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AbstractHydrogen mixing and distribution in a nuclear power plant containment during a postulated severe accident is a phenomenon with high safety relevance for current and advanced light water reactors. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)/Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA) SESAR Thermal-Hydraulics (SETH) project was carried out to generate experimental data on basic containment phenomena with the required instrumentation to assess computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and lumped parameter codes.In this paper, we analyze the PANDA SETH Test 16 of the OECD/NEA SETH project using containmentFOAM, which is a tailored open-source CFD code package for containment analysis developed at Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH based on OpenFOAM.® SETH Test 16 addressed steam-air mixture transport driven by jets and plumes in the multicompartment PANDA facility (two vessels and an interconnecting pipe) at the Paul Scherrer Institut in Switzerland. Steam as a wall plume was injected at 0.040 kg/s and 140°C in vessel 1, which was initially filled with dry air at 108°C. The steam-air mixture was vented out from the top of vessel 2. The system pressure was constant at 1.3 bar for the whole test duration (4000 s).To simulate SETH Test 16, the k-ω shear stress transport turbulence model was adopted with the generalized gradient diffusive hypothesis buoyancy turbulence model. The simulation represented the experimental phenomenology reasonably well. The trends for the calculated temperature distribution were similar to those of the experiments and only yielded a slight discrepancy of about 2.7%. In addition, the distribution of the steam molar fraction was well predicted above the injection tube in vessel 1. However, below the injection tube in vessel 1, some discrepancies between the simulations and the experimental results were observed. These may have been caused by the higher turbulent mass diffusivity in the physical model and the challenge of the mesh resolution in the middle region of vessel 1. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Context: Studies of distribution and habitat utilisation of sympatric animals, especially those experiencing population increases, are useful for understanding their specialised habitat niches and interspecies relationships, in addition to developing effective protection strategies. Aims: As a species that lives within the range of the giant panda, the sambar population has been increasing in the past few decades in Southwest China. In this paper, we aimed to analyse the overlap in habitat area and habitat suitability between giant panda and sambar in Wolong National Nature Reserve to examine potential sympatric species competition in the context of wildlife conservation. Methods: We ran MaxEnt models based on giant panda occurrence sign locations (n = 316) and sambar presence locations (n = 598). In addition, we predicted the core and secondary habitat for the two species to assess the degree of competition across a gradient of habitat conditions. Key results: Our analysis detected significant habitat overlap between the two species – up to 75.96% in their potential habitat, with suitability overlap indices reaching 0.74. Conclusions: These results indicate that the similarity of habitat requirements of the two species is high in our study area. In addition, the competition over space utilisation between the two species' populations could intensify in the future as the sambar population increases. Implications: Our results suggest that habitat restoration and corridor construction could be recommended as conservation strategies for future wildlife conservation in China's Giant Panda National Park. Moreover, future wildlife conservation should pay greater attention to the niche overlap and interspecific competition among sympatric species. We suggest strengthening habitat restoration and corridors for all key species in the region, not just giant pandas, to alleviate the increased competition associated with niche overlap among sympatric species. We analysed overlap in the habitat area and habitat suitability between giant panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) and sambar (Rusa unicolor) to examine potential sympatric species competition. The results indicate that the similarity of habitat requirements between the two species is high. In addition, the competition for space use among populations of the two species could intensify as the sambar population increases. Niche overlap and interspecific competition between sympatric species should be a stronger focus in endangered species conservation. We suggest strengthening the habitat restoration and establishment of corridors for all key species to alleviate the increased competition associated with niche overlap among sympatric species. Photograph by camera trap. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Franka Emika robots have gained significant popularity in research and education due to their exceptional versatility and advanced capabilities. This work introduces panda-py — a Python interface and framework designed to empower Franka Emika robotics with accessible and efficient programming. The panda-py interface enhances the usability of Franka Emika robots, enabling researchers and educators to interact with them more effectively. By leveraging Python’s simplicity and readability, users can quickly grasp the necessary programming concepts for robot control and manipulation. Moreover, integrating panda-py with other widely used Python packages in domains such as computer vision and machine learning amplifies the robot’s capabilities. Researchers can seamlessly leverage the vast ecosystem of Python libraries, thereby enabling advanced perception, decision-making, and control functionalities. This compatibility facilitates the efficient development of sophisticated robotic applications, integrating state-of-the-art techniques from diverse domains.

Carbon isotopic analysis has been challenging our ideas about hominin diet for nearly 30 years. The first study in 1994 revealed that Paranthropus robustus from South Africa consumed principally C 3 foods (e.g., tree fruits and leaves) but also about 25% C 4 /CAM resources (e.g., tropical grasses and sedges). This result was largely consistent with morphological and dental microwear evidence suggesting P. robustus had a diet which included hard objects like nuts and seeds. Decades later, however, P. boisei from eastern Africa was shown to have eaten nearly 80% C 4 /CAM plants like the contemporaneous grass-eating primate Theropithecus. Moreover, dental microwear revealed no evidence of hard object consumption in P. boisei , suggesting a diet of tough foods such as grass or sedge leaf and stem. So Paranthropus presents us with two central problems: 1) Why do dietary proxies suggest different diets for the two robust australopiths despite their morphological congruity; and 2) How could P. boisei have consumed tough foods with teeth that seem unsuited to the task. Here we review these questions and more with a particular focus on new isotopic data from the Omo and insights that can be gleaned from mammals outside the haplorrhine primates. We argue that extant Primates do not capture the ecomorphological diversity of P. boisei and other extinct primates and should not narrowly circumscribe the behaviors we ascribe to extinct taxa. We also discuss possible digestive strategies for P. boisei in light of its morphology, dietary proxy data, food mechanical properties, and comparative data on mammalian digestive kinetics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyses the precarity of tourism in viral pandemic times through an analysis of animal-human relations in China's panda and valley tourism at Dajiuzhai. Drawing on a tour to Dajiuzhai to see giant pandas and the valleys of Jiuzhai, which was disrupted midway by increased viral infections, we trace ethnographically how disruptions in tourism emerge in the micro-setting of a single viral-hit tour and highlight the roles of natural agents, pandas, valleys and virus play, alongside humans in tourism's fluid assemblages. Desire/wish to encounter pandas motivated the formation of a fluid constellation of tourism objects, species and humans, which was aligned towards the goal of a stable tourism experience but persistently disturbed. Animal-human relation-based tourism assemblage at Dajiuzhai was found to be a fluid spatiality that coped with Covid-19 disruptions through responses at attractions involving health checks and declarations but remained precarious despite its transformational potentialities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper describes the assessment of the significance of the displacement of the points of the deformation structure (object) by the geodetic method of deformation analysis using the PANDA software package. According to the pre-assumed displacement and the measurement plan, the data of length measurements in two different time epochs were simulated. and the intensity and direction of deformation were assessed using the PANDA program. Within the deformation assessment, different assessment strategies were analyzed, through a one - and two - step procedure. In both cases, the expected agreement of the displacement estimate with the pre-assumed value was reached.

[Display omitted] • Synergistic nitrite supply enhances temperature resilience of anammox system. • An NRR of 0.12 kgN/m3·d-1 and an NRE of 92.5 % were achieved at 10.6 °C. • Stable PD (NAR ≥ 90 %) results in the CNR of anammox reaching at 97.8 %. • Nitrosomonas , Thauera , and Candidatus_Kuenenia are the predominant genera responsible for nitrite supply and nitrogen removal. Rare earth elements result in substantial tailings wastewater with high ammonium and nitrate during extraction. In this study, a temperature-resilient Anammox process was employed for efficient treatment of rare earth element tailings wastewater through implementing synergistic nitrite supply by partial nitritation (PN) and partial denitrification (PD). Enhancing temperature resilience of Anammox process relies on dynamic management of DO and COD inputs to shift the dominant nitrite supplier from PN to PD, stable PD (NAR ≥ 90 %) can boost nitrogen removal by Anammox to 97.8 %. The nitrogen removal rate and nitrogen removal efficiency at 10.6 °C could maintain at 0.12 kgN/m3·d-1 and 92.5 %, respectively. Microbial analysis reveals that Nitrosomonas , Thauera , and Candidatus_Kuenenia are the predominant genera responsible for nitrite supply and nitrogen removal, localized within the gas channels of granules, flocs, and micro-granules, respectively. Keeping the influent C/NO 3 –−N ratio below 1.7 is ideal to prevent overgrowth of Thauera and maintain system stability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we present our approach to systematically measure numerous performance parameters of microchannel plate photomultiplier tubes. The experimental setups, the analyses and selected results are discussed. Although the techniques used may be different in other locations, the document is intended as a guide for comparable measurements with other types of microchannel plate photomultiplier tubes. Measurements are shown for the following performance parameters: spectral and spatial quantum efficiency, collection efficiency, gain as a function of voltage, position and magnetic field, time resolution, rate capability and lifetime. By using a dedicated 3-axis stepper and an FPGA-based data acquisition system, also inner PMT parameters are measured as a function of the active area, such as relative detection efficiency, dark count rate, time resolution, recoil electron and afterpulse distributions, as well as charge sharing and electronic crosstalk. In addition, some of the parameters are investigated inside a strong magnetic field. For many of these measurements, the change of most setup parameters and the subsequent analysis can be controlled semi-automatically by software scripts. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The International Mouse Phenotyping Consortium (IMPC) is building a catalogue of mammalian gene function by producing and phenotyping a knockout mouse line for every protein-coding gene. To date, the IMPC has generated and characterised 5186 mutant lines. One-third of the lines have been found to be non-viable and over 300 new mouse models of human disease have been identified thus far. While current bioinformatics efforts are focused on translating results to better understand human disease processes, IMPC data also aids understanding genetic function and processes in other species. Here we show, using gorilla genomic data, how genes essential to development in mice can be used to help assess the potentially deleterious impact of gene variants in other species. This type of analyses could be used to select optimal breeders in endangered species to maintain or increase fitness and avoid variants associated to impaired-health phenotypes or loss-of-function mutations in genes of critical importance. We also show, using selected examples from various mammal species, how IMPC data can aid in the identification of candidate genes for studying a condition of interest, deliver information about the mechanisms involved, or support predictions for the function of genes that may play a role in adaptation. With genotyping costs decreasing and the continued improvements of bioinformatics tools, the analyses we demonstrate can be routinely applied.

TP53 encodes a major tumor suppressor protein which blocks carcinogenesis process in a variety of tissues including breast tissue. Expression and function of this gene is regulated by a number of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) among them are PANDA, MEG3 and CASC2. We measured expression of TP53 and these transcripts in a cohort of Iranian breast cancer patients. Expression levels of TP53, MEG3, CASC2 and PANDA were significantly lower in tumoral samples compared with non-tumoral samples (Posterior mean differences = −4.26, −1.66, −5.98 and −3.13, respectively; P values < 0.0001). Expression of CASC2 was higher in Her2 1+ cases compared with Her2 negative cases (Beta = 1.85, P value = 0.037). Expression levels of MEG3 and TP53 were lower in grade 2 samples compared with grade 1 (Beta = −1.86, P value = 0.006 and Beta = −2.24, P value = 0.003, respectively). There was no other significant association between expression of genes and clinical variables. CASC2 had the best performance among these genes with area under curve value of 0.78 and sensitivity and specificity values of 56.33% and 88.73%, respectively (P value < 0.0001). The current investigation supports the role of TP53-related lncRNAs in the pathogenesis of breast cancer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

From the perspective of inter-cultural communication, this paper analyzed the framework and content of dozens of reports written by five mainstream media organizations in Germany on the arrival of two Chinese giant pandas, their daily activities, and giving birth from 2017 to 2020. The results show that the mainstream media reports in Germany on the birth of twin cubs of the Sichuan giant pandas before and after their arrival in Germany were predominantly based on a cultural framework. In addition, these reports had positive or neutral tones. This shows that the giant panda international scientific research cooperation between China and foreign countries also has great significance in inter-cultural communication and people-to-people exchanges.

Studies have shown that the specific entry of peripheral cells into the brain parenchyma caused by BBB injury and the imbalance of the immune microenvironment in the brain are closely related to the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Because of the difficulty of obtaining data inside the brain, it is urgent to find out the relationship between the peripheral and intracerebral data and their influence on the development of AD by machine learning methods. However, in the actual algorithm design, it is still a challenge to extract relevant information from a variety of data to establish a complete and accurate regulatory network. In order to overcome the above difficulties, we presented a method based on a message passing model (Passing Attributes between Networks for Data Assimilation, PANDA) to discover the correlation between internal and external brain by the BBB injury-related genes, and further explore their regulatory mechanism of the brain immune environment for AD pathology. The Biological analysis of the results showed that pathways such as immune response pathway, inflammatory response pathway and chemokine signaling pathway are closely related to the pathogenesis of AD. Especially, some significant genes such as RELA, LAMA4, PPBP were found play certain roles in the injury of BBB and the change of permeability in AD patients, thus leading to the change of immune microenvironment in AD brain. • Analyze how BBB injury-related genes affect the changes in the brain immune microenvironment of AD. • Use the PANDA algorithm to calculate the regulatory relationship between multiple biological data. • Found that RELA, LAMA4, PPBP, etc. play certain roles in the BBB injury of AD patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

INTRODUCTION: Les technologies mobiles en santé sont de plus en plus utilisées comme solutions innovantes pour améliorer les services de soins prénatals (SPN) dans les soins de première ligne. Cette étude a évalué l´acceptabilité et la satisfaction de l´utilisation du système Pregnancy and Newborn Diagnostic Assessment PANDA lors des SPN au Burkina Faso. METHODES: une étude transversale utilisant une approche mixte a été menée auprès de 35 utilisatrices des SPN et de 35 agents de santé dans le district sanitaire de Koupéla, dans la région du Centre-Est du Burkina Faso en septembre 2017. Des entretiens et 4 focus groups ont été réalisés auprès des utilisatrices des SPN et des d´entretiens semi-structurés auprès des professionnels de soin. L´analyse des données quantitatives a été effectuée avec le logitiel SPSS et les données qualitatives à l´aide d´une analyse thématique avec Nvivo 10. RESULTATS: le système PANDA a été très bien accepté et très apprécié par les utilisatrices et les prestataires de soins. Les motifs de satisfaction chez les utilisatrices étaient l´amélioration des échanges avec les prestataires de soin et l´accès à des soins de meilleure qualité à moindre coût. Les agents de santé ont apprécié la pertinence du système PANDA et l´amélioration des prestations fournies, du suivi et de la prise en charge des femmes enceintes. CONCLUSION: le système PANDA est très bien accepté et apprécié au niveau des soins primaires aussi bien par les prestataires de soins que par les utilisatrices de services de soins prénataux au Burkina Faso.

A subgroup of patients treated with infliximab lose response to the treatment and one reason for this is the development of anti-drug antibodies (ADA). If used optimally, measuring drug and ADA level could lead to a more personalized and efficient treatment regime, and enable identification of ADA-positive patients before the underlying disease flares or allergic reactions occur. With the use of a drug-tolerant ADA assay which can detect ADA irrespective of drug levels in the sample, we determined the impact of ADA on treatment failure to infliximab. The aims of this study were to estimate the real-life optimal serum infliximab (sIFX) level and set a clinical threshold value for a drug-tolerant ADA assay. Trough levels of sIFX were measured with ELISA. Free ADA was measured with two drug-sensitive methods (ELISA and a bioassay) and one drug-tolerant method (PandA). Two real-life cohorts treated with infliximab were included; a cross-sectional cohort including patients with inflammatory rheumatic diseases (n = 270) and a prospective cohort of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients (n = 73) followed for 1 year. Normal range of sIFX was estimated from the prospective cohort and an arbitrary optimal drug level was set to be between 1 and 6 μg/mL. Using this range, optimal sIFX was found in only 60% (163/270) of the patients in the cross-sectional cohort. These patients had significantly better treatment response than those with a drug level under 1 μg/mL, who had an ADA frequency of 34% (19/56) using the drug-tolerant method. In the prospective cohort, the drug-tolerant assay could identify 34% (53/155 samples) as ADA positive in samples with sIFX level >0.2 μg/mL. ADA were seldom detected in patients with >1 μg/mL sIFX, with three interesting exceptions. A clinically relevant ADA threshold was determined to be >3 RECL as measured with the drug-tolerant assay. In a real-life setting, there was a substantial number of patients with suboptimal drug levels and a proportion of these had ADA. Both too low and too high drug levels correlated with worse disease, but for different reasons. Adding a drug-tolerant assay enabled detection of ADA earlier and regardless of drug level at time of sampling.

The next launch of the LHC involves using much more resources than GRID can provide. To solve this problem, ALICE is engaged in a project to expand the existing computing model in order to include additional resources in it, for example, Titan supercomputer. This article explores the interaction technology of the AliEn computing environment and the Titan supercomputer located in the Oak Ridge Leadership Computing Facility (OLCF). This technology uses the PanDA (Production and Distributed Analysis System) WMS (Workload management system) to send jobs to the Titan batch processing queue and local data management. Through PanDA and Titan, the ALICE experiment at the Large Hadron Collider receive new resources to fulfill the assigned tasks. This implementation was tested using ALICE jobs. AliEn (ALIce ENvironment) is a distributed computing environment developed for the ALICE Offline project. It allows access to distributed computing resources and storage resources for all participants of the ALICE experiment at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC). Currently, AliEn allows to processing jobs on approximately 100,000 computing processors used in more than 80 GRID sites around the world. The architecture of the computing environment is 99% composed of imported components with open source, which makes possible to use the functionality without changing them. To connect AliEn and Grid infrastructure, used VOBOX service, which allows you to run your own services on computer sites, and also provides direct interaction with the batch processing queue for launching jobs.

Introduction: mobile health technologies are increasingly being used as innovative solutions to improve antenatal care in Primary Care Services (PCSs). This study assessed the acceptability and satisfaction with PANDA system used in PCSs in Burkina Faso. Methods: we conducted a cross-sectional mixed-methods study of 35 users of PCSs and 35 health workers in the Koupela Health District, in the Central East region of Burkina Faso in September 2017. Interviews and 4 focus groups were conducted among PCSs users and semistructured interviews among health-care professionals. Quantitative data analysis was carried out using the SPSS software and qualitative data analysis using a thematic analysis with NVivo 10. Results: PANDA system was very well accepted and appreciated by users and healthcare providers. Factors influencing customer satisfaction included the improvement of interactions with health care providers and the access to better quality care at lower cost. Health care providers appreciated the relevance of PANDA system as well as service improvements, follow-up and monitoring of pregnant women. Conclusion: in primary healthcare system in Burkina Faso, PANDA system is very well accepted and appreciated by both health care providers and users of prenatal care services. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A subgroup of patients treated with infliximab lose response to the treatment and one reason for this is the development of anti-drug antibodies (ADA). If used optimally, measuring drug and ADA level could lead to a more personalized and efficient treatment regime, and enable identification of ADA-positive patients before the underlying disease flares or allergic reactions occur. With the use of a drug-tolerant ADA assay which can detect ADA irrespective of drug levels in the sample, we determined the impact of ADA on treatment failure to infliximab. The aims of this study were to estimate the real-life optimal serum infliximab (sIFX) level and set a clinical threshold value for a drug-tolerant ADA assay. Trough levels of sIFX were measured with ELISA. Free ADA was measured with two drug-sensitive methods (ELISA and a bioassay) and one drug-tolerant method (PandA). Two real-life cohorts treated with infliximab were included; a cross-sectional cohort including patients with inflammatory rheumatic diseases (n = 270) and a prospective cohort of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients (n = 73) followed for 1 year. Normal range of sIFX was estimated from the prospective cohort and an arbitrary optimal drug level was set to be between 1 and 6 μg/mL. Using this range, optimal sIFX was found in only 60% (163/270) of the patients in the cross-sectional cohort. These patients had significantly better treatment response than those with a drug level under 1 μg/mL, who had an ADA frequency of 34% (19/56) using the drug-tolerant method. In the prospective cohort, the drug-tolerant assay could identify 34% (53/155 samples) as ADA positive in samples with sIFX level >0.2 μg/mL. ADA were seldom detected in patients with >1 μg/mL sIFX, with three interesting exceptions. A clinically relevant ADA threshold was determined to be >3 RECL as measured with the drug-tolerant assay. In a real-life setting, there was a substantial number of patients with suboptimal drug levels and a proportion of these had ADA. Both too low and too high drug levels correlated with worse disease, but for different reasons. Adding a drug-tolerant assay enabled detection of ADA earlier and regardless of drug level at time of sampling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Single-event upsets (SEUs) affecting the configuration memory of a 28-nm field-programmable gate array (FPGA) have been studied through experiments and Monte Carlo modeling. This FPGA will be used in the front-end electronics of the electromagnetic calorimeter in PANDA (Antiproton Annihilation at Darmstadt), an upcoming hadron-physics experiment. Results from proton and neutron irradiations of the FPGA are presented and shown to be in agreement with previous experimental results. To estimate the mean time between SEUs during operation of PANDA, a Geant4-based Monte Carlo model of the phenomenon has been used. This model describes the energy deposition by particles in a silicon volume, the subsequent drift and diffusion of charges in the FPGA memory cell, and the eventual collection of charges in the sensitive regions of the cell. The values of the two free parameters of the model, the sensitive volume side d = 87 nm and the critical charge Qcrit = 0.23 fC, were determined by fitting the model to the experimental data. The results of the model agree well with both the proton and neutron data and are also shown to correctly predict the cross sections for upsets induced by other particles. The model-predicted energy dependence of the cross section for neutron-induced upsets has been used to estimate the rate of SEUs during initial operation of PANDA. At a luminosity of 1 ⋅ 1031 cm−2 s−1, the predicted mean time between upsets (MTBU) is between 120 and 170 h per FPGA, depending on the beam momentum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Applying a constructive journalistic paradigm, we examined how the Chinese media digitalized panda diplomacy on Twitter. By analyzing English-language, panda-themed tweets (N = 855) posted by Chinese state-owned media (Xinhua News Agency, People's Daily, and CGTN) in 2017, we identified content types and communication engagement practices that contributed to Chinese digital diplomacy. Our findings confirm that the practice of panda engagement online is highly politicized in the context of China's public diplomacy. Chinese media outlets use Twitter (a) to spread official discourse and views in the diplomatic arena to strengthen the government's impact and (b) to accrue sympathy capital and increase attractiveness through strategic placement of imagery (e.g. static images, moving gifs, and video clips) and textual narrative. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The second article of the series on megaprojects presents FAIR prospects for seamless experimentation across the nuclear landscape, and more; FAIR offers facilities to explore exotic plasma, nuclei and materials! Details of the scientific programme, technological challenges, present status and future plans of FAIR are presented. India's role as the third largest contributing country in FAIR GmbH is highlighted. Outreach activities and avenues to work in FAIR are discussed in detail. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the PANDA experiment at the FAIR facility at GSI two DIRC (Detection of Internally Reflected Cherenkov light) detectors will be used for π / K separation up to 4 GeV/c. Due to their location in a high magnetic field and other stringent requirements like high detection efficiency, low dark count rate, radiation hardness, long lifetime and good timing, MCP-PMTs (microchannel-plate photomultiplier) were the best choice of photon sensors for the DIRC detectors in the PANDA experiment. This paper will present the performance of some of the latest 2 × 2 inch 2 MCP-PMTs from Photek and Photonis, including the first mass production tubes for the PANDA Barrel DIRC from Photonis. Performance parameters like the collection efficiency (CE), quantum efficiency (QE), and gain homogeneity were determined. The effect of magnetic fields on some properties like gain and charge cloud width was investigated as well. Apart from that the spatial distribution of many internal parameters like time resolution, dark count rate, afterpulse ratio, charge sharing crosstalk and recoil electrons were measured simultaneously with a multihit capable DAQ system. The latest generation of Photonis MCP-PMTs shows a unexpected "escalation" effect where the MCP-PMT itself produces photons. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The H2P5 series investigated the impact of the spray configuration in the containment. • The test H2P5_1 used a spray ring with nine nozzles, and H2P5_2 used a single nozzle. • The different spray configurations had a meaningful impact on the phenomenology. • The mixing of a predefined helium stratification was significantly faster in H2P5_2. • The more intense wall-to-droplet interaction in H2P5_1 slowed down the cooling process. The spray safety system is one of the most effective solutions to limit the pressure and temperature rise in the containment of a nuclear power plant during a design basis accident. However, its actuation under severe accident conditions may have either a positive effect on the hydrogen risk by mixing the containment atmosphere and avoiding high H2 local concentrations or a negative impact by condensing the steam and de-inerting the atmosphere. The experiments performed during the OECD/NEA HYMERES-2 Project aimed to extend the experimental database dedicated to assessing the capabilities of the codes used to optimise the operation of the safety systems. Specifically, the H2P5 series consisted of two experiments that compared the activation of a central full cone spraying nozzle (H2P5_2) with nine smaller spraying nozzles, eight equally distributed at 0.5 m from the metallic walls of PANDA (H2P5_1). The ninth nozzle was positioned in the vessel vertical axis for the latter configuration. H2P5_1 was the first experiment ever using a multiple nozzle configuration in PANDA, which was aimed to address the conditions expected in a plant containment with droplets interacting with the vessel walls as well as with each other. The measurements indicated a considerable difference between the two configurations regarding the pressure and temperature decay, which signified the presence of non-adiabatic effects. The stronger cooling of the walls measured during H2P5_1 resulted in a slower depressurisation for most of the test duration. This can be explained by an intensified interaction of the injected droplets (by direct droplet-wall interactions or by potential formations of liquid films) and the vessel walls, which was coherent with the use of the spray ring in H2P5_1. It was also shown that the different spray configurations (type of nozzles and nozzles distribution) had a significant impact on the gas mixing. The measurements of the mass spectrometer available during the tests revealed a non-obvious initial faster mixing for the single nozzle experiment, which is approximately five times faster compared with the nozzle array. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Phylogenetic analyses of nuclear and mitochondrial genomes indicate that polar bears captured the brown bear mitochondrial genome 160,000 years ago, leading to an extinction of the original polar bear mitochondrial genome. However, mitochondrial DNA occasionally integrates into the nuclear genome, forming pseudogenes called numts (nuclear mitochondrial integrations). Screening the polar bear genome identified only 13 numts. Genomic analyses of two additional ursine bears and giant panda indicate that all except one of the discovered numts entered the bear lineage at least 14 million years ago. However, short read genome assemblies might lead to an under-representation of numts or other repetitive sequences. Our findings suggest low integration rates of numts in bears and a loss of the original polar bear mitochondrial genome.

Radiation-induced absorption (RIA) is investigated at $ \lambda = {1.55}~ \mu \text{m}$ in technologically improved pure-silica-core (PSC) PANDAs, in which we minimized drawing-induced silica network strain. The results of the steady-state $\gamma $ - and pulsed-X-ray irradiations are compared with those obtained earlier on former, non-optimized PSC PANDAs. It is found that the technological improvements have resulted in nearly complete suppression of the most deleterious RIA band at ~1 eV to drastically improve the radiation resistance of the PSC PANDAs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) have established roles in the pathogenesis of diverse human disorders including neuropsychiatric disorders.Methods: In the current study, we evaluated expression levels of six apoptosis-related lncRNAs (CCAT2, TUG1, PANDA, NEAT1, FAS-AS1 and OIP5-AS1) in the peripheral blood of bipolar disorder (BD) patients and healthy subjects to assess their contribution in the pathogenesis of BD.Results: CCAT2, TUG1 and PANDA were up-regulated in total BD patients compared with total healthy subjects (P values = 0.006, <0.001 and 0.004 respectively) while OIP5-AS1 was down-regulated (P = 0.001). When expression levels of these genes were compared between patients and sex-matched healthy subjects, CCAT2 and TUG1 expression levels were only different in male subgroups; while PANDA expression was different in both male and female subgroups compared with the corresponding control subgroups. Transcript levels of lncRNAs were not correlated with any of demographic or clinical parameters of BD patients or controls after adjustment for gender. Pairwise correlations between expression levels of lncRNAs followed a disease-dependent manner. Based on receiver operating characteristic curves, among the assessed lncRNAs TUG1 had the highest diagnostic power in BD. Combination of transcript levels of CCAT2, TUG1, PANDA and OIP5-AS1 improved both sensitivity and specificity resulting in diagnostic power of 0.96.Conclusion: Our data demonstrated a possible role of certain lncRNAs in the pathogenesis of BD and potentiated them as diagnostic markers in this disorder. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR), a pathologic diminution of the rate of fetal growth, has been associated with alterations in expression of several genes. However, the role of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) in its pathogenesis has not been studied. Methods: In this study we evaluated the expression of four lncRNAs namely, nuclear paraspeckle assembly transcript (NEAT1), taurine up-regulated 1 (TUG1), p21-associated ncRNA DNA damage-activated (PANDA), and metastasis-associated lung adenocarcinoma transcript-1 (MALAT1) in placenta samples obtained from IUGR and normal pregnancies to determine their possible contributions in the pathogenesis of IUGR. Results: We found no significant differences in expression levels between cases and controls. We also found no correlation between expression and clinical data of study participants; however, we found significant correlations between expression levels of all the assessed lncRNAs in both cases and controls. Conclusions: These results imply the existence of a possible shared regulatory mechanism for the expression of these transcripts in placenta. Future studies are needed to perform such evaluations in larger sample sizes or in animal models in earlier stages of pregnancy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) have been considered to be prospective biomarkers for diagnosing lung cancer due to the fundamental roles they hold in the regulating several cancer-related pathways. Methods: Using the quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction method, we evaluated the expression of CCAT2, UCA1, PANDA and GHET1 lncRNAs in 32 lung cancer tissue samples and their corresponding adjacent noncancerous tissues (ANCTs) from lung cancer patients admitted to the Labbafi-Nejad Hospital from 2015 to 2016. Results: No significant differences were found in the expression of lncRNAs within the tumoral and nontumoral tissue samples. Bayesian Multilevel analysis showed no association between the expression of lncRNAs and the patient's tumor node metastasis (TNM) stage following adjustments for age. Spearman correlation analysis revealed an inverse correlation between the expression of PANDA in tumoral tissues and age. Additionally, the difference in CCAT2 expression among the tumoral and non-tumoral tissues was inversely correlated with patients' age. Significant pairwise correlations were found between the expression of lncRNAs in both the tumoral and non-tumoral tissues. Conclusions: Despite the findings supporting a role for the lncRNAs, CCAT2, UCA1, PANDA and GHET1 in the pathogenesis of lung cancer, our data suggests no relationship for expression of these lncRNAs in lung cancer, questioning their potential as lung cancer biomarkers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) constitute a large proportion of human transcriptome and are involved in fundamental aspects of neurodevelopment. In the present study, we evaluated expression levels of three lncRNAs, namely, Nuclear Paraspeckle Assembly Transcript 1 (NEAT1), p21-associated ncRNA DNA damage-activated (PANDA), and taurine-upregulated gene 1 (TUG1), in peripheral blood of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) patients compared with those in healthy subjects. We found a significant upregulation of NEAT1 and TUG1 in ASD patients. In addition, relative expressions of the pairs of lncRNAs were significantly correlated in both patients and healthy subjects. However, expressions of these lncRNAs were not correlated with age of study participants. The present study provides further evidences for dysregulation of lncRNAs in ASD patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights • Complex experiments in PANDA have been designed using planning calculations with GOTHIC. • A multi-step procedure has been developed to reproduce the main phenomena. • The experiments confirmed the main trends predicted by the planning calculations. Abstract The evaluation of the hydrogen risk and mitigation measures is increasingly based on the three-dimensional analyses of the distribution of gases and steam in the containment. Currently, simulations are thus carried out with advanced computational tools, including CFD codes, which require extensive validation using detailed measurements in large-scale facilities. However, since these facilities were designed for specific geometries and accident conditions, global scaling criteria are of limited use for designing new experiments addressing 3-D phenomena in different geometries and for different scenarios. Therefore, planning calculations are required to ensure that the tests are representative of expected plant conditions during hypothetical accidental transients. In this paper, a multi-step methodology (from plant to rig) for designing two types of tests in the PANDA facility within the OECD/NEA HYMERES project is illustrated. The first type of experiments addressed the interaction of flows and temperature fields produced by two PARs (Passive Autocatalytic Recombiners) at different elevations in some region of a generic containment in presence of wall condensation. The second type of experiments addressed natural circulation and gas distribution in a generic two-room geometry. The main results of the two series of experiments that were designed using the outcome of this work have been reported in two papers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights • We demonstrated over-expression of NEAT1, PANDA and TUG1 lncRNAs in peripheral blood of MS patients compared with matched healthy subjects. • All three lncRNAs have been significantly over-expressed in MS patients compared with healthy subjects. • Significant correlations were found between expression levels of these three lncRNAs in the patients group. • NEAT1 expression was inversely correlated with age at onset and disease duration in female patients. • PANDA expression was inversely correlated with disease duration in female patients. • The present study provides further evidences for the role of lncRNAs in pathogenesis of MS. Abstract Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic autoimmune disorder in which dysregulation or aberrant expressions of several immune-related genes have been noted. More recently, the participation of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) in regulation of immune responses has been highlighted. In the present study, we evaluated expression levels of three lncRNAs named Nuclear Paraspeckle Assembly Transcript 1 (NEAT1), P21 associated ncRNA DNA damage activated (PANDA) and Taurine-up-regulated gene 1 (TUG1) in peripheral blood of 50 relapsing-remitting MS patients and 50 matched healthy subjects. All three lncRNAs have been significantly over-expressed in MS patients compared with healthy subjects. In addition, significant correlations were found between expression levels of these three lncRNAs in the patients group. NEAT1 expression was inversely correlated with age at onset and disease duration in female patients. Moreover, TUG1 expression was inversely correlated with disease duration in female patients. The present study provides further evidences for the role of lncRNAs in pathogenesis of MS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the appearance of steam, the CFD modeling of thermal-hydraulic phenomena in reactor containments during various phases of an accident necessarily requires consideration of radiative heat transfer. These radiation phenomena involve (i) energy transfer within the gas mixture and (ii) between the gas and the surrounding structures which have a much higher thermal inertia. Preliminary calculations performed for the present experiments in the OECD/NEA HYMERES-2 project with the CFD code containmentFoam using a Monte Carlo thermal radiation solver with non-gray gas modeling of steam absorption, showed that radiant heat transfer is important even with a very low amount of steam (≈ 2%). Therefore, the test matrix was tailored to the two opposite extremes: Either gas compositions with low steam content, where radiative heat transfer can be neglected, or gas mixtures containing larger amounts of steam, so that radiative heat transfer plays a dominant role. For the two selected experiments within the H2P2 series and the corresponding CFD calculations, a vessel with a diameter of 4 m and a height of 8 m was preconditioned with different mixtures of air/steam at room and elevated temperatures. This was followed by the build-up of a stable helium stratification in the upper part of the vessel. Helium was then injected from the top at a higher mass flow rate, which (a) compresses the gas atmosphere, (b) resembles piston compression and (c) leads to a height-dependent and transient increase in gas temperature below this helium stratification, influenced by thermal radiation effects — or their absence. These experiments and the associated CFD calculations were developed to isolate the thermal radiation phenomena as much as possible from convective and diffusive effects. They are the first of their kind to be conducted in a large-scale thermal-hydraulic facility. It is demonstrated (a) that neglecting thermal radiation for the high steam content case, the temperature rise is significantly over-predicted by a factor of two compared to the application of the suggested Monte Carlo thermal radiation solver with non-gray gas modeling, (b) the computational effort considering CFD and non-gray gas radiation is feasible with the suggested tailored Monte Carlo solver and (c) that the suggested radiation model outperforms the widespread used P1 radiation model. • Assessment of the thermal radiation effect on the modeling of containment atmosphere simulations. • The experiments were developed to isolate the radiative phenomena as much as possible from convective and diffusive effects. • They are the first of their kind to be conducted in a large-scale thermal-hydraulic facility. • It is demonstrated: – that neglecting thermal radiation, the temperature rise is significantly over-predicted and – the computational effort considering CFD and non-gray gas radiation is feasible with the suggested tailored Monte Carlo solver. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Following the Fukushima accident and its extended station blackout, attention was brought to the importance of the spent fuel pools' (SFPs) behavior in case of a prolonged loss of the cooling system. Since then, many analytical works have been performed to estimate the timing of hypothetical fuel uncovery for various SFP types. Experimentally, however, little was done to investigate issues related to the formation of a flammable gas mixture, distribution, and stratification in the SFP building itself and to some extent assess the capability for the code to correctly predict it. This paper presents the main outcomes of the Experiments on Spent Fuel Pool (ESFP) project carried out under the auspices of Swissnuclear (Framework 2012–2013) in the PANDA facility at the Paul Scherrer Institut in Switzerland. It consists of an experimental investigation focused on hydrogen concentration build-up into a SFP building during a predefined scaled scenario for different venting positions. Tests follow a two-phase scenario. Initially steam is released to mimic the boiling of the pool followed by a helium/steam mixture release to simulate the deterioration of the oxidizing spent fuel. Results shows that while the SFP building would mainly be inerted by the presence of a high concentration of steam, the volume located below the level of the pool in adjacent rooms would maintain a high air content. The interface of the two-gas mixture presents the highest risk of flammability. Additionally, it was observed that the gas mixture could become stagnant leading locally to high hydrogen concentration while steam condenses. Overall, the experiments provide relevant information for the potentially hazardous gas distribution formed in the SFP building and hints on accident management and on eventual retrofitting measures to be implemented in the SFP building.

A crucial component of distributed computing systems is network infrastructure. While networking forms the backbone of such systems, it is often the invisible partner to storage and computing resources. We propose to integrate Network Elements directly into distributed systems through the workload management layer. There are many reasons for this approach. As the complexity and demand for distributed systems grow, it is important to use existing infrastructure efficiently. For example, one could use network performance measurements in the decision making mechanisms of workload management systems. New advanced technologies allow one to programmatically define network configuration, for example SDN - Software Defined Networks. We will describe how these methods are being used within the PanDA workload management system of the ATLAS collaboration.