Commentary on 'Improving the seasonal cycle and interannual variations of biomass burning aerosol sources' by Generoso et al.

In a recent published paper, Generoso et al. (2003) describe a method for improving the spatial and temporal distribution of pyrogenic aerosol emission inventories. In the course of their analysis, the authors note several significant discrepancies in the seasonality of burning as observed by the Visible and Infrared Scanner (VIRS) and four other biomass burning data sets derived from satellite observations. In this commentary we explain the source of these discrepancies and clarify the origin of the VIRS observations that were used by Generoso et al

Diverging neural dynamics for syntactic structure building in naturalistic speaking and listening

The neural correlates of sentence production have been mostly studied with constraining task paradigms that introduce artificial task effects. In this study, we aimed to gain a better understanding of syntactic processing in spontaneous production vs. naturalistic comprehension. We extracted word-by-word metrics of phrase-structure building with top-down and bottom-up parsers that make different hypotheses about the timing of structure building. In comprehension, structure building proceeded in an integratory fashion and led to an increase in activity in posterior temporal and inferior frontal areas. In production, structure building was anticipatory and predicted an increase in activity in the inferior frontal gyrus. Newly developed production-specific parsers highlighted the anticipatory and incremental nature of structure building in production, which was confirmed by a converging analysis of the pausing patterns in speech. Overall, the results showed that the unfolding of syntactic processing diverges between speaking and listening

Satellite-based Assessment of Climate Controls on US Burned Area

Climate regulates fire activity through the buildup and drying of fuels and the conditions for fire ignition and spread. Understanding the dynamics of contemporary climate-fire relationships at national and sub-national scales is critical to assess the likelihood of changes in future fire activity and the potential options for mitigation and adaptation. Here, we conducted the first national assessment of climate controls on US fire activity using two satellite-based estimates of monthly burned area (BA), the Global Fire Emissions Database (GFED, 1997 2010) and Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity (MTBS, 1984 2009) BA products. For each US National Climate Assessment (NCA) region, we analyzed the relationships between monthly BA and potential evaporation (PE) derived from reanalysis climate data at 0.5 resolution. US fire activity increased over the past 25 yr, with statistically significant increases in MTBS BA for entire US and the Southeast and Southwest NCA regions. Monthly PE was strongly correlated with US fire activity, yet the climate driver of PE varied regionally. Fire season temperature and shortwave radiation were the primary controls on PE and fire activity in the Alaska, while water deficit (precipitation PE) was strongly correlated with fire activity in the Plains regions and Northwest US. BA and precipitation anomalies were negatively correlated in all regions, although fuel-limited ecosystems in the Southern Plains and Southwest exhibited positive correlations with longer lead times (6 12 months). Fire season PE in creased from the 1980s 2000s, enhancing climate-driven fire risk in the southern and western US where PE-BA correlations were strongest. Spatial and temporal patterns of increasing fire season PE and BA during the 1990s 2000s highlight the potential sensitivity of US fire activity to climate change in coming decades. However, climatefire relationships at the national scale are complex, based on the diversity of fire types, ecosystems, and ignition sources within each NCA region. Changes in the seasonality or magnitude of climate anomalies are therefore unlikely to result in uniform changes in US fire activity

Vino e Ambiente: sostenibilità e qualità primaria nel sottobacino Iudeo-Bucari (TP).

In questa raccolta di scritti, vengono riportati i risultati dell’attività di ricerca realizzata con la collaborazione della cantina UVAM e dell’Istituto Regionale Vino e Olio di Sicili

An overview on molecular characterization of thymic tumors: Old and new targets for clinical advances

Thymic tumors are a group of rare mediastinal malignancies that include three different histological subtypes with completely different clinical behavior: the thymic carcinomas, the thymomas, and the rarest thymic neuroendocrine tumors. Nowadays, few therapeutic options are available for relapsed and refractory thymic tumors after a first-line platinum-based chemotherapy. In the last years, the deepening of knowledge on thymus’ biological characterization has opened possibilities for new treatment options. Several clinical trials have been conducted, the majority with disappointing results mainly due to inaccurate patient selection, but recently some encouraging results have been presented. In this review, we summarize the molecular alterations observed in thymic tumors, underlying the great biological differences among the different histology, and the promising targeted therapies for the future

A Comprehensive Approach to Disentangle the Effect of Cerebellar Damage on Physical Disability in Multiple Sclerosis

Cerebellar damage occurs frequently in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients, with a wide exhibition of symptoms particularly as impairments of balance and gait. Recent studies implementing new postprocessing magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) techniques showed how cerebellar subregional atrophy provides an explanation of disability in MS. The aim of this work was to evaluate the relationship between quantitative measures of physical disability, cerebellar subregional atrophy, and cerebellar peduncle disruption. Forty-nine MS patients and 32 healthy subjects as controls (HS) underwent a 3-Tesla MRI including 3D T1-weighted and diffusion tensor imaging. Patients underwent static posturography to calculate the body's center of pressure (COP) displacement, Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS), and 25-ft walking test (25-FWT). Cerebellar lobular volumes were automatically calculated using the Spatially Unbiased Infratentorial Toolbox. Tract-based spatial statistics (TBSS) in FSL was used to process diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) Fit-generated fractional anisotropy (FA) maps to assess structural connectivity of cerebellar peduncles. Stepwise multivariate linear regression analyses were used to explore relationships between variables. Cerebellar volumes (anterior and posterior, as well as lobular volumes from I to X) were significantly lower in patients with MS than HS (p < 0.05). FA in all cerebellar peduncles was lower in MS patients than in HS (p < 0.05). EDSS and 25-FWT showed an association with atrophy of lobule VIIIb (β = −0.37, p < 0.01, and β = −0.45, p < 0.001, respectively) COP measures inversely correlated with volume of lobules I–IV (β = −0.37, p < 0.01, and β = −0.36, p < 0.01). Lower FA in the three cerebellar peduncles of MS patients positively correlated with cerebellar lobular volumes. Our findings show how sensorimotor cerebellum atrophy and disruption of both afferent and efferent cerebellar connections contribute to physical disability in MS patients

Artificial intelligence applications and cataract management: A systematic review

Artificial intelligence (AI)-based applications exhibit the potential to improve the quality and efficiency of patient care in different fields, including cataract management. A systematic review of the different applications of AI-based software on all aspects of a cataract patient's management, from diagnosis to follow-up, was carried out in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines. All selected articles were analyzed to assess the level of evidence according to the Oxford Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine 2011 guidelines, and the quality of evidence according to the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation system. Of the articles analyzed, 49 met the inclusion criteria. No data synthesis was possible for the heterogeneity of available data and the design of the available studies. The AI-driven diagnosis seemed to be comparable and, in selected cases, to even exceed the accuracy of experienced clinicians in classifying disease, supporting the operating room scheduling, and intraoperative and postoperative management of complications. Considering the heterogeneity of data analyzed, however, further randomized controlled trials to assess the efficacy and safety of AI application in the management of cataract should be highly warranted

New procedures for testing whether stock price processes are martingales

We propose procedures for testing whether stock price processes are martingales based on limit order type betting strategies. We first show that the null hypothesis of martingale property of a stock price process can be tested based on the capital process of a betting strategy. In particular with high frequency Markov type strategies we find that martingale null hypotheses are rejected for many stock price processes

Access and metro network convergence for flexible end-to-end network design

This paper reports on the architectural, protocol, physical layer, and integrated testbed demonstrations carried out by the DISCUS FP7 consortium in the area of access - metro network convergence. Our architecture modeling results show the vast potential for cost and power savings that node consolidation can bring. The architecture, however, also recognizes the limits of long-reach transmission for low-latency 5G services and proposes ways to address such shortcomings in future projects. The testbed results, which have been conducted end-to-end, across access - metro and core, and have targeted all the layers of the network from the application down to the physical layer, show the practical feasibility of the concepts proposed in the project