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Information about land surface temperature (LST) plays a crucial role in environmental studies, as it provides essential data for understanding climate patterns, assessing ecosystem health, and predicting environmental changes. Understanding the relationship between land cover types and LST is crucial across all disciplines that deal with LST data. It helps researchers identify trends in global warming, heatwaves, and cooling effects, which can influence biodiversity, agriculture, and water resources. The accuracy of LST calculations heavily depends on the quality of the data used. However, most satellite thermal data used for LST estimations are in coarse spatial resolution. This study aims to explore the complex interaction between land cover types, considering factors such as proportion and neighboring effects, and LST recalculation by integrating the estimated LST from Landsat thermal band and Spot imagery classification. A machine learning model was employed to quantify the contribution of each Spot pixel to the LST estimated from TIRS data, classifying it as either heating or cooling. The Al Morjan and Al Hamra districts in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, were used as case studies. The results showed that Spot images achieved a classification accuracy of over 95%, whereas Landsat images did not exceed 77%. The average heating and cooling factors from neighboring pixels were 1.06 and 0.96, respectively. The study demonstrates the improved spatial distribution of LST, with overall temperature increases across all land cover classes. The findings of this study could aid in identifying environmental imbalances and developing effective solutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The alarmone (p)ppGpp serves as the signalling molecule for the bacterial universal stringent response and plays a crucial role in bacterial virulence, persistence, and stress adaptation. Consequently, there is a significant focus on developing new drugs that target and modulate the levels of (p)ppGpp as a potential strategy for controlling bacterial infections. However, despite the availability of various methods for detecting (p)ppGpp, a simple and straightforward detection method is needed. In this study, we demonstrated that malachite green, a well-established compound used for phosphate detection, can directly detect (p)ppGpp and its analogues esp., pGpp. By utilizing malachite green, we identified three new inhibitors of the hydrolase activity of SpoT, one of the two RelA-SpoT homolog (RSH) proteins responsible for making and hydrolyzing (p)ppGpp in Escherichia coli. These findings highlight the convenience and practicality of malachite green, which can be widely employed in high-throughput studies to investigate (pp)pGpp in vitro and discover novel regulators of RSH proteins.

MESH1 is the metazoan homolog of bacterial SpoT, the main phosphatase that dephosphorylates and degrades (p)ppGpp, the alarmone involved in the bacterial stringent response. The functional role of MESH1 in human cells is unknown. To define the global transcriptional response to MESH1 knockdown, we employed microarrays to perform transcriptome analysis of H1975 when the MESH1 was knocked down using three independent siRNAs targeting MESH1. The changes of each gene were derived by zero-transformation, followed by filtering to derive the genes affected by MESH1 knockdown. These datasets showed the transcriptional features of the mammalian stringent response and identified a prominent TAZ repression. Thus, we performed a second experiment to determine the contribution of TAZ repression to the transcriptional response of MESH1 knockdown by comparing the effects of MESH1-knockdown gene signatures in H1975 cells transduced with control or constitutive active TAZ (TAZS89A). The transcriptional response of these two cells to MESH1 was derived by zero transformation, followed by the effects of TAZ restoration to define the contribution of TAZ repression to the transcriptome features of human stringent response. The transcriptome data will be useful for the mechanistic understanding of the functional role of MESH1 in human cancer cells.

AbstractThis study assessed sandbar-topography changes in Nakdong River Estuary. The island shorelines in the study area, including Jinwoo Island, Shinja Island, and Doyo Sandbar, were analyzed using SPOT satellite images from 2006 to 2022. Shoreline analysis via ArcGIS revealed that Jinwoo Island is expanding at 6.46 m/year towards Nulcha Island. Shinja Island’s western side is expanding at 4.76 m/year, while the eastern side is retreating at 24.41 m/year. Doyo Sandbar’s southern shoreline is retreating at 14.69 m/year, with a gradual decrease in speed. Significant topographical changes indicate that the interlinked barrier islands are undergoing deposition and erosion, altering the shoreline. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Doxa Comunicación is the property of Fundacion Universitaria San Pablo - CEU and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Abstract Background To tag large marine vertebrates, without the need to catch them, avoiding using barbs for tag retention, and precisely controlling tag location, the remote Tag Attachment Device on a pole (TADpole) was developed. This allows single-pin tags (Finmount, Wildlife Computers) to be attached to the dorsal fins of free-swimming large marine vertebrates. Results TADpole comprises a pole-mounted holster that carries a tag. It uses compressed air, and a micro-controller, to rapidly insert a stainless-steel pin through a corrodible metal retaining ring in the first tag attachment wing, the animal’s dorsal fin, and then a press fit Delrin retaining ring in the tag wing on the other side of the fin. Tagging only occurs when the trailing edge of the dorsal fin touches a trigger bar in the holster, ensuring optimal pin placement. It was developed using fins from cadavers, then trialed on briefly restrained coastal dolphins that could be followed in successive days and weeks, and then on free-swimming animals in the field. The latter showed very short touch/response intervals and highlighted the need for several iterative revisions of the pneumatic system. This resulted in reducing the total time from triggering to tag application to ~ 20 ms. Subsequent efforts expanded the TADpole’s applicability to sharks. One free-swimming Atlantic spotted dolphin, two white sharks, and one whale shark were then tagged using the TADpole. Conclusions Being able to tag free-swimming dolphins and sharks remotely and precisely with satellite-linked telemetry devices may contribute to solving conservation challenges. Sharks were easier to tag than dolphins. Dolphin touch-to-response times were 28 ms or less. Delphinid skin has unique polymodal axon bundles that project into the epidermis, perhaps a factor in their uniquely fast response, which is 10 × faster than humans. Their primary reaction to tagging is to abduct the flippers and roll the fin out of the TADpole holster. This device has the potential to deliver high-quality tag data from large vertebrates with dorsal fins without the stress and logistics associated with catch-and-release, and without the trauma of tags that use barbs for retention. It also collects a dorsal fin biopsy core.

Information about land surface temperature (LST) plays a crucial role in environmental studies, as it provides essential data for understanding climate patterns, assessing ecosystem health, and predicting environmental changes. Understanding the relationship between land cover types and LST is crucial across all disciplines that deal with LST data. It helps researchers identify trends in global warming, heatwaves, and cooling effects, which can influence biodiversity, agriculture, and water resources. The accuracy of LST calculations heavily depends on the quality of the data used. However, most satellite thermal data used for LST estimations are in coarse spatial resolution. This study aims to explore the complex interaction between land cover types, considering factors such as proportion and neighboring effects, and LST recalculation by integrating the estimated LST from Landsat thermal band and Spot imagery classification. A machine learning model was employed to quantify the contribution of each Spot pixel to the LST estimated from TIRS data, classifying it as either heating or cooling. The Al Morjan and Al Hamra districts in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, were used as case studies. The results showed that Spot images achieved a classification accuracy of over 95%, whereas Landsat images did not exceed 77%. The average heating and cooling factors from neighboring pixels were 1.06 and 0.96, respectively. The study demonstrates the improved spatial distribution of LST, with overall temperature increases across all land cover classes. The findings of this study could aid in identifying environmental imbalances and developing effective solutions.

The volatility spill-over effect of the commodity futures markets has been a matter of debate ever since the establishment of futures markets in India. The apprehensions regarding the price destabilizing role of futures trade called for overcautious regulatory supervision. The actions like suspension of contracts, bans on futures trade in certain commodities, and restrictions on trade volumes were very frequent; making the growth of the commodity futures market a chequered one. The Expert Committee appointed in 2007 to examine the effect of futures trade on commodity prices failed to make any categorical remark partly on account of the absence of long-term data. A commodity-specific analysis is much warranted as the price effect of the futures trade varies across the markets. The paper examined the volatility spill-over effect of the rubber futures market using a bivariate GARCH model with BEKK parameterization and found that there is no positive volatility spill-over from futures to spot. The weak linkage between futures trade and futures price variation further strengthens the finding. The absence of volatility spill-over from futures to spot in the case of rubber is due to the failure of the futures market to lead the spot market in pricing the commodity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For the problem of underwater single- eye non- contact measurement of fish size, it is usually necessary to measure the distance of underwater fish to obtain the three-dimensional information of its surface, this paper proposes a fish distance measurement scheme based on the laser triangulation method and conducts research on underwater laser ranging technology. According to the principle of optical path, multiple parameters need to be measured for ranging, which makes the process complex, error-prone, and slow in calculation. This paper first corrects the distortion of the image and restores its authenticity through Zhang Zhengyou's calibration method. The OpenCv open-source library is used to recognize the laser contour on the surface of the fish body, and a self-defined algorithm improves the accuracy of contour recognition. Centroid analysis is applied to the laser contour to obtain the centroid coordinates of laser brightness. By analyzing the displacement relationship between the coordinates of the laser image points and the spatial coordinates, a polynomial regression model with a one- variable fifth- order is fitted to predict the distance, simplifying the parameters. The experimental results indicate that the laser center of gravity recognition is not continuous, but can accurately identify on the fish body. The average error of the ranging model is 5. 6 mm. In 80% of the tested samples, the error of the predicted results is within 7. 0 mm, and the maximum error is within 2 cm of calibration, which meets the required accuracy for fish body distance measurement. The research suggests that this method can provide reference for further acquisition of surface three-dimensional information of fish body size. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

En el año 2023, frente a la mirada escéptica de una porción del arco político, Javier Milei se consagró presidente de Argentina. El flamante presidente inició su carrera mediática hacia el año 2016 con su participación en el programa Animales sueltos en el que su presencia histriónica causó gran protagonismo y lo convirtió en un fenómeno televisivo que se trasladó a las redes sociales. Su crítica a la casta política, observada como la responsable de la situación de crisis del país, fue ganando cada vez mayor cantidad de seguidores. Milei utilizó esta crítica a la casta para presentarse a sí mismo como outsider y realizar un llamado a los argentinos de bien para que lo acompañaran en la modificación del rumbo nacional. El objetivo de este artículo es analizar la narrativa electoral de Javier Milei en los spots oficiales, enfocándonos en la forma en que se presentó a sí mismo, construyó su adversario y lo denominó «casta» y le habló a un tipo de ciudadano conformado por los «argentinos de bien». La intención es profundizar, a partir de los mensajes electorales desplegados, las características que se confiere a sí mismo, los significados que le otorga a la casta y la forma en la que modela a su ciudadano ideal. La metodología de análisis será cualitativa y descriptiva y consistirá en el análisis de contenido de sus spots electorales entre agosto y noviembre de 2023.

Objective: To effectively solve the difficulty of observing the electron microstructure of samples with high water content. Methods: A series of samples with high water content were observed by conventional scanning electron microscope with a new mode instrument combination of semiconductor cold cooling table. Results: Under the conditions of conductive tape as matrix, voltage 5 kV, electron beam spot of 50 or 60, and cold table temperature of 4 ℃, the sample with high water content did not need to be fixed and dehydrated, and its microstructure could be directly imaged under the scanning electron microscope to observe its microstructure. The microstructure of the sample hadd no deformation phenomena such as shrinkage, stretching and distortion, which could reflect the original appearance of the sample more realistically. Conclusion: The new mode of free combination of conventional scanning electron microscope with semiconductor cold cooling table is an effective means to solve the microstructure observation of high water content samples, and is an economical, cost-effective and widely adaptable mode.

This research aims at determining and analysing the causes and consequences of desertification in the middle zone of Wadi Fatimah using satellite images, climatic data, and topographic maps. The climatic parameters such as temperature, rainfall, and global reference evapotranspiration (ET0) indicated common severe arid conditions in the study area. The CORONA images acquired in 1967 and 1979 along with the topographic map of 1971 helped define the initial morphologic features and anthropogenic regimes. Analysing the various spatial datasets implied that the inappropriate management of water resources has resulted in changes in the anthropogenic regimes in the middle zone of Wadi Fatimah. These changes have triggered a chain of desertification processes such as degradation of the vegetation biomass and wind activities. These processes have transformed 15.3 km2 of agricultural farms into abandoned lands. Nineteen km2 of bushes have disappeared as well. The degradation of both agricultural and natural vegetation has exposed soils to intense wind erosion that detaches, transports and deposits sand in areas of low elevations. Accordingly, sand accumulations have massively expanded from 16.4 km2, as monitored by 1967 CORONA images, to 40.8 km2, as monitored by SPOT in 2013. This research emphasises that the middle zone of Wadi Fatimah has been experiencing remarkable changes in its morphologic and environmental characteristics in response to serious desertification processes. These processes are strongly linked to many anthropogenic interventions. It became a necessity, then, to redefine, study and assess the various anthropogenic parameters and their relative roles in desertification processes to combat desertification hazards and enhance sustainable environmental context in the middle zone of Wadi Fatimah.

Este artículo estudia la banda sonora de algunos spots de contraste de Donald Trump que incluyen recursos de yuxtaposición musical. Anuncios que emplearon composiciones preexistentes de librería en las campañas presidenciales estadounidenses de 2016 y 2020. La técnica preferente consiste en reducir al mínimo el número de instrumentos empleados al hablar del adversario e incorporar la orquestación completa al hablar del anunciante. El silencio expresivo constituye el recurso más poderoso que tiene la música para señalar aquellas palabras o frases que, por la información que ofrecen, resumen el mensaje publicitario y electoral del spot. El candidato republicano apuesta por alternar y conjugar cambios armónicos y texturales para proyectarse como un perfil duro en el segundo fragmento del spot, en contraposición a la debilidad de los candidatos demócratas, representada en la primera parte de ataque. Aplicar cambios armónicos manteniendo los instrumentos, el ritmo y la velocidad de la música fortalece la cohesión narrativa de todos los componentes audiovisuales. La metodología empleada en este estudio se puede aplicar para observar la música en lo audiovisual fuera del ámbito electoral, e incluso fuera del ámbito de la publicidad.

Land cover is fundamental information for understanding human activities' interaction with nature. This information is derived from remotely sensed images. This study analyzes and compares tropical forested areas' land cover (LC) classification results. In this study, we use a SPOT image as the primary input. The study was conducted in Central Borneo and covered 162.60 km2. The image was processed using three algorithms, including NN-MLP, MLC, and ECHO Classifier, with three treatments (2×2, 4×4, and 6×6) sized block of pixels. The classification produces nine (9) land cover classes, i.e., Sparse vegetation area, Dense Vegetation area, Shrubland, Open Water Body, Open Land, Grassland, Mining Area, Pavement Area, and Palm Oil Area. The three algorithms can produce land cover maps with kappa and an overall accuracy value of more than 85%. However, NN-MLP has better accuracy than other algorithms (MLC and ECHO), with a kappa value of 90.72% and an overall accuracy of 93.88%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research aims at determining and analysing the causes and consequences of desertification in the middle zone of Wadi Fatimah using satellite images, climatic data, and topographic maps. The climatic parameters such as temperature, rainfall, and global reference evapotranspiration (ET0) indicated common severe arid conditions in the study area. The CORONA images acquired in 1967 and 1979 along with the topographic map of 1971 helped define the initial morphologic features and anthropogenic regimes. Analysing the various spatial datasets implied that the inappropriate management of water resources has resulted in changes in the anthropogenic regimes in the middle zone of Wadi Fatimah. These changes have triggered a chain of desertification processes such as degradation of the vegetation biomass and wind activities. These processes have transformed 15.3 km2 of agricultural farms into abandoned lands. Nineteen km2 of bushes have disappeared as well. The degradation of both agricultural and natural vegetation has exposed soils to intense wind erosion that detaches, transports and deposits sand in areas of low elevations. Accordingly, sand accumulations have massively expanded from 16.4 km2, as monitored by 1967 CORONA images, to 40.8 km2, as monitored by SPOT in 2013. This research emphasises that the middle zone of Wadi Fatimah has been experiencing remarkable changes in its morphologic and environmental characteristics in response to serious desertification processes. These processes are strongly linked to many anthropogenic interventions. It became a necessity, then, to redefine, study and assess the various anthropogenic parameters and their relative roles in desertification processes to combat desertification hazards and enhance sustainable environmental context in the middle zone of Wadi Fatimah. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article analyzes the real-time crisis in the EU natural gas market. It is shown that the crisis began in mid-2021, mainly due to omissions by regulators who set the energy transition too fast and made a mistake when assessing liquidity in the physical gas market. By refusing to conclude long-term contracts for the import of natural gas and opting for the spot market, the EU has made itself dependent on unpredictable price fluctuations for raw materials. The EU seeks at all costs to build a spot market for natural gas, the price of which is determined by the current balance of supply and demand. This goal was set because, within the framework of the climate and energy strategy of the European Union, the gas market is increasingly subordinated to servicing the electricity market. Since the spring of 2022, the development of the EU gas market has moved into a system of coordinates set by political interests and energy security considerations. The main long-term structural shifts in the European gas market were: firstly, an accelerated reorientation to LNG imports; secondly, the strengthening of the downward trend in demand; thirdly, the transition of gas prices to a higher level. Higher gas prices push up electricity prices, allowing governments to mobilize the additional financial resources needed to accelerate the green and energy transition. The forced restructuring of the European gas market and the electricity market launched the process of deindustrialization of the industrial core of the EU. The threat of deindustrialization is forcing EU member states to look for ways of non-market support for national industry, which, in principle, can push centrifugal tendencies in the EU. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Food & Machinery is the property of Food & Machinery Editorial Office and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

COVID-19 is a contagious syndrome caused by SARS Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) that requires rapid diagnostic testing to identify and manage in the affected persons, characterize epidemiology, and promptly make public health decisions and manage the virus present in the affected person and promptly make public health decisions by characterizing the epidemiology. Technical problems, especially contamination occurring during manual real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), can result in false-positive NAAT results. In some cases, RNA detection technology and antigen testing are alternatives to RT-PCR. Sequencing is vital for tracking the SARS-CoV-2 genome’s evolution, while antibody testing is beneficial for epidemiology. SARS-CoV-2 testing can be made safer, faster, and easier without losing accuracy. Continued technological advancements, including smartphone integration, will help in the current epidemic and prepare for the next. Nanotechnology-enabled progress in the health sector has aided disease and pandemic management at an early stage. These nanotechnology-based analytical tools can be used to quickly diagnose COVID-19. The SPOT system is used to diagnose the coronavirus quickly, sensibly, accurately, and with portability. The SPOT assay consists of RT-LAMP, followed by pfAgo-based target sequence detection. In addition, SPOT system was used to detect both positive and negative SARS-CoV-2 samples. This combination of speed, precision, sensitivity, and mobility will allow for cost-effective and high-volume COVID-19 testing.

The cinema-advertising influence has been studied: Cuadrado (2007) investigates both disciplines in digital technology; Jiménez and García (2011, 2012) analyze intertextuality on television or in specific creations (Mercedes class C). Applying a content analysis methodology, we intend to show this synergy, examining the promotional advertisements of the company John Lewis & Partners. Evaluating the script of these creations, we will verify that most of these spots have been elaborated following the paradigm of Syd Field, adjusting to the classic structure of construction of a story divided into three acts (approach-knot-end). Arguing, consequently, that these advertising tapes are short films. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The movement responses of juvenile fishes exposed to intermittent hypoxia mediate the effects of impaired water quality on estuarine nursery habitat function. Twenty-five juvenile spot (Leiostomus xanthurus) were implanted with hydroacoustic tags and tracked in the Neuse River Estuary (NRE), NC during multiple hypoxic episodes (dissolved oxygen, DO ≤ 2 mg L−1), while simultaneously monitoring environmental conditions at fish detection locations and at a representative mid-channel location. Mean swimming speed increased nearly ninefold under hypoxia, as fish traversed waters with low bottom DO over long distances (~ 10 km) for up to 35 h, before moving from the deeper main channel to shallow, nearshore oxygenated refuge habitats. Generalized additive models indicated that spot swimming speeds increased significantly with decreasing bottom DO and increasing depth, and were correlated with speed during the previous movement segment, though most (60–70%) of the variability in swimming speed remained unexplained. K-means clustering identified three behavioral modes: (1) slow swimming in deep water when DO was high throughout the NRE (normoxic behavior); (2) rapid and highly directed swimming that traversed deep waters with low bottom DO (hypoxia avoidance behavior); and (3) slow swimming in shallow, oxygenated waters while deeper waters remained hypoxic (refuge behavior). Despite comprising only 8.4% of the observed movements, hypoxia avoidance behavior resulted in highly conspicuous increases in swimming speed that led to large displacements of juvenile fish. The results help elucidate the specific behavioral responses of juvenile spot to intermittent hypoxia, as well as provide insight into the mechanisms by which variable DO conditions affect estuarine nursery habitat function. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Estuarine nekton (fishes, crabs, and shrimps) play key ecological roles and support valuable commercial and recreational fisheries. Long-term research programs focused on nekton can provide insight into community and population-level changes over time, but are uncommon due to funding and logistical constraints. We describe patterns and changes in a nekton assemblage from an intertidal creek in the North Inlet estuary, South Carolina, USA based on 19 years of observations. From 1984 to 2002, biweekly seine collections (approximately every 2 weeks, n = 469) were made in a pool isolated within an intertidal creek at low tide. The assemblage was composed of juvenile and small adult (mostly < 100 mm) fishes, shrimps, and crabs. The 10 most abundant species made up > 97% of the catch; these species included (in descending order): Leiostomus xanthurus, Litopenaeus setiferus, Fundulus heteroclitus, Mugil cephalus, Farfantepenaeus aztecus, Eucinostomus spp., Mugil curema, Fundulus majalis, Menidia menidia, and Brevoortia tyrannus. The assemblage exhibited a distinct seasonality across years, with peak total abundance in mid-spring, peak total biomass in late spring, and highest species richness in late summer and early fall. Total abundance and species richness showed evidence of significant increases across years, total biomass and the Shannon diversity index remained unchanged, and evenness significantly declined. The composition of the assemblage shifted during the sampling period, with the abundance of key year-round residents (F. heteroclitus, M. cephalus) decreasing and warm-season species (L. xanthurus) increasing. Most of the five metrics of the nekton assemblage and the abundances of the five top species were positively correlated with both water temperature and salinity. Direct and indirect effects of hurricanes and storm events on the hydrogeomorphology of the creek and pool were also recognized as influences on the long-term patterns and trends. Long-term (decadal) sampling programs like this can provide important baseline information, and thus insight into the influence of significant weather events and global climate change on nekton populations and their roles in ecosystem dynamics, as well as inform the management of estuaries and fisheries in the southeastern US. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent studies have demonstrated the prognostic value of spot urinary sodium (UNa+) in acutely decompensated chronic HF (ADCHF) patients. However, data on the prognostic role of UNa+ and spot urinary chloride (UCl−) in patients with advanced HF are limited. In the present prospective pilot study, we examined the predictive value of UNa+ and UCl− concentration at baseline, at 2 h and at 24 h after admission for all-cause mortality and HF rehospitalization up to 3 months post-discharge. Consecutive advanced HF patients (n = 30) admitted with ADCHF and aged > 18 years were included in the study. Loop diuretics were administered based on the natriuresis-guided algorithm recommended by the recent HF guidelines. Exclusion criteria were cardiogenic shock, acute coronary syndrome, estimated glomerular filtration rate < 15 mL/min/1.73 m2, severe hepatic dysfunction (Child–Pugh category C), and sepsis. UNa+ at baseline (Area Under the Curve (AUC) = 0.75, 95% Confidence Interval (CI) (0.58–0.93), p = 0.019) and at 2 h after admission (AUC = 0.80, 95% CI: 0.64–0.96, p = 0.005) showed good and excellent discrimination, respectively. UCl− at 2 h after admission (AUC = 0.75, 95%CI (0.57–0.93), p = 0.017) demonstrated good discrimination. In the multivariate logistic regression analysis, UNa+ at 2 h (p = 0.02) and dose of loop diuretics at admission (p = 0.03) were the only factors independently associated with the study outcome. In conclusion, UNa+ and UCl− may have a prognostic role in hospitalized advanced HF patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Signaling molecules such as indole (product of tryptophan catabolism) and (p)ppGpp (stringent response regulator) are involved in regulation of physiological processes in bacterial cells aimed to adapt to antibiotics and stresses. However, question of existence of relationship between the stringent response and indole signaling requires more detailed investigation.The aim. To study effect of stringent response regulator (p)ppGpp on indole production in Escherichia coli depending on glucose content.Materials and methods. In this work, we studied the dynamics of indole accumulation in batch cultures of parent E. coli BW25141 ((p)ppGpp+ strain) and deletion mutant BW25141∆relA∆spoT ((p)ppGpp0 strain) in glucose-mineral tryptophan-free M9 medium, as well as with 2 mM tryptophan addition. In order to study effect of starvation stress on bacterial cell ability to synthesize indole, we used a model of growth limitation by carbon substrate at two glucose concentrations, 0.1 % and 0.4 %.Results. We have shown here that (p)ppGpp absence in E. coli cells reduces their ability to produce indole in the tryptophan-free medium and significantly slows down the rate of its accumulation in the tryptophan-containing one. Low glucose concentration (0.1 %) leads to decrease in indole production by (p)ppGpp+ cells in the tryptophan-free medium. The presence of indole synthesis precursor, tryptophan, in growth medium, on the contrary, increases the production of indole at lower glucose concentration in both (p)ppGpp+ and (p)ppGpp0 strains demonstrating direct dependence of delay time for onset of indole formation on glucose content, which is more pronounced in the culture of deletion mutant unable of synthesizing (p) ppGpp. The data obtained can be interpreted as result of complex regulatory effect of catabolic repression and the stringent response caused by alarmone (p)ppGpp action on expression level of tnaCAB operon responsible for indole biosynthesis.

MESH1 is the metazoan homolog of bacterial SpoT, the main phosphatase that dephosphorylates and degrades (p)ppGpp, the alarmone involved in the bacterial stringent response. The functional role of MESH1 in human cells is unknown. To define the global transcriptional response to MESH1 knockdown, we employed microarrays to perform transcriptome analysis of H1975 when the MESH1 was knocked down using three independent siRNAs targeting MESH1. The changes of each gene were derived by zero-transformation, followed by filtering to derive the genes affected by MESH1 knockdown. These datasets showed the transcriptional features of the mammalian stringent response and identified a prominent TAZ repression. Thus, we performed a second experiment to determine the contribution of TAZ repression to the transcriptional response of MESH1 knockdown by comparing the effects of MESH1-knockdown gene signatures in H1975 cells transduced with control or constitutive active TAZ (TAZS89A). The transcriptional response of these two cells to MESH1 was derived by zero transformation, followed by the effects of TAZ restoration to define the contribution of TAZ repression to the transcriptome features of human stringent response. The transcriptome data will be useful for the mechanistic understanding of the functional role of MESH1 in human cancer cells.

Advertising is under constant change in order to adapt to the public's taste and necessities. In the last few years, there is a certain trend towards the use of emotions and ethical questioning as an advertising tool. This is called emotional marketing. Today's consumer seeks to feel identified to be connected to the brands. It's the case of the Christmas announcements of lotteries and state bets, and therefore, the chosen organization as a case study for this final project. The Christmas' Lottery has become a media and social phenomenon. Mostly since the end of the 90's, with the appearance of the famous "Calvo de la Navidad". In addition, after the effects of the 2014's campaign, there is a sustainable change on the physiological axis of the ads. This project will cover an analysis of the adverts from SE REPITE 2014-2019 Christmas announcements of lotteries and state bets, in relation to the Advertising Ethical Code made by AUTOCONTROL. The objective will be to contrast the last years' performances with the most updated Ethical Code. The analysis will reflect whether the ads default on the ethical principles. And will study the social inclusion of the Christmas' spots. Leading to conclusion, such as the default on some ethical principles through the misuse of five articles from the Ethical Code and the lack of social inclusion within the communicative arguments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The generation of Digital Elevation Models (DEMs) through stereogrammetry of optical satellite images has gained great popularity across various disciplines. For the analysis of these DEMs, it is important to understand the influence of the input data and different processing steps and parameters employed during stereo correlation. Here, we explore the effects that image texture, as well as the use of different matching algorithms (Block Matching (BM) and More Global Matching (MGM)), can have on optical DEMs derived from the flexible, open-source Ames Stereo Pipeline. Our analysis relies on a ∼2700 km 2 clip of a SPOT6 tristereo scene covering the hyperarid, vegetation-free Pocitos Basin and adjacent mountain ranges in the northwestern Argentine Andes. A large, perfectly flat salt pan (paleolake bed) that covers the center of this basin is characterized by strong contrasts in image texture, providing a unique opportunity to quantitatively study the relationship between image texture and DEM quality unaffected by topography. Our findings suggest that higher image texture, measured by panchromatic variance, leads to lower DEM uncertainty. This improvement continues up to ∼10 3 panchromatic variance, above which further improvements in DEM quality are independent of local image texture but instead may have sensor or geometric origins. Based on this behavior, we propose that image texture may serve as an important proxy of DEM quality prior to stereo correlation and can help to set adequate processing parameters. With respect to matching algorithms, we observe that MGM improves matching in low-texture areas and overall generates a smoother surface that still preserves complex, narrow (i.e., ridge and valley) features. Based on this sharper representation of the landscape, we conclude that MGM should be preferred for geomorphic applications relying on stereo-derived DEMs. However, we note that the correlation kernel selected for stereo-matching must be carefully chosen depending on local image texture, whereby larger kernels generate more accurate matches (less artifacts) at the cost of smoothing results. Overall, our analysis suggests a path forward for the processing and fusion of overlapping satellite images with suitable view-angle differences to improve final DEMs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Current live-cell imaging techniques make possible the observation of live events and the acquisition of large datasets to characterize the different parameters of the visualized events. They provide new insights into the dynamics of biological processes with unprecedented spatial and temporal resolutions. Here we describe the implementation and application of a new tool called TrackAnalyzer, accessible from Fiji and ImageJ. Our tool allows running semiautomated single-particle tracking (SPT) and subsequent motion classification, as well as quantitative analysis of diffusion and intensity for selected tracks relying on the graphical user interface (GUI) for large sets of temporal images (X–Y–T or X–Y–C–T dimensions). TrackAnalyzer also allows 3D visualization of the results as overlays of either spots, cells or end-tracks over time, along with corresponding feature extraction and further classification according to user criteria. Our analysis workflow automates the following steps: (1) spot or cell detection and filtering, (2) construction of tracks, (3) track classification and analysis (diffusion and chemotaxis), and (4) detailed analysis and visualization of all the outputs along the pipeline. All these analyses are automated and can be run in batch mode for a set of similar acquisitions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Determination of the spatio-temporal distribution of Land use and Land cover (LU/LC) is important to understand the dynamics of urbanization, agricultural abandonment, and industrialization. This study aims to create multi-temporal high-resolution LU/LC maps and analyze thematically extensive LU/LC changes using Geographic Object-Based Image Analysis (GEOBIA) and Landscape Metrics for the selected study region in the Istanbul metropolitan city of Turkey. HR SPOT 6/7 images acquired in 2009, 2013, and 2019 were used as main Earth Observation data to create LU/LC maps. Open-source geospatial data were also integrated into classification to better identify some LU/LC classes to increase total classification accuracy. Overall classification accuracy of 2009, 2013, and 2019 dated LU/LC maps are 87.45%, 88.16%, 90.74% respectively. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and Pearson correlation were used to selecting the landscape metrics and evaluate the results. PCA resulted in three principal components and the total variance was found as 87.3%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on high-precision data from the archive of the TESS space mission, a study is made of the photometric variability of the brightness of HIP 94235, a bright star belonging to the 120 million years old moving group AB Doradus. We obtained an estimate for the rotation period of the star and the amplitude of the brightness variability, as well as an estimate of 31750 m.s.h. for the spottedness parameter A in an absolute measure, substantially greater than the density of spots on the Sun. During the interval of the observations with the TESS space mission there were no manifestations of flare activity on HIP 94235, For each sector of the observations which sequentially cover one period of the star's rotation, the inverse problem of recovering maps of the surface temperature inhomogeneities of the star from the light curve was solved for the position of the active regions and to study their time evolution. The differential rotation parameter of the star ∆Ω =0.038 ± 0.07 rad/d is estimated from the relative differences in the displacements of the active regions. The results are compared with data on another young solar-type star with an exoplanet which we have studied, TOI 837, a member of the southern cluster IC 2602 with an age of 35 million years. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When challenged by starvation, bacterial organisms synthesize guanosine pentaphosphate and tetraphosphate, collectively denoted as (p)ppGpp, as second messengers to reprogram metabolism toward slower growth and enhanced stress tolerance. When starvation is alleviated, the RelA-SpoT Homolog (RSH) hydrolases downregulate (p)ppGpp, cleaving the 3'-diphosphate to produce GTP or GDP. Metazoan RSH hydrolases possess phosphatase activity responsible for converting cytoplasmic NADPH to NADH in mammalian cells. Inhibitor development for this family may therefore provide therapies to combat bacterial infection or metabolic dysregulation. Despite the availability of dozens of high-resolution structures, catalytic mechanisms of RSH hydrolases have remained poorly understood. All RSH hydrolases tightly bind a Mn 2+ near its active center, which is believed sufficient for hydrolase activity. In contrast to this notion, we demonstrate, using the (p)ppGpp hydrolase SpoT from Acinetobacter baumannii, that a second divalent cation, presumably a Mg 2+ under physiological conditions, is required for efficient catalysis. We also show that SpoT preferentially cleaves 3'-diphosphate over 3'-phosphate substrates, likely due to a key coordination between the β-phosphate and the second metal center. Metazoan RSH hydrolase replaces this β-phosphate with the side chain of an aspartate residue, thereby functioning as a phosphatase. We propose a binuclear metallohydrolase model where an invariant ED (Glu-Asp) diad, previously believed to activate the water nucleophile, instead coordinates to a Mg 2+ center. The refined molecular and evolutionary blueprint of RSH hydrolases will provide a more reliable foundation for the development of small-molecule inhibitors of this important enzyme family., Competing Interests: Conflict of interest The authors declare no conflict of interest with the contents of this article., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

When humans and robots operate in and occupy the same local space, proximity detection and proactive collision avoidance is of high importance. As legged robots, such as the Boston Dynamics (BD) Spot, start to appear in real-world application environments, ensuring safe robot-human interactions while operating in full autonomy mode becomes a critical gate-keeping technology for trust in robotic workers. Towards that problem, this article proposes a track-and-avoid architecture for legged robots that combines a visual object detection and estimation pipeline with a Nonlinear Model Predictive Controller (NMPC) based on the Optimization Engine, capable of generating trajectories that satisfy the avoidance and tracking problems in real-time operations where the computation time never exceeded 40 ms. The system is experimentally evaluated using the BD Spot, in a custom sensor and computational suite, and in fully autonomous operational conditions, for the robot-human safety scenario of quickly moving noncooperative obstacles. The results demonstrate the efficacy of the scheme in multiple scenarios where the maximum safety distance violation was only 9 cm for an obstacle moving at 2.5 m/s while affected by both state estimation and object detection uncertainty and noise.

All organisms are constantly exposed to various stresses, necessitating adaptive strategies for survival. In bacteria, the main metabolic stress-coping mechanism is the stringent response, which is triggered by the accumulation of “alarmone” (p)ppGpp to arrest proliferation and reprogram the transcriptome. The level of (p)ppGpp is regulated by its synthetase RelA and its hydrolase SpoT. MESH1 is the metazoan homolog of bacterial SpoT that regulates the bacterial stringent response by degrading the alarmone (p)ppGpp. While MESH1, like SpoT, can also dephosphorylate (p)ppGpp, mammalian cells do not have significant levels of this metabolite, and the relevant enzymatic activities and function of MESH1 have remained a mystery. Through genetic and biochemical analyses, we have solved the long-held mystery and identified MESH1 as the first mammalian cytosolic NADPH phosphatase involved in ferroptosis. Furthermore, we discovered that MESH1 removal leads to proliferation arrest, translation inhibition, and a prominent transcriptional and metabolic response. Therefore, MESH1 knockdown triggers a novel stress response with phenotypic conservation with the bacterial stringent response via distinct substrates and molecular pathways. Here, we summarize the background of the MESH1, illustrate the striking conservation of phenotypes in different organisms during evolution and discuss remaining questions in the field.

Current live-cell imaging techniques make possible the observation of live events and the acquisition of large datasets to characterize the different parameters of the visualized events. They provide new insights into the dynamics of biological processes with unprecedented spatial and temporal resolutions. Here we describe the implementation and application of a new tool called TrackAnalyzer, accessible from Fiji and ImageJ. Our tool allows running semi-automated single-particle tracking (SPT) and subsequent motion classification, as well as quantitative analysis of diffusion and intensity for selected tracks relying on the graphical user interface (GUI) for large sets of temporal images (X–Y–T or X–Y–C–T dimensions). TrackAnalyzer also allows 3D visualization of the results as overlays of either spots, cells or end-tracks over time, along with corresponding feature extraction and further classification according to user criteria. Our analysis workflow automates the following steps: (1) spot or cell detection and filtering, (2) construction of tracks, (3) track classification and analysis (diffusion and chemotaxis), and (4) detailed analysis and visualization of all the outputs along the pipeline. All these analyses are automated and can be run in batch mode for a set of similar acquisitions.

Este artículo es una reflexión sobre la influencia del cine en la publicidad comercial, concretamente del séptimo arte en los spots. Y mucho más puntual, el estudio se centrará en un caso en particular: se trata del comercial ‘Cinco años’ del coche Mercedes clase C en el que se encuentran nexos con la película protagonizada por Tom Hanks, Big. El objetivo del siguiente pretende, mediante un análisis de contenido, evidenciar que realmente existe dicha intertextualidad. Los protagonistas, la música, los temas, el eslogan… son algunas de las claves que apuntan hasta este vínculo intencionado por parte de la casa Mercedes.

La estrella del cine como prescriptor en un spot de la prestigiosa marca Chanel Nº5 no consiste solo en mostrarse expresando unas lúcidas y poéticas palabras acerca de las cualidades del producto, sino que su presencia va más allá de su perfecta dicción o de su atractivo físico. Se trata de presentar un mensaje, que de alguna manera, incorpore su imaginario al concepto narrativo del spot. En otras palabras, los prescriptores son elegidos porque sirven como especie de arquetipo y ese arquetipo (héroe) permite construir el principio del placer: el motor del deseo hacia el producto y la marca.

Global food production is being strained by extreme weather conditions, fluctuating temperatures, and geopolitics. Tomato is a staple agricultural product with tens of millions of tons produced every year worldwide. Thus, preserving the tomato plant from diseases will go a long way in reducing economical loss and boost output. Technological innovations have great potential in facilitating disease detection and control. More specifically, artificial intelligence algorithms in the form of deep learning methods have established themselves in many real-life applications in a wide range of disciplines (e.g., medicine, agriculture, or facial recognition, etc.). In this paper, we aim at applying deep transfer learning in the classification of nine tomato diseases (i.e., bacterial spot, early blight, late blight, leaf mold, mosaic virus, septoria leaf spot, spider mites, target spot, and yellow leaf curl virus) in addition to the healthy state. The approach in this work uses leaf images as input, which is fed to convolutional neural network models. No preprocessing, feature extraction, or image processing is required. Moreover, the models are based on transfer learning of well-established deep learning networks. The performance was extensively evaluated using multiple strategies for data split and a number of metrics. In addition, the experiments were repeated 10 times to account for randomness. The ten categories were classified with mean values of 99.3% precision, 99.2% F1 score, 99.1% recall, and 99.4% accuracy. Such results show that it is highly feasible to develop smartphone-based applications that can aid plant pathologists and farmers to quickly and accurately perform disease detection and subsequent control. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The formation of arc spots on cold cathodes, called arcing, is an interference factor in all kinds of plasma technical devices. It is investigated by igniting an arc in a clean atmospheric pressure Ar or Kr filling of a stainless steel vessel. It is brought into interaction by a magnetic blast field with a negatively biased commutation electrode (CE), formed by a rod with a diameter of 2 mm consisting of pure Al, Cu, Ti, or graphite; its end face is polished with diamond grinding powder. The arc commutation is observed by short‐time photography, streak camera records, and temporally highly resolved optical spectroscopy for different applied voltages. The emission of ion lines of the filling gas and of vaporized electrode material by the plasma in front of the cathode is indicating the formation of a positive space charge layer in front of its surface. It provides the ions, which induce secondary electron emission of the cathode surface and with it, the arc commutation. The commutation time tc elapsing between a signal generated by the arc plasma in front of the CE and the beginning of a current flow through the electrode increases for low voltages with increasing permittivity of a surface layer formed by electrically insulating metal oxide and decreases with increasing electrical conductivity of the layer. It is lowest for graphite without an oxide layer. On scanning electron microscope pictures, taken of the end face of the electrode after arc commutation, craters with diameters of less than 1 μm are visible. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article deals with the development of artistic and imaginative thinking, imagination and the creation of an artistic image in fine arts lessons using a graphic image. An example of a lesson for elementary school students on creating a mysterious tree image is given, which will help the teacher develop the ability of his students to see and creatively realize their ideas.

The spatial data infrastructures (SDIs) which constitute a direct link between spatial data users and the large Earth observation industry, have a leading role in establishing market opportunities in the space sector. The spatial information supplied through various forms of SDI platforms exhibits large increases in demand volatility. The users' demand is unpredictable and the market is vulnerable to high evolution shifts. We study the effect of extreme demands for a particular type of spatial information, the satellite images. Drawing on two French SDIs, GEOSUD and PEPS, we examine the shifts occurring on their platforms and assess the probability of witnessing a spike/drop in the short term of different satellite imagery schemes: the high resolution images through GEOSUD; the Landsat (U.S.), Sentinel (Europe) and SPOT (France) images through PEPS. We analyze the market stability through the two SDIs and evaluate the probability of future records by using the Records theory. The results show that the high resolution images demand through GEOSUD, for which the classical i.i.d. model fits the most, is stable. Moreover, the Yang-Nevzorov model fits to the Landsat data, due to more records concentrated beyond the first observations. The Landsat demand is the less stable out of the other three satellite images series, and the probability of having a record in the coming years is the highest. While the use of Records theory drops mathematical constraints, it offers an alternative solution to the non-applicability of the machine learning techniques and long-term memory models.