Hydrological Drought Forecasting Using a Deep Transformer Model

Hydrological drought forecasting is essential for effective water resource management planning. Innovations in computer science and artificial intelligence (AI) have been incorporated into Earth science research domains to improve predictive performance for water resource planning and disaster management. Forecasting of future hydrological drought can assist with mitigation strategies for various stakeholders. This study uses the transformer deep learning model to forecast hydrological drought, with a benchmark comparison with the long short-term memory (LSTM) model. These models were applied to the Apalachicola River, Florida, with two gauging stations located at Chattahoochee and Blountstown. Daily stage-height data from the period 1928–2022 were collected from these two stations. The two deep learning models were used to predict stage data for five different time steps: 30, 60, 90, 120, and 180 days. A drought series was created from the forecasted values using a monthly fixed threshold of the 75th percentile (75Q). The transformer model outperformed the LSTM model for all of the timescales at both locations when considering the following averages: MSE = 0.11, MAE = 0.21, RSME = 0.31, and R2 = 0.92 for the Chattahoochee station, and MSE = 0.06, MAE = 0.19, RSME = 0.23, and R2 = 0.93 for the Blountstown station. The transformer model exhibited greater accuracy in generating the same drought series as the observed data after applying the 75Q threshold, with few exceptions. Considering the evaluation criteria, the transformer deep learning model accurately forecasts hydrological drought in the Apalachicola River, which could be helpful for drought planning and mitigation in this area of contested water resources, and likely has broad applicability elsewhere

Regulation of DNA Replication During Conventional and Unconventional Cell Cycles in Tetrahymena

As the nucleating protein for pre-replicative complex (pre-RC) assembly, the conserved Origin Recognition Complex (ORC) specifies where replication initiates in eukaryotic chromosomes. During the vegetative cell cycle of Tetrahymena thermophila, previously published work has shown that DNA replication initiates from defined chromosomal sites in an ORC-dependent manner. Tetrahymena exhibits nuclear dimorphism, a polyploid somatic macronucleus (MAC), which is transcriptionally active and maintains vegetative growth, and a diploid germline micronucleus (MIC) responsible for the transmission of genetic information during conjugation. In order to provide more information about the fundamental mechanisms of micro- and macro- nuclear replication programs, I study the impacts of changing in ORC protein contents on the fate of micro- and macro- nuclear chromosomes during the vegetative cell cycle and development in Tetrahymena. I examined the effect of down-regulation of ORC1 on genome stability and intra- S phase checkpoint activation by disrupting ORC1 gene in the macronucleus. Partial depletion of Orc1p leads to genome instability in the diploid mitotic micronucleus, abnormal division of the polyploid amitotic macronucleus, and failure to mount a robust intra-S phase checkpoint response. In addition, the ORC1 knockdown strain fails to execute two developmentally- regulated DNA replication programs, endoreplication and ribosomal DNA (rDNA) gene amplification. I also examined the regulation of ORC and MCM during development. Remarkably, the result suggests that the demand on the ORC-dependent replication machinery differs during development and the vegetative S phase. To further gain new insights into fundamental mechanisms that protect chromosomes from replication stress, I examined the impact of replication stress on the regulation of ORC and MCM. This study led to the discovery of a novel DNA replication program that is activated under HU treatment. While Orc1p and Mcm6p were selectively degraded in response to HU, cells were competent to complete S phase in the absence of Orc1p and Mcm6p after HU was removed. In addition, the rDNA origin used exclusively during the S phase of vegetative cell cycle and developmentally programmed gene amplification is suppressed when these replication proteins are selectively degraded under HU treatment. Instead, an alternative program was used to resume the cell cycle progression. These data provide compelling evidence for an ORC-independent DNA replication program in cells recovering from replication stress

Metformin use and asthma outcomes among patients with concurrent asthma and diabetes

Background and objectiveMetformin is a firstâ line treatment for patients with diabetes. Recent animal studies indicated that metformin can reduce airway inflammation. However, it remains unclear whether the use of metformin can help patients maintain asthma control. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the association between the use of metformin and asthmaâ related outcomes, which include asthmaâ related hospitalization, asthmaâ related emergency room visits and asthma exacerbation, among patients with concurrent asthma and diabetes.MethodsWe conducted an 11â year (2001â 2011) retrospective cohort study using the Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database. Patients with concurrent asthma and diabetes were included. The date of the first observed prescription of metformin was defined as the index date. For each metformin user, two matched metformin nonâ users of the same age and gender were randomly selected. Patients were followed for 3â years to measure the occurrence of asthmaâ related outcomes. Multivariable logistic regression models were used to assess the association between metformin use and asthmaâ related outcomes.ResultsOf 1332 patients with concurrent asthma and diabetes, 444 (33.3%) were metformin users. Compared with nonâ users, metformin users had a lower risk of asthmaâ related hospitalization (ORâ =â 0.21, 95% CI: 0.07â 0.63) and asthma exacerbation (ORâ =â 0.39, 95% CI: 0.19â 0.79).ConclusionThe risk of asthmaâ related outcomes was lower for metformin users than nonâ users. Healthâ care providers should consider metformin as a treatment strategy for patients with concurrent asthma and diabetes.Metformin is commonly used for diabetic patients and has recently been found to reduce airway inflammation in animal studies. We evaluated the association between metformin use and asthma exacerbation among patients with concurrent asthma and diabetes and found that the risk of exacerbation was lower among metformin users than nonâ users.See Editorial, page 1144Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/134202/1/resp12818_am.pdfhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/134202/2/resp12818.pd

Chitosan Encapsulation of Ferrateᵛᶦ for Controlled Release to Water: Mechanistic Insights and Degradation of Organic Contaminant

Tetraoxy-anion of iron in +6 oxidation state (FeVIO42−, FeVI) commonly called ferrate, has shown tremendous potential as a green oxidative agent for decontaminating water and air. Encapsulation of solid potassium salt of ferrate (K2FeO4) circumvents the inherent drawbacks of the instability of ferrate under humid conditions. In the encapsulated strategy, controlled release without exposing the solid ferrate to the humid environment avoids self-decomposition of the oxidant by water in the air, and the ferrate is mostly used to decontaminate water efficiently. This study demonstrated the formulation of oxidative microcapsules with natural materials present in chitosan, whose release rate of the core material can be controlled by the type of intermediate hydrocarbon layer and the pH-dependent swelling of chitosan shell. The pH played a pivotal role in swelling chitosan shell and releasing the core oxidant. In a strong acidic solution, chitosan tended to swell quickly and release FeVI at a faster rate than under neutral conditions. Additionally, among the several long-chain hydrocarbon compounds, oleic acid exhibited the strongest “locking” effect when applied as the intermediate layer, giving rise to the slow release of FeVI . Coconut oil and mineral oil, in comparison, allowed FeVI to penetrate the layer within shorter lengths of time and showed comparable degrees of degradation of target contaminant, methylene orange, under ambient temperature and near-neutral conditions. These findings have practical ramifications for remediating environmental and industrial processes

Association between Anticholinergic Medication Use and Risk of Dementia among Patients with Parkinson’s Disease

Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/151324/1/phar2305.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/151324/2/phar2305_am.pd

Distributed Content Management Framework for Digital Museum Exhibitions

Colloque avec actes et comité de lecture. internationale.International audienceA digital library focuses on conserving, cataloguing, accessing, and tracking the usage of digitized material. On the other hand, a digital museum, other than being a simple digital archive, indeed emphasizes more on providing users with highly educational and motivating exhibitions. Online exhibitions often consist of a variety of multimedia objects such as web pages, animation, and video clips. One can design different exhibitions about the same topic for children, experts, novices, high bandwidth users, low bandwidth users, all using the same set of digital artifacts. The difficulty here is that it is time consuming to produce illustrative and intriguing online exhibitions. To efficiently transform the organized media objects deposited in the digital archive into educational experiences, there is a need of a novel content management framework for organizing digital collections and for quickly selecting, integrating, and composing objects from the collection to produce exhibitions of different presentation styles

A User-Centered Mapping Design for Geomorphological Hazard Thematic Map

Numerous studies have concentrated on developing user-centered designs for hazard zone maps but rarely for hazard-oriented geomorphological maps, named as Geomorphological Hazard Thematic Maps (GHTMs) in this study, which provide more detailed information about natural hazards. This study developed a user-centered mapping design for GHTMs for nonexperts in geomorphology. We invited civil engineers and high school educators to evaluate a sample GHTM\u27s design in group and focus group panel interviews. The civil engineers preferred maps with more geomorphological features, whereas the educators preferred simple designs. Both groups indicated that the inclusion of essential facilities and road networks is essential. The map was also adjusted by adding hillshade layer and by changing the symbology for mass wasting, fault scarps, and fluvial features to increase clarity and simplicity. This case study is the first step toward developing user-centered mapping designs for hazard communication that will deepen their understanding of natural hazards

The effects of water and microstructure on the performance of polymer electrolyte fuel cells

n this paper, we present a comprehensive non-isothermal, one-dimensional model of the cathode side of a Polymer Electrolyte Fuel Cell. We explicitly include the catalyst layer, gas diffusion layer and the membrane. The catalyst layer and gas diffusion layer are characterized by several measurable microstructural parameters. We model all three phases of water, with a view to capturing the effect that each has on the performance of the cell. A comparison with experiment is presented, demonstrating excellent agreement, particularly with regard to the effects of water activity in the channels and how it impacts flooding and membrane hydration. We present several results pertaining to the effects of water on the current density (or cell voltage), demonstrating the role of micro-structure, liquid water removal from the channel, water activity, membrane and gas diffusion layer thickness and channel temperature. These results provide an indication of the changes that are required to achieve optimal performance through improved water management and MEA-component design. Moreover, with its level of detail, the model we develop forms an excellent basis for a multi-dimensional model of the entire membrane electrode assembly