Comparison of stabiliser functions for surface NMR inversions

Surface nuclear magnetic resonance is a geophysical technique providing non-invasive aquifer characterization. Two approaches are commonly used to invert surface nuclear magnetic resonance data: (1) inversions involving many depth layers of fixed thickness and (2) few-layer inversions without predetermined layer thicknesses. The advantage of the many-layer approach is that it requires little a priori knowledge. However, the many-layer inversion is extremely ill-posed and regularisation must be used to produce a reliable result. For optimal performance, the selected regularisation scheme must reflect all available a priori information. The standard regularisation scheme for many-layer surface nuclear magnetic resonance inversions employs an L-2 smoothness stabiliser, which results in subsurface models with smoothly varying parameters. Such a stabiliser struggles to reproduce sharp contrasts in subsurface properties, like those present in a layered subsurface (a common near-surface hydrogeological environment). To investigate if alternative stabilisers can be used to improve the performance of the many-layer inversion in layered environments, the performance of the standard smoothness stabiliser is compared against two alternative stabilisers: (1) a stabiliser employing the L-1-norm and (2) a minimum gradient support stabiliser. Synthetic results are presented to compare the performance of the many-layer inversion for different stabiliser functions. The minimum gradient support stabiliser is observed to improve the performance of the many-layer inversion for a layered subsurface, being able to reproduce both smooth and sharp vertical variations of the model parameters. Implementation of the alternative stabilisers into existing surface nuclear magnetic resonance inversion software is straightforward and requires little modification to existing codes

Technical note: High-density mapping of regional groundwater tables with steady-state surface nuclear magnetic resonance – three Danish case studies

Groundwater is an essential part of the water supply worldwide, and the demands on this water source can be expected to increase in the future. To satisfy the need for resources and to ensure sustainable use of resources, increasingly detailed knowledge of groundwater systems is necessary. However, it is difficult to directly map groundwater with well-established geophysical methods as these are sensitive to both lithology and pore fluid. Surface nuclear magnetic resonance (SNMR) is the only method with a direct sensitivity to water, and it is capable of non-invasively quantifying water content and porosity in the subsurface. Despite these attractive features, SNMR has not been widely adopted in hydrological research, the main reason being an often-poor signal-to-noise ratio, which leads to long acquisition times and high uncertainty in terms of results. Recent advances in SNMR acquisition protocols based on a novel steady-state approach have demonstrated the capability of acquiring high-quality data much faster than previously possible. In turn, this has enabled high-density groundwater mapping with SNMR. We demonstrate the applicability of the new steady-state scheme in three field campaigns in Denmark, where more than 100 SNMR soundings were conducted with a depth of investigation of approximately 30 m. We show how the SNMR soundings enable us to track water level variations at the regional scale, and we demonstrate a high correlation between water levels obtained from SNMR data and water levels measured in boreholes. We also interpret the SNMR results jointly with independent transient electromagnetic (TEM) data, which allows us to identify regions with water bound in small pores. Field practice and SNMR acquisition protocols were optimized during the campaigns, and we now routinely measure high-quality data at 8 to 10 sites per day with a two-person field crew. Together, the results from the three surveys demonstrate that, with steady-state SNMR, it is now possible to map regional variations in water levels with high-quality data and short acquisition times.</p

Brief communication: The hidden labyrinth: deep groundwater in Wright Valley, Antarctica

Since the 1960s, a deep groundwater system in Wright Valley, Antarctica, has been the hypothesized source of brines to hypersaline Don Juan Pond and Lake Vanda, both of which are rich in calcium and chloride. Modeling studies do not support other possible mechanisms, such as evaporative processes, that could have led to the current suite of ions present in both waterbodies. In 2011 and 2018, an airborne electromagnetic survey was flown over Wright Valley to map subsurface resistivity (down to 600 m) in exploration of liquid water. The surveys revealed widespread unfrozen brine in the subsurface near Lake Vanda, Don Juan Pond, and the North Fork of Wright Valley. While our geophysical survey can neither confirm nor deny deep groundwater connectivity between Lake Vanda and Don Juan Pond, it does point to the potential for deep valley-wide brine, likely within the Ferrar Dolerite formation.</p

Homogeneous MGMT Immunoreactivity Correlates with an Unmethylated MGMT Promoter Status in Brain Metastases of Various Solid Tumors

The O6-methylguanine-methyltransferase (MGMT) promoter methylation status is a predictive parameter for the response of malignant gliomas to alkylating agents such as temozolomide. First clinical reports on treating brain metastases with temozolomide describe varying effects. This may be due to the fact that MGMT promoter methylation of brain metastases has not yet been explored in depth. Therefore, we assessed MGMT promoter methylation of various brain metastases including those derived from lung (n = 91), breast (n = 72) kidney (n = 49) and from malignant melanomas (n = 113) by methylation-specific polymerase chain reaction (MS-PCR) and MGMT immunoreactivity. Fifty-nine of 199 brain metastases (29.6%) revealed a methylated MGMT promoter. The methylation rate was the highest in brain metastases derived from lung carcinomas (46.5%) followed by those from breast carcinoma (28.8%), malignant melanoma (24.7%) and from renal carcinoma (20%). A significant correlation of homogeneous MGMT-immunoreactivity (>95% MGMT positive tumor cells) and an unmethylated MGMT promoter was found. Promoter methylation was detected in 26 of 61 (43%) tumors lacking MGMT immunoreactivity, in 17 of 63 (27%) metastases with heterogeneous MGMT expression, but only in 5 of 54 brain metastases (9%) showing a homogeneous MGMT immunoreactivity. Our results demonstrate that a significant number of brain metastases reveal a methylated MGMT-promoter. Based on an obvious correlation between homogeneous MGMT immunoreactivity and unmethylated MGMT promoter, we hypothesize that immunohistochemistry for MGMT may be a helpful diagnostic tool to identify those tumors that probably will not benefit from the use of alkylating agents. The discrepancy between promoter methylation and a lack of MGMT immunoreactivity argues for assessing MGMT promoter methylation both by immunohistochemical as well as by molecular approaches for diagnostic purposes

G93-1126 Crambe Production

This is a complete guide to the specifics of crambe production, from seedbed preparation to harvesting, storage and marketing. Crambe (Crambe abyssinica) is an oil crop from the mustard family. The seed contains 30 to 35 percent oil with 40 to 60 percent erucic acid in the oil. The erucic acid oil content of crambe is 8-9 percent more than that of rapeseed

Estimating T2 from surface NMR FID data using a forward model based on the full-Bloch equation

An integral component of the surface nuclear magnetic resonance forward model involves predicting the magnitude of the transverse magnetization following excitation. To predict the transverse magnetization, the Bloch equation must be solved. Traditional surface NMR forward models solve a simplified version of the Bloch equation where the relaxation terms are neglected. A shortcoming of this approach is that it can struggle to accurately describe the impact of relaxation during pulse effects. To address this concern, an alternative forward model based on solution of the full-Bloch equation is proposed. The advantage of the proposed scheme is that it implicitly accounts for relaxation during pulse effects, increases the flexibility to implement alternative parametrizations of the inverse model, and can readily describe an arbitrary excitation protocol given that it no longer requires closed form expressions of the transverse magnetizations. To demonstrate the potential of the updated forward modelling scheme, a novel approach for the inversion of complex-valued free-induction decay (FID) data is presented. The inverse model is reparametrized in order to produce depth profiles of the water content, T2 17 and T2. This approach has great potential to enhance the ability of FID measurements to provide insights into pore size and permeability as it can provide direct sensitivity to T2. In contrast, traditional approaches that employ a forward model based on the simplified Bloch equation and estimate only T2 17 are plagued by uncertainty surrounding the link between T2 17 and pore size/permeability. Synthetic and field results are presented to demonstrate the feasibility of the proposed forward model and FID inversion framework

Inverting surface NMR free induction decay data in a voltage-time data space

Envelope detection is an integral step of the surface NMR data processing workflow. A promising approach to produce high signal-to-noise ratio envelopes involves a scheme referred to as spectral analysis (SA) envelope detection \u2013 a scheme based upon a series of discrete Fourier transforms for sliding windows of observed NMR data. This method has the advantage that it naturally handles the narrow-band character of the NMR signal without corrupting the early portion of the time-series \u2013 both of which are challenges confronting traditional surface NMR processing schemes. However, SA estimated envelopes are weighted by the NMR relaxation time during processing and the envelopes have units of volt-seconds, whereas the unit of the data space employed by traditional surface NMR forward models is volts. To better integrate the SA envelope detection scheme within the surface NMR workflow, we propose to modify the surface NMR forward model such that it predicts data directly in the voltage-time data space. Synthetic and field data inversions, as well as a parameter resolution study, are presented to demonstrate advantages of pairing the SA envelope detection scheme with a forward model that works in the voltage-time data space. The method is shown to improve parameter resolution and does not require significant modifications to existing surface NMR inversion platforms

Procedimento para escolha de populações de milho promissoras para extração de linhagens Procedure to select superior maize populations for inbred line extraction

O sucesso de um programa de melhoramento de milho visando à obtenção de híbridos está intimamente ligado à identificação da população mais promissora para a extração de linhagens. O presente trabalho objetivou identificar procedimentos para a escolha dessas populações. Para isso, foram obtidas populações segregantes S0, S1 e 196 famílias S0:1 de cada um dos quatro materiais comerciais avaliados: híbridos simples (C 333B e Z 8392), duplo (AG 1051) e variedade (BR-105). Os experimentos foram conduzidos na safra agrícola 98/99 em duas localidades na região sul do Estado de Minas Gerais: Lavras e Ijaci. Na avaliação das 196 famílias S0:1 de cada população foi empregado o delineamento látice simples 14 x 14. Adicionalmente foi instalado um experimento em blocos casualizados, com 4 repetições, para avaliação simultânea das gerações F1, S0 e S1 A partir dos dados de produtividade de espigas despalhadas (kg por parcela) das gerações F1, S0 e S1, foram obtidas as estimativas da contribuição dos locos em homozigose (m + a) e em heterozigose (d). Foram também foram estimados os parâmetros genéticos e fenotípicos com os experimentos das famílias S0:1. Constatou-se que houve boa associação (r = 0,81) entre a estimativa de (m + a) e a média das famílias S0:1 e que população com maior potencial para a extração de linhagens, maior (m + a), foi a AG 1051. A correlação entre as estimativas de (d) e h² foi baixa, indicando que a estimativa da contribuição dos locos em heterozigose não foi bom indicador da variabilidade potencial da população.<br>The identification of the population with greatest potential for inbred line extraction is directly linked to the success of a maize hybrid breeding program. This study was carried out to identify procedures for selecting these populations. Segregant S0, S1 populations and 196 S0:1 families were obtained from each of four commercial cultivars assessed: single hybrids (C 333B and Z8392), double hybrid (AG 1051) and variety (BR-105). The experiments were carried out during the 1998/99 season, in two locations in the southern region of Minas Gerais State, Brazil: Lavras and Ijaci. A 14 x 14 simple lattice design was used in the assessment of the 196 S0:1 families from each population. A randomized complete blocks design with four replications experiment was also set up to assess, simultaneously, the F1, S0 and S1 generations. The husked ear yield (kg/plot) of the F1, S0 and S1 generations was obtained and the contribution of the homozygous locos (m + a) and heterozygous locos (d) were estimated. The genetic and phenotypic parameters were also estimated using the S0:1 family experiments. A high correlation (r = 0.81) between the (m + a) estimate and the S0:1 family mean was observed. The AG 1051 population showed the greatest potential for line extraction, i.e., greatest (m + a) value. The correlation between the d and h² estimates was low, indicating that the estimate of the contribution of the heterozygous locos was not a good indicator of the potential variability of the population