Impact of Vegetation on Land-Atmosphere Coupling Strength and Its Implication for Desertification Mitigation over East Asia

Desertification of the East Asian drylands and the consequent dust transport have been serious concerns for adjacent Asian countries as well as the western United States. Tree planting has been considered one applicable strategy to mitigate the desertification. However, the desired effect of the tree planting would not be brought to fruition unless the newly planted trees change the coupling characteristics between the land and the atmosphere. Based on this perception, we attempt to clarify the effects of vegetation on the coupling strength between the atmosphere and land surface, and we suggest the most efficient areas of tree planting for desertification mitigation in East Asia. Using regional vegetation-atmosphere coupled model simulations, coupling strength with and without vegetation was computed and compared with each other. An increased vegetation fraction reduces the coupling strength in June, July, and August (JJA), primarily due to decreased evapotranspiration variability. This effect is pronounced over the Manchurian Plains and the highly populated areas of Beijing and Tianjin. The reduced coupling strength tends to weaken feedback between soil moisture and precipitation as a maintenance mechanism of warm season droughts in the midlatitudes and subsequently decrease the probability of droughts, a finding that is reflected in the enhanced JJA mean soil moisture. However, some drylands like the eastern edges of the Gobi desert present marginal or even opposite changes in coupling strength, meaning a limited effect of vegetation on relieving droughts. Therefore, given limited financial and human resources, acupuncture-like afforestation, i.e., concentrated tree planting in a particular region where the coupling strength can be substantially reduced by vegetation, is an effective strategy to secure long-standing desertification mitigation

Removal of Pb and Cu ions from aqueous solution by Mn3O4-coated activated carbon

Mn3O4-coated activated carbon (Mn3O4/AC) was prepared by supercritical technique and applied for the removal of Pb and Cu ions from aqueous solution. Kinetic and isotherm data of the adsorption by Mn3O4/AC were compared with those of activated carbon (AC) and pure Mn3O4. Adsorption of metals was adequately described by pseudo-second-order kinetics and Langmuir isotherm models. Maximum adsorption capacities of Pb and Cu ions determined by Langmuir model were enhanced 2.2 and 6.1 times for Pb and Cu ions by Mn3O4 coating onto AC, which might be attributed to reduced resistance of intraparticle diffusion and enhanced surface electrostatic interaction and complexation by Mn3O4

Temperament and Character Profiles of Sasang Typology in an Adult Clinical Sample

The purpose of this study was to examine the biopsychological personality profiles of traditional Korean Sasang typology based on the Temperament and Character Inventory (TCI) in a Korean adult clinical sample. A total of 97 adults completed the Korean version of the TCI. The participants were classified as one of three traditional Korean Sasang types (31 So-Yang, 41 Tae-Eum, 25 So-Eum) by three specialists in Sasang typology. The seven dimensions of TCI were compared between the different Sasang types using analysis of variance (ANOVA) and profile analysis. There were no significant differences in age, gender and education across the Sasang types. The TCI profile for each of the Sasang types was significantly different (profile analysis, df = 5.038, F = 3.546, P = .004). There were significant differences in the temperament dimensions of Novelty Seeking (F = 3.43, P = .036) and Harm Avoidance (F = 5.43, P = .006) among the Sasang types. The Novelty Seeking score of the So-Yang type (31.90 ± 9.87) was higher than that of the So-Eum type (25.24 ± 9.21; P = .019) while the So-Eum type (44.64 ± 8.47) scored higher on the Harm Avoidance score compared to the So-Yang type (35.16 ± 11.50; P = .003). There were no significant differences in the temperament dimension of Reward Dependence and Persistence, and the three character dimensions of Self-Directedness, Cooperativeness and Self-Transcendence. Results demonstrated distinct temperament traits associated with traditional Korean Sasang types using an objective biopsychological personality inventory. With further study, the Sasang typology may lead to enhanced clinical safety and efficacy as part of personalized medicine with traditional medicine

Hybrid organic-inorganic light-emitting electrochemical cells using fluorescent polymer and ionic liquid blend as an active layer

We demonstrate enhanced device performance by using a blend of emissive polymer and mobile ionic liquid molecules in hybrid organic-inorganic polymeric light-emitting electrochemical cells with high air stability. The mobile anions and cations redistributed near each electrode/active layer interface make ohmic contacts, thereby enhancing current density and electroluminescence efficiency at relatively low operating voltage.open12

Fabrication of pyramidal probes with various periodic patterns and a single nanopore

The nanometer-scale patterned pyramidal probe with an electron beam-induced nanopore on the pyramid apex is an excellent candidate for an optical biosensor. The nanoapertures surrounded with various periodic groove patterns on the pyramid sides were fabricated using a focused ion beam technique, where the optical characteristics of the fabricated apertures with rectangular, circular, and elliptical groove patterns were investigated. The elliptical groove patterns on the pyramid were designed to maintain an identical distance between the grooves and the apex for the surface waves and, among the three patterns, the authors observed the highest optical transmission from the elliptically patterned pyramidal probe. A 103-fold increase of the transmitted optical intensity was observed after patterning with elliptical grooves, even without an aperture on the pyramid apex. The nanopore on the apex of the pyramid was fabricated using electron beam irradiation and was optically characterized

Redevelopment of country image scale questionnaire

ABSTRACT The main purpose of this study was to examine the psychometric properties of the revised measures of country image previously used i

New record of Chromis weberi (Actinopterygii: Ovalentaria: Pomacentridae) from Jeju Island, southern Korea

Discovering tropical marine species outside of their distribution limits is important for evaluating the impact of climate change on marine ecosystems. One specimen (31.6 mm standard length) of a tropical fish, Chromis weberi Fowler et Bean, 1928, representing the family Pomacentridae, was first recorded from Jeju Island, Korea, on 8 December 2021. It was characterized by black posterior margins of the preopercle and opercle and black upper and lower lobes of the caudal fin. A specimen of this species collected from Munseom was distinguished from Chromis xanthura (Bleeker, 1854) based on distinct differences in the tips of the upper and lower caudal fin lobes, which are not black in C. xanthura. In addition, C. weberi was easily distinguished from the other four species in the genus Chromis, by the mitochondrial DNA cytochrome c oxidase subunit I gene sequence (345 bp), with genetic distances ranging from 0.130 to 0.252. This study documents the first record of C. weberi in temperate Korean waters, implying a poleward range expansion for this species. The Korean name ‘geom-eun-jeom-ggo-ri-ja-ri-dom’ has been proposed for C. weberi

Spontaneous aortic rupture in a patient with neurofibromatosis type 1

Neurofibromatosis type I (NF-1) is a rare autosomal dominant genetic disorder occurring in 1 in 3,000 individuals. Vasculopathy is a rarely reported finding in patients with NF-1. Here, we report a case of recurrent aortic pseudoaneurysm after endovascular aneurysm repair in a 49-year-old male patient with NF-1. On the sixth postoperative day following a successful open surgical repair of an aortic pseudoaneurysm, he developed hemoperitoneum due to a delayed rupture of the mesenteric artery branch. This was treated with endovascular coil embolization. We report the clinical features and histologic findings of this rare vascular disorder with a review of the relevant literature