Beyond Waste Reduction: Creating Value with Information Systems in Closed-Loop Supply Chains

We study the role of information systems in enabling closed-loop supply chains. Past research in green IS and closed-loop supply chains has shown that it can result in substantial cost savings and waste reduction. We complement this research by showing that the effects are more than that: using information systems can also create business value for a firm in closed-loop supply chains. We make a novel distinction between four types of value: sourcing value, environmental value, customer value and informational value. Particularly the last two types have not been recognized in past research. We then analyze 8 cases (2 for each of the 4 value types) to highlight the role that information systems play in enabling this value creation and find three key results. First, we find that IS is an essential enabler for all four value types. Second, while sourcing value and to some extent environmental value, can be created with IS that are internal to the firm, the novel types of value (customer value and informational value) can only be created with information systems that are extraorganizational, i.e. aimed at customers and supply chain partners. Third, the value created by extraorganizational systems can only be created if the appropriate intraorganizational systems are in place. Overall, our results show that substantial value can be gained from implementing green IS in closed-loop supply chains, but that collaboration between all stakeholders in the supply chain is necessary in order to reap the full value

Passing to the Limit in a Wasserstein Gradient Flow: From Diffusion to Reaction

We study a singular-limit problem arising in the modelling of chemical reactions. At finite {\epsilon} > 0, the system is described by a Fokker-Planck convection-diffusion equation with a double-well convection potential. This potential is scaled by 1/{\epsilon}, and in the limit {\epsilon} -> 0, the solution concentrates onto the two wells, resulting into a limiting system that is a pair of ordinary differential equations for the density at the two wells. This convergence has been proved in Peletier, Savar\'e, and Veneroni, SIAM Journal on Mathematical Analysis, 42(4):1805-1825, 2010, using the linear structure of the equation. In this paper we re-prove the result by using solely the Wasserstein gradient-flow structure of the system. In particular we make no use of the linearity, nor of the fact that it is a second-order system. The first key step in this approach is a reformulation of the equation as the minimization of an action functional that captures the property of being a curve of maximal slope in an integrated form. The second important step is a rescaling of space. Using only the Wasserstein gradient-flow structure, we prove that the sequence of rescaled solutions is pre-compact in an appropriate topology. We then prove a Gamma-convergence result for the functional in this topology, and we identify the limiting functional and the differential equation that it represents. A consequence of these results is that solutions of the {\epsilon}-problem converge to a solution of the limiting problem.Comment: Added two sections, corrected minor typos, updated reference

Measurement of the B0-anti-B0-Oscillation Frequency with Inclusive Dilepton Events

The $B^0$-$\bar B^0$ oscillation frequency has been measured with a sample of 23 million \B\bar B pairs collected with the BABAR detector at the PEP-II asymmetric B Factory at SLAC. In this sample, we select events in which both B mesons decay semileptonically and use the charge of the leptons to identify the flavor of each B meson. A simultaneous fit to the decay time difference distributions for opposite- and same-sign dilepton events gives $\Delta m_d = 0.493 \pm 0.012{(stat)}\pm 0.009{(syst)}$ ps$^{-1}$.Comment: 7 pages, 1 figure, submitted to Physical Review Letter

Impact of sugarcane trash on fertilizer requirements for São Paulo, Brazil

The area under mechanized sugarcane (Saccharum spp.) harvesting is expanding in Brazil, increasing the return of trash to the soil. The main questions regarding this management are: (i) after adopting unburned mechanical harvesting, how long will it take to observe decreases in fertilizer requirements, (ii) what will be the magnitude of this decrease and, (iii) the impact in the short run of removing trash for energy purposes in the nutrient cycling? This study aimed to build an N prediction model for long term assessment of the contribution of sugarcane crop residues to sugarcane nutrition and to evaluate the cycling of other nutrients derived from crop residues. Keeping crop residues over the soil will increase soil N stock and N recovery by sugarcane, reaching equilibrium after 40 years with recovery of approximately 40 kg ha-1 year-1 of N. Removing trash for energy production will decrease the potential reduction in N fertilizer requirement. Of the total nutrients in the trash, 75 % of the K2O (81 kg ha-1 year-1) and 50 % of the N (31 kg ha-1 year-1) are in the tops, indicating the importance of maintaining tops in the soil to sustain soil fertility. Because the input data employed in the simulations are representative of the conditions in Southeast Brazil, these results might not be definitive for situations not represented in the experiments used in the study, but the model produced is useful to forecast changes that occur in the soil under different trash management

Contribution of nitrogen from sugarcane harvest residues and urea for crop nutrition

Sugarcane (Saccharum spp.) harvested without burning provides a substantial amount of remains (trash) on soil profiles which can be decomposed and release nutrients contributing to reduce fertilizer needs. The contribution of nitrogen (N) from sugarcane plant residues and fertilizer in sugarcane nutrition was assessed. Plant cane treatments were micro plots of 15N-labeled urea, sugarcane trash and root system; the last two to simulate the previous crop residues incorporated into the soil after crop renewal. For ratoons, N-ammonium nitrate (N-AN) micro plots, 150 kg ha-1 of N-AN and control (0 kg ha-1) were set up to evaluate the contribution of trash in N supply and quantify the effects of N-fertilizer on N-trash mineralization. The N balances derived from each 15N source were calculated after four crops and resulted in: 15N-urea applied at planting, 31 % was recovered by plant cane, 12 % by the following ratoons, 20 % remained in the soil and 37 % was not found in the soil-system (NOC). For crop residues 15N-trash + roots 26 % was recovered by sugarcane, 51 % remained in soil, and 23 % was NOC. N-fertilizer applied to ratoons nearly doubled the amount of N from green harvest residues recovered by sugarcane; 17 vs. 31 %. Water balances and crop evapotranspiration were correlated with 15N-sources recoveries and cumulative N recovery presented a positive correlation with evapotranspiration (2005 to 2009). The 15N balances indicated that crop residues are supplementary sources of N for sugarcane and may contribute to reduce N fertilizer needs since trash is annually added to the soil

Genetic drivers of kidney defects in the digeorge syndrome

BACKGROUND The DiGeorge syndrome, the most common of the microdeletion syndromes, affects multiple organs, including the heart, the nervous system, and the kidney. It is caused by deletions on chromosome 22q11.2; the genetic driver of the kidney defects is unknown. METHODS We conducted a genomewide search for structural variants in two cohorts: 2080 patients with congenital kidney and urinary tract anomalies and 22,094 controls. We performed exome and targeted resequencing in samples obtained from 586 additional patients with congenital kidney anomalies. We also carried out functional studies using zebrafish and mice. RESULTS We identified heterozygous deletions of 22q11.2 in 1.1% of the patients with congenital kidney anomalies and in 0.01% of population controls (odds ratio, 81.5; P = 4.5×1014). We localized the main drivers of renal disease in the DiGeorge syndrome to a 370-kb region containing nine genes. In zebrafish embryos, an induced loss of function in snap29, aifm3, and crkl resulted in renal defects; the loss of crkl alone was sufficient to induce defects. Five of 586 patients with congenital urinary anomalies had newly identified, heterozygous protein-Altering variants, including a premature termination codon, in CRKL. The inactivation of Crkl in the mouse model induced developmental defects similar to those observed in patients with congenital urinary anomalies. CONCLUSIONS We identified a recurrent 370-kb deletion at the 22q11.2 locus as a driver of kidney defects in the DiGeorge syndrome and in sporadic congenital kidney and urinary tract anomalies. Of the nine genes at this locus, SNAP29, AIFM3, and CRKL appear to be critical to the phenotype, with haploinsufficiency of CRKL emerging as the main genetic driver

Effect of age, sex and gender on pain sensitivity: A narrative review

© 2017 Eltumi And Tashani. Introduction: An increasing body of literature on sex and gender differences in pain sensitivity has been accumulated in recent years. There is also evidence from epidemiological research that painful conditions are more prevalent in older people. The aim of this narrative review is to critically appraise the relevant literature investigating the presence of age and sex differences in clinical and experimental pain conditions. Methods: A scoping search of the literature identifying relevant peer reviewed articles was conducted on May 2016. Information and evidence from the key articles were narratively described and data was quantitatively synthesised to identify gaps of knowledge in the research literature concerning age and sex differences in pain responses. Results: This critical appraisal of the literature suggests that the results of the experimental and clinical studies regarding age and sex differences in pain contain some contradictions as far as age differences in pain are concerned. While data from the clinical studies are more consistent and seem to point towards the fact that chronic pain prevalence increases in the elderly findings from the experimental studies on the other hand were inconsistent, with pain threshold increasing with age in some studies and decreasing with age in others. Conclusion: There is a need for further research using the latest advanced quantitative sensory testing protocols to measure the function of small nerve fibres that are involved in nociception and pain sensitivity across the human life span. Implications: Findings from these studies should feed into and inform evidence emerging from other types of studies (e.g. brain imaging technique and psychometrics) suggesting that pain in the older humans may have unique characteristics that affect how old patients respond to intervention

Mutations in RSPH1 cause primary ciliary dyskinesia with a unique clinical and ciliary phenotype

Rationale: Primary ciliary dyskinesia (PCD) is a genetically heterogeneous recessive disorder of motile cilia, but the genetic cause is not defined for all patients with PCD. Objectives: To identify disease-causingmutations in novel genes, we performed exome sequencing, follow-up characterization, mutation scanning, and genotype-phenotype studies in patients with PCD. Methods: Whole-exome sequencing was performed using NimbleGen capture and Illumina HiSeq sequencing. Sanger-based sequencing was used for mutation scanning, validation, and segregation analysis. Measurements and Main Results: We performed exome sequencing on an affected sib-pair with normal ultrastructure in more than 85% of cilia. A homozygous splice-site mutation was detected in RSPH1 in both siblings; parents were carriers. Screening RSPH1 in 413 unrelated probands, including 325 with PCD and 88 with idiopathic bronchiectasis, revealed biallelic loss-of-function mutations in nine additional probands. Five affected siblings of probands in RSPH1 families harbored the familial mutations. The 16 individuals with RSPH1 mutations had some features of PCD; however, nasal nitric oxide levels were higher than in patients with PCD with other gene mutations (98.3 vs. 20.7 nl/min; P , 0.0003). Additionally, individuals with RSPH1 mutations had a lower prevalence (8 of 16) of neonatal respiratory distress, and later onset of daily wet cough than typical for PCD, and better lung function (FEV1), compared with 75 age- and sex-matched PCD cases (73.0 vs. 61.8, FEV1 % predicted; P = 0.043). Cilia from individuals with RSPH1 mutations had normal beat frequency (6.16Hz at 258C), but an abnormal, circular beat pattern. Conclusions: The milder clinical disease and higher nasal nitric oxide in individuals with biallelic mutations in RSPH1 provides evidence of a unique genotype-phenotype relationship in PCD, and suggests that mutations in RSPH1 may be associated with residual ciliary function

The Earth: Plasma Sources, Losses, and Transport Processes

This paper reviews the state of knowledge concerning the source of magnetospheric plasma at Earth. Source of plasma, its acceleration and transport throughout the system, its consequences on system dynamics, and its loss are all discussed. Both observational and modeling advances since the last time this subject was covered in detail (Hultqvist et al., Magnetospheric Plasma Sources and Losses, 1999) are addressed