An assembly-oriented novel low-carbon masonry building method with unfired 3D printed earthen blocks

Conventional earthen building methods such as cob and adobe are relevant for developing countries but labour-intensive, expensive and slow for developed countries. Automation in construction has been increasingly favourable in developed countries, especially buildings constructed with 3D printed cementitious materials. 3D printed earthen materials demonstrate a better environmental performance compared to 3D printed cementitious materials due to the energy intensive manufacturing of cement. Moreover, conventional earthen methods, such as cob, create earthen buildings with solid sections while 3D printing allows a hollow section and various infill designs using less material. Despite the benefits, the research on the mechanical strength of 3D-printed earthen structures is still limited. The lack of data on the mechanical performance of 3D printed earthen structures, is one of the obstacles preventing the mainstream construction industry from approaching this novel building method. Our research investigates an assembly-oriented novel low-carbon masonry building method with unfired 3D-printed earthen blocks and explores its adaptability to the mainstream construction industry with a critical comparison based on mechanical properties

Biofilm-forming capability of highly virulent, multidrug-resistant Candida auris

The emerging multidrug-resistant yeast pathogen Candida auris has attracted considerable attention as a source of healthcare–associated infections. We report that this highly virulent yeast has the capacity to form antifungal resistant biofilms sensitive to the disinfectant chlorhexidine in vitro

Landsat TM and ETM+ derived snowline altitudes in the Cordillera Huayhuash and Cordillera Raura, Peru, 1986–2005

The Cordilleras Huayhuash and Raura are remote glacierized ranges in the Andes Mountains of Peru. A robust assessment of modern glacier change is important for understanding how regional change affects Andean communities, and for placing paleo-glaciers in a context relative to modern glaciation and climate. Snowline altitudes (SLAs) derived from satellite imagery are used as a proxy for modern (1986–2005) local climate change in a key transition zone in the Andes. <br><br> Clear sky, dry season Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM) and Enhanced Thematic Mapper (ETM+) satellite images from 1986–2005 were used to identify snowline positions, and their altitude ranges were extracted from an Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) digital elevation model (DEM). Based on satellite records from 31 glaciers, average snowline altitudes (SLAs), an approximation for the equilibrium line altitude (ELA), for the Cordillera Huayhuash (13 glaciers) and Cordillera Raura (18 glaciers) from 1986–2005 were 5051 m a.s.l. from 1986–2005 and 5006 m a.s.l. from 1986–2002, respectively. During the same time period, the Cordillera Huayhuash SLA experienced no significant change while the Cordillera Raura SLA rose significantly from 4947 m a.s.l. to 5044 m a.s.l

Robotic 3D printing with earth: A case study for optimisation of 3D printing building blocks

The interest in 3D printed earthen buildings in developed countries has increased due to the demand for healthy, comfortable and sustainable buildings constructed with low carbon materials and laboursaving methods. However, the amount of research about this field is still limited. Our research aims to contribute to this field by optimising the robotic 3D printing process by investigating issues such as buckling while printing, adequate soil mix recipe for printing, print and extrusion speed calibration. This paper illustrates the process and the results of the temporary research project and the Robotic Cob Printing Workshop with MSc Computational Methods in Architecture (CMA) students at the Welsh School of Architecture, Cardiff University, in March 2022. The project aims to achieve structural stability with less material by using the geometry and the infill of the building block while exploring the role of computational design, robotic extrusion and material understanding in robotic 3D printing with earth as a low-carbon novel building method

A Typology of University Agriculture Students’ Projected Motivations to Study Abroad: An Application of Q Methodology

The study’s purpose was to understand Louisiana State University freshman agriculture students’ projected motivations to study abroad. To achieve this, we used a Q methodological approach. When viewed through the lens of the expectancy-value model of achievement motivation, findings suggested students’ motivations could be interpreted through three typologies: (1) Goal-Oriented Students, (2) Social-Oriented Students, and (3) Learning-Oriented Students. In particular, the Goal-Oriented Students expressed they were motivated to enroll in a study abroad course because they perceived it could enhance their educational and career-related ambitions through personal growth. Meanwhile, Social-Oriented Students articulated that the social dimensions of study abroad courses, i.e., networking, relationship building, and opportunities to experience a new culture, served as their primary motivation. Finally, the Learning-Oriented Students reported their desire to gain more agricultural knowledge, experience an alternative method of instruction, and learn to work with diverse populations provided intrinsic value and encouraged them to study abroad in the future. As a consequence, this study’s findings not only broaden the study abroad literature but also provide implications for university administrators and faculty to better accommodate students through recruitment and programming tailored to their motivational needs

The symmetry spectrum in a hybridising, tropical group of rhododendrons

Many diverse plant clades possess bilaterally symmetrical flowers and specialised pollination syndromes, suggesting that these traits may promote diversification. We examined the evolution of diverse floral morphologies in a species‐rich tropical radiation of Rhododendron. We used restriction‐site associated DNA sequencing on 114 taxa from Rhododendron sect. Schistanthe to reconstruct phylogenetic relationships and examine hybridisation. We then captured and quantified floral variation using geometric morphometric analyses, which we interpreted in a phylogenetic context. We uncovered phylogenetic conflict and uncertainty caused by introgression within and between clades. Morphometric analyses revealed flower symmetry to be a morphological continuum without clear transitions between radial and bilateral symmetry. Tropical Rhododendron species that began diversifying into New Guinea c. 6 million years ago expanded into novel floral morphological space. Our results showed that the evolution of tropical Rhododendron is characterised by recent speciation, recurrent hybridisation and the origin of floral novelty. Floral variation evolved via changes to multiple components of the corolla that are only recognised in geometric morphometrics with both front and side views of flowers

Data Portraits and Intermediary Topics: Encouraging Exploration of Politically Diverse Profiles

In micro-blogging platforms, people connect and interact with others. However, due to cognitive biases, they tend to interact with like-minded people and read agreeable information only. Many efforts to make people connect with those who think differently have not worked well. In this paper, we hypothesize, first, that previous approaches have not worked because they have been direct -- they have tried to explicitly connect people with those having opposing views on sensitive issues. Second, that neither recommendation or presentation of information by themselves are enough to encourage behavioral change. We propose a platform that mixes a recommender algorithm and a visualization-based user interface to explore recommendations. It recommends politically diverse profiles in terms of distance of latent topics, and displays those recommendations in a visual representation of each user's personal content. We performed an "in the wild" evaluation of this platform, and found that people explored more recommendations when using a biased algorithm instead of ours. In line with our hypothesis, we also found that the mixture of our recommender algorithm and our user interface, allowed politically interested users to exhibit an unbiased exploration of the recommended profiles. Finally, our results contribute insights in two aspects: first, which individual differences are important when designing platforms aimed at behavioral change; and second, which algorithms and user interfaces should be mixed to help users avoid cognitive mechanisms that lead to biased behavior.Comment: 12 pages, 7 figures. To be presented at ACM Intelligent User Interfaces 201

Hsp90 governs dispersion and drug resistance of fungal biofilms

Fungal biofilms are a major cause of human mortality and are recalcitrant to most treatments due to intrinsic drug resistance. These complex communities of multiple cell types form on indwelling medical devices and their eradication often requires surgical removal of infected devices. Here we implicate the molecular chaperone Hsp90 as a key regulator of biofilm dispersion and drug resistance. We previously established that in the leading human fungal pathogen, Candida albicans, Hsp90 enables the emergence and maintenance of drug resistance in planktonic conditions by stabilizing the protein phosphatase calcineurin and MAPK Mkc1. Hsp90 also regulates temperature-dependent C. albicans morphogenesis through repression of cAMP-PKA signalling. Here we demonstrate that genetic depletion of Hsp90 reduced C. albicans biofilm growth and maturation in vitro and impaired dispersal of biofilm cells. Further, compromising Hsp90 function in vitro abrogated resistance of C. albicans biofilms to the most widely deployed class of antifungal drugs, the azoles. Depletion of Hsp90 led to reduction of calcineurin and Mkc1 in planktonic but not biofilm conditions, suggesting that Hsp90 regulates drug resistance through different mechanisms in these distinct cellular states. Reduction of Hsp90 levels led to a marked decrease in matrix glucan levels, providing a compelling mechanism through which Hsp90 might regulate biofilm azole resistance. Impairment of Hsp90 function genetically or pharmacologically transformed fluconazole from ineffectual to highly effective in eradicating biofilms in a rat venous catheter infection model. Finally, inhibition of Hsp90 reduced resistance of biofilms of the most lethal mould, Aspergillus fumigatus, to the newest class of antifungals to reach the clinic, the echinocandins. Thus, we establish a novel mechanism regulating biofilm drug resistance and dispersion and that targeting Hsp90 provides a much-needed strategy for improving clinical outcome in the treatment of biofilm infections