Experiences on altimeter calibration at Ibiza island and Cape of Begur (Spain)

Three preliminary camp aigns for TOPEX /POSEIDON (T/P) wer e made in March 1999 and July 2000 and for JASON-1 in August 2002, in the NW Mediterran ean Sea at th e Begur Cape area. Dir ect abso lute altimeter calibration , and mapping of the sea surface, w ere made in these camp aigns from dir ect overflights using GPS buoys with a toroidal design performed at the I CC based in the orig inal design of the Univ ersity of Colorado at Boulder and a estimation of the TOPEX A lt- B bias w as made. A Spanish JASON-1 geoid gradien t campaign with Fench support has been made in June 2003 at the Ibiza island in the NW Mediterr anean Sea. Th e main objectiv e has b een to map w ith a new d esign ed, builded and calibrated GPS catamar an, the lo cal geoid gradien t in three ar eas around Ibiza island under the ascending (187) and descending (248) Jason-1ground tracks. The catamaran equ ipped with two GPS antennas to perform continuous sea lev el measur ements was towed by the Patro l Dev a from th e Span ish N avy. Five GPS reference stations were dep loyed on Ibiza island: one in Portinatx, two in San Anton io and two in Ibiza. The marin e geo id has been used to relate the coastal tide gauge data from Ibiza and San An tonio h arbours to off- shore altimetric data. In th e framework of the campaign, the levelling of the Ibiza and San Anton io tide gauges to the r espective GPS mark ers w as p erformed. We present synth esis of the resu lts obtained from Topex/Poseidon and th e first r esults on Jason-1 altimeter calibration using the direct measurements from GPS buoys and the derived marin e geoid. Th e Ibiza results agree relativ ely w ell with resu lts ob tained at Corsica, Harvest and Bass Strait calibration permanen t sites. Moreov er, the geod etic activities (e.g., GPS, levelling) has p ermitted to build a very accurate (few mm) local n etwork link ed to th e European one, w ith a reference frame compatible with th e satellite altimetry missions (ITRF2000). The GPS kinematic data wer e processed using two d ifferen t sof twar es allowing to check th e consistency of the solutions. A perspective of a new Jason-1, in cluding Envisat, Ibiza campaign to be made around 2007 will be pr esen ted. These camp aigns w ere supporte by th e Span ish Ministery of Scien ce and Technology under projects of the N ational Space Program ref : ESP1997-1816-CO4- 03 and ESP2001-4534-PE.Peer ReviewedPostprint (published version

The Baleares 2013 Calibration Campaign of Jason-2 and Saral Altimeters

The 2013 Balearic campaign GNSS position analysis of the 2013 will be performed with different softwares by different groups (similarly as it is being done in the International GNSS Service for their different products), in order improve the high demanded accuracy for JASON2 and SARAL altimeters precise calibration. In particular JPL GIPSY-OASIS software will be used, with the undifferenced PPP ambiguity fixing strategy. In order to improve the results accuracy, two similar networks are being processed. The first network includes the deployed GNSS receivers and the reference stations. The second one is a control network, defined by using the permanent receivers in the California dense network with a similar distribution as the main altimeter campaign network. In this case, the position of the receivers plying the role of buoys are being processed in the same kinematic way than the actual buoys, in order to compare them with the very accurate positions obtained with GIPSY-OASIS static processing.Postprint (published version

Campañas altimétricas de calibración del Topex y Jason-1 en el Mediterráneo Occidental

Se describen las campañas de calibracion altimétrica realizadas en el Mediterráneo Occidental por la Universidad Politécnica de Cataluña con el soporte del Instituto Cartográfico de Cataluña, el Real Instituto y Observatorio de la Armada y por Puertos del Estado principalmente. Se realizaron tres experiencias en el Cabo de Begur para calibracion altimétrica y mapeo del geoide marino realizadas en 1999, 2000 y 2002. Calibración absoluta directa estimando el bias del Alt‐B del Topex fue realizada durante el overflight del satelite usando boyas GPS. Una contribución española a las experiencias de calibración ha sido el diseño de las Boyas y Catamarán GPS teniendo en cuenta diseños previos de la Universidad de Boulder en Colorado y las de Senetosa/Capraia. Una campaña mas fue realizada en Junio de 2003 en el area de la Isla de Ibiza. Se utilizaron cinco estaciones GPS de referencia localizadas en Ibiza, San Antonio y Portinax, y por dos mareógrafos georeferenciados situados en los puertos de Ibiza y San Antonio. Una calibración directa adicional fue realizada el 14 de Junio. Otro objetivo importante era obtener el perfil de la Superficie Media Marina a lo largo de las trazas del T/P o Jason‐1 con boyas/catamarán GPS. Mapear la superficie marina para la calibración altimetrica indirecta tiene la ventaja de permitir la calibración de cualquier radar que cruce el area estudiada pero, en cambio, la desventaja es reduce la precision de la estimación del bias. Se tiene prevista una nueva campaña a realizar en la misma zona aproximadamente siguiendo las trazas de los atélites Jason‐2 y Altika con lanzamiento previsto en 2011 que permitirá obtener datos altimétricos en zonas róximas a la costa. Three Begur Cape experiences on radar altimeter calibration and marine geoid mapping made on 1999, 2000 and 2002 are overviewed. One campaign has also been made in June 2003 at the Ibiza island area. Direct absolute calibration estimating the Topex Alt‐B bias was performed during the satellite overflight by using GPS buoys. The advantage of that method is that neither geoid modelling nor tidal error is needed. Other main objective was to map the profile of the Mean Sea Surface (mss) along the closest T/P and Jason‐1 groundtrack. Mapping the marine surface for indirect altimeter calibration has de advantage of allowing the calibration of any radar sensor that crosses the studedarea but, in turn, the disadvantage is that the method requires ocean tide and geoid knowledge, which reduces the accuracy of the bias estimate by a factor of 2. A technical Spanish contribution to the calibration experience has been the design of GPS buoys and GPS catamaran taking in account the University of Colorado at Boulder and Senetosa/Capraia. For the mapping of the extended calibration areas centered on satellite ground tracks, the catamaran was tracked by the Patrol Deva, from the Spanish Navy. An additional absolute altimeter direct calibration was performed on June 14. Complementary data came from five GPS reference stations deployed at Ibiza , San Antonio and Portinatx, and from vertically‐referenced tide gauges located at Ibiza and San Antonio. We present first results on Jason‐1 altimeter calibration using the marine geoid derived from data collected during the campaign. Moreover, the geodetic activities (e.g., GPS, leveling) has permitted to build a very accurate (few mm) local network linked to the european one,s (ITRF2000).Postprint (published version

Respuesta de 10 cultivares de maíz a la densidad de población en tres localidades del centro mexiquense

SE LOGRÓ ESTABLECER LA RESPUESTA DE 10 CULTIVARES DE MAÍZ A LA DENSIDAD DE POBLACIÓN EN TRES LOCALIDADES DEL CENTRO DEL ESTADO DE MÉXICO.La densidad de población es uno de los principales factores que contribuyen a incrementar el rendimiento de grano en maíz. El presente trabajo se estableció en 2013 en tres localidades del centro del Estado de México, México para evaluar el rendimiento de grano y sus componentes principales en diez cultivares de maíz en tres densidades de población. Los tres ensayos se establecieron en campo en un diseño experimental de bloques completos al azar con tres repeticiones en un arreglo de parcelas divididas: en las parcelas grandes se distribuyeron las densidades de población y en las chicas los cultivares. Hubo diferencias significativas (p= 0.01) entre cultivares en las 13 variables registradas, en densidad de población éstas lo fueron en longitud de mazorca, diámetro de mazorca, peso de olote, peso de grano por planta, y rendimiento de grano. Un incremento en la densidad de población disminuyó el número y el peso de grano por planta pero a 104 167 plantas ha-1 el rendimiento fue de10.03 t ha-1. Con P204W se obtuvo la mayor producción de grano (10 t ha-1), pero éste no difirió estadísticamente de IC 2010, AS-MJ9082, H-40 y AS-723. El análisis de componentes principales explicó 65.94% de la variación total original, en éste se observó una alta correlación entre rendimiento de grano, granos por planta, índice de prolificidad y peso de olote

JASON-1 CALVAL experiences in Cape of Begur and Ibiza island

The direct and indirect calibration experiences made at the Cape of Begur area in 1999, 2000 and 2002, for Topex/Poseidon and at the Ibiza island in 2003 have contributed to the international campaigns made at Harvest (USA), Corsica (France) and Bass (Australia). The main objective of IBIZA 2003 campaign has been the determination of the instantaneous sea surface/marine geoid gradient along Jason-1 tracks using a GPS catamaran and a network of GPS located in Portinatx and Ibiza and San Antonio harbours. The marine geoid will be used to relate the tide gauge coastal data with the altimeter data. We present the first results obtained with static and kinematic analysis of the data using different softwares.Peer ReviewedPostprint (published version

Silver clusters of five atoms as highly selective antitumoral agents through irreversible oxidation of thiols

Low atomicity clusters present properties dependent on the size, due to the quantum confinement, with well-defined electronic structures and high stability. Here it is shown that Ag5 clusters catalyze the complete oxidation of sulfur to S+6. Ag5 catalytic activity increases with different oxidant species in the order O2 ≪ H2O2 < OH•. Selective oxidation of thiols on the cysteine residues of glutathione and thioredoxin is the primary mechanism human cells have to maintain redox homeostasis. Contingent upon oxidant concentration, Ag5 catalyzes the irreversible oxidation of glutathione and thioredoxin, triggering apoptosis. Modification of the intracellular environment to a more oxidized state to mimic conditions within cancer cells through the expression of an activated oncogene (HRASG12V) or through ARID1A mutation, sensitizes cells to Ag5 mediated apoptosis. While cancers evolve to evade treatments designed to target pathways or genetic mutations that drive them, they cannot evade a treatment that takes advantage of aberrant redox homeostasis, which is essential for tumor progression and metastasis. Ag5 has antitumor activity in mice with orthotopic lung tumors reducing primary tumor size, and the burden of affected lymphatic nodes. The findings suggest the unique intracellular redox chemistry of Ag5 may lead to new redox-based approaches to cancer therapyThis research was partially supported by 1) “la Caixa” Foundation, Ref. LCF/PR/PR12/11070003 to F.D. and M.A.L.Q.; 2) Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades (MAT2017-89678-R, AEI/FEDER, UE) to F.D. and A.V.; 3) the Consellería de Educación (Xunta de Galicia), Grants No. Grupos Ref. Comp. ED431C 2017/22, ED431C 2019/13 and AEMAT-ED431E2018/08 to M.A.L.Q.; and ED431C 2019/13 to A.V. This project has received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Programme (Bac-To-Fuel) under Grant Agreement No. 825999 (M.A.L.Q.). J.C.H. acknowledge financial support from European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement no. 823717-ESTEEM3, and the MICIIN (projects PID2019-107578GA-100 and PID-110018GA-100). J.M.D, L.J.G., and F.G.R. thank to the ANPCyT (PICT 2015-2285 and 2017-3944), UNLP (Project 11/X790) and the partial support by the Laboratório Nacional de Luz Síncrotron (LNLS, Brazil) under proposal SXS-20180280. G.B. acknowledges the CINECA Award N. IsC51, year 2017, under the ISCRA initiative, for the availability of high-performance computing resources and support. D.B. expresses gratitude for a postdoctoral grant from Xunta de Galicia, Spain (POS-A/2013/018). B.D. expresses gratitude for a predoctoral grant from MICINN, Spain (BES-2016-076765). F.D. and A.V. also acknowledged Xunta de Galicia (Centro singular de investigación de Galicia accreditation 2019-2022 ref ED431G 2019/02) and the European Union (European Regional Development Fund – ERDF). Work in M.P.M.'s lab was supported by the Medical Research Council UK (MC_U105663142). T.G.C. gratefully acknowledges the technical assistance of María José Otero-Fraga (FIDIS)S

Long-term thermal sensitivity of Earth’s tropical forests

The sensitivity of tropical forest carbon to climate is a key uncertainty in predicting global climate change. Although short-term drying and warming are known to affect forests, it is unknown if such effects translate into long-term responses. Here, we analyze 590 permanent plots measured across the tropics to derive the equilibrium climate controls on forest carbon. Maximum temperature is the most important predictor of aboveground biomass (−9.1 megagrams of carbon per hectare per degree Celsius), primarily by reducing woody productivity, and has a greater impact per °C in the hottest forests (>32.2°C). Our results nevertheless reveal greater thermal resilience than observations of short-term variation imply. To realize the long-term climate adaptation potential of tropical forests requires both protecting them and stabilizing Earth’s climate

Albiglutide and cardiovascular outcomes in patients with type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease (Harmony Outcomes): a double-blind, randomised placebo-controlled trial

Background: Glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor agonists differ in chemical structure, duration of action, and in their effects on clinical outcomes. The cardiovascular effects of once-weekly albiglutide in type 2 diabetes are unknown. We aimed to determine the safety and efficacy of albiglutide in preventing cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction, or stroke. Methods: We did a double-blind, randomised, placebo-controlled trial in 610 sites across 28 countries. We randomly assigned patients aged 40 years and older with type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease (at a 1:1 ratio) to groups that either received a subcutaneous injection of albiglutide (30–50 mg, based on glycaemic response and tolerability) or of a matched volume of placebo once a week, in addition to their standard care. Investigators used an interactive voice or web response system to obtain treatment assignment, and patients and all study investigators were masked to their treatment allocation. We hypothesised that albiglutide would be non-inferior to placebo for the primary outcome of the first occurrence of cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction, or stroke, which was assessed in the intention-to-treat population. If non-inferiority was confirmed by an upper limit of the 95% CI for a hazard ratio of less than 1·30, closed testing for superiority was prespecified. This study is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT02465515. Findings: Patients were screened between July 1, 2015, and Nov 24, 2016. 10 793 patients were screened and 9463 participants were enrolled and randomly assigned to groups: 4731 patients were assigned to receive albiglutide and 4732 patients to receive placebo. On Nov 8, 2017, it was determined that 611 primary endpoints and a median follow-up of at least 1·5 years had accrued, and participants returned for a final visit and discontinuation from study treatment; the last patient visit was on March 12, 2018. These 9463 patients, the intention-to-treat population, were evaluated for a median duration of 1·6 years and were assessed for the primary outcome. The primary composite outcome occurred in 338 (7%) of 4731 patients at an incidence rate of 4·6 events per 100 person-years in the albiglutide group and in 428 (9%) of 4732 patients at an incidence rate of 5·9 events per 100 person-years in the placebo group (hazard ratio 0·78, 95% CI 0·68–0·90), which indicated that albiglutide was superior to placebo (p&lt;0·0001 for non-inferiority; p=0·0006 for superiority). The incidence of acute pancreatitis (ten patients in the albiglutide group and seven patients in the placebo group), pancreatic cancer (six patients in the albiglutide group and five patients in the placebo group), medullary thyroid carcinoma (zero patients in both groups), and other serious adverse events did not differ between the two groups. There were three (&lt;1%) deaths in the placebo group that were assessed by investigators, who were masked to study drug assignment, to be treatment-related and two (&lt;1%) deaths in the albiglutide group. Interpretation: In patients with type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease, albiglutide was superior to placebo with respect to major adverse cardiovascular events. Evidence-based glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor agonists should therefore be considered as part of a comprehensive strategy to reduce the risk of cardiovascular events in patients with type 2 diabetes. Funding: GlaxoSmithKline

Using Sensor Fusion and Machine Learning to Distinguish Pedestrians in Artificial Intelligence-Enhanced Crosswalks

Pedestrian safety is a major concern in urban areas, and crosswalks are one of the most critical locations where accidents can occur. This research introduces an intelligent crosswalk, employing sensor fusion and machine learning techniques to distinguish the presence of pedestrians and drivers. Upon detecting a pedestrian, the system proactively activates a warning light signal. This approach aims to quickly alert nearby people and mitigate potential dangers, thereby strengthening pedestrian safety. The system integrates data from radio detection and ranging sensors and a magnetic field sensor, using a hierarchical classifier. The One-Class support vector machine algorithm is used to classify objects in the radio detection and ranging data, while fuzzy logic is used to filter out targets from the magnetic field sensor. Additionally, this work presents a novel method for the manufacture of the road signaling system, using mixtures of resins, aggregates, and reinforcing fibers that are cold-injected into an aluminum mold. The mechanical, optical, and electrical characteristics were subjected to standardized tests, validating its autonomous operation in real-world conditions. The results revealed the system’s effectiveness in detecting pedestrians with a 99.11% accuracy and a 0.0% false-positive rate, marking a substantial improvement over the previous fuzzy logic-based system with an 81.33% accuracy. Attitude testing revealed a significant 33.33% reduction in pedestrian erratic behavior and a substantial decrease in driver speed (32.83% during the day and 70.6% during the night) compared to conventional crossings. Consequently, this comprehensive work offers a unique solution to pedestrian safety at crosswalks by showcasing the potential of machine learning techniques, particularly the One-Class support vector machine algorithm, in advancing road safety through precise and reliable pattern recognition

Campañas altimétricas de calibración del Topex y Jason-1 en el Mediterráneo Occidental

Se describen las campañas de calibracion altimétrica realizadas en el Mediterráneo Occidental por la Universidad Politécnica de Cataluña con el soporte del Instituto Cartográfico de Cataluña, el Real Instituto y Observatorio de la Armada y por Puertos del Estado principalmente. Se realizaron tres experiencias en el Cabo de Begur para calibracion altimétrica y mapeo del geoide marino realizadas en 1999, 2000 y 2002. Calibración absoluta directa estimando el bias del Alt‐B del Topex fue realizada durante el overflight del satelite usando boyas GPS. Una contribución española a las experiencias de calibración ha sido el diseño de las Boyas y Catamarán GPS teniendo en cuenta diseños previos de la Universidad de Boulder en Colorado y las de Senetosa/Capraia. Una campaña mas fue realizada en Junio de 2003 en el area de la Isla de Ibiza. Se utilizaron cinco estaciones GPS de referencia localizadas en Ibiza, San Antonio y Portinax, y por dos mareógrafos georeferenciados situados en los puertos de Ibiza y San Antonio. Una calibración directa adicional fue realizada el 14 de Junio. Otro objetivo importante era obtener el perfil de la Superficie Media Marina a lo largo de las trazas del T/P o Jason‐1 con boyas/catamarán GPS. Mapear la superficie marina para la calibración altimetrica indirecta tiene la ventaja de permitir la calibración de cualquier radar que cruce el area estudiada pero, en cambio, la desventaja es reduce la precision de la estimación del bias. Se tiene prevista una nueva campaña a realizar en la misma zona aproximadamente siguiendo las trazas de los atélites Jason‐2 y Altika con lanzamiento previsto en 2011 que permitirá obtener datos altimétricos en zonas róximas a la costa. Three Begur Cape experiences on radar altimeter calibration and marine geoid mapping made on 1999, 2000 and 2002 are overviewed. One campaign has also been made in June 2003 at the Ibiza island area. Direct absolute calibration estimating the Topex Alt‐B bias was performed during the satellite overflight by using GPS buoys. The advantage of that method is that neither geoid modelling nor tidal error is needed. Other main objective was to map the profile of the Mean Sea Surface (mss) along the closest T/P and Jason‐1 groundtrack. Mapping the marine surface for indirect altimeter calibration has de advantage of allowing the calibration of any radar sensor that crosses the studedarea but, in turn, the disadvantage is that the method requires ocean tide and geoid knowledge, which reduces the accuracy of the bias estimate by a factor of 2. A technical Spanish contribution to the calibration experience has been the design of GPS buoys and GPS catamaran taking in account the University of Colorado at Boulder and Senetosa/Capraia. For the mapping of the extended calibration areas centered on satellite ground tracks, the catamaran was tracked by the Patrol Deva, from the Spanish Navy. An additional absolute altimeter direct calibration was performed on June 14. Complementary data came from five GPS reference stations deployed at Ibiza , San Antonio and Portinatx, and from vertically‐referenced tide gauges located at Ibiza and San Antonio. We present first results on Jason‐1 altimeter calibration using the marine geoid derived from data collected during the campaign. Moreover, the geodetic activities (e.g., GPS, leveling) has permitted to build a very accurate (few mm) local network linked to the european one,s (ITRF2000)