A Resilient and Energy-saving Incentive System for Resource Sharing in MANETs

Despite of all progress in terms of computational power, communication bandwidth, and feature richness, limited battery capacity is the major bottleneck for using the resources of mobile devices in innovative distributed applications. Incentives are required for motivating a user to spend energy on behalf of other users and it must be ensured that providing these incentives neither consumes much energy by itself nor allows for free-riding and other types of fraud. In this paper, we present a novel incentive system that is tailored to the application scenario of energyaware resource-sharing between mobile devices. The system has low energy consumption due to avoiding the use of public key cryptography. It uses a virtual currency with reusable coins and detects forgery and other fraud when cashing coins at an off-line broker. A prototype-based measurement study indicates the energy-efficiency of the system, while simulation studies show its resilience to fraud. Even in scenarios with 75% of fraudulent users that are colluding to disguise their fraud only 3.2% of them get away with it while the energy overhead (about 3%) for the incentive system is still moderat

Microbial hydrocarbon degradation in Guaymas Basin—exploring the roles and potential interactions of fungi and sulfate-reducing bacteria

© The Author(s), 2022. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License. The definitive version was published in Edgcomb, V., Teske, A., & Mara, P. Microbial hydrocarbon degradation in Guaymas Basin—exploring the roles and potential interactions of fungi and sulfate-reducing bacteria. Frontiers in Microbiology, 13, (2022): 831828, https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2022.831828.Hydrocarbons are degraded by specialized types of bacteria, archaea, and fungi. Their occurrence in marine hydrocarbon seeps and sediments prompted a study of their role and their potential interactions, using the hydrocarbon-rich hydrothermal sediments of Guaymas Basin in the Gulf of California as a model system. This sedimented vent site is characterized by localized hydrothermal circulation that introduces seawater sulfate into methane- and hydrocarbon-rich sediments, and thus selects for diverse hydrocarbon-degrading communities of which methane, alkane- and aromatics-oxidizing sulfate-reducing bacteria and archaea have been especially well-studied. Current molecular and cultivation surveys are detecting diverse fungi in Guaymas Basin hydrothermal sediments, and draw attention to possible fungal-bacterial interactions. In this Hypothesis and Theory article, we report on background, recent results and outcomes, and underlying hypotheses that guide current experiments on this topic in the Edgcomb and Teske labs in 2021, and that we will revisit during our ongoing investigations of bacterial, archaeal, and fungal communities in the deep sedimentary subsurface of Guaymas Basin.This project was supported by collaborative NSF Biological Oceanography grants OCE-1829903 and OCE-1829680 “Hydrothermal fungi in the Guaymas Basin Hydrocarbon Ecosystem” to VE and AT, and collaborative NSF Biological Oceanography grants OCE-2046799 and OCE-2048489 “IODP-enabled Insights into Fungi and Their Metabolic Interactions with Other Microorganisms in Deep Subsurface Hydrothermal Sediments” to VE and AT. PM was supported by OCE-2046799 and OCE-1829903. Sampling in Guaymas Basin was supported by collaborative NSF Biological Oceanography grant 1357238 “Collaborative Research: Microbial carbon cycling and its interaction with sulfur and nitrogen transformations in Guaymas Basin hydrothermal sediments” to AT

Deep subsurface microbiology : a guide to the research topic papers

© The Author(s), 2013. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License. The definitive version was published in Frontiers in Microbiology 4 (2013): 122, doi:10.3389/fmicb.2013.00122.Deep subsurface microbiology is a rising field in geomicrobiology, environmental microbiology and microbial ecology that focuses on the molecular detection and quantification, cultivation, biogeographic examination, and distribution of bacteria, archaea, and eukarya that permeate the subsurface biosphere. The deep biosphere includes a variety of subsurface habitats, such as terrestrial deep aquifer systems or mines, deeply buried hydrocarbon reservoirs, marine sediments and the basaltic ocean crust. The deep subsurface biosphere abounds with uncultured, only recently discovered and—at best—incompletely understood microbial populations. So far, microbial cells and DNA remain detectable at sediment depths of more than 1 km and life appears limited mostly by heat in the deep subsurface. Severe energy limitation, either as electron acceptor or donor shortage, and scarcity of microbially degradable organic carbon sources are among the evolutionary pressures that may shape the genomic and physiological repertoire of the deep subsurface biosphere. Its biogeochemical importance in long-term carbon sequestration, subsurface elemental cycling and crustal aging, is a major focus of current research at the interface of microbiology, geochemistry, and biosphere/geosphere evolution

Conservation Genetics

Exam paper for second semester (Supplementary Exam

Phylogeographic structure of Octopus vulgaris in South Africa revisited: identification of a second lineage near Durban harbor

In a previous study that investigated genetic structure of Octopus vulgaris along the South African coast by sequencing the mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase III gene (COIII), all sequences generated were identical. Such a finding is unusual, because mitochondrial DNA mutates quickly, and several marine invertebrates present in southern Africa show considerable genetic variation and structure. We reanalysed the samples using two different mitochondrial markers, namely cytochrome oxidase I (COI) and the large ribosomal subunit (16S rRNA). Sequences of both these markers showed variation. The conclusion of the previous study, that South Africa’s O. vulgaris population is characterised by a lack of genetic structure along the coast, is rejected. Some specimens from Durban (southeast Africa) were genetically more different from those found in the remainder of the country than were specimens from other regions (Tristan da Cunha and Senegal). We suggest that the lineage in Durban may have been recently introduced

Cultivation-dependent and cultivation-independent characterization of hydrocarbon-degrading bacteria in Guaymas Basin sediments

Marine hydrocarbon-degrading bacteria perform a fundamental role in the biodegradation of crude oil and its petrochemical derivatives in coastal and open ocean environments. However, there is a paucity of knowledge on the diversity and function of these organisms in deep-sea sediment. Here we used stable-isotope probing (SIP), a valuable tool to link the phylogeny and function of targeted microbial groups, to investigate polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH)-degrading bacteria under aerobic conditions in sediments from Guaymas Basin with uniformly labeled [13C]phenanthrene. The dominant sequences in clone libraries constructed from 13C-enriched bacterial DNA (from phenanthrene enrichments) were identified to belong to the genus Cycloclasticus. We used quantitative PCR primers targeting the 16S rRNA gene of the SIP-identified Cycloclasticus to determine their abundance in sediment incubations amended with unlabeled phenanthrene and showed substantial increases in gene abundance during the experiments. We also isolated a strain, BG-2, representing the SIP-identified Cycloclasticus sequence (99.9% 16S rRNA gene sequence identity), and used this strain to provide direct evidence of phenanthrene degradation and mineralization. In addition, we isolated Halomonas, Thalassospira and Lutibacterium spp. with demonstrable phenanthrene-degrading capacity from Guaymas Basin sediment. This study demonstrates the value of coupling SIP with cultivation methods to identify and expand on the known diversity of PAH-degrading bacteria in the deep-sea

Mitochondrial DNA paradox: sex-specific genetic structure in a marine mussel despite maternal inheritance and passive dispersal

Background: When genetic structure is identified using mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA), but no structure is identified using biparentally-inherited nuclear DNA, the discordance is often attributed to differences in dispersal potential between the sexes. Results: We sampled the intertidal rocky shore mussel Perna perna in a South African bay and along the nearby open coast, and sequenced maternally-inherited mtDNA (there is no evidence for paternally-inherited mtDNA in this species) and a biparentally-inherited marker. By treating males and females as different populations, we identified significant genetic structure on the basis of mtDNA data in the females only. Conclusions: This is the first study to report sex-specific differences in genetic structure based on matrilineally-inherited mtDNA in a passively dispersing species that lacks social structure or sexual dimorphism. The observed pattern most likely stems from females being more vulnerable to selection in habitats from which they did not originate, which also manifests itself in a male-biased sex ratio. Our results have three important implications for the interpretation of population genetic data. First, even when mtDNA is inherited exclusively in the female line, it also contains information about males. For that reason, using it to identify sex-specific differences in genetic structure by contrasting it with biparentally-inherited markers is problematic. Second, the fact that sex-specific differences were found in a passively dispersing species in which sex-biased dispersal is unlikely highlights the fact that significant genetic structure is not necessarily a function of low dispersal potential or physical barriers. Third, even though mtDNA is typically used to study historical demographic processes, it also contains information about contemporary processes. Higher survival rates of males in non-native habitats can erase the genetic structure present in their mothers within a single generation

A Comparison of Spectroscopic versus Imaging Techniques for Detecting Close Companions to Kepler Objects of Interest

(Abbreviated) Kepler planet candidates require both spectroscopic and imaging follow-up observations to rule out false positives and detect blended stars. [...] In this paper, we examine a sample of 11 Kepler host stars with companions detected by two techniques -- near-infrared adaptive optics and/or optical speckle interferometry imaging, and a new spectroscopic deblending method. We compare the companion Teff and flux ratios (F_B/F_A, where A is the primary and B is the companion) derived from each technique, and find no cases where both companion parameters agree within 1sigma errors. In 3/11 cases the companion Teff values agree within 1sigma errors, and in 2/11 cases the companion F_B/F_A values agree within 1sigma errors. Examining each Kepler system individually considering multiple avenues (isochrone mapping, contrast curves, probability of being bound), we suggest two cases for which the techniques most likely agree in their companion detections (detect the same companion star). Overall, our results support the advantage the spectroscopic deblending technique has for finding very close-in companions ($\theta \lesssim$0.02-0.05") that are not easily detectable with imaging. However, we also specifically show how high-contrast AO and speckle imaging observations detect companions at larger separations ($\theta \geq$0.02-0.05") that are missed by the spectroscopic technique, provide additional information for characterizing the companion and its potential contamination (e.g., PA, separation, $\Delta$m), and cover a wider range of primary star effective temperatures. The investigation presented here illustrates the utility of combining the two techniques to reveal higher-order multiples in known planet-hosting systems.Comment: Accepted to AJ. 40 pages, 12 figure

KELT-9 and its ultra-hot Jupiter: stellar parameters, composition, and planetary pollution

KELT-9b is an ultra-hot Jupiter observed to be undergoing extreme mass loss. Its A0-type host star has a radiative envelope, which makes its surface layers prone to retaining recently accreted material. To search for potential signs of planetary material polluting the stellar surface, we carry out the most comprehensive chemical characterisation of KELT-9 to-date. New element detections include Na and Y, which had previously been detected in the ultra-hot Jupiter but not studied in the star; these detections complete the set of nine elements measured in both star and planet. In comparing KELT-9 with similar open cluster stars we find no strong anomalies. This finding is consistent with calculations of photospheric pollution accounting for stellar mixing and using observationally estimated KELT-9b mass loss rates. We also rule out recent, short-lived intensive mass transfer such as the stellar ingestion of an Earth-mass exomoon.Comment: 7 pages, 7 figures, accepted for publication in MNRA

Obtenção e caracterização físico-química de farinha de endosperma e de casca de pinhão.

Resumo. Disponível online. MIPE