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We study the cubic-quartic nonlinear Schrödinger equation (NLS) in two and three spatial dimension. This equation arises in the mean-field description of Bose-Einstein condensates with Lee-Huang-Yang correction. We first prove global existence of solutions in natural energy spaces which allow for the description of self-bound quantum droplets with vorticity. Existence of such droplets, described as central vortex states in 2D and 3D, is then proved using an approach via constrained energy minimizers. In 2D we also obtain a sharp lower bound on their mass. Even though these vortex states are known to be unstable in general, we prove that they are indeed orbitally stable (as a set) under the flow associated to the NLS with repulsive inverse-square potential in 2D.

Accurate assessment of anthropogenic carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions and their redistribution among the atmosphere, ocean, and terrestrial biosphere in a changing climate is critical to better understand the global carbon cycle, support the development of climate policies, and project future climate change. Here we describe and synthesize data sets and methodologies to quantify the five major components of the global carbon budget and their uncertainties. Fossil CO2 emissions (EFOS) are based on energy statistics and cement production data, while emissions from land-use change (ELUC), mainly deforestation, are based on land use and land-use change data and bookkeeping models. Atmospheric CO2 concentration is measured directly, and its growth rate (GATM) is computed from the annual changes in concentration. The ocean CO2 sink (SOCEAN) is estimated with global ocean biogeochemistry models and observation-based data products. The terrestrial CO2 sink (SLAND) is estimated with dynamic global vegetation models. The resulting carbon budget imbalance (BIM), the difference between the estimated total emissions and the estimated changes in the atmosphere, ocean, and terrestrial biosphere, is a measure of imperfect data and understanding of the contemporary carbon cycle. All uncertainties are reported as ±1σ. For the year 2021, EFOS increased by 5.1 % relative to 2020, with fossil emissions at 10.1 ± 0.5 GtC yr−1 (9.9 ± 0.5 GtC yr−1 when the cement carbonation sink is included), and ELUC was 1.1 ± 0.7 GtC yr−1, for a total anthropogenic CO2 emission (including the cement carbonation sink) of 10.9 ± 0.8 GtC yr−1 (40.0 ± 2.9 GtCO2). Also, for 2021, GATM was 5.2 ± 0.2 GtC yr−1 (2.5 ± 0.1 ppm yr−1), SOCEAN was 2.9 ± 0.4 GtC yr−1, and SLAND was 3.5 ± 0.9 GtC yr−1, with a BIM of −0.6 GtC yr−1 (i.e. the total estimated sources were too low or sinks were too high). The global atmospheric CO2 concentration averaged over 2021 reached 414.71 ± 0.1 ppm. Preliminary data for 2022 suggest an increase in EFOS relative to 2021 of +1.0 % (0.1 % to 1.9 %) globally and atmospheric CO2 concentration reaching 417.2 ppm, more than 50 % above pre-industrial levels (around 278 ppm). Overall, the mean and trend in the components of the global carbon budget are consistently estimated over the period 1959–2021, but discrepancies of up to 1 GtC yr−1 persist for the representation of annual to semi-decadal variability in CO2 fluxes. Comparison of estimates from multiple approaches and observations shows (1) a persistent large uncertainty in the estimate of land-use change emissions, (2) a low agreement between the different methods on the magnitude of the land CO2 flux in the northern extratropics, and (3) a discrepancy between the different methods on the strength of the ocean sink over the last decade. This living data update documents changes in the methods and data sets used in this new global carbon budget and the progress in understanding of the global carbon cycle compared with previous publications of this data set. The data presented in this work are available at https://doi.org/10.18160/GCP-2022 (Friedlingstein et al., 2022b).

The observed global net land carbon sink is captured by current land models. All models agree that atmospheric CO2 and nitrogen deposition driven gains in carbon stocks are partially offset by climate and land-use and land-cover change (LULCC) losses. However, there is a lack of consensus in the partitioning of the sink between vegetation and soil, where models do not even agree on the direction of change in carbon stocks over the past 60 years. This uncertainty is driven by plant productivity, allocation, and turnover response to atmospheric CO2 (and to a smaller extent to LULCC), and the response of soil to LULCC (and to a lesser extent climate). Overall, differences in turnover explain ~70% of model spread in both vegetation and soil carbon changes. Further analysis of internal plant and soil (individual pools) cycling is needed to reduce uncertainty in the controlling processes behind the global land carbon sink.

Context: Similar to intubation, Extubation is also associated with stressful airway response. Through not of same degree, it needs to be attenuated especially in neurosurgical patients, due to undesired haemodynamic instability.Aims: To compare beneficial effects of dexmedetomidine and magnesium sulphate in terms of quality of extubation and hemodynamic changes during extubation in craniotomy patients.Methods and Material: Sixty patients of ASA grade I and II, 18 -60 years scheduled for craniotomy were randomly allocated in two groups with 30 each. Group D and M received an infusion of dexmedetomidine 0.5µg/kg and magnesium sulphate 30 mg/kg respectively over ten min at the time of skin closure. HR, SBP and DBP were recorded just before drug administration, 3 and 5 min after drug administration, during extubation and at 3, 5, 10 and 15 minutes after extubation. Extubation quality was rated on five point scale and postoperative sedation on Ramsay sedation scale. Results: Haemodynamic values i.e HR, SBP, DBP and MAP were found to be significantly more acceptable in Group D then in group M (p

Background: An investigational vaccine containing non-typeable Haemophilus influenzae (NTHi) and Moraxella catarrhalis (Mcat) surface proteins did not show vaccine efficacy (VE) against combined moderate and severe (moderate/severe) exacerbations in a randomised, observer-blinded, placebo-controlled phase 2b trial of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Nevertheless, observations on rates of severe exacerbations and hospitalisations encouraged further evaluation. Methods: Patients with stable COPD (moderate to very severe airflow limitation, Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease [GOLD] stage 2-4), 40-80 years and at least one moderate/severe exacerbation in the last year received two doses of NTHi-Mcat vaccine or placebo plus standard care. Secondary analyses were conducted on VE against exacerbations according to severity. Potential predictive factors at baseline for VE against severe exacerbations were explored in post-hoc analyses. Results: Of 606 patients enrolled, 571 were included in the efficacy analysis (279 in NTHi-Mcat vaccine group, 292 in placebo group). VE against severe acute exacerbations of COPD (AECOPD) in various subgroups was 52.11 % (p = 0.015; frequent exacerbators), 65.43 % (p = 0.015; baseline GOLD grade 4), 38.24 % (p = 0.034; previous pneumococcal and/or influenza vaccination). VE was 52.49 % (p = 0.044) for the 6-12 months period after 1 month post-dose 2. Multivariable analysis identified two factors (frequent exacerbator status plus inhaled corticosteroid use at baseline) associated with significant VE against severe AECOPD; in this subpopulation, VE was 74.99 % (p < 0.001). Conclusion: Results suggest potential efficacy with the NTHi-Mcat vaccine against severe exacerbations in certain patients with COPD, in particular those who have frequent exacerbations and use inhaled corticosteroids. This potential signal requires confirmation in an appropriately designed prospective clinical trial. Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT03281876.

We consider the focusing $5$d Hartree equation, which is $L^2$-supercritical, with finite energy initial data, and investigate the solutions at the mass-energy threshold. We establish the existence of special solutions following the work of Duyckaerts-Roudenko [11] for the $3$d focusing cubic nonlinear Schr\"odinger equation (NLS). In particular, apart from the ground state solution $Q$, which is global but non-scattering, there exist special solutions $Q^+$ and $Q^-$, which in one time direction approach $Q$ exponentially, and in the other time direction $Q^+$ blows up in finite time and $Q^-$ exists for all time, exhibiting scattering behavior. We then characterize all radial threshold solutions either as scattering and blow up solutions in both time directions (similar to the solutions under the mass-energy threshold, see Arora-Roudenko [3]), or as the special solutions described above. To obtain the existence and classification result, in this paper we perform a thorough and meticulous investigation of the spectral properties of the linearized operator associated to the Hartree equation., Comment: 53 pages

We study the cubic-quartic nonlinear Schr��dinger equation (NLS) in two and three spatial dimension. This equation arises in the mean-field description of Bose-Einstein condensates with Lee-Huang-Yang correction. We first prove global existence of solutions in natural energy spaces which allow for the description of self-bound quantum droplets with vorticity. Existence of such droplets, described as central vortex states in 2D and 3D, is then proved using an approach via constrained energy minimizers. A natural connection to the NLS with repulsive inverse-square potential in 2D arises, leading to an orbital stability result under the corresponding flow., 19 pages

We investigate the well-posedness in the generalized Hartree equation $iu_t + ��u + (|x|^{-(N-��)} \ast |u|^p)|u|^{p-2}u=0$, $x \in \mathbb{R}^N$, $0, 29 pages, accepted version

Changing amplitude of the seasonal cycle of atmospheric CO2 (SCA) in the northern hemisphere is an emerging carbon cycle property. Mauna Loa (MLO) station (20°N, 156°W), which has the longest continuous northern hemisphere CO2 record, shows an increasing SCA before the 1980s (p < .01), followed by no significant change thereafter. We analyzed the potential driving factors of SCA slowing‐down, with an ensemble of dynamic global vegetation models (DGVMs) coupled with an atmospheric transport model. We found that slowing‐down of SCA at MLO is primarily explained by response of net biome productivity (NBP) to climate change, and by changes in atmospheric circulations. Through NBP, climate change increases SCA at MLO before the 1980s and decreases it afterwards. The effect of climate change on the slowing‐down of SCA at MLO is mainly exerted by intensified drought stress acting to offset the acceleration driven by CO2 fertilization. This challenges the view that CO2 fertilization is the dominant cause of emergent SCA trends at northern sites south of 40°N. The contribution of agricultural intensification on the deceleration of SCA at MLO was elusive according to land–atmosphere CO2 flux estimated by DGVMs and atmospheric inversions. Our results also show the necessity to adequately account for changing circulation patterns in understanding carbon cycle dynamics observed from atmospheric observations and in using these observations to benchmark DGVMs.

Advances in computing technology and the proliferation of broadband in the home have opened up the Internet to wider use. People like the idea of easy access to information at their fingertips, via their personal networked devices. This has been established by the increased popularity of Peer-to-Peer (P2P) file-sharing networks. P2P is a viable and cost effective model for content distribution. Content producers require modest resources by today's standards to act as distributors of their content and P2P technology can assist in further reducing this cost, thus enabling the development of new business models for content distribution to realise market and user needs. However, many other consequences and challenges are introduced; more notably, the issues of copyright violation, free-riding, the lack of participation incentives and the difficulties associated with the provision of payment services within a decentralised heterogeneous and ad hoc environment. Further issues directly relevant to content exchange also arise such as transaction atomicity, non-repudiation and data persistence. We have developed a framework to address these challenges. The novel Cascading Payment Content Exchange (CasPaCE) framework was designed and developed to incorporate the use of cascading payments to overcome the problem of copyright violation and prevent free-riding in P2P file-sharing networks. By incorporating the use of unique identification, copyright mobility and fair compensation for both producers and distributors in the content distribution value chain, the cascading payments model empowers content producers and enables the creation of new business models. The system allows users to manage their content distribution as well as purchasing activities by mobilising payments and automatically gathering royalties on behalf of the producer. The methodology used to conduct this research involved the use of advances in service-oriented architecture development as well as the use of object-oriented analysis and design techniques. These assisted in the development of an open and flexible framework which facilitates equitable digital content exchange without detracting from the advantages of the P2P domain. A prototype of the CasPaCE framework (developed in Java) demonstrates how peer devices can be connected to form a content exchange environment where both producers and distributors benefit from participating in the system. This prototype was successfully evaluated within the bounds of an E-learning Content Exchange (EIConE) case study, which allows students within a large UK university to exchange digital content for compensation enabling the better use of redundant resources in the university.

BACKGROUND: Shared decision-making is an important component of patient-centered care and is associated with improved outcomes. To the authors' knowledge, little is known concerning the extent and predictors of the involvement of a patient's family in decisions regarding cancer treatments. METHODS: The Cancer Care Outcomes Research and Surveillance (CanCORS) Consortium is a large, multiregional, prospective cohort study of the cancer care and outcomes of patients with lung and colorectal cancer. Participants reported the roles of their families in decision-making regarding treatment. Multinomial logistic regression was used to assess patient factors associated with family roles in decisions. RESULTS: Among 5284 patients, 80 (1.5%) reported family-controlled decisions, with the highest adjusted rates (12.8%) noted among non-English-speaking Asians. Among the 5204 remaining patients, 49.4% reported equally sharing decisions with family, 22.1% reported some family input, and 28.5% reported little family input. In adjusted analyses, patients who were married, female, older, and insured more often reported equally shared decisions with family (all P

ImportanceShared decision making is associated with improved patient-reported outcomes of cancer treatment, but not all patients prefer to participate in medical decisions. Results from studies of the effect of matching between actual and preferred medical decision roles on patients' perceptions of care quality have been conflicting.ObjectivesTo determine whether shared decision making was associated with patient ratings of care quality and physician communication and whether patients' preferred decision roles modified those associations.Design, setting, and participantsWe performed a population- and health system-based survey of participants in the Cancer Care Outcomes Research and Surveillance Consortium (CanCORS) study diagnosed with lung and/or colorectal cancer between 2003 and 2005 (56% with colorectal cancer, 40% with non-small-cell lung cancer, and 5% with small-cell lung cancer). The CanCORS study included 9737 patients (cooperation rate among patients contacted, 59.9%) treated in integrated care delivery systems, academic institutions, private offices, and Veterans Affairs hospitals. The medical records were abstracted between October 11, 2005, and April 30, 2009; all analyses were conducted between 2013 and 2014.InterventionsWe surveyed patients specifically about their preferred roles in cancer treatment decisions and their actual roles in decisions about surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy. We analyzed the responses of 5315 patients who completed baseline surveys and reported decision roles for a total of 10 817 treatment decisions and assessed associations of patients' decision roles with patient-reported quality of care and physician communication.Main outcomes and measuresThe outcomes (identified before data collection) included patient-reported excellent quality of care and top ratings (highest score) on a physician communication scale.ResultsAfter adjustment, patients describing physician-controlled (vs shared) decisions were less likely to report excellent quality of care (odds ratio [OR], 0.64; 95% CI, 0.54-0.75; P

BackgroundClinical trials are essential to establish the effectiveness of new cancer therapies, but less than 5% of adults with cancer enroll in trials. In addition to ineligibility or lack of available trials, barriers to enrollment may include limited patient awareness about the option of participation.MethodsWe surveyed a multiregional cohort of patients with lung or colorectal cancer (or their surrogates) three to six months after diagnosis. We assessed whether respondents reported learning that clinical trial participation might be an option, and, if so, with whom they discussed trials. We used logistic regression to assess the association of patient characteristics with discussing trial participation and enrolling in trials. All statistical tests were two-sided.ResultsOf 7887 respondents, 1114 (14.1%) reported discussing the possibility of clinical trial participation; most learned about trials from their physicians, and 287 patients (3.6% of all patients, 25.8% of trial discussants) enrolled. Among 2173 patients who received chemotherapy for advanced (stage III/IV lung or stage IV colorectal) cancer, 25.7% discussed trials, and 7.6% (29.5% of trial discussants) enrolled. Discussions were less frequent among older patients, African American or Asian vs white patients, and those with lower incomes and more comorbidity. Enrollment was higher among patients reporting shared vs physician-driven decisions (all P < .05).ConclusionsIn this population-based cohort, only 14% of patients discussed participation in clinical trials. Discussions were more frequent among advanced cancer patients but were still reported by a minority of patients. Strategies to expand access to trials and facilitate patient-provider communication about participation may accelerate development of better cancer therapeutics.

Background/Aims. Household air pollution in 2010 was responsible for ~3.5 million premature deaths and 500,000 through contributions to outdoor air pollution. 900,000 of these deaths occurred in In...

Background: Household air pollution is thought to be a top environmental health risk globally, and recent assessments suggest that it is the overall leading cause of DALYs in South Asia. Despite th...

After infection with LP-BM5 murine leukemia viruses, susceptible strains of mice develop a severe and progressive immunodeficiency disease, termed murine AIDS (MAIDS), features of which include markedly impaired T cell response to mitogens or specific Ag stimulation and decreased production of IL-2. Since an elevation of intracellular calcium concentration resulting from binding of Ag to the TCR is associated with IL-2 production, T cells from mice either uninfected or infected with LP-BM5 murine leukemia viruses were examined by a calcium mobilization assay. Both CD4+ and CD8+ T cells from infected mice manifested impaired calcium mobilization responses upon in vitro stimulation with anti-CD3 mAb or Con A. The abnormalities appeared early after virus inoculation and showed no difference in time course between subsets of T cells. Frequencies of prestimulation calcium-positive cells among both CD4+ and CD8+ cells in mice with MAIDS were significantly higher than those for uninfected mice. These abnormalities were associated with presence of the MAIDS-inducing defective virus genome, but were not induced by infection of mice genetically resistant to development of MAIDS or with nonpathogenic helper murine leukemia virus, a virus component that induces high spontaneous proliferation of T cells, even in MAIDS-resistant mice.

Phonon modes found in low frequency Raman scattering from $CdS_{1-x}Se_x$ nanocrystals embedded in borosilicate glass arising from confined acoustic phonons are investigated. In addition to the breathing modes and quadrupolar modes, two additional modes are found in the spectra. In order to assign the new modes, confined acoustic phonon frequencies are calculated using CFM, CSM and the Lamb model. Based on the ratio of the frequencies of the new modes to those of the quadrupolar mode, the new modes are assigned to first overtone of the quadrupolar mode (l=2, n=1) and l=1, n=0 torsional mode. The appearance of the forbidden torsional mode is attributed to nonspherical appearance shape of the nanoparticle found from high-resolution TEM., Comment: 18 pages

This is a case report of 26 years old pregnant woman with multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR TB), treated at outpatient department of New Delhi Tuberculosis (NDTB) Centre, India with second line agents. Before presentation at NDTB Centre, she had been treated with first line drugs for approximately one and-a-half-year, including category II re-treatment DOTS regimen under RNTCP. Patient conceived twice during her anti-TB treatment. The first one was during her category II treatment, when put on second line drugs. We describe congenital abnormalities documented in her second child exposed in-utero to second line anti-tubercular drugs with a brief review of treatment of MDR TB in pregnancy.

Strong deformation potential (DP) dominated Raman spectra are reported for quantum confined cubic ZnS nanoclusters under off-resonance conditions allowed only in quantum dots. A flurry of zone boundary phonons is demonstrated in the scattering process. Transverse optic (TO) mode in the multi-phonon process shows only even order overtones suggesting the dominance of a two-phonon process (having large DP value in ZnS) and its integral multiples. Two-phonon TO modes corresponding to A1 and B2 symmetries are also demonstrated under off-resonance conditions which are allowed only in quantum dots., Comment: 14 pages, 4 figures, Submitted in Journal

Thirty isolates of Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. ciceri were isolated from rhizosphere soil of chickpea from different locations in Northern India. The amount of genetic variation was evaluated by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification with a set of 40 RAPD primers and 2 IGS primers. Less than 10% of the amplified fragments in each case were polymorphic. Genetic similarity between each of the isolates was calculated and results indicate that there was little genetic variability among the isolates collected from the different locations. At the 0.75 similarity index the isolates divides into three groups. Isolates Foc-A18, Foc-A19, Foc-A20 forming a similar group and far different from other isolates.Key words: Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. ciceri, Fusarium wilt of chickpea, RAPD, ITS, IGS.

Gaps in our current understanding and quantification of biomass carbon stocks, particularly in tropics, lead to large uncertainty in future projections of the terrestrial carbon balance. We use the recently published GlobBiomass data set of forest above‐ground biomass (AGB) density for the year 2010, obtained from multiple remote sensing and in situ observations at 100 m spatial resolution to evaluate AGB estimated by nine dynamic global vegetation models (DGVMs). The global total forest AGB of the nine DGVMs is 365 ± 66 Pg C, the spread corresponding to the standard deviation between models, compared to 275 Pg C with an uncertainty of ~13.5% from GlobBiomass. Model‐data discrepancy in total forest AGB can be attributed to their discrepancies in the AGB density and/or forest area. While DGVMs represent the global spatial gradients of AGB density reasonably well, they only have modest ability to reproduce the regional spatial gradients of AGB density at scales below 1000 km. The 95th percentile of AGB density (AGB95) in tropics can be considered as the potential maximum of AGB density which can be reached for a given annual precipitation. GlobBiomass data show local deficits of AGB density compared to the AGB95, particularly in transitional and/or wet regions in tropics. We hypothesize that local human disturbances cause more AGB density deficits from GlobBiomass than from DGVMs, which rarely represent human disturbances. We then analyse empirical relationships between AGB density deficits and forest cover changes, population density, burned areas and livestock density. Regression analysis indicated that more than 40% of the spatial variance of AGB density deficits in South America and Africa can be explained; in Southeast Asia, these factors explain only ~25%. This result suggests TRENDY v6 DGVMs tend to underestimate biomass loss from diverse and widespread anthropogenic disturbances, and as a result overestimate turnover time in AGB.

OBJECTIVE: To compare processes and outcomes of four public-private mix (PPM) projects on DOTS implementation for tuberculosis (TB) control in New Delhi, India; Ho Chi Minh City, Viet Nam; Nairobi, Kenya; and Pune, India. METHODS: Cross-project analysis of secondary data from separate project evaluations was used. Differences among PPM project sites in impact on TB control (change in case detection, treatment outcomes and equity in access) were correlated with differences in chosen intervention strategies and structural conditions. FINDINGS: The analysis suggests that an effective intervention package should include the following provider-side components: (1) orienting private providers (PPs) and the staff of the national TB programme (NTP); (2) improving the referral and information system through simple practical tools; (3) the NTP adequately supervising and monitoring PPs; and (4) the NTP providing free anti-TB drugs to patients treated in the private sector. CONCLUSION: Getting such an intervention package to work requires that the NTP be strongly committed to supporting, supervising and evaluating PPM projects. Further, using a local nongovernmental organization or a medical association as an intermediary may facilitate collaboration. Investing time and effort to ensure that sufficient dialogue takes place among all stakeholders is important to help build trust and achieve a high level of agreement.

Screening of drug-resistant variants is very important for the effective clinical management of HIV-infected patients and development of new strategies. The present study was aimed to detect codon-184 mutations in the pol-gene of HIV leading to resistance to lamivudine (3-TC) by nested cum ARMS-PCR approach in 10 treated and 9 treatment naive patients. For correlation the whole blood CD4/CD8 cell counts and the soluble TNFRII levels in plasma were also determined. Of the 19 patients tested, mutant variants were observed in 2 patients (Met Val in one and Met Vallle in second) both being treated with 3-TC. No mutations were detected in the treatment-naive patients. The results confirmed that, drug resistant variants of codon-184 emerge rapidly in patients receiving 3-TC containing regimens including our population, which is mainly infected with subtypeC of the virus that could be detected along with wild viral population using sensitive approaches such as ARMS-PCR.

Understanding and quantifying the global methane (CH4) budget is important for assessing realistic pathways to mitigate climate change. Atmospheric emissions and concentrations of CH4 continue to increase, making CH4 the second most important human-influenced greenhouse gas in terms of climate forcing, after carbon dioxide (CO2). The relative importance of CH4 compared to CO2 depends on its shorter atmospheric lifetime, stronger warming potential, and variations in atmospheric growth rate over the past decade, the causes of which are still debated. Two major challenges in reducing uncertainties in the atmospheric growth rate arise from the variety of geographically overlapping CH4 sources and from the destruction of CH4 by short-lived hydroxyl radicals (OH). To address these challenges, we have established a consortium of multidisciplinary scientists under the umbrella of the Global Carbon Project to synthesize and stimulate new research aimed at improving and regularly updating the global methane budget. Following Saunois et al. (2016), we present here the second version of the living review paper dedicated to the decadal methane budget, integrating results of top-down studies (atmospheric observations within an atmospheric inverse-modelling framework) and bottom-up estimates (including process-based models for estimating land surface emissions and atmospheric chemistry, inventories of anthropogenic emissions, and data-driven extrapolations). For the 2008–2017 decade, global methane emissions are estimated by atmospheric inversions (a top-down approach) to be 576 Tg CH4 yr−1 (range 550–594, corresponding to the minimum and maximum estimates of the model ensemble). Of this total, 359 Tg CH4 yr−1 or ∼ 60 % is attributed to anthropogenic sources, that is emissions caused by direct human activity (i.e. anthropogenic emissions; range 336–376 Tg CH4 yr−1 or 50 %–65 %). The mean annual total emission for the new decade (2008–2017) is 29 Tg CH4 yr−1 larger than our estimate for the previous decade (2000–2009), and 24 Tg CH4 yr−1 larger than the one reported in the previous budget for 2003–2012 (Saunois et al., 2016). Since 2012, global CH4 emissions have been tracking the warmest scenarios assessed by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Bottom-up methods suggest almost 30 % larger global emissions (737 Tg CH4 yr−1, range 594–881) than top-down inversion methods. Indeed, bottom-up estimates for natural sources such as natural wetlands, other inland water systems, and geological sources are higher than top-down estimates. The atmospheric constraints on the top-down budget suggest that at least some of these bottom-up emissions are overestimated. The latitudinal distribution of atmospheric observation-based emissions indicates a predominance of tropical emissions (∼ 65 % of the global budget

Evapotranspiration (ET) is critical in linking global water, carbon and energy cycles. However, direct measurement of global terrestrial ET is not feasible. Here, we first reviewed the basic theory and state-of-the-art approaches for estimating global terrestrial ET, including remote-sensing-based physical models, machine-learning algorithms and land surface models (LSMs). We then utilized 4 remote-sensing-based physical models, 2 machine-learning algorithms and 14 LSMs to analyze the spatial and temporal variations in global terrestrial ET. The results showed that the ensemble means of annual global terrestrial ET estimated by these three categories of approaches agreed well, with values ranging from 589.6 mm yr−1 (6.56×104 km3 yr−1) to 617.1 mm yr−1 (6.87×104 km3 yr−1). For the period from 1982 to 2011, both the ensembles of remote-sensing-based physical models and machine-learning algorithms suggested increasing trends in global terrestrial ET (0.62 mm yr−2 with a significance level of p0.05), although many of the individual LSMs reproduced an increasing trend. Nevertheless, all 20 models used in this study showed that anthropogenic Earth greening had a positive role in increasing terrestrial ET. The concurrent small interannual variability, i.e., relative stability, found in all estimates of global terrestrial ET, suggests that a potential planetary boundary exists in regulating global terrestrial ET, with the value of this boundary being around 600 mm yr−1. Uncertainties among approaches were identified in specific regions, particularly in the Amazon Basin and arid/semiarid regions. Improvements in parameterizing water stress and canopy dynamics, the utilization of new available satellite retrievals and deep-learning methods, and model–data fusion will advance our predictive understanding of global terrestrial ET.

As scavengers of recalcitrant polymers in the nature, filamentous fungi are excellent secretors of proteins outside the growing mycelium. This characteristic has been targeted and systematically improved in industrially-exploited production strains. Over the last five years there has been a significant shift from one-gene-at-a-time approaches to wider understanding of the organism, made possible, for example by gene array and proteome technologies that can now also be applied to filamentous fungi. This has presented novel opportunities for studies into gene regulation under specific conditions such as a particular carbon source or developmental stage with a view of advancing the basic knowledge and gaining information that can be applied for strain and process improvement. Filamentous fungi offer enormous potential for efficient and large scale production of heterologous gene products. Importantly, protein secretion provides a platform for the eukaryotic style post-translational modification of gene products. Fungi are cheap to cultivate and down-stream processing is made easy with no need to break cells open for product recovery. In order to capitalize on fungi as heterologous production hosts, research is now directed to revealing the cellular mechanisms for internal protein quality control, secretion stress, functional genomics of protein expression and secretion, protein modification and linking the physiology to productivity.

Several data base machine architectures have been proposed in the past few years. The next generation of these machines must support different data models on the same physical data simultaneously as envisaged in the ANSI/X3/SPARC report or the coexistence model. This thesis presents the architectural features of one such data base machine called Well Connected Relational Computer (WCRC). The overall architecture and the facilities to the user as well as the DBA have been described. A framework for the conceptual level and detailed design of the internal level are reported. The algorithms for schema conversion and view translation have been developed. The conceptual level language, WCRL is extended to accommodate data definition, data manipulation and storage definition facilities. A high level language, DBAL, is developed for the DBA. Two binary storage structures (Pseudo Canonical Partitions (PCP's - Options I and II) have been reported for storing the data at the internal level. They radically differ from the conventional n-ary relational storage structure. A machine oriented language (WCRML) is developed to directly execute the data base instructions in hardware on the PCP storage structures. The basic hardware organization of the internal level along with special hardware units for some data base functions such as join and sort have been reported. Finally, a performance evaluation of WCRC storage structures has been presented. The results indicate that WCRC requires lesser storage and offers faster query response time when compared to architectures based on n-ary relation storage. Master of Engineering (ME)

Trichoderma spp. comprise common soil Hyphomycetes found in all climate zones ranging from Antarctica to the tropics (Domsch et al. 1980). Characteristic of the genus Trichoderma is the ability to effectively degrade a range of natural polymers, especially cellulose and hemicellulose, which also provides foundation for the commercial uses of Trichoderma. The taxonomy of the genus Trichoderma has been and still is under some dispute, however, the basis being on the work of Rifai (1969) assigning the Trichoderma strains to nine species aggregates differentiated primarily by patterns of conidiophore branching and conidium morphology. Recent studies have used DNA fingerprinting, restriction fragment length polymorphism and amplification, and ITS sequencing to further clarify the taxonomy of Trichoderma (revieved in Gams and Bissett 1998; Lieckfeldt et al. 1998). This analysis has revealed that the industrially most relevant species, Trichoderma reesei, is an anamorph of the species Hypocrea jecorina. A genetically well-defined lineage of strains originating from the isolate QM6a was classified as T. reesei and all current biotechnologically relevant strains are derivatives of QM6a (see Nevalainen et al. 1994), which is a unique situation.