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The piggyback basin of Bezhan, southeastern Albania, was formed during the late Neogene and contains Pliocene/Pleistocene deposits. These continental deposits consist of marls, siltstones and clays separated by a thin series of lignite-seams alternating with clays (Bezhan formation). We investigated leaf fossils and dispersed pollen from marls of the upper portion of this formation. Fifty-two plant taxa comprising algae, gymnosperms, and angiosperms were recovered. Of these, at least 19% belong to extant species and less than 16% belong to taxa today extinct in western Eurasia. Tsuga is represented by three pollen taxa with affinities to modern Chinese, Japanese, and North American species. Herbaceous taxa indicative of steppe (Artemisia, Amaranthaceae) occur in low quantities (≤1%) suggesting an interglacial setting. Four vegetation units are recognised: Wet riparian and aquatic vegetation, mesic oak forest, dry sub-Mediterranean woodland, and montane conifer forest. A comparison of the Bezhan flora with well-dated Pliocene and Pleistocene floras of Italy suggests a Calabrian (late early Pleistocene) age for the upper unit. This estimate is based on the abundance of extant taxa, the absence of subtropical taxa, and threshold values of particular taxa (Tsuga, Carya). The findings are in agreement with age estimates for extant tree species from molecular studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The early Miocene was a period of major palaeogeographic reorganization in the eastern Mediterranean region, during which time the Anatolian Plateau became subaerial and several intracontinental basins intermittently became connected to the Paratethys and Mediterranean seas. In this paper, we analyse early Miocene vegetation and climate using leaf records, palynological assemblages, and fossil wood at 36 localities from western and central Turkey, most of which have precise age control based on radiometric dating and mammal faunal ages. Using the leaf flora of Güvem (Beş Konak, Keseköy), Climate Leaf-Analysis Multivariate Program (CLAMP) analyses and Köppen signatures were employed to infer a palaeoclimate typical of modern laurel forest regions. Based on the palynological records, abundance of various pollen-taxa was used as a measure of openness of vegetation and regional presence of major tree taxa. Most pollen floras are dominated by tree pollen (ranging from 85 to 98%) and indicated widespread afforestation. In the pollen diagrams, shifts in dominance from swamp forest elements (Taxodioideae) to well-drained forests (Pinaceae) indicate changes in lake levels or phases of basin development. Such shifts may have been associated with the development of more xeric forest vegetation. Wood anatomical features such as false tree rings further may indicate seasonal climate. Pollen diagrams and macrofossils reflect zonal and azonal broadleaf and needleleaf forest and extrazonal open vegetation. The latter occurred in areas with shallow soils on volcanic rocks or limestone (e.g. cycads, Dracaena), or coastal areas (herb dominance). Taxonomic composition and biogeographic affinities suggest laurel forest as a major forest biome on well-drained soils and ecotones between laurel forest and broadleaf deciduous forest biomes. A comparison with younger floras shows that these are neither more diverse nor more warmth-loving despite an increase in global temperature (Mid-Miocene Climatic Optimum) suggesting bottlenecks during previous (Oligocene) cooler times for warmth-loving taxa. • 36 floras are used to infer biomes and climate during the early Miocene of Turkey. • Dominating plant groups belong to evergreen Fagales and Coniferales. • Herbs are rare except for in coastal areas and extrazonal areas. • Laurel Forest Biome is a major forest biome in the early Miocene of Turkey. • Arboreal Pollen/Non-Arboreal Pollen ratios range between 98% and 85%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract A new unsteady aerodynamic modeling methodology for calculating transonic flutter characteristics is presented. The main idea of the methodology is to obtain the unsteady flow response to small amplitude periodic deformations of a structure over a large range of oscillation frequencies through the interpolation of the most dominant fluid dynamic modes obtained from Dynamic Mode Decomposition (DMD) of a few reference unsteady simulations at different oscillation frequencies. These simulations can be carried out by solving the Euler or RANS equations. The methodology can then be used to obtain a frequency-domain generalized aerodynamic force matrix, and stability analysis can be performed using standard flutter analysis methods such as the p - k method. The proposed methodology provides a very good estimate of the flutter boundary for the 2D Isogai airfoil and 3D AGARD 445.6 wing models, but at a lower computational cost than the traditional higher-fidelity Fluid–Structure Interaction (FSI) simulations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Previous paleobotanical work concluded that Paleogene elements of the sclerophyllous subhumid vegetation of western Eurasia and western North America were endemic to these disjunct regions, suggesting that the southern areas of the Holarctic flora were isolated at that time. Consequently, molecular studies invoked either parallel adaptation to dry climates from related ancestors, or long‐distance dispersal in explaining disjunctions between the two regions, dismissing the contemporaneous migration of dry‐adapted lineages via land bridges as unlikely.We report Vauquelinia (Rosaceae), currently endemic to western North America, in Cenozoic strata of western Eurasia. Revision of North American fossils previously assigned to Vauquelinia confirmed a single fossil‐species of Vauquelinia and one of its close relative Kageneckia.We established taxonomic relationships of fossil‐taxa using diagnostic character combinations shared with modern species and constructed a time‐calibrated phylogeny.The fossil record suggests that Vauquelinia, currently endemic to arid and subdesert environments, originated under seasonally arid climates in the Eocene of western North America and subsequently crossed the Paleogene North Atlantic land bridge (NALB) to Europe. This pattern is replicated by other sclerophyllous, dry‐adapted and warmth‐loving plants, suggesting that several of these taxa potentially crossed the North Atlantic via the NALB during Eocene times. See also the Commentary on this article by Hill & Kahn, 238: 2261–2263. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A fuzzy inference system (FIS) and a hybrid adaptive network-based fuzzy inference system (ANFIS), which combines a fuzzy inference system and a neural network, are used to predict and model longshore sediment transport (LST). The measurement data (field and experimental data) obtained from Kamphuis [1] and Smith et al. [2] were used to develop the model. The FIS and ANFIS models employ five inputs (breaking wave height, breaking wave angle, slope at the breaking point, peak wave period and median grain size) and one output (longshore sediment transport rate). The criteria used to measure the performances of the models include the bias, the root mean square error, the scatter index and the coefficients of determination and correlation. The results indicate that the ANFIS model is superior to the FIS model for predicting LST rates. To verify the ANFIS model, the model was applied to the Karaburun coastal region, which is located along the southwestern coast of the Black Sea. The LST rates obtained from the ANFIS model were compared with the field measurements, the CERC [3] formula, the Kamphuis [1] formula and the numerical model (LITPACK). The percentages of error between the measured rates and the calculated LST rates based on the ANFIS method, the CERC formula ( K sig = 0.39), the calibrated CERC formula ( K sig = 0.08), the Kamphuis [1] formula and the numerical model (LITPACK) are 6.5%, 413.9%, 6.9%, 15.3% and 18.1%, respectively. The comparison of the results suggests that the ANFIS model is superior to the FIS model for predicting LST rates and performs significantly better than the tested empirical formulas and the numerical model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The position of Turkey between Europe and Asia makes this region interesting for palaeobotanical investigations. We investigated plant macrofossils from early Miocene deposits of W Turkey (Soma, Manisa) and compiled a catalogue of revised and new plant taxa. We documented 100 fossil-taxa, of which several are new for Turkey (Mahonia aff. pseudosimplex , Ziziphus paradisiaca , Comptonia longirostris , Carya denticulata , Viscum , Fatsia , Pungiphyllum cruciatum). Some previous records are rejected (e.g. Apocynophyllum , Cassia , Castanea , Ficus , Illicium , Liriodendron , Vaccinium). Using modern ecology and taphonomy, we reconstructed palaeoenvironments. We found evidence for a belt of drier, more open habitats with cycads, Dracaena , Mahonia , Smilax miohavanensis , and others. Other vegetation units comprise swamp and riparian forest with few dominants (expressed in high abundance of leaf specimens). On well-drained soils, lowland forest with large-leaved Lauraceae vel Fagaceae and rare elements (Fatsia) was present, while humid temperate broadleaf-deciduous and conifer forest flourished higher up. To infer palaeoclimate we used the Climate Leaf Analysis Multivariate Program (CLAMP) and compared the results with other Miocene localities of Turkey. Early Miocene floras had warm climates (mean annual temperature, MAT, and coldest month temperature, CMMT) with weak precipitation seasonality. MAT and CMMT were cooler during the early middle Miocene. Several fossil-taxa at Soma have biogeographic links with older/coeval localities in C Europe and/or the W Mediterranean region (cycads, Torreya , Dracaena , Smilax miohavanensis , Mahonia aff. pseudosimplex , Carya denticulata , Ilex miodipyrena , Pungiphyllum). Few taxa have clear links to C Asian floras (Comptonia longirostris). True E Mediterranean endemics are even rarer (Mahonia spp., Quercus sosnowskyi). • We revised the early Miocene macroflora of Soma, W Turkey. • We document 100 fossil-taxa for Soma including new records for Turkey. • Using taxonomy and taphonomy (abundance, completeness) we infer palaeoenvironments. • Drier sites comprised cycads, Dracaena , and abundant and diverse Mahonia spp. • Biogeographic links are with W (cycads, Dracaena) and E (Comptonia longirostris). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Among the most prominent examples for the disjunct distribution of xeromorphic-sclerophyllous plants in Macaronesia and eastern Africa–Arabia, referred to as the Rand flora biogeographic pattern, is the “dragon tree group” within Dracaena (Asparagaceae). However, little is known about the evolutionary origin of this iconic group of semi-desertic trees. Here, we use exceptionally well-preserved fossils from western Anatolia to demonstrate range and ecological shifts of the lineage probably leading to some of the modern dragon trees. Compression fossils of apical leaf rosettes and detached leaves of Dracaena tayfunii spec. nov. were compared to modern Dracaena using the architecture of leaf-bearing branches, leaf morphology, and highly diagnostic leaf epidermal features observed with light and electron scanning microscopy. The palaeoecology of Dracaena was inferred using the depositional setting and associated plant taxa. The ca. 16million-year-old (Ma) Dracaena from western Anatolia shows a character combination restricted today to the Macaronesian dragon tree, Dracaena draco: (1) Leaves are arranged in terminal rosettes; (2) leaves are ensiform, oblong, with a conspicuously dilated base (pseudo-sheath); and (3) leaf epidermis is strongly papillate with sunken stomata overarched by papillae of four neighbouring epidermal cells. Depositional setting, taphonomy, and the fossil plant association indicate that the Miocene Dracaena either grew in seasonally dry swamps within a complex fluvial–lacustrine environment or on adjacent slopes under a humid, warm climate. Hence, semi-desertic modern dragon trees allied to D. draco displaying distinct xeromorphism may have originated from a western Eurasian mesic lineage that had evolved xeromorphic characteristics by the Miocene. The morphology of this mesic ancestor later enabled the lineage to colonize and survive in the semi-desertic environments where it is found today. The new fossil species of Dracaena represents a classic example of pre-adaptation and niche shift. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: A statistical wave model for a specific region was developed to generate long-term wave data in case of the absence of any measured data or to fill the data gaps which occur in a measurement data. Wind data, wave measurement data and a third generation numerical wave model (MIKE21 SW) were used to develop a wave model that is applicable for the research area. The aim of to use such a model is to gain a practical and quick estimation of the wave parameters by using a meteorological station’s wind parameters without having need for a sophisticated wave model which demands more complicated input parameters. In addition, previously developed wave prediction models which are less complicated should not be appropriate for every coastal zone for various reasons. Therefore, the best way to estimate the wave climate for a region is to obtain a site-specific wave model. The Karaburun coastal zone located at the southwest coast of the Black Sea was chosen as the study field. Wind, wave and water level measurements were performed to determine the field data. Wave measurements were carried out at the site by an ultrasonic and pressure type wave gauge between the dates of August 2003 and March 2005. Wave measurement data was used both for the development and calibration of the statistical wave model. The results obtained from the statistical wave model have an RMSE value of 0.29m for the significant wave heights which is very reasonable when the model is considered to be simple and demanding less input data (wind speed, wind direction and fetch length). [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This work suggests an alternative approach, namely, the use of an artificial neural network (ANN), for the estimation of longshore sediment transport (LST). The ANN technique provides a powerful utility for input-output mapping if there is sufficient data and can be useful for modeling processes about which adequate knowledge of physics is limited, such as sediment transport. A feed-forward network was developed to predict the LST from a variety of causative variables. The best network was selected after testing many alternatives. The network was validated by experimental and field data. In addition, the ANN method was applied to the case study area (Karaburun, Turkey), located on the SW coast of the Black Sea. The accuracy of the ANN predictions was evaluated against the measured LST rate at Karaburun and compared with two well-known empirical formulas (CERC formula, Kamphuis formula), and a numerical model (LITPACK). The average, net, annual LST rate for the study area was determined based on the morphological volume differences between the surveys. The volume differences were obtained from the accretion at the secondary breakwater of the harbor located at the western end of the 4-km sandy beach. The harbor acted as a total trap, and the beach surveys were extended to an adequate depth. The measured net LST rate was 72,000 m³/y, and the calculated rates were 370,000, 77,000, 83,000, 85,000, and 80,000 m³/y based on the CERC formula (Ksig = 0.39), the modified CERC formula (Ksig = 0.08), the Kamphuis formula, the LITPACK computer program, and the ANN. All methods employed in this study estimated the LST rates well, except the CERC formula. The CERC formula overestimated the LST rate by a factor of five; nevertheless, with the adjustment of the empirical Ksig value (0.39) to 0.08, the fit to the observed data improved significantly. The Kamphuis formula produced results similar to those predicted by the field data. This confirms the use of the Kamphuis formula in conditions of low-wave energy with breaker heights of less than 1 m, which correspond to the study area's wave condition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The speed and braking control of moving systems are vital engineering problem. The goal of this study, is to solve this problem by using magnetic braking and speed stabilization with eddy currents. In this study, magnetic circuit was designed to control the speed and brake of the dc motor. Maxwell which is the analysis software of magnetic circuits was used to design this circuit. Firstly, computations and analysis were done by Maxwell software. Then, magnetic circuit was designed depending on the Maxwell analysis results. A setup mechanism was developed for experiments. According to experimental results on this setup, it was shown that the magnetic circuit was correctly designed. Due to usage of this model, it was aimed to prevent energy loses caused by friction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a result of long-term changes of the wave climate, changes in spatial and temporal scales occur in coastal regions and cause coastal morphology to change. This study investigates the effect of changes in wave climate (wave height, wave period, wave direction) on longshore sediment transport (LST) at Karasu coast, located on the southwestern coast of the Black Sea. European Center for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) ERA-Interim wind data covering the period of 1979–2018 was used to obtain the wave climate of the Southwestern Black Sea coasts and to understand the dynamics of LST throughout the region. Net and gross sediment transport rates were calculated according to three different empirical and one numerical methods by using hourly significant wave heights, peak wave periods and incident wave angles. According to the 40-year wave climate data in the region, the average annual significant wave height is 0.92 m, the peak wave period is 5.53 s and the angle of wave incidence is between N-NNE sector. Waves are composed of two components; swell waves and wind waves and as a result of the study, it has been observed that swell waves have an order of magnitude larger contribution to the LST along the coast than wind waves for the respective research area, by an average factor of 12 and 17 for the net and gross LST rate, respectively. At the end of the 40-year period between 1979 and 2018, according to three different empirical and one numerical LST methods, the average net LST rate along the Karasu coast was 65,000 ± 5,000 m3/year, while the gross LST rate was 190,000 ± 20,000 m3/year. When the change of gross LST during the study period was examined, it was observed that an average decrease of 5.6% occurred. This reduction in the LST rate was observed to be associated with a 4.1% decrease in the height of the swell waves at the end of 40 years. • Swell waves have an order of magnitude larger contribution to the LST along the coast than wind waves for the respective research area Karasu, by an average factor of 12 and 17 for the net and gross LST rate, respectively. • The breaking wave height has an effect on the total LST rate, and the breaking wave angle is more effective on the net LST rate. • An impact of long-term variations of wave parameters on LST along the southwestern Black Sea was studied using time-series data with 1-h interval. • LST results obtained by empirical and numerical methods were compared with the LST result obtained qualitatively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new technique is described for the correction of complete syndactyly of the toes. In this technique, a distally-based dorsal metatarsal artery flap is used to cover one side of the released toes. The other side of the toe is covered with a laterally based dorsal toe flap. A case of complete syndactyly between the second toe and and the third toe is presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

* Premise of the study: Recent molecular studies provide a phylogenetic framework and some dated nodes for the monocot genus Smilax. The Caribbean Havanensis group of Smilax is part of a well-supported "New World clade" with a few disjunct taxa in the Old World. Although the fossil record of the genus is rich, it has been difficult to assign fossil taxa to extant groups based on their preserved morphological characters. * Methods: Leaf fossils from Europe and Asia Minor were studied comparatively and put into a phylogenetic and biogeographic context using a molecular phylogeny of the genus. * Key results: Fossils from the early Miocene of Anatolia represent a new species of Smilax with systematic affinities with the Havanensis group. The leaf type encountered in the fossil species is exclusively found in species of the Havanensis group among all modern Smilax. Scattered fossils of this type from the Miocene of Greece and Austria, previously referred to Quercus (Fagaceae), Ilex (Aquifoliaceae), and Mahonia (Berberidaceae) also belong to the new species. * Conclusions: The new Smilax provides first fossil evidence of the Havanensis group and proves that this group had a western Eurasian distribution during the Miocene. The age of the fossils is in good agreement with the (molecular-based) purported split between the Havanensis and Hispida groups within Smilax. The Miocene Smilax provides evidence that all four subclades within the "New World clade" had a disjunct intercontinental distribution during parts of the Neogene involving trans-Atlantic crossings (via floating islands or the North Atlantic land bridge) and the Beringia land bridge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We developed a high quality reconstruction of May-June precipitation for the interior region of southwestern Turkey using regional tree-ring data calibrated with meteorological data from Burdur. In this study, three new climate sensitive black pine chronologies were built. In addition to new chronologies, four previously published black pine chronologies were used for the reconstruction. Two separate reconstructions were developed. The first reconstruction used all site chronologies over the common interval AD 1813-2004. The second reconstruction used four of the chronologies with a common interval AD 1692-2004. R values of the reconstructions were 0.64 and 0.51 with RE values of 0.63 and 0.51, respectively. During the period AD 1692-1938, 41 dry and 48 wet events were found. Very dry years occurred in AD 1725, 1814, 1851, 1887, 1916, and 1923, while very wet years occurred in AD 1736, 1780, 1788, 1803, and 1892. The longest dry period was 16 years long between 1860 and 1875. We then explored relationships between the reconstructed rainfall patterns and major volcanic eruptions, and discovered that wetter than normal years occurred during or immediately after the years with the largest volcanic eruptions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Main objective of this study was to evaluate hematological, clinical and demographic features of our chronic myelomonocytic leukemia (CMML) patients according to different classification systems and prognostic variables. Thirty-seven consecutive patients with CMML diagnosed between February 1994 and December 2005 were evaluated retrospectively. Male and female ratio was 29/8. The median age at diagnosis was 72. Median follow-up time for all patients was 12 months (1-119 months). 70.3% of patients were classified as CMML-MP, others were classified as CMML-MD type according to FAB. When they were reclassified according to WHO, 86.5% of them were CMML-I and 13.5% were CMML-II. Karyotyping analysis could be made in only 22 patients. Median laboratory values were as follows: hemoglobin (Hb) 9 g/dL (range 6.1-14 g/dL), white blood cell (WBC) count 9.7 × 109/L (range1.8-157 ×00D7; 109/L), peripheral monocyte count 3.5 × 109 /L (range 1.2-50 × 109 /L), platelet count 85 × 109/L (range 6-992 × 109 /L). Splenomegaly was observed in 11 patients (29.7%). 14 patients (37.8%) developed AML after a median time of 11 months (1-90 months) and survived a median of 1.5 months after leukemia transformation. The overall survival (OS) was 12 months (MD: 12 months, MP: 25 months, p= 0.3). International Prognostic Scoring Sytem (IPSS) could be applied to only 13 CMML-MD patients (WBC < 12 × 109/L). Patients were also assessed using previously published scoring systems. Significant differencies between risk groups were found in case of OS (Modified Bournemouth score: p= 0.039, Duesseldorf score: p= 0.01, IPSS: p= 0.003). In multivariate analysis, only hemoglobine (< 10 g/dL) and bone marrow blast percentage (= 10%) have been found to have a prognostic value (p= 0.03, p= 0.002). Although use of current prognostic scoring systems is encouraging in CMML more reliable disease spesific prognostic factors are needed for clinical decision making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]