based on its affinity for transthyretin, TBP could compete with endogenous thyroid hormone. In this study, the effects of TBP on the thyroid hormone system were assessed in mice. Briefly, animals were exposed to 40 and 250 mg/kg TBP. Thyroid hormones were also administered with or without TBP. When mice were treated with TBP, deiodinase 1 (Dio1) and thyroid hormone receptor β isoform 2 (Thrβ2) decreased in the pituitary gland. The levels of deiodinase 2 (Dio2) and growth hormone (Gh) mRNA increased in response to 250 mg/kg of TBP, and the relative mRNA level of thyroid stimulating hormone β (Tshβ) increased in the pituitary gland. Dio1 and Thrβ1 expression in the liver were not altered, while Dio1 decreased in response to co-treatment with thyroid hormones. The thyroid gland activity decreased in response to TBP, as did the levels of free triiodothyronine and free thyroxine in serum. Taken together, these findings indicate that TBP can disrupt thyroid hormone homeostasis and the presence of TBP influenced thyroid actions as regulators of gene expression. These data suggest that TBP interferes with thyroid hormone systems
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  • 75
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: Various themed streets have recently been developed by local governments in order to stimulate local economies and to establish the identity of the corresponding places. However, the motivations behind the development of some of these themed street projects has been based on profit, without full considerations of people’s perceptions of their local areas, resulting in marginal effects on the local economies concerned. In response to this issue, this study proposed a themed street clustering method to detect the themed streets of a specific region, focusing on the commercial themed street, which is more prevalent than other types of themed streets using location based service data. This study especially uses “the street segment” as a basic unit for analysis. The Sillim and Gangnam areas of Seoul, South Korea were chosen for the evaluation of the adequacy of the proposed method. By comparing trade areas that were sourced from a market analysis report by a reliable agent with the themed streets detected in this study, the experiment results showed high proficiency of the proposed method.
    Electronic ISSN: 2220-9964
    Topics: Architecture, Civil Engineering, Surveying , Geosciences
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  • 76
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: Delimitating trade areas is a major business concern. Today, mobile communication technologies make it possible to use social media data for this purpose. Few studies however, have focused on methods to extract suitable samples from social media data for trade area delimitation. In our case study, we divided Beijing into regular grid cells and extracted activity centers for each social media user. Ten sample sets were obtained by selecting users based on the retail agglomerations they visited and aggregating user activity centers to each grid cell. We calculated distance and visitation frequency attributes for each user and each grid cell. The distance value of a grid cell is the average distance of user activity centers in this grid cell to a retail agglomeration. The visitation frequency of a grid cell refers to the average count of visits to retail agglomerations by user activity centers for a cell. The calculated attribute values of 10 sets were input into a Huff model and the delimitated trade areas were evaluated. Results show that sets obtained by aggregating user activity centers have a better delimitating effect than sets obtained without aggregation. Differences in the distribution and intensity of trade areas also became apparent.
    Electronic ISSN: 2220-9964
    Topics: Architecture, Civil Engineering, Surveying , Geosciences
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  • 77
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: During the last centuries, populations of marine megafauna—such as seabirds, turtles, and mammals—were intensively exploited. At present, other threats such as bycatch and pollution affect these species, which play key ecological roles in marine ecosystems as apex consumers and/or nutrient transporters. This study analyses the distribution of six megafaunal species ( Chelonia mydas , Caretta caretta , Dermochelys coriacea , Thalassarche melanophris , Otaria flavescens , and Arctocephalus australis ) coexisting in the Southwestern Atlantic to discuss their protection in terms of current management strategies in the region. Through the prediction of the species potential distributions and their relation to bathymetry, sea temperature and oceanographic fronts, key ecological areas are defined from a multi-taxa perspective. Information on the distribution of 70 individuals (18 sea turtles, 19 albatrosses, and 33 otariids) was obtained through satellite tracking conducted during 2007–2013 and analysed using a Geographic Information System and maximum entropy models. During the autumn–winter period, megafaunal species were distributed over the continental shelves of Argentina, Uruguay, and Brazil, mainly over the Argentine Exclusive Economic Zone and the Argentina-Uruguay Common Fishing Zone. Despite some differences, all megafaunal species seems to have similar environmental requirements during the autumn–winter period. Mostly waters shallower than 50 m were identified as key ecological areas, with the Río de la Plata as the habitat with the highest suitability for all the species. This area is highly productive and sustains the main coastal fisheries of Uruguay and Argentina, yet its role as a key ecological area for megafaunal species has been underestimated until now. This approach provides a basis to analyse the effect of anthropic activities on megafaunal species through risk maps and, ultimately, to generate knowledge to improve national and bi-national management plans between Argentina and Uruguay.
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  • 78
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: In the North Sea flatfish fishery, electric pulse trawls have been introduced to replace the conventional mechanical method. Pulse trawls reduce the fuel consumption, reduce adverse impact on the ecosystem but cause injuries in gadoids. We describe the design and electrical properties of pulse trawls currently in use and study the behavioural response and injuries in cod exposed to electrical pulses under controlled conditions. Pulse trawls operate at an average power of 0.7 kW m –1 beam length and a duty cycle of ~2%. The electric field is heterogeneous with highest field strength occurring close to the conductors. Cod were exposed to three different pulse types for a range of field strengths, frequencies, and duty cycles. Two size classes were tested representing cod that escape through the meshes (11–17 cm) and market-sized cod that are retained in the net (34–56 cm). Cod exposed to a field strength of ≥37 V m –1 responded by moderate-to-strong muscular contractions. Some of the large cod ( n = 260) developed haemorrhages and fractures in the spine, and haemal and neural arches in the tail part of the body. The probability of injuries increased with field strength and decreased when frequency was increased from 100 to 180 Hz. None of the small cod ( n = 132) were injured and all survived. The field strength at the lateral boundaries of the trawl was too low to inflict injuries in cod.
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  • 79
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: A coupled biophysical model is used to explore the physical controls involved in the timing of the spring phytoplankton bloom in fjords. Observations from Rivers Inlet, British Columbia, are used to force and evaluate the model. It is found that the interannual variation in timing is due primarily to variations in retention, in particular, to variations in horizontal advection out of the fjord. The two dominant processes are (i) strong outflow winds rapidly advecting the surface layer and thus the phytoplankton population out of the fjord and (ii) losses due to high river flux increasing the estuarine circulation. Both processes delay the timing of spring bloom. Smaller effects on the interannual variation are due to increased wind mixing which deepens the mixing layer and reduces light to phytoplankton, and increased river flow which increases the stratification and decreases the mixing layer depth. Observed interannual variations in cloudiness were small. Strong outflow winds are common in winter along the British Columbia coast, but generally cease after the spring wind transition. Thus, observed interdecadal variations in the spring transition date probably imply strong variations in the timing of spring phytoplankton blooms in British Columbia fjords.
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  • 80
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: Since "balanced harvest" was proposed in 2010 as a possible tool in the operationalization of the ecosystem approach to fisheries (EAF), the concept gained extensive international attention. Because maintaining ecosystem structure and achieving maximum sustainable yields have become two of the key international legal obligations in fisheries management, balanced harvest is as topical as ever. An international workshop on balanced harvest, organized by the IUCN Fisheries Expert Group at FAO headquarters in 2014, reviewed the progress in the field and discussed its prospects and challenges. Several articles in this theme set, mostly based on presentations from the workshop, discuss ecological, economical, legal, social, and operational issues surrounding the key management goals. Progress is being made on understanding of the theoretical underpinnings of balanced harvest and its practical feasibility. Yet, a basic debate on the concept of balanced harvest continues. To move the EAF forward, we anticipate and encourage further research and discussion on balanced harvest and similar ideas.
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  • 81
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: Sampling of euphausiids is difficult because of their intermediate size between macrozooplankton and micronekton. The Barents Sea is one of the few marine areas where there have been long-term studies of euphausiids. We have examined three monitoring datasets on euphausiids and consider likely sources of errors associated with the sampling. Results indicated a high degree of patchiness in the distribution of euphausiids, even at the largest scale of sampling with a pelagic trawl. This indicates that euphausiids may occur in large, but infrequent, swarms that have a low probability of being sampled by small nets. The mean biomass of euphausiids sampled with MOCNESS was 2 g wet weight m –2 integrated over the water column, which is an underestimate due to avoidance of large individuals. The mean biomass obtained with pelagic trawl in the upper 60 m of water at night during an autumn survey was 10 g wet weight m –2 . The plankton net on bottom trawl collected mean and median density of euphausiids (0.1–0.2 g wet weight m –3 ) near bottom during a winter survey similar to the values found with pelagic trawl in the upper layer during autumn. The mean density for the autumn survey showed an increase from 2000 to 2011, while the winter survey showed generally a decrease from 2000–2007 to 2011. The increase in the autumn series coincided with a general warming trend presumably with a larger influx of euphausiids with Atlantic water, notably of Meganyctiphanes norvegica . In contrast, the decline during winter may reflect a decrease, particularly of Thysanoessa raschii in the southeastern Barents Sea in the most recent years. Improvements in sampling gears combined with more and better use of acoustical and optical technologies offer great promise for improved monitoring and quantification of the roles of euphausiids in the Barents Sea ecosystem.
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  • 82
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: Balanced fishing proposes a considerable change to current fisheries management to increase overall biomass harvested while reducing the ecosystem impacts of large-scale fisheries. However, to date, the work to a large degree has focused on simplified models, which exclude much of the variability in real ecosystems, as well as basing harvesting rates on a perfect, but unrealistic, knowledge on stock productivity. Furthermore, the published studies have avoided examining the practicalities of implementing balanced fishing in a real world. This has resulted in a gap that remains to be overcome before balanced fishing can be considered a viable management strategy for large marine ecosystems. We discuss variability in recruitment, in biology and life history characteristics, in data quality, and in fishing practice and management, and their implications for implementation of balanced fishing, using examples from the Barents Sea. We try to outline the complexities that need to be investigated as a precursor to moving balanced fishing from an academic exercise to a practical management scheme. Given the difficulties in moving to "full" balanced fishing, we highlight the importance of investigating to what extent benefits can be gained by implementing only the most achievable parts of a balanced fishing regime.
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  • 83
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: European eel ( Anguilla anguilla ) is considered as critical endangered and even under the best circumstances it may take decades before the stock recovers. Estimation of eel escapement biomass, B escapement , is of critical importance to evaluate management schemes and to predict the recovery potential for the eel stock. Westerberg and Wickström (2015. Stock assessment of eels in the Baltic: reconciling survey estimates to achieve quantitative analysis. ICES Journal of Marine Science, 73: 75–83) attempt to estimate potential B escapement based on the assumptions that all elvers at the entrance of the Baltic also migrate into the Baltic Sea and that natural mortality is low under the whole growth stage (close to 0.02 at the age of 10 years and older). As a consequence, Westerberg and Wickström estimated the present potential B escapement at ~10–20 000 tonnes and fishing mortality close to 0.05–0.10, while it was also suggested that other sources of anthropogenic mortality may reduce the actual escapement to unknown levels. Here we argue that these conclusions are entirely speculative and contradicted by tagging experiment and fishery data, which instead indicate a much higher fishing mortality (mortality induced by legal professional fishery) rates and a considerably smaller eel biomass.
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  • 84
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: Discard bans have been proposed as part of management policies aimed at balanced harvest (BH). Nationwide discard bans exist in several countries, including Chile, the European Union, Norway, and New Zealand. We analysed experiences from these countries to determine whether or not discard bans are in contradiction with BH, based on six aspects: policy objectives, species/sizes applicability, accompanying technical measures, at-sea monitoring and control, and possible impacts. When discard bans are fully implemented, fishing operations change to more selective fishing, typically targeting bigger individuals of main commercial species. This is consistent with the primary objective of many discard policies, i.e. to reduce unwanted catch. In contrast, proponents of BH argue that broader catch diversity, a product of a widespread harvest strategy, should be sought to avoid major impacts on the ecosystem. Our analysis demonstrates that the scope of discard bans is often limited to main commercial species, although usually they can be extended to include more ecosystem components. Some of the policies examined also prohibit the use of unwanted catches for human consumption, thus limiting their effective use. However, the implementation of discard bans requires high levels of at-sea monitoring and effective control, and/or strong incentives to fish more selectively, neither of which applied in most cases examined. We conclude that if discard bans were set differently, they could contribute to fishery management policies aiming at BH. Their goals should be in line with BH, i.e. to reach a wider global harvest pattern, or at least be established within management regimes that promote high compliance. Finally, the extent to which a discard ban contributes to achieve BH depends also on the relative importance of the ecosystem benthic and megafauna components.
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  • 85
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: A glassy dilute glycerol-water solution undergoes a mutual polyamorphic transition relating to the transition between high- and low-density amorphous ices of solvent water. The polyamorphic transition behavior depends on the glycerol concentration, indicating that the glycerol affects the water polyamorphism. Here, we used the glassy dilute glycerol-water solution of the solute molar fraction of 0.07 and examined the effect of the polyamorphic change in solvent water on the molecular vibrations of glycerol via Raman spectroscopy. It is found that the molecular vibration of glycerol in high-density liquid like solvent water is different from that in the low-density liquid like solvent water and that the change in the molecular vibration of glycerol is synchronized with the polyamorphic transition of solvent water. The dynamical change of the solute molecule relates to the polyamorphic state of solvent water. This result suggests that the polyamorphic fluctuation of water structure emanated from the presumed liquid-liquid critical point plays an important role for the function of aqueous solution under an ambient condition such as the conformational stability of solute, the functional expression of solute, and so on.
    Print ISSN: 0021-9606
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  • 86
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: We propose a new on-the-fly kinetic Monte Carlo (KMC) method that is based on exhaustive potential energy surface searching carried out with the global reaction route mapping (GRRM) algorithm. Starting from any given equilibrium state, this GRRM-KMC algorithm performs a one-step GRRM search to identify all surrounding transition states. Intrinsic reaction coordinate pathways are then calculated to identify potential subsequent equilibrium states. Harmonic transition state theory is used to calculate rate constants for all potential pathways, before a standard KMC accept/reject selection is performed. The selected pathway is then used to propagate the system forward in time, which is calculated on the basis of 1st order kinetics. The GRRM-KMC algorithm is validated here in two challenging contexts: intramolecular proton transfer in malonaldehyde and surface carbon diffusion on an iron nanoparticle. We demonstrate that in both cases the GRRM-KMC method is capable of reproducing the 1st order kinetics observed during independent quantum chemical molecular dynamics simulations using the density-functional tight-binding potential.
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  • 87
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: Resonantly enhanced multiphoton ionization via the E F 1 Σ g + , v ′ = 6 double-well state has been used to probe the energy region below the third dissociation limit of H 2 where several high vibrational levels of the 4 1 Σ u + state are expected. Theoretical ab initio potential energy curves for this state predict a deep inner well and shallow outer well where vibrational levels above v = 8 are expected to exhibit the double-well character of the state. Since the 4 1 Σ u + state has f -state character, transitions to it from the ground state are nominally forbidden. However, the d character of the outer well of the E F 1 Σ g + state allows access to this state. We report observations of transitions to the v = 9–12 levels of the 4 1 Σ u + state and compare their energies to predicted energies calculated from an ab initio potential energy curve with adiabatic corrections. Assignments are based on measured energies and linewidths, rotational constants, and expected transition strengths. The amount of agreement between the predicted values and the observations is mixed, with the largest discrepancies arising for the v = 9 level, owing to strong nonadiabatic electronic mixing in this energy region.
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  • 88
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: The photodissociation dynamics of the methyl perthiyl radical (CH 3 SS) have been investigated using fast-beam coincidence translational spectroscopy. Methyl perthiyl radicals were produced by photodetachment of the CH 3 SS − anion followed by photodissociation at 248 nm (5.0 eV) and 193 nm (6.4 eV). Photofragment mass distributions and translational energy distributions were measured at each dissociation wavelength. Experimental results show S atom loss as the dominant (96%) dissociation channel at 248 nm with a near parallel, anisotropic angular distribution and translational energy peaking near the maximal energy available to ground state CH 3 S and S fragments, indicating that the dissociation occurs along a repulsive excited state. At 193 nm, S atom loss remains the major fragmentation channel, although S 2 loss becomes more competitive and constitutes 32% of the fragmentation. The translational energy distributions for both channels are very broad at this wavelength, suggesting the formation of the S 2 and S atom products in several excited electronic states.
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  • 89
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: Using a large dataset of US offices we analyse the relationship between investors’ distance to their assets and the effective rent of these assets, and study the extent to which property managers can influence this relationship. We construct hedonic rent models to control for other known rent determinants. It turns out that proximity matters: holding everything else constant, investors located closely to their office buildings are able to extract significantly higher effective rents from these assets, especially if these buildings are of low quality. This effect is due to significant differences in occupancy levels. Interestingly, property managers can affect this relationship, mitigating the adverse effects of investor distance on effective office rents. Especially if the owner does not reside in the same state as the building, external property management is of importance, most prominently so for class-B office buildings.
    Keywords: G11 - Portfolio Choice ; Investment Decisions, R12 - Size and Spatial Distributions of Regional Economic Activity, R32 - Other Production and Pricing Analysis, R33 - Nonagricultural and Nonresidential Real Estate Markets
    Print ISSN: 1468-2702
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    Topics: Geography , Economics
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  • 90
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: This article draws on extensive fieldwork conducted in Central Asia to explore food exports to Russia. It takes its theoretical starting point in global value chain theory and pinpoints chain entry barriers relating to financing, transportation and standards. The article also proposes rethinking the aspects of territoriality and institutional context, and suggests their integration into one concept, or rather a process of contextualizing territories. In doing so, the article argues for a methodology that not only examines current events, but also captures change as particularly important in what we term the territory in transition examined here.
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    Topics: Geography , Economics
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  • 91
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: This article proposes a quantitative analysis of the interdependencies between port specialization and regional specialization across the world. A global database is elaborated, covering about 360 port regions in both developed and developing countries. One goal is to verify how interdependent port traffic and regional characteristics are, in a context of increasingly flexible commodity and value chains. Despite the aggregated dimension of available data and the heterogeneity of local situations, the main results confirm the affinity between the primary sector and raw materials traffic, and between the tertiary sector and general cargo traffic, whereas the industrial sector offers mixed evidence. This allows us to address fundamental questions raised by both economic geography and regional science about transport and local development. The global typology of port regions points to certain regularities in their spatial distribution, and the article discusses the policy implications of particular cases.
    Keywords: L90 - General, O18 - Regional, Urban, and Rural Analyses, R40 - General
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    Topics: Geography , Economics
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  • 92
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: This article examines various upgrading and downgrading repositioning firm strategies within global value chains (GVCs) or global production networks (GPNs). It builds upon recent evidence that the mode of governance could vary profoundly among firms engaged in the same GVC/GPN. Therefore, the relevance of particular types of upgrading that were originally derived from the ideal types of GVC/GPN governance will be reconsidered. It is argued that the existing dissonance in the literature over possibilities for functional upgrading can be attributed to the different modes of governance that can exist within a particular GVC/GPN and to the diverse nature of functional upgrading. Consequently, a typology of functional upgrading is outlined, and it is argued that these different types vary significantly according to their probability and potential risk-benefit ratios. The article also introduces passive, adaptive and strategic downgrading and outlines their potential negative and positive effects on firms.
    Keywords: F63 - Economic Development, L23 - Organization of Production, L60 - General
    Print ISSN: 1468-2702
    Electronic ISSN: 1468-2710
    Topics: Geography , Economics
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  • 93
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: As nations continue to grapple with growing infrastructure demand, financial markets will play an increasingly prominent role in the landscape for urban infrastructure. Yet existing literature tends to depict the ‘financialization’ of urban infrastructure assets as a restless move towards market efficiency aided by the growing transparency of financial information. This article offers a different view, showing how the spatial richness of financial data for infrastructure has progressed towards what we term a more permanent state of ‘informational translucency’. We draw on 53 interviews with participants in the market for infrastructure investment to present this more complicated picture of infrastructure finance, thereby elaborating a more granular understanding of how information flows through and shapes financial market geography. From this we propose a relational model that contributes to theoretical understandings of how financial products are intermediated over time and space.
    Keywords: O18 - Regional, Urban, and Rural Analyses
    Print ISSN: 1468-2702
    Electronic ISSN: 1468-2710
    Topics: Geography , Economics
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  • 94
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: The provisions in the Habitats Directive relating to protection of sites establish a triumvirate of decision-makers: administrative authority, scientific advisor and judiciary. This article examines the relationship between these decision-makers as developed in recent case law, both at a European Union (EU) and national level. It argues that reference to the goal of environmental protection obscures the allocation of power among these actors, and that to truly understand the resulting system, we must acknowledge the differing norms which motivate each of these actors. In particular, it argues that we must consider the judiciary as an actor within the decision-making process, and should examine the role of the principles of judicial review and EU law in shaping this. It highlights that there are currently conflicts within the process, and that the principles of judicial review cannot provide a successful mechanism to manage these conflicts without an explicit consideration of the values ‘hidden’ therein.
    Print ISSN: 0952-8873
    Electronic ISSN: 1464-374X
    Topics: Energy, Environment Protection, Nuclear Power Engineering , Law
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  • 95
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: One of the key issues in the current controversy over the hunting of wolves in Sweden is whether the wolf population has reached favourable conservation status (FCS). FCS is a legal concept, created and defined in law, but like many legal concepts within environmental law, can only be understood by reference to ecological concepts such as species viability. These ecological determinations in turn often require some sort of legal or policy judgment, such as how great an extinction risk is acceptable for a viable population. This article interrogates contested legal and ecological aspects of FCS and argues for how they might be applied to the Swedish wolf in potential litigation.
    Print ISSN: 0952-8873
    Electronic ISSN: 1464-374X
    Topics: Energy, Environment Protection, Nuclear Power Engineering , Law
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  • 96
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: This article extends research exploring progressive models of reproducing economic life by reporting on research into some of the infrastructure, practices and motivations for Islamic charitable giving in London. In so doing the article: (i) makes visible sets of values, practices and institutions usually hidden in an otherwise widely researched international financial centre; (ii) identifies multiple, hard-to-research civic actors who are mobilising diverse resources to address economic hardship and development needs; and (iii) considers how these charitable values, practices and agents contribute to contemporary thinking about progressive economic possibilities.
    Keywords: D14 - Personal Finance, O12 - Microeconomic Analyses of Economic Development
    Print ISSN: 1468-2702
    Electronic ISSN: 1468-2710
    Topics: Geography , Economics
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  • 97
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: Within the regulatory space that exists at the intersection of UK company law and environmental regulation, the business community has generated its own environmental governance initiatives to address growing anxiety about companies’ externalised risk. Yet, there is currently nothing in law to prevent companies from frequently acting inconsistently with these voluntary unilateral assurances, which has led to widespread concern that environmental values are treated as merely instrumental to the dominant idea of achieving economic benefits for the company. This article examines a specific case for the legal facilitation of binding obligations owed to the environment, which require a company to make good on its previous commitments about environmental responsibility. It seeks to demonstrate that this is possible through the common law doctrine of estoppel, which can be opened up to prevent a company from acting inconsistently with its previous statements or actions about the governance of environmental risk.
    Print ISSN: 0952-8873
    Electronic ISSN: 1464-374X
    Topics: Energy, Environment Protection, Nuclear Power Engineering , Law
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  • 98
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: The aim of the article is to shed light on the particular issue of absence of judicial dialogue between the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) and the Court of Justice of the EU (CJEU) in the matter of environmental rights which represents a glaring exception to the generally cooperative disposition exhibited by the two courts in other domains linked to human rights protection. The article draws on this particular absence of judicial dialogue by examining the respective patterns of judicial reasoning employed by the CJEU and the ECtHR in cases before them that involve, or have a bearing on, environmental rights (substantive and procedural). Thus, the singular tendencies discernible in the ECtHR’s progressive jurisprudence in the field of environmental rights will be compared to CJEU’s jurisprudence relevant to environmental rights with the intention of detecting certain aspects in the CJEU’s approach which could further stand to be improved following the example of ECtHR’s activist environmental jurisprudence as a viable avenue for initiating the currently missing dialogue between the two courts in the matter of environmental rights.
    Print ISSN: 0952-8873
    Electronic ISSN: 1464-374X
    Topics: Energy, Environment Protection, Nuclear Power Engineering , Law
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  • 99
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Description: We estimate the impact of drug cartels and drug-related homicides on crime and perceptions of security in Mexico. Since the location where drug cartels operate might be endogenous, we combine the difference-in-difference estimator with instrumental variables. Using surveys on crime victimization we find that people living in areas that experienced drug-related homicides are more likely to take extra security precautions. Yet, these areas are also more likely to experience certain crimes, particularly thefts and extortions. In contrast, these crimes and perceptions of insecurity do not change in areas where cartels operate without leading to drug-related homicides.
    Keywords: C26 - Instrumental Variables (IV) Estimation, K49 - Other, R59 - Other
    Print ISSN: 1468-2702
    Electronic ISSN: 1468-2710
    Topics: Geography , Economics
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  • 100
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    Oxford University Press
    Publication Date: 2016-07-13
    Print ISSN: 0952-8873
    Electronic ISSN: 1464-374X
    Topics: Energy, Environment Protection, Nuclear Power Engineering , Law
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