Chronostratigraphy of the Larsen blue-ice area in northern Victoria Land, East Antarctica, and its implications for paleoclimate

In blue-ice areas (BIAs), deep ice is directly exposed at the surface, allowing for the cost-effective collection of large-sized old-ice samples. However, chronostratigraphic studies on blue-ice areas are challenging owing to fold and fault structures. Here, we report on a surface transect of ice with an undisturbed horizontal stratigraphy from the Larsen BIA, northern Victoria Land, East Antarctica. Ice layers defined by dust bands and ground-penetrating radar (GPR) surveys indicate a monotonic increase in age along the ice flow direction on the downstream side, while the upstream ice exhibits a potential repetition of ages on scales of tens of meters, which result from a complicated fold structure. Stable water isotopes (δ18Oice and δ2Hice) and components of the occluded air (i.e., CO2, N2O, CH4, δ15N–N2, δ18Oatm (=δ18O-O2), δO2/N2, δAr/N2​​​​​​​, 81Kr, and 85Kr) are analyzed for surface ice and shallow ice core samples. Correlating δ18Oice, δ18Oatm, and CH4 records from the Larsen BIA with ice from previously drilled ice cores indicates that the gas age at various shallow vertical coring sites ranges between 9.2–23.4 kyr BP, while the ice age sampled from the surface ranges from 5.6 to 24.7 kyr BP. Absolute radiometric 81Kr dating for the two vertical cores confirms ages within acceptable levels of analytical uncertainty. A tentative climate reconstruction suggests a large deglacial warming of 15 ± 5 ∘C (1σ) and an increase in snow accumulation by a factor of 1.7–4.6 (from 24.3 to 10.6 kyr BP). Our study demonstrates that BIAs in northern Victoria Land may help to obtain high-quality records for paleoclimate and atmospheric greenhouse gas compositions through the last deglaciation, although in general climatic interpretation is complicated by the need for upstream flow corrections, evidence for strong surface sublimation during the last glacial period, and potential errors in the estimated gas age–ice age difference.</p

Feasibility and Marketing Channels of a Smartphone Application that Brings Nondestructive Techniques to Job Sites

This work conducted market research on the use of smartphones and smartphone applications in the forest products industry and academia. This research also attempted to project how likely the industry would be to use an app that measures stiffness of wood. After the review of scholarly literature and existing apps, data was collected via an online survey. Participants were individuals who work with wood or wood-based products. Out of 1,221 invitations, 311 were returned at the response rate of 27.2 percent. Data was analyzed using SPSS statistics. Nearly all of the respondents (95.7%) had smartphones, and over half of them were iOS users (52.3%). More respondents had paid apps experiences (45.2%) than in-app purchases (28.5%). Regarding responses’ perceptions toward the app, the respondents expressed that the app could be useful, and were interested in the app. Millennials showed a higher interest level in the app than other generations

Impact of Climate Change on the Preferred Season for Outdoor Water Activities

The purpose of this study is to predict changes in the season for outdoor water activities due to climate change. Nine public outdoor swimming pools in three megacities of South Korea (Seoul, Daegu, and Busan) were selected as study sites. To determine the preferred weather conditions for outdoor water activities, the preference functions of weather elements for outdoor water activities were structured by finding the best-fitting lines with the Z-score of the number of visitors, which is calculated for each swimming pool each year, and the inflection points or the stabilized point of preference functions are set as thresholds for preferred weather conditions for outdoor water activities. To predict changes in the preferred season for outdoor water activities, future weather data for the 2030s, 2060s, and 2090s derived from RCP (Representative Concentration Pathway) scenarios are adapted to the thresholds of preferred weather conditions. The results of this study show that the preferred temperature range for outdoor water activities is: 24.6 °C to 35.0 °C in Seoul, 25.5 °C to 35.5 °C in Daegu, and 27.4 °C to 34.4 °C in Busan, and that the maximum threshold for precipitation is: 36.5 mm in Seoul, 31.5 mm in Daegu, and 26.5 mm in Busan. The results of this study show that the preferred season for outdoor water activities will expand compared to its current duration due to warmer temperatures in the future, and the preferred period for these activities will shift from June to September to May to June and September to October due to extremely hot weather in July and August beginning in the 2030s. The results of this study imply that there will be major changes in the demand and operation of outdoor water activities due to climate change, making it necessary to begin preparations to combat and respond to climate change

Ge2Sb2Te5 p-Type Thin-Film Transistors on Flexible Plastic Foil

In this work, we show the performance improvement of p-type thin-film transistors (TFTs) with Ge 2 Sb 2 Te 5 (GST) semiconductor layers on flexible polyimide substrates, achieved by downscaling of the GST thickness. Prior works on GST TFTs have typically shown poor current modulation capabilities with ON/OFF ratios &le;20 and non-saturating output characteristics. By reducing the GST thickness to 5 nm, we achieve ON/OFF ratios up to &asymp;300 and a channel pinch-off leading to drain current saturation. We compare the GST TFTs in their amorphous (as deposited) state and in their crystalline (annealed at 200 &deg;C) state. The highest effective field-effect mobility of 6.7 cm 2 /Vs is achieved for 10-nm-thick crystalline GST TFTs, which have an ON/OFF ratio of &asymp;16. The highest effective field-effect mobility in amorphous GST TFTs is 0.04 cm 2 /Vs, which is obtained in devices with a GST thickness of 5 nm. The devices remain fully operational upon bending to a radius of 6 mm. Furthermore, we find that the TFTs with amorphous channels are more sensitive to bias stress than the ones with crystallized channels. These results show that GST semiconductors are compatible with flexible electronics technology, where high-performance p-type TFTs are strongly needed for the realization of hybrid complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) technology in conjunction with popular n-type oxide semiconductor materials

Ge2Sb2Te5 p-type thin-film transistors on flexible plastic foil

In this work, we show the performance improvement of p-type thin-film transistors (TFTs) with Ge 2 Sb 2 Te 5 (GST) semiconductor layers on flexible polyimide substrates, achieved by downscaling of the GST thickness. Prior works on GST TFTs have typically shown poor current modulation capabilities with ON/OFF ratios ≤20 and non-saturating output characteristics. By reducing the GST thickness to 5 nm, we achieve ON/OFF ratios up to ≈300 and a channel pinch-off leading to drain current saturation. We compare the GST TFTs in their amorphous (as deposited) state and in their crystalline (annealed at 200 °C) state. The highest effective field-effect mobility of 6.7 cm 2 /Vs is achieved for 10-nm-thick crystalline GST TFTs, which have an ON/OFF ratio of ≈16. The highest effective field-effect mobility in amorphous GST TFTs is 0.04 cm 2 /Vs, which is obtained in devices with a GST thickness of 5 nm. The devices remain fully operational upon bending to a radius of 6 mm. Furthermore, we find that the TFTs with amorphous channels are more sensitive to bias stress than the ones with crystallized channels. These results show that GST semiconductors are compatible with flexible electronics technology, where high-performance p-type TFTs are strongly needed for the realization of hybrid complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) technology in conjunction with popular n-type oxide semiconductor materials.ISSN:1996-194

Relating Moisture Transport to Stable Water Vapor Isotopic Variations of Ambient Wintertime along the Western Coast of Korea

Atmospheric water vapor transfers energy, causes meteorological phenomena and can be modified by climate change in the western coast region of Korea. In Korea, previous studies have utilized precipitation isotopic compositions in the water cycle for correlations with climate variables, but there are few studies using water vapor isotopes. In this study, water vapor was directly collected by a cryogenic method, analyzed for its isotopic compositions, and used to trace the origin and history of water vapor in the western coastal region of Korea during the winter of 2015/2016. Our analysis of paired mixing ratios with water vapor isotopes can explain the mechanism of water vapor isotopic fractionation and the extent of the mixing of two different air masses. We confirm the correlation between water vapor isotopes and meteorological parameters such as temperature, relative humidity, and specific humidity. The main water vapor in winter was derived from the continental polar region of northern Asia and showed an enrichment of 10 per mil (&delta;18O) through the evaporation of the Yellow Sea. Our results demonstrate the utility of using ground-based isotope observations as a complementary resource for constraining isotope-enabled Global Circulation Model in future investigations of atmospheric water cycles. These measurements are expected to support climate studies (speleothem) in the west coast region of Korea

The chloroplast genome of silk floss tree (Ceiba speciosa)

Ceiba speciosa (Malvaceae), also called silk floss tree, is a beautiful and deciduous tree native to tropical and subtropical forests of South America. Its phylogenetic position remains unclear. In this study, the complete chloroplast genome sequence of C. speciosa was reported. Its chloroplast genome size was 160,360 bp, which contains a small single copy (SSC) region of 19,947 bp and a large single copy region (LSC) of 89,393 bp, and two inverted repeats (IRs) of 25,510 bp each. In total, 129 genes were annotated for the chloroplast genome, including 86 protein-coding genes, 37 tRNA genes and 8 rRNA genes. Phylogenetic analysis showed that C. speciosa was sister to Bombax ceiba

Efficacy of Crataegus Extract Mixture on Body Fat and Lipid Profiles in Overweight Adults: A 12-Week, Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Trial

A Crataegus Extract Mixture (CEM) is a combination of extracts from Crataegus pinnatifida leaves and Citrus unshiu peels, well-known herbs used for treating obesity and dyslipidemia. We aimed to investigate the efficacy and safety of a CEM on the body fat and lipid profiles in overweight adults. A 12-week, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group trial was conducted on 105 subjects aged 20–60 years with body mass indexes between 25 and 30 kg/m2. Eligible subjects were randomly assigned in a 1:1:1 ratio to receive either a high dose of the CEM (400 mg tid), a low dose of the CEM (280 mg tid), or a placebo. Body fat was evaluated using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA), bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA), and anthropometric measurements. The blood lipid and adipokine profiles were measured before and after the administration. After 12 weeks, the reductions in the fat percentages measured by DXA and BIA were significantly greater in the CEM groups than in the placebo group. The CEM also significantly decreased the body weights, body mass indexes, and blood leptin levels. An additional per-protocol analysis revealed that the high dose of the CEM also lowered the blood levels of triglycerides and very low-density lipoprotein cholesterol. No adverse events occurred after the CEM treatment. Our results suggest that CEMs are safe and effective for reducing the body fat and body weight and regulating the blood lipid and leptin levels in overweight or mildly obese individuals