5,909 research outputs found
Estimating Environmental Benefits of Natural Hazard Mitigation with Benefit Transfer: Results from a Benefit-Cost Analysis of FEMA Hazard Mitigation Grants
This paper summarizes methods, data, and results associated with the first major attempt to evaluate the environmental benefits of FEMA natural hazards mitigation grants. The study relied heavily on the refinement of benefit transfer methods. Categories of benefits include water quality for recreational and commercial fishing, drinking water, outdoor recreation, hazardous waste, wetlands and aesthetic, health and safety benefits. Environmental and historic benefits proved to be a very minor proportion of the total benefits in dollar terms. Only a very small percentage of earthquake and wind-related hazards yielded environmental benefits, while a sizeable percentage of flood hazard grants did so. We also discuss the prospects that environmental benefits might have been much greater had data been available to analyze more environmental impacts. Key Words: Natural Hazard Mitigation, Environmental Benefits
Prevalence of Salmonella in juvenile dogs affected with parvoviral enteritis
Salmonellosis is a disease of major zoonotic importance and canine parvovirus is a potentially fatal cause of canine enteritis with a world-wide distribution. Persistent isolation of Salmonella during routine environmental sampling surveys of a hospital ward, reserved for the treatment of dogs with canine parvovirus infection, prompted investigation into a possible source. We hypothesised that dogs affected by canine parvovirus would have a higher prevalence of faecal salmonellae compared to an apparently healthy cohort. Seventy-four client-owned dogs naturally infected with canine parvovirus and 42 apparently healthy client-owned dogs were included in the study. This prospective, longitudinal, observational study was conducted over an 18-month period. Fresh faecal samples were collected from dogs aged 6 weeks to 9 months diagnosed with canine parvovirus infection and admitted for treatment, and from apparently healthy dogs presented for vaccination or routine hospital procedures. Faeces were submitted for the isolation, antimicrobial susceptibility testing and serotyping of salmonellae. The prevalence of faecal Salmonella shedding was 22% and 31% for the affected and apparently healthy dogs, respectively, which was not statistically different. No significant associations between Salmonella status and possible risk factors or continuous variables such as age, body weight and duration of hospitalisation were identified. All the Salmonella isolates (n = 32) were resistant to penicillin G, lincomycin and tylosin. Salmonellae from nine different serotypes were identified. The prevalence of Salmonella shedding in both groups was higher than that commonly reported, yet similar to those in previous reports on young dogs, shelter dogs or dogs fed a raw meat diet
Biomolecular imaging and electronic damage using X-ray free-electron lasers
Proposals to determine biomolecular structures from diffraction experiments
using femtosecond X-ray free-electron laser (XFEL) pulses involve a conflict
between the incident brightness required to achieve diffraction-limited atomic
resolution and the electronic and structural damage induced by the
illumination. Here we show that previous estimates of the conditions under
which biomolecular structures may be obtained in this manner are unduly
restrictive, because they are based on a coherent diffraction model that is not
appropriate to the proposed interaction conditions. A more detailed imaging
model derived from optical coherence theory and quantum electrodynamics is
shown to be far more tolerant of electronic damage. The nuclear density is
employed as the principal descriptor of molecular structure. The foundations of
the approach may also be used to characterize electrodynamical processes by
performing scattering experiments on complex molecules of known structure.Comment: 16 pages, 2 figure
Convex domains of Finsler and Riemannian manifolds
A detailed study of the notions of convexity for a hypersurface in a Finsler
manifold is carried out. In particular, the infinitesimal and local notions of
convexity are shown to be equivalent. Our approach differs from Bishop's one in
his classical result (Bishop, Indiana Univ Math J 24:169-172, 1974) for the
Riemannian case. Ours not only can be extended to the Finsler setting but it
also reduces the typical requirements of differentiability for the metric and
it yields consequences on the multiplicity of connecting geodesics in the
convex domain defined by the hypersurface.Comment: 22 pages, AMSLaTex. Typos corrected, references update
From paradox to pattern shift: Conceptualising liminal hotspots and their affective dynamics
This article introduces the concept of liminal hotspots as a specifically psychosocial and sociopsychological type of wicked problem, best addressed in a process-theoretical framework. A liminal hotspot is defined as an occasion characterised by the experience of being trapped in the interstitial dimension between different forms-of-process. The paper has two main aims. First, to articulate a nexus of concepts associated with liminal hotspots that together provide general analytic purchase on a wide range of problems concerning “troubled” becoming. Second, to provide concrete illustrations through examples drawn from the health domain. In the conclusion, we briefly indicate the sense in which liminal hotspots are part of broader and deeper historical processes associated with changing modes for the management and navigation of liminality
Experiment Simulation Configurations Used in DUNE CDR
The LBNF/DUNE CDR describes the proposed physics program and experimental
design at the conceptual design phase. Volume 2, entitled The Physics Program
for DUNE at LBNF, outlines the scientific objectives and describes the physics
studies that the DUNE collaboration will perform to address these objectives.
The long-baseline physics sensitivity calculations presented in the DUNE CDR
rely upon simulation of the neutrino beam line, simulation of neutrino
interactions in the far detector, and a parameterized analysis of detector
performance and systematic uncertainty. The purpose of this posting is to
provide the results of these simulations to the community to facilitate
phenomenological studies of long-baseline oscillation at LBNF/DUNE.
Additionally, this posting includes GDML of the DUNE single-phase far detector
for use in simulations. DUNE welcomes those interested in performing this work
as members of the collaboration, but also recognizes the benefit of making
these configurations readily available to the wider community.Comment: 9 pages, 4 figures, configurations in ancillary file
The effect of dentifrice abrasion on denture topography and the subsequent retention of microorganisms on abraded surfaces
Statement of problem. Denture surfaces provide hard nonshedding niches for the adhesion and subsequent accumulation of oral microorganisms into denture plaque, which can harbor various potential pathogens linked with oral mucosal lesions and inhalation pneumonia. The initial adhesion is the prerequisite for subsequent biofilm growth, and surface roughness niches facilitate this process by trapping cells. Retained microorganisms are then able to proliferate when the denture is returned to the oral cavity.Purpose. The purpose of this study was to measure the amount and strength of the attachment of microorganisms to a roughened denture acrylic resin surface. An increase in surface roughness increases the retention of microorganisms and a greater amount of cell-surface contact interface may increase the strength of adhesion and, therefore, retention. Cleaning denture surfaces with brushes and dentifrices can influence the denture surface topography and, therefore, may affect retention.Material and methods. Denture acrylic resin specimens were abraded to provide different surface roughness. The amount of attachment of Streptococcus oralis or Candida albicans to these surfaces was assessed by measuring the area of a microscopic field covered by stained cells after 1 hour of incubation. The strength of attachment was assessed with atomic force microscopy, whereby an increasing force was applied to the attached cells until they detached from the surface.Results. Both bacteria and yeast cells were retained in increasing amounts on surfaces of increasing roughness. Cells were most strongly attached on surfaces whose linear features (scratches) were of comparable size with the cells (the streptococci on the low-abraded surfaces, and the yeast on high-abraded surfaces).Conclusion. Analysis of findings reveal that even small abrasions may enhance retention on denture surfaces and reduce surface cleanability. The strength of attachment instead of the amount is more important in terms of surface hygiene. © 2014 Editorial Council for the Journal of Prosthetic Dentistry
On the energy functional on Finsler manifolds and applications to stationary spacetimes
In this paper we first study some global properties of the energy functional
on a non-reversible Finsler manifold. In particular we present a fully detailed
proof of the Palais--Smale condition under the completeness of the Finsler
metric. Moreover we define a Finsler metric of Randers type, which we call
Fermat metric, associated to a conformally standard stationary spacetime. We
shall study the influence of the Fermat metric on the causal properties of the
spacetime, mainly the global hyperbolicity. Moreover we study the relations
between the energy functional of the Fermat metric and the Fermat principle for
the light rays in the spacetime. This allows us to obtain existence and
multiplicity results for light rays, using the Finsler theory. Finally the case
of timelike geodesics with fixed energy is considered.Comment: 23 pages, AMSLaTeX. v4 matches the published versio
Data sharing and ontology use among agricultural genetics, genomics, and breeding databases and resources of the AgBioData Consortium
Over the last several decades, there has been rapid growth in the number and
scope of agricultural genetics, genomics and breeding (GGB) databases and
resources. The AgBioData Consortium (https://www.agbiodata.org/) currently
represents 44 databases and resources covering model or crop plant and animal
GGB data, ontologies, pathways, genetic variation and breeding platforms
(referred to as 'databases' throughout). One of the goals of the Consortium is
to facilitate FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable) data
management and the integration of datasets which requires data sharing, along
with structured vocabularies and/or ontologies. Two AgBioData working groups,
focused on Data Sharing and Ontologies, conducted a survey to assess the status
and future needs of the members in those areas. A total of 33 researchers
responded to the survey, representing 37 databases. Results suggest that data
sharing practices by AgBioData databases are in a healthy state, but it is not
clear whether this is true for all metadata and data types across all
databases; and that ontology use has not substantially changed since a similar
survey was conducted in 2017. We recommend 1) providing training for database
personnel in specific data sharing techniques, as well as in ontology use; 2)
further study on what metadata is shared, and how well it is shared among
databases; 3) promoting an understanding of data sharing and ontologies in the
stakeholder community; 4) improving data sharing and ontologies for specific
phenotypic data types and formats; and 5) lowering specific barriers to data
sharing and ontology use, by identifying sustainability solutions, and the
identification, promotion, or development of data standards. Combined, these
improvements are likely to help AgBioData databases increase development
efforts towards improved ontology use, and data sharing via programmatic means.Comment: 17 pages, 8 figure
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