Addressing the elephant in the underground:an argument for the integration of heterogeneous data sources for reconciliation of subsurface utility data

In this paper we address the issue of unreliable subsurface utility information. Data on subsurface utilities are often positionally inaccurate, not up to date, and incomplete, leading to increased uncertainty, costs, and delays incurred in underground-related projects. Despite opportunities for improvement, the quality of legacy data remains unaddressed. We address the legacy data issue by making an argument for an approach towards subsurface utility data reconciliation that relies on the integration of heterogeneous data sources. These data sources can be collected at opportunities that occur throughout the life cycle of subsurface utilities and include as-built GIS records, GPR scans, and open excavation 3D scans. By integrating legacy data with newly captured data sources, it is possible to verify, (re)classify and update the data and improve it for future use. To demonstrate the potential of an integration-driven data reconciliation approach, we present real-world use cases from Denmark and Singapore. From these cases, challenges towards implementation of the approach were identified that include a lack of technological readiness, a lack of incentive to capture and share the data, increased cost, and data sharing concerns. Future research should investigate in detail how various data sources lead to improved data quality, develop a data model that brings together all necessary data sources for integration, and a framework for governance and master data management to ensure roles and responsibilities can be feasibly enacted

Smartphone-Bases Reality Capture for Subsurface Utilities:Experiences from water utility companies in Denmark

Inaccurate and inconsistent documentation of subsurface utilities is a reoccurring problem in the construction industry affecting not only the end-users, but all actors involved in designing, constructing, and maintaining pipes, cables and other utilities hidden underground. In this study, a new method for 3D capturing of subsurface utilities, based on a newly developed Smartphone-based Reality Capture (RC) solution is explored. The research was divided into two parts. Firstly a testing of the method accuracy and secondly, an investigation of the usability of the method. The research results firstly showed that the RC solution is a feasible surveying method, that facilitate capturing of as-built utility assets, which can be used as a supporting tool to conventional surveying methods or alone, as the testing showed an accuracy of ±5 cm for the generated point clouds. Secondly the usability testing revealed that the RC solution benefited the utility owners by allowing time-savings on construction projects, as well as generating visual-realistic 3D models of exposed subsurface utilities to be used for quality assurance and planning of future utility work

Characterisation of cytotoxicity and DNA damage induced by the topoisomerase II-directed bisdioxopiperazine anti-cancer agent ICRF-187 (dexrazoxane) in yeast and mammalian cells

BACKGROUND: Bisdioxopiperazine anti-cancer agents are inhibitors of eukaryotic DNA topoisomerase II, sequestering this protein as a non-covalent protein clamp on DNA. It has been suggested that such complexes on DNA represents a novel form of DNA damage to cells. In this report, we characterise the cytotoxicity and DNA damage induced by the bisdioxopiperazine ICRF-187 by a combination of genetic and molecular approaches. In addition, the well-established topoisomerase II poison m-AMSA is used for comparison. RESULTS: By utilizing a panel of Saccharomyces cerevisiae single-gene deletion strains, homologous recombination was identified as the most important DNA repair pathway determining the sensitivity towards ICRF-187. However, sensitivity towards m-AMSA depended much more on this pathway. In contrast, disrupting the post replication repair pathway only affected sensitivity towards m-AMSA. Homologous recombination (HR) defective irs1SF chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells showed increased sensitivity towards ICRF-187, while their sensitivity towards m-AMSA was increased even more. Furthermore, complementation of the XRCC3 deficiency in irs1SF cells fully abrogated hypersensitivity towards both drugs. DNA-PK(cs )deficient V3-3 CHO cells having reduced levels of non-homologous end joining (NHEJ) showed slightly increased sensitivity to both drugs. While exposure of human small cell lung cancer (SCLC) OC-NYH cells to m-AMSA strongly induced γH2AX, exposure to ICRF-187 resulted in much less induction, showing that ICRF-187 generates fewer DNA double strand breaks than m-AMSA. Accordingly, when yeast cells were exposed to equitoxic concentrations of ICRF-187 and m-AMSA, the expression of DNA damage-inducible genes showed higher levels of induction after exposure to m-AMSA as compared to ICRF-187. Most importantly, ICRF-187 stimulated homologous recombination in SPD8 hamster lung fibroblast cells to lower levels than m-AMSA at all cytotoxicity levels tested, showing that the mechanism of action of bisdioxopiperazines differs from that of classical topoisomerase II poisons in mammalian cells. CONCLUSION: Our results point to important differences in the mechanism of cytotoxicity induced by bisdioxopiperazines and topoisomerase II poisons, and suggest that bisdioxopiperazines kill cells by a combination of DNA break-related and DNA break-unrelated mechanisms

Properties of donor qubits in ZnO formed by indium ion implantation

Shallow neutral donors (D$^\mathrm{0}$) in ZnO have emerged as a promising candidate for solid-state spin qubits. Here, we report on the formation of D$^\mathrm{0}$ in ZnO via implantation of In and subsequent annealing. The implanted In donors exhibit optical and spin properties on par with $\textit{in situ}$ doped donors. The inhomogeneous linewidth of the donor-bound exciton transition is less than 10 GHz, comparable to the optical linewidth of $\textit{in situ}$ In. Longitudinal spin relaxation times ($T_1$) exceed reported values for $\textit{in situ}$ Ga donors, indicating that residual In implantation damage does not degrade $T_1$. Two laser Raman spectroscopy on the donor spin reveals the hyperfine interaction of the donor electron with the spin-9/2 In nuclei. This work is an important step toward the deterministic formation of In donor qubits in ZnO with optical access to a long-lived nuclear spin memory

Statistical mechanics of Roskilde liquids: Configurational adiabats, specific heat contours, and density dependence of the scaling exponent

We derive exact results for the rate of change of thermodynamic quantities, in particular the configurational specific heat at constant volume, $C_V$, along configurational adiabats (curves of constant excess entropy $S_{\textrm{ex}}$). Such curves are designated isomorphs for so-called Roskilde liquids, in view of the invariance of various structural and dynamical quantities along them. Their slope in a double logarithmic representation of the density-temperature phase diagram, $\gamma$ can be interpreted as one third of an effective inverse power-law potential exponent. We show that in liquids where $\gamma$ increases (decreases) with density, the contours of $C_V$ have smaller (larger) slope than configurational adiabats. We clarify also the connection between $\gamma$ and the pair potential. A fluctuation formula for the slope of the $C_V$-contours is derived. The theoretical results are supported with data from computer simulations of two systems, the Lennard-Jones fluid and the Girifalco fluid. The sign of $d\gamma/d\rho$ is thus a third key parameter in characterizing Roskilde liquids, after $\gamma$ and the virial-potential energy correlation coefficient $R$. To go beyond isomorph theory we compare invariance of a dynamical quantity, the self-diffusion coefficient along adiabats and $C_V$-contours, finding it more invariant along adiabats

An atlas of O-linked glycosylation on peptide hormones reveals diverse biological roles

Peptide hormones and neuropeptides encompass a large class of bioactive peptides that regulate physiological processes like anxiety, blood glucose, appetite, inflammation and blood pressure. Here, we execute a focused discovery strategy to provide an extensive map of O-glycans on peptide hormones. We find that almost one third of the 279 classified peptide hormones carry O-glycans. Many of the identified O-glycosites are conserved and are predicted to serve roles in proprotein processing, receptor interaction, biodistribution and biostability. We demonstrate that O-glycans positioned within the receptor binding motifs of members of the neuropeptide Y and glucagon families modulate receptor activation properties and substantially extend peptide half-lives. Our study highlights the importance of O-glycosylation in the biology of peptide hormones, and our map of O-glycosites in this large class of biomolecules serves as a discovery platform for an important class of molecules with potential opportunities for drug designs. O-glycosylation is an abundant post-translational modification but its relevance for bioactive peptides is unclear. Here, the authors detect O-glycans on almost one third of the classified peptide hormones and show that O-glycosylation can modulate peptide half-lives and receptor activation properties.This work was supported by the Novo Nordisk Foundation, the Lundbeck Foundation, Danish National Research Foundation Grant DNRF107