Estimation des propriétés de rétention en eau des sols : Utilisation de classes de pédotransfert après stratifications texturale et texturo-structurale

Un programme de mesures des propriétés de rétention en eau des sols a été développé par l'INRA depuis une dizaine d'années afin de constituer un jeu de données qui puisse être utilisé pour tester les fonctions de pédotransfert (FPT) qui ont été proposées dans la littérature, en établir de nouvelles si celles proposées se révèlent non satisfaisantes et dans ce dernier cas, tester les nouvelles FPT. Dans ce contexte général et partant du constat que les FPT proposées ne permettent pas de prédire les propriétés de rétention en eau de façon satisfaisante, cette étude se propose de suivre une autre voie que celle habituellement suivie pour établir un outil d'estimation des propriétés de rétention en eau. Des classes de pédotransfert (CPT) sont proposées par classe de texture ou par classe combinant texture et structure, cette dernière étant renseignée à l'aide de la densité apparente déterminée sur des mottes de dimensions centimétriques. Ainsi, en utilisant soit la texture seule, soit la texture et la densité apparente de motte, on dispose des teneurs en eau massiques à –10, –33, –100, –330, –1000, –3 300 et –15 000 hPa en fonction de l'appartenance de l'horizon à telle ou telle classe de texture ou, telle ou telle classe combinant texture et densité apparente de motte. La qualité de la prédiction a été testée sur un échantillon de validation ; elle a aussi été comparée à celle qui aurait été obtenue si l'on avait utilisé les CPT de Jamagne et al. (1977). Par rapport à ces CPT, les résultats montrent une importante réduction du biais et un accroissement de la précision lorsque l'on utilise les CPT par classe de texture proposées dans cette étude. Lorsque l'on compare les CPT par classes texturales aux CPT par classes texturo-structurales, il n'y a pas d'amélioration notable du biais mais celui-ci était déjà très faible avec les CPT par classes texturales. En revanche, les CPT par classes texturo-structurales, qui permettent de tenir compte à la fois de la texture et de l'état structural du sol, améliorent la précision des prédictions. Pour les CPT par classes texturales, des teneurs en eau volumiques sont déduites des teneurs en eau massiques en utilisant la densité apparente de l'horizon. Les paramètres du modèle de van Genuchten sont donnés pour chaque classe de CPT. Une démarche permettant de prédire les propriétés de rétention en eau d'un horizon est proposée

In depth analysis of the Sox4 gene locus that consists of sense and natural antisense transcripts

Available online 17 February 2016SRY (Sex Determining Region Y)-Box 4 or Sox4 is an important regulator of the pan-neuronal gene expression during post-mitotic cell differentiation within the mammalian brain. Sox4 gene locus has been previously characterized with multiple sense and overlapping natural antisense transcripts [1], [2]. Here we provide accompanying data on various analyses performed and described in Ling et al. [2]. The data include a detail description of various features found at Sox4 gene locus, additional experimental data derived from RNA-Fluorescence in situ Hybridization (RNA-FISH), Western blotting, strand-specific reverse-transcription quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR), gain-of-function and in situ hybridization (ISH) experiments. All the additional data provided here support the existence of an endogenous small interfering- or PIWI interacting-like small RNA known as Sox4_sir3, which origin was found within the overlapping region consisting of a sense and a natural antisense transcript known as Sox4ot1.King-Hwa Ling, Peter J. Brautigan, Sarah Moore, Rachel Fraser, Melody Pui-Yee Leong, Jia-Wen Leong, Shahidee Zainal Abidin, Han-Chung Lee, Pike-See Cheah, Joy M. Raison, Milena Babic, Young Kyung Lee, Tasman Daish, Deidre M. Mattiske, Jeffrey R. Mann, David L. Adelson, Paul Q. Thomas, Christopher N. Hahn, Hamish S.Scot

Optimization Automates Emergency Department Nurse Scheduling at Hartford Hospital

To optimize nurse staffing in the Emergency Department (ED), Hartford Hospital has been collaborating with academics and consultants to schedule nurse-shifts over each 6-week staffing cycle. We develop and implement two-phase optimization models: a robust optimization model to find optimal staffing levels given the uncertainty in patient demands, followed by a pair of mixed-integer problems to generate individual schedules including work, trainee, and preceptor shifts for each nurse. Our approach leads to less costly (5–8%) staffing with better coverage of patient care (8–25%) and higher nurse satisfaction (5%). Moreover, nurses can work fewer shifts on week-ends (17%), holidays (14%), and overtime (85%) as well as be assigned to more diverse positions (3.6) and more daily training opportunities (0.95). We implement our framework into an automated end-to-end scheduling optimization software, deployed for use at Hartford Hospital since March 2023. The software collects preferences from over 200 ED nurses and enables managers to optimize schedules with guided dynamic adjustments. This transformative implementation streamlines a previous labor-expensive staffing process (currently taking over 88 manual hours per cycle) and delivers schedules that are more suitable for patients and nurses together, with an annual projected cost saving of around $720,000

Salivary Cortisol and Binge Eating Disorder in Obese Women After Surgery for Morbid Obesity

Contains fulltext : 77127.pdf (publisher's version ) (Closed access)Background Binge eating episodes characterized by loss of control are hypothesized to be accompanied by changes in hypothalamic pituitary adrenal (HPA) axis functioning. Cortisol is an end product of this neuroendocrine stress system. Purpose The aim of this study was to examine the cortisol levels and the awakening cortisol response (ACR) in obese persons showing binge eating after surgery for morbid obesity. Method Sixteen obese women with binge eating disorder (BED) and 18 obese women without BED participated in the study. Means±SD: age 43 ± 15, body mass index 40 ± 8. Salivary cortisol, anthropometric assessments, and the eating disorder examination interview were taken. Results Women with BED showed a significantly lower waist-to-hip ratio and cortisol levels during the day than women without BED, whereas the ACR did not differ. Conclusion Our cross-sectional study in a small sample generates the hypothesis that neuroendocrine regulation differs between obese women with and without BED after obesity surgery. This finding needs replication in future studies that should also examine the causal direction of the observed association

<i>Gaia</i> Data Release 1. Summary of the astrometric, photometric, and survey properties

Context. At about 1000 days after the launch of Gaia we present the first Gaia data release, Gaia DR1, consisting of astrometry and photometry for over 1 billion sources brighter than magnitude 20.7. Aims. A summary of Gaia DR1 is presented along with illustrations of the scientific quality of the data, followed by a discussion of the limitations due to the preliminary nature of this release. Methods. The raw data collected by Gaia during the first 14 months of the mission have been processed by the Gaia Data Processing and Analysis Consortium (DPAC) and turned into an astrometric and photometric catalogue. Results. Gaia DR1 consists of three components: a primary astrometric data set which contains the positions, parallaxes, and mean proper motions for about 2 million of the brightest stars in common with the HIPPARCOS and Tycho-2 catalogues – a realisation of the Tycho-Gaia Astrometric Solution (TGAS) – and a secondary astrometric data set containing the positions for an additional 1.1 billion sources. The second component is the photometric data set, consisting of mean G-band magnitudes for all sources. The G-band light curves and the characteristics of ∼3000 Cepheid and RR-Lyrae stars, observed at high cadence around the south ecliptic pole, form the third component. For the primary astrometric data set the typical uncertainty is about 0.3 mas for the positions and parallaxes, and about 1 mas yr−1 for the proper motions. A systematic component of ∼0.3 mas should be added to the parallax uncertainties. For the subset of ∼94 000 HIPPARCOS stars in the primary data set, the proper motions are much more precise at about 0.06 mas yr−1. For the secondary astrometric data set, the typical uncertainty of the positions is ∼10 mas. The median uncertainties on the mean G-band magnitudes range from the mmag level to ∼0.03 mag over the magnitude range 5 to 20.7. Conclusions. Gaia DR1 is an important milestone ahead of the next Gaia data release, which will feature five-parameter astrometry for all sources. Extensive validation shows that Gaia DR1 represents a major advance in the mapping of the heavens and the availability of basic stellar data that underpin observational astrophysics. Nevertheless, the very preliminary nature of this first Gaia data release does lead to a number of important limitations to the data quality which should be carefully considered before drawing conclusions from the data

Ceruloplasmin is a novel adipokine which is overexpressed in adipose tissue of obese subjects and in obesity-associated cancer cells

Obesity confers an increased risk of developing specific cancer forms. Although the mechanisms are unclear, increased fat cell secretion of specific proteins (adipokines) may promote/facilitate development of malignant tumors in obesity via cross-talk between adipose tissue(s) and the tissues prone to develop cancer among obese. We searched for novel adipokines that were overexpressed in adipose tissue of obese subjects as well as in tumor cells derived from cancers commonly associated with obesity. For this purpose expression data from human adipose tissue of obese and non-obese as well as from a large panel of human cancer cell lines and corresponding primary cells and tissues were explored. We found expression of ceruloplasmin to be the most enriched in obesity-associated cancer cells. This gene was also significantly up-regulated in adipose tissue of obese subjects. Ceruloplasmin is the body's main copper carrier and is involved in angiogenesis. We demonstrate that ceruloplasmin is a novel adipokine, which is produced and secreted at increased rates in obesity. In the obese state, adipose tissue contributed markedly (up to 22%) to the total circulating protein level. In summary, we have through bioinformatic screening identified ceruloplasmin as a novel adipokine with increased expression in adipose tissue of obese subjects as well as in cells from obesity-associated cancers. Whether there is a causal relationship between adipose overexpression of ceruloplasmin and cancer development in obesity cannot be answered by these cross-sectional comparisons

Coulomb excitation of 222Rn

The nature of quadrupole and octupole collectivity in 222Rn was investigated by determining the electricquadrupole (E2) and octupole (E3) matrix elements using subbarrier, multistep Coulomb excitation. The radioactive 222Rn beam, accelerated to 4.23 MeV/u, was provided by the HIE-ISOLDE facility at CERN. Data were collected in the Miniball gamma -ray spectrometer following the bombardment of two targets, 120Sn and 60Ni. Transition E2 matrix elements within the ground-state and octupole bands were measured up to 10 h over bar and the results were consistent with a constant intrinsic electric-quadrupole moment, 518(11) e fm2. The values of the intrinsic electric-octupole moment for the 0+ -> 3- and 2+ -> 5- transitions were found to be respectively -210 e fm3 and 2300+300-500 e fm3 while a smaller value, 1200+500-900 e fm3, was found for the 2+ -> 1- transition. In addition, four excited non-yrast states were identified in this work via gamma -gamma coincidences.Peer reviewe

betabeta-delayed fission of isomers in 188Bi^188Bi

status: publishe

The observation of vibrating pear-shapes in radon nuclei (vol 10, 2473, 2019)

An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via a link at the top of the paper