Washtenaw County Autonomous Vehicle Consensus Conference

Library Student Mini Grant Award Year: 2017-2018Across campus, experts present on the technology, regulatory and business opportunities surrounding Autonomous Vehicles (AV). The events are fascinating, but experts frame them—it is time for an event that invites “lay citizen’s” to share their perspectives on AV. The AV Consensus Conference in Washtenaw County will be a form of participatory planning where lay citizens, with no formal expertise in a technology, are empowered to share their values, concerns, and suggestions. Our steering committee for the conference is building relationships with: INspire, Mcity, CivCity and the EPA participatory planning division. This project will also provide a consensus report will provide these organizations with information on public values, while also empowering citizens of Washtenaw County who are traditionally left out of these conversations.https://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/142878/1/Lenhart, Anna_MiniGrant2018.pptxhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/142878/5/concensusconference.pdfDescription of Lenhart, Anna_MiniGrant2018.pptx : Conference PresentationDescription of concensusconference.pdf : Conference Official Statemen

Consensus Confererence on Autonomous Vehicles: Case Study

Library Student Mini Grant Award Year: 2017-2018https://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/146527/1/CCAVCaseStudy.pd

Best Practices and Methodological Guidelines for Conducting Gas Risk Assessments

The EC Regulation concerning measures to safeguard security of gas supply (EC/994/2010) requires member states to make a full assessment of the risks affecting the security of gas supply. According to Article 9, this risk assessment must: (a) use the infrastructure and supply standards (articles 6 and 8); (b) take into account all relevant national and regional circumstances; (c) run various disruption scenarios; (d) identify the interaction and correlation of risks with other Member States. (e) take into account the maximal interconnection capacity of each border entry and exit point. The objective of this report is to provide guidance and advice for performing risk assessments. It will do so by first providing a literature review, and then by proposing a basic structure for undertaking a gas security risk assessment, in accordance with best practices and standard procedures found in risk management.JRC.F.3-Energy securit

Pentosan Polysulfate Inhibits Attachment and Infection by SARS-CoV-2 In Vitro: Insights into Structural Requirements for Binding

Two years since the outbreak of the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 (severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2) pandemic, there remain few clinically effective drugs to complement vaccines. One is the anticoagulant, heparin, which in 2004 was found able to inhibit invasion of SARS-CoV (CoV-1) and which has been employed during the current pandemic to prevent thromboembolic complications and moderate potentially damaging inflammation. Heparin has also been shown experimentally to inhibit SARS-CoV-2 attachment and infection in susceptible cells. At high therapeutic doses however, heparin increases the risk of bleeding and prolonged use can cause heparin-induced thrombocytopenia, a serious side effect. One alternative, with structural similarities to heparin, is the plant-derived, semi-synthetic polysaccharide, pentosan polysulfate (PPS). PPS is an established drug for the oral treatment of interstitial cystitis, is well-tolerated, and exhibits weaker anticoagulant effects than heparin. In an established Vero cell model, PPS and its fractions of varying molecular weights inhibited invasion by SARS-CoV-2. Intact PPS and its size-defined fractions were characterized by molecular weight distribution and chemical structure using nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry, then employed to explore the structural basis of interactions with SARS-CoV-2 spike protein receptor-binding domain (S1 RBD) and the inhibition of Vero cell invasion. PPS was as effective as unfractionated heparin, but more effective in inhibiting cell infection than low-molecular-weight heparin (on a weight/volume basis). Isothermal titration calorimetry and viral plaque-forming assays demonstrated size-dependent binding to S1 RBD and inhibition of Vero cell invasion, suggesting the potential application of PPS as a novel inhibitor of SARS-CoV-2 infection

Methane production by three widespread marine phytoplankton species : release rates, precursor compounds, and potential relevance for the environment

Methane (CH4) production within the oceanic mixed layer is a widespread phenomenon, but the underlying mechanisms are still under debate. Marine algae might contribute to the observed CH4 oversaturation in oxic waters, but so far direct evidence for CH4 production by marine algae has only been provided for the coccolithophore Emiliania huxleyi. In the present study we investigated, next to E. huxleyi, other widespread haptophytes, i.e., Phaeocystis globosa and Chrysochromulina sp. We performed CH4 production and stable carbon isotope measurements and provide unambiguous evidence that all three investigated marine algae are involved in the production of CH4 under oxic conditions. Rates ranged from 1:9-0:6 to 3:1-0:4 g of CH4 per gram of POC (particulate organic carbon) per day, with Chrysochromulina sp. and E. huxleyi showing the lowest and highest rates, respectively. Cellular CH4 production rates ranged from 16:8-6:5 (P. globosa) to 62:3-6:4 agCH4 cell-1 d-1 (E. huxleyi; agD10-18 g). In cultures that were treated with 13C-labeled hydrogen carbonate, 13CH4 values increased with incubation time, resulting from the conversion of 13C hydrogen carbonate to 13CH4. The addition of 13C-labeled dimethyl sulfide, dimethyl sulfoxide, and methionine sulfoxide known algal metabolites that are ubiquitous in marine surface layers resulted in the occurrence of 13C-enriched CH4 in cultures of E. huxleyi, clearly indicating that methylated sulfur compounds are also precursors of CH4. By comparing the algal CH4 production rates from our laboratory experiments with results previously reported in two field studies of the Pacific Ocean and the Baltic Sea, we might conclude that algae-mediated CH4 release is contributing to CH4 oversaturation in oxic waters. Therefore, we propose that haptophyte mediated CH4 production could be a common and important process in marine surface waters

Effects of Temperature and Light on Methane Production of Widespread Marine Phytoplankton

Methane (CH4) production in the ocean surface mixed layer is a widespread but still largely unexplained phenomenon. In this context marine algae have recently been described as a possible source of CH4 in surface waters. In the present study we investigated the effects of temperature and light intensity (including daylength) on CH4 formation from three widespread marine algal species Emiliania huxleyi, Phaeocystis globosa, and Chrysochromulina sp. Rates of E. huxleyi increased by 210% when temperature increased in a range from 10°C to 21.5°C, while a further increase in temperature (up to 23.8°C) showed reduction of CH4 production rates. Our results clearly showed that CH4 formation of E. huxleyi is controlled by light: When light intensity increased from 30 to 2,670 μmol m−2 s−1, CH4 emission rates increased continuously by almost 1 order of magnitude and was more than 1 order of magnitude higher when the daylength (light period) was extended from 6/18 hr light-dark cycle to continuous light. Furthermore, light intensity is also an important factor controlling CH4 emissions of Chrysochromulina sp. and P. globosa and could therefore be a species-independent regulator of phytoplankton CH4 production. Based on our results, we might conclude that extensive blooms of E. huxleyi could act as a main regional source of CH4 in surface water, since blooming of E. huxleyi is related to the seasonal increase in both light and temperature, which also stimulate CH4 production. Under typical global change scenarios, E. huxleyi will increase its CH4 production in the future

Extreme lifespan extension in tapeworm-infected ant workers

Social insects are hosts of diverse parasites, but the influence of these parasites on phenotypic host traits is not yet well understood. Here, we tracked the survival of tapeworm-infected ant workers, their uninfected nest-mates and of ants from unparasitized colonies. Our multi-year study on the ant Temnothorax nylanderi, the intermediate host of the tapeworm Anomotaenia brevis, revealed a prolonged lifespan of infected workers compared with their uninfected peers. Intriguingly, their survival over 3 years did not differ from those of (uninfected) queens, whose lifespan can reach two decades. By contrast, uninfected workers from parasitized colonies suffered from increased mortality compared with uninfected workers from unparasitized colonies. Infected workers exhibited a metabolic rate and lipid content similar to young workers in this species, and they received more social care than uninfected workers and queens in their colonies. This increased attention could be mediated by their deviant chemical profile, which we determined to elicit more interest from uninfected nest-mates in a separate experiment. In conclusion, our study demonstrates an extreme lifespan extension in a social host following tapeworm infection, which appears to enable host workers to retain traits typical for young workers

How do intra-basement fabrics influence normal fault growth? Insights from the Taranaki Basin, offshore New Zealand

Pre-existing intra-basement structures can have a strong influence on the evolution of rift basins. Although 3D geometric relationships provide some insight into how intra-basement structures determine the broad geometry and spatial development (e.g. strike and dip) of rift-related faults, little is known about the impact of the former on the detailed kinematics (i.e. nucleation and tip propagation) of the latter. Understanding the kinematic as well as geometric relationship between intra-basement structures and rift-related fault networks is important, with the extension direction in many rifted provinces typically thought to lie normal to fault strike. We here investigate this problem using a borehole-constrained, 3D seismic reflection dataset from the Taranaki Basin, offshore New Zealand. Excellent imaging of intra-basement structures and a relatively weakly-deformed, stratigraphically simple sedimentary cover allow us to: (i) identify a range of interaction styles between intra-basement structures and overlying, Plio-Pleistocene rift-related normal faults; and (ii) examine the cover fault kinematics associated with each interaction style. Some of the normal faults parallel and are physically connected to intra-basement reflections, which are interpreted as mylonitic thrusts related to Mesozoic subduction and basement terrane accretion. These geometric relationships indicate pre-existing, intra-basement fabrics locally controlled the position and attitude of Plio-Pleistocene rift-related normal faults. However, through detailed 3D kinematic analysis of selected normal faults, we show that: (i) normal faults only nucleated above intra-basement structures that experienced Late Miocene compressional reactivation; (ii) thrusts and folds resulting from Late Miocene reactivation and upward propagation of intra-basement structures acted as nucleation sites for Plio-Pleistocene rift-related faults; and (iii) despite playing an important role during rifting, intra-basement structures do not appear to have been significantly extensionally reactivated. Our analysis shows how km-wide, intra-basement structures can have a temporally and spatially far-reaching influence over the nucleation and development of newly formed normal faults, principally due to local perturbation of the regional stress field. Because of this, simply inverting fault strike for causal extension direction may be incorrect, especially in provinces where pre-existing, intra-basement structures occur. We also show that a detailed kinematic analysis is key to deciphering the temporal as well as simply spatial or geometric relationship between structures developed at multiple structural levels