Global function approach in structural analysis: Basic approach, numerical results

The structural response to a given environment is described by the differential equations of motion of deformable bodies. Analytic solutions of such problems for a reasonably large class of structural configurations are not within the realm of the possible. Consequently, the mathematical problem is recast into a numerical problem for solution on the computer. New technology in the space and energy fields led to a growing demand for accurate analysis which at times cannot be met due to the limits set by available budgets for computer time. In response to this need for more efficient numerical analysis, the possibilities of reducing the number of freedoms in the system through a revival of the global function approach were explored

Micro-and macro-plastics in marine species from Nordic waters

This report summarises the knowledge on plastics in Nordic marine species. Nordic biota interacts with plastic pollution, through entanglement and ingestion. Ingestion has been found in many seabirds and also in stranded mammals. Ingestion of plastics has been documented in 14 fish species, which many of them are of ecology and commercially importance. Microplastics have also been found in blue mussels and preliminary studies found synthetic fibres in marine worms. Comparability between and within studies of plastic ingestion by biota from the Nordic environment and other regions are difficult as there are: few studies and different methods are used. It is important that research is directed towards the knowledge gaps highlighted in this report, to get a better understanding on plastic ingestion and impact on biota from the Nordic marine environment

Female genital mutilation of a karyotypic male presenting as a female with delayed puberty

BACKGROUND: Female genital mutilation (FGM) is commonly practiced mainly in a belt reaching from East to West Africa north of the equator. The practice is known across socio-economic classes and among different ethnic, religious, and cultural groups. Few studies have been appropriately designed to measure the health effects of FGM. However, the outcome of FGM on intersex individuals has never been discussed before. CASE PRESENTATION: The patient first presented as a female with delayed puberty. Hormonal analysis revealed a normal serum prolactin level of 215 Mu/L, a low FSH of 0.5 Mu/L, and a low LH of 1.1 Mu/L. Type IV FGM (Pharaonic circumcision) had been performed during childhood. Chromosomal analysis showed a 46, XY karyotype and ultrasonography verified a soft tissue structure in the position of the prostate. CONCLUSION: FGM pose a threat to the diagnosis and management of children with abnormal genital development in the Sudan and similar societies

Reduced Basis Approximation and A Posteriori Error Estimation: Applications to Elasticity Problems in Several Parametric Settings

In this work we consider (hierarchical, Lagrange) reduced basis approximation and a posteriori error estimation for elasticity problems in affinley parametrized geometries. The essential ingredients of the methodology are: a Galerkin projection onto a low-dimensional space associated with a smooth "parametric manifold" - dimension reduction, an efficient and effective greedy sampling methods for identification of optimal and numerically stable approximations - rapid convergence, an a posteriori error estimation procedures - rigorous and sharp bounds for the functional outputs related with the underlying solution or related quantities of interest, like stress intensity factor, and Offline-Online computational decomposition strategies - minimum marginal cost for high performance in the real-time and many-query (e.g., design and optimization) contexts. We present several illustrative results for linear elasticity problem in parametrized geometries representing 2D Cartesian or 3D axisymmetric configurations like an arc-cantilever beam, a center crack problem, a composite unit cell or a woven composite beam, a multi-material plate, and a closed vessel. We consider different parametrization for the systems: either physical quantities - to model the materials and loads - and geometrical parameters - to model different geometrical configurations - with isotropic and orthotropic materials working in plane stress and plane strain approximation. We would like to underline the versatility of the methodology in very different problems. As last example we provide a nonlinear setting with increased complexity

Long telomeres are associated with clonality in wild populations of the fissiparous starfish Coscinasterias tenuispina

7 páginas, 4 figuras, 3 tablasTelomeres usually shorten during an organism’s lifespan and have thus been used as an aging and health marker. When telomeres become sufficiently short, senescence is induced. The most common method of restoring telomere length is via telomerase reverse transcriptase activity, highly expressed during embryogenesis. However, although asexual reproduction from adult tissues has an important role in the life cycles of certain species, its effect on the aging and fitness of wild populations, as well as its implications for the long-term survival of populations with limited genetic variation, is largely unknown. Here we compare relative telomere length of 58 individuals from four populations of the asexually reproducing starfish Coscinasterias tenuispina. Additionally, 12 individuals were used to compare telomere lengths in regenerating and non-regenerating arms, in two different tissues (tube feet and pyloric cecum). The level of clonality was assessed by genotyping the populations based on 12 specific microsatellite loci and relative telomere length was measured via quantitative PCR. The results revealed significantly longer telomeres in Mediterranean populations than Atlantic ones as demonstrated by the Kruskal–Wallis test (K=24.17, significant value: P-valueo0.001), with the former also characterized by higher levels of clonality derived from asexual reproduction. Telomeres were furthermore significantly longer in regenerating arms than in non-regenerating arms within individuals (pyloric cecum tissue: Mann–Whitney test, V=299, P-valueo10− 6; and tube feet tissue Student's t= 2.28, P-value =0.029). Our study suggests that one of the mechanisms responsible for the long-term somatic maintenance and persistence of clonal populations is telomere elongation.This research was financially supported by a PhD fellowship FPI-MICINN (BES-2011-044154) (ACG), the European ASSEMBLY project (227799), the Swedish Royal Academy of Sciences (ACG) and the Spanish Government project CTM2010-22218-C02. The research was also supported by a ‘Juan de la Cierva’ contract from the Spanish Government (RPP) and by the Adlerbertska Research Foundation (HNS).Peer reviewe

A Two-Step Certified Reduced Basis Method

In this paper we introduce a two-step Certified Reduced Basis (RB) method. In the first step we construct from an expensive finite element “truth” discretization of dimension N an intermediate RB model of dimension N≪N . In the second step we construct from this intermediate RB model a derived RB (DRB) model of dimension M≤N. The construction of the DRB model is effected at cost O(N) and in particular at cost independent of N ; subsequent evaluation of the DRB model may then be effected at cost O(M) . The DRB model comprises both the DRB output and a rigorous a posteriori error bound for the error in the DRB output with respect to the truth discretization. The new approach is of particular interest in two contexts: focus calculations and hp-RB approximations. In the former the new approach serves to reduce online cost, M≪N: the DRB model is restricted to a slice or subregion of a larger parameter domain associated with the intermediate RB model. In the latter the new approach enlarges the class of problems amenable to hp-RB treatment by a significant reduction in offline (precomputation) cost: in the development of the hp parameter domain partition and associated “local” (now derived) RB models the finite element truth is replaced by the intermediate RB model. We present numerical results to illustrate the new approach.United States. Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR Grant number FA9550-07-1-0425)United States. Department of Defense. Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD/AFOSR Grant number FA9550-09-1-0613)Norwegian University of Science and Technolog

Moving from symptom management to upstream plastics prevention: The fallacy of plastic cleanup technology

Plastic removal technologies can temporarily mitigate plastic accumulation at local scales, but evidence-based criteria are needed in policies to ensure that they are feasible and that ecological benefits outweigh the costs. To reduce plastic pollution efficiently and economically, policy should prioritize regulating and reducing upstream production rather than downstream pollution cleanup

Seasonal Variations of the Activity of Antioxidant Defense Enzymes in the Red Mullet (Mullus barbatus l.) from the Adriatic Sea

This study investigated seasonal variations of antioxidant defense enzyme activities: total, manganese, copper zinc containing superoxide dismutase (Tot SOD, Mn SOD, CuZn SOD), catalase (CAT), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px), glutathione reductase (GR) and biotransformation phase II enzyme glutathione-S-transferase (GST) activity in the liver and white muscle of red mullet (Mullus barbatus). The investigations were performed in winter and spring at two localities: Near Bar (NB) and Estuary of the River Bojana (EB) in the Southern Adriatic Sea. At both sites, Mn SOD, GSH-Px, GR and GST activities decreased in the liver in spring. In the white muscle, activities of Mn SOD, GSH-Px, GR and GST in NB decreased in spring. GR decreased in spring in EB, while CAT activity was higher in spring at both sites. The results of Principal Component Analysis (PCA) based on correlations indicated a clear separation of various sampling periods for both investigated tissues and a marked difference between two seasons. Our study is the first report on antioxidant defense enzyme activities in the red mullet in the Southern Adriatic Sea. It indicates that seasonal variations of antioxidant defense enzyme activities should be used in further biomonitoring studies in fish species

The Copernicus Marine Environment Monitoring Service Ocean State Report

The Copernicus Marine Environment Monitoring Service (CMEMS) Ocean State Report (OSR) provides an annual report of the state of the global ocean and European regional seas for policy and decision-makers with the additional aim of increasing general public awareness about the status of, and changes in, the marine environment. The CMEMS OSR draws on expert analysis and provides a 3-D view (through reanalysis systems), a view from above (through remote-sensing data) and a direct view of the interior (through in situ measurements) of the global ocean and the European regional seas. The report is based on the unique CMEMS monitoring capabilities of the blue (hydrography, currents), white (sea ice) and green (e.g. Chlorophyll) marine environment. This first issue of the CMEMS OSR provides guidance on Essential Variables, large-scale changes and specific events related to the physical ocean state over the period 1993–2015. Principal findings of this first CMEMS OSR show a significant increase in global and regional sea levels, thermosteric expansion, ocean heat content, sea surface temperature and Antarctic sea ice extent and conversely a decrease in Arctic sea ice extent during the 1993–2015 period. During the year 2015 exceptionally strong large-scale changes were monitored such as, for example, a strong El Niño Southern Oscillation, a high frequency of extreme storms and sea level events in specific regions in addition to areas of high sea level and harmful algae blooms. At the same time, some areas in the Arctic Ocean experienced exceptionally low sea ice extent and temperatures below average were observed in the North Atlantic Ocean